Robert Downey Sr. – actor, filmmaker and father of Robert Downey Jr. – has died at the age of 85. Downey was a leading figure in the counterculture cinema of the 1960s, writing and directing such low budget features as Putney Swope, Pound and Greaser’s Palace. As an actor, he also appeared in bigger budget pictures like To Live and Die in L.A., Johnny Be Good, Boogie Nights and Magnolia.
Freaks and Geeks is now streaming on Paramount+, and hubby and I decided it was time for a rewatch. I will never tire of this perfect little gem of a show. When it began airing in the fall of 1999, the series was a massive critical success but NBC wasn’t sure how to market it and the ratings were dismal. The show moved time slots a couple of times, which also didn’t help it find an audience. Finally, NBC pulled the plug and burned off the remaining episodes over the summer. Freaks and Geeks was nominated for three Primetime Emmy Awards, and won – deservedly so – for Best Casting for a Comedy Series (the cast of then-unknowns included Linda Cardellini, Seth Rogen, James Franco, Jason Segel, Busy Phillips and John Francis Daley). If you’ve never seen Freaks and Geeks, what are you waiting for?
From left, Martin Starr, Busy Phillips, Samm Levine, Jason Segel, Linda Cardellini, Seth Rogen, John Francis Daley and James Franco
On this day in 1965, Otis Redding recorded “Respect”. Two years later, in a rare case of the cover version surpassing the original, Aretha Franklin rearranged the song and made it her own.
Happy 81st birthday, Ringo Starr! Last year, I made a playlist in celebration of his 80th. It’s still a fun listen.
George Cukor was born on this day in 1899. Director of such greats as The Philadelphia Story, Gaslight, Adam’s Rib, Born Yesterday, A Star is Born (1954) and My Fair Lady, Cukor was nominated for five Best Director Oscars, and won on his final nomination, for My Fair Lady. Cukor directed his last feature film (Rich andFamous, starring Jacqueline Bisset and Candice Bergen) at the age of 82, and died in January, 1983, at the age of 83.
The Philadelphia Story
Gaslight
Adam’s Rib
Born Yesterday
A Star is Born
My Fair Lady
Amazon has released the trailer for VAL, a documentary featuring home video footage from some fifty years in the life and career of Val Kilmer. Kilmer co-produced the doc along with his kids Jack and Mercedes, who appeared at Cannes this week to promote the film.
Syd Barrett died of pancreatic cancer on this day in 2006. Barrett co-founded Pink Floyd and was their original frontman and primary songwriter. He helped record the group’s first two albums, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn and A Saucerful of Secrets, but was ousted from the band for his excessive use of psychedelics (and possibly for his mental health issues). Barrett embarked upon a brief solo career, but retired from music and public life in 1972. David Gilmour replaced Barrett in Pink Floyd, and Roger Waters assumed creative direction of the band. “Shine On You Crazy Diamond”, a nine-part music suite dedicated to Barrett, appeared on 1975’s Wish You Were Here, my personal favorite Pink Floyd album.
Happy birthday, Robbie Robertson! Known primarily for his work with The Band, Robertson is a musician, songwriter, film composer, actor and author. He is responsible for writing some of rock’s all-time greats, including “The Weight”, “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” and my personal favorite, “Up on Cripple Creek”. Robertson has also collaborated with Martin Scorsese on a number of films, composing and producing scores for films like Raging Bull, The Color of Money, The Departed and The Wolf of Wall Street. Last year, I made a playlist inspired by Robertson’s birthday; I think it’s worth a listen again.
Seinfeld premiered on NBC on this date in 1989 with an episode titled “Good News, Bad News”. Michael Richards’ character was named Kessler, not Kramer, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ Elaine Benes was nowhere to be seen. Though the show was well-liked among most of the NBC execs, one notable exception was then-president of the network Brandon Tartikoff, who thought the show was “too New York, too Jewish”. To complicate matters, test audiences hated it. Tartikoff agreed to air the show as a one-off but refused to pick up the series, greenlighting Ann Jillian’s eponymous sitcom instead. Critics loved the show, then titled The Seinfeld Chronicles, and criticized NBC’s decision not to pick it up. And this time, the audience loved it: its Nielsen rating was good and it was the week’s 21st most-watched show (it did, however, lose its time slot to CBS’s Jake and the Fat Man). Fast forward to winter, Ann Jillian was placed on hiatus, and the show’s most ardent fan at NBC, executive vice president Rick Ludwin, agreed to put up his personal budget to pay for four more episodes of Seinfeld. The pilot was re-aired on June 28, 1990, to kick off the show’s mini-season. Seinfeld would remain on the air for nine seasons and 173 episodes.
