TATOOS AND LOLLIPOPS - Recently Updated Pages

Remembering Heath Ledger

SIXXCHICK69 — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 23:23:50 CST

Heathcliff Andrew Ledger (April 4, 1979 – January 22, 2008) was an Academy Award-nominated Australian actor. After appearing in television roles during the 1990s, Ledger developed a Hollywood career. He starred in both critical and financial successes, including Ten Things I Hate About You, The Patriot, Monster's Ball, A Knight's Tale and Brokeback Mountain, and completed the role of the Joker in the forthcoming The Dark Knight.

E

arly life and family

Ledger was born in Perth, Western Australia, the son of Sally Ledger Bell (née Ramshaw), a French teacher, and Kim Ledger, a race car driver and mining engineer.[1] Ledger's mother is descended from the Clan Campbell of Scotland and his father comes from a family known in Perth for their ownership of the Ledger Engineering Foundry.[2] He and his sister Kate were named after the two main characters in Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights, Heathcliff and Catherine. The Sir Frank Ledger Charitable Trust was named after his great-grandfather.[3] Ledger attended Guildford Grammar School, where he had his first acting experiences, starring in a school production as Peter Pan at age 10.[3]

Career

Early career

At sixteen, Ledger sat for early graduation exams, and left school to pursue an acting career.[4] With his best friend, Trevor DiCarlo, Ledger made the cross-country drive to Sydney. He returned to Perth for the TV series Sweat (1996), in which he played a gay cyclist.[3]
In 1996, prior to his film debut in the 1997 Australian movie Blackrock, Ledger was involved in the short lived Fox Broadcasting Company fantasy-drama Roar. In 1999, Ledger starred in the teen comedy 10 Things I Hate About You and also had the lead role in the acclaimed Australian movie Two Hands, directed by Gregor Jordan.[3]

2000s

Heath Ledger as Ennis del Mar in Brokeback Mountain

From 2000 to 2005, he starred in The Patriot, Monster's Ball, A Knight's Tale, The Four Feathers, Ned Kelly, The Order, and The Brothers Grimm. In 2001, he won a ShoWest Award for the Male Star of Tomorrow based on his performance in The Patriot, and worldwide release of A Knight's Tale. In 2003, he was named one of Australian GQ's Men of the Year for acting.
Ledger received "Best Actor of 2005" awards from both the New York Film Critics Circle and the San Francisco Film Critics Circle for his acclaimed performance in Brokeback Mountain, in which he plays Wyoming ranch hand Ennis Del Mar, who has a love affair with aspiring rodeo rider Jack Twist, played by Jake Gyllenhaal. He also received a nomination for Golden Globe Best Actor in a Drama and a nomination for Academy Award for Best Actor for this performance. In the New York Times review of the film, critic Stephen Holden wrote:

Both Mr. Ledger and Mr. Gyllenhaal make this anguished love story physically palpable. Mr. Ledger magically and mysteriously disappears beneath the skin of his lean, sinewy character. It is a screen performance, as good as the best of Marlon Brando and Sean Penn.[5]

In another review in Rolling Stone, Peter Travers wrote:

Ledger's magnificent performance is an acting miracle. He seems to tear it from his insides. Ledger doesn't just know how Ennis moves, speaks and listens; he knows how he breathes. To see him inhale the scent of a shirt hanging in Jack's closet is to take measure of the pain of love lost.[6]

Also in 2005, Ledger played a fictionalised version of Giacomo Casanova in Casanova. The film, a romantic comedy which co-starred Sienna Miller, drew mixed reviews from critics and failed to find a significant audience among general moviegoers.
In 2006, Ledger was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.[7] In 2007, he was one of six actors to portray different sides of singer Bob Dylan in the film I'm Not There.

Heath Ledger as The Joker in The Dark Knight.

Ledger played iconic comic book villain The Joker in The Dark Knight, the sequel to the 2005 film Batman Begins, opposite fellow I'm Not There star Christian Bale. The film is set to debut on July 18, 2008.[8] Since The Dark Knight was in post-production at the time of Ledger's death, the film itself will be unchanged, although the viral marketing campaign that centered around Ledger's character may be affected.[9]
The film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, in which he had been cast in a major supporting role, was in production at the time of his death.[10]
He was working with Scottish writer/producer Allan Scott on an adaptation of The Queen's Gambit by Walter Tevis, which would have been his first feature as a director.[11]

Director

Ledger had aspirations to become a film director and had started exploring this avenue by making some music videos, as well as a short film.
In 2006, Ledger directed three music videos: "Morning Yearning" for Ben Harper and two video clips for Australian hip-hop artist N'fa - "Cause an Effect" and "Seduction Is Evil (She's Hot)".
In 2007, at a news conference at the Venice Film Festival, he spoke of his desire to make a film about the British troubadour Nick Drake who died tragically young at the age of 26 in 1974. As a first step towards this project he created and appeared in a short film set to Drake's recording of his 1974 song about depression titled "Black Eyed Dog". Ledger's film was included in an anthology of short films about Drake titled Their Place: Reflections On Nick Drake which received its world premiere at the Mods & Rockers Film Festival held at Grauman's Egyptian Theatre in Los Angeles on Friday October 5, 2007.[12]

Music

Ledger started a record company with singer Ben Harper. As part of his involvement he directed a music video for Harper's song "Morning Yearning".

Public image

Press reception

Ledger had a turbulent relationship with paparazzi photographers. He strongly denied allegations that he spat at and assaulted a photographer in Sydney in 2004.[13] On January 13, 2006, several photographers retaliated for the alleged incident, squirting Ledger and Michelle Williams with water pistols as they walked the red carpet for the Sydney premiere of Brokeback Mountain.[14]
Ledger was also subject to criticism in the press following his performance on stage at the 2005 Screen Actors Guild Awards. Ledger was seen giggling when presenting Brokeback Mountain as a nominee for Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. The Los Angeles Times described his behavior as "some kind of gay spoof."[15] Ledger later called the Times to explain that his actions were the result of stage fright, saying that he was only told he would be presenting the award minutes beforehand. "I am so sorry and I apologize for my nervousness", Ledger told the newspaper.[16][17]
Ledger came under fire after he was quoted in January 2006 in Australia's Herald Sun as saying that he heard that West Virginia had banned Brokeback Mountain, which it had not. (A cinema in Utah had banned the film.)[18] He also referred to West Virginia as having had lynchings as recently as the 1980s which was disputed by archivists and historians, who say that the last extralegal public hanging in the state occurred in 1931.[19]

Personal life

From August 2002 to April 2004, Ledger had a relationship with actress Naomi Watts, whom he met during the filming of Ned Kelly.[20] Previously, he had dated actresses Lisa Zane and Heather Graham.
Ledger was engaged to actress Michelle Williams, whom he met on the set of Brokeback Mountain.[21][22] Their daughter, Matilda Rose, was born on October 28, 2005 in New York City. The child's godparents are Ledger's Brokeback costar Jake Gyllenhaal [23] and Williams' Dawson's Creek castmate Busy Philipps.[24] Ledger and his family divided their time between Brooklyn, Los Angeles, and Sydney.[citation needed] On January 13, 2006, several photographers squirted Ledger with water pistols as he walked the red carpet for the Sydney premiere of Brokeback Mountain.[25] This incident prompted Ledger to sell his Australian residence in Bronte, New South Wales, for A$7 million.[26][27][28][29]
In August 2007, Us Weekly reported that Ledger and Williams ended their relationship because of their busy schedules. Neither Ledger nor Williams confirmed the rumour at that time. In September, 2007, Williams' father, Larry, confirmed to Sydney Daily Telegraph that Ledger and Williams had indeed split.[30]
In early 2008, Ledger was reported to have been seeing model Gemma Ward after media articles linked the two together at end of 2007 holiday celebrations.[31]

Death

On January 22, 2008, Ledger was found dead in his fourth-floor apartment at 421 Broome Street in the SoHo neighborhood of New York City.[32][33][34] According to police, housekeeper Teresa Solomon had arrived at approximately 12:30 p.m. EST to do household chores, entered the bedroom at about 1 p.m. to change a light bulb in the adjacent bathroom, and found Ledger face down on the bed, with a sheet pulled to his shoulders, and snoring.[35] Masseuse Diana Wolozin arrived at approximately 2:45 p.m. to give Ledger a massage, and when he did not emerge by 3 p.m., called his cell phone and received no answer. Wolozin entered the bedroom, began to set up the massage table, and tried to wake the unresponsive Ledger.[35] Wolozin called actress Mary-Kate Olsen, whose number was programmed in Ledger's cell phone. She replied she would have a member of her security firm go to the apartment.[35] After again attempting to rouse Ledger, Wolozin called Olsen again, and at 3:26 p.m. called 9-1-1.[35] Medical workers moved Ledger to the floor, used a defibrillator and CPR, and pronounced Ledger dead at 3:36 p.m.[35]
Police said they found prescription medication in the bathroom and that there were "no obvious signs" of suicide, nor did they suspect foul play.[36] An initial autopsy on January 23 proved inconclusive at determining Ledger's cause of death. The medical examiner's office stated it will take about 10 days to complete the investigation.[37]
On January 23, 2008 (Australian time), Ledger's parents and sister appeared outside his mother's house in Applecross, a riverside Perth suburb, and read a short statement to the media:

We, Heath's family, confirm the very tragic, untimely and accidental passing of our dearly loved son, brother and doting father of Matilda, who was found in a peaceful sleep in his New York apartment by his housekeeper at 3:30pm (New York Time). We would like to thank our friends and everyone around the world for their kind wishes at this time. Heath has touched so many people on so many different levels during his short life, but few had the pleasure to truly know him. He was a down-to-earth, generous, kind-hearted, life-loving and unselfish individual who was an extreme inspiration to many. Please now respect our family's need to grieve and come to terms with our loss privately.[38]

In reaction to his death, former partner Michelle Williams was reported as saying that she was "devastated" at the loss and had boarded a plane from Trollhättan, Sweden to New York City.[39] Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd released a statement saying, "It was with great sadness that I have learned of the passing of Heath Ledger... It is tragic that we have lost one of our nation's finest actors in the prime of his life."[40]
CNN reported that Ledger's death will affect the marketing campaign of The Dark Knight, and will affect the production of The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, which had completed its filming in London but still has "an enormous amount left to do" in Vancouver.[41

Awards and nominations

Academy Awards
- 2006 - Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role, Brokeback Mountain (Nominated)
Australian Film Institute Awards
- 1999 - Best Lead Actor, Two Hands (Nominated)
- 2003 - Best Lead Actor, Ned Kelly (Nominated)
- 2006 - Best Lead Actor, Candy (Nominated)
BAFTA
- 2006 - Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role, Brokeback Mountain (Nominated)
Golden Globe Awards
- 2006 - Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama, Brokeback Mountain (Nominated)
Independent Spirit Awards
- 2008 - Robert Altman Award, I'm Not There. (Won) *shared w/ cast and crew.
- 2006 - Best Male Lead, Brokeback Mountain (Nominated)
MTV Movie Awards
- 2006 - Best Kiss, Brokeback Mountain (Won) *shared w/ Jake Gyllenhaal
- 2002 - Best Kiss, A Knight's Tale (Nominated) *shared w/ Shannyn Sossamon
- 2002 - Best Musical Sequence A Knight's Tale (Nominated) *shared w/ Shannyn Sossamon
- 2000 - Best Musical Sequence 10 Things I Hate About You (Nominated)
Screen Actors Guild Awards
- 2006 - Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture, Brokeback Mountain (Nominated)
- 2006 - Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role, Brokeback Mountain (Nominated)

FILMOGRAPHYActor:

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009) (filming)
The Dark Knight (2008) (post-production) .... The Joker
I'm Not There. (2007) .... Robbie Clark
Candy (2006) .... Dan
Casanova (2005) .... Casanova
... aka Femur (Philippines: English title)
Brokeback Mountain (2005) .... Ennis Del Mar
The Brothers Grimm (2005) .... Jacob Grimm
Lords of Dogtown (2005) .... Skip
... aka American Knights (Philippines: English title)
... aka Dogtown Boys (Germany)
The Order (2003) .... Alex Bernier
... aka The Sin Eater (Australia) (Singapore: English title) (UK) (USA: working title)
... aka Sin Eater - Die Seele des Bösen (Germany)
Ned Kelly (2003) .... Ned Kelly
... aka Ned Kelly: Public Enemy No. 1 (Philippines: English title: poster title)
The Four Feathers (2002) .... Harry Faversham
Monster's Ball (2001) .... Sonny Grotowski
... aka Bal du monstre, Le (Canada: French title)
A Knight's Tale (2001) .... Sir William Thatcher / Sir Ulrich von Lichtenstein of Gelderland
The Patriot (2000) .... Gabriel Martin
... aka Patriot, Der (Germany)
"Roar" .... Conor (13 episodes, 1997-2000)
- Sweet Bridget (2000) TV episode .... Conor
- The Cage (2000) TV episode .... Conor
- Daybreak (2000) TV episode .... Conor
- Traps (2000) TV episode .... Conor
- Tash (2000) TV episode .... Conor
(8 more)
Two Hands (1999) .... Jimmy
10 Things I Hate About You (1999) .... Patrick Verona
"Home and Away" (1988) TV series .... Scott Irwin (unknown episodes, 1997)
Paws (1997) .... Oberon
Blackrock (1997) .... Toby Ackland
"Sweat" .... Snowy Bowles (1 episode, 1996)
- Just Good Friends (1996) TV episode .... Snowy Bowles
"Ship to Shore" (1993) TV series .... Cyclist (unknown episodes)
Clowning Around (1992)

80'S CELEB ENCOUNTERS

scar0402 — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 09:45:30 CST

HAVE YOU MET A CELEBRITY FROM THE 80'S? IF SO EMAIL US YOUR STORY N WE WILL ADD IT UP HERE FOR OTHERS TO SEE!!

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KellyGirl924: Ok, I'll be the first...if I may.
In the 80's my absolute favorite band when I was in high school and still..."all innocent"...was the Hooters. I first saw them as a freshmen when they played in my school gym. (Remind you I was a real "goodie-goodie" in high school) When I first saw the bass player, Andy King, I went nuts!! I swear it was like one of those Beatles clips you see of the screaming, crying bouncin' all over girlies ('cept I wasn't crying). From that moment I had caught the concert bug and wanted more action!!
I was a faithful (Hooters fan) from then on. I had posters, buttons, t-shirts, magazines, bumper stickers etc...I followed them to any concert I could. Well, one day my kid brother (a musician himself) told me that Andy King was going to be at a benefit concert @Mermaid Lake in Bluebell, PA. Yeah!! I was there baby!! LOL!!
Well, I had an (asshole) boyfriend at the time and he gave me a hard time about going and even made me late. I thought it was over and I missed Andy playing. I walked around real sad just hoping that maybe he'd be walking around the crowd somewhere. My boyfriend didn't even exist to me...he followed me like a lost puppy. I was about to give up and call my older brother to come pick us up and was walking with my head down. Something inside told me to look up and that was when I saw him...Andy King was walking in the same direction as me. He walked right past me and I just staired...but then, something from deep inside me pushed out "ANDY!!" and he turned in my direction. From that moment I was nervous as hell and can't remember exactly what happened but I do remember that in art class I had made a ceramic melodica (Hooter) and brought that with me to give to him. He thought it was awesome! He was the sweetest guy ever!! I do remember telling him that I wanted to get my picture with him so that I could add it to my yearbook (it was my senior year of high school...I first saw them as a freshmen). Here is my pic of me and Andy King- past bassist for the 80's band The Hooters that appeared in my yearbook...

Sandbagger

Richard Greico's early college days
Nov 6 2007, 7:31 PM EST
In 1984 Richard Greico dropped out of Hudson valley Community College, in Troy N.Y. after 1 year. I actually met him when I attended classes at HVCC. I had just gotten out of the Army and was starting my freshman year when he dropped out. His story , with picture,made the front page of the Alumni newsletter in the fall of 1990.

INTERNAL DISFUNCTION

SIXXCHICK69 — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 22:22:56 CST

THIS PAGE IS DEDICATED TO INTERNAL DISFUNCTION!!! THEY ARE NOT FROM THE 80'S BUT THEY ROCK AND WANT TO GET THEM OUT THERE WHERE OTHERS CAN HEAR THEM!! CHECK OUT THIER BAND PAGE ON MYSPACE.COM

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=65322121&MyToken=5863dbaf-17c3-42bb-80ef-0efd1df4e1b3

THIER FANSITE STREET TEAM PAGE

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=173386553

AND THEIR FANSITE GROUP ON MYSPACE

http://groups.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=groups.groupProfile&groupid=104162714&Mytoken=7967171B-5274-46B7-BD667FCA1F769DA91900620

CHRISTMAS IN THE 80'S

SIXXCHICK69 — Sun, 25 Nov 2007 12:33:41 CST

THIS PAGE IS FOR ALL OUR FAVE THINGS FROM THE 80'S XHRSTMAS TIME!!! AND ALSO FOR CHRISTMAS TAGS YOU MAKE OR FIND THAT YOU LIKE!!!! IF YOU HAVE SOME CHRISTMAS TAGS N CHEER TO SHOW FEEL FREE TO SEND THEM TO US N WE WILL POST THEM!!! HOPE YOU ALL HAVE A GREAT CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY WHEN IT ARRIVES!!!

80'S TAGS/PICS

SIXXCHICK69 — Thu, 22 Nov 2007 21:38:31 CST

THIS PAGE IS FOR TAGS/DECORATED PICS THAT YOU HAVE MADE OR FOUND OF THE 80'S!! IF YOU HAVE ANY YOU WOULD LIKE ADDED FEEL FREE TO SEND THEM TO US N WE WILL ADD THEM ON ALONG WITH THE PERSONS NAME THAT MADE THEM ABOVE IT!!!

TAGS/PICS MADE BY SIXXCHICK69 (TERRI)

TAGS MADE BY SIXXCHICK69 (TERRI) AND SCAR0402 (TESS)

TAGS MADE BY SCAR0402 (TESS)

TAGS MADE BY KRISTY LEPPARD SAMBORA

TAGS MADE BY KELLYGIRL924

Trivial Pursuit Totally 80's

KellyGirl924 — Sat, 10 Nov 2007 16:58:44 CST

Ok guys this idea came to me the other day when I got the game for my birthday. It's real simple...each week I will post a question from the game, up for anyone to answer and the first person to get it right will be added to the page as the winner. Just send KellyGirl924 your answer.

This should be fun...btw...for all you Lepp fans my daughter and I found 3 questions about them!! :) Love it!!

So here's the first question (I'm going to variate it a little by making it multiple choice)...

1. What 1988 book by Richard Nixon curiously had the same name as a 1982 Prince album?
A. 3121
B. Diamonds and Pearls
C.1999
D. Lovesexy

From:

scar0402
(block user)

To:

KellyGirl924

Sent:

Wednesday, 9:39 pm EDT

Subject:

RE: I have a really cool idea but...

not totally sure on this one but i will say the answer might be C.

