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Monday, September 03, 2012

Ferris Bueller's Day Off


Good morning, everybody, and for those of you who are observing it, I wish you all a very happy Labour Day (or Labor Day if you happen to be American).

I have to say that this Labour Day is especially going to be a great one because it is the first one since 2004 where I have not had to go in for work!  That makes this particular Labour Day even more special for me.

In fact, I think I’m going to celebrate Labour Day by doing as little labour as humanly possible.  After all, in order to get today off, I had to work seven in a row.

(I really don’t recommend working seven days in a row, by the way.)

So, considering that today is Labour Day, I thought that I would choose a movie in which someone else celebrates a day off.  Can you imagine just how enjoyable a day off can be?  Imagine having a day where you have zero responsibilities...zero commitments.  Twenty-four hours of doing whatever you want to do.  I think everyone deserves to have a day like that every now and again.

Now imagine a day where you admittedly blow off your responsibilities and your duties, and you go ahead and do what you want to do anyway.  Does that sound like fun?

And, yes, I am talking about playing hooky.


I’ll admit this right now.  I have never faked being sick in order to get out of a shift at work.  However, I’ll readily admit to skipping school a few times.  My parents would actually kill me if they ever read this, but since it’s been years since I have been in high school, I would often use my allergy symptoms to my advantage.  Yes, it’s true...I used to fake being sick on a few occasions...and since I already had sniffles from my allergies, I could be quite convincing.  Though I also admit that when I was playing hooky from school, it wasn’t necessarily due to wanting to get out of tests or major assignments.  It was more along the lines of “I don’t really want to be picked on today, so I deserve a day in which I can avoid it”. 

But that was when I was sixteen and emo.  I’ve matured since then.  But at any rate, I don’t regret skipping the odd day of school because those days really allowed me to get to know myself a little bit better.

DISCLAIMER:  This is NOT an invitation for any of you to skip school.  Though, I readily admit that my disclaimer pretty much means zip at this point...I just wanted to put it there so that I can say that I at least WARNED people not to skip school.

Anyway, today’s movie is all about a guy who just wanted to play hooky from school.  He just wanted a day off, like everyone else, and he planned to spend the day in downtown Chicago with his best friend and girlfriend.  But with so many people standing in his way to stop his fun, is there any way that he can relax and enjoy his spontaneous day off from school without being caught?

That’s the question that a teenage boy named Ferris Bueller asked himself one spring day in 1986.


The movie that we’re going to be studying is “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”.  Released on June 11, 1986, the film starred Matthew Broderick in the title role.  In fact, if my memory serves me, this movie was the one that cemented Matthew Broderick’s status on the Hollywood A-List.  But Matthew Broderick wasn’t the only person to make a name for himself by appearing in the film.  Other people who had roles in the film were Mia Sara, Alan Ruck, Jeffrey Jones, Jennifer Grey, Ben Stein, Kristy Swanson, and Charlie Sheen.

Unlike most Monday Matinee features that I have done in the past, where I leap heavily into plot discussion, I won’t really go into much detail here.  Basically, the whole movie is about Ferris Bueller skipping school, and having one last adventure before he and his friends go off to college.  There’s a lot of fourth-wall breaking, a lot of Mr. Rooney (Jones) getting himself in one precarious position after another, and a rather surprise ending that one can view upon watching the closing credits.

Oh, and of course, there’s this famous scene.


I’ll have more scenes from the movie as we go along...but seeing as how this is my day off, I didn’t really want to bore you with details of the plot when you could just watch and enjoy the movie.

But what I think I will do this time around is give you some behind the scenes information about this movie.  I’ve done this before with some of the television shows that we have talked about in this blog before, and I thought that “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” was deserving of the behind the scenes spotlight.  After all, I found out some interesting things about the casting, the filming, the soundtrack, and other miscellaneous goodies about this film classic.

It’s been twenty-six years since Ferris Bueller took his day off.  Now let’s learn about what went into the production with this list of trivia.

1 – The film opened in 1,330 theatres and made over $70 million at the box office, making it the tenth most successful film of 1986.

2 – Director John Hughes kept a spiral notebook on him to record the progress of the film as it was being shot!

3 – The reason behind John Hughes’ decision to make Chicago the primary setting for the movie was because he wanted to make the movie a “love letter to the city”, and Hughes especially wanted to capture the spirit of the city on film. 

4 – John Hughes specifically wrote the screenplay with Broderick in mind for the lead role.


5 – Initially, Hughes wanted someone older to play the role of 17-year-old Sloane Peterson, but when eighteen-year-old Mia Sara auditioned, John gave her the part on the spot.

6 – Molly Ringwald was also interested in the role, but John Hughes decided not to cast her, believing that the part was not big enough for her.  It made sense, given that Molly had just starred in “Pretty in Pink” just four months earlier.


7 – In the movie, the role of Cameron Frye was supposed to be in his late teens.  Alan Ruck, who played Cameron was 29 when he was cast.

8 – Here’s an interesting connection between Alan Ruck and Emilio Estevez.  Initially, Ruck had auditioned for the role of Bender in “The Breakfast Club”, which starred Estevez.  Although the role eventually went to Judd Nelson, Hughes remembered Ruck’s audition and cast him for the role of Cameron Frye.  To make this connection even more stunning, Emilio Estevez was originally offered the role of Cameron, but he turned it down!  Talk about great luck for Alan Ruck!

(And, no, I didn’t intentionally mean for that to rhyme.)

