Today I learned that one of my favorite novels of the past few years, Taylor Jenkins Reid’s Daisy Jones & The Six, is being adapted into a limited series for Amazon. Produced by Reese Witherspoon, who selected the novel for her book club back in 2018, the series will star the lovely Riley Keough as Daisy and Sam Claflin (Finnick Odair in the Hunger Games film series) as Billy, Daisy’s bandmate and sometime lover (as the saying goes, it’s complicated). No word on whether the actors will do their own singing, but Keough certainly has the pedigree – she’s the eldest grandchild of Elvis Presley (her mom is Lisa Marie). No release date yet, but filming just began last month, so we’re looking at 2022.
Riley Keough
West Side Story premiered in New York City sixty years ago today. Based on the 1957 Broadway musical (which drew its inspiration from Romeo and Juliet), the film starred Richard Beymer and Natalie Wood as star-crossed lovers Tony and Maria, who belong to rival gangs Jets and Sharks (Maria’s brother Bernardo is the leader of the Sharks). The film would become the year’s highest grossing movie AND win the Oscar for Best Picture (a rare feat that’s only occured four times in the past forty years*), and is considered one of the greatest movie musicals of all time.
* For the record: Rain Man (1988), Forrest Gump (1994), Titanic (1997) and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003).
I finished watching Netflix’s Midnight Mass last night, and I have so many feelings. Mike Flanagan has created a visually stunning rumination on life and death and the perils of religious zealotry. The sprawling cast – including Kate Siegel, Zach Gilford, Annabeth Gish, Henry Thomas, Rahul Kohli and future Emmy winners Hamish Linklater and Samantha Sloyan – brings Flanagan’s exquisite script to life. The ending (no spoilers here) left me shattered. If you’ve already watched Midnight Mass, please read this wonderful essay written by my Twitter friend Gena Radcliffe. If you haven’t watched it, what are you waiting for?
Today is composer Howard Shore’s 75th birthday. Shore was the musical director of Saturday Night Live for its first eleven years (and wrote the original theme song) and has scored more than eighty feature films, including Big, The Silence of the Lambs, Seven, That Thing You Do!, Doubt and Spotlight. Shore won three Oscars for his work on Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings series.
Chuck Berry was born on this day in 1926. A singer, songwriter, guitarist and musical pioneer, Berry helped developed rhythm & blues into rock & roll, earning him the nickname “The Father of Rock and Roll”. In 1986, Berry was part of the inaugural Rock and Roll Hall of Fame class, which included James Brown, Ray Charles, Sam Cooke, Fats Domino, The Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly, Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard and Elvis Presley. Berry continued to perform live into his eighties; he died on March 18, 2017 at the age of 90.
Arleen Sorkin was born on October 14, 1955. Best known as Days of Our Lives‘ Calliope Jones, Sorkin was the inspiration for – and the voice of – Harley Quinn in Batman: The Animated Series.
With John de Lancie as Eugene and Calliope on Days of Our Lives
Harley Quinn
Sam Raimi’s The Evil Dead was released on October 15, 1981, and a franchise (including two sequels and a reboot, a television series, comic books and video games) was born. Bruce Campbell’s Ash Williams is quite possibly the greatest horror movie character ever created.
The Evil Dead
Starz’ Ash vs Evil Dead
Fight Club was released on October 15, 1999, after a polarizing debut at the 56th Venice International Film Festival. Based on Chuck Palahniuk’s novel, Fight Club was reviled by both the execs at 20th Century Fox and critics; the box office numbers were so-so, but the film found its audience on home media. Today, Fight Club is considered a cult classic and one of the defining films of the Gen-X era.
Netflix dropped new horror episodes of The Movies That Made Us this week, including Halloween, Friday the 13th and A Nightmare on Elm Street. If you, like me, are a fan of behind-the-scenes glimpses into the film world, I highly recommend this delightful series (other episodes include Die Hard, Pretty Woman, Back to the Future and Ghostbusters).
