Alan Rickman Guestbook

(January 1 - January 31, 2000)

Guestbook Archives

Current Guestbook

Alan Rickman Home page

Start reading at bottom of page.

Looking through the pics on the various pages I realized that, although I am partial to facial hair, I like AR best clean-shaven (although the Hans goatee thing is nice.) The Jamie moustache is a bit Gene Shalitish. I think it is because the really interesting upper lip tends to get lost if obscured by hair. You can't watch it curl as well. Of course in GQ he was a bit too hairless. His eyes had that peevish look of a man who sat too long under a hair dryer. Maybe it's because I like myself best without facial hair. Maybe after a week of snow blindness from two feet of snow in the deep South, along with three kids suffering badly from cabin fever and a boss about to fire me if I can't get to work on time tomorrow, my brain is just slightly askew!
susan
USA - Monday, January 31, 2000 at 23:50:06 (PST)

Heather, I only received one message from you today (dated the 24th!). Please resend any others to Suz@mail.usa.com, until I figure out what's going on with my mail.

If anybody else is having problems e-mailing me, please use the above address also.

Suzanne <SuzanneK@bigfoot.comfoo>
Hallettsville, TX USA - Monday, January 31, 2000 at 21:55:45 (PST)

Suzanne, have you gotten any of the e-mails I sent you today??? I had one from the other day come back as undeliverable. Sorry to leave this message here.
Heather <arbgfan@yahoo.comfoo>
Atascadero, CA USA - Monday, January 31, 2000 at 20:32:52 (PST)

Alan Rickman is a great and handsome actor. I first took notice of him in DIE HARD. thanks for the website
S. Bumiller <Black34Bop@aol.com >
- Monday, January 31, 2000 at 20:01:57 (PST)

Just came across this course description in the Winter Term catalog for the Cambridge Center for Adult Education: Amazing and Abiding Grace: Images of Aging in Literature and Film "From Sophocles to Yeats, from Shakespeare to Albee, from Wild Strawberries to Winter's Guest (sic), there is an increasingly rich body of literature and film whose central focus is the process of aging, its losses and its consolations...We'll celebrate, along with these great writers and directors, the magic and power, the knowledge and self-transcendence that can come with a deeper understanding and more open acceptance of one's elderhood."
Melissa
Cambridge, MA USA - Monday, January 31, 2000 at 19:49:15 (PST)

Yes, re: John Thaw... I love watching him! "Goodnight, Mr. Tom" was on PBS and it was a precious program. Anybody wants to write me personally about him, please feel free!
Maxine <maxinerose@prodigy.netfoo>
Greeley, CO USA - Monday, January 31, 2000 at 17:30:52 (PST)

The February Rickmanista is wonderful (as usual), Fausta.
And thank you, BTW! :-)
Suzanne <SuzanneK@bigfoot.comfoo>
Hallettsville, TX USA - Monday, January 31, 2000 at 14:40:04 (PST)

Correction-that's the 2nd of February at 5:40pm EST for TMD.

Sandy (and it's only Monday, SIGH...)
Tewksbury, MA USA - Monday, January 31, 2000 at 14:34:11 (PST)

Isabel, I heard something about it being played on Cinemax, but I'm not exactly sure where/when (or if my brain has decided to play tricks on me or not). And for those of you who have STARZ, Truly, Madly, Deeply will be on Wednesday, February 3rd around 5pm EST or thereabouts.

Sandy
Tewksbury, MA USA - Monday, January 31, 2000 at 14:13:40 (PST)

Hi. I was just wondering if anyone knew whether Dark Harbor will be coming to video in the US anytime soon? I heard a rumor about it being broadcast on a cable station or something.
Isabel
Boston, MA USA - Monday, January 31, 2000 at 11:10:25 (PST)

LynnP - John Thaw is one of my favorites as well. A number of episodes of the Kavanagh series have been shown on PBS here in Atlanta at least (you might check with your local public broadcasting station) - and you can also purchase copies through Amazon.com (as well as the Wireless and Signals catalogs, if you get those). Thaw also recently did a lovely movie which was shown here (on PBS I think - might have been A&E) called "Goodbye, Mr. Tom", which is also available for sale or rental. And, if you have access to the Jeremy Brett Sherlock Holmes series, Thaw is featured in "The Sign of Four" (with a wooden leg, no less!). Good luck!
NancyC <Nancy.Currier@agg.comfoo>
Atlanta, GA USA - Monday, January 31, 2000 at 10:20:13 (PST)

Off topic, but I know I can count on this bunch:

I'm a big John Thaw fan (I seem to have a thing for RADA-trained, rags-to-riches type actors) and I've had very little luck in finding more of his film work than Inspector Morse series videos and AYIP. As far as I know, none of his more recent work (The Plastic Man, Kavanagh QC) have aired here in the US; if it has, it must have been on cable, which I don't have. Any suggestions?
LynnP
York, PA USA - Monday, January 31, 2000 at 09:14:13 (PST)

Photos now should be showing on the Feb Monthly Rick. I also posted A-m's info on Barchester.
My thanks to all for your patience, and especially to Ann-marie.
Fausta
USA - Monday, January 31, 2000 at 07:05:04 (PST)

Thank you, Ann-Marie for the information on Barchester Chronicles! I've been looking for months for a current retailer (the people I got mine from don't carry it any more).
Will go back to proverbial drawing board for the pics on the Feb Rickmanista. My apologies to all!
Fausta <emma-mail@mailexcite.comfoo>
USA - Monday, January 31, 2000 at 05:36:16 (PST)