Ok, time for the 2nd question:

2. What Phil Collins hit cautioned: "If you told me you were drowning, I would not lend a hand"?
A. I Don't Care Anymore
B.True Colours
C. In The Air Tonight
D. Do You Remember

From:

SIXXCHICK69
(block user)

To:

KellyGirl924

Sent:

Yesterday, 4:38 pm EDT

Subject:

hey gal

my guess would be c in the air tonight!! one of my fave songs lol

Runner up:

From:

scar0402
(block user)

To:

KellyGirl924

Sent:

Yesterday, 8:09 pm EDT

Subject:

SECOND ANSWER

THIS I LOVE THIS SONG IT IS C IN THE AIR, BY PHIL COLLINS/ GENESIS.

Sorry guys...been slackin'...nah was busy...hope I haven't lost you...here's a new question for ya...

3. What unlikely rock veterans beat Metallica for the first-ever Best Hard Rock/Metal Grammy, in 1989?
A. Cinderella
B. Skid Row
C. Jethro Tull
D. Danger Danger

From:

scar0402
(block user)

To:

KellyGirl924

Sent:

Yesterday, 7:34 am EDT

Subject:

the answer.

know if memory serves correctly and there was a big constoversie over this because the band was not metal it would be C. Jethro Tull. or was this in the 90's shit time how it flies.

Ok guys...I gotta find a stumper here...let me look for a good one. I'll try a movie catagory this time :o)

4. Where did Ernest go, in the title of the first Ernest movie?
A. Africa
B. Jail
C. School
D. Camp

From:

scar0402
(block user)

To:

KellyGirl924

Sent:

Wednesday, 10:00 pm EDT

Subject:

4th question

i believe it is D ernest saved the camp, damn i feel old already, this is funnnnnnn.

...and we have a runner up...

SIXXCHICK69
(block user)

To:

KellyGirl924

Sent:

Yesterday, 1:24 pm EDT

Subject:

trivia

4. Where did Ernest go, in the title of the first Ernest movie?
A. Africa
B. Jail
C. School
D. Camp

would have to say d camp the only one i saw of these lol

I'm gonna go a little different here and stray away from the multiple choice. A lot of the questions don't leave too much room for trick answers. Here's question 5...

5. Who began to challenge Debbie Gibosn as the new teen queen, after taking I think We're Alone Now to the top of the charts?

From:

scar0402
(block user)

To:

KellyGirl924

Sent:

Today, 11:16 am EDT

Subject:

ok so i think

the answer to that question for number five is Tiffany is this right! shit so many to remeber.hmmm time for a cup of coffee.

ACTORS OF THE 80'S

KellyGirl924 — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 20:35:21 CST

THE FOLLOWING PAGES IN THIS SECTION ARE DEDICATED TO THE ACTORS OF THE 80'S!!! IF YOU HAVE ANY ACTORS YOU WOULD LIKE ADDED FEEL FREE TO LET ME N TESS KNOW AND WE WILL ADD YOUR SUGGESTIONS ON HERE!!!! THANKS AND ENJOY!!!!

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One of the best movies of the 80's- The Outsiders (1983): Tom Cruise, Rob Lowe, C. Thomas Howell, Matt Dillon, Ralph Macchio, Emilio Estevez and Patrick Swayze

Here's some fun...Rob Lowe
www.lowe-impact.com/LoweProfile.html

I have just found the perfect site for 80's child actors...check it out...
www.younghollywoodhof.com/1980.html

80's lyric quizzes

scar0402 — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 12:16:32 CST

So how well do you remeber the 80's?

lets put those good old fashion brain cells to use, here is how to play the 80's

lyrics quizz game, it is simplie !

step 1. we put in those partial sweet lyrics of the songs we all loved from the day.

step 2. you make the decision on what band it was and the song title.

step 3. email us with your answer, and if correct the winner and runner up will be featured on the page.

So, hear it is your frist question/Lyrics of the week!

What female four top created this popular tune of the 80's? And can you remeber the title to the song?

Slide your feet up the street bend your back
Shift your arm then you pull it back
Life['s] hard you know (oh whey oh)
So strike a pose on a Cadillac

Home

SIXXCHICK69 — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 09:02:34 CST

tatooandlollipops

IF YOU CLICK ON THE ON THE LINK ABOVE THE 80'S PIC THAT SAYS THE SITE NAME IT WILL TAKE YOU TO OUR TATOOS AND LOLLIPOPS MYSPACE PAGE IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO ADD US ON THERE OR JUST CHECK THE PAGE OUT!!!

Role: Administrator (what's this?Administrators can: create and manage pages; view all reports; administer user permissions and contributions; adjust global settings. )

Member since: Oct 11, 12:28 PM EDT

WELCOME BAMM625, IS THE NEXT PROFILE WE HONOR FOR WEEK TWO ON ALL THE HARD WORK AND DEDICATION TO THE SITE. BAMM IS IN THE MIDDLE OF CREATING A WONDERFUL FAMOUS MULLETS PAGE CHECK IT OUT WHEN IT IS DONE AND PLEASE GIVE A LOOK AT BAMMS PROFILE SHE HAS DONE A WONDERFUL JOB.

THANKS BAMM625, FOR ALL HARD WORK, AND TO OUR PROFILE OF THE WEEK LAST WEEK KELLYGIRL924.

RECIEVED EMAIL FROM WETPAINT.COM ON UPDATES AND HOT NEW WETPAINT SITES

WHICH FEATURED TATOOS AND LOLLIPOPS

WELCOME TO TATOOS AND LOLLIPOPS!! HOME FOR ALL THINGS 80'S !!!!

RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR THE SITE:

1. NO TAMPERING WITH OTHERS HARD WORK, PAGES ETC..
2. WILL BE BANNED IF YOU DO!
3. FEEL FREE TO ADD ANTHING 80'S YOU LIKE ON YOUR PAGE
4. NO CRITISICM, TRY TO ENJOY THE SITE WE ARE ALL HERE TO GET ALONG!!!
5. FEEL FREE TO INVITE OTHERS YOU KNOW LOVE THE 80'S THE MORE THE MERRIER!!!!
6. NO NUDITY, KEEP THINGS CLEAN AS THERE ARE MINORS THAT WILL PROBABBLY BE ON THIS PAGE!!!

IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FEEL FREE TO ASK ALWAYS WILLING TO HELP OUT!!! WE'RE HERE TO PAY RECOGNITION TO ONE OF THE BETTER ERA'S OF OUR TIME!!! IF YOU HAVE SUGGESTIONS FEEL FREE TO LET US KNOW WE'RE OPEN TO ANY AND ALL SUGGESTIONS!!! OTHER THAN THAT HAVE FUN AND WELCOME!! WE'RE GLAD TO HAVE YA ABOARD TATOOS AND LOLLIPOPS!!!

TATOOS AND LOLLIPOPS CHATROOM

SIXXCHICK69 — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 19:21:05 CST

WANNA CHAT WITH FELLOW TATOOS AND LOLLIPOP MEMBERS? HERE IS THE PLACE TO DO IT!!!! LOOK FOWARD TO MEETING ALL YOU GUYS N GALS N CHATTING AWAY!!

Your Music From The 80's

SIXXCHICK69 — Thu, 08 Nov 2007 17:22:23 CST

Famous Mulletts of the 80's

bamm625 — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 13:34:07 CST

Ahhh, the mullett! Who can forget this hairdo of the 80's? Fact is, some of our favorite men and women sported the mullett...check it out...

Joe Elliott - my favorite!

Nikki Sixx - oh yeah!

Bon Jovi

Motley Crue

Rush

Richard Marx, David Bowie as Ziggy, Rick Sexy Savage

Duran Duran -Red Carpet Massacre

SIXXCHICK69 — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 15:30:44 CDT

Duran Duran are an English pop group notable for a long series of popular singles and vivid music videos. They were the most commercially successful of the New Romantic bands and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States. During the past three decades they have placed 21 singles in the Billboard Hot 100 and 30 in the Top 40 of the UK Singles Chart, and have sold more than 85 million records.[1]
The band's hit singles include "Girls On Film", "Rio","Hungry Like the Wolf", "Save A Prayer", "Is There Something I Should Know?", "Planet Earth" , "Union of the Snake", "The Reflex", "Wild Boys," "Notorious", and the James Bond theme "A View to a Kill" in the 1980s, "Ordinary World" and "Come Undone" in the early 1990s, and "Sunrise", and "What Happens Tomorrow" in the 2000s.[1] They have won two Grammy Awards for their music videos.
Duran Duran was created by Nick Rhodes (keyboards) and John Taylor (bass), with the later addition of Roger Taylor (drums), Andy Taylor (guitar), and Simon Le Bon (lead vocals); none of the Taylors are related. The group has never disbanded, but the line-up changed to include guitarist Warren Cuccurullo from 1989 to 2001, and drummer Sterling Campbell from 1989 to 1991. The reunion of the original five members in the early 2000s created a stir among music media and the band's fans.[2][3]
Duran Duran's next album is called Red Carpet Massacre. The first single to be taken from the album will be "Falling Down", which was produced and co-written with Justin Timberlake. It has now been confirmed that the album will be released in mid-November 2007 by the band's official website.[1]

History

Beginning (1978–1980)

John Taylor and Nick Rhodes formed Duran Duran in Birmingham, England in 1978, naming the band after the villain "Dr. Durand Durand", played by Milo O'Shea in Roger Vadim's cult science-fiction film Barbarella. Their first singer was Stephen Duffy. Several drummers and guitarists were subsequently tried, as well as a handful of vocalists after Duffy left Duran Duran early in 1979.[4]

Duran Duran in 1981. Clockwise from top left: Nick Rhodes (keyboards), Simon Le Bon (vocals), John Taylor (bass), Andy Taylor (guitar) and Roger Taylor (drums).

Drummer Roger Taylor fell in with Taylor and Rhodes after meeting them at a party, which led John Taylor, who originally played lead guitar, to switch to bass. Guitarist Andy Taylor came south from Newcastle to audition after responding to a magazine advertisement, and London vocalist Simon Le Bon was recommended to the band by an ex-girlfriend who worked at the Rum Runner nightclub where the band rehearsed.[5] The owners of the club, brothers Paul and Michael Berrow, became the band's management, paying them to work as doormen, disc jockeys and glass collectors when they weren't rehearsing.
The group was generally considered part of the New Romantic scene, with other style-and-dance bands such as Spandau Ballet, Japan and ABC.[6] In 1980, they recorded two demo tapes and performed in clubs around Birmingham and London. In late 1980, when touring as an opening act for Hazel O'Connor, the band attracted critical attention which escalated into a bidding war between the record companies EMI and Phonogram Records.[7] "A certain patriotism" toward the label of The Beatles led them to sign with EMI in December. However, Nick Rhodes said in a 1998 interview with Deluxe magazine, that the band was "appallingly ripped off" by the EMI contract.[8]
Duran Duran was among the earliest bands to work on their own remixes. Before the days of digital synthesizers and easy audio sampling, they created complex, multilayered arrangements of their singles, sometimes recording entirely different extended performances of the songs in the studio. These "night versions" were generally available only on vinyl, as b-sides to 45 rpm singles or on 12-inch club singles, until the release of the compilation Night Versions: The Essential Duran Duran in 1998.
From the very beginning, the band had a keen sense of style.[citation needed] They worked with stylist Perry Haines and fashion designers such as Kahn & Bell and Antony Price to build a sharp and elegant image, soon outgrowing the ruffles and sashes of the pirate-flavoured New Romantic look. While they may have suffered the typical hair spray and mullet excesses of the 1980s,[9] they have continued to present fashion as part of the package throughout their career. In the 1990s, they worked with Vivienne Westwood, and in the 2000s with Giorgio Armani—one of their advertising taglines reads, "Styles change, style doesn't". The band retained creative control of their visual presentation and worked closely with graphic designer Malcolm Garrett and many others over the years to create album covers, tour programmes, and other materials.[10]
All five members of the band were photogenic — People magazine called them "the prettiest boys in rock".[11] Teen and music magazines in the UK latched onto their good looks quickly, and the U.S. soon followed. It was a rare month in the early eighties when there was not at least one picture of the band members in teen magazines such as Smash Hits or Tiger Beat, even if the sugary coverage was sometimes at odds with the band's titillating videos and occasionally dark lyrics. It helped that each member had a distinctive look and personality. John Taylor once remarked that the band was "like a box of Quality Street [chocolates]; everyone is someone's favourite"[12] — an effect that has been strategically planned in more recent boy bands. Duran Duran would later come to regret this early pin-up exposure, but at the time it helped attract the national attention they sought.[citation needed]

Band launch (1981–1982)

The band's first album, Duran Duran, was released on the EMI label in 1981. The first single, "Planet Earth", reached the United Kingdom's Top 20 at Number 12. A follow-up, "Careless Memories," stalled at Number 37. However, it was their third single, "Girls On Film", that attracted the most attention. The song went to Number 5 in the UK, before the notorious video was even filmed. That video, featuring topless women mud wrestling and stylized depictions of other sexual fetishes, was made with directing duo Godley & Creme in August.[13]
The video was filmed just two weeks after MTV was launched in the United States.[14] The band expected the "Girls On Film" video to be played in the newer nightclubs that had video screens, or on pay TV channels like the Playboy Channel. Kevin Godley explained the thinking behind it:

We were very explicitly told by Duran Duran's management to make a very sensational, erotic piece that would be for clubs, where it would get shown uncensored, just to make people take notice and talk about it.[15]

The raunchy video created an uproar and was banned by the BBC and heavily edited for MTV. The band unabashedly enjoyed and capitalised on the controversy, and the album peaked in the UK Top Twenty at Number 3.
Later in 1981, the band embarked on their first United States club tour, followed by more dates in Germany and the UK. This second tour of Britain coincided with a wave of riots sparked by unemployment and racial tension, including those of Moss Side and Toxteth. The band played an eerily quiet Birmingham the day after the Handsworth riots.
Duran Duran began to achieve worldwide recognition in 1982. In May, they released their second album, Rio, which scored four UK Top Twenty singles with "My Own Way", "Hungry Like the Wolf", "Save A Prayer", and the title song "Rio". A headlining tour of Australia, Japan, and the U.S. was followed by a stint supporting Blondie during that band's final American tour. Diana, Princess of Wales declared Duran Duran her favourite band, and the band was dubbed "The Fab Five" by the British press.[16]
However, the Rio album did not do well in the United States at first. EMI in the UK had promoted Duran Duran as a New Romantic band, but that genre was barely known in the U.S., and Capitol Records (EMI's American branch) was at a loss about how to sell them. After Carnival (an EP of Rio's dance remixes) became popular with DJs in the fall, the band arranged to have most of the album remixed by David Kershenbaum. Only after it was re-released in the U.S. in November, with heavy promotion as a dance album, did Rio begin to climb the American charts, six months after its European success. MTV placed "Hungry Like the Wolf" and then several other Duran Duran videos into heavy rotation, pushing it and "Rio" into the top twenty on the U.S. charts in early 1983; the seduction ballad "Save A Prayer" also did well.[17] "The band was a natural for music television," noted Rolling Stone magazine. "They may be the first rock group to ride in on a video wave."[18] In the end, the album peaked at number 6 in the U.S. and remained on the charts there for 129 weeks — almost two and a half years. In 2003, Rio was listed at number 65 in the NME 100 Greatest Albums Of All Time.

On top of the world (1983–1984)

Duran Duran began 1983 by playing the MTV New Year's Eve Rock'n'Roll Ball, with "Hungry Like The Wolf" still climbing the charts in the U.S., and the American reissue of the "Rio" single to follow in March. To satisfy America's newly awakened thirst for all things Duran,[5] the band decided to re-release their eponymous first album in the U.S. in the middle of the year, with the addition of the new single "Is There Something I Should Know?" This song went straight in at Number 1 in the UK (a rarity then, and their first chart-topper in their home country), and reached Number 4 on the American charts. During the promotion of this album, Rhodes and Le Bon served as MTV guest VJs for a show, during which artist and admirer Andy Warhol dropped by to greet them. "Our first gigs in the United States were crazy and culty,” Rhodes said later. “But when we came back after “Hungry” was a hit, it was mayhem. It was Beatlemania. We were doing a signing of the “Girls on Film” video at a store in Times Square. We couldn’t get out of the store. The cops sealed off the streets."[4][19]
Also in 1983, keyboardist Nick Rhodes produced the UK Number 1 and US Number 5 hit "Too Shy" for the English band Kajagoogoo, and Andy Taylor became the first member of Duran Duran to get married. The band's main pop rivals were now Culture Club and Wham!.
Duran Duran spent the next year as tax exiles, writing songs at a chateau in France in May 1983 before flying to Montserrat and then Sydney to record and mix their third album. The band was under enormous pressure to follow up the success of Rio, and the recording process took over six months as different band members went through bouts of perfectionism and insecurity.[20] A newly decadent lifestyle and substance abuse issues added complications. In the documentary film Extraordinary World, filmed a decade later, Rhodes described the effect on their sound as "barely controlled hysteria, scratching beneath the surface".[21]
The new album, Seven and the Ragged Tiger, included the late 1983 hit "Union of the Snake"; following "Hungry Like the Wolf", "Rio", "Save A Prayer" and "Is There Something I Should Know", Duran Duran had had five U.S. Top Twenty hits from three different albums in a single year. The band made music headlines by deciding to release the "Union of the Snake" video to MTV a full week before the single was released to radio, at a time when the industry feared video really might kill the radio star. They followed up with "New Moon on Monday", and then with "The Reflex", which became their first number one hit in the United States. "The Reflex" was also their second and final UK number one, and was successful in numerous other countries around the world.
The band then embarked on a massive global tour that continued throughout the first four months of 1984, including their first major stadium dates in America. A film crew led by director Russell Mulcahy followed the band closely, leading to the documentary film Sing Blue Silver and the accompanying concert film Arena.
The live album Arena was also recorded during the tour and was released with the new studio single "The Wild Boys", which went to Number 2 on both sides of the Atlantic. In February 1984, the band appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine and won two Grammy awards in the brand-new Long Form and Short Form music video categories. After the tour, Roger Taylor was married in Naples, Italy, and Nick Rhodes wed in London, famously wearing a pink velvet tuxedo and top hat.[22]
Halfway through the year, Duran Duran began a long break; however, as most of them remained in London and were active in celebrity circles, the band was never far from the tabloids or the public eye. At the end of the year, the group was featured on the Band Aid benefit single "Do They Know It's Christmas?" along with other popular British musical acts. Simon Le Bon sang a prominent vocal, between contributions from George Michael and Tony Hadley.