Speaking of iconic horror movies, Jamie Lee Curtis dressed as her mother’s Psycho character (complete with bloody shower curtain) for the Halloween Kills premiere this week:
On October 15, 2017, Harvey Weinstein was expelled from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences due to mounting allegations of sexual assault and harassment. An emergency meeting of the Academy’s Board of Governors – which included Hollywood bigwigs like Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks and Whoopi Goldberg – voted “well in excess of the required two-thirds majority” to remove Weinstein.
Some of Weinstein’s accusers, including Rosanna Arquette, Angelina Jolie, Heather Graham, Ashley Judd and Mira Sorvino
While researching a future post today, I realized that not only did “Purple Rain” (or literally any other song from Purple Rain) not win Best Original Song in 1984, it WASN’T EVEN NOMINATED. Prince did win the award for Best Song Score, but the fact that none of the individual songs were nominated is incomprehensible. And yes, “I Just Called to Say I Love You” really is that terrible.
That Thing You Do! was released twenty-five years ago this week. A charming and exuberant tale of the one-hit Wonders, That Thing You Do! is a perfect little gem of a movie and one of my personal faves.
That Thing You Do! was Tom Hanks’s directorial debut; he also wrote the screenplay and several of the film’s songs (more on the soundtrack in a bit), and co-stars in a decidedly supporting role, as The Wonders’ manager Mr. White. The film’s main star is Tom Everett Scott (who bears more than a passing resemblance to a young Hanks) in the role of Guy Patterson. Guy works in his dad’s appliance store by day and practices the drums by night. When a local band (Johnathon Schaech, Ethan Embry and Steve Zahn, who’s never met a scene he couldn’t steal) needs a temporary drummer for a talent show, Guy is asked to fill in. The band has yet to decide on a name, and they settle on The Oneders (pronounced “Wonders”‘ – Schaech’s Jimmy is a big fan of wordplay). Guy learns the band’s song, a ballad called “That Thing You Do”, but when the lads take the stage at the talent show, Guy’s nerves take over and the song becomes an uptempo number. Jimmy is pissed but the crowd goes wild, and The Oneders take first place.
Yes, that’s an absurdly young Charlize Theron as Guy’s disinterested girlfriend Tina
The band is asked to play at Villapiano’s, a pizza joint located by the airport. After a gig one night, Guy suggests the band make a record, and says he has a relative in the music business (his Uncle Bob records church music).
The band gains the attention of a local music manager, Phil Horace, who promises to get their song on the radio. In my favorite scene, Horace delivers, and the gang ends up at Patterson’s, dancing and celebrating. It is two minutes of pure joy, and I can’t get enough of it; my mom and I saw That Thing You Do! in the theater, and we could barely keep our butts in our seats.
Horace turns over manager duties to Hanks’ Mr. White, who offers the band a contract with Playtone Records and a spot on Playtone’s “Galaxy of Stars” tour, performing at state fairs across the Midwest (and wisely insists they change the spelling of the band’s name to The Wonders). Jimmy’s girlfriend Faye (played by the luminous Liv Tyler) is invited along as the band’s costume mistress.
Eventually, the band ends up in Hollywood, where they sit for radio interviews, co-star in the movie Weekend at Party Pier as Cap’n Geech & The Shrimp Shack Shooters and make an appearance on The Hollywood Television Showcase. The following day, the band is due in the studio to begin recording, but Lenny and TB Player are nowhere to be found (the former is in Vegas for a quickie wedding, the latter is at Disneyland with a group of Marines, whose ranks he’s joining at the end of the summer) and Jimmy quits the band after learning that his contract allows the record company to dictate what the band records. The Wonders, who have the #7 hit in the country, are abruptly defunct – the ultimate one-hit-wonder.
Hanks, whose burgeoning interest in the Apollo space program began when he starred in Apollo 13 the previous year and would culminate two years later with HBO’s masterpiece miniseries From theEarth to the Moon, makes several astronaut references in the film. To begin with, several characters are named after NASA crew members; for example, The Wonders’ lead singer James “Jimmy” Mattingly and guitarist Leonard “Lenny” Haise are named for Apollo astronauts Ken Mattingly and Fred Haise. There’s also a scene in the Hollywood Television Showcase sequence where host Troy Chesterfield (Peter Scolari, Hanks’s Bosom Buddies co-star) interacts with Gus Grissom (Bryan Cranston!). And finally, several of the film’s cast members would go on to co-star in From theEarth to the Moon, including Zahn, Cranston, Chris Isaak, Clint Howard, Chris Ellis, Kevin Pollak and Mrs. Hanks herself, Rita Wilson.