Thank you, Mary Anne. That's a great idea. If *it* should really happen, I'll let you all know immediately.
Thanks for the correction, Suz. Love, Christine
Christine <christine.zang@t-online.defoo>
Germany - Monday, January 31, 2000 at 04:17:56 (PST)

Fausta, in answer to your question in the wonderful February Rickmanista Review regarding "Barchester Chronicles" availability, I believe that it's only currently available in PAL. I finally ordered it from Blackstar and had it converted. It's about $33.00 with free shipping. I found a really good conversion service that's both reasonably priced and and fast. If anyone wants their info just email me.
A-m <ann-marie.gorman@worldnet.att.netfoo>
LI, NY USA - Sunday, January 30, 2000 at 21:23:10 (PST)

I'm having the same problem, Mary Anne. Speaking of pics, thanks, Claire- the "Half is better than none" pic is working now.
Neva
USA - Sunday, January 30, 2000 at 20:50:28 (PST)

Fausta--I've tried loading the February Monthly and a lot of the pictures aren't coming through. The first one is just fine--oooooooo, how fine it is! *grin*--but a lot of the rest never load. Thinking it might be my browser, I loaded the page in both IE and Netscape, with similar results. Tried refreshing the page--no good. I just get the little boxes with the "x" in them indicating that the pic hasn't loaded properly. Is anyone else having this problem?

Mary Anne
USA - Sunday, January 30, 2000 at 20:19:36 (PST)

While checking out some new search engines (I get paid for doing that, can you believe it?) I found an interesting site:Mirrorpix. Do a search on AR's name and some pics (for sale) come up. A number of them were new to me and might be new to others too. Anyway if you're interested, there it is.
Magda
Canada - Sunday, January 30, 2000 at 16:29:19 (PST)

"And now for something completely different..." while not the most original quote for the theatre's book at least clues us in that AR is a Monty Python fan. Somehow not surprising, really...
Brandeis <Brandeis1@Hotmail.comfoo>
Dallas, TX USA - Sunday, January 30, 2000 at 15:25:32 (PST)

LOL, Mary Anne! Now, if only TNT would keep on showing it...;)
Neva
USA - Sunday, January 30, 2000 at 12:28:06 (PST)

P.S. Just finished watching Die Hard (yes, AGAIN!) courtesy of TNT. Hmmmm, maybe it isn't the cold that's making me shiver!

Mary Anne--fighting off a serious case of the Gruber-quivers . . . Acchhh!
- Sunday, January 30, 2000 at 12:16:27 (PST)

Go, Christine! Hoping for the best on this one. And why not ask Rickman to tell what he wishes interviewers would ask him about? Since he's known to sometimes be a "difficult" interview, perhaps this approach would be a bit different.

Barbara in Gold Coast--the "Winter Storm 2000" here turned out to be a dud. Some snow, but it quickly melted off and all we had to deal with was cold and rain. Since you seem to need it, I'll send some of the cool your way; send us some warmth in return! 8-)

Mary Anne
Still Cold as a Penguin's Toes, AL USA - Sunday, January 30, 2000 at 12:13:04 (PST)

Claire,

I loved the P.L. O'Hara pic (I've got to see that movie sometime!). However, I could not load the "Half is better than none!"

On a side note, I read a short blurb that Therese Raquin was going to be released as a cinematic production in late 2000 with Kate Winslet as one of the main characters. Here's the URL-

http://www.cinematter.com/ca.html

It should be under the "Late 2000" coming attractions.
Neva
USA - Sunday, January 30, 2000 at 12:02:39 (PST)

A note of explanation (and some shameless self-promotion), while my main page is still at tripod.com, the February Monthly is at Geocities.com so I could have even more free space. Thanks!
Fausta
USA - Sunday, January 30, 2000 at 08:31:38 (PST)

Please visit the February Monthly Rickmanista, now on line!

And, btw, the only thing the pines would whisper to me at sunrise would be someting in the likes of "go back to sleep, go back to sleep"
Fausta <emma-mail@mailexcite.comfoo>
USA - Sunday, January 30, 2000 at 07:19:51 (PST)

Correction made.
And close quote, actually.
Suz (D.o.C., who slept in today)

Sorry. I had forgot a backslash in the html code.
Once more: I asked AR for an interview for my fanzine TerryFic. Chances are slim, but in case he agrees to do it, I'd love to know if there are any questions you would like me to ask him. Please email me your questions for Alan. Thank you :-)
A recent interview with a famous tap dancer turned out very well. I will be published in the April issue.
Christine <Christine.zang@t-online.defoo>
Germany - Sunday, January 30, 2000 at 05:08:14 (PST)

Hi everyone! It was wonderful to see the DOGMA "trailer" on the Nine network tonight. They were playing it at nearly every comercial break! It starts Feb 3 here in Qld. It won't be long before GQ is here, I hope! I also hope that the snow storms over where some of you are, have not caused you any trouble. I could do with some snow right now as it is so hot and humid here, Mary Anne! Take care!
barbara
Gold Coast, Qld. Australia - Sunday, January 30, 2000 at 04:26:55 (PST)

Gilda, AR's quote is "And now for something completely different". The sheep quote is from Ardal O'Hanlon, who may or may not be known across the pond. He played Father Dougal in the Irish sit-com "Father Ted" and has a new series "Thermoman" starting this week.
Mandy
London, UK - Sunday, January 30, 2000 at 03:40:24 (PST)

georgiana--we'd all love it if you'd take a picture of the "north of the border" group and post it when you get back! have an enjoyable, safe trip! (and try to get some sleep, too!)
Pam
Chicago, IL USA - Sunday, January 30, 2000 at 00:55:04 (PST)