The show’s tone was there from the beginning, as was the iconic score.
On this day in 1993, Björk released her first solo album, Debut, following the dissolution of her band The Sugarcubes. An eclectic mix of alternative, electronic and trip-hop, Debut was a bigger success in Europe than here in the US, but it was a hit on the dance and modern rock charts. It is a stunning debut, and is widely regarded as one of the decade’s best albums.
The season finale of Top Chef aired Thursday night, and once the victor was crowned, the controversy began. Rumors began swirling about Gabe Erales’ firing from Comedar, the Austin Mexican restaurant where he was executive chef. The firing happened in December, after the season was filmed but before it aired. Host Padma Lakshmi took to Twitter to address the controversy:
As someone who has been sexually harassed, this topic is a serious one and merits openness.
We filmed Top Chef in October of last year & were not aware of the allegations now coming out about Gabe.
This should be investigated & the network should consider its best action.
To be clear, no one has alleged sexual harassment on the record or otherwise to Bravo/Top Chef and we judges didn't have any indication of inappropriate behavior from Gabe during his time on set.
Nick Offerman has joined the cast of Amazon’s A League of Their Own reboot as Rockford Peaches coach Casey “Dove” Porter, who apparently got his nickname because he killed a dove with a forkball while pitching for the Cubs. The series, billed as a “reimagining” of the classic 1992 film, was developed by Broad City‘s Abbi Jacobson, who will co-star as well. No word yet on a release date, but the show is expected to air sometime later this year.
Initially published in 2021, this post has been edited for content and clarity.
“Hey guys, one more thing. This summer, when you’re being inundated with all this American bicentennial Fourth of July brouhaha, don’t forget what you’re celebrating, and that’s the fact that a bunch of slave-owning, aristocratic, white males didn’t want to pay their taxes.” – Ms. Ginny Stroud, Dazed and Confused
On July 4, 1776, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence. Every year, Americans celebrate the holiday by grilling giant slabs of meat and watching gunpowder missiles explode in the sky. Since it’s hot and humid in Michigan (and I’m not feeling particularly patriotic anyway), I’ll be spending the holiday in my cool, dry house, with a world of media at my disposal. So, what to watch on Independence Day? Here are some suggestions.
Jaws
The OG summer blockbuster, Jaws has made people afraid to go in the water for fifty years. Made for $9 million, Jaws was released on June 20, 1975, and dominated the box office for weeks. Set around the 4th of July holiday, in the fictional Long Island town of Amity, Jaws pits police chief Martin Brody (Roy Scheider) against Mayor Vaughn (Murray Hamilton), who is determined to keep those beaches open for the holiday no matter how many locals have to die.
Jaws is a master class in the art of building tension. Take the following scene: Brody knows the secret that no one else knows (there’s a killer shark on the loose), and we see things unfold from his perspective. Ordinarily mundane things – children playing in the water, Olivia Newton-John on the radio, a toddler singing “Do You Know the Muffin Man?” while he builds a sandcastle – take on an air of danger. And that dolly zoom is PERFECTION.
R.I.P. Alex Kintner
FUN FACT: “That’s some bad hat, Harry”, one of my all-time favorite movie quotes, inspired the name of Bryan Singer’s production company, Bad Hat Harry Productions, Inc.
Perhaps not the most obvious choice, but Zodiac is one of the first things that came to my mind when I started working on this piece. This criminally underrated 2007 David Fincher film tells the story of one of history’s most infamous unsolved cases: the hunt for the Zodiac Killer. The film’s opening sequence takes place on July 4, 1969, and it’s a doozy. A couple named Darlene and Mike are at Lover’s Lane and are menaced by an unseen man whom Darlene seems to recognize. The gunshots begin as we hear the strains of Donovan’s “Hurdy Gurdy Man”. The sudden, shocking violence is both expected and surprising. The six-minute sequence is exquisite, and we are entirely on Fincher’s hook by the end of it.
Hamilton
Hamilton, the Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning musical, features actors of color portraying the predominantly white founding fathers and other historical figures. The brainchild of Lin-Manuel Miranda, Hamilton is a unique blend of hip-hop, R&B, soul, and traditional show tunes. Yes, it’s as good as you’ve heard; I was fortunate enough to see the show live in Chicago several years ago. You can watch a filmed version of Hamilton on Disney+ or listen to the Broadway Cast Recording on Spotify (or your preferred music streaming service).