9 – Filming for the film began in September 1985 and lasted until November.  The iconic parade scene (featured below) was filmed on September 28, 1985.


10 – The parade scene caused a lot of apprehension for Matthew Broderick because he was nervous about performing on top of a float in front of thousands of people.  In the end, it worked out well.

11 – Funny story about that parade scene.  Would you like to know how the movie ended up getting so many people to show up?  It was all thanks to a couple of radio stations advertising the film shoot, asking people if they wanted to appear in a John Hughes movie.  Close to 10,000 people showed up!  No wonder Matthew Broderick was initially afraid!

12 – Although choreographer Kenny Ortega had taught Broderick some dance steps to perform in the film, due to a knee injury that Broderick sustained during filming, most of the routines had to be scrapped.  In fact, Broderick’s performance during the Twist and Shout segment was completely improvised.

13 – There was at least one person who wasn’t a fan of the “Twist and Shout” segment.  Paul McCartney was quoted as saying that while he liked the film, he hated that the version of the Beatles “Twist and Shout” was overdubbed with a brass band. 

14 – “Twist and Shout wasn’t the only song that appeared in the film’s soundtrack.  Other artists who contributed to the film’s soundtrack included Wayne Newton, The Dream Academy, The (English) Beat, and this song featured below.


ARTIST:  Yello
SONG:  Oh Yeah
ALBUM:  Stella
DATE RELEASED:  July 11, 1985
PEAK POSITION ON THE BILLBOARD CHARTS:  #51

15 – Matthew Broderick was nominated for a Golden Globe for his performance in the film.


16 – Contrary to what one may believe, no real 1961 Ferrari GT California convertibles were destroyed during the filming of the movie.  The ones that were damaged were replicas.

17 – Wrigley Field celebrated the 25th anniversary of the film’s release in October 2011 showed the film on three huge screens on the infield.

18 – At the 1990 commencement speech for the graduating class of Wellesley College, then First Lady Barbara Bush paraphrased a quote uttered by Ferris Bueller in the movie.  The quote was “Life moves pretty fast; if you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”

19 – A short-lived television series based on the movie once aired in 1990 on NBC.  The sitcom starred Charlie Schlatter as Ferris Bueller, and the series also starred Jennifer Aniston and Ami Dolenz.  The show only lasted half a season before getting cancelled.

20 – Matthew Broderick filmed a spoof of Ferris Bueller for a 2012 Super Bowl commercial.  To conclude this entry, let’s watch the commercial.  J


Coming up next week on the Monday Matinee, we'll be looking at a film that was released over thirty years ago that made us look at archaeologists and gigantic boulders through a different angle.

Sunday, September 02, 2012

Not Ready To Make Nice


New month.  New weekly feature.

Last month, I took the weekly Monday matinee feature, and I decided to make each one disaster themed.  It was a lot of fun, and judging from the page views, I think quite a few of you enjoyed it.  So I decided to do the same thing for September.

Instead of the Monday Matinee, I thought that I would make the Sunday Jukebox the day where we would have a weekly feature.

If you read the blog entry that I wrote on August 28, 2012, you would have found that it was based on country sweetheart Shania Twain.  And, that blog entry was actually intended as a “sneak preview” of September’s weekly feature.

For the next five weeks, I’ll be dedicating each edition of the Sunday Jukebox to the “Sweethearts of Country Music”.  Each week will feature a female country music artist, and each one will have their own stories, their own heartbreaks, their own triumphs, their own scandals, and of course, we’ll listen to at least one of their songs.

If you’re a country music fan, you’re going to love this month.  If not...well, at least the stories should keep you interested.  And, hey, there’s always October.

So, to kick off the first edition of the “Sweethearts of Country Music”, we’re going to take a look at a trio of singers who hail from Dallas, Texas.  Initially, their music was well-loved and respected by millions of people, and they sold millions of records.  However, they had one bit of controversy where they made one remark at a concert, and they ended up becoming the target of much fury and backlash.  But, do you think that they let a few jeers get them down?  Absolutely not!  In fact, they lashed out at their critics the best way they knew how...through song.

But, we’ll talk about that a little bit later.

I’m sure that some of you have figured out who the band is already that is the topic of discussion based on my opening paragraph...but for those of you who haven’t, allow me to introduce you.

The story of our band begins back in the late 1980s.  At the time, the top country music acts were Randy Travis, The Judds, and Reba McEntire.  In 1989, a group of four young women formed a band together.  The band was made up of bassist Laura Lynch, guitarist Robin Lynn Macy, and sisters Emily Erwin (Robison) and Martie Erwin (Maguire), who could play a variety of instruments.  The original style of music the band played was bluegrass, and they wanted to make it big on the country charts.  In order to do that, they needed to come up with a band name that was catchy, but memorable.  The group settled on a name that they took from a title of a Lowell George song, “Dixie Chicken”.

Of course, the “Dixie Chickens” didn’t have a nice ring to it, so the group decided to shorten the name to “Dixie Chicks”.


Anyway, the “Dixie Chicks” made a great team.  With Laura and Robin sharing lead vocals, and Emily and Martie playing such instruments as the banjo, mandolin, and fiddle, the group ended up getting their big break in 1990, when the Dixie Chicks recorded their debut album (thanks to the generous donation of Penny Cook, the daughter of a senator).  “Thank Heavens For Dale Evans” contained fourteen tracks, and went on sale later that year...but despite an appearance on the Grand Old Opry, their album failed to make an impression on country radio.