Oooooooh, Renie!! That RedRickman background!!!! That's really riveting!!!
A-m
LI, NY USA - Saturday, January 29, 2000 at 19:17:46 (PST)

Just FYI--the AR pics (only those, however) from that Premiere article have been up on the behind galaxy quest page here: http://members.tripod.com/DailyTelegiraffe/rickmanbehindgalaxyquest.html

for some time.
(It seems many of you aren't aware oft he welcome page here.
And Today's Special might surprise you as well., --Renie (stung, but I'll live ;-) - Saturday, January 29, 2000 at 14:51:04 (PST)

Yes, Gail, a rather burnished dark blonde. Same color he sports in the Conan interview, if you'd look at the video tape I sent you!
Georgiana (been getting up at 6:30 for business meeting, Magda--that's 3:30 by my internal Seattle clock, feels like it, and the pines shall have to whistle without me...) <gellis@drizzle.comfoo>
Le Chateau Frontenac, Quebec - Saturday, January 29, 2000 at 13:23:51 (PST)

Hmmm. Well, okay, Georgiana, it sounds like you've done that tourist thing acceptably. (How about listening for the whispering wind singing through the pines as the early morning dawn rises in glowing splendour over the heart of the old city? That's always a crowd pleaser.) Pop quizzes will be given to departing tourists at Customs so have your souvenir postcards in order.
Magda
Canada - Saturday, January 29, 2000 at 05:17:40 (PST)

I've just had a look at Georgiana's GQ premier pics. Is it my imagination, or does AR look a bit carrot-top in them? Is that for the hairdresser movie?
Gail <Who absolutely dotes on Quebec City toofoo>
Toronto, Canada - Friday, January 28, 2000 at 21:25:04 (PST)

Yes, Magda. I was mesmerized by the gentle snow falling against leaded windows this morning looking out on the ferry navigating the ice floes on the St. Lawrence River. I gaped at the Plains of Abraham and traversed every charming street above and below. I have gawked at the sky-high igloo (for Carnival!) and the ice sculptures fronting every shop. I dined in a church they say has been 'secularized' while listening to selections from Lloyd Weber to Verdi. So, okay, I skipped the dogsledding to answer my e-mail and check out Claire's page. It is one of the most charming places I've ever been.
Georgiana (who enjoys all sorts of beauty)
Chateau Frontenac, Quebec - Friday, January 28, 2000 at 19:30:08 (PST)

HAPPY Belated BIRTHDAY, Georgiana and Nancy R.! Mine is the 29th! BTW, we are expecting snow this weekend! It ALWAYS snows on my birthday!!!! It's one of those things you can count on. Unfortunately.:(
Valerie
Richmond, In USA - Friday, January 28, 2000 at 16:59:47 (PST)

Georgiana, you are in the most beautiful hotel in one of the most beautiful cities on the continent and you are looking at your own pics. Look out the window! Look at the hills! Look at the town! Bienvenue a Canada and all that.
Magda
Canada - Friday, January 28, 2000 at 15:16:45 (PST)

Yes, thank you, Magda, for the article and pics, and thanks to Claire for pointing out Georgiana's GQ premiere pics to me! Very nice end to a Friday...:)
Neva (who got more cold rain than snow or ice)
USA - Friday, January 28, 2000 at 15:10:37 (PST)

Thanks, Magda! It's nice to have something a little on the lighthearted side after a very long week.

Sandy
Tewksbury, MA USA - Friday, January 28, 2000 at 14:51:57 (PST)

May I say what amazing orientation it is sitting in Quebec looking at lovely pictures I scanned in Seattle which Claire has up on a server in London? Have been hanging out in this space for a year now, and am very pleased to be a part of this far-flung family. Looking forward to doing "Galaxy Quest" with the TARTS on Monday. Love to you all.
Georgiana (dressing for dinner...)
Chateau Frontenac, Quebec City - Friday, January 28, 2000 at 14:38:00 (PST)

Okay, let's put Lasch aside for the weekend; trust me, he's not a Friday night kinda guy. Last month's Premiere magazine had a B&W photo spread and article and behind-the-scenes look at GQ. It's finally on line at: Surely You Quest.

There are some AR pics and one where Sigourny Weaver is flashing her own personal, uh, special effects at AR. Enjoy.
Magda
Canada - Friday, January 28, 2000 at 13:33:17 (PST)

Service Announcement
Server that holds the CPP pictures is down at the moment - try again in an hour so so. It's NOT your computers!

Claire
- Friday, January 28, 2000 at 10:59:56 (PST)

Sure. From Amazon.com: Culture of Narcissism : American Life in an Age of Diminishing Expectations by Christopher Lasch. Price: $11.16 Paperback Revised edition (May 1991) W W Norton & Co; ISBN: 0393307387
Sue Zen
El Lay, CA USA - Friday, January 28, 2000 at 09:57:49 (PST)

There is definitely something to be said for black T's... Thanks for getting them up so speedily, Claire!
Georgiana <gellis@drizzle.comfoo>
Le Chateau Frontenac, Quebec - Friday, January 28, 2000 at 09:53:17 (PST)

I agree with Maxine too, very deep by the way.
Ellen S
Peachtree City, USA - Friday, January 28, 2000 at 09:11:21 (PST)

Neva - Think the white stuff here is clouds not shirts!However for the opposite end of the sartorial colour spectrum, check out the brand new GQ Premiere pictures courtesy of Georgiana, linked on CPP.