Independence Day
This time around, the villain isn’t King George III, but a race of aliens bent on destroying humanity. Independence Day is as big and silly as Hollywood blockbusters come, 100% pure entertainment. Sometimes you just need to watch Will Smith punch an alien in the face. Plus, we get Jeff Goldblum, Harvey Fierstein, Judd Hirsch, and a president played by Bill Pullman, who delivers a stirring speech that makes us proud to be American – and human.
Stranger Things 3
Season three character posters featured the Hawkins Fourth of July fair in the background
Not only was Stranger Things 3 released on July 4th (2019), but the action takes place around the holiday as well. We’re treated to more than one fireworks display – the official fireworks of the county fair, and the unofficial pyrotechnics at the Starcourt Mall. While Mike, Nancy, and the gang prepare to battle the Mind Flayer at the mall, the rest of the Wheeler family sits atop the Ferris wheel (“the best seats in the house”). When little Holly says, “Mom, the trees are moving”, we know that the show has only just begun.
Born on the Fourth of July
There’s no greater freedom guaranteed by our Constitution than the freedom of speech; it is the First Amendment, after all. Ron Kovic, born on July 4, 1946, returned from his second tour of duty in Vietnam paralyzed from the chest down. He became a staunch anti-war activist, and his 1976 memoir of the same name became the basis for this Oliver Stone film. Starring Tom Cruise (in his first Oscar-nominated role) as Kovic, Born on the Fourth of July was a commercial and critical success, becoming the tenth-highest-grossing film of 1989 and earning eight Oscar nominations (it won two awards: Best Director and Best Film Editing).
John Adams
Laura Linney and Paul Giamatti
The 2008 HBO miniseries John Adams, starring Paul Giamatti as the second POTUS/Founding Father and Laura Linney as his wife Abigail, was the recipient of five Primetime Emmy Awards and eight Creative Arts Emmys. Though it deviates somewhat from the David McCullough source biography (and history), the series is grounded by three Emmy-winning performances from Giamatti, Linney, and Tom Wilkinson (Benjamin Franklin).
A League of Their Own
Baseball is the quintessential American sport, and while many fine films have been made about baseball, the most patriotic baseball film also happens to be my favorite. A League of Their Own tells the story of the women of the AAGPBL (All-American Girls Professional Baseball League), who performed their patriotic duty while the men of baseball were off fighting in World War II. The League, founded in 1943 by Philip K. Wrigley, was real, and although the film is fiction, many of the characters were inspired by the women of the actual league. A League of Their Own, directed by Penny Marshall and starring Geena Davis, Lori Petty, Madonna, Rosie O’Donnell, and Tom Hanks, is a delight. There’s humor and heart in every frame, and the baseball sequences are thrilling.
FUN FACT: Penny Marshall insisted that the cast all be able to actually play ball. USC assistant coach Bill Hughes was brought in as an adviser, and the actors spent three months at baseball camp to prepare for the shoot. Many cast members were injured: Anne Ramsay, who plays Helen Haley, broke her nose, and the bruise seen on Alice’s (Renée Coleman) leg in the film was real.
Yankee Doodle Dandy
A musical biography of entertainer and songwriter George M. Cohan, Yankee Doodle Dandy stars James Cagney as Cohan, the father of American musical comedy and the composer of such patriotic hits as “Over There”, “A Yankee Doodle Boy”, and “You’re a Grand Old Flag”. The film was a huge financial success and was nominated for eight Academy Awards, winning three, including Best Actor for Cagney (it lost Best Picture to Mrs. Miniver). If you only know Cagney from gangster movies like The Public Enemy, you’re in for a treat.
National Treasure
Historian, cryptologist, and treasure hunter Benjamin Franklin Gates (Nicolas Cage) is searching for a Freemason treasure that includes a map hidden on the back of the Declaration of Independence. Improbable plot aside, National Treasure is silly, family-friendly fun with a terrific supporting cast that includes Sean Bean, Diane Kruger, Harvey Keitel, and Christopher Plummer.
1776
William Daniels as John Adams and Howard da Silva as Benjamin Franklin in 1776
Based on the 1969 Tony-winning musical, 1776 is a fictionalized account of the Second Continental Congress and the events leading up to the signing of the Declaration of Independence. With music and lyrics by Sherman Edwards, the film starred many of the Broadway musical’s original cast, including William Daniels, Ken Howard, Howard da Silva, and John Cullum.
FUN FACT: The exteriors for 1776 were filmed at Warner Bros. studios. The fountain seen during the musical number “The Lees of Old Virginia” is the same one featured in the opening credits of Friends.