Despite this, the band did begin to build up a fan base, performing at various bluegrass festivals (they actually ended up winning the “best band” at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival), and were the opening act for several country stars, including Garth Brooks and George Strait.


By 1992, the band released their second album, “Little Ol’ Cowgirl”, which was an album that sounded more like contemporary country music.  The band developed a richer sound and modern arrangements, but the change in style proved too much for Robin Lynn Macy, who departed the band later that year.  But luckily for the Dixie Chicks, a replacement would be found courtesy of professional steel guitarist Lloyd Maines.  He introduced the Dixie Chicks to his daughter, Natalie, and gave Emily and Martie a copy of a demo tape Natalie had made.  Both Emily and Martie found that Natalie’s voice harmonized well with their own, and when the band was signed to Sony Music Entertainment in 1995, the Dixie Chicks said farewell to Laura Lynch, and hello to Natalie Maines, who became the sole lead singer for the band.

With the addition of Maines to the line-up, the band began experimenting with new sounds, and recruited a new producer, Blake Chancey, to help produce their next album.


That album was “Wide Open Spaces”, which hit record stores in January 1998.  Four singles were released from the album, three of which hit the top of the country music charts.  The album ended up selling twelve million copies worldwide, and their fan base expanded, a large percentage of which were young women.

In fact, the success of “Wide Open Spaces” was so great that the band sold more copies of the album in 1998 than most other country acts COMBINED.  The following year, the Dixie Chicks recorded the album “Fly”, which was released in the summer of 1999, which proved to be an even bigger success than “Wide Open Spaces”.  Nine singles were taken from the album, and songs such as “Ready To Run” and “Cowboy Take Me Away” did incredibly well on the charts.  The album won the band much critical acclaim and accolades.  The album was a Grammy award winning album, and continued to be named as one of the fifty best-selling albums in American history a full five years after its release date.  The album established the Dixie Chicks as a powerful force in the world of country music, and they were invited to perform at Sarah McLachlan’s “Lilith Fair” festival.

Of course, “Fly” also had a couple of controversial moments, as a couple of songs from the album ended up causing some radio stations to block them from their playlists.  The unreleased song “Sin Wagon” made references to “mattress dancing”.  And, of course, there was the song “Goodbye Earl”, which was a comedic look at an abused wife murdering her spouse.  Seriously, take a look at the video below.


Of course, the Dixie Chicks were unapologetic about the controversy, and even joked about it.  And, in this case, the controversy probably helped the band get even more publicity, which lead to more record sales.


Things became even more complicated when the Dixie Chicks got into a dispute with their record company over royalty payments, and in 2000, the band walked away from the Sony, prompting the company to sue the band for failure to complete their contract.  In turn, the Dixie Chicks retaliated with their own lawsuit.  Eventually the band settled with Sony privately, and were awarded their own record imprint, “Open Wide Records”, which allowed them more creative control and higher royalties.  At the same time, the band released their next album, “Home” in 2002, the album independently produced by Lloyd Maines.  The album didn’t do quite as well on the charts as their previous efforts, but it still ended up selling six million copies and was honoured with four Grammy Awards. 

But then in 2003, things began to crash and burn for the band, beginning with a March 10, 2003 concert appearance in London.

At that time, the group was promoting “Home”, and their song “Travelin’ Soldier” was topping the country music charts.  But it was also around that time that the United States were preparing to send American soldiers to fight in Iraq during the “War On Terror” following the September 11 terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington D.C. in 2001.  And, needless to say, the Dixie Chicks were not thrilled with then American president George W. Bush’s plan to invade Iraq.  And, well...at the concert in London, they made their feelings known.  Just before performing the song “Travelin’ Soldier”, Natalie Maines issued this statement to the crowd.

“Just so you know, we’re on the good side with y’all.  We do not want this war, this violence, and we’re ashamed that the President of the United States is from Texas.”

That was the comment that sparked a political firestorm, and sent fans into an outrage. 

Now I don’t think it was so much the fact that the band opposed the war that caused the outrage.  Certainly over the years, dozens of musical acts have opposed war and promoted peace and avoided controversy...but when the Dixie Chicks inserted that remark about George W. Bush at the end of their statement it caused things to explode.  Media outlets in America lambasted the Dixie Chicks for insulting the president on foreign soil, and despite an apology from Maines four days later, former fans began to turn on the Dixie Chicks.

The Dixie Chicks were subsequently banned from various country music stations, and were dropped by Lipton, one of their main sponsors.  Several fans turned their backs on the group, and demonstrations were held in various locations which saw former fans destroying their Dixie Chicks albums.  A few celebrities came out in support of the band, including Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, and Merle Haggard, but the Dixie Chicks continued to get chided and jeered by the media.  They even got booed at the Academy of Country Music Awards, and found themselves embroiled in a public feud with entertainer Toby Keith.  Natalie Maines herself ended up getting the worst of it, receiving death threats as a result of the controversy.

It took about three years for the band to begin writing new material for a new album, likely still trying to find a way to cope with the fact that so many people had blacklisted them.  They figured that the best way to do that was through song.


You see, despite the fact that the band made that statement, they also had feelings.  And, in my honest opinion, just because they may have made a comment that didn’t sit well with a lot of people, I don’t think it really justified having people lash out against them the way they did.  It most certainly did not warrant anyone uttering a death threat against the person who said the statement that caused the snowball effect in the press.