Claire
- Friday, January 28, 2000 at 08:19:53 (PST)

I second that, JB...sounds interesting. I'll add it to my reading list (for retirement, I think, the way things are going...). Mandy, I loved the sheep quote! Kinda reminds me of the wise words of Charles Schulz: "Never jump into a pile of leaves holding a wet sucker."
LynnP
York, PA USA - Friday, January 28, 2000 at 06:40:53 (PST)

Sue Zen: Could you tell me the name of the book by Christopher Lasch? I would be very interested in it as I have thought of the same kinds of things that you posted myself. It's good to know that someone else is thinking about this issue. Thanks for your post.
JB
USA - Friday, January 28, 2000 at 05:58:21 (PST)

I agree with Sue Zen... I've often heard that what one intensely dislikes in another is often what they dislike in themselves... and I believe the same goes for what someone likes or *loves* in another. I've realized over the years that what I am drawn to in AR is when he reminds me most of myself! Possibly that connection of the "positive" familiarity makes us feel like we *know* someone else even at a distance. When you have the safety of being able to study someone on a screen with no response back from them (good AND/or bad), you can get away with a whole lot more than with a friend or co-worker that you cannot sit and stare at! Anybody willing to put themselves on the big screen MUST accept that they are placing themselves in a place of adoration... whether they want to admit it or not. And if it does finally dawn on them what they're really doing, I expect it must feel really weird!!!
Maxine <maxinerose@prodigy.netfoo>
Greeley, CO USA - Thursday, January 27, 2000 at 18:54:42 (PST)

Thinking about what may make some AR fans uncomfortable about Galaxy Quest...GQ lays bare the pretense of hiding one's fandom behind an intellectual mask. With AR having stepped into his "Lazarus" costume, "cultured" AR fans are finding themselves sharing the same floor as the derided cultish "Star Trek geeks". That realization may be embarassing to some...truth is, most fans share a common psychology, not only with each other, but with the actors and actresses they presume to adore. Christopher Lasch's old book on narcissism has an insightful discussion on this issue... Which is why many fans are drawn to actors...or acting...
Sue Zen
el lay, USA - Thursday, January 27, 2000 at 17:37:27 (PST)

Mandy, that was classic [waves!]! Who was the author of that wonderful quote? And what was AR's? I mean, heck, it may not be as good as the other one, but remember, we all want to hear him read the phone book! LOL
Gilda <prisab234@aol.comfoo>
USA - Thursday, January 27, 2000 at 14:50:01 (PST)

Oh thank you for the wet sheep comment. My faith, if you can call it that, was unraveling like a badly woven basket, but, you reminded me with the wet sheep remark that I do know what I know. (Thank you for answering about DH too because I was wondering). Merlin would say something about wet sheep, thats his kind of remark. When the screenplay is done I'll give it to you guys on the internet at the same time I send it to hollywood, something will happen. e
Ellen S <Lighting the Fire when the cold Beagle Yelpsfoo>
Peachtree City, GA USA - Thursday, January 27, 2000 at 14:36:37 (PST)

A site that might interest some of you is the following: www.hollywoodu.com/stars.htm Judy Hofflund's address seems to have changed since the last time we checked.
Julia
Calgary, Canada - Thursday, January 27, 2000 at 12:35:48 (PST)

Amy, why not just hire one of those now-infamous teamster drivers to get you around? Better yet, call in snow-bound and watch some AR! :-) A little off topic, but for those of you in Canada, WTN is going to show Trial By Fire, with Juliet Stevenson on Sunday, Feb 6th, at 8pm ET. Enjoy!
Julia
Calgary, Canada - Thursday, January 27, 2000 at 11:33:07 (PST)

Nancy C.: please forgive the personal note here, but my e-mail seems to be on the blink. I've been trying to reach you...
LynnP
York, PA USA - Thursday, January 27, 2000 at 09:31:44 (PST)

For anyone passing the National Theatre in London, you may like to know that AR has contributed his photo to an exhibition/book of celebrities who have been asked to provide four passport style photos and a comment for the new millennium. His comment is not as memorable as my personal favourite which is "remember that sheep are heavier when wet"
Mandy
London, UK - Thursday, January 27, 2000 at 07:20:17 (PST)

Heather, I was told (in November/December?) from someone in Jeff Sharp's office (Hart Sharp Productions) that "Dark Harbor" would be available in video in the US in March, and would show on a cable channel (did not know which) beforehand--like "Judas Kiss." It is an indie film, shot around the same time as "Judas Kiss," in Maine, that never acquired distribution in the US. A handful of us have been fortunate to have seen it at one of the three film festivals at which it was shone. It is 3-character film noir which I quite adored--and has a unique treat (or 2, or 3) for any Rickman fan.
Georgiana (leaving for Quebec City in 2 minutes)
Seattle - Thursday, January 27, 2000 at 07:01:18 (PST)

Claire,

Is it just me or am I seeing nothing but white shirts here? ;-)
Neva
USA - Thursday, January 27, 2000 at 06:33:44 (PST)

Ohhh, Claire....your "magazine photo" just crushed all hope of my accomplishing anything today...
LynnP
fanning herself in Harrisburg, PA USA - Thursday, January 27, 2000 at 05:09:04 (PST)

Snowless CA, huh, Renie? Well, we're under snow alert here and if we get ice with it, the power may go out--so if I don't appear for a few days, that's what's happened. Don't want anyone worrying that I've been kidnapped by The Interrogator or anything. =8-O

Getting into my fur-lined underwear,

Mary Anne <maryanne_e@hotmail.comfoo>
Cold As A Beagle's Nose, AL USA - Thursday, January 27, 2000 at 05:06:21 (PST)

Since I am fairly new to this GB can someone fill me in on the situation with Dark Harbor. Thanks.
Heather <arbgfan@yahoo.comfoo>
little Atascadero with few rental choices, CA USA - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 23:46:48 (PST)

A-m, no, no--not a stupid question. But the search engine is so darned fun, no one should miss it.

I'm not kidding!
R in snowless CA, USA - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 23:00:58 (PST)

I was finally able to get the last word on "Dark Harbor" in South Africa. It took a while, but I heard back from a woman at the company in SA that distributes the tape. It's only available to domestic rental shops. Unlike the US it seems that you can't buy it at all during the rental period, not even for a ridiculously high price.
A-m
LI, NY USA - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 21:41:01 (PST)

Thanks to Renie and Julia and everyone else for the info on the speech. Sorry to be a dolt. I'll remember that search engine for my next stupid question. It was a nice speech!
A-m
LI, NY USA - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 19:42:14 (PST)

Way to go, Renie. Better, still.
Amy
OK USA - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 15:49:09 (PST)

A-m, Julia's right. Alan's speech mentioned something about their needing to have a nomination for 'best actor in the worst role,' or something like that-- alluding to the fact that it was a great role which made the job easy. He also DID NOT thank his teamster member-limo driver that night. What was with that on Sunday night? Since when did teamster-drivers earn a nod at an awards ceremony? Hope this doesn't sound crabby, but should I look for these names as the credits roll??!! Maybe that was just an inside joke. BTW--Julia, could you come down and teach us Okies how to drive in snow? We just got hit with what they call, 'the first wave,' and our world has come to a stand-still. Of course, what with a VCR and delightful tape collection, life could be soo much worse! Lemons to lemonade. Amy (bracing for the BIG WAVE due later this evening; S&S, AABA, TMD...:)
Amy
OOK USA - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 15:42:17 (PST)

You don't have to watch it, Julia. Chris (of the FAQ) had it up almost as soon as it left AR's lips. Here it is:

Alan Rickman's Golden Globe acceptance speech: "Oooh well, thank you very much. The thing is this was a great part and I sometimes think there really should be a category for best performance in crummiest role. That would be a test. (laughter and applause from audience). So for that part I have to thank Peter Pruce for writing it and Peter Medock for thinking of me, Uli Edel for his patience in directing me, Ian and Greta for huge support, the whole of HBO for pushing the boat out, David Kirkpatrick and Joe Topping, David Ginsberg and very, very special endless, everlasting thanks to the great Judy Huffland. Thank you very much."

There is a wonderful search engine, BTW, in case you have those burning questions which invariably pop up just when we should be doing something else. Find it off of Suzanne's AR Fan Page.
Renie <reniept@hotmailfoo>
Ordering herself off to do something else . . . , - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 15:40:52 (PST)

Thanks for the vote of confidence, A-m! Let me see, his acceptance speech was something about having always thought that there should be an award for worst actor. "That'd be a real test." Something like that. I do have it on tape, but I don't really feel like watching it right now. (*collective sharp intake of breath*--"You bounder, you cheat!") At the movie theater yesterday, I was happy enough to see a little clip of GQ. That was nice, especially because I had just watched Uma Thurman's odious performance in Sweet and Lowdown. Watching AR is always such a treat.
Julia, whose cat has just started jumping on her painting...
Calgary, Canada - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 14:20:21 (PST)

Nah!
Georgiana (would have wished for bigger...[grin])
Seattle - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 11:34:03 (PST)

Oh, I don't know, Georgiana...Freudian slip there? (*grin*) I like your typo better....
LynnP
York, PA USA - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 11:25:46 (PST)

Sorry. That should have been "... with"
Georgiana (Thanks again to Suzanne for the great new GB site!)
Seattle - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 10:23:30 (PST)

make that GQ
Fausta
sorry, USA - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 10:11:48 (PST)

Go see GQ again, I agree with Georgiana, and take the kids, too! (Once the roads and the driveway are plowed here in the NE, that is)
Fausta <emma-mail@mailexcite.comfoo>
USA - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 10:09:43 (PST)

... wish a postage-stamp size photo of Dwight ...
Georgiana (yes, I know, that's a bathrobe--better yet!)
Seattle - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 10:09:37 (PST)

The Seattle Times reprinted the Washington Post article yesterday.
Georgiana (I'm sure it was in honor of my birthday...)
Seattle - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 09:12:29 (PST)

Definitely see GQ again! Trust me.
Georgiana <gellis@drizzle.comfoo>
Seattle (a big town that *does* appreciate AR!) - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 07:06:26 (PST)

Mary Anne,

Sorry for the personal note here, but I just now received your email about Bruce (altavista is NOT a dependable place for email!). Needless to say, messages have appeared and disappeared at will...:) Sorry about not responding- I will email you soon!
Neva
USA - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 07:03:11 (PST)

Ice storm, I'm fine, didn't loose power. Okay, its probably going to become a cult film. I am serious, I take everything seriously. Especially when in the charactor of Merlin for the purpose of writing the screen play. Maybe I should see it again. (GQ) I'm changing jobs so my e mail will change and I'll be gone again for a while.
Ellen Sherman
Peachtree City, GA USA - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 06:33:20 (PST)

Quote from Heather >I like the fact that he is unafraid to pick very different >roles and challenge us to see him in such varied parts. This is what I was trying to get at in my post about the Washington Post article. I think that his willingness and ability to choose varied roles makes him a more interesting actor.
JB
USA - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 05:59:25 (PST)

Heather, I also like the fact that AR plays varied roles; it's a whole lot better than having him typecast as a villain, etc. I *think* that AR once said that he didn't judge the characters that he played- that they were just another role to act (an article somewhere?).
Neva
USA - Wednesday, January 26, 2000 at 03:56:02 (PST)

Just a thought...We all love and respect AR and know he is a thoughtful and intelligent person. Therefore we must remember he chooses the roles he plays and must respect his choices for whatever reason he chooses them.

I like the fact that he is unafraid to pick very different roles and challenge us to see him in such varied parts.
Heather-Happy Birthday Georgiana!! <arbgfan@yahoo.comfoo>
a small town that doesn't appreciate AR, CA USA - Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 21:53:00 (PST)

I wasn't going for the double entendre when I wrote, but when I reread the post, I couldn't help but think of hotel rooms and earthquakes.... So SHEETS it is. Works for me. Someone, somewhere has the transcript of his speech, I'm sure. Julia could probably put her finger on it in a minute having searched through a few articles here lately. *grin*
Amy
OK USA - Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 20:27:06 (PST)

I agree about the GG awards. Even Barbra Streisand, who knew she was going to win, gave a rambling sort of non-speech.

Since I missed it, what did AR say? He must have made a lot of speeches that year.
A-m
LI, NY USA - Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 17:07:49 (PST)

It was crib sheets where I came from...even with the double meaning.
Chris <ckwible@worldnet.att.netfoo>
NJ USA - Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 15:25:53 (PST)

....or is that 'crib notes?' 8) Anyway, you get the idea. We appreciate someone who can think on their/his feet --- frightened half to death or not.
Amy
OK USA - Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 15:12:08 (PST)

Apropos of previous discussion, according to the MMWR in December, per capita cigarette consumption in the US has fallen steadily from a high of around 4,300 when the first Surgeon General's report came out in 1963, to about 2,300 in 1998. (Was essentially zero at the turn of the last century, and around 1,300 during the Great Depression in the 1930s.)
Georgiana
Seattle - Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 15:08:17 (PST)

Off topic. Did anyone else watch the/some of the Golden Globes the other night?!!! All I can say is, "Could we buy a decent acceptance speech??!!!"UGH! With a few notable exceptions, most rambled and were entirely goofy--and not in a good way. Made me appreciate AR's speech at the Emmy's all the more. Funny but articulate. Like he can speak without crib sheets. 8)
Amy
OK USA - Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 14:48:33 (PST)

Why, NancyR, small world! And thanks for that august (albeit short) list--much more interesting than what I got sent with my morning horoscope. Apologies for improper apostrophes--got my tongue in front of my eye teeth and couldn't see what I was saying. Thank you all for the birthday greetings. And, yes, cache from "Galaxy Quest" probably more important than cash.
Georgiana (If I don't get cracking, I won't finish yesterday's work before today is over...) <gellis@drizzle.comfoo>
Seattle - Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 14:40:41 (PST)

Georgiana! It's my birthday too! And Robert Burns's (much celebrated in Scotland) and Virginia Woolf's, so happy birthday to them too, wherever they are. (With Jamie and the other ghosts, let's hope.) Was at a gathering this past weekend where all kinds of people were raving about Galaxy Quest. Not AR fans, not even Trek fans necessarily, just people who thought it was funny, surprisingly tender, and very well acted. I doubt that he needs the money at this point (he'll probably give most of it away, bless him), but it's got to be good for his "castability," if that's a word, in other films. Sorry you didn't like it, Ellen, and I agree that the character was a bit one-note, but I don't think your friends will judge you harshly for admiring AR on the basis of this film. Quite the reverse, I imagine.
Nancy R.
USA - Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 14:00:22 (PST)

Those pics are gorgeous, Claire. I especially liked the Sinclair one-that's the one scene in Close My Eyes that makes me chuckle. Heather, thanks for sharing your Polaroid as well-there are no words...

Sandy (Listening to ROTN-whoever said "ear orgy" wasn't kidding-and I'm just on tape 1. Yikes!)
Tewkbury, MA USA - Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 13:58:01 (PST)

Thank You!!! So my memory does serve me right!!! I did search kelClancy's site for it, with no luck. I also looked through all my printouts of interviews, etc with just as much non-existent lick as before. Perhaps it was quoted on the guestbook, and we could find the smoking is messy bit in the archives? Oh yes, and a little off topic, but it's a vicory for the intellectuals! The Montessori system has been approved to begin in September under the Calgary Board of Public Education! Hurray! At last the bureaucrats have done something right!
Julia the not-so-nuts
Calgary, Canada - Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 13:48:00 (PST)

Ah, Claire. The white shirts! And on my birthday. How fine.
Georgiana
Seattle - Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 13:12:43 (PST)

One of Heather's polaroid's from Closet Land mentioned here on 22nd January now up in the usual place.

Claire
- Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 12:59:53 (PST)

Pros and cons (pun?--oh my!) aside, "Galaxy Quest" has engendered more debate in these pages than recent Rickman outings ("Judas Kiss," "Dogma") and I predict we'll be seeing it for years to come on TNT, USA, etc. So my sincere hope is that it will add a modicum of financial security to allow this gifted actor to tackle something meatier (that's two!--must be contagious). Yes, Renie--he had one good line in the film--ironic, don't you think, that it was yet another version of "By Grathbar's hammer..."? I still feel I was served Kep-Mock bloodticks with only a hint of what steak might have been, in terms of Mr. Rickman's performance. But "Galaxy Quest" is a superb entry into the space-spoof genre. And it's density--which shorted our man--is what will give it longevity. In my humble opinion...
Georgiana (shortly off to Quebec City...) <gellis@drizzle.comfoo>
Seattle - Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 12:00:40 (PST)

Hey, Ellen. To quote Jason Nesmith, "it's just a TV show (film)." Fantasies aside, we're all "un-exalted" people on this Earth and life is serious for us humans...so have fun! AR is a talented and appealing actor, who is as human as the rest of us, who probably works for the same reasons we do--to support ourselves or our families, live as well as we can, make a difference of some kind on this world, and enjoy ourselves as much as we can in the process. Once you get beyond survival, which those of us in the middle class have the luxury of doing--it's all just a TV show... So, "live long and prosper"! (and in AR's case, redistribute the prosperity? :))
Susan Zen
LA, CA USA - Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 11:25:27 (PST)

Yes, Ellen, I laughed, and not from embarrassment. Lighten up, hon! I thought GQ was exactly what it was meant to be, just plain fun. If you were embarrassed by him, perhaps you're forgetting that he's an actor playing a role - that wasn't AR on the screen, it was Alexander Dane playing Dr. Lazarus.

We have to remember to separate the man from the roles he chooses to play. We all know about his depth, but if he didn't choose the occasional goofy role or romantic role, he'd get typecast in five minutes flat because he's so bloody good at the villains. Was GQ his finest performance? Certainly not. Was it unlike anything we've ever seen him in? Certainly was, and I'll bet he had a blast doing it. I seem to remember reading somewhere that he once played a squirrel. Given the choice, I think I'd prefer the alien...*chuckle*

Ellen and Nancy C., are you okay down there? I heard about the ice storms on NPR yesterday. Not exactly weather anybody wants...
LynnP
Going outside to build a snowfort with my daughter in York, PA USA - Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 07:31:54 (PST)

You guys liked GQ, didn't you. I was so embarrassed, I was laughing, but from embarassment. I was laughing the next day. The idea that any of my friends could just walk into a theater and see Alan like that! and know that Ellen, well she..that this was her idea of... I thought, well if he was trying to get rid of all his fans at once, perhaps he'd make a movie like that. Exhasperation is an emotion, not an entire charactor's personality. I didn't like Judas Kiss either. But I knew, seeing GQ that my script "Merlin" is not going to be laughed at. Icon-al responsibility is a serious thing. e
Ellen Sherman <ad_editorial@news-daily.comfoo>
Peachtree City, GA USA - Tuesday, January 25, 2000 at 05:58:06 (PST)

There's good news on the non-AR front as well. Kenneth Branagh's "Love's Labours Lost" (according to upcomingmovies.com, to be released in late spring/early summer) got a glowing review on Dark Horizons today:

"Love's Labour's Lost" - A Review by 'Debi' (Positive - No Spoilers)

The film retains a great deal of Shakespeare's original text BUT has been done (everyone already knows this)in a '30/'40s type musical. What is not commonly known however is just how funny this film turned out to be...even those who would not normally have any interest in Branagh or Shakespeare will love it. It goes from slapstick, to camp to downright side splitting. The actors do their own dancing and singing and appear to be having the time of their life. Numerous send ups of other famous movies and a suprising twist at the end make it a must see. Nathan Lane is perfect in the part of the "fool" and some of the throw away lines may be missed by the audience as general hilarity is the order of the day. If this doesn't become a classic - cult or otherwise, I'll eat my hat!."
Magda
Canada - Monday, January 24, 2000 at 19:55:58 (PST)

Well, good news, it's not empty here. GQ was sold out not only the second time, but the third time I saw it-- yesterday. Not a seat left, many kids, and more silences at the sophisticated humour bits than when the audience was older. They've moved it to a larger theatre (and the later showing had also sold out as I left). When it ended, a little girl in my row asked if she could see it again. "Not right now, honey." But I heartily recommend seeing it more than once. ***Spoilers ahead***

I didn't catch this, fully, until I read it at Ain't-It Cool News, and decided to check it out. Now I agree. Tony Shalhoub is stoned--that's why he's at the vending machine; he's got the munchies. That's why he chows down, and carries a doggie bag around. And why he's snacking compulsively on cheese and crackers in the shuttle. *And* why he's so laid back and mellow. Take his arrival on the ship: (deadpan) "That was a helluva thing." Etcetera. Hilarious. And very embedded so the tikes will never notice. For some reason, I cracked up when finally noticed the blue twisty straw (very earth, darling) in Rickman's pub drink, which he's drinking at the conference table (where he does a little finger-thingy) Speaking of hands, did you all catch his hands over the ship's "panelling"? He's turning a corner, just before his Thermian surrogate son surprises him.

To their credit (and movie-wisdom) they did give AR that Thermian-death scene, and in it he doesn't rush one bit. Entirely serious, and soft-voiced, he shows why he was at the RSC (for real and as Alexander Dane), making the transformation from encouraging officer ("We'll get you to the medical quarters") to father-figure, to a man with revenge kindled in those eyes. His walk into the hall, his rush and dive at the alien, and then shortly after, a return to humor with the karate chopping he does. I think they used him well, all things considered.

By Ipthar, this in NO WAY means he shouldn't do The Moon and Sixpence. *crossed fingers*

Renie/The Daily Telegiraffe <reniept@hotmail.cimfoo>
CA, USA - Monday, January 24, 2000 at 18:46:07 (PST)

Don't worry Valerie, my husband and I were glad there weren't a lot of people in the theater when we saw GQ too because we were laughing so hard, you make perfect sense.

Regarding the smoking issue, I watched An Awfully Big Adventure last night (it is still a strange movie) and practically everyone in that movie smoked except Alan.

Glad to see GQ holding on to the number six place at the box office!
Heather <arbgfan@yahoo.comfoo>
Atascadero, CA USA - Monday, January 24, 2000 at 18:04:54 (PST)

Mother and I saw GQ! Before the movie was over she said, "We are definitely getting this video!!" All right, Mom! The only other movie-goers were a father and his two teenage sons. Mom & I were crying from the laughter. The man/boys just stared at us! Do you think it was above their heads? I love to listen to the dialog (WORDS!). I think these three liked the sight-gags. What do you think? Am I making sense? Valerie
Valerie
Richmond, IN USA - Monday, January 24, 2000 at 17:25:54 (PST)

I remember reading something about this, too, where, I wish could remember. Whew, talk about smoking up the Guestbook over this burning issue (sorry, couldn't resist the bad pun...)!

Julia, you've not lost your mind. I,too, remember the less-than-tidy issue concerning smoking. Can't remember where, either, which in itself might mean it's in an older article (KelClancy?)
Amy
OK USA - Monday, January 24, 2000 at 16:02:54 (PST)

If anybody has an entertainment program by the National Enquirer, the last comment at the end of the show was about Sigourney's new look and I couldn't get to my remote fast enough... only a couple of shots but nice ones of AR.
Maxine
USA - Monday, January 24, 2000 at 13:31:06 (PST)

Galaxy Quest getting good UK press before it opens at Easter, this is an extract from todays Times in an article on Sigourney Weaver entitled She does it serious, she does it funny

"It is unlikely that Weaver will win any awards for her turn as the busty blonde Gwen DeMarco in Galaxy Quest. Ditto for fellow crew members of the Starship Protector, Tim Allen and Alan Rickman. But they are certainly winning an audience. Weekend box-office projections in the US pushed the film past the $50 million mark in just five weeks.

Galaxy Quest is something of an anomaly in this American post-holiday season. It doesn't deal with death row (The Green Mile), institutionalised mental patients (Girl Interrupted), falsely imprisoned black prizefighters (Hurricane) or even kidnapping and dismemberment (Toy Story 2). It is a comedy, pure and simple. As such, DreamWorks' decision to sneak this entry into the dour Christmas line-up was nothing short of the inspired counter-programming worthy of a Louis B. Mayer.

Mercifully, it's also well worth seeing. Here, Weaver and Co play a trio of disgruntled actors, the stars of the once popular television show Galaxy Quest (a thinly disguised Star Trek), whose current occupation is entertaining the legions of lunatics who regularly congregate at sold-out conventions. For the happy-go-lucky Jason Nesmith (Allen), the ship's former commander, it offers continued opportunity to inflate his ego. Weaver's decorative Gwen DeMarco puts up with the charade for lack of alternative. And Rickman's Alexander Dane, an RSC man condemned to convention hell as the reptilian Dr Lazarus, simply shoulders his fate like the trouper that he is.

Still, some fans are harder to please than others. Particularly the Thermians, a race of benign extraterrestrials who have mistaken the show's 20-year-old broadcasts as "historical documents". They whisk the unsuspecting thesps into space and on to a working replica of Protector in order to wage battle against a merciless space adversary.

The script, by David Howard and Robert Gordon, is fresh, light and witty down to the finest detail. The director Dean Parisot (Home Fries) paints this canvas by numbers and the result is a broad slapstick comedy which borders on the profound.

Claire
- Monday, January 24, 2000 at 10:32:36 (PST)

Yes, isn't it fun, Neva? Especially on a station that doesn't butcher it. I never pay any attention anymore when I see it's going to be on USA Network. But TNT or WTBS usually treat it pretty well--editing for language, of course, but not chopping out whole scenes.

Mary Anne
USA - Sunday, January 23, 2000 at 19:39:10 (PST)

Yippee-ki-yay! Just saw Die Hard on TV tonight...always great fun to watch it! :)
Neva
USA - Sunday, January 23, 2000 at 17:37:46 (PST)

Here's a piece of genius I read in the newspaper yesterday. "[while trying to write a biography, the author was] faced with an uncooperative subject and a close circle of paranoid friends..." Who was that about? No, Not AR, as you may have guessed. It was about Woody Allen. Ahh, the similarities are endless when it comes to introverts.......
Julia
Calgary, Canada - Sunday, January 23, 2000 at 15:50:33 (PST)

Julia, sorry to make you crazy. I just thought you might remember. Thanks for looking though!
A-m
LI, Ny USA - Sunday, January 23, 2000 at 11:45:28 (PST)

OFT: On the cover of the Sunday New York Times, an article on Rylstone's "Calendar Girls", 11 members of a Yorkshire chapter of the Women's Institute (ages 45 to 66) who brought forth a discreet calendar in which they wore only pearls (and well-placed props), to raise money for leukemia research. Their effort not only sold out, but elicited letters from thousands of middle-age women who said that the "serentiy and confidence" of the village women had restored their own flagging self-esteem. The male reaction: "How wonderful to see real women instead of stick insects with pouty lips and pipe cleaners for legs." Not even the chairman of the parish council objected. "Well, I've seen more than that over the garden fence." There is a small website at: http://www.daelnet.net/rylstonewi/

Too bad there won't be any AR spotting at the Golden Globes tonight.
Renie <reniept@hotmail.comfoo>
Wonder what the Reverend Obadiah Slope would say , - Sunday, January 23, 2000 at 10:05:56 (PST