I've found it to be highly entertaining.
It entails the shooting and aftermath of the film "Whatever Happened To Baby Jane?".
There is much fun to be had here.
Aside from Susan Sarandon, who is doing a great star-turn, and Jessica Lange, doing likewise,
they have an actor portraying Victor Buono, who had a major supporting role in "Baby Jane".
His name is Domenic Burgess.
I had never heard of him.
Sarandon, as Bette Davis, objects to the casting of Buono, because he is a flaming homosexual
And that's how Burgess plays it.
To quote Seinfeld, not that there is anything wrong with that.
However, I worked with Victor Buono three times.
Twice on "The Odd Couple" TV series, and once on a pilot I produced with Rita Moreno.
He was brilliant and never mincing on any of these occasions.
I had no clue about his personal lifestyle when I was around him, and always found him to be supportive.
He was always making suggestions to improve the writing, and they always did.
It was like having another very talented writer around to draw from.
I went to Wikipedia to see what I could learn about this, and it said that he lived a totally open
homosexual lifestyle.
So okay. I believe it.
But I have a feeling that he never flounced it, or minced it in public, particularly in 1962.
A far less tolerant time.
Perhaps it wasn't fair to portray him this way.
I'm just sayin'.....
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My books, "Show Runner" and it's sequel, "Show Runner Two", can be found at the Amazon Kindle Store.
Along with the newer ones, "The Man Is Dead", and "Report Cards".
They are all compilations of blog entries that have since been removed from the blog.
So this is the only way you can find them.
You can search by typing in my name, Cindy Williams, Laverne and Shirley, The Odd Couple, or Happy Days.
Check them out.
You don't need a Kindle machine to download them.
Just get the free app from Kindle, and they can be downloaded to an IPhone, IPad, or Blackberry.
The paperbacks, "Mark Rothman's Essays" and my new novel, "I'm Not Garbo" are not e-books.
But they are available for people without Kindle.
I have many readings and signings lined up for those, and the thing about Kindle is you can't sign one.
If you'd like one of the paperbacks, personally autographed, contact me at macchus999@comcast.net
And now, we've got my reading of my "Laverne and Shirley Movie" screenplay on YouTube.
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Posts
Being of sixty-plus years, I learned long ago that film biographies are often less than reliable in the portrayals of the people involved.
ReplyDeleteEspecially when those people are deceased, and therefore not capable of answering back legally.
From what I've read about Bette Davis, the last reason that she would have objected to the hiring of anyone would have been homosexuality, flaming or otherwise.
From the little I know about Victor Buono ... well, there it is - we don't know all that much about him.
No one has written a biography of him, and all who speak or write about the man are in the same tone as your reminiscence: he was well-liked and respected personally, and gave "value for money" on the set.
And that's all that should matter, isn't it?
i believe they are taking dramatic license to new heights for this mini-series, not that there's anything wrong with that. it's still a barrel of fun.
ReplyDeletemy only issue is i think sarandon sucks. she isn't giving me a glimmer of davis whereas lange, who looks nothing like joan, is deserving 2 emmys for this portrayal.
Just got around to watching the latest episode ...
ReplyDeleteOf course, the writers had to know that Victor Buono was also nominated for an Oscar For BABY JANE that year.
I wonder why they neglected to mention that ...
... unless it's a deleted scene that will wind up in the DVD down the line ...
I'm not gay, not that there would be anything wrong with that if I were, but now that I think of it, not a whole lot of the men that I know or have known, who are gay are overtly effeminate. Mincing, that is.
ReplyDeleteDear Mr. Rothman, I'm researching actor Victor Buono and wondered if you have more anecdotes to share about him from the times you've worked with him that you haven't already on this blog? I hope my message reaches you. All the best, Larissa Manderbach
ReplyDelete