So, in 2006, the Dixie Chicks released their first song since the controversy erupted.  The song was written by all three members of the band, and all three members had statements that they wanted to make in regards to the song itself.  Emily knew that the song was special due to its autobiographical nature, while Martie came to a new realization about how painful that time period was.  Natalie, the Dixie Chick who ended up getting the worst of it stated that at first she was trying to tiptoe around the controversy and wondered if they should all get along...but then she realized that she wasn’t at the point in her life where she was ready to make nice just yet.

And, while we’re looking at that last statement, let’s listen to the song.


ARTIST:  The Dixie Chicks
SONG:  Not Ready To Make Nice
ALBUM:  Taking The Long Way
DATE RELEASED:  June 5, 2006
PEAK POSITION ON THE BILLBOARD CHARTS: #4

“Not Ready To Make Nice” was the Dixie Chicks response to the criticism.  I mean, think about it.  If you had fans destroying your albums and threatening your life, I would think that the last thing you would want to do is have a tea party with them and forgive them as you nibble on a slice of key lime pie.  In fact, I might be on an island of one with this comment, but I applaud the girls for sticking to their guns...and a lot of other people did as well.  Allmusic, Entertainment Weekly, Rolling Stone, and USA Today all gave the song positive reviews, and even praised the band for continuing to be themselves.  The song even won three Grammy Awards, proving that they were still a hot ticket despite being ripped apart in the media just a few years earlier.

In short, the Dixie Chicks did what not a lot of people did.  They stood up for themselves, wrote a song about it, and it became a hit.

How many people can say that?

So, that was the first week of “Sweethearts of Country Music” September.  Coming up next week on September 9th, we’ll talk about a country music superstar and her “independence day”.

Saturday, September 01, 2012

Captain Kangaroo


Can you believe that it is now the first of September? In just a few months, 2012 will be over and done with! Maybe it's just because I am getting older, but time really is flying by at an alarming rate.

I guess the lesson learned is to make every second count, and not take anything for granted.

Today happens to be Saturday, and this is the date where we talk about cartoons and educational programs, and today's subject is a fun one, because one of my earliest memories of this program comes from my days as an elementary school student.

Seeing as how it is September, and a lot of kids are either back at school or are heading back to school, I'll let you know that I used to watch this program every day before school started.

It almost became a rite of passage. Because I lived so close to my elementary school, I could stay at home until 8:30 in the morning before I had to leave for school (when I was in elementary school, classes began just before nine o'clock). So, I usually spent the morning before school began watching television. At 7:30, it was always “Inspector Gadget”...but at 8:00, I would change the channel to number 8, because there was one show that I always had to watch.

What I didn't know at the time was that at the time, the show was one of the longest running children's shows of all time. It actually debuted on October 3, 1955, and ran original episodes until the end of 1984...nearly three decades. The episodes of the show I used to watch were syndicated episodes that ran in reruns on our PBS affiliate until 1993.

So, what was the name of this program? Perhaps this opening segment from the 1960s will give you a clue.



That's right. I've decided to talk about the classic children's show, “Captain Kangaroo”.



And, Captain Kangaroo was one of those shows that had something for every girl and boy. There were cartoons, celebrity guest stars, songs, and a mischievous moose that kept dropping ping pong balls whenever he had the chance.



Silly Moose!

Anyway, Captain Kangaroo was portrayed by Bob Keeshan, and when Keeshan won the role that would make him a star in the eyes of millions of girls and boys, he already had quite a bit of show business experience. His first role in children's television was on the 1947 television show “Howdy Doody” playing Clarabell the Clown, a silent clown who communicated using horns and one of his favourite activities was spraying Buffalo Bob Smith with a seltzer bottle. Later on, he played the role of Corny the Clown on a local kids show, “Time for Fun”, and assumed the role of Tinker in the short-lived show “Tinker's Workshop”.

In fact, it was his work with “Tinker's Workshop” that ended up inspiring the creation of “Captain Kangaroo”. Keeshan and his long-time friend, Jack Miller drew up a proposal for the program to the CBS network using ideas from “Tinker's Workshop”, promoting the program as an innovate approach to children's television. Needless to say, CBS approved the program, and Keeshan stepped into the role of Captain Kangaroo.



TRIVIA: Did you know that when the show originally debuted, Captain Kangaroo wore a black jacket? It was changed to a red jacket beginning the week of May 17, 1971.

Keeshan best described Captain Kangaroo as someone that was a grandfatherly figure, and the whole point of the show was to showcase “the warm relationship between grandparents and grandchildren”. And, you know, I would definitely agree with that statement because I always felt like Captain Kangaroo could be like my grandfather. He was always so warm and friendly. I remember asking my mom if we could go and visit him one day!



Now, don't think that Captain Kangaroo hosted the show alone. He had all sorts of friends who visited him at his “Treasure House”. Now, you have already met Mr. Moose up above, but Mr. Moose also had a friend named Mr. Bunny Rabbit. Both puppets were controlled by puppeteer Cosmo Allegretti. Allegretti was also the man behind Dancing Bear and Grandfather Clock.

Other characters included the Banana Man (played by Sam Levine), and Debbie Weems as Debbie. Before Kevin Clash hit it big on Sesame Street as Elmo, he worked on Captain Kangaroo during the show's later seasons. And, John Burstein even brought his popular “Slim Goodbody” character to the program as well. In case you're wondering who “Slim Goodbody” is, have a look.