Band falls apart (1985)

Even with Duran Duran on hold, band members were soon anxious to record new music, leading to a supposedly temporary split into two side projects. John and Andy Taylor wanted to break away from the Duran Duran sound and pursue hard rock material; they collaborated with Robert Palmer and Tony Thompson to form the rock/funk supergroup Power Station, which released two Top 10 singles. Simon Le Bon and Nick Rhodes, on the other hand, wanted to further explore Duran Duran's atmospheric aspect and formed Arcadia, which released one Top 10 single. Roger Taylor was primarily the drummer for Arcadia, but also contributed percussion to the Power Station album.
Duran Duran were never the same after this break. According to Rhodes, the two side projects "were commercial suicide... But we’ve always been good at that."[4] The band was still off balance when they regrouped to contribute "A View to a Kill" to the 1985 James Bond movie of the same name. This single remains the only Bond theme to go to Number 1 on the U.S. charts, and the highest-placed Bond theme on the UK chart where it reached Number 2. It was the last single the band recorded as the original five-piece for twenty years.
As a follow-up to the Christmas 1984 Band Aid single, Duran Duran performed in front of 90,000 people (and an estimated 1.5 billion TV viewers) at the Live Aid charity concert at John F. Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 1985 while their Bond song held the top spot on the American charts. It was not intended to be a farewell performance—the band planned only to take a break after four years of non-stop touring and public appearances—but the original five did not play live together again until July of 2003. Their Live Aid set became infamous for Le Bon inadvertently hitting a falsetto note in the chorus of "A View to a Kill", which he later described as the most humiliating moment of his career.[23]
At the end of 1985, Le Bon married model Yasmin Parvaneh. During the previous year, he had taken up the hobby of yachting, and he drew unwanted media attention when his maxi-yacht Drum capsized during the August 1985 Fastnet race, trapping him inside the hull for twenty minutes.[24] Nevertheless, he went on to participate in the 1986 Whitbread Round the World Race.

Struggle for success (1986–1991)

After releasing five albums in five years, each accompanied by heavy media promotion and lengthy concert tours, the band lost two of its core members to fatigue and tension in 1986. After Live Aid and Arcadia, drummer Roger Taylor retired to the English countryside, suffering from exhaustion.[25] This was originally announced as a one year sabbatical, but it soon became clear that he would not be returning to the band. An official press release was issued in April 1986 confirming his departure. Guitarist Andy Taylor, on the other hand, led the remaining members to believe he would return to work on a new Duran Duran album even as he was signing a solo recording contract in Los Angeles. The band resorted to legal measures to get him into the studio, but after numerous delays, they let him go at last. He played on only a few songs on the next album while the disagreements were being settled.[26]

In 1986, Duran Duran had now been reduced to a trio: Rhodes, John Taylor, Le Bon

Without a guitarist or a drummer, the three remaining members, Le Bon, Rhodes, and John Taylor had producer (and former Chic guitarist) Nile Rodgers play a few tracks on guitar, and hired studio musicians to play drums while they searched for replacements. Finally in September 1986, Warren Cuccurullo (formerly of Missing Persons and Frank Zappa's touring band) was hired as a sessions guitarist. With Le Bon, Rhodes, and Taylor, he recorded the rest of the Notorious album, which was released in October 1986. The black-and-white documentary film Three To Get Ready chronicled the recording of the album, legal tensions, and preparations for the tour.
Although the song "Notorious" went to number two in the U.S. and album sales were strong, the band found they had lost much of the momentum and hysteria they had left behind in 1985. In the three years between the release of Seven and the Ragged Tiger and Notorious, many of their teenage fans had grown up, and the music was funkier, more mature, and less "pop", given the added experience of their work on Arcadia and Power Station and with many gifted musicians. "Skin Trade" and "Meet El Presidente", the two subsequent singles, made the charts but fared poorly compared to the band's earlier successes.
Subsequently, Duran Duran's fame began to wane as they struggled to escape the teen idol image and gain critical success with more complex music. Rolling Stone said, "In their search for musical maturity, the surviving Durans have lost a good deal of their identity."[27] Another factor was the band's dismissal of early managers the Berrow brothers. There was no announcement of the reasons for the decision, but disagreements over money, and the brothers’ involvement in Le Bon's yachting adventures (they were co-owners of Drum) were thought to have played a part.[28] Whatever the reason, Duran Duran switched managers frequently and undertook periods of self-management in the later stages of their career. In addition, EMI (which fired its president and went through a major corporate restructuring that summer) seemed to have lost interest in promoting the band.[29]
The next album Big Thing (1988) yielded the singles "I Don't Want Your Love"(#4 at US HOT100), "Do You Believe In Shame?" and "All She Wants Is" (the last a top ten hit in the UK). The record was experimental, mixing influences from house music and rave music with Duran's atmospheric synth pop and Cuccurullo's creative guitar work, as well as more mature lyrics (the juvenile title track notwithstanding).[5] By the next year, after touring for the album finished, the band regained a five-man membership as Cuccurullo and tour drummer Sterling Campbell were made full members of Duran Duran.[30] Inexplicably during this time, the group was credited as Duranduran on some of the releases (one word, instead of two).
The compilation album Decade: Greatest Hits was released late in 1989, along with the megamix single "Burning The Ground", which consisted of woven snippets of the band's hits from the previous ten years. The single came and went with little fanfare, but the album became another major seller for the band.
However, the tepid 1990 release Liberty (a retreat from the experimentation of Big Thing) failed to capitalise on any regained momentum, a pattern the band repeated often in their later years. The album entered the UK album chart in the top ten, but faded away quickly. The singles "Violence of Summer (Love's Taking Over)" and "Serious" were only mildly successful, and the album's soft rock did not fare well against contemporaries like Alice in Chains and Jane's Addiction, while Nirvana, Pearl Jam and the grunge revolution were just around the corner. For the first time, Duran Duran did not tour in support of an album, performing on only a handful of club dates and TV shows.[31]
Sterling Campbell left the band early in 1991, going on to work with Soul Asylum and David Bowie. The quartet of Le Bon, Rhodes, Taylor, and Cuccurullo would remain intact for six more years. In December of 1991, Taylor (then 31) married nineteen-year-old model/actress Amanda De Cadenet, and she gave birth to his daughter in March 1992.[32]

Second climb, Second fall (1992–1996)

In 1993, the band released a second self-titled album: this Duran Duran album is known as The Wedding Album (for Nick Egan's cover art featuring the wedding photos of the bands' parents) to distinguish it from the 1981 release. Listener demand for leaked single "Ordinary World" forced it onto radio playlists months earlier than planned; it reached Number 3 on the U.S. chart and Number 6 in the UK and won a prestigious Ivor Novello Award award for song writing.[33] "Come Undone", a slinky number primarily written by Cuccurullo, made Number 7 in the U.S. and Number 13 in the UK. Both the band and the record label seemed to be caught by surprise by the album's critical and commercial success (#4 in the UK, #7 in the U.S.). Bassist John Taylor had been considering leaving the band, but changed his mind. The band's largest tour ever, which included stops in the Middle East, the recently de-embargoed South Africa, and South America, was halted after seven months when Le Bon suffered from strained vocal cords. After six weeks recuperation, the band performed intermittently for another five months, including appearances in Israel, Thailand, and Indonesia.
The band's upswing in momentum, however, was once again swiftly curtailed by the poor showing of the covers album Thank You. The album reportedly originated as a lighthearted tribute to the band's influences, in the vein of Bowie's Pin Ups. Some of the tracks were recorded in borrowed and makeshift studios in hotel rooms (with the aid of programmer Mark Tinley) while the band was on tour. The plan was to have an album ready to release soon after the tour was finished, with another studio album to follow quickly afterwards. Original drummer Roger Taylor even returned from retirement to contribute on a few songs. However, conflicts within the band and with Capitol/EMI caused repeated delays; mix after mix was ordered and rejected, and by the time it finally came out in 1995, the band had lost enthusiasm for the project.
Singles from Thank You included covers of Lou Reed's "Perfect Day" and Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five's "White Lines" (with backing vocals from the original artists). In a video interview provided with the album's electronic press kit, Reed said he considered Duran Duran's version the best cover ever done of one of his songs.[20] Still, the critics lambasted the band's attempts at "911 is a Joke", "Lay Lady Lay", "Ball of Confusion" and "The Crystal Ship", and the band only completed a 1995 summer tour of radio station festivals under duress.
After that tour's completion, John Taylor co-founded the B5 Records label and recorded a solo album, founded and toured with the supergroup Neurotic Outsiders, and reunited the Power Station, though the project proceeded without him when he had to withdraw to deal with his divorce from De Cadenet. Finally, after struggling for months to record the next album, Medazzaland, in January 1997 Taylor announced at a Duran Duran fan convention that he was leaving the band "for good".[34] His departure reduced the band to two original members (Le Bon and Rhodes) and Cuccurullo, who decided to continue recording under the name Duran Duran.

Soldiering on (1997–2000)

In 1997, the band lost its final Taylor, leaving Rhodes, Le Bon, and Cuccurullo.

Freed from some internal writing conflicts, the band returned to the studio to rewrite and re-record many of the songs on Medazzaland. (Taylor's work remains on only four tracks.) This album marked a return to the layered experimentation of Big Thing, with intricate guitar textures and processed vocals. The track "Out of My Mind" was used as the theme song for the movie The Saint, but the only true single to be released in the United States was the quirky "Electric Barbarella", which was the first single ever to be sold online.[35] The video for this single, featuring a sexy robot purchased and played with by band members, had to be censored before airing on MTV, but there was little of the controversy that had surrounded "Girls On Film". "Barbarella" peaked at #52 in the U.S. in October of 1997.[36] Although Medazzaland was released in the U.S. in October 1997, the album was never released in the UK. "Barbarella" was later released in the UK as a single from the 1998 Greatest compilation album and peaked at #23 on the UK chart in January 1999.
The group played a set at The Princess Diana Tribute Concert on June 27, 1998 by special request of her family.[37]
Duran Duran parted ways with Capitol/EMI in 1999, although the label has since used Duran Duran's back catalogue to release several compilations of remixes and rare vinyl-only b-sides. The band then signed what was intended to be a three-album contract with Disney's Hollywood Records, but it lasted only through the poorly received 2000 album Pop Trash. This slow-paced and heavy album seemed out-of-keeping with earlier band material.[38] Rhodes' intricate production and Cuccurullo's songwriting and experimentation with guitar sounds and time signatures were not enough to hook the public, and the album did not perform well. The dreamy single "Someone Else Not Me" lasted barely two weeks on the radio, although its video was noted as the first to be produced entirely with Flash animation. While supporting Medazzaland and Pop Trash, Duran Duran toured with bassist Wes Wehmiller and drummer Joe Travers.

Reunion (2001–2005)

In 2000, John Taylor approached Le Bon and Rhodes with a proposal to re-form Duran Duran's classic line-up. They agreed, and after completing the Pop Trash tour fired Cuccurullo by letter.[39] Cuccurullo then announced on his website that he was leaving Duran Duran to resume work with his 1980s band Missing Persons. This announcement was confirmed the next day by the Duran Duran's website, followed a day later by the news that John, Roger, and Andy Taylor had rejoined. To fulfill contractual obligations, Cuccurullo played three Duran Duran concerts in Japan in August 2001, ending his tenure in the band.
Throughout 2001, 2002 and 2003, the band worked on writing new material, initially renting a house in St. Tropez where sound engineer Mark Tinley built a recording studio for their first serious writing session. They then returned to London to do some self-financed work with various producers (including old friend Nile Rodgers) and search for a new record deal. It proved difficult to find a record label willing to gamble on the band's comeback, so Duran Duran went on tour to prove the drawing power of the reunited band. The response of the fans and the media exceeded everyone’s expectations.[3]
The band played a handful of 25th-anniversary dates in July 2003. Tickets sold out for each show within minutes, and celebrities turned out en masse for reunion shows booked at small venues the band had played on their first trip to America in 1981. In August, the band were booked as presenters at the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards, only to be surprised with a Lifetime Achievement Award. They also received a Lifetime Achievement award from Q Magazine in October, and the equivalent Outstanding Contribution award at the BRIT Awards in February 2004.[40]
The pace picked up with a sold-out tour of America, Australia and New Zealand. The band played a full concert at a private Tailgate Party at Super Bowl XXXVIII, their performance of "The Wild Boys" broadcast to millions during the pre-game show. A remix of the new track "(Reach Up for the) Sunrise" was released on the Queer Eye for the Straight Guy TV show soundtrack in February, while the Queer Eye guys (the modern "Fab Five") hailed Duran Duran as "the first metrosexuals".[41] Duran Duran then celebrated their homecoming to the UK with fourteen stadium dates in April 2004, including five sold-out nights at Wembley Arena. The British press, traditionally hostile to the band, accorded the shows some very warm reviews.[42] Duran Duran brought along bands like Scissor Sisters and Goldfrapp as opening acts for this tour.[3] The last two shows were filmed, resulting in the concert DVD Duran Duran: Live From London which was released in November.
Finally, with more than thirty-five songs completed, the band signed a four-album contract with Epic Records in June, and completed the new album, now entitled Astronaut, with producer Don Gilmore. The album was released in October 2004 and entered the UK charts at Number 3 and the U.S. charts at Number 17. The first single was "(Reach Up for the) Sunrise", which reached Number 1 on the Billboard U.S Dance Chart in November and peaked at number 5 on the UK singles chart, Duran Duran's highest chart position since "A View To a Kill" in 1985. A second single, "What Happens Tomorrow", debuted at #11 on the UK charts in February. After a world tour in early 2005, Duran Duran headlined the massive Live 8 concert, Rome on 2 July 2005 in the Circus Maximus.

New direction (2006 and beyond)

In early 2006, Duran Duran covered John Lennon's song "Instant Karma" for the Make Some Noise campaign sponsored by Amnesty International to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Lennon's death. In early 2006 the band performed at two high profile events — the Nobel Prize Awards and the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy.

The cover of the new album "Red Carpet Massacre"

After a couple of weeks of songwriting in California, the band began working with producer Michael Patterson in London, and continued intermittently for the next several months. At one point, they reported having fifteen tracks nearly complete, but no further news emerged from the band for months afterward. In September, the band held meetings in New York City with Justin Timberlake and producer Timbaland with an eye to a potential collaboration and were soon reported to have completed three songs with the producer, including a duet with Timberlake.[43]
On October 25, 2006, Andy Taylor parted ways with Duran Duran for the second time. In an official announcement on their website, Duran Duran pledged to continue with four members, stating that an "unworkable gulf" had developed between them and Taylor and that "we can no longer effectively function together". For the remaining 2006 tour dates, Dominic Brown, who had previously taken Taylor's place during absences on the American arena tour in 2005, stood in as guitarist.[44] Taylor's departure forced the band to scrap months of studio work; nevertheless they quickly turned the situation around, writing and recording a new album which included the Timbaland recordings.
On June 17th, the band played a one-off gig in New York City at Hammerstein Ballroom. Before they played their set, they came on stage and played five songs from their new album over the PA system. During the show, they played the new song "Nite Runner" live.
On June 26, Duran Duran officially announced that the new album, due out November 12th in Europe and November 13th 2007 in the United States, would be called Red Carpet Massacre. Along with title, they announced seven tracks to be included on the new album: "Nite Runner" (co-written with and featuring Justin Timberlake and Timbaland), "Skin Divers" (featuring Timbaland), "Red Carpet Massacre", "Box Full O' Honey", "Last Man Standing", "The Valley", and "Falling Down" (co written with and featuring Justin Timberlake). On September 25th, "Falling Down" was released as a download single on iTunes. Britney Spears was in talks to collaborate with the band on a track off the CD, alongside Timberlake, but plans fell through. The band still has high hopes of eventually working with her.
The band performed in Wembley Stadium at the Concert for Princess Diana on July 1, 2007, being introduced by Prince William (standing next to his brother Prince Harry) as "one of my mother's favourite bands". The following Saturday, July 7, 2007, they performed a second time at Wembley Stadium at the Live Earth concert, London.
On September 29, 2007 (2007-09-29) the band announced nine shows on Broadway, playing at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre on 47th street to launch the new album "Red Carpet Massacre". Over a two week period the band intend to showcase the new album, plus a special electro set and a selection of their classic hits.

Influence

Although they began their career as "a group of art school, experimental, post punk rockers",[5] the band's quick rise to stardom, polished good looks, and embrace of the teen press almost guaranteed disfavour from music critics, the British music press being particularly venomous. During the 1980s, Duran Duran were considered the quintessential manufactured, throw-away pop group, not too different from boy bands entirely created by their behind-the-scenes managers. However, according to the Sunday Herald, "To describe them, as some have, as the first boy band misrepresents their appeal. Their weapons were never just their looks, but self-penned songs."[40] As Moby said of the band in his website diary in 2003: "... they were cursed by what we can call the 'bee gees' curse. which is: 'write amazing songs, sell tons of records, and consequently incur the wrath or disinterest of the rock obsessed critical establishment'."[45]
Several of the band's contemporaries (The Bangles, Elton John, Kylie Minogue, Paul Young) have named themselves fans of the band's simple, uplifting pop. Le Bon himself described the group as "the band to dance to when the bomb drops".[46] Successors like Barenaked Ladies, Beck, Jonathan Davis (of Korn), the Deftones, Garbage, Kaiser Chiefs, The Bravery, Gwen Stefani and No Doubt, Gavin Rossdale and Bush, Wyclef Jean, Savage Garden, Justin Timberlake, Marilyn Manson, Fred Durst of Limp Bizkit, The Orb, OutKast, Coldplay and Pink have all cited Duran Duran as a key band in their formative years. The newest crop of performers to name Duran Duran as influences include Dido, Franz Ferdinand, Panic! at the Disco, Lostprophets (who took their name from the title of a Duran Duran bootleg tape), Goldfrapp, The Killers ("Nick Rhodes is an absolute hero of mine - their records still sound fresh, which is no mean feat as far as synths are concerned," said Brandon Flowers), the Scissor Sisters ("the reason we got into music") and The Strokes. [47] Mark McGrath of Sugar Ray has called himself one of their biggest fans, and has said he "wanted to be John Taylor"; Sugar Ray's videos have included affectionate parodies of Duran Duran videos.
Nick Rhodes has directly lent his production techniques to the bands Kajagoogoo (White Feathers) and The Dandy Warhols (Welcome to the Monkey House), and numerous bands have covered their music on record and in concert.[48] The band's music has been used by several hip hop artists, most notably Notorious B.I.G., who sampled Duran Duran's 1986 single "Notorious". Also, vocalist Jonathan Davis (of KoЯn) has said that Duran Duran was one of his favorite bands growing up, and possibly served as an inspiration for some of Davis' songs.

Videos

The MTV cable channel and the band were launched at about the same time, and each had a hand in propelling the other to greater heights.[49] MTV needed showcase videos with charismatic performers. Les Garland, senior executive vice president at MTV, said "I remember our director of talent and artist relations came running in and said, “You have got to see this video that’s come in.” Duran Duran were getting zero radio airplay at the time, and MTV wanted to try to break new music. “Hungry Like the Wolf” was the greatest video I’d ever seen".[4] The band's video work was influential in several ways. First, Duran Duran filmed in exotic locales like Sri Lanka and Antigua, creating memorable images that were radically different from the then-common low budget "band-playing-on-a-stage" videos. Second, rather than simply playing their instruments, the band participated in mini-storylines (often taking inspiration from contemporary movies: "Hungry Like The Wolf" riffs on Raiders of the Lost Ark, "The Wild Boys" on The Road Warrior, etc.). Videos were obviously headed in this direction already, but Duran Duran led the trend with a style, featuring quick editing, arresting graphic design, and surreal-to-nonsensical image inserts, that drew attention from commentators and spawned a wealth of imitators. Duran Duran were among the first bands to have their videos shot with a professional movie camera on 35 mm film, rather than on videotape with cheaper video cameras, making them look superior to many of the quickly and inexpensively shot videos which had been MTV staples until then. MTV provided Duran Duran with access to American radio markets that were unfriendly to British music, New Wave music, or "anything with synthesisers". Because MTV was not available everywhere in the United States at first, it was easy to see a pattern: where MTV went, listener demand for Duran Duran, Tears for Fears, Def Leppard and other European bands with interesting videos went through the roof.[50]

The members of Duran Duran making fun of themselves in the "Rio" video.

