Memorial Day

I know it's a little late, but hope everyone had a great Memorial Day honoring our service men and women. More posts this week, I promise!

Come and Knock on our Door...

Suzanne Summers never ceases to amaze me. How does she still look so great? Three's Company was an obsession of mine for a while. Who didn't love Chrissy, Jack, or Janet? The set was full of drama, if you didn't know. The show was so funny but probably wouldn't be considered politically correct today. I found some trivia about the show. What do you think?

--In the final episode of the series, Jack moved from the apartment to one above his restaurant to live with his girlfriend Vicki (as seen in the spin-off "Three's a Crowd" (1984)), Janet got married and left to live with her husband Phillip and Teri took a nursing job in Hawaii.

--Jack lived at the Y.M.C.A. before moving in with Janet and Chrissy.

--Jack was in the Navy.

--Janet and Chrissy had another roommate named Eleanor before Jack moved in.

--Three different addresses were given for the apartment throughout the seasons (none of them was real).

--Billy Crystal auditioned for the role of Jack Tripper.

--Suzanne Somers was fired midway through the show's run due to salary disputes, amid a very public lawsuit and loads of publicity.

--Any time Norman Fell said an especially funny or witty line, he would look directly into the camera as he laughed.

--When Jack opens his restaurant, Larry brings his Greek family there for dinner. It is later revealed that Larry's real last name is Dalliopoulos (He changed it to Dallas because it was easier to spell).

--Priscilla Barnes (Terri) said her years on this show were the unhappiest in her professional career. She almost quit as soon as she was cast because she did not like the backstage atmosphere.

--In the first few seasons, where the opening and closing credits were shot on the beach, it was done as a last-minute aspect by the producers at Venice Beach. The first shot, where the camera zooms in on Jack Tripper (John Ritter) riding his bike, was obtained by going on the roof of a Venice shop-owner who took $100 for use of his roof.

--The 1980-1981 season was very difficult for the cast and crew. Suzanne Somers began to demand higher pay than her fellow cast members and part ownership of the show. When she was refused, she would often not show up to work. John Ritter and Joyce DeWitt refused to work with Somers any longer. So her character Chrissy was written out of the season except for a 60-second scene at the very end of the episodes. In these scenes, Chrissy was visiting her family and she would call Jack and Janet on the phone. These scenes were filmed early in the day so Somers would be off the set by the time Ritter and DeWitt arrived as they wanted no contact with her. At the end of the season, Somers was fired and Chrissy was never mentioned again.

--Chrissy's full name is "Christmas Noelle Snow".

--During the earlier seasons' opening credits, the brunette walking by the beach that causes Jack to fall off his bike is Suzanne Somers in a wig.

Fatal Attraction?

More 80's movies for you this week. I love, love, love the movie Fatal Attraction. It never gets old. I can't relate at all to it, which is probably why it fascinates me so. Anne Archer is one of my favorite actresses, and her character in the film is so believable. Here are some fun facts for you about the film. Hope you are having a great week. I have 12 more days and then I'm FREE!!!

--Morgan Fairchild, Olivia Newton-John, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Alison Doody, Helen Slater, Demi Moore, Jennifer Grey, Jennifer Beals, Catherine O'Hara, Rosanna Arquette, Kate Capshaw, Cher, Ellen Barkin, Carrie Fisher, Linda Hamilton, Daryl Hannah, Barbara Hershey, Holly Hunter, Amy Irving, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Heather Locklear, Madonna, Lena Olin, Annette O'Toole, Michelle Pfeiffer, Miranda Richardson, Mary Steenburgen, Meryl Streep, Raquel Welch, Tuesday Weld, Debra Winger, Jane Seymour, Cybill Shepherd, Susan Sarandon, Kim Basinger, Kelly McGillis, Melanie Griffith, Kathleen Turner, Geena Davis, Christine Ebersole, Mary Gross, Kay Lenz, Jessica Lange, Diane Keaton, Sissy Spacek, Sigourney Weaver, Candice Bergen, Goldie Hawn, Farrah Fawcett, Christine Baranski, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jodie Foster, Ally Sheedy, Annie Potts, Stockard Channing and Isabella Rossellini were all considered for the role of Alex Forrest.