Oh, and of course, there was Mr. Green Jeans (played by Hugh “Lumpy” Brannum), who was a common fixture in the world of Captain Kangaroo. And, just to clear an urban legend up, Mr. Green Jeans did NOT father Frank Zappa. 



I always liked Mr. Green Jeans though, and I told my mother that I had wanted to meet him as well...but by that time, Mr. Green Jeans had passed away (Hugh Brannum passed away in 1987).

And, would you like to know some of the celebrities who made an appearance on the program over its 29-year-history? Here's a small list.

Shari Lewis & Lamb Chop, Ruth Buzzi, Charlotte Rae, Dr. Joyce Brothers, Phil Donahue, Marlo Thomas, Andy Griffith, Carol Channing, Dolly Parton, John Denver, John Ritter, Penny Marshall, Cindy Williams, and Andy Williams.

Perhaps some of my favourite segments in Captain Kangaroo were the cartoons and special features that aired during the program. Two of the ones I remember are these ones.

Brushing your teeth was never so much fun when you had the “Toothbrush Family” around to help you out. With an entire family of toothbrushes having a whole bunch of adventures such as rescuing someone from the drain, or waterskiing around the rim of the sink, the adventures were endless. And, who could forget the catchy theme song?



Then there was the classic segment “Picture Pages”!



Picture Pages” starred Bill Cosby as the man with the magic pen that made electronic noises each time he wrote with it. I was so enamored by that pen, and I begged my mother to see if she could get me that pen for my birthday, but alas, I never received one. So, I had to make do with drawing a face on a piece of paper, cutting it out with safety scissors, taping it onto the end of a pencil crayon, and pretending to make the same noises as the pen that Bill Cosby used. I know, I was a strange kid. But, hey, it kept me from getting into trouble.




Unbeknownst to me, the program also aired episodes of “Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings, which was one of my all-time favourite programs. The difference was that Bob Keeshan would narrate the show instead of the original narrator. For some reason, I don't remember watching episodes that featured this program, but if I had, I would have loved Captain Kangaroo even more.

And, of course, other programs such as “Ludwig” and “The Undersea Adventures of Captain Nemo” aired during Captain Kangaroo.

Captain Kangaroo was a show that had a lot of heart to it, and a lot of the reason why this was the case was because of how much Bob Keeshan cared. It's been almost nine years since Bob Keeshan passed away (he died in January 2004 at the age of 76). But, I'm sure that his legacy will continue to live on. In fact, his death may have been one of the few celebrity deaths that I shed a little tear at, because he meant a lot to me.

One final bit of trivia in regards to Bob Keeshan. Did you know that his grandson, Britton Keeshan became the youngest person in the world to climb Mount Everest in 2004? He carried pictures of his grandfather the whole climb up, and buried a photo of the two of them together on the summit.



I can't think of a better way to honour a family member. I'm sure that somewhere up there, the Captain was smiling brightly.

Friday, August 31, 2012

Dy-"Nasty" - The Catfights of Carrington Mansion


Rivalries.

I imagine that at some point, we have all had at least one rivalry with someone. Someone who for dozens of reasons end up irking you to the point where your sole mission is to destroy the other person in hopes that it will make things better.

Unfortunately, what ends up happening is that it ends up making things worse.

I'll likely admit that in my life and times, I have had a couple of rivalries with a couple of people...mostly in elementary school. There were these group of boys in my seventh grade class who made it their mission to make my life a living nightmare. They called me names, and they hurt my feelings on a number of occasions. But, not all of them were that bad. One of them I even made peace with after graduating high school. However, the ringleader of these four boys and I had a little bit of a rivalry. He hated me...and well, I'll readily admit that I hated him back. Whenever he insulted me, I tried to one-up him back (which looking back on it was quite stupid on my part, but at least I can admit to that now. It was seventh grade, after all, and I think most of us made bad choices when we were thirteen).

The only saving grace about my own rivalry with this one boy is that we never actually blew up at each other enough to inflict physical violence upon each other. Of course, in my case, the emotional scars were much more devastating than any physical scars, so I suppose it's a moot point. Happily, those scars are healing for me, and continue to do so.

The only reason why I state that I was grateful that my rivalry never resorted to physical violence is because I am proud of it. Physically attacking someone that you don't like in the world is probably one of the most cowardly things that one can do (well, unless of course you're defending yourself). But even so, watching two people fighting each other, trying to pull out the other person's hair, or knock out the other person's teeth...some may get a rush out of it, but I find it very uncomfortable in real life.

On television though, I can't seem to get enough of television catfights. There's just something about watching a huge brawl on a television show that keeps you glued to the screen. It's like a horrible car accident. It's a terrible thing to come across, but you can't divert your gaze onto something else.

And, well, today's blog topic deals with a fictional television rivalry that was so heated that there were no less than four catfights between the two women featured in the program! That's a lot of nail scratching, dress tearing, and bitch-slapping!



The show that we're going to look at is the long-running ABC drama series “Dynasty”. Premiering on January 12, 1981, “Dynasty” was a serial that was created by Richard & Esther Shapiro, and produced by Aaron Spelling. The show was originally to be titled “Oil”, and was set to air in the fall of 1980, but due to the writer's strike of 1980/81, the premiere was delayed. But with the airing of the three-hour premiere, the show began its rise to the top, staying within the Top 20 between 1981 and 1986. The show also launched the careers of several actors and actresses, including Heather Locklear, Emma Samms, Jack Coleman, and Catherine Oxenberg.

And then there are these two.