Now, about that soundtrack. The main event is the title track, The Wonders’ one hit. Written by Adam Schlesinger, the late, great bassist and songwriter for Fountains of Wayne, the song is beyond catchy (which is precisely the point). Fun fact: the producers put out an industry-wide notice looking for a ’60s pop song called “That Thing You Do”. They received more than 300 submissions, with Schlesinger’s tune being the favorite. Deservedly, Schlesinger was nominated for an Oscar (the film’s sole nod) and a Golden Globe (he lost both awards to Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber for “You Must Love Me” from Evita). The song was also a hit on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #41 (the album itself reached #21 on the Billboard 200).
Other songs on the album include the Bacharach-esque “My World is Over”, sung by diva Diane Dane; the surf rock “Voyage Around the Moon” by The Saturn 5; “Hold My Hand, Hold My Heart” by the Supremes-ish Chantrellines; and “Shrimp Shack” by the aforementioned Cap’n Geech & the Shrimp Shack Shooters. All of the songs are credited to the fictitious artists from the movie.
While it didn’t make much money in its initial release ($35 million globally on a $26 million budget), That Thing You Do! found a passionate audience on home video. Recent cast reunions (including a virtual watch party hosted by Rolling Stone in 2020) have thrilled the film’s fans on social media. The film remains a timeless (ahem) wonder that’s as delightful now as it was twenty-five years ago.
Songs in the Key of Life, Stevie Wonder’s transcendent double album, was released on this day in 1976. Generally regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time, Songs in the Key of Life almost didn’t happen. In 1974, Wonder planned to retire from recording and emigrate to Ghana; plans were made for a farewell concert. But Wonder had a change of heart and re-signed with Motown in August 1975 (his contract was for seven albums, seven years and $37 million – a record at the time – and gave Wonder complete creative control). Anticipation was high for the album, and Wonder more than delivered; Songs in the Key of Life was a critical and commercial smash. The album debuted at #1 on the Billboard Album Chart, and stayed there for thirteen consecutive weeks (it was dethroned by Hotel California on January 15, 1977). It was the second best-selling album of 1977 behind Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours. It earned Wonder his third Album of the Year Grammy in four years (Paul Simon, accepting the award for 1975’s Still Crazy After All These Years, jokingly thanked Wonder for not releasing an album that year). Prince called it the best album ever made. It is, in short, a masterpiece.
The upcoming Paul Thomas Anderson movie has a brand new trailer. Licorice Pizza (which takes its name from a now-defunct L.A.-area record store chain) stars Cooper Hoffman (offspring of the late, great Philip Seymour Hoffman) and musician Alana Haim, and returns PTA to the San Fernando Valley of his youth. The trailer, set to David Bowie’s “Life on Mars?”, is spectacular; I simply could not be more excited for the release of this film, which will apparently premiere only in theaters.
Olivia Newton-John’s “Physical” was released on this day in 1981. It went on to become the top selling single of the DECADE. As a result of the cheesetastic video (it’s about exercise, wink wink), leg warmers and headbands became fashion staples.
Actor JT Walsh was born on this day in 1943. One of the greatest character actors of the 80s and 90s, Walsh got his start in theater and appeared in the original Broadway cast of David Mamet’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Glengarry Glen Ross. Walsh didn’t appear in a feature film until 1983, the year he turned forty; he made more than fifty movies in less than fifteen years. Walsh, a heavy smoker, died of a heart attack on February 27, 1998; he was just fifty-four years old.
Good Morning, Vietnam
A Few Good Men
Hoffa
Nixon
Pleasantville
Legendary R&B singer-songwriter Ben E. King was born on this day in 1938. King, a member of the vocal group The Drifters (“Save the Last Dance for Me”), is best known as the singer and co-writer of “Stand By Me”. The song, inspired by an early 20th-century gospel hymn (which itself was inspired by the Book of Psalms), was a top ten hit in both 1961 and 1986, when it was featured in the film of the same name. King died in 2015 at the age of 76, following a brief illness.