The Sandlot
Another family-friendly option, The Sandlot is a coming-of-age baseball film with both laughs and heart. Film critic Roger Ebert described it as a summertime version of A Christmas Story, an apt comparison. The film wasn’t a massive success, but it found its audience on home video. You can stream The Sandlot on Disney+ and Hulu.
FUN FACT: The Sandlot is the source of one of the most iconic movie quotes of the 1990s.
I Know What You Did Last Summer(1997)
Hot off the runaway success of his first developed screenplay, Scream, Kevin Williamson adapted Lois Duncan’s YA novel, I Know What You Did Last Summer. With an absurdly attractive young cast and inspiration from the “Hookman” urban legend, IKWYDLS was a box office success and spawned a media franchise. In fact, the fourth movie is slated for release later this month.
First of all, a personal note: June was kind of a crazy month – a vacation, a virus, helping my parents with a move, and a (requested) schedule change at work. I only posted seven times in June, less than my minimum goal of two posts per week. I intended to post pieces for Pride and Father’s Day, and wasn’t able to complete them (but at least they’re partially done for next year). I haven’t made writing a priority and I’m jonesing a bit. I’m planning some fun content for the next few days, to take advantage of the long holiday weekend, so stay tuned.
On this day in 1971, Pamela Courson found Jim Morrison’s body in the bathtub of their Paris apartment; Morrison was 27 years old at the time of his death. His cause of death was officially listed as heart failure, but French law didn’t require an autopsy so none was done (the popular consensus is heroin overdose). Morrison died two years to the day after Brian Jones’ death, prompting the earliest mentions of the so-called “27 Club” (by the way, Courson died three years later, of a heroin overdose, at the age of 27). Of course, there are some conspiracy theorists who believe Morrison faked his own death; you can find “proof” on the internet, but I’m certainly not going to click on any of those links.
My Cold Case binge continues; I’m now into season three. Some season two episodes I particularly loved: “Creatures of the Night”, featuring snippets of The Rocky Horror Picture Show and a guest spot by Barry Bostwick; “Best Friends”, with a star turn by an absurdly young Tessa Thompson (in her first television role); and “Ravaged”, which guest stars a heartbreaking Meredith Salenger as an alcoholic who’s hit rock bottom (viewer warning, there are some very upsetting scenes involving animal abuse in that last episode, and make sure to have some tissues handy).
Tessa Thompson in “Best Friends”
Meredith Salenger in “Ravaged”
I stumbled across this gem on YouTube:
YouTube also helpfully offered this one up this morning. If you need proof of why Ann Wilson is the greatest rock vocalist of all time, here you go. For context, this appearance was in 2014, when Wilson was 64 years old. DAMN.
Back to the Future opened on this day in 1985. BTTF was THE movie of 1985, earning almost $400 million on a $19 million budget, $4 million of which was the cost of reshooting original Marty McFly Eric Stoltz’s scenes with first choice Michael J. Fox after director Robert Zemeckis decided Stoltz wasn’t right for the part (I love Eric Stoltz, but Zemeckis was right). The film was wildly entertaining: humor, action, skateboard chase scenes, an insanely likable lead actor, weird and wonderful supporting performances by Christopher Lloyd and Crispin Glover, an iconic score by Alan Silvestri, a Delorean time machine and an ending tailor-made for a franchise. BTTF received four Oscar nominations and won for Best Sound Effects Editing; it should have been nominated for Best Picture too – it’s as good a movie as anything released that year.
The White Stripes’ White Blood Cells was released on this day in 2001. Now I’m moving on because I feel really fucking old.
Happy Birthday, Betty Buckley! I grew up watching Buckley as Abby, stepmom to the Bradford kids on Eight is Enough, and she has appeared in such films as Carrie, Tender Mercies, Frantic and Wyatt Earp, but Buckley is primarily known as a theater actress. She made her stage debut in 1969, in the original Broadway production of 1776. She originated the role of Grizabella in Cats, for which she won the Tony for featured actress in a musical, and has appeared in shows like The Mystery of Edwin Drood and Triumph of Love. She is a rancher and a teacher and an activist, and I highly recommend following her on Twitter.
Laura Branigan was born on this day in 1952. One of the most successful pop artists of the 80s, Branigan had a wholesome image, a powerful voice and a catalog of pop gems like “Solitaire”, “Self Control” and the platinum-selling “Gloria”. Branigan died unexpectedly in August of 2004, from an undiagnosed brain aneurysm.
I mentioned on Twitter recently that I am loving the Jean Smart renaissance we’re living in. I recently watched season 2 of Fargo, followed by her astonishing turn in Mare of Easttown, for which she’s certain to be nominated for every major award. I haven’t watched Hacks yet, but I hear it’s wonderful. Anyway, Jean Smart should be in all the things. Here’s an article from Entertainment Weekly about the likelihood of a dual-nominated Smart winning at least one award (spoiler: the odds are about 50/50).
Yesterday marked the 50th anniversary of the release of Joni Mitchell’s Blue. Generally regarded as the greatest album ever by a female artist, Blue is a gorgeous, heartbreaking ode to the ups and downs of romantic love. Mitchell wrote and produced the entire album herself, which was inspired by her relationships with Graham Nash, James Taylor and Cary Raditz.
On this day in 1989, Tim Burton’s Batman premiered. The film featured Michael Keaton as Batman – a controversial choice as he was primarily known as a comedic actor and the studio wasn’t certain he could pull off the role – and Jack Nicholson as the Joker. Batman earned about $250 million, easily winning the box office race for the year, and won the Academy Award for Best Art Direction.
This piece contains some amazing behind-the-scenes photos of the shoot.
Dancer, choreographer and film director Bob Fosse was born on this day in 1927. Fosse went to Hollywood in the 1940s with dreams of becoming the next Fred Astaire. After choreographing a dance sequence in 1953’s Kiss Me Kate, Fosse found success on the Broadway stage, choreographing such shows as The Pajama Game, Pal Joey, Sweet Charity, Pippin and Chicago, and winning nine Tony Awards in the process. He parlayed that success into directing films like Cabaret (for which he won the Best Director Oscar), Lenny and the semi-autobiographical All That Jazz. Fosse’s signature dance moves include the use of turned-in knees, sideways shuffling, rolled shoulders, jazz hands and the “Fosse Amoeba”, as seen in this sequence from Sweet Charity. Fosse died in 1987 from a heart attack.
Fosse got the SNL treatment with this 2013 skit starring the brilliant Christina Applegate.
Today is the divine Frances McDormand’s 64th birthday. A three-time Best Actress Academy Award winner (for those keeping score, McDormand just needs one more to tie Katharine Hepburn for the all-time record), McDormand was introduced to movie audiences – and husband Joel Coen – in 1984 with Blood Simple. She has made a career of playing complex, multi-dimensional women in films like Fargo, Almost Famous (a personal favorite), Moonrise Kingdom and Nomadland, and in TV series such as Olive Kitteridge. The winner of Oscars, Golden Globes, BAFTAs, Emmys, SAGs and a Tony, McDormand is deservedly one of the most decorated actors of all time.
“My Sharona” by The Knack was released on this day in 1979. Catchy as hell (or annoying as hell, depending on your viewpoint), “My Sharona” was a smash hit, holding the #1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for six weeks. The song entered the charts again in 1994 after it was featured prominently in Reality Bites.
Stuart Sutcliffe was born on this day in 1940. Sutcliffe met John Lennon at the Liverpool College of Art, and briefly played bass with The Beatles before leaving the band in 1961 to pursue an art career. Sutcliffe died of a brain hemorrhage in 1962. The lovely 1994 film Backbeat tells the story of Sutcliffe’s relationships with Lennon and Astrid Kirchherr.
Backbeat
Author and screenwriter Richard Matheson died on this day in 2013 at the age of 87. Matheson’s work was a huge influence on Stephen King and George A. Romero, and his stories were made into films like I Am Legend, Somewhere in Time, What Dreams May Come and Stir of Echoes. Matheson adapted one of his short stories for the television film Duel, Steven Spielberg’s directorial debut, and wrote for a number of television series, most notably The Twilight Zone.
This week marked the 40th anniversary of the release of Duran Duran’s self-titled debut. The band observed the milestone by releasing a new single, “Invisible”, which I can’t stop listening to. These gents have aged like fine wine.
On this day in 2015, Pixar released Inside Out following a premiere at Cannes in May. Featuring the voices of Lewis Black (“Anger”), Amy Poehler (“Joy”), Bill Hader (“Fear”), Mindy Kaling (“Disgust”) and Phyllis Smith (“Sadness”), Inside Out tells the story of a girl named Riley from the perspective of her emotions, and if you haven’t seen it, please do so as soon as humanly possible (you can stream it on Disney+). Keep the tissues handy, though; those evil Pixar geniuses will get you every damn time.