 
Meet Krystle Grant Jennings Carrington and Alexis Morrell Carrington Colby Dexter Rowan, played by Linda Evans and Joan Collins. These two women had tempers the size of their shoulder pads, and they had so much venom towards each other that just one comment could send both of them into a gigantic rage. Which was painful for the characters, but great ratings for television.

So, how did the battle between Krystle and Alexis begin?


 
Well, it all began in season two, which originally began airing in the fall of 1981. At the time, Krystle was still a newlywed to her insanely rich husband, Blake Carrington (John Forsythe). Krystle was the former secretary of Blake, and many of the storylines dealt with Krystle trying to adjust to her brand new rich, privileged life. It didn't help matters much that Krystle often sparred with Blake's daughter Fallon (Pamela Sue Martin/Emma Samms). Luckily, she did have one ally in Blake's son, Steven (Al Corley/Jack Coleman), whom she adored.

But in the second season, somebody new would end up crossing Krystle's path. Someone who would end up causing Krystle misery over the next decade.


 
That somebody was Alexis. And for Blake, Alexis was no stranger. Alexis was Blake's ex-wife, and the mother of Fallon and Steven. And, when Alexis first appeared on “Dynasty”, she did so in grand fashion, when she appeared as a surprise witness for the prosecution after Blake was charged in the murder of Steven's ex-lover. After the trial, Alexis became a presence in the lives of the Carrington family, much to the chagrin of Krystle.

At first, it was annoyances and petty bickering between the two. But one day, things would take an ugly turn. When Krystle was horseback riding, Alexis shot a rifle into the air, which spooked the horse enough to knock Krystle onto the ground. On top of that, the horse dragged her several feet as a result. Watch the clip below.


 
This accident proved very costly for Krystle, as the fall caused her to have a miscarriage. Now, I would be one to wonder why she would knowingly ride a horse if she knew she was pregnant, but again, this was the 1980s, where television characters purposely lack common sense in order to keep the ratings up.

No matter how you look at it though, the miscarriage devastated Blake and Krystle. But Krystle didn't put the pieces together until a few episodes later. Turns out that a chance encounter with someone in the kitchen helped Krystle figure out what happened...and once she knew, what followed was this memorable scene.


 
Okay, a couple of things about this catfight. First, Joan Collins has really terrible aim. She had two chances to throw a vase filled with flowers at Linda Evans, and she missed both times? Seriously? Secondly, was it just me, or did people dress really horribly in the early 1980s? I used to think that seventies fashions were bad. Yikes.

And, lastly, I have to admit, that whole catfight made me laugh uncontrollably. I don't know whether it was the flying pillow feathers, Krystle knocking Alexis out cold with one throw to the wall, or the horrible choreography, but this fight was just bad!

However, I can definitely see why Krystle would want to do severe bodily harm to Alexis. After all, if I were a woman, and I found out that someone was responsible for my miscarriage, I would probably want to go after her myself. And, this fight set the stage for many more fights during Dynasty's nine season run.

If you thought that studio fight was craziness, check out some of these other fights that these two have gotten in over the years.

Certainly those of you who were into “Dynasty” at the time remember their first catfight. But, the one fight that ended up being the most remembered among fans of the show must be this one, which takes place at a lily pond just outside of the Carrington estate. Apparently Krystle is there just minding her own business when Alexis arrives to get under her skin. She succeeds.


 
Of course, this sort of catfight has been re-created in other shows since. I can think of “Melrose Place” doing something similar ten years later...


 
...but back in the 1980s, if one wanted to see a great catfight, “Dynasty” had them in spades. I should also note though that Krystle and Alexis weren't the only ones to get involved in catfights on the show. Let's see...who else fought...

Well, there was Fallon vs. Sammy Jo...


 
...and there was Alexis vs. Dominique...


 
...and there was Alexis vs. Sable...


 
...and Krystle vs...Krystle?!?


 
(Yeah, apparently one of the Krystles was a doppleganger. Go figure.)

And, we won't even go into that whole Mordavian Massacre storyline. I'd need another blog entry to go into that storyline in detail. I never watched “Dynasty”, but I read about this story, and all I can say is...bizarre.

Of course, no duo ever came close to having as many battles as Krystle and Alexis. Their feud even outlasted the original series run! When “Dynasty” aired its last episode on May 11, 1989, people thought that would be the last that we would see of Krystle and Alexis. But when a reunion was filmed in 1991, the viewers would get at least one more chance to see these long-time enemies duke it out one last time.


 
Wow...who knew that a mannequin's arm could make such an effective weapon?

So, what has happened to these two actresses since “Dynasty” went off the air? Well, Joan Collins is still very active in the acting world. She acted in a few shows, performed in pantomimes, and was a regular on the soap opera “Guiding Light” from 2002-2003. She is also the author of several books and novels.

And Linda Evans semi-retired after she left “Dynasty” in 1989. She still acted in various plays, and even competed in (and won) the UK version of “Hell's Kitchen”. She has also hosted informercials for a product called “Rejuvenique”.

But in 2006, both Collins and Evans reunited with each other on stage to perform in the play
“Legends!”. The tour went all across North America, and ended its run in May 2007 after running for thirty weeks.

But just as life imitates art, shortly after “Legends” wrapped up, Collins published an article entitled “Why I'll Never Work With Linda Evans Again!”

Maybe that's why the catfights worked on “Dynasty”. Perhaps in real life, they hated each other...and apparently still do.


 
To conclude this piece, I'll post a link to Joan's article right HERE. Judge for yourself.