--Glenn Close graduated from Rosemary Hall, an all-girls boarding school, the same year Michael Douglas graduated from the Choate School, an all-boys boarding school. The schools later combined to form Choate Rosemary Hall, which is co-ed.

--Glenn Close still has the knife she used in the movie hanging in her kitchen.

--Brian De Palma was originally slated to direct but he backed out because he feared that the story was too similar to Play Misty for Me (1971). De Palma also felt that Michael Douglas was not a good leading man. De Palma has since admitted he was wrong about Douglas.

--When Glenn Close finally secured the part of Alex Forrest, one of the first things she did was to take the script to two different psychiatrists to ask them: "Is this behavior possible and if it is, why?"

--When Glenn Close's agent first called to express her interest in playing Alex Forrest, he was told, "Please don't make her come in. She's completely wrong for the part." Director Adrian Lyne also thought that Glenn Close was "the last person on Earth" who should play Alex.

--After the reaction of the audience to the original ending, it was decided that the ending be re-shot. Glenn Close was opposed to redoing the ending, but eventually felt she owed it to everyone else to do it.

--The two psychiatrists who reviewed the script at Glenn Close's request both came to the same conclusion: Alex Forrest's behavior was - in its own way - classic behavior. Their diagnosis was that Alex had been molested and sexually tortured for an extended period of time while she was a child. As such, she would naturally lash out at anyone who found her desirable.

--The original ending had Alex committing suicide while dressed in white, and Dan being arrested for her murder. It was changed when preview audiences felt that Alex was not brought to justice. This ending still appears in the Japanese release. The ending was re-shot in the worship room of the Unitarian church in Mt. Kisco, NY.

Top Gun Fun

I have been thinking a lot about the old classic "Top Gun" for some reason. I'm not a big Tom Cruise fan, but love, love, love that movie. It reminds me of summer and just hanging out relaxing. Here are some fun facts about the film and some pics to go along with them. What did you think about the film?

--Val Kilmer did not want to be in this film, but was forced to by contractual obligations.

--One of the unused call-signs 'Tombstone' can be seen on a black fighter pilot helmet with three red arrows in promotional photos featuring Jerry Bruckheimer and Don Simpson.

--Bryan Adams was asked to allow his song "Only the Strong Survive" on the soundtrack, but he refused because he felt that the film glorified war.

--Charlie's "older man" date at the officer's club is the real-life "Viper", Pete Pettigrew. He is a retired Navy pilot and TOPGUN instructor, and shot down a MiG during the Vietnam War. He served as the technical consultant on the film.

--The piano scene and the final bar/jukebox scene were shot in a San Diego restaurant called Kansas City BBQ, at the corner of Kettner Blvd and W. Harbor Drive. The restaurant housed many props and memorabilia from the film, including the jukebox and Maverick's flight helmet sits behind the bar in a locked display case. However, on June 26, 2008 Kansas City BBQ suffered a grease fire that destroyed the establishment, including all of the Top Gun (1986) memorabilia on display.

--The love scene between Tom Cruise and Kelly McGillis was filmed after initial test screenings. Moviegoers complained that there was no love scene, so the company obliged. McGillis, however, had already dyed her hair darker for her next film. This is why the scene is tinted blue. Also noticeable as a subsequent shoot due to the longer length of Tom Cruise's hair (particularly in front).

--Riding on the back of this film's success, the US Navy set up recruiting booths in the major cinemas to try and catch some of the adrenaline charged guys leaving the screenings. They had the highest applications rate for years as a result.

--When the guys, as students, were first being spoken to by Charlie in the hanger, Maverick explains that he gave "the bird" to a MiG. She asks how he saw the MiG up close, and he says he was flying inverted. Right then, Ice coughs "bullshit" and the guys laughed. The "bullshit" line was ad libbed by Val Kilmer.

--Tom Cruise actually had to wear lifts in his scenes with Kelly McGillis. Cruise is 5'7" while McGillis is 5'10"

--Patrick Swayze, Emilio Estevez, Nicolas Cage, John Cusack, Matthew Broderick, Sean Penn, Michael J. Fox and Tom Hanks all turned down the role of Maverick. Charlie Sheen, Jim Carrey, Rob Lowe, Eric Stoltz, John Travolta, Scott Baio and Robert Downey Jr. were considered for the role of Maverick.

--Tatum O'Neal, Holly Hunter, Michelle Pfeiffer, Jennifer Grey, Jamie Lee Curtis, Ally Sheedy, Geena Davis, Jodie Foster, Daryl Hannah, Diane Lane, Sarah Jessica Parker and Linda Hamilton all turned down the role of Charlie. Carrie Fisher, Sharon Stone, Debra Winger, Olivia Newton-John and Madonna were also considered for the role and Brooke Shields turned it down in order to study French Literature at Princeton.

Marilyn Monroe Friday...

Here are some more of my favorite Marilyn shots. What do you think? Have a great weekend!

It's That Time Again...

Graduation is among us. Whether it be elementary, junior high, high school, college, trade school, etc. it is time to move on for some. We have 17 more school days left and our Seniors graduate on June 9. It's a very exciting time for everyone, but kind of surreal as well. Check out these amazing photos I found of various graduates from the 1910's-1950's. I love the kids! What do you think? Are you graduating from something this year?

North by Northwest

If you didn't already know, Hollywood Forever Cemetery shows movies in the cemetery during the summer season. Morbid? Naaahhh. The cemetery is showing North by Northwest on the 29th of May, so check it out! In the meantime, here are some fun facts about the film and pics to go along with it.

--James Stewart was very interested in starring in this movie, begging Alfred Hitchcock to let him play Thornhill. Hitchcock claimed that Vertigo (1958)'s lack of financial success was because Stewart "looked too old". MGM wanted Gregory Peck, but Hitchcock instead cast Cary Grant, who, ironically, was actually 4 years Stewart's senior.

--While filming Vertigo (1958), Alfred Hitchcock described some of the plot of this project to frequent Hitchcock leading man and "Vertigo" star James Stewart, who naturally assumed that Hitchcock meant to cast him in the Roger Thornhill role, and was eager to play it. Actually, Hitchcock wanted Cary Grant to play the role. By the time Hitchcock realized the misunderstanding, Stewart was so anxious to play Thornhill that rejecting him would have caused a great deal of disappointment. So Hitchcock delayed production on this film until Stewart was already safely committed to filming Otto Preminger's Anatomy of a Murder (1959) before "officially" offering him the "North by Northwest" role. Stewart had no choice; he had to turn down the offer, allowing Hitchcock to cast Grant, the actor he had wanted all along.

--It was journalist Otis L. Guernsey Jr. who suggested to Alfred Hitchcock the premise of a man mistaken for a nonexistent secret agent. He was inspired, he said, by a real-life case during WW II, known as Operation Mincemeat, in which British intelligence hoped to lure Italian and German forces away from Sicily, a planned invasion site. A cadaver was selected and given an identity and phony papers referring to invasions of Sardinia and Greece. A British film, The Man Who Never Was (1956), recounted the operation.

--Alfred Hitchcock couldn't get permission to film inside the UN, so footage was made of the interior of the building using a hidden camera, and the rooms were later recreated on a soundstage.

--The final chase scene was not shot on Mt. Rushmore; Alfred Hitchcock couldn't gain permission to shoot an attempted murder on a national monument. The scene was shot in the studio on a replica of Mt. Rushmore. Everything is shot carefully, so as to avoid associating the faces of the monument with the violence.

--Rather than go to the expense of shooting in a South Dakota woodland, Alfred Hitchcock planted 100 ponderosa pines on an MGM soundstage.

--Eva Marie Saint's line, "I never discuss love on an empty stomach," is dubbed over the line you can see her speaking on film: "I never make love on an empty stomach."

--Alfred Hitchcock had planned a sequence where Roger Thornhill (Cary Grant) hid in Lincoln's nose and had a sneezing fit. Park officials would not allow this to be filmed, but Hitchcock tried again and again. Finally, someone asked Hitchcock how he would feel if it were the other way around and Lincoln was having a sneezing fit in Cary Grant's nose. Hitchcock immediately understood and the scene was never filmed.

--Cary Grant got $450,000 for this movie - a substantial amount for the time - plus a percentage of the gross profits. He also received $315,000 in penalty fees for having to stay nine weeks past the time his contract called for.

--While on location at Mt. Rushmore, Eva Marie Saint discovered that Cary Grant would charge fans 15 cents for an autograph.

--One day, Martin Landau noticed that Alfred Hitchcock was giving instructions to Cary Grant, James Mason and Eva Marie Saint. When he asked Hitchcock about this, the director basically said if he didn't talk to actors, they were doing fine; when he talked to them, it was because they did something wrong.

Betty White

Betty has been in the press a lot lately. She recently hosted Saturday Night Live. If you didn't catch it, check out the clips on hulu or youtube. Here are some pics of Betty in her younger years and for fun some trivia about the show "Golden Girls." Hope you are having a great day!

--Rue McClanahan was to play Rose and Betty White was to play Blanche (The producers originally wanted Rue to play a version of her naive Vivian Cavender character from "Maude" (1972) and Betty White to play a version of her man-hungry Sue Ann Nivens from "Mary Tyler Moore" (1970).) They switched roles because they didn't want to be typecast.

--Estelle Getty (Sophia) is 15½ months younger than Bea Arthur (Dorothy), even though Sophia is Dorothy's mother.

--The girls consumed over 100 cheesecakes during the show's 7-year run. And Bea Arthur hates cheesecake.

--Rue McClanahan was found asleep in all sorts of places on the set.

--In one episode, Blanche wants to watch the soap opera "Another World" (1964). Rue McClanahan, who played Blanche, made several appearances on that soap opera.

--The writers of the show always tried to give Sophia the raciest lines. They did this because her character had a stroke earlier in life, which made her unable to control the things she was able to say.

--During the first season a real house, in Pacific Palisades, California, was used for the exterior shots of the house. For the rest of the series a replica of the exterior was built on the studio's lot. This exterior facade was part of the backstage studio tour ride at Disney/MGM studios. This facade - along with the "Empty Nest" (1988) house - was among those destroyed in Summer 2003, as Disney bulldozed the homes of "Residential Street" to make room for its "Lights, Motors, Action!" attraction.

--When the show first aired, the Queen of England loved it so much that she wrote to the four actresses and asked them to perform a live show especially for her. They obliged, and acted out an episode in which the girls visit London on stage in front of the queen and her family.

--Many actors and actresses were invited back to play different characters. Harold Gould played two of Rose's boyfriends, Arnie and Miles. Bill Dana played Sophia's brother Angelo and her father. Ellen Albertini Dow played Sophia's friend Lillian and an unnamed member of an old folks home. Chick Vennera played a prize fighter and TV reporter Enrique Mas. Paul Dooley played Rose's date Isaac Newton and a neighbor doctor for a semi-failed pilot of what would become "Empty Nest" (1988). Philip Sterling played two different psychiatrists. Sid Melton played Sophia's late husband and a waiter at a restaurant. George Grizzard played Blanche's late husband and her brother-in-law. Peter Hansen played two of Dorothy's boyfriends. Numerous other actors with much smaller parts were asked back twice, sometimes to play non-speaking extras.