Duran Duran's sun-drenched videos for "Rio", "Hungry Like The Wolf" and "Save A Prayer", and the surreal "Is There Something I Should Know?" were filmed by future movie director Russell Mulcahy, who made a total of eleven videos for the band. Duran Duran have always sought out innovative directors and techniques, even in their later years when MTV gave them little airplay. In addition to Mulcahy, they have had videos filmed by influential photographers Dean Chamberlain and Ellen von Unwerth, Chinese director Chen Kaige, documentary filmmaker Julien Temple, and the Polish Brothers, among others. According to Nick Rhodes, "Video is to us like stereo was to Pink Floyd".[51]
In 1984, Duran Duran introduced video technology into their live stadium shows by being among the first acts to provide video screens above the stage. They have recorded concerts using IMAX and 360 degree panoramic "immersive video" cameras, with 10.2 channel audio. In 2000, they experimented with augmented reality technology, which allowed three-dimensional computer-generated images to appear on stage with the band.[1]
Duran Duran appeared on several century-end video countdowns: The MTV "100 Greatest Videos Ever Made" featured "Hungry Like The Wolf" at #11 and "Girls On Film" at #68, and the "VH1: 100 Greatest Videos" listed "Hungry" at #31 and "Rio" at #60. MTV named "Hungry" the fifteenth of their most-played videos of all time.
The band has released several video compilations, starting with the self-titled "video album" Duran Duran, for which they won a Grammy award, up to the 2004 two-disc DVD release Greatest, which included alternative versions of several popular videos as Easter eggs. In addition to Greatest, the documentary Sing Blue Silver, and the concert film Arena (both from 1984) were released on DVD in 2004. Live From London, a concert video from one of their sold-out 2004 reunion shows at Wembley Stadium, was released in the fall of 2005.
Other video collections, concert films, and documentaries remain available only on videotape, and Duran Duran have not yet released a collection which includes all their videos. The band has said that a huge amount of unreleased concert and documentary footage has been filmed over the years, which they hope can be edited and released in some form in the near future.
The video for "Falling Down" was released Oct 2007.

NAZARETH

scar0402 — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 12:25:41 CDT

Nazareth is a British rock band that had several hard rock hits, as well as scoring with the Felice and Boudleaux Bryant penned ballad, "Love Hurts", in the middle of the 1970s.

Career
Nazareth was formed in December 1968 in Dunfermline, Scotland, out of the ashes of semi-professional local group The Shadettes (formed in 1961) by vocalist Dan McCafferty, guitarist Manny Charlton (ex Mark V and The Red Hawks), bassist Pete Agnew, and drummer Darrell Sweet. They took their name from the first line of The Band's classic song, "The Weight" ("I pulled into Nazareth / Was feelin' about half past dead...")
The band moved to London, England in 1970, and released their self-titled debut album in 1971. After getting some attention with their second album Exercises, released in 1972, Nazareth issued Razamanaz in early 1973. This collection spawned two UK Top Ten hits, "Broken Down Angel" and "Bad Bad Boy." This was followed by Loud 'N' Proud in late 1973, which contained another hit single with a hard-rocking cover of Joni Mitchell's song "This Flight Tonight". Then came another album Rampant, in 1974, that was equally successful although it did not yield a single. A non-album song, again a cover version, this time of Tomorrow's "My White Bicycle", was a UK Top 20 entry in 1975.
Hair of the Dog was released in 1975. The title track of that album (popularly, though incorrectly, known as "Son Of A Bitch" due to its chorus lyrics) became a staple of 1970s rock radio. The American version of the album included a song originally recorded by The Everly Brothers, and also covered by Roy Orbison, the expressively melodic ballad "Love Hurts", that was released as a hit single in the UK and in the U.S., where it went platinum. In addition, the track became the band's only U.S. Top Ten hit.
In 1979, second guitarist Zal Cleminson was added to the lineup. Cleminson contributed numerous compositions to the albums No Mean City and Malice in Wonderland. The latter produced a popular AOR single called "Holiday". Various Nazareth lineups continued to make studio albums off and on through 1994, and remained together many more years for various tours.
In 1999, while touring the US, original drummer Darrell Sweet passed away at age 51 -- the result of a heart attack. He was replaced by bassist Pete Agnew's son for later editions of the band.
Recently announced is a summer reunion tour of Canada with opening act, Headpins.

Band member history Dec 1968 – Sep 1979 Sep 1979 – Jul 1980 Jul 1980 – late 1983 Late 1983 – 1984
1984 – May 1990 May 1990 – late 1990
late 1990 – late 1994 Late 1994 – Apr 1999 Apr 1999 – early 2004 Early 2004 – present

Dan McCafferty – lead vocals
Manny Charlton – lead guitar
Pete Agnew – bass
Darrell Sweet – drums

Dan McCafferty – lead vocals
Manny Charlton – guitar
Zal Cleminson – guitar
Pete Agnew – bass
Darrell Sweet – drums

Dan McCafferty – lead vocals
Manny Charlton – guitar
Pete Agnew – bass
Billy Rankin – guitar
Darrell Sweet – drums
John Locke – keyboards

Dan McCafferty – lead vocals
Manny Charlton – guitar
Pete Agnew – bass
Darrell Sweet – drums
Billy Rankin – keyboards

Dan McCafferty – lead vocals
Manny Charlton – guitar
Pete Agnew – bass
Darrell Sweet – drums

Dan McCafferty – lead vocals
Billy Rankin – guitar
Pete Agnew – bass
Darrell Sweet – drums

Dan McCafferty – lead vocals
Jimmy Murrison – guitar
Ronnie Leahy – keyboards
Pete Agnew – bass
Darrell Sweet – drums

Dan McCafferty – lead vocals
Ronnie Leahy – keyboards
Jimmy Murrison – guitar
Pete Agnew – bass
Lee Agnew – drums

Dan McCafferty – lead vocals
Jimmy Murrison – guitar
Pete Agnew – bass
Lee Agnew – drums

By instrument

Lead vocals

Dan McCafferty (1968–present)

Guitar

Manny Charlton (1968–1990)
Zal Cleminson (1979–1980)
Billy Rankin (1980–1983, 1991–1994)
Jimmy Murrison (1994–present)

Keyboards

John Locke (1980–1983)
Billy Rankin (1983–1984)
Ronnie Leahy (1994–2004)

Drums

Darrell Sweet (1968–1990, 1991–1999)
Lee Agnew (1999–present)

Bass

Pete Agnew (1968–present

FAMILY TIES

SIXXCHICK69 — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 11:21:23 CDT

Family Ties is an American television sitcom which aired on NBC for seven seasons, from 1982 to 1989. At the height of its popularity, Family Ties was #2 in the yearly Nielsen ratings, as it aired in the prized time-slot right after the top-rated Cosby Show on Thursday nights.
It starred Michael J. Fox as Alex P. Keaton, the conservative, business-oriented son of liberal parents Elyse and Steven (Meredith Baxter-Birney and Michael Gross). Elyse was a successful architect, while Steven ran a public television station. They lived in suburban Columbus, Ohio with their children: Alex, Mallory ("Mal") (Justine Bateman) and Jennifer ("Jen") (Tina Yothers). Another child, Andrew ("Andy") (Brian Bonsall), was added later.
This show began two spinoffs, Day by Day, which lasted two seasons, and The Art of Being Nick, which was produced as a pilot but never picked up as a series.

Premise

The show had been sold to the network using the pitch "hip parents, square kids," and the parents were originally intended to be the main characters. However, the audience reacted so positively during the taping of the fourth episode, in which Alex lost his virginity to a girl who shared his passion for Milton Friedman, that the focus of the show was changed to him (and to a lesser extent, his siblings).
The majority of the show's humor is derived from the tension between Alex's conservative, Republican mindset, Mallory's uninformed consumerism, and their parents' attitudes as liberal Democrats, who grew up as hippie flower children in the 1960s (as seen in one of the intro themes).

Other characters

In the 1985 season, Elyse gave birth to Andrew; the child "grew" into a pre-schooler (Brian Bonsall) by the next season.
Other characters included the Keatons' socially inept neighbor Erwin 'Skippy' Handelman (Marc Price), who had an undying crush on Mallory, and in later years, Rambo-like budding artist Nick Moore (Scott Valentine), who became romantically involved with Mallory and alarmed various members of the family with how unknowingly crass and unmannered he could be.
Alex's primary love interest was a college student named Ellen Reed (Tracy Pollan, who later became Michael J. Fox's real-life wife). The final two seasons featured Courteney Cox as new girlfriend Lauren Miller.

Casting

Cast of Family Ties from a later season. (From left to right) Justine Bateman, Michael J. Fox , Meredith Baxter, Michael Gross, Brian Bonsall, and Tina Yothers

Michael J. Fox almost wasn't cast because the producers felt he was too short compared to Michael Gross. Fox is only 165 cm (5'5") while Gross is 195 cm (6'5"), leading the producers to worry that no one would believe someone as tall as Gross would have a son as short as Fox. Additionally, Fox was viewed as too much of a smart aleck in his first audition, but the casting director liked him and brought him back. The second time, he gave a slightly different pitch, and the part was his.
Several Hollywood stars appeared on the show in the early days of their careers before they became famous, including Tom Hanks as Elyse's immature, alcoholic younger brother Ned, Geena Davis as an inept housekeeper, and Courteney Cox as Alex's girlfriend, Lauren.

Popularity
Family Ties was broadcast on Thursday nights from 1984 until 1987, immediately following the top-rated program The Cosby Show and just before another wildly popular sitcom, Cheers. That period represented the height of all three programs' popularity; they were, for example, the top three most-watched U.S. television programs during the 1986-1987 TV season, when 33% of all U.S. households with televisions tuned in to Family Ties during an average week. The ratings began to decline in 1987, when the show was moved to Sunday nights at the request of Bill Cosby, to make room for A Different World. Producer/creator Gary David Goldberg decided to end the show with the 1988-1989 TV season. In the final episode Alex moved to New York to begin his career on Wall Street.
On The Pat Sajak Show, Michael Gross suggested that the finale episode have the Keatons die in a plane crash. He said the cast wanted to close off any chances of a reunion in the future.[1]

Alternate versions

The Italian version of the sitcom is named "Casa Keaton" ( Keaton's house ).
The German version was first named "Hilfe, wir werden erwachsen!" (Help, we're growing up!), which was changed to "Familienbande" (Family Ties) and again to "Jede Menge Familie" (A whole lot of family).

GROWING PAINS

SIXXCHICK69 — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 10:47:54 CDT

Growing Pains is an American television sitcom that ran on the ABC network from 1985 to 1992.
The show's premise is based around the fictional Seaver family who reside on Long Island, New York. Dr. Jason Seaver (Alan Thicke), a psychiatrist, works from home because his wife, Maggie Malone Seaver (Joanna Kerns), has gone back to work as a reporter. Jason has to take care of his kids: troublemaker Mike (Kirk Cameron), honors student Carol (Tracey Gold), and rambunctious Ben (Jeremy Miller). From 1988 on, Chrissy Seaver became a part of the family. She was played in her infant stage by twins Kristen and Kelsey Dohring (who alternated). Beginning in the fall of 1990, Chrissy's character age was advanced to 6 years old, whereupon Ashley Johnson took over the role. Later, Luke Brower (Leonardo DiCaprio) also moved in with the family. The show was relevant in the mid-1980s as women going to work was becoming more and more common, as were stay at home dads.

Main cast

Alan Thicke as Dr. Jason Roland Seaver
Joanna Kerns as Margaret Katherine "Maggie" Malone Seaver
Kirk Cameron as Michael Aaron "Mike" Seaver
Tracey Gold as Carol Anne Seaver (1985–1991, 1992)
Jeremy Miller as Benjamin Hubert Horatio Humphrey "Ben" Seaver
Ashley Johnson as Christine Ellen "Chrissy" Seaver (1990–1992)
Leonardo DiCaprio as Luke Brower (1991–1992)

International names

China: 成长的烦恼 pinyin:ChengZhang de FanNao - (Growing up's Agony)
France: Quoi de neuf docteur? - (What is new doctor? or What's up doc?)
Germany: Unser lautes Heim - (Our loud home)
Italy: Genitori in blue jeans - (Parents in blue jeans)
Japan: Yukai na Seaver Ke (愉快なシーバー家) - (Happy Seaver's family)
Latin America: Ay! Cómo duele crecer - (Ouch! Growing up hurts)
Spain: Los Problemas Crecen - (Problems grow)
Taiwan: 歡樂家庭:Huan le Jia Ting - (joyous Family)

Opening sequences

The season one open featured various works of art closing with a shot of the cast which goes from black and white to color.
The opening credits from seasons two through five featured an opening shot of the cast in front of the house where establishing shots of the Seaver house are used, switching to photos of each cast member from childhood and in Alan Thicke and Joanna Kerns' case, to adulthood, mixed with various episode clips. In all episodes that aired from 1986-1990, the opening sequence ends with a "house gag" immediately after the final episode clip and starting with the fifth season ran while the executive producers names' were listed. The house gag changes from episode to episode, and usually features the cast standing in front of the Seaver house. A typical gag featured all but one member of the cast leaving to go inside the Seaver house with the other leaving seconds later. This was a running visual joke mildly similar to that of the "couch gag" sequences on The Simpsons. Most house gags last only about ten seconds, but the longest one on record lasted roughly 20 seconds. Certain house gags include:

Jason starts leaving before the rest of the cast, only to stop and turn back, and the rest of the cast leaves seconds later. (This was the static open for the 1986 and 1987 seasons.)
In the season four episode "Birth of a Seaver", in which Chrissy is born, the sequence goes as normal, though the clips are abbreviated in the form of the syndication airings while the full theme plays as normal. Near the end of the sequence, a pregnant Maggie realizes and announces to the rest of the family that she is in labor, to which everybody follows and guides Maggie back in the house.
Near the end of the opening credits in the next episode, fittingly, Carol (Tracey Gold) holds up a sign saying "It's a Girl" which blocks Mike's face.
Everybody leaves except for Carol. Noticing this, Ben, Mike and Jason then turn back and pick Carol up and take her in the house.
Everybody leaves to head into the house except for Mike to then which Carol angrily turns back and taps Mike on the shoulder and makes a hand gesture telling him to come in with them.
The family stands outside in the rain wearing raincoats and carrying umbrellas and they all head towards the house.
Everyone leave except for Ben, when Mike notices, he comes back whispers something in his ear and they both go into the house.

The opening used in seasons six and seven featured an opening shot of the mantle on the Seaver's fireplace panning over pictures of the cast. The past photos of each cast member were kept but the clips where each cast member's name is overlayed on was replaced with still current photos of each cast member. In this sequence, the male cast members wore tuxedos and the female cast members wore formal dresses. The only exception was Leonardo DiCaprio: when he was added to the cast, his photo featured him wearing a hooded shirt and jeans, although for the first few episodes he appeared in the camera would zoom to a wide shot, then his name was displayed). The end of this sequence featured various still shots of the entire cast trying to get together for their picture, closing with a shot of the pictures on the wall on and above the mantle.

Theme song

The show's theme song is "As Long as We Got Each Other", written by John Bettis and performed by:
B.J. Thomas (singing solo); Season 1
B.J. Thomas & Jennifer Warnes; Seasons 2, 3, 5, 7
B.J. Thomas & Dusty Springfield; Season 4
Rockapella: Seasons 6 and sometimes 7 [citation needed]

There were seven versions of this theme song, others included a Halloween-themed version not sung by Thomas or Warnes used in a two-part Halloween episode in 1990. The first three seasons featured an instrumental part at the end of the theme, but in the fourth season, the original last verse of the TV version of the theme song, "Sharing the laughter and love" was added in its place

Decline

At the beginning of the seventh season, a new character, homeless teen Luke Brower (played by a then-unknown Leonardo DiCaprio) was introduced in a last-ditch attempt to salvage ratings, to no avail. Growing Pains had declined slightly on its established Wednesday time slot in season six, and was moved to Saturday nights in the fall of 1991, to make room for newer comedies. The other long-running show initially affected by this strategy was Who's the Boss?, which also moved to Saturdays. Ratings for both shows plunged to new lows, with insiders stating that ABC was getting rid of both programs by putting them on the "graveyard shift". To diffuse this fact, ABC moved the long-running sitcom Perfect Strangers, a show with reasonably high ratings, to Saturdays in February 1992; its presence helped to launch a new comedy block known as I Love Saturday Night. This final effort at scheduling had an adverse effect for all three shows, and most of all for new cartoon Capitol Critters, which was cancelled after only two months. By then, Growing Pains (along with Who's the Boss?) was cancelled.

Controversies

Despite the show's success, there were a few behind-the-scenes controversies.

Kirk Cameron's clashes

During the 1989–1990 season, Mike's wedding to Julie (played by Julie McCullough) was cancelled when she left him a note saying she could not go through with it. There was a backlash from fans so she appeared in a later episode.
Kirk Cameron had insisted that McCullough be fired for posing for Playboy magazine. Cameron later apologized for his actions (see below). McCullough did not find out she was being dismissed until showing up to film what she thought was a wedding episode.[citation needed]
After Cameron's religious conversion, his beliefs frequently interfered with production of the show. He insisted that no "adult themes" be incorporated into episodes, and he often demanded that entire episodes be re-written when he objected to the content (when one planned episode revolved around Julie giving Mike the key to her apartment, Cameron objected to the sexual connotations, and he forced a new script to be written). According to the Growing Pains episode of E! True Hollywood Story, Cameron at one point went so far as to call the president of ABC on the phone and refer to executive producers Dan Guntzelman, Mike Sullivan and Steve Marshall as pornographers due to the content of some of the episodes. In 1991, after the show's sixth season, the three men quit the show as a result of Cameron's actions and statements.
In 2003, according to the article "The Rebirth of Kirk Cameron" in Christianity Today, Cameron "admits he made some mistakes common to new believers — such as distancing themselves so far from the world that they do no good for anyone ... In time, however, he realized his missteps. In 2000, he rejoined his former cast members for a Growing Pains reunion movie. He stood in front of his TV family and apologized for his behavior. 'I was a 17-year-old guy trying to walk with integrity, knowing that I was walking in the opposite direction from many other people. I didn't have the kind of maturity and graceful way of putting things perhaps that I would now,' he says. Cameron's fellow actors immediately embraced him." Cameron was several years older by then.