Thursday, August 30, 2012

The Last Confession? (a.k.a. I need YOUR help!)




THURSDAY CONFESSION #35: This is going to be the final Thursday Confession for the Pop Culture Addict's Guide To Life.

Oh, don't worry. I'm still continuing with the blog. I'm not pulling the plug on the whole thing...just Thursdays.

You see, I think that I have come to the conclusion that I really don't have much more to confess to all of you. For the most part, I have been an open book to all of you. I really am a person who has very few secrets, and if there is honestly one thing that I can confess to all of you, it's that my life hasn't exactly been scandalous. This is more than likely a good thing for myself, but not so much for the blog, as after thirty-five confessions, the well has essentially gone dry. That's not to say that I won't bring back this Confession feature at a later date...I very well could if something significant ever happens to me. But for now, I need an idea for a new Thursday feature. And, well...I'm going to need your help for this one.

You see...I need ideas for a new theme day, and I thought that I could ask my readers for suggestions. I'll take suggestions here, as well as on my Facebook and Google+ pages from all of you during the whole month of September, and then I'll put it to a vote. The theme day that gets the most votes will be chosen as the new Thursday theme indefinitely beginning in October.

But, for this to work...I need ideas. I am completely stumped And, I need to stop ending every sentence with an exclamation point!

So, I guess that since today is the last confession, I might as well do something to end it off on a high note...and what better way to do it than spouting off a list of ninety-two mini-confessions.

Now, you are under no obligation to do this survey yourself...at 92 questions, I don't blame you one bit for not wanting to participate! But if you really want to, I have no problem with it. I just wanted to do it for fun (and because I have a little bit of time to kill). Besides, it will allow all of you to get to know this blogger slightly better than you already do now. It's up to you to decide whether that is a good thing or not.

Anyways, here is the list of questions...my answers will be in bold.
    1. ONE OF YOUR SCARS, HOW DID YOU GET IT?
    Just click on the February 14, 2012 entry in the blog which you can access right HERE to see.

    2. WHAT IS ON THE WALLS IN YOUR ROOM?
    A couple of original prints from Archie artist Dan Parent.

    3. WHAT DOES YOUR CELL PHONE LOOK LIKE?
    It is a Samsung. I don't know the model except that it is a pay-as-you-go.

    4. WHAT MUSIC DO YOU LISTEN TO?
    I have very eclectic tastes and will listen to almost anything...except gangster rap.

    5. DO YOU KNOW WHAT TIME YOU WERE BORN?
    7:35 in the morning.

    6. WHAT DO YOU WANT MORE THAN ANYTHING RIGHT NOW?
    To improve my living conditions and career options at the same time. Not too much to ask for, is it?

    7. WHAT DO YOU MISS?
    I miss my college days...but if I have my way, I will be recreating those moments in 2013.

    8. WHAT IS YOUR MOST PRIZED POSSESSION/S?
    The 2,500+ comic books that I have accumulated over a 25 year period...and before you judge, you all knew that I was a nerd before you started reading this blog. :)

    9. WHAT IS YOUR ZODIAC SIGN?




    10. DO YOU GET CLAUSTROPHOBIC?
    Only if I am in a mosh pit, or there is a lot of people packed inside a building.

    11. DO YOU GET SCARED IN THE DARK?
    I was when I was younger...not so much now.

    12. THE LAST PERSON TO MAKE YOU CRY?
    As much as I hate admitting this, a family member.

    13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE COLOGNE / PERFUME?
    Never wear it, and I believe some perfumes make me sneeze.

    14. WHAT KIND OF HAIR/EYE COLOR DO YOU LIKE ON THE OPPOSITE SEX?
    No importance to me whatsoever.

    15. WHERE CAN YOU SEE YOURSELF BEING PROPOSED TO?
    I would think that I would do the proposing, but if someone proposed to me, I wouldn't care where it was. Well, okay, maybe not a garbage dump.

    16. COFFEE OR ENERGY DRINK?
    Blecch. Neither.

    17. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PIZZA TOPPING?
    Pepperoni, Cheese, Bacon Bits, Mushrooms.

    18. IF YOU CAN EAT ANYTHING RIGHT NOW, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
    The wonderful combination of peanut butter and chocolate.

    19. WHO IS THE LAST PERSON YOU MADE MAD?
    A cop-out, but I made myself mad recently. 

    21. WHAT WAS THE FIRST GIFT SOMEONE EVER GAVE YOU?
    My baby blanket...which I still have 31 years later.

    22. DO YOU LIKE ANYBODY?
    I like a lot of people...loving them is the challenge for me.

    23. ARE YOU DOUBLE JOINTED?
    Nope.

    24. FAVORITE CLOTHING BRAND?
    If it fits me, I like it.

    25. WHAT'S YOUR DREAM CAR?
    A Smart Car. (don't laugh, I'm serious.)

    26. DO YOU HAVE A PET RIGHT NOW?
    Not since July 2010.

    27. WHAT KIND IS IT?
    I used to have a cat. He passed away though.

    28. WOULD YOU FALL IN LOVE KNOWING THAT THE PERSON IS LEAVING?
    You'd have to define leaving first...are they going to school? Going to war? Going to die? Need more info. 

    29. WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO TELL SOMEONE HOW MUCH THEY MEAN TO YOU?
    Expressing it through words and feelings. Which I need work on, admittedly.