Me, after watching Up, Finding Nemo, Inside Out, Toy Story 3 or literally any Pixar film
On this day in 1992, Tim Burton’s Batman Returns was released. Considered too dark and violent for a PG-13 film, Batman Returns underperformed critically and commercially. Burton was asked to step aside for 1995’s Batman Forever (https://wordpress.com/post/peanut-butter-and-julie.com/3864). Fun fact: Annette Bening was originally cast to play Catwoman but had to drop out when she became pregnant. Michelle Pfeiffer is iconic, but I can’t help wondering what Bening could have done with the role.
On this day in 1954, The Tasmanian Devil – “Taz” – made his debut in the Looney Tunes short “Devil May Hare”. You can stream the short on HBO Max.
Happy birthday to Gena Rowlands, Phylicia Rashad, Ann Wilson, Kathleen Turner and Paula Abdul!
Frank Bonner, best known as WKRP in Cincinnati‘s Herb Tarlek, has died at the age of 79 due to dementia complications.
Cold Case is now streaming on HBO Max, and I’m happily binging it. The best part of watching an almost twenty year old procedural is playing “Before They Were Famous” with each episode’s guest stars. In thirteen episodes, I’ve already seen actors like Kate Mara, Finn Wittrock, Becki Newton, Summer Glau, Brandon Routh and Keke Palmer.
On this day in 1972, Roxy Music released their glorious self-titled debut album. Roxy Music would go on to be one of the most popular art rock bands of all time, influencing countless artists such as Talking Heads, Kate Bush, Duran Duran and Radiohead. The band was finally inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019, after more than twenty years of eligibility.
One of my all-time favorite musicals, Grease, was released on this day in 1978. It’s one of the first movies I distinctly remember seeing in the theater, and I was enraptured. The rest of the world was, too – the movie would become the year’s box office champ, and the film’s soundtrack album would go on to sell about 38 million copies worldwide. Several years ago, my friend Jen took me to a Grease sing-along for my birthday, and it was one of my favorite movie experiences ever. Grease is still the word, my friends.
On this day in 1995, Batman Forever was released. The film earned a then-record $52.8 million in its opening weekend. While Forever is certainly not the best film in the series, it’s also not the worst (that’d be Batman & Robin). The soundtrack – featuring artists like U2, Seal, PJ Harvey, Method Man, Massive Attack and Nick Cave – still slaps.
Happy birthday, Laurie Metcalf! One of the best character actors of the past four decades, Metcalf got her start in the theater and was a charter member of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company. She made her film debut in 1985’s Desperately Seeking Susan (a personal favorite of mine) and was introduced to mainstream audiences in 1988 with her role as Jackie in Roseanne. She is the winner of three Emmys and two Tonys, and was nominated for her first Academy Award (FINALLY) for 2017’s Lady Bird (she lost to I, Tonya‘s Allison Janney, and if there was ever a better time for a two-way Oscar tie, I can’t think of it). She also provided the voice of Andy’s mom in the Toy Story films.
Desperately Seeking Susan, with the late, great Mark Blum and Steven Wright
Roseanne, with George Clooney
Lady Bird, with Saoirse Ronan
Toy Story 3
Today would have been Tupac Shakur’s 50th birthday.
On June 12, 1981, audiences were introduced to one of the most iconic movie characters ever, Indiana Jones. Raiders of the Lost Ark would become the highest grossing film of 1981 and win more Academy Awards than any other movie that year.
George Lucas initially conceived the idea for Indiana Jones in the early 70s. The concept was to modernize the serial adventure films popular in the first half of the 20th century. When Lucas shifted his focus to Star Wars, Steven Spielberg joined the project. The two had ideas for the set pieces, but needed a top notch writer to fill in the narrative, and Lawrence Kasdan was hired for the job (that same year, Kasdan would make his directorial debut with Body Heat).
The casting process is the stuff of Hollywood legend: the early favorite to play the intrepid archaeologist, Tom Selleck, had just signed on to play television PI Thomas Magnum, and CBS refused to release him from his contract. Other actors who read for the part were Tim Matheson and Peter Coyote, the latter of whom – in this humble blogger’s opinion – would certainly have made a better Indiana than Selleck. By the way, other actors supposedly considered for the role include Steve Martin, Chevy Chase and Bill Murray; make of that information what you will. Ultimately, the role went to Harrison Ford, and I don’t think anyone would want it any other way.
Filming was completed in the summer of 1980 at Elstree Studios in England, and on location in La Rochelle, France, Tunisia and Hawaii. The production cost was an estimated $20 million, which would translate to about $60 million today; for reference, today’s blockbuster movies are routinely made for $200 million or more. My favorite story from the set of the film is when Harrison Ford, suffering from dysentery, was slated to film a sword fight scene. Not feeling up to the job, Ford suggested Indiana should just shoot the guy, and one of the most iconic movie scenes ever was born. And, in a recent interview with Uproxx (https://uproxx.com/movies/karen-allen-raiders-of-the-lost-ark/), Karen Allen revealed that she accidentally punched Ford in the face, leading to this fantastic exchange:
“Was he mad?“
“He was slightly annoyed. But I mean, it happens. It happens. I mean, I had never punched anybody in a film before. So they were showing me how to do it, and I was doing my absolute best, and as far as I was concerned his chin just got in the way of my hand.”
By the way, some really amazing set photos are available on the internet – here are just a few of my favorites:
A bit nervous about the lack of audience anticipation for the film, Paramount Pictures only mounted a national ad campaign about a week before Raiders‘ release. Superman II (which was released just a week after Raiders) was expected to be the box office winner that summer and in the end, it wasn’t even close – Raiders won the year with almost twice the gross of Superman II, which ended the year in third place behind On Golden Pond (and if you, like me, are wondering, here is the rest of the top ten: Arthur, Stripes, The Cannonball Run, Chariots of Fire, For Your Eyes Only, The Four Seasons and Time Bandits).
On Golden Pond
Superman II
Arthur
Stripes
For Your Eyes Only
Audiences fell in love with Dr. Jones (and Marion too), and we had a villain impossibly easy to root against – the Nazis. We were mesmerized by the set pieces – that boulder! those snakes! the opening of the Ark! – and captivated by John Williams’ iconic score. We booed when Belloq appeared onscreen, we shivered at the sight of the tarantulas and we cheered when the Nazis’ faces melted. I remember seeing the movie in the theater with my parents, and just delighting in every moment; if I had to guess, I’ve probably seen it at least thirty times since then.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences loved the film as well. Raiders received nine Oscar nods, for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Original Score, Best Sound, Best Sound Editing, Best Art Direction, Best Film Editing and Best Visual Effects, winning in the last five categories (more than eventual Best Picture winner Chariots of Fire, which won four awards).
Dan Aykroyd presented this award just twenty-four days after John Belushi’s death
In the forty years since Raiders was released, there have been three additional Indiana Jones films (with a fifth in production now), a television series (The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles – I especially loved the episodes with a teenage Indy played by Sean Patrick Flanery), several Indiana Jones-themed Disney attractions, graphic novels, tie-in novelizations and video games. In 2003, the American Film Institute named Indiana Jones the second-greatest movie hero of all time (Atticus Finch took the top spot, so I can’t be mad). Tie-in merchandise includes everything from “Professor bow tie” and t-shirts to action figures and Legos. Indiana Jones’ legacy as a pop culture icon is secure, and it all started with Raiders of the Lost Ark.
On this day in 1982, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial was released. Made for just $10.5 million, E.T. was a massive success, holding the top spot at the box office for twelve consecutive weeks. By the end of its initial run, the film had earned more than $350 million (equivalent to almost $1 billion in today’s dollars) and won the hearts of everyone who saw it. It was nominated for nine Academy Awards and won four (yes, it should have won Best Picture, but the Academy can’t resist a boring historical drama).
Steven Soderbergh’s No Sudden Move will be released on July 1. I love everything about this trailer, but what I love most is the presence of Brendan Fraser, who looks to be experiencing a comeback after years of health problems, depression and backlash from a sexual assault allegation he made against Philip Berk of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. I am 100% here for a Brenaissance.
On this day in 2002, American Idol premiered on FOX. It was the surprise television hit of the summer. Eventual winner Kelly Clarkson would go on to become one of the biggest pop stars of the 21st century, and the show would run for another fourteen seasons on FOX (an ABC revival of the show began airing in 2018).
Gene Wilder was born on this day in 1933. A personal favorite of mine, particularly for his titular role in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and his collaborations with Mel Brooks, Wilder was born Jerome Silberman in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. After some stage and television work, Wilder made his film debut in Bonnie and Clyde. He got his big break with his second movie, Brooks’ The Producers, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. His final acting job was a guest spot on Will & Grace, which earned Wilder an Emmy, after which he turned his attention to writing. After a private three year battle with Alzheimer’s, Wilder died in 2016.