Reruns/Syndication

United States

ABC aired reruns of the show on its daytime schedule from July 1988 to August 1989. The show originally aired at 11:00am (EST) until January 1989, when with the cancellation of Ryan's Hope and the expansion of Home to an hour (from 11:00am-noon), the reruns moved to 12:00pm.
Reruns aired on the Disney Channel from 1997-2001 with the episodes featuring Leonardo DiCaprio given special emphasis in an attempt to draw in preteen crowds who had recently seen him in the 1997 blockbuster Titanic. The cable rights for the show moved to sister network ABC Family, where it ran from 2001 to 2004. It has also aired on ION Television (formerly i).
Nick at Nite began airing "Growing Pains" on February 12, 2007, launching with a marathon from 9:00PM ET-1:00AM ET. They pulled it from the schedule on May 2.

Latin America

Nick at Nite also shows it in Latin America from Monday to Friday at 1:00 A.M, and Saturdays and Sundays at 10:00 pm (one hour) ET/PT.

Asia

China

This show was dubbed in Chinese by the Shanghai Television in the late 1980s with the title of "ChengZhang de FanNao" (成长的烦恼) (Growing up's Agony). It was very popular at that time. It is becoming popular once again due to the new DVD release in 2006.
The recent Disney Channel TV show Lizzie McGuire was titled in Chinese as the "New Growing Pains."

Japan

Growing Pains was dubbed in Japanese, and broadcasted by the NHK of Japan in the name of "Yukai na Seaver Ke(愉快なシーバー家)" (Happy Seaver's family) from 1997 to 2000.

Taiwan

This show was dubbed in Chinese by CTS during 1980s - 1990s, and was given a Chinese title called "歡樂家庭" (Huan Le Jia Ting) (Joyous Family). It was very popular at that time as well as other American Sitcom, such as "Who's the boss", "Cosby Show", "ALF", and "Family Ties".

Europe

Two books published in French exclusively about Growing Pains: Cyrille Rollet, Ph.D (EHESS, Paris),

Physiologie d'un Sitcom Americain (Voyage au Coeur de Growing Pains), (volume 1) - Physiology of American Sitcom (Travel in the middle of Growing Pains)
Circulation Culturelle d'un Sitcom Americain (volume 2) - The cultural circulation of an American sitcom

DVD Releases

On February 7, 2006, Warner Home Video released the complete first season of Growing Pains on DVD in Region 1 for the very first time. In conjunction with the release, Thicke, Kerns, Gold, and Miller reunited for a CNN Larry King Live interview, which aired on that same date.

Breaking the Fourth Wall

Growing Pains was unusual because it often breached the fourth wall.

The Seavers lived at 15 Robin Hood Lane, Huntington, NY 11743. The shows creator Neal Marlens grew up on the affluent Long Island and based the series in his hometown. Robin Hood Lane is fictional but many speculate it maybe based on Robin Lane off of Sweet Hollow Road.
Before appearing on Growing Pains, Alan Thicke hosted a late-night talk show called Thicke of the Night. Joanna Kerns's sister is Olympic swimmer Donna de Varona. In the second season episode "Jason's Rib", Jason asks Mike if he has seen his mom, Maggie. Mike responds, "Tall blonde, looks like Donna de Varona?". Later in the episode, Maggie asks Mike if he had seen his dad, Jason. Mike replies, "Tall man, looks like a talk show host?"
In an episode guest starring Kirk Cameron's sister Candace Cameron (who played DJ Tanner on Full House), Ben quips, "If this family were on TV, millions of people would watch!"
At the end the episode "The Home Show," after disaster is averted by the family working together, when the Seavers hosted a very important dinner guest, Jason notes "I had my doubts about this whole episode till then." Earlier in the episode, Jason suggests what would happen if they were on Perfect Strangers instead.
In one episode (Mike visits his girlfriend from Maui), Carol quips "Mike, show me that smile again" just before the opening theme whose first line is "Show me that smile again".
Humorous opening themes were produced for Halloween and other events. The episode "All The World Is a Stage" began with Mike and several other people singing the theme song for an audience instead of the usual beginning theme. It showed male and female extras who were playing people in Mike's audience, but with the show's star's names superimposed: "ALAN THICKE (but that's not him)", "JOANNA KERNS (but that's not her)"... "TRACEY GOLD (Nope)"... "ASHLEY JOHNSON (not even close)"
In the fifth-season episode "Coughing Boy," Mike gives his picture to a talent agent. After Mike leaves his interview, the talent agent looks at his photo and says, "He reminds me of a young Michael J. Fox." In the season two episode "My Brother, Myself", Ben asks Mike how long puberty lasts. Mike replies by saying "You never know. Sometimes it could last forever. Look at Michael J. Fox." During his early teen heartthrob days, Kirk Cameron was hailed as the "young, new Michael J. Fox."
"Meet the Seavers" was an episode in which Ben awoke as Jeremy Miller, star of the fictional television show Meet the Seavers, providing a satirical behind-the-scenes look at Growing Pains. Some of the show's actual behind-the-scenes staff made on-camera appearances as themselves, notably the script supervisor, Susan Straughn Harris, and Yuh-Tyng Tsuei, a writer on the show, who later wrote for MacGyver.
In one episode, Ben takes a taxi driven by Alan Hale, the actor who played the Skipper on Gilligan's Island. Ben suggests that the cab driver is, in fact, the Skipper, which leads to a discussion about television shows. The cab driver asks Ben what his favorite programs are, and Ben responds that he likes "ABC's Tuesday-night lineup." He adds that he is especially fond of Who's the Boss?, Moonlighting, and "the program that is on between the two of them, especially the little kid." The reference is, of course, to Growing Pains and the character of Ben.
In the "Double Standard" episode, once Maggie punishes Ben with no TV for a month, the scene cuts to a title card reading "Growing Pains will not be seen for a month...because Ben messed up!" It stays like that for a second, before Maggie states that the punishment starts the next day and we cut back to the scene.
In the last episode of the sixth season, Mike and Kate walk out of the wedding chapel very lovingly. The priest looks at them and says "they'll be back." Between the hiatus of the sixth and seventh season, Kirk Cameron and Chelsea Noble, who played Mike and Kate, got married on July 20, 1991.
In the movie Growing Pains: Return of the Seavers, Jason tells Mike that he should have learned his lesson after 166 episodes. Later in the movie, Maggie says that events tend to occur on Tuesdays at 8:30/7:30 central. Also Mike's daughter Michelle says she'd buy the jacket only if Leonardo DiCaprio wore it.
In the episode "Fish Bait," Jason tells Mike that he comes to him for advice every Wednesday at 8:00/7:00 central.

Trivia

The last name "Seaver," and the last name of the Seavers' fictional next-door neighbors, "Koosman," were the last names of the 1969 New York Mets number one and number two starting pitchers, Tom Seaver and Jerry Koosman.
The junior high school (Wendell Willkie Jr. High), high school (Thomas Dewey High School), and junior college (Alfred Landon Junior College) that the Seaver children attended were named after three presidential candidates defeated by Franklin D. Roosevelt (Alfred Landon in 1936, Wendell Willkie in 1940, and Thomas Dewey in 1944).
Ben's full name was Benjamin Hubert Horatio Humphrey Seaver. Aside from the comedic effect of three middle names all beginning with an H, Hubert Horatio Humphrey was a real person, a United States Senator and the 38th Vice President of the United States who was the Democratic Party's candidate for President in 1968. In contrast, the full name of Mike's best friend, "Boner," was Richard Milhous Stabone. His character was named after President Richard Milhous Nixon, the man who defeated Hubert Humphrey in the Presidential Election of 1968.
The character of Chrissy was "jumped" three years in age over the course of only one year to bring more interest to the show and to give the writers more to play with in terms of storylines.
Elizabeth Ward was cast as the original Carol Anne Seaver, but was replaced by Tracey Gold (who had auditioned for the part but at first didn't get it) after the pilot was shown to test audiences with poor results prior to the network premiere of the show.
ABC ran the final episodes of Growing Pains, Who's the Boss? and MacGyver on the same night.
Maggie Seaver hums the opening tune to Who's the Boss? at the beginning of the Pilot.
Most years, Growing Pains had Halloween episodes conceptually similar to The Simpsons Halloween episodes:
The first episode of season 6 is named after the 1969 film Midnight Cowboy, and features numerous references to the film. The song "Everybody's Talkin'" plays while Mike drives into Manhattan. Mike also sees a poster of the film in the diner he's attempting sleep in.

Series was videotaped in front of a live studio audience at Columbia/Warner Bros. Ranch in Burbank. The neighborhood exteriors were shot at the neighboring Warner Bros Studios.

Minor Recurring Characters

Guest star Brad Pitt as Jonathon Keith, Ben's idol. Season 4, "Feet of Clay"

Josh Andrew Koenig as Richard Milhous "Boner" Stabone
K.C. Martel as Eddie
Gordon Jump as Ed Malone
Betty McGuire as Kate Malone
Chelsea Noble as Kate MacDonald
Jamie Abbott as Stinky Sullivan
Julie McCullough as Julie Costello
Bill Kirchenbauer as Coach Graham Lubbock (1985–1988 on Growing Pains, starred in spinoff Just the Ten of Us)
Sam Anderson as Principal Willis Dewitt

Nielsen Ratings

1985-1986 Season: #17
1986-1987 Season: #8
1987-1988 Season: #5
1988-1989 Season: #13
1989-1990 Season: #21
1990-1991 Season: #27

Spinoffs

Just the Ten of Us was an ABC show that had Coach Graham Lubbock, Mike and Carol's gym teacher, moving to California with his large family to teach at an all boys Catholic school after he was fired from Thomas Dewey High School. It was a consistent hit on the Friday lineup, but was abruptly cancelled after three seasons.

THE COSBY SHOW

SIXXCHICK69 — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 10:21:47 CDT

The Cosby Show is an American television sitcom starring Bill Cosby, first airing on September 20, 1984 and running for eight seasons on the NBC television network, until April 30, 1992. According to TV Guide, the show "was TV's biggest hit in the 1980s and almost single-handedly revived the sitcom genre and NBC's ratings fortunes".[1] The show helped to make possible a larger variety of African-American shows, from In Living Color to The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.[2]
The Cosby Show has been praised as one of television's best shows. In 2002, TV Guide placed it at #28 in its list of the 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time.[3] In 2007, Time Magazine placed the show on its unranked list of "100 Best TV Shows of All-TIME".[4] Also in 2007, USA Today's web site ranked the show as #8 in its list of the "top 25 TV moments of the past quarter century".[5]

Overview

The show focused on the Huxtable family, an upper-middle class family living in a Brownstone in Brooklyn, New York at 10 Stigwood Avenue.[6] The patriarch was the very playful, humorous, and fun-loving Heathcliff "Cliff" Huxtable, an obstetrician. The matriarch was his just as playful, yet very eloquent, elegant, and assertive wife, attorney Clair Hanks Huxtable. Together, the duo presided over a raucous, yet loving, household. The show involved the usual difficulties of children growing up such as son Theo's experiences of dealing with dyslexia which was based on Cosby's real-life child Ennis who was dyslexic.
Bill Cosby, who had an unusually great deal of creative control over the show, wanted the program to be educational as well as entertaining, reflecting Cosby's own background in education. He also insisted that the program be taped in New York City rather than Los Angeles, where most television programs were taped.[citation needed]
The series was originally videotaped at what was then NBC's studio facilities in the Midwood section of Brooklyn, New York. Disputes between NBC and series director Jay Sandrich eventually forced the series' move to the Kaufman Astoria Studios in the New York City borough of Queens.

Cast

Main article: List of The Cosby Show characters

Bill Cosby as Heathcliff "Cliff" Huxtable
Phylicia Rashād as Clair Olivia Hanks-Huxtable
Sabrina Le Beauf as Sondra Huxtable-Tibideaux (1985-92, recurring previously)
Geoffrey Owens as Elvin Tibideaux (1987-92, recurring previously)
Lisa Bonet as Denise Huxtable-Kendall (1984-87, 1989-91)
Joseph C. Phillips as Martin Kendall (1989-91)
Malcolm-Jamal Warner as Theodore Aloysius "Theo" Huxtable
Tempestt Bledsoe as Vanessa Huxtable
Erika Alexander as Pam Tucker (1990-92)*
Keshia Knight Pulliam as Rudith Lillian "Rudy" Huxtable
Raven-Symoné as Olivia Kendall (1989-92)

Episodes

Main article: List of The Cosby Show episodes

Pilot

The Cosby Show Pilot uses the same title sequence as the rest of the first season, and is widely regarded as the 'first episode'. However, it is notable for a number of differences from the remainder of the series. The show had been originally pitched to ABC, which rejected it.[1]
In the pilot therefore, the Huxtables have only four children. During an early scene, an exasperated Clair asks Cliff, "Why did we have four children?" to which he responds "because we did not want five". Following the pilot, the Huxtables have five children, with the addition of their eldest daughter, Sondra (Sabrina Le Beauf). Although she first appears midway through the first season, she is mentioned in episodes prior to this, as being the eldest daughter who is attending college. Sondra was created when Bill Cosby wanted the show to express the accomplishment of successfully raising a child (eg: a college graduate). Whitney Houston was considered for the role of Sondra Huxtable. Sabrina Le Beauf almost missed out on the role, because she is only 10 years younger (b. 1958) than Phylicia Rashad (b. 1948), who played her mother, Clair Huxtable, on the show.
Bill Cosby's character is called Clifford in the pilot (as also evidenced by his name plate on the exterior of the Huxtable home). His name was later switched to Heathcliff. Also, Theodore is referred to as "Teddy" by Clair and Vanessa, as opposed to "Theo." This also happens in another episode early in the first season.
While reference is made to Clair being a lawyer, she is in fact portrayed as a stereotypical housewife and matriarch in the pilot, spending much of it exasperated and in an apron. In subsequent episodes, the household duties and parental responsibilities are shared more evenly between her and Heathcliff.
The interior of the Cosby house features a different dining and living room from subsequent episodes. Throughout the remainder of the series, the dining room is reserved for more formal occasions.
During a scene where Cliff challenges Theo on his poor grades, he exclaims "damn right!" - making this the one of only two swear-words to be used in the series. A flashback of this scene appears in the series finale.

Opening credits

The show's theme music is called "Kiss Me," composed by Stu Gardner and Bill Cosby. Seven versions of this theme (one theme per season, with the exception of the sixth and seventh season where all was the same) were used during the run of the series, making it one of the few television series to use multiple versions of the same theme song in the course of a series. Bobby McFerrin's version (fourth season) features only him overdubbing all the vocal parts, snapping fingers and imitating horn section sound.
The season seven opening credits were originally those that were ultimately used in season eight. Due to legal complications regarding the background mural, the season seven opening was changed to the previous season's opening. The original season seven opening, with modifications, was used in the eighth and final season.

Ratings

The Cosby Show is one of two television shows (All in the Family being the other) that has been number 1 in the Nielsen Ratings for 5 consecutive TV seasons.

Syndication

Ratings in syndication for Cosby were a big disappointment. Normally, it had been thought that black sitcoms do not test as well in syndication as white sitcoms. But with the extremely high ratings of the network run, it was thought that the Cosby Show would be an exception. Viacom began selling the syndication rights for Cosby in 1986 for five runs per week beginning in October of 1988. In New York City, WOR-TV (now WWOR) put in a record high bid outbidding higher rated rivals like WNYW Fox 5 and WPIX. This set the tone for unusually high bids for the other markets. This show was not only extremely expensive but there was also a minute of national barter ads that had to be run as well. KCOP 13 won the bid in Los Angeles and WFLD 32 won the show in Chicago. Then something unusual happened. VHF stationswith NBC, CBS, or ABC began bidding on the show. Stations like WCAU 10 (then CBS now NBC) Philadelphia, KPIX 5 San Francisco (CBS), 5 WCVB Boston (ABC), 11 WPXI Pittsburgh (NBC), 4 WTVJ (CBS) (now NBC on 6) Miami, 7 KIRO Seattle (CBS), among many others would win the rights for the show. In markets like Detroit, Dallas, Houston, Cleveland, and a couple others, leading independents or Fox Affiliates would win the rights for the show.
Beginning in October of 1988, the show was offered five days a week and in most markets ran in the 4 PM, 5 PM, or 6 PM hour. The show was expected to be top rated in its time slots but was in third place or even lower in most markets. In Boston, the show rated so low on WCVB, that the station began running its five runs on the weekend wherever they could fit it in. Oprah Winfrey moved into the 4 PM time slot after that and is still run there today.
By 1990, stations wanted out of their contract to run Cosby. In many markets, it was sold second hand at a loss to the number 2 or even number 3 independent station where ratings were still mediocre. In 1991, the show was offered on a cash basis at a much lower rate. The show continues to air in syndication in some markets during the morning or afternoon hours. It's also offered on Nick-at-Nite as well as TBS. Still, while the show has fair ratings, its not nearly as dominant as it was during its network run. In fact reruns of the show were only mediocre while new episodes still aired on NBC

Awards and nominations

Awards won

Emmy Awards

Outstanding Comedy Series (1985)
Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series (1984) Michael J. Leeson and Ed. Weinberger
Justin Bukartek Lifetime Achievement Award

Golden Globe Awards

Best TV Series-Comedy (1985)
Best Performance by an Actor in a TV Series-Comedy Bill Cosby (1985-86) 2 wins

Awards nominated

Emmy Awards

Outstanding Comedy Series (1986-87) 2 nominations
Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series Phylicia Rashād (1985-86) 2 nominations
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series Lisa Bonet (1986)
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series Keshia Knight Pulliam (1986)
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series Malcolm-Jamal Warner (1986)

Golden Globe Awards

Best TV Series-Comedy (1986-87) 2 nominations
Best Performance by an Actor in a TV Series-Comedy Bill Cosby (1987)

Criticisms

In a 1992 book, authors Sut Jhally and Justin Lewis use the results of an audience study to argue that the Cosby Show obscured the issues of class and race and reinforced the idea that African Americans have only themselves to blame if they don't succeed in society.[7]

DVD releases

Seasons 1 and 2 have been released by Urbanworks until First Look Entertainment acquired Urbanworks in early 2006. Future seasons of The Cosby Show are planned to be released by First Look Entertainment along with A Different World in 2007. Seasons 3 and 4 have been released by First Look Entertainment on June 5, 2007. [1]
Magna Pacific [2] have released seasons one through three of The Cosby Show on DVD in Australia and New Zealand, with similar artwork to the American copies, although season 2 is red rather than blue. Each Australasian cover also features the tagline "In a house full of love, there is always room for more."

A DIFFERENT WORLD

The Cosby Show 's producers created a spin-off series called A Different World centered around the character Denise (portrayed by actress Lisa Bonet), the second of the Huxtables' four daughters. Initially, the new program dealt with Denise's life at Hillman College, the fictional historically black college from which her father, mother, and paternal grandfather had graduated. Denise was written out of the series after its inaugural season due to Bonet's pregnancy, and the following season was revamped with the addition of director Debbie Allen and new characters. Denise later became a recurring character in The Cosby Show for Seasons 4-5 and a regular again in Seasons 6-7.
Bonet was initially fired from her role as Denise Huxtable after the 1986 season due to her appearance in the film Angel Heart. When she threatened legal action, the spin-off was made as compensation in 1987.