    30. SAY A NUMBER FROM ONE TO A HUNDRED:




    31. BLONDES OR BRUNETTES?
    Is this like a Betty vs. Veronica type question? Makes no difference to me.

    32. WHAT IS THE ONE NUMBER YOU CALL OFTEN?
    The order desk at the company that ships my store milk. What a life I live...LOL!

    33. WHAT ANNOYS YOU MOST?
    Intolerance and cruelty towards others.

    34. HAVE YOU BEEN OUT OF YOUR COUNTRY?
    Yes. Just recently, matter of fact.

    35. YOUR WEAKNESSES?
    Battling low self-esteem for the better parts of two decades. I am turning that into a strength though.

    36. FIRST JOB?
    Painting fences.

    37. EVER DONE A PRANK CALL?
    Everyone must have done at least one!

    38. WHAT WHERE YOU DOING BEFORE YOU FILLED OUT THIS?
    Trying to figure out what to do this confession on...

    39. IF YOU COULD GET PLASTIC SURGERY WHAT WOULD IT BE?
    At this point in time, I don't need any. Am very anti plastic surgery anyway.

    40. WHY DID YOU FILL OUT THIS SURVEY?
    To kill time and to add things to this blog entry.

    41. WHAT DO YOU GET COMPLIMENTED ABOUT MOST?
    My acerbic wit. Or, so I would like to think.

    42. WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF ALCOHOL BECAME ILLEGAL?
    I rarely drink, so it wouldn't be an issue for me.

    43. WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR YOUR BIRTHDAY?
    I'd like a huge party, to tell you the truth. It's been years since I had a proper birthday celebration.

    44. HOW MANY KIDS DO YOU WANT?
    At least one.

    45. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
    Um...yeah...the #1 name for boys for 1981.

    46. DO YOU WISH ON STARS?
    No, I wish FOR stars...I wish for Snooki to disappear, for instance.

    47. WHAT DID YOU DO THIS MORNING?
    Wrote this.

    48. WHAT DID YOU LAST EAT?




    49. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
    Yes...and apparently I have been told that for a man, I have immaculate penmanship. Not bragging either, that is truth.

    50. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT?
    Turkey.

    51. ANY BAD HABITS?
    Okay...I admit that I bite my fingernails, and I am trying to kick that habit.

    52. WHAT IS YOUR MOST EMBARRASSING CD ON THE SHELF?




    53. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON, WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
    I think I could be now...ten years ago, not a chance.

    54. HAVE YOU EVER TOLD A SECRET YOU SWORE NOT TO TELL?
    No...but if I knew it was one that was putting my friend in danger the longer it was kept, I'd blab it.

    55. DO LOOKS MATTER?
    Not as much as personality. A person could be a Cover Girl model and have an ugly disposition.

    56. HOW DO YOU RELEASE ANGER?
    In spurts. I was one who kept it bottled up inside. Didn't work.

    57. WHERE IS YOUR SECOND HOME?
    I'm still trying to find my FIRST home!

    58. WHAT ARE YOU WEARING?
    Polo shirt and shorts...will be changing to work uniform soon though.

    59. WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE TOY AS A CHILD?


    60. HOW MANY NUMBERS ARE IN YOUR CELL PHONE?
    Four...LOL!

    61. DO YOU USE SARCASM?
    Yes, I have.

    62. HAVE YOU EVER BEEN IN A MOSH PIT?
    No, and I hope I never am.

    63. WHAT DO YOU LOOK FOR IN A GUY/GIRL?
    Honesty.

    64. WHAT ARE YOUR NICKNAMES?
They are too embarrassing to admit here.

65. WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR?
Mint Chocolate Chip.

66. WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE COLOR(S)?
Purple, Blue, Green.

67. WHO/WHAT DO YOU MISS MOST RIGHT NOW?
Friends who live away from me.

68. HOW MANY WISDOM TEETH DO YOU HAVE?
I have all four.

69. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS?
Not required.

70. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO?

In all likelihood, it's NOT Madonna, but whoever did this demo made it addictingly irresistible not to play.

71. LAST THING YOU DRANK?


    72. LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?
    A friend of mine from Long Island.

    73. THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE IN THE OPPOSITE SEX?
    Eyes are the windows to the soul.

    74. FAVORITE THOUGHT PROVOKING SONG?



    75. FAVORITE THING TO HATE?
    Hate is a strong word, but I strongly dislike bullies.

    76. FAVORITE DRINK(S)?
    Diet Dr. Pepper, Raspberry Lemonade, Iced Tea.

    77. FAVORITE ZODIAC SIGN:
    Taurus.

    78. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SPORT?
    Is bowling a sport?

    79. WHAT IS YOUR HAIR COLOR?
    97% dark brown, 3% grey. Just being honest.

    80. EYE COLOR?
    Brown

    81. HEIGHT?
    6'1”...not quite 6'2”

    82. SIBLINGS?
    Two...both older than I am.

    83. FAVORITE MONTH?
    Toss-up between May and October.

    84. YOU LIKE SUSHI?
    Don't know...never mustered up the courage to eat it.

    85. LAST THING YOU WATCHED?


    86. FAVORITE DAY OF THE YEAR?
    February 29, because they are so rare.

    87. ARE YOU TOO SHY TO ASK SOMEONE OUT?
    Is the sun hot?

    88. SUMMER OR WINTER?
    Winter.

    89. KISSES OR HUGS?
    Both

    90. RELATIONSHIPS OR ONE NIGHT STANDS?
    Relationships.

    91. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU BOUGHT?

    92. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING?