Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Thumbs Down: Ungrateful TV Actors...


Above: Penn Badgley

Not sure what is going on over at Gossip Girl but it seems most of the cast seems to feel free to bad mouth the show or talk about how they want to leave. Between Penn Badgley, Taylor Momsen, Ed Westwick and Leighton Meester, it seems most of the cast is publicly talking about how bad the show is or how they want to leave.

Now I have not watched Gossip Girl since season 1. I did a series of posts on FH about how I loved the show after watching the first season. As quickly as it got my attention however...it lost it. One of the reasons might have been the cast. Talented bunch though they may be, there was also an arrogance about many of them. I could not help but feel when watching the show, that some cast members could not hide feeling they were above the material.


Above: T.R Knight & Katherine Heigl.

Television actors seem to quickly forget what struggles some of their predecessors went through after leaving successful TV shows. Whether they left on their own (Shelley Long,Cheers) or stuck with the show til the end (Kirstie Alley, Cheers), Hollywood is riddled with actors praised with Emmy's one year to being unemployed the next. Most actors on successful shows never find the kind of fame they had once their show has ended. Katherine Heigl and T.R Knight might have felt relief when leaving Grey's Anatomy, but they still had Grey's money in the bank. We will see how they feel a few years from now. Heigl in particular had some powerful story lines as Izzie Stevens. She has not exactly been challenged as an actress in the mediocre movies she has been in since.


Above: David Caruso

The tale of David Caruso should be the blue print for television actors. After receiving critical acclaim and celebrity for season 1 of ABC's NYPD Blue, Caruso -- promptly left the show to seek a movie career. One film Jade made a minor ruffle then pretty much nothing. Caruso quickly beelined it back to TV and has spent almost the past decade playing one of the most boring characters on one of the most successful, yet unwatchable shows on TV,CSI Miami.



Suzanne Somers is another great example of what can happen when you leave a popular TV show. Although Somers is a successful multi millionaire today, her money did not come from acting jobs. Although she did not leave voluntarily, Somers move to get a salary more on par with co-star John Ritter did end her time on Three's Company. Although Somers had a very successful Vegas career there were many dry years before she rebounded with The abdominizer. We don't even need to mention poor Joyce DeWitt...

so....

The cast of Gossip Girl take heed, there are many actors from many shows like Gilligan's Island and literally hundreds of other shows over the past few decades with cast members, briefly popular, never got another decent acting job and many were never heard from again.

Think hard cast of Gossip Girl before you spew sarcastic comments about your show and the quality of the writing. Even if there is validity in your comments, those of us heading out to work each day don't want to hear it. I am sure the cast of Eight Is Enough (below), some of whom had mental break downs, drug issues, alcoholism, unemployment, bankruptcy and even death (Lani O'Grady) would kill to be in your shoes.

The Gentlemen of Marlen Boro: Lyle

The Gentlemen of Marlen Boro
-Lyle-



-Reshaping Perception-

Reshaping oneself can take on many forms. For 20 year old Lyle, keeping in shape is both a passion and a job. 'Modeling is a lot of fun and forces me to keep myself in shape which is a big plus!' The Minneapolis student's favorite activities include weight lifting, running, swimming, yoga, karate, football, and lacrosse. Lyle feels modeling is the perfect way to show off all the hard work he puts into keeping fit.




Lyle
Stats:

Height: 5' 11"
Weight: 161 lbs
Hair color: Brown
Hair length: Short
Eye color: Blue
Skin color: White
Experience: Experienced



Reshaping oneself is not only about the body, it is about the mind, how you see yourself and how you are seen by others. Lyle has a great look, blond, blue eyes, cute face and great body. In his modeling work however, Lyle strives to alter initial perceptions by trying new things, working in a varitey of ways to achieve unique and different looks. Creating and Reshaping was a theme in Lyle's work with Marlen Boro.



'Working with Marlen is a blast because he knows what he is doing, but he is not afraid to experiment either. After shooting I would look over at Marlen and he would have a childish grin on his face looking through the pictures and I just knew from his reaction we had some great shots. He is a very respectful and fun guy I really hope to work with him again and I would definitely recommend him as a photographer!'
Lyle




'Lyle is stunning. The first shoot, he trusted me to incorporate his lacrosse gear in a way that respected his nudity boundaries, but also allowed us to create some truly stunning and sexy images. That day I was really struck by his look. A sort of throwback to the 50s - and told him that he reminded me of the good kid on the football team where the coach would say, "I expected this from everybody else, but you too Lyle..." Which led to a kooky idea about having that All-American boy secretly play in girly panties. I almost didn't mention it - but Lyle was game - and actually excited about the idea. Crazier still, Lyle's girlfriend was too!'
Marlen Boro

I would definitely say Lyle and Marlen's collaboration certainly altered my initial perception. It is difficult to imagine the model in the first shot in this post is the same model in the last one. Thanks as always to Marlen Boro and to Lyle for sharing the results of their work together.

Check out more of Lyle on MM HERE:
Check out Gentlemen Photography by Marlen Boro HERE:

Also join Marlen on Facebook where almost daily he shares the best shots from his latest work!



Favorite Pic of the Day for February 2nd


Not sure if this is an official Dolce & Gabbana ad or not, my research did not come up with anything. Does anyone know, or have a credit for this shot?

Check out my 2009 birthday post which includes Michael T. Weiss, Luis Barra and David Paisley HERE:

Just Because: Farrah Fawcett



Just Because today, February 2nd would have been Farrah Fawcett's 64th birthday.



To honor the star, one of the most memorable symbols of her celebrity, the red swimsuit she wore in her best selling poster has been donated to the Smithsonian Institute.

Among the other items included are an original copy of the swimsuit poster and a leather-bound book of Fawcett’s personal copies of scripts for the first season of the popular television show.


SOURCE:

Kudos to The Chick & the Duck



Some sitcoms seem to take on a legendary quality after they have been off the air for awhile. It strikes me that as great as Mary Tyler Moore and MASH were in their early few seasons they had more than their fair share of 'stinker' episodes in their last few seasons.

Friends on the other hand seems to suffer the opposite fate. It is shown so often, on so many channels, edited down episodes that most viewers have seen time and time again that I think may forget how brilliant the shows actually is.

Friends holds a special place in my tv viewing history. The show began when I was starting University and followed me through 5 years of school, moving out, coming out, an engagement and a called off wedding. Through the highs and lows, Thursday was a night for Friends.



I can't watch a Friends episode when it airs on tv any longer, for some reason they don't seem to play very well. But....the other night when flicking the channel I stopped on a scene with the chick and the duck. Rachel was having Joshua (heavy accentuating the u) over for a date. It was during the time Rachel and Monica were forced to move into Joey and Chandler's apartment after losing a bet (another great episode). During the dinner Joshua, played by Tate Donovan (an ex of Aniston's) was freaked out by the site of the chick and the duck coming out of one of the bedrooms.



I quickly turned off the episode but pulled out my DVD's to begin re watching some season 3 and 4 episodes. The chick and duck were introduced in season 3 and were seen off and on up until season 7. There credited as co-stars on most sites about the show. The birds were really scene stealers and although I am sure made filming a challenge, Friends often had story arcs involving animals including the cat Phoebe thought was her mother, the pug given to Phoebe by her real mother Teri Garr and of course Marcel, Ross' monkey. The key to using an animal successfully on a tv show is weaving into the storyline via relationship. With the chick and the duck, Joey loved them, Chandler took care of them, Phoebe tried to protect them and Monica and especially Rachel hated them. They also acted as make shift children for roommates Chandler and Joey and were often the catalyst for friction between them.

Not sure if any of you have a show that carried you through a critical point in your lives but Friends is one of 3 that I connect with important years. If you have never watched Friends, think your sick of Friends, think Friends was crap or have not watched Friends in awhile, I strongly recommend giving it another go and begin with 'The One with the Chick and the Duck' from season 3.

Shawn M by Tom Cullis



Tom Cullis does it again! Shot for Timoteo, Shawn M is a Marine just back from Iraq. Shawn is a new face entering the modeling world and these shots by Tom confirm he is off to a great start!

Tom Cullis Photography