Today is Olivia Newton John’s birthday. My first major musical idol, Newton-John is a singer, songwriter, actor, breast cancer survivor (three times!) and activist. I was young when Grease came out but I absolutely remember seeing it in the theater; I remember what I wore that day, and the movie they previewed before the show (The Swarm, for the record). Why do I remember that day so vividly? Because that was the day I fell in love with Olivia Newton-John. All of America fell in love with her too; Grease was a box office behemoth. Newton-John was the #1 pop star in the early 80s, thanks to Physical. Several years ago, I had the opportunity to see Olivia in concert, and it was a blast. Her voice couldn’t quite hit those “Xanadu” high notes anymore – but she was still rocking those black leather pants.
Sandy in her black leather outfit was the sexiest woman I’d seen in my (admittedly young) life.
Physical went 2x platinum, and its title track sat atop the Billboard Hot 100 for a record-tying ten weeks.
Newton-John in more recent years.
Netflix released the third teaser for Stranger Things 4 yesterday, and it is a doozy. We still don’t have a release date, but the fourth trailer (due November 6th) should answer that question.
The Brady Bunch premiered on this date in 1969. The series aired for five seasons on ABC, and infinity in syndication. My college bestie/sometime roommate Shari (who also premiered on this date in 1969 – happy birthday, Shari!) would catch the 4:05 and 4:35 airings on TBS and make a game out of who could guess which episode it was the fastest.
Dirty Harry (along with its first two sequels, The Enforcer and Magnum Force) is now available to stream on HBO Max. I’d never seen Dirty Harry, so hubby and I watched it last night. Its casual racism and male-gaze voyeurism are hugely problematic, but it is entertaining as hell. Eastwood is iconic, Andrew Robinson is delightfully unhinged as the Zodiac-inspired “Scorpio” killer and Lalo Schifrin’s score is killer.
Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim’s West Side Story opened at the Winter Garden Theater on this date in 1957. The production was nominated for six Tony Awards, including Best Musical (it lost to The Music Man) and was adapted into an Oscar-winning movie.
And last but not least, The Beatles’ Abbey Road (the final album they recorded together, it was released prior to Let It Be) was released on this day in 1969. The album, my personal favorite by the band, contains my favorite Beatles song, George Harrison’s “Here Comes the Sun”.
Yesterday was the thirtieth anniversary of the release of Nevermind, the landmark Nirvana album that ushered in the grunge era.
September 24, 1991 is often named as the best new release day ever (this was when we still went to physical stores to purchase music). Besides Nevermind, notable releases from that day include Red Hot Chili Peppers’ BloodSugar Sex Magik, A Tribe Called Quest’s The Low End Theory, the Pixies’ Trompe le Monde, Soundgarden’s Badmotorfinger and Van Morrison’s Hymns to the Silence. While researching this piece, I found this delightful article written by Justin Sayles of The Ringer. Sayles and his team used a scientific method to determine the actual best new release date of all time (spoiler alert: it’s September 24, 1991).
On this day in 2018, Bill Cosby was sentenced to three to ten years in prison for sexual assault; his conviction was overturned earlier this year when the Pennsylvania Supreme Court found that Cosby’s 5th and 14th Amendment Rights had been violated. And Cosby’s 60+ (alleged) victims still wait for justice.
On July 27, 2015, thirty-five of Cosby’s accusers told their stories to New York magazine.
Shel Silverstein was born on this day in 1930. A favorite of mine from an early age, Silverstein was a poet, cartoonist, songwriter and playwright. Perhaps best known for his children’s books such as The Giving Tree and Where the Sidewalk Ends, Silverstein was also a Grammy-winning writer of songs like “A Boy Named Sue”, made famous by Johnny Cash, and “The Cover of ‘Rolling Stone'”, first recorded by Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show. He was also a leading cartoonist at Playboy beginning in 1957; over twenty-three installments, the magazine sent him to various locations around the world for a feature titled “Shel Silverstein Visits…” Silverstein died from a heart attack on May 10, 1999.
Happy 70th birthday, Mark Hamill! Best known for his portrayal of Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars series, Hamill has appeared in more than ninety films and television series and done extensive voice work, including the role of The Joker in several DC Comics properties. Hamill (@HamillHimself) is a god damn delight to follow on Twitter, if you don’t already.
With Annie Potts in Corvette Summer
On this day in 1954, Audrey Hepburn and Mel Ferrer were married on the shores of Lake Lucerne in Switzerland.
The Beatles, a Saturday morning television series featuring animated versions of the Fab Four, debuted on ABC on this date in 1965.
On this day in 1976, Paul Hewson, David Evans (along with his brother Dik) and Adam Clayton responded to an advertisement placed on a school bulletin board by Larry Mullen Jr. Mullen was looking to start a band, and Feedback was born. By 1978, Dik Evans had left the band, and the remaining foursome christened themselves U2. In 1980, when the lads were still teenagers, they recorded their debut album for Island Records, Boy. Over their forty year career, U2 has sold an estimated 150 million albums and won twenty-two Grammy Awards, more than any other band in history. In 2005, U2 were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility.
From left, Clayton, Mullen, Hewson (better known as Bono) and David Evans AKA “The Edge”
Survivor season 41 premieres tonight, and you better believe I’ll be watching (I’ve never missed an episode). Survivor took last year off due to the pandemic and they’ve made a few pandemic-related changes to the format, such as shortening the filming time from 39 days to 26 to accomodate a 14-day quarantine agreement the show made with the Fijian government.
Almost Famous was released on this day in 2000. Featuring a lovely cast, an Oscar-winning (and semi-autobiographical) screenplay and a killer soundtrack, Almost Famous is Cameron Crowe’s love letter to music – and to the people who love the music. You can stream Almost Famous on Amazon Prime.
Lost premiered on this day in 2004. By turns intriguing and infuriating, Lost is one of my favorite series – but I fully acknowledge its flaws. What a pilot episode, though! J.J. Abrams gave the project a cinematic feel, opening on an eye that we’ll soon learn belongs to our hero, Jack Shephard. Fun fact: Jack was initially going to die halfway through the pilot – and be played by Michael Keaton. When the producers came to the ridiculously obvious conclusion that Jack was the leader of this ragtag group of survivors, Keaton dropped out and the role went to Matthew Fox. You can stream Lost on Hulu.
Friends premiered on this day in 1994. The pilot, which features Monica sleeping with Paul the wine guy on their first date, was controversial; NBC, concerned that viewers would see Monica as a slut, asked for some edits. Test audiences responded with a wholehearted shrug, and NBC let the issue go. Nearly twenty-two million people tuned in to Friends that night, and the series lasted ten seasons.
Hubby had never seen The Insider, so we watched it last night. It’s held up well, and Russell Crowe’s performance still blows me away. Crowe should have won the Oscar for this, but Kevin Spacey – who has not held up well – beat him; Crowe took the Best Actor prize the following year for Gladiator. If you’ve never seen this flick, you can check it out on Amazon Prime, but hurry because it leaves on the 30th.
On September 19, 1985, hearings were held before the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee regarding inappropriate content in popular music. The hearing was requested by the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC), headed by wives of the Washington elite including Tipper Gore (wife of then-Senator and future-VP Al) and Susan Baker (wife of Treasury Secretary James).
Tipper Gore and Susan Baker
The PMRC, funded by Beach Boy Mike Love and Joseph Coors, was seeking to create a rating system similar to that used for motion pictures. As the “Washington Wives” saw it, objectionable content could be broken down into four main categories: sex, violence, drug & alcohol use and the occult. The PMRC wanted the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) to voluntarily implement a labelling system so parents would know whether the album contained offensive material.
In preparation for the hearing, the PMRC compiled a list of songs they referred to as the “Filthy Fifteen”. Comprised of six pop or R&B singles and nine heavy metals tunes, the list had at least one example of each of the four categories. References to genitals and female masturbation particularly riled these ladies up, as did glam metal odes to teenage rebellion and allusions to witchcraft and the devil.
The “Filthy Fifteen”:
“Darling Nikki” – Prince
“Sugar Walls” – Sheena Easton
“Eat Me Alive” – Judas Priest
“Strap On ‘Robbie Baby'” – Vanity
“Bastard” – Mötley Crüe
“Let Me Put My Love into You” – AC/DC
“We’re Not Gonna Take It” – Twisted Sister
“Dress You Up” – Madonna
“Animal (Fuck Like a Beast)” – W.A.S.P.
“High ‘n’ Dry (Saturday Night)” – Def Leppard
“Into the Coven” – Mercyful Fate
“Trashed” – Black Sabbath
“In My House” – Mary Jane Girls
“Possessed” – Venom
“She Bop” – Cyndi Lauper
At the hearing, Senator Paula Hawkins (R-FL) held up the covers of albums like Def Leppard’s Pyromania and W.A.S.P.’s self-titled debut as evidence of the depravity of popular music. She also presented the videos for Van Halen’s “Hot for Teacher” and Twisted Sister’s “We’re Not Gonna Take It” (also a member of the “Filthy Fifteen”). “We’re Not Gonna Take It” was targeted specifically because it “glorified violence”, but it’s comically violent, like a Bugs Bunny cartoon; the comic effect is heightened by the presence of actor Mark Metcalf, imitating his Animal House character Doug Neidermeyer.
Senator Paula Hawkins
W.A.S.P.
Appearing as opposing witnesses that day were Frank Zappa, John Denver and Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider, who told the committee that “The full responsibility for defending my children falls on the shoulders of my wife and I, because there is no one else capable of making these judgments for us.”
In the end, the hearing was just a formality; the RIAA agreed to put a generic “Parental Advisory” sticker on records with explicit content. In 1990, the first album to receive a sticker was 2 Live Crew’s Banned in the USA (gangsta rap was in its infancy in 1985, but I would have loved to see Tipper Gore try to face off against Ice-T).
The sticker was a big deal in those early years; at that time, the nation’s biggest record retailer – BY FAR – was Walmart, which refused to sell any album carrying a sticker. Record companies, much to the chagrin of artists, began releasing “clean” versions of albums to be sold at Walmart. Many artists used their lyrics to protest the use of the sticker. An entire album, Just Say Anything (the fifth in Sire Records’ Just Say Yes series), was dedicated to free speech in pop music; as you may have guessed, the album was adorned with a “Parental Advisory” sticker.
As part of its “Earworm” video series, which I HIGHLY recommend, Vox put together this excellent clip explaining the link between “Satanic Panic” and the PMRC.
It was the most beautiful mid-September day you could hope for – no matter where you lived. A high pressure system covered a large swath of the Northeast, meaning warm, sunny weather prevailed. The sky was blue and bright, with just a few puffy clouds. I was in an especially good mood, because my best friend and I were to head out the following morning for a five day weekend with friends in D.C.-area Maryland. When I think of September 11, 2001, I think of the weather that day; it was such a jarring contrast to the horror unfolding on our television screens.
I was at work that morning, intent on getting as much done as I could before I left for my mini-vacation. Someone came around to my office and asked me if I’d heard about the plane accidentally crashing into the World Trade Center. I knew immediately that something was terribly wrong; this was no accident. When word came that a second plane had hit the other tower, my worst fears were confirmed: the United States was under attack. The work day came to a screeching halt; groups of people gathered around televisions, radios and computers, and the shocking, sickening news kept pouring in.
By early afternoon, I was on my way back to my apartment on nearly deserted streets; I’d never seen such desolation in the densely populated area (metropolitan Detroit) where I lived and worked. Calls were made to loved ones; my family’s safety was confirmed. I distinctly remember talking to my oldest sister while my television aired footage of the towers collapsing, and I just fell apart.
When that awful day was over, thousands of Americans (and almost 400 non-U.S. citizens) were confirmed or feared dead. In the years since, many more have died due to exposure to the toxic dust at Ground Zero. All told, at least 4,000 people have lost their lives because of the terrorist attacks; hundreds of thousands more died in the subsequent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Yesterday marked the 20th anniversary of 9/11. That beautiful Tuesday morning feels like yesterday, but also like several lifetimes ago. Our nation, in the grip of a pandemic that has killed about 640,000 Americans, is still grappling with the psychic trauma of that day. I’m certainly not healed, and probably never will be; just researching and writing this piece has left me feeling anxious and overwhelmed (I’d intended to publish this yesterday, but needed to step away from it for some self-care).
The ways in which 9/11 impacted pop culture were numerous: awards shows and television premieres were postponed; shots of the World Trade Center were excised from films and television episodes; music lyrics and song titles were altered; entire films were scrapped. Depictions of the events of that day in media range from movies and television to classical music, literature and theater. Here are just a few of the ways pop culture was affected by 9/11, and a couple of cultural references to the attacks.
Among those on board American Airlines Flight 11, which departed Boston for Los Angeles and crashed into the WTC North Tower, were television producer David Angell (co-creator of Wings and Frasier) and actress & photographer (and widow of actor Anthony Perkins) Berry Berenson. Frasier was in the midst of its eleven season run in 2001, and Angell’s death was deeply felt by the cast and crew; Angell’s wife Lynn also perished in the crash. When Frasier wrapped up in 2004, Niles and Daphne’s son was named David in Angell’s honor. Berenson, briefly a model in the 1960s, later turned to the other side of the camera; her photographs were published in magazines such as Life, Glamour, Vogue and Newsweek. Berenson also studied acting, and appeared in a handful of motion pictures. She married Anthony Perkins in 1973; they raised two children together and remained married until his death in 1992. Berenson was returning home to Los Angeles that morning from a Cape Cod holiday.
David Angell
Berry Berenson
Band of Brothers
Band of Brothers, HBO’s exquisite World War II miniseries, premiered on Sunday, September 9, drawing ten million viewers. After the events of 9/11, HBO ceased its marketing campaign, and the ratings for subsequent episodes plummeted. But the series garnered significant critical praise and was nominated for twenty Emmys, winning seven awards (it also won a Golden Globe, a Peabody, an AFI award and the Producers Guild of America award). In addition, the release of Band of Brothers on home media (VHS and DVD in 2002, Blu-ray in 2008) has been one of the most successful ever, earning more than $250 million total. Despite the unfortunate timing of its release, Band of Brothers is one of the most-loved miniseries of all time.
United 93
A harrowing recreation of United Airlines Flight 93, which departed Newark bound for San Francisco and ended up crashing into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania; United 93 was the only hijacked flight not to reach its intended target (most likely either the White House or the Capitol). The reason? The men and women on board, realizing their fate, attempted to wrest control of the plane from the hijackers. While it’s not clear how close the passengers got to overtaking the cockpit, the hijackers knew their plan was foiled and deliberately crashed the plane at 10:06 am, about eighteen minutes before it would have reached Washington, D.C. The film, expertly directed by Paul Greengrass, unfolds in real time; the tension is almost unbearable. United 93 is tough to watch; I personally couldn’t bring myself to watch it until several years after its 2006 release. But it honors the victims of the crash beautifully (it was made with the cooperation of their families).
You can stream United 93 on Showtime and Peacock.
The Submission by Amy Waldman
This expertly written novel, the debut from New York Times journalist Amy Waldman, tackles the politics of the post-9/11 era head-on: the plot revolves around plans for a Ground Zero memorial, and what transpires after a Muslim architect wins a blind contest to design it. The Submission was shortlisted for the Guardian First Book Award (it lost to Siddhartha Mukherjee’s The Emperor of All Maladies), and deservedly so; it’s a hell of a read.
25th Hour
While Spike Lee’s 25th Hour (adapted by Game of Thrones co-creator David Benioff from his 2001 novel) isn’t overtly about the events of 9/11, it was filmed in a post-9/11 New York City and the specter of the attacks looms over every frame. Ground Zero provides the backdrop to a pivotal scene, but moreover, Lee captures the essence of 2002 NYC: wounded, raw, grieving, but surviving. Rolling Stone just called 25th Hour “the only 9/11 movie that still matters”.
Breakfast in America predicts 9/11
A conspiracy theory that gained some traction several years ago involved the 1979 Supertramp album Breakfast in America and the events of 9/11. The theory? That the cover of the album predicted the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center. According to the theory, Supertramp financier Stanley August Miesegaes was a Freemason who used the Breakfast in America cover art to provide details about a future terrorist attack on Manhattan. The evidence is flimsy and utterly circumstantial, as is typical for conspiracy theories: the glass of orange juice on the waitress’s tray represents the fire that enveloped the WTC; the U and the P in Supertramp, when viewed in a mirror, form a 9 and an 11; the name “Supertramp” is synonymous with “Great Whore”, as in the apocalyptic Babylon in the Book of Revelation; the inner sleeve depicts an airplane flying above the Twin Towers. It’s never clear what Miesegaes would have gained with his subliminal messaging, of course, but if proof could be provided, it wouldn’t be a theory anymore.
Album releases on 9/11/01
In the world of music, Tuesday is new release day, and that particular Tuesday was a doozy: among the releases on 9/11/01 were Jay-Z’s The Blueprint, Bob Dylan’s Love and Theft and a particular favorite of mine, Ben Folds’ Rockin’ the Suburbs. After seeing some commercial success with his band Ben Folds Five, Folds was embarking on a solo career, and what a debut it was. Forty-eight minutes of pure power pop perfection, Rockin’ the Suburbs could – and should – have been huge. Supposedly, Folds was in the midst of a radio interview when the attacks began; all album promotion ceased at that point and Rockin‘ the Suburbs never got the traction it deserved, peaking at #42 on the Billboard 200 chart. If you’re not familiar with Folds, do yourself a favor and give the album a listen.
Friends
The season eight premiere of Friends, like a lot of series, was delayed. But the biggest impact on Friends came in the third episode of the season, “The One Where Rachel Tells…”; a subplot of the episode, in which Monica and Chandler depart for their honeymoon, initially had Chandler joking about having a bomb in his luggage and the couple being detained by airport security. The creators wisely rewrote and reshot the scenes.
Happy 40th birthday, Beyoncé: singer, songwriter, actress, entrepreneur, philanthropist, activist, fashion icon and all-around boss. Beyoncé has won more Grammy Awards (28) than any other singer in history and more MTV Video Music Awards (24) than any other artist. She was named Billboard Top Female Artist of the Decade. She won a Peabody Award for Lemonade. She is the highest-paid black musician in history. There is a horse fly species native to Queensland, Australia named for her. And she popularized the phrase “put a ring on it”. BOSS.
Dreamgirls
As Etta James in Cadillac Records
Posing with husband Jay-Z and Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Equals Pi to kick off Tiffany & Co.’s “About Love” campaign, Beyoncé became the first black woman to wear the Tiffany Yellow Diamond.
At the 2005 Oscars
At the 2011 VMAs, while pregnant with daughter Ivy Blue
At Coachella in 2018
Scaptia Beyonceae, named for the striking golden hairs on its abdomen
Swing Time, starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, was released on this day in 1936. Featuring some of the best dance numbers ever put to celluloid, as well as crackling chemistry between the two leads, Swing Time is considered one of the greatest movie musicals of all time. The film also introduced us to the iconic songs “Pick Yourself Up” and “The Way You Look Tonight”, the latter of which won the Oscar for Best Original Song.
The Price Is Right premiered on this day in 1972. It is America’s longest-running game show, airing over 9,000 episodes, and TV Guide named it the “greatest game show of all time” in 2007. The show’s fiftieth season will premiere on September 13.
The Hurt Locker made its debut at the 65th Venice International Film Festival on September 4, 2008. The film was released the following June to near universal acclaim and would go on to win six Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director for Kathryn Bigelow – the first woman to receive that honor.
Ralph Fiennes and Jeremy Renner
Renner at the Venice Film Festival premiere
Kathryn Bigelow with her Best Director Oscar
Season 41 of Survivor will debut on September 22. CBS dropped a preview this week.
Speaking of fall television, this article has sneak peeks at some of the season’s new and returning series:
PB & Julie + Julie C. Trivia 