EXPOSE

SIXXCHICK69 — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 22:34:17 CDT

Exposé is an American girl group of the 1980s formed by record producer and songwriter Lewis A. Martineé.

History

Formation of the group and original members (1984–1986)

Exposé was initially formed in 1984 when Martineé and his Pantera Productions talent scouts hired Sandra Casanas ("Sandeé"), Alejandra Lorenzo ("Alé"), and Laurie Miller as the group's lineup. The next year, the trio recorded "Point of No Return" (with Lorenzo singing lead) for Pantera Records as a 12" vinyl single, which became a number one Billboard Hot Dance Club Play hit. The song helped to introduce a still-popular genre of music that became known as Freestyle, which often features keyboard riffs, a sing-along chorus and electro funk drum patterns in the music arrangement. The success of "Point of No Return" quickly led Exposé to their signing with Arista Records, who promptly assumed distribution of the 12" vinyl single. A year later, Exposé recorded and released their second club/dance Freestyle hit 12" vinyl single entitled "Exposed to Love" (with Lorenzo singing lead). These songs were released during the period when radio began airing continuous mixes of House/Club/Dance songs in major markets. As such, Exposé realized continued success, including a club tour to key cities. Impressed with the performance of the two singles and their unique sound, Arista granted approval for the group to record their first album.

Personnel changes (1986)

Shortly thereafter, Casanas left the group to pursue a solo career, and Lorenzo quit to pursue other ambitions; they were replaced by Jeanette Jurado and Gioia Bruno. Before the completion of their debut album, Miller left the group due to personal and business problems and began a solo career; she was replaced by Ann Curless.
Casanas later resurfaced as a solo artist and released a solo album, which garnered the club hits "You're The One" and the Clivilles & Cole-produced bassline-heavy hit "Notice Me." Alé Lorenzo returned to the club charts with "Stop Me if I Fall in Love," while Laurie Miller evolved into a cabaret-style performer frequently showcasing her talents on luxury cruises.

Exposure (1986–1988)

Toward the end of 1986, Exposé released their debut album Exposure (which still consisted of background vocals done by the original members). Led by the huge pop/dance hit "Come Go with Me," Exposé solidified their Freestyle music foundation to the masses. During the summer of 1987, a re-recorded version of "Point of No Return" was released, with Jurado performing lead vocals. While the initial distibution of Exposure to suppliers contained the original 1984 version of that song, subsequent pressings contained the new version. "Let Me Be the One," a mid-tempo soulful track with Bruno on lead, marked interesting distinctions for the trio. First, it demonstrated that despite being a "girl group" (a term which historically identifies a single lead singer), Exposé alternated lead vocals among its members. Second, the single garnered significant R&B support, with Bruno integrating soulful inflections with her vocal delivery. Their biggest hit occurred in the winter of 1988 with the Billboard Hot 100 number one single "Seasons Change," along with that came a Soul Train Award nomination for Best New Artist, appearances on Solid Gold, Showtime at the Apollo and served as the opening act for Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam during their tour. In addition, Exposé surpassed The Beatles and The Supremes for having the most top 10 hit singles on the Billboard Hot 100 released from a single album. Exposure remains one of the most successful dance albums ever released, reaching triple platinum status.
During their peak, Exposé had to fight problems behind the scenes. Similar to the girl groups of the sixties, the members of Exposé had a restrictive contract, and there were reports in the media of backstage battles and threats of lawsuits. According to Bruno, they were only paid 200 dollars per show. [1]. Reportedly, the record label intervened to keep peace between the members and the producers.

What You Don't Know (1989–1990)

Their second album, What You Don't Know (1989), went gold and proved to be almost as much of a success as their debut. The success of Exposé in the U.S. lead to a lot of similar girl groups being created by producers and existing ones being signed to labels, such as Company B, The Cover Girls, Sweet Sensation, Pajama Party, and Seduction. Shortly after the success of the singles "What You Don't Know" (Bruno on lead vocals), "When I Looked at Him" (Jurado on lead vocals), the release of the single "Tell Me Why" (Bruno on lead vocals) made music history for the group when they became the first girl group to have 7 back-to-back Top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100. "Tell Me Why" addressed the issue of street gangs and youth and rewarded the group with additional praise for its socially-conscious lyrics. "Your Baby Never Looked Good in Blue" (Jurado on lead vocals) and "Stop, Listen, Look & Think" (Curless on lead vocals) soon followed afterwards. Their continued success granted Exposé their first headlining tour and continued television appearances on Soul Train, The Pat Sajak Show and The Byron Allen Show, among others.
In August of 1990, while touring with Exposé, Bruno began having throat problems - later linked to a benign tumor on her vocal cords - and which caused the group to cut the tour short. The group took time off from their schedule in hopes that she would recover. Ultimately, Bruno lost her voice and she was replaced by Kelly Moneymaker in 1992.

Exposé (1992–1995)

After Kelly Moneymaker joined Exposé, the group released their third album Exposé, which integrated more adult-contemporary material in addition to their established Freestyle, house, R&B, pop, and love ballad repertoire. It was the first album to use producers besides Martineé, with Clive Davis taking over as Executive Producer and Martineé only doing four songs. The album was aimed to demonstrate musical growth for the group as well as to compete with the success of Wilson Phillips, who had great success in 1990 with their debut album.
The album was not as commercially successful as their previous albums, and several singles fared better on the adult-contemporary charts. They did manage to crack the U.S. Top 40 pop chart with "I Wish the Phone Would Ring" and "I'll Never Get Over You (Getting Over Me)," which also reached #1 on the adult-contemporary chart (Jurado performing lead vocals). Subsequent releases "As Long as I Can Dream" and "In Walked Love" featured Curless in the lead vocal spotlight. A final, club-marketed single saw the release of the group's first remake. "I Specialize in Love" featured Jurado on lead with Curless and Moneymaker each supporting lead vocals towards the song's conclusion. The original version was performed by Sharon Brown.
In 1995, Exposé recorded the Diane Warren-penned song "I'll Say Good-Bye for the Two of Us" for the soundtrack of the film Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home with Jurado performing lead vocals; that same year, the song was issued on their Greatest Hits. The song is distinctive for the group as Jurado performs solo without backing vocals.

Label inactivity and solo projects

Toward the end of 1995, Arista dropped the group, and the members disbanded at the beginning of 1996 to pursue their own projects. However, over time, BMG has released two other variations of greatest hits collections, as well as a collection of popular remixes from their 12-inch singles, including the extended versions of the original "Point of No Return" (Lorenzo on lead vocals) and "Exposed to Love."
After the group disbanded, Jurado performed in the stage play "Mad Hattan," supplied vocals for Jazz artist Nils, and later Carl Ferris of Safe Sax; Moneymaker married soap opera actor Peter Reckell and released two solo albums (Like a Blackbird and Through These Basement Walls); Curless engaged in song writing, supplied vocals to several club/dance projects and provided academic instruction on music and the music business. Eventually, both Jurado and Curless married and had children, temporarily retiring from performing.
In 1997, Bruno fully recovered from her throat tumor and began singing again. After a small stint with the band Wet, she worked on a solo career focused mostly on dance-oriented material. Her first album, Expose This, was released in the spring of 2004.

The reuniting of Exposé

Moneymaker, Jurado and Curless during an autograph session after the first show at the Mid State Fair (Paso Robles, CA) in 2003

After a long hiatus, on August 1, 2003, the lineup of Curless, Jurado, and Moneymaker reunited briefly for a reunion concert at the Mid State Fair in Paso Robles, California. Members of Safe Sax, including Carl Ferris on saxophone, were part of the live band Exposé used. While there was a desire to do more shows, according to Moneymaker they were unable to gets things active at that time.
In the year 2006, Jurado announced on MySpace they had signed with a major booking agency, and, Bruno announced she was back with Exposé for the first time in 15 years. [2] Moneymaker has stated she might fill in for any member who may not be available, or to appear with the full lineup on special occasions.
On October 21, 2006, Exposé kicked off their tour at AmericanAirlines Arena in Miami for the "Freestyle Explosion" concert. On November 29, 2006 at the Potawatomi Bingo Casino Northern Lights Theater in Milwaukee, Exposé performed a 16 song show with a full band, marking their first full concert together with Bruno since 1990.
The group continues to tour, appearing at several venues. Notable appearances in 2007 include [3] being the headlining act at the Columbus, Ohio Gay Pride Festival which attracted an estimated crowd of 110,000 people.[4] [5], and playing in front of a full house of over 9,500 people in Palmdale, California. [6]

Bruno, Curless, and Jurado during a live concert in Palmdale, CA on July 14, 2007

Discography

Albums

1987: Exposure
1989: What You Don't Know
1992: Exposé

Compilations

1995: Greatest Hits
1999: Master Hits
2001: The Encore Collection: Seasons Change
2002: Exposé's Greatest Dance Mixes
2005: Dance Mixes

JEM

SIXXCHICK69 — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 21:15:05 CDT

Jem is an American animated television series that ran from 1985 to 1988 in U.S. first-run syndication. The cartoon is about a singer named Jem, her band the Holograms and their adventures. Catch phrases from the show included "Showtime, Synergy!" and "Truly outrageous!" (the latter usually associated with supporting character Kimber).
The series was a joint collaboration between Hasbro and Sunbow Productions, the same team responsible for GI Joe and Transformers, and was intended to target female viewers. The creator of the series was Christy Marx, who also had been a staff writer for the aforementioned programs.
Despite the fact that the show was originally designed by Hasbro for the purpose of marketing a line of dolls, it employed several interweaving storylines and a complex backstory — both unusual in an animated television series during the 1980s. The show also features one-minute music videos, tying it in with the concept of MTV and its burgeoning popularity. The animated series still retains a fan-following.

Origin

The show was originally designed to appeal to both girls and boys, with a mix of action/adventure,drama, music, and fashion. It was first slotted as a 6 minute cartoon that aired during Super Sunday (or "Super Saturday" depending on the market) along with the boy-oriented properties Bigfoot and the Muscle Machines, Robotix, and Inhumanoids. Originally the main character was called "Misty" and then "M," but that idea was dropped due to the inability to trademark a letter. As the show progressed, it became more and more targeted towards young girls, especially as the theme song lyrics were changed, with Jem enticing the viewer to "come on and be a Jem girl" as opposed to saying only that "Jem is excitement...Jem is adventure."

Creative Team
Hasbro turned to advertising agency, Griffin-Bacal, to create the 65-episode animation series. Griffin-Bacal had previously created the successful G.I. Joe series for Hasbro.
G.I. Joe writer Christy Marx was hired to create the series based upon the line of dolls and the original concept for them, which consisted of the two girl bands, Synergy, the boyfriend Rio and the Rockin' Roadster. Marx created the full character bios and relationships (including the love triangle aspect between Jem/Jerrica and Rio), Starlight Music and Starlight House, the Starlight Girls, the villain Eric Raymond and various secondary characters.
Later, Marx was asked to develop new characters as they were introduced (Raya, Jetta, etc.) In total, Marx wrote 22 of the 65 shows.
The producers were Joe Bacal, Tom Griffin, Jay Bacal and Carole Weitzman. The story editor was Roger Slifer who wrote many memorable episodes which expanded upon the rich character relationships. The voice director was industry veteran, Wally Burr.
Other writers for the series included: Jina Bacarr, Cary Bates & Greg Weisman, George Bloom, Beth Bornstein, Carla Conway, Paul Dini, Buzz Dixon, Sandy Fries, Evelyn Gabai, Ellen Guon, Michael Hill, Rick Merwin, Steve Mitchell & Barbara Petty, Chris Pelzer, Michael Reaves, Mary Skrenes, Misty Stewart, David Wise, Cherie Wilkerson, Marv Wolfman. There were prototype dolls of projected 1988 characters Regine Cesare (fashion designer), Astral (magician) and Graphix (Artist) though none were ever released in stores and Graphix did not even make it into the cartoon series.
Other characters important enough to have related dolls were filmmaker Video (Vivien Montgomery), her cousin and obsessive Misfits fan Clash (Constance Montgomery), choreographer Danse (Giselle Dvorjak) and three of the most prominent Starlight Girls: Ashley, Ba Nee and Krissie. Hasbro's Rama Llama toy seems to have been loosely associated with Jem though was never used as anything more than a mail in offer and may never have featured in later Jem projects.

Character List

The Holograms

Jem (Lead Vocals) — Jem is the leader of the Holograms and the most popular singer of her day. She is the alter-ego of Jerrica Benton, owner of Starlight Music. Jerrica also runs Starlight House, a home for foster girls. Using the power of Synergy, an incredibly powerful holographic/audio synthesizer, Jerrica can become Jem by touching her special star-shaped earrings (the "Jemstar earrings") while saying "Showtime Synergy" (Jem changes back to Jerrica by saying "show's over, Synergy"). A primary storyline of the series involves her hiding her identity from others, especially Rio Pacheco, who loves both Jem and Jerrica. The character was voiced by Samantha Newark and Britta Phillips.
Kimber Benton (Keyboards, Synthesizers and Backup Vocals) — Kimber is Jerrica's younger sister. She is the primary songwriter of the Holograms. Episodes in which Kimber is the main focus often involve romance and rebellion. Kimber, more than once, has been shown to be a little jealous of all the media attention that Jem gets. The character was voiced by Cathianne Blore
Aja Leith (Lead Guitarist and Backup Vocals) — Aja was a Chinese-American foster girl who grew up with the other Holograms at Starlight House. She was the first one adopted by Jacqui and Emmett Benton, Jerrica & Kimber's parents. A natural fixer and sports fan, Aja is cool and level headed. She is the girlfriend of Craig Phillips, the brother of the Misfit's keytarist, Stormer. Aja is almost always the driver of the Rockin' Roadster. The character was voiced by Cathianne Blore
Shana Elmsford (Synth Drums, Bass Guitarist and Backup Vocals) — Shana was an African American foster girl who grew up with Kimber, Jerrica and Aja at Starlight House. Despite her shy demeanor she eventually became good friends with the other girls. She designs many of the Holograms' costumes and even left the band for a short time, wrongly assuming the others wanted her out of the band for good, to pursue a career in fashion as a designer for actress Liz Stratton. However, when Stratton's unreasonable demands and egotistical behavior became too much for Shana to take, she walked off the job and returned to the band, where she learned that the girls never wanted her out, they just wanted to see her fulfill her dream of being a professional designer. She switched to playing the bass guitar with Raya taking over on drums. The character was voiced by Cindy McGee
Carmen 'Raya' Alonso (Synth Drums) — Raya is the talented drummer of the Holograms. Quiet, kind and unassuming, Raya won the position of drummer for the Holograms during a worldwide talent search, beating close competitor Craig Phillips (Stormer's Brother) in a drum duel. Raya is the only member of the Holograms who comes from a traditional family. The character was voiced by Linda Dangcil

The Misfits

Phyllis 'Pizzazz' Gabor (Lead Vocals and Guitarist) — Pizzazz is an archetypal spoiled rich girl. Abandoned by her mother when she was a child, Pizzazz was raised by her tycoon father and given almost anything her heart desired. She is the primary antagonist on the show, constantly trying to upstage Jem and the Holograms. She has been shown to be attracted to Rio (Jem/Jerrica's paramour), Sean Harrison (British teen idol and Kimber's on-and-off boyfriend), and Riot (of The Stingers). She despises her real name "Phyllis" and is prone to fits of rage if things don't go her way. The character was voiced by Patricia Alice Albrecht and her singing voice was recorded by Ellen Bernfield
Roxanne 'Roxy' Pellegrini (Bassist and Backup Vocals) — Roxy is the Misfits' tough-as-nails bassist. A high school dropout, she was almost completely illiterate until one of the Starlight girls, Ba Nee, gave her a kid's book to learn to read. She takes an instant dislike to new Misfit Jetta, and the two are often at odds with eachother. The character was voiced by Bobbi Block (now known as Samantha Paris)
Mary 'Stormer' Phillips (Keytarist and Backup Vocals) — Stormer is the primary songwriter of the Misfits and overall creative force behind the group (though she is almost never given credit for it). She is a world-renowned guitarist and expert Keytar player. She is sweet-natured and compassionate, and often pushed around by the other Misfits. She and Kimber forge a friendship when both women, feeling unappreciated by their bandmates, strike out on their own, join forces, and record an album together. Though Stormer eventually returns to The Misfits (and Kimber to The Holograms), she does so with new-found self-assurance, and remains friends with Kimber. Stormer's underdog demeanor and gracious attitude has made her one of the best-loved characters in the series. The character was voiced by Susan Blu
Sheila 'Jetta' Burns (Saxophone and Backup Vocals) — Jetta became the newest Misfit when Stormer suddenly heard music, particularly a "powerful" saxophone, blaring in a seedy dance club. Jetta, a conceited, pathological liar, is originally from England and comes from a poor family; despite this, she likes telling people her family has close ties with British Royalty. She is also a skilled pickpocket. Extremely perceptive and stuck-up, she almost immediately begins a rivalry with Roxy. The character was voiced by Louise Dorsey
Eric Raymond — Eric is the main villain in the series, a greedy and manipulative music executive who was running Starlight Music at the time of Emmett Benton's death. Shortly afterwards, his main focus was to gain back full control of the company, half of which was left to him, and the other half left to Jerrica. Eric is not a member of the Misfits but created the group in an attempt to oust Jerrica. Afterwards, he runs Misfits Music (with Pizzazz's father's money) which is later renamed Stingers Sound when he signs new band The Stingers. Handsome and extremely devious, he is a very smart (albeit dishonest) business man and will resort to almost anything to sabotage Jem and the Holograms, from fraud, to hiring goons to do the really dirty work, to passing out wads of cash to total strangers on the condition they use the funds to purchase Misfit albums. He also longs to know Jem's real identity, even going so far as to offer new Hologram Raya a music contract if she reveals to him Jem's secret. The character was voiced by Charlie Adler

The Stingers

A new band introduced in season 3
Riot/Rory Llewelyn (Lead Vocals) — Riot grew up in a strict household with his mother and army officer father who tried to force his values onto him. To escape his father's stronghold, Riot joined the army but went AWOL in Germany where he met Minx. Rapture soon joined and The Stingers were born. Riot is charming but aloof and arrogant. He is confident with his looks, believing he is the perfect man. He commands respect and demands devotion from his bandmates and fans. He is aware of the power he has over people and uses it to get what he wants. Riot's romantic interest in the show is Jem - he believes she is the perfect woman for him and pursues her relentlessly. His relationship with his father was deeply strained over the years, but due to his mother's temporary illness and the efforts of Jem to reconcile them in the episode, Riot's Hope, their relationship has greatly improved. The character was voiced by Townsend Coleman and Gordon Grody.
Rapture/Phoebe Ashe (Guitarist and Backup Vocals) Rapture is a con-artist and uses her interest in the occult to trick people out of money. She enjoys making fools out of people for her own entertainment and will quickly discard them once she has had her fill of fun. Rapture is arrogant and self-centered but will take orders from Riot on a business level - she knows all too well that his charm and charisma will take him places where she wants to go too. She has no romantic interest on the show. The character was voiced by Ellen Gerstell.
Minx/Ingrid Krueger (Synthesizers and Backup Vocals) Minx like the other members of The Stingers, she too is arrogant and only interested in herself but will take orders and advice from the charismatic Riot as she knows he is a man with a future and she wants to be there when it happens. She is cunning and manipulative and prides herself on being able to have her pick of men, only to toss them away once she gets bored, which happens with alarming regularity. Minx is also very technologically minded and can work her magic with any computer of synthesizer. The only character in the show that she shows any genuine affiliation towards is Techrat, due to his interest in computers too. Her romantic interest in the show is Rio who she teases and flirts with despite his constant rejections. She sees him as a challenge because she can usually have any man she wants. The character was voiced by Kath Soucie and Vicki Sue Robinson.

