It seems that a lot of Schwartz's actors had trouble taking ownership of his light hearted comedies. Tina Louise and Robert Reed come instantly to mind. Plus, the critics never gave him much slack. Their reviews of The Brady Bunch and Gilligan's Island were brutal.... but guess what? Sherwood's shows are still beloved and in constant rotation four decades later!
So, what did his shows have that the critics and "serious minded" actors missed? It wasn't kitsch appeal - that sort of thing comes and goes, never enduring for long. They didn't have sensational scripts The actiing wasn't particularly outstanding. The concepts weren't exactly cutting edge. To be honest, I don't have a good answer as to why his shows have endured for so long. They are so much a part of my childhood that I simply cannot view them objectively
Whatever the reason, I am confident that my great great great grandchildren, living inside some domed city on Mars, will still be watching The Skipper, Marcia Brady, The Movie Star, Sam the Butcher, Gilligan, and even (choke) Cousin Oliver.. Sherwood may be gone, but his wonderful creations will live on.
I was a little too old, I guess, to be a fan of Corey Haim back in the 1980's; however, I think he deserves mention on Retrospace. It's sad, really, to recall a young star who's "got the world on a string" and then suddenly everthing goes to shit. One day he's filthy stinking rich, banging Alyssa Milano and on the cover of every teen magazine on the shelf... the next, he can't pay someone to put him in a movie.
Isn't it that way with all teen stars? Think of all those boys from the 70's that had their faces plastered on Tiger Beat: Leif Garret, Lance Kerwin, Shaun Cassidy, Jack Wild, Bobby Sherman, Andy DeFranco, Vincent Van Patten, Willie Aames.... their careers just sort of fizzled once they stopped being so "cute". It's an extremely rare occurrence for them to end up on the A-list like John Travolta, and even he had his bleak years.
Note to teeny bopper stars: get your college degree, you're going to need it. Ilan Mitchell-Smith (Weird Science) and Mayim Bialik (Blossom) did, and their much better off.
I love John Hughes movies - always have. From the Vacation films to Pretty in Pink, these are classic movies, and I have a lot of fond memories associated with them. Admittedly, I sort of jumped off the John Hughes boat around the time of Home Alone, but prior to that, I saw nearly everything he put out.
What are my favorites of his work? That's a hard one, but if I had to choose a few, they'd be: Sixteen Candles, National Lampoon's Vacation, The Breakfast Club, Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, and Weird Science. The man was a master at tapping into the 80's teen psyche. What a great loss. :-(
Not being British, I guess I'm not as familiar with Wendy Richard's work as many of those across the pond. However, I will say that I've been watching Are You Being Served? since I was too young to know Mr. Humphries was gay.
Thanks to PBS, I can't name many other shows that I've been able to continue to watch over the decades unabated. In fact AYBS? has been with me so long and is so steeped in nostalgia, that (not unlike The Brady Bunch) I really can't tell you if the show is any good or not - it just is what it is, and I like it.
Wendy has a great deal of films and television shows on her résumé which I don't know enough to comment on, so I'll leave that to other bloggers. Instead, I'll just leave you with a pic of Wendy on the set of Help! with some dude.
Richard Wright (28 July 1943 - 15 September 2008) died of cancer yesterday. He was the keyboardist for Pink Floyd, and oftentimes their singer and songwriter. Although he is not as well known as Gilmour, Waters and the notorious Barrett, he was nonetheless an integral part of the group. But don't take my word for it... David Gilmour, Pink Floyd's guitarist and singer, said in a statement Monday: "In the welter of arguments about who or what was Pink Floyd, Rick's enormous input was frequently forgotten. He was gentle, unassuming and private but his soulful voice and playing were vital, magical components of our most recognized Pink Floyd sound." - International Herald Tribune
In fact, some of my favorite songs by the band were Wright compositions. His ability to evoke images from childhood, both strange and surreal, were extraordinary. "Remember a Day" is a psychedelic fairy tale masterpiece. You can watch the YouTube video here, but I didn't embed it because, while you see the other members of the band clowning around, you don't really see Wright in the performance.
"Remember a Day"
Remember a day before today A day when you were young. Free to play alone with time Evening never came. Sing a song that can't be sung Without the morning's kiss Queen - you shall be it if you wish Look for your king Why can't we play today? Why can't we stay that way? Climb your favorite apple tree Try to catch the sun Hide from your little brother's gun Dream yourself away Why can't we reach the sun? Why can't we blow the years away? Blow away Blow away Remember Remember....
Another great Wright composition was "Paintbox". This time it's not a surrealistic vision of childhood, but of adulthood - and it's just as brilliant.
"Paintbox"
Last night I had too much to drink Sitting in a club with so many fools Playing to rules Trying to impress but feeling rather empty I had another drink Drink - a - drink - a - drink - a - drink What a way to spend that evening They all turn up with their friends Playing the game But in the scene I should have been Far away Away - away - away - away - away Getting up, I feel as if I'm remembering this scene before I open the door to an empty room Then I forget The telephone rings and someone speaks She would very much like to go out to a show So what can I do - I can't think what to say She sees through anyway Away - away - away - away - away Out of the front door I go Traffic's moving rather slow Arriving late, there she waits Looking very angry, as cross as she can be Be - a - be - a - be - a - be - a - be Getting up, I feel as if I'm remembering this scene before I open the door to an empty room Then I forget
Obviously, I'm partial to Floyd's earlier work, and Wright actually wrote less as the years went on, focusing more on the instruments. However, Wright still brought a couple of gems to the table on Dark Side of the Moon: "Us and Them" and "The Great Big Gig in the Sky".
I really like his voice. His gentle tone lent a sort of dark atmosphere to early Floyd recordings like the aforementioned "Remember a Day" and the Syd Barrett composition "Matilda Mother":
I don't know about you, but when I read the lyrics to "Remember a Day", I can't help but think of how fitting it is to this sad day. A whole new element to the song has opened up for me, one of mortality and the brevity of human life. That a song can affect people on a deep level both in lyric and sound is a testament to the talent of its author. I raise my glass to Mr. Wright, and here's to hoping he's climbing that favorite apple tree.
From left: Richard Wright, David Gilmour, Nick Mason, and Roger Waters