The Producers
Blazing Saddles
Young Frankenstein
Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
On this day in 1966, The Rolling Stones’ “Paint It, Black” peaked at #1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. The first #1 song to feature the sitar (played by the staggeringly talented multi-instrumentalist Brian Jones), “Paint It, Black” is bleak as hell, telling the story of a man in the throes of grief and depression. A brilliant instrumental version of the song (arranged by Ramin Djawadi) was used in the first episode of Westworld.
The long-awaited film adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s In The Heights has arrived! You can see it in theaters and on HBO Max. Watch the first eight minutes here:
June 8 is Best Friends Day, and I’d like to tell you about my best friend, Lou. She and I have known each other for almost thirty years, and we’ve seen each other through the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. About ten years into our friendship, I fell in love with Lou’s brother and in 2005 we became sisters. Lou coined a portmanteau for our unique relationship – frister (friend/sister).
I always laugh when people say things like “my new best friend” or “my other best friend”, because for me, there is only one. Sure, I have lots of other friends, but only Lou could ever qualify as my best friend. She is my person. The person who knows me better than I know myself. The person who would help me bury the bodies.
Beyond the usual qualities you look for in a friend – shared values, loyalty, intelligence, sense of humor, etc – Lou and I share a particular love of pop culture. We live, sleep, eat and breathe pop culture. We can talk about it for hours on end (quite literally), dissecting the amazing movie we just saw, discussing which Beatle is our favorite (hers is John, mine is George), recommending books to each other or creating playlists of mutually loved songs. We speak in movie quotes. We are always in the process of making lists – “favorite non-fiction books”, “best albums of the 80s”, “favorite character actors”, etc. The point is, we are both pop culture obsessives and it is one of the foundations of our friendship. I mean, we met while working at a retail record store, so it’s right there in our friendship’s DNA.
One of our main loves is music. In 1994, Lou and I moved together to the metro-Detroit area, and with that move came countless opportunities to see live music. From tiny venues like St. Andrews Hall to arenas like Pine Knob and The Palace of Auburn Hills, Lou and I had a plethora of choices, and we made the most of it, like two kids in a candy store. We love a lot of the same artists, so the only issue was how many tickets we could afford to buy that month (spoiler alert: the amount we spent was ALWAYS more than we could afford).
Back in the late 90s, when we started spending a significant amount of time on the world wide web, Lou and I could spend HOURS on IMDb, going down rabbit hole after rabbit hole. “Who was that guy in that one movie we loved?” “Oh yeah, THAT guy! Wasn’t he also in that other movie we loved?” We’d spend entire nights doing this. Up to that point, we had to rely primarily on our memories for this information, and having it all at our fingertips was astounding.
When Fight Club came out, Lou was working a lot on the weekends, and I went to see it with another friend. I told her how great it was, but she never saw it while it was in the theater. When I asked her why, she said “You think everything is great”, and I realized I hadn’t been effusive enough with my praise of the movie. From that point on (even to this day), Fight Club became shorthand for the highest recommendation possible, as in “This is a Fight Club-level endorsement”.
One of our favorite things to do is watch awards shows. We used to host Academy Awards parties, creating cocktails to go with the food we were preparing, watching the red carpet footage for hours. We used to drag our asses into work the next day, until finally we got smart and started taking the day off. We’d spend the day lounging, talking about our favorite gowns of the evening or how happy we were that so-and-so won in their category.
Back in 2007, our friendship was altered dramatically when Lou decided it was time to move where she’d always wanted to be, where the sun shines every single day – almost 2000 miles away. So, we have a lot of our pop culture conversations via text (“Are you watching Mare of Easttown?” or “I just watched Tenet and my brain hurts” or “I’m watching The Muppet Show on Disney+ and I still remember every word of the theme song”). We “watch” the Oscars together while we talk on the phone. We continue to make lists together, the most recent being “all-time perfect albums”. She gives me suggestions for my blog. We share trivia tidbits (“Did you know that Angelica Huston was supposed to play Iona in Pretty in Pink?”). We cast the imaginary movie adaptations of our favorite books (The 7 1/2Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is a relatively recent example). And we will always have the memories of the pop culture we’ve shared – wiping each other’s eyes in the bathroom after seeing Titanic, laughing together at Henry Rollins spoken-word shows, watching Dazed and Confused together for the millionth time, staying up all night playing Trivial Pursuit and listening to our favorite tunes (I was usually the DJ). I treasure every one of these memories, and I treasure the times with her that I can’t remember, too. She is the Lucy to my Ethel, the Romy to my Michelle, the Patsy to my Edina. She is my frister, my person, my very best friend. I love you, Lou.
PB & Julie + Julie C. Trivia 