Additional Characters
Synergy - A extraordinarily sophisticated holographic computer designed to be the ultimate audio/visual entertainment synthesizer. Synergy was created by Emmett Benton, and is in many ways considered to be his life's work. Synergy can generate holographic images that are extremely lifelike and convincing, apart from the fact that they aren't solid. Synergy's artificial intelligence, appearance and voice are all based on the likeness of Emmett's late wife, Jacqui, as he intended her to be a surrogate mentor, friend and mother figure to Jerrica and Kimber and not just a simple computer. She manifests herself physically as a hologram in the form of a light purple-skinned woman with dark purple hair and eyes. The character was voiced by Marlene Aragorn.
Rio Pacheco - Jerrica's long-time childhood friend and boyfriend, who plays a Mal Evans-like role as a road manager and engineer for the Holograms. He loves Jerrica, but has a crush on Jem. Rio has issues with secrecy, anger and lying which are never fully explained, but it is those issues which make Jerrica reluctant to reveal her masquerade to her long-time boyfriend for fear that he will feel betrayed and made a fool. The character was voiced by Michael Sheehan.
Techrat - This odd technical genius has a profound dislike of being touched and relates better to technology than other human beings, the only exception is the techno-savvy Minx, who he seems to be sweet on. He was Eric's secret weapon to invent various gadgets that could be used against Jem and the Holograms. The character was voiced by Charles Adler.
Zipper - is a not-too-bright henchman of Eric's. He was responsible for burning the original Starlight house. The character was voiced by Charles Adler.
Vivien "Video" Montgomery - A young filmmaker who makes and produces The Holograms music videos. She is Clash's cousin. The character was voiced by Noelle North.
Constance "Clash" Montgomery - The Misfits groupie/biggest fan/hench person, she gets her nickname due to the fact she clashes cymbals to get attention. She is Video's cousin.
Mrs. Bailey - The housemother at Starlight Houses. The character was voiced by Marlene Aragorn.
The Starlight Girls - the name given to the foster girls Jerrica and the Holograms care for. There are twelve foster girls. They include Anne, Ashley, Ba Nee, Becky, Deirdre, Delaree, JoEllen, Krissie, Lela, Marianne, Nancy and Terri.
Lindsay Pierce/Lin-Z - The popular host of Lin-Z TV, a music video/news/talk show which regularly features the Holograms and Misfits videos. While Lindsay is usually impartial to the rivalry between the two groups while on the air, she is a good friend and ally to Jem, and maintains a grudge against Pizzazz for disrupting her show with her usual antics. The character was voiced by Susan Blu.
Giselle "Danse" Dvorak - A gifted dancer and choreographer, who is a friend and constant collaborator with the Holograms. She also does charity work and volunteers at "Haven House", a home for troubled teens. The character was voiced by Desirée Goyette
Craig Phillips - Stormer's older brother, a drummer who tried to audition for the Holograms to be closer to his crush, Aja, but lost the spot to Raya. The day the winner of the competition was to be announced, Raya went to Eric Raymond for help when her parent's plant nursery was ransacked by thugs, who were paid by Jetta with Eric's money as a pressure tactic to force Raya into confessing Jem's secret identity. As she was struggling with the decision to do so, she noticed Jetta wearing a stolen orchid from the nursery in her hair. Infuriated, she physically attacked Jetta and berated Eric and the Misfits for their ruthlessness. She then stormed out of the office, vowing she would never reveal Jem's secret to the likes of them. Unbeknownst to Raya, Craig had heard the whole exchange and forced Eric to pay restitution to Raya's family for the damage the thugs caused. To this day, Raya is unaware Craig did this for her. Later on, he backed out of the competition as so not to endanger the Holograms: He did not want to be used to hurt them, especially with Eric pressuring him to learn Jem's true identity. Raya was worried about winning by default, feeling she would not have rightfully earned the place in the band, but Craig quickly reassured her of her talent and was confident she would be win, even if he hadn't withdrawn from the contest. Sure enough when the votes came in seconds later, Raya was the undisputed winner.
Harvey Gabor - Pizzazz's rich father who gives his daughter whatever she wants every time she whines for it. Rarely does he ever take his daughter in hand and make her take responsibility for her actions, although he has taken her to task on some occasions.
Howard Sands - One of Hollywood's foremost producers, and a close friend of Jem. Sands sweetens the rivalry between Jem and the Holograms and the Misfits by offering a movie contract and a mansion to the winner of the contest to become the most popular musical act in the country. Even-tempered and firm on fair-play, he does his best not to favor either band. However, when the Starlight House burns down and Jerrica appeals to him for a place to house her foster girls, he bends the rules enough to allow the Starlight Girls to stay in the mansion that is part of the prize. After that, he continues to try maintaining impartiality, but he soon he treats Jem and the Holograms as his preferred winners. He introduces them to Countess Danielle DuVoisin. There appears to be more than professional interest between him and the Countess. The character was voiced by Neil Ross.
Danielle DuVoisin - A close, personal friend of producer Howard Sands. The lively, sophisticated French fashion designer frequently takes young designers such as Shana Elmsford and Regine Cesaire under her wing. The character was voiced by Marlene Aragorn.
Anthony Julian - One of the industry's most talented directors. He and Shana quickly develop a romantic relationship. He supports Shana in her sideline of fashion design, and when he is put in charge of a mini-series and the original designer is fired by star/producer Liz Stratton, Anthony brings Shana in to meet Stratton, earning her the empty position. But after Shana quits the project due to Stratton's inflated ego, he remains at Shana's side and helps to bring her back into the Holograms. The character was voiced by T.K. Carter.

Plot

The central "secret" of the series is that Jem is in fact the alter ego of Jerrica Benton, owner/manager of Starlight Music, who adopts this persona with the help of Synergy, a holographic computer designed to be the ultimate, audio, visual, entertainment synthesizer built by her father, who left it to her upon his death.
The other Holograms are Kimber Benton, Jerrica's younger sister, keyboardist and main songwriter for the band; Aja Leith, guitarist; and Shana Elmsford, who plays the synth drums. Aja and Shana are also childhood friends and adopted foster sisters of Jerrica and Kimber. Shana briefly left the group in a two-part episode called "The Talent Search", where a new character, Carmen "Raya" Alonso, is introduced as her replacement. When Shana returns, Raya Alonso remains the Holograms' drummer while Shana takes up the guitar.
Only the Holograms are aware of Jem's secret identity, although Jerrica revealed it to the United States President in a season 3 episode, "The Presidential Affair",an old Tibetan woman in the episode "Journey to Shangri-La" and the princess Audrianna (who is mistaken for Kimber) in the episode "The Princess and the Singer". Episodes of the series frequently revolved around Jerrica's efforts to keep her two identities separate. This often caused conflict with her boyfriend, Rio, who is attracted to both Jerrica and Jem while not realizing that they are actually the same person.
Jerrica's other main concern is Starlight House, a home for foster girls run by the Holograms. The Holograms' main purpose is to fund the Starlight Foundation and support the Starlight Girls. Jerrica's childhood home, where the foster girls were housed was accidentally burned down by Zipper, one of Eric Raymond's not-too-bright henchmen.
Jem and the Holograms later got possession of the Starlight Mansion when they won the Battle of the Bands, as well as a movie contract -- these prizes were offered by movie producer Howard Sands, who became one of the group's biggest supporters. Other friends of the Holograms included Countess Danielle DuVoisin, a renowned fashion designer, Anthony Julian, a music director who is romantically involved with Shana, Danse(Giselle Dvorak) a charity worker and choreographer and Craig Phillips, who entered the contest for the Holograms new drummer and is the older brother of the Misfit, Stormer. He has an ongoing relationship with Aja.
The Holograms' rival band are the Misfits: petulant rich girl Pizzazz (Phyllis Gabor) and her cohorts: no-nonsense and streetwise Roxy (Roxanne Pelligrini) and kind-hearted and sensitive keytar player Stormer (Mary Phillips), who are later joined by the sardonic and manipulative British saxophone player, Jetta (Sheila Burns). (This group should not be confused with the real-life band The Misfits, led by Glenn Danzig.) Most episodes of the series involve a plot by the Misfits to sabotage and/or upstage Jem and the Holograms' latest glamorous escapade. This rivalry is encouraged and manipulated by their manager, the ruthless Eric Raymond. In the middle of the third season a new group, the Stingers, appear and shakes things up for both groups. In the final episode of the series, all three groups seemed to have declared a truce between them.

Discography

The Jem and the Holograms music catalogue was sold on several cassettes, mainly with the dolls. Each doll was sold with an audio cassette containing the following tracks, as well as an identical instrumental B-side:

KIMBER (1986)
- "JEM Theme" (extended version)
- "Only The Beginning"
- "Twilight In Paris"

AJA (1986)
- "JEM Theme" (extended version)
- "Like A Dream
- "She's Got The Power

SHANA (1986)
- "JEM Theme" (extended version)
- "Gettin' Down To Business"
- "Too Close For Comfort"

RIO (1986)
- "JEM Theme" (extended version)
- "Deception
- "I Got My Eye On You"

GLITTER N GOLD JEM/JERRICA (1987)
- "Glitter N Gold JEM theme" (doll version)
- "It All Depends On The Mood I'm In"
- "Love Is Here"

FLASH N SIZZLE JEM/JERRICA (1987)
- "JEM Theme"
- "Time Is Running Out"
- "Set Your Sails"

2nd Edition KIMBER (1987)
- "JEM Theme"
- "Can't Get My Love Together"
- "Love's Not Easy"

2nd Edition AJA (1987)
- "JEM Theme"
- "Something Is Missing In My Life"
- "Share A Little Bit Of Yourself" (Feat The Misfits)

2nd Edition SHANA (1987)
- "JEM Theme"
- "Broadway Magic"
- "It All Depends On The Mood I'm In"

RAYA (1987)
- "JEM Theme"
- "Love Unites Us"
- "There's A Melody Playin'"

DANSE (1987)
- "JEM Theme"
- "Runnin' Like The Wind"
- "Only Me And The Music"

VIDEO (1987)
- "JEM Theme"
- "She Makes An Impression"
- "Come On In (The Waters Fine)"

SYNERGY (1987)
- "JEM Theme"
- "Friend or Stranger
- "We Can Change It

GLITTER N GOLD RIO (1987)
- "Glitter N gold JEM theme" (doll version)
- "Puttin' It All Together
- "People Who Care"

The Misfit dolls also came with tapes.
PIZZAZZ (1986/1987)

Jem Theme
Outta My Way
Makin' Mischief

ROXY (1986/1987)

Jem Theme
Click Clash
Takin' It All

STORMER (1986/1987)

Jem Theme
Winning is Everything
Music is Magic

CLASH (1987)

Jem Theme
I Am A Giant
You Oughta See The View

JETTA (1987)

Jem Theme
Who Is She Anyway?
Designing Woman

JEM/JERRICA (1986), ROCK'N CURL JEM (1987), and the three STARLIGHT GIRLS (1987) did not come with cassettes.

Singles

Love Is Here - (included in the Video Madness playset of the same name)

"Jem Theme"
"Love Is Here"
"Can't Get My Love Together"

Show Me The Way - (included in the Video Madness playset of the same name)

"Jem Theme"
"Show Me The Way" (TV edit)
"People Who Care"

It's Workin' Out - (included in the Video Madness playset of the same name)

"Jem Theme"
"It's Workin' Out/It's Doing Me In" Jem and the Holograms/ The Misfits
"We Can Change It"

Welcome To The Jungle - (included in the Video Madness playset of the same name)

"Jem Theme"
"Welcome To The Jungle" - The Misfits
"Gimme, Gimme, Gimme" - The Misfits

Glitter N Gold - (This is the 2nd year mail-in offer. This would was good for any doll other than the Glitter'n Gold Collection)

"Glitter N Gold" (extended TV version)
"Back N Shape" (extended version)
"Jem Theme" (extended version)

Soundtracks

Truly Outrageous - (There is no official soundtrack, these are the songs from TO! also known as the first fifteen 7 min. segments of Super Sunday.)

"Jem Theme"
"Takin' It All" — The Misfits
"Outta My Way" — The Misfits
"Winning is Everything" — The Misfits
"Only the Beginning" — Jem and the Holograms
"Gettin' Down To Business" — Jem and the Holograms
"Music Is Magic" — Jem and the Holograms
"I Got My Eye On You" — Jem and the Holograms
"Click/Clash" — Jem and the Holograms/ The Misfits
"Like a Dream" — Jem and the Holograms
"Makin' Mischief" — The Misfits
"She's Got the Power" — Jem and the Holograms
"Twilight In Paris" — Jem and the Holograms
"Truly Outrageous" — Jem and the Holograms
"Too Close For Comfort"- Jem and the Holograms
"Deception" — Jem and the Holograms

Free Cassette Offer - This is the Cassette Tape that was an original mail-in offer, it was also distributed to stores and given out at purchase. The songs are taken from "Starbright-Part 1."

"Jem Theme" (extended version)
"Who Is He Kissing?" — Jem and the Holograms
"Jealousy" — Jem and the Holograms
"Universal Appeal" — The Misfits
"Jem Theme"

It should be noted that these are not actual Soundtracks but promotional cassettes obtained by purchasing Jem merchandise. No official Jem "Soundtrack" was ever released, although all but one of the songs released on cassette in any form were featured in the first season (up to and including Glitter and Gold). Love's Not Easy (included with the 2nd Edition Kimber doll) is the only one not to be featured in the first season, although it has been speculated that the producers intended to use it, but simply never did use it. Adding strength to the speculation is the fact that scripting for Jem episodes often included references to songs that were not eventually used or which were replaced by others before final production. [citation needed]
Dream Tour

"How You Play The Game" — Jem and the Holograms
"Doctor, Doctor" — Thompson Twins
"One Thing Leads to Another" — The Fixx
"Rock N Roll Forever" — Jem and the Holograms
"Crush on You" — The Jets
"The Kid is Hot Tonight" — Loverboy
"Walkin on Sunshine" — Katrina and the Waves
"Electric Avenue" — Eddy Grant
"Rosanna" — Toto
"Cool it Now" — New Edition
"Glitter N Gold" — Jem and the Holograms

Revival and current status of franchise

Almost 20 years after the Jem toy line was introduced to the U.S. market and 17 years after its demise, Hasbro has shown some legal activity in maintaining their trademarks and intellectual property, leading some fans to believe they may be considering reviving the line via the trademark renewal "for the purpose of selling dolls and doll clothes". However, this may just be standard practice, as if they had not renewed the trademarks they would have lost any future rights to their creation.
Two volumes comprising of one set containing the first and second seasons and a second set containing the first half of season three were released on DVD by Rhino. However, before they could release the third and final volume, Season Three, Part Two, the company lost the rights to the series. The rights are now believed to be reverted back to Sony (who absorbed the original producers (Sunbow Productions) and their library), who holds the decisions on any future release. Copies of the two previously released DVD volumes regularly sell for several times their original retail price as they are now considered "out of print", especially those that are still sealed in their packaging. It is highly likely that if and when Sony decides to re-release the series on DVD (or licenses it out again) that the entire series would be reissued and not simply the missing volume. Because of the cancellation of the final set, many bootleg copies of the remaining episodes have shown up on auction sites and on popular file sharing protocols.
In September 2004, Cartoon Network Australia bought the TV rights to Jem and aired the show for ten months on their classics network Boomerang.It returned for a couple more months in 2006 but then disappeared off the schedule in early 2007.
The indie synthpop band Freezepop's 2004 album, "Fancy Ultra-Fresh," includes a bonus multimedia track which is a remake of the Jem themesong. This themesong is a fad on YTMND.
An MSNBC commentator's ranking of the top five cartoon bands listed the series' Misfits as number four, decrying Jem's music as "namby-pamby songs" and lauding the edgier and more caustic tunes by the Misfits as "true rock 'n' roll".[1]
In the Family Guy episode Deep Throats, mayor Adam West is watching an episode of Jem, and says, "Jem, you are outrageous. Truly, truly, truly outrageous..."

Home Video releases

In 1986-1987, Family Home Entertainment released nine videos of the series featuring a selection of 23 episodes on VHS in the US. These videos are now long out of print and are a rare find. They are:

Jem: Truly Outrageous (Vol.1) - A special edition version of the 5-part Jem origin story

Jem: Last Resorts (Vol.2) - "Last Resorts", "World Hunger Shindig" and "Adventure In China"

Jem: The Music Awards (Vol.3) - "The Music Awards" (Parts 1 and 2) and "Rock Fashion Book"

Jem: Jem Jam (Vol.4) - "The Jem Jam" (Parts 1 and 2)

Jem: Hot Time In Hawaii (Vol.5) - "Hot Time In Hawaii" and "Island of Deception"

Jem: Glitter N' Gold (Vol.6) - "Glitter N' Gold" and "Broadway Magic"

Jem: Talent Search (Vol.7) - "The Talent Search" (Parts 1 and 2)

Jem: Culture Clash (Vol.8) - "Culture Clash" and "Intrigue at the Indy 500"

Jem: The Princess and the Singer (Vol.9) - "The Princess and the Singer" and "Scandal"

In 1999-2000, prior to their DVD releases, Rhino Home Video released two volumes of the series on VHS in the US. These videos are also now out of print.

Jem Volume 1: Passport to Rock (episodes "The World Hunger Shindig" and "Adventure In China")
Jem Volume 2: Fashion Fiasco (episodes "In Stiches" and "Culture Clash").

DVD releases

Jem was first released on DVD in the US in 2004 remastered and in 5.1 Audio. Since then Australia and France have also released JEM on DVD/Boxsets. The US boxsets are now out of print.
USA Audio: English 5.1 & 2.0 | Remastered | No Subtitles

Season 1 and 2 Complete — 26 episodes
Season 3, Part 1 — 19 episodes

Australia Audio: English 2.0 | Not Remastered | No Subtitles

Volume 1 — First 5 episodes
Volume 2 — Starbright Pt 1-3 & World Hunger Shindig
Volume 3 — Adventure In China, Last Resort & In Stitiches
Volume 4 — Music Awards Pts 1 & 2, Rock Fashion Book & Broadway Magic
Volume 5 — In Search of the Stolen Album, Hot Time In Hawaii & The Princess and the Singer (TBC)
Volume 6 — Island Of Deception, Old Meets New & Intrigue At The Indy 500 (TBC)
Volume 7 — The Jem Jam — Pt 1, The Jem Jam — Pt 2, Culture Clash & Glitter and Gold" (TBC)

Vol 5–7 were scheduled to be released on the 9th May 2007, However they've been put back to "To Be Confirmed".
France Audio: French 2.0 (Songs in English) | Not Remastered | No Subtitles

Volume 1 — 22 episodes
Volume 2 — 22 episodes — Comes with a bonus Jem Music Video DVD.
Volume 3 — ??

UK The UK company Metrodome released Jem: The Movie on October 2, 2006 (The movie is a compilation of season 1 episodes).
In 2005, Rhino Home Video lost the rights to distribute the Sunbow catalog in the U.S. before the final set, (Season 3, Part 2) of Jem DVDs could be released. Sony Wonder, a division of Sony Music Entertainment acquired the rights in May of that year, but did not release any titles. In the spring of 2007, Sony Music announced that Sony Wonder would be shut down in order to focus on its core music business. Sony Wonder was later revived by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, and as a result now has the distribution rights for the Sunbow catalog. However, as of August 2007, no future releases have been scheduled at this time.

ALF

SIXXCHICK69 — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 15:44:08 CDT

ALF is a 30-minute television sitcom that originally ran on NBC from 1986 to 1990.

Premise

The title character is Gordon Shumway, an alien nicknamed A.L.F. (Alien Life Form). He was born on October 28, 1756 (In Episode 7 "Help Me Rhonda" Alf mentions his birthday is in August) on the Lower East side of the planet Melmac. The planet Melmac was located six parsecs past the Hydra-Centaurus Supercluster and had a green sky, blue grass and a purple sun. The commonly-used currency is "Foam".
ALF's body is covered with orange fur. He has a rippled snout, facial moles, eight stomachs, and he likes to eat cats (tabbies have been rumored as a favorite, but his preferred snack has not been definitively stated). He attended high school for 122 years and was captain of a Bouillabaisseball team (which is played on ice using shellfish as a ball).
In the pilot episode, ALF follows an amateur radio signal and crash-lands into the garage of the Tanners. The Tanners are a suburban middle class family consisting of the social worker Willie (Max Wright), his wife Kate (Anne Schedeen), their children Lynn (Andrea Elson) and Brian (Benji Gregory Hertzberg), and the cat Lucky.
Unsure what to do, the Tanners take ALF into their home and hide him from the Alien Task Force (a part of the U.S. military) and their nosy neighbors (the Ochmaneks), until he can repair his spacecraft. He generally hid in the kitchen. It was eventually revealed that Melmac exploded as a result of a nuclear war, and that Shumway was not only homeless, but also, to the best of his knowledge, the last survivor of both his civilization and his species. He became a permanent member of the family, although his culture shock, survivor guilt, general boredom, despair, and loneliness frequently caused difficulty for the Tanners.
While most of the science fiction of ALF was played for comedic value, there were a few references to actual topics in space exploration. For example, ALF's using a radio signal as a beacon in the pilot episode. In the episode "Weird Science", ALF told Brian, who was building a model of the solar system for school, that there were two planets beyond Pluto called "Alvin" and "Dave". However, after a call was made to an astronomical organization, Willie explained that "Dave" could have been the planetoid Chiron, or "Object Kowal", after its discoverer.
The original series spans over four seasons and 102 episodes (each episode's name is also the name of a song relevant to the episode's plot), in which Alf learns about Earth culture and makes new friends both within the Tanner family and without, including Willie's brother Neal, Kate's mother Dorothy (with whom Alf has a love-hate relationship — he refers to her as the Wicked Witch of the West, a reference to the Wizard of Oz), her husband Whizzer, the Ochmoneks' nephew Jake, a psychiatrist named Larry, and a blind woman named Jody (who never quite figures out that Alf isn't human, though she is aware through touch that he is short and very hairy). Changes pass within the Tanner household over the course of the series, including the birth of a new child, Eric, Alf's move from his initial quarters in the laundry room to a converted attic "apartment", and the death of Lucky the cat; in the final instance, Alf finds that, despite his occasional attempts to catch Lucky with the intention of making the cat a meal, he has come to love and respect the family pet too much to do anything untoward with Lucky's remains.
In the series finale, Alf is about to be rescued by other survivors of his home planet, but is instead captured by the American military, and the viewer is left to ponder Alf's ultimate fate. (This was not supposed to be the finale, as the original airing ended on a "To Be Continued" note. At the time, the show was in limbo as to whether it would get a fifth season. The producers supposedly had a verbal agreement with NBC to get at least one more episode to resolve the cliffhanger. NBC never made good on the deal, and no more episodes were created.)

Cast

Max Wright, Anne Schedeen, Benji Gregory, & Andrea Elson with Alf from the Alf Season 1 & Season 2 title sequence.

Max Wright - Willie Tanner
Anne Schedeen - Kate Tanner
Andrea Elson - Lynn Tanner
Benji Gregory - Brian Tanner
John LaMotta - Trevor Ochmanek
Liz Sheridan - Raquel Ochmanek
Josh Blake - Jake Ochmanek (seasons 2-4)
Jim J. Bullock - Neal Tanner (season 4)
Lucky the Cat - himself
Lisa Buckley - Alf assistant/puppeteer

Bob Fappiano - Alf assistant/puppeteer

Michu Meszaros was the actor within the Alf costume. Paul Fusco operated the Alf puppet (assisted by puppeteers Lisa Buckley and Bob Fappiano), supplied Alf's voice and co-produced the series with Tom Patchett. Patchett also co-created, wrote, and directed the series.
Notable Guest Starring Cast

Andrea Covell - Jody
Bill Daily - Dr. Larry Dykstra
Anne Meara - Dorothy Halligan Deaver
Paul Dooley - Whizzer Deaver

Production

Paul Fusco is notoriously secretive about his character. During the show's production, Fusco refused to acknowledge that ALF was anything other than an alien. All involved with the production were cautioned not to give away any of ALF's secrets.
Cast interviews since the show ended have revealed a few details about making the series: to make room for the puppeteers, the entire set was built on a raised platform with dozens of trapdoors in the floor. The trapdoors had to be reset multiple times, sometimes during a single scene, forcing them to shoot each episode over the course of several hours and without a studio audience.
Fusco was the primary puppeteer, using one of his hands to control ALF's mouth while the other hand was left to control one of the puppet's arms. Also, during tapings, Paul would wear a "halo" which was used to record his voice for the ALF character. A second puppeteer, Lisa Buckley, accompanied Paul under the stage and wore ALF's other hand (the hands were basically furry gloves) to control it. Together, with a third person who controlled ALF's facial and ear movements via an RC controller offstage, they worked in concert to make ALF's movements fluid and believable. All of this made for a painstaking process and there were countless mistakes and retakes. Of course none of them made it into the final cut.
Also, to avoid unnecessary wear-and-tear on the principal ALF puppet, the performers rehearsed with a battered, early version of ALF. They nicknamed him "Ralph." Often during rehearsals, Mr. Fusco would just substitute his hand for the puppet.
In an interview on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Tina Fey said that her biggest frustration as producer of NBC's 75th anniversary special was dealing with ALF's "people." Fey said Fusco would only allow ALF to appear on the show if the puppeteers were completely hidden from everyone else, even the studio audience. After his cameo (as an audience member), ALF disappeared through a hole in the riser, was stuffed into a case and immediately hustled out of the building.
While a puppet was usually used for ALF, there were some shots of the tiny alien running or walking around. This was accomplished by dwarf actor Michu Meszaros wearing an ALF costume. (This can be seen in one of the series' intros, which concludes with the Tanner family getting their picture taken; ALF, played by Michu, walks over to be part of the photo.)
The series was independently produced by Alien Productions, a dummy company owned by the same production consortium that produced The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd, The Slap Maxwell Story, and Buffalo Bill. The series was syndicated by Warner Bros. Television, however WBTV does not own the video rights--those rights are held by Lions Gate Home Entertainment under license from Alien Productions.

Other transmissions

After the series run in the United States, it went on to even greater success in reruns in many European countries. The series was so popular in Germany in fact that the made-for-TV Film Project ALF was released there theatrically under the name Alf - Der Film (Alf - The Movie) and was panned by critics and fans particularly for the Tanners' absence. It continued where the show left off as ALF was captured by the U.S. Army and is imprisoned in a desert base similar to Area 51.

Argentina, ALF is being currently transmitted on Nick @ Nite.
Australia, ALF was shown on the Seven Network.
Austria, ALF was shown on ORF1.
Brazil, ALF is being currently transmitted on Nick @ Nite. ALF was also shown on SBT and in early 90's on TV Globo.
Belgium, ALF was shown on Kanaal 2
Bulgaria, ALF was shown on Kanal 1 , bTV and GTV .
Canada, ALF was shown on Family Channel.
Chile, ALF is being transmitted on Nick @ Nite, TVN and RedTV
Costa Rica, shown on Channel 7. The show starts Saturdays at 12:30 p.m. (local time), and has gained an immense popularity, due to its time slot.
Czech Republic, ALF was shown on ČT1.
Finland, ALF was shown on MTV, Kolmoskanava and MTV3.
France, ALF was shown on France 2, France 5 and Sci-Fi.
Germany, ALF was first shown from January 5 1988 to June 28 1991 on ZDF. 100 of 102 episodes were translated into German - Tonight, Tonight was skipped, since Johnny Carson is not known in Germany. Reruns were shown on Sat.1, Kabel 1, Junior, Pro 7, RTL II and Premiere (Premiere is a Pay-TV-Network, but the ALF-Episodes were shown for free).
Guatemala, ALF is transmitted on Nick @ Nite and also on Channel 13 of national television weekdays at 9 p.m. (local time).
India, ALF was shown on POGO, a children's entertainment channel belonging to the ZEE - Turner Network.
Indonesia, ALF was shown on TVRI, the national TV network.
Ireland, ALF was shown on Radio Telifís Éireann, the national TV network.
Israel, ALF was shown on the IBA1 channel, as a part of the Arab programming.
Italy, ALF was run on RAI and Telemontecarlo (TMC, now LA7)
Japan, ALF was run on NHK of Japan.
Malaysia, ALF was run on TV3 on Saturday Mornings from 2004.
Mexico, ALF was shown on the Mexican channel Imevisión (now called Azteca Siete), and is being currently transmitted on Nick @ Nite.
The Netherlands, ALF Originally aired on Dutch public television with TROS. It was rerun recently by a commercial cable station in a children's television time slot.
New Zealand, ALF was shown on TVNZ's TV2.
Norway, ALF was shown on NRK. Reruns were later aired on TV3.
Paraguay, ALF is being currently transmitted on Nick @ Nite.
Peru, ALF is being transmitted in Peru by Frecuencia Latina (channel 2). This channel first displayed ALF in 1987. In the year 2006 the series has been emitted Monday through Friday at 02:00 p.m. (local time), and is currently transmitted on Nick @ Nite.
Philippines, ALF was shown on RPN 9 and on GMA Network.
Poland, ALF was shown on TVP1, Polsat, RTL7 and TVN Siedem.
Portugal, ALF was shown on Canal1 (former RTP1) and later on Sic Comédia.
Russia, ALF was shown on STS, 1ch, Domashniy-channel and Vostochniy Express-channel.
Slovakia, ALF was shown on TV Markiza.
South Africa, ALF was shown on TV1
Spain, ALF was shown on TVE and TVE2.
Sweden, ALF aired on SVT.And in 2006 on TV4 Komedi
Trinidad and Tobago, ALF was aired on Trinidad and Tobago Television channels 2 and 13 during the 1980s and early 1990s.
Ukraine, ALF was run on ICTV in Ukrainian translation. There have been 5 reruns since 1997. On the March 8, 2000 ICTV launched the ALF Marathon, the series were shown all the day long with breaks only for the news blocks. The series returned on March 12, 2007 on ICTV with a great success. It had such success mainly because of very good translation.
United Kingdom, ALF was aired on ITV and Sky One (1990).
Uruguay, ALF was shown on Channel 4 "Montecarlo Television". It was launched in June 17th 1987, and was aired each Wednesday night.
Venezuela, ALF was shown on RCTV. This channel displayed ALF in 1987.
Yugoslavia, ALF was shown on RTB. In the first episode, Belgrade and Yugoslavia are mentioned. Currently aired daily on Fox TV at 19:30 CET
Turkey, ALF was shown first on TRT 1 during early 1980s and late 1990s. It was aired on a now-defunct channel for a while on late 1990s and now it is showing on RetroMax, a channel of Digiturk (Turkish Satellite television)
Others, On February 13, 2006 Nickelodeon started transmitting ALF through Nick @ Nite to all Latin American countries.

Spinoffs

Animated Series

To capitalize on the success of the series, a spinoff animated series arose and aired on Saturday mornings on NBC. Alf: The Animated Series, (AKA Alf on Melmac) set on ALF's home planet of Melmac, ran from 1987 to 1988 and was produced by DIC Entertainment. The series was a prequel series, set on Melmac before the planet exploded. The show focused on ALF, his family, his friends, and girlfriend Rhonda and their various exploits. Each episode was bookended by a live-action sequence involving ALF talking to the television viewers, setting up the episode.
When the cartoon entered its second season, it was paired in a one-hour block with its own spin-off AlfTales, which took Gordon and the cast of characters from season one and recast them as characters from assorted classic (Earthly) fairy tales.
Select episodes of the first season of the cartoon are included as a special feature on the ALF: Season 2 DVD.

Marvel Comics

Cover to Marvel Comics' ALF Annual #1.

An ALF comic book was published by Star Comics (and eventually Marvel Comics) beginning in 1987 and ran for four years, 50 issues, and nearly a dozen specials.
The comic loosely followed the continuity of the television show (though it featured alternate takes on certain episodes, like the birth of Eric Tanner) and featured numerous parodies of Marvel Comic characters and other pop culture parodies in the form of "Melmac Flashbacks". Towards the end of the series, when the cancellation of the series was imminent, the series took a highly critical position towards Marvel Comics and then Marvel Editor-In-Chief Tom DeFalco.

TV Movie

In 1996 a 90-minute television movie, named Project ALF, was aired on ABC. This movie picked up six years after the events of the TV series with ALF in government custody and focuses on a scientist and military police officer who break ALF out of government custody.
It did not feature any of the Tanner family from the original series, but they were briefly referenced in the movie.

Trivia

At the time that the original TV series was popular, some ALF-related merchandise was sold, including a 1988 calendar with Melmac's planetary holidays, such as Shout at a Shrub Day, prominently marked.

In 1987, Dutch remixer and producer Ben Liebrand made a mix with samples from one of the ALF-shows. The song was called Stuck on Earth. The mix had a lot of impact at the TV Studio: "Next step was getting permission to release the mix. For this, all vocal lines, and the spoken texts were traced back to the episodes they came from, and the authors who had written them. New record contracts needed to be created for each and everyone of the authors." [citation needed]

There is an obscure Sega Master System video game based on ALF. It is an adventure game in which Alf must get pieces to repair his spaceship. There was also a computer game designed for the Commodore 64 as well as other computers.

The animated version of Alf also made an appearance in the drug prevention video Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue.

ALF has also appeared in one of the numerous long-distance dialing plan commercials on American television, called 10-10-220.

ALF has made many appearances on Hollywood Squares.

Alf also appeared as a guest on The Love Boat: The Next Wave.

Alf has appeared on several Simpsons episodes. In one cartoon Alf has a cameo in a police lineup of Illegal Aliens. {Others in the lineup include Gort from The Day the Earth Stood Still; Chewbacca from Star Wars; and Marvin the Martian from Warner Brothers cartoons.} He also appears "in pog form" as Milhouse van Houten trades Bart Simpson's soul for a rare Alf pog in the episode Bart Sells His Soul. He was also a special guest at Springfield's "Bi-Mon Sci-Fi-Con" alongside Mark Hamill. Alf also appears on many episodes on the cover of Homer's TV Guide (prominently on flashbacks that happened in the 80's, and on old issues of the TV Guide stored in the Simpson's basement).

In the 1996 Made-for-TV movie, ALF states an intense dislike for the Fox Television Network.

In the movie teaser, Alf has become so adept at playing poker with his guards since his capture that he wins enough possessions to fill an aircraft hanger.

Like many shows of its day, ALF also had a trading card series by Topps. Most featured stills from various episodes, but a few cards depicted baseball players complete with bogus stats like "Splats." The yellow bordered first series was released in 1987 with a red bordered second series released in 1988.

ALF appeared (in parody) in an episode of Family Guy as a recovering drug addict in a flashback special. Peter also thought Brian's costume was Alf.

ALF appeared briefly on Chappelle's Show as a ghost figure, but the puppet design was rushed.

Alf has been referenced numerous times on Adult Swim's series "Stroker and Hoop".

In an episode of Family Guy, Peter has a dream where he is in a house that is spinning in a tornado (referencing to the Wizard of Oz), where ALF passes and waves at Peter in a rocking chair.

Jerry Stahl, writer for episodes of ALF, was portrayed by Ben Stiller (Dorothy Halligan/Anne Meara's real life son) in the autobiographical movie Permanent Midnight, details Stahl's rise to fame and his addiction to heroin. In the movie ALF is portrayed as "Mr. Chompers"

At the time the show ALF was popular in Germany, the roadside signs for the Moselle River town of "Alf" were frequently stolen by souvenir hunters.

In the "Weird Al" Yankovic song "eBay" (from Poodle Hat), he mentions buying an ALF alarm clock.

ALF is referenced in an episode of Stargate SG-1 entitled "SIGHT UNSEEN" (Season 6: Episode 13). In the episode, an alien device causes people to see large, insect-like creatures which exist around us, only in a parallel dimension. The episode ends with Col. Jack O’Neill (Richard Dean Anderson) convincing a cynical Gulf War vet called Vernon Sharpe that the creatures he has been seeing are aliens -- which is, in fact, a ruse. As the final scene comes to a close, the following exchange takes place:
- Vernon: So, what planet are they from?
- O’Neill: Who?
- Vernon: The aliens.
- O’Neill: Oh. A place called Melmac.
- Vernon: Isn’t that where ALF is from?
- O’Neill: Who?
- Vernon: ALF, you know, on TV, the puppet.
- O’Neill: Never saw it.
- Vernon: No kidding? (Fade to black.)

The joke therein is a reference to the fact that Anderson's previous show, MacGyver, aired opposite of ALF during most if its run.

The explanation for adding a baby in the series was that Anne Schedeen was pregnant and was expecting a child at the time.

Each episode title is named after a piece of music.

In an episode of the internet video series "Tourette's Guy" an episode from season 1 is on Danny's TV. [1]

Spanish dubbed by Carlos Segundo the same actor who voice Piccolo Jr and Woody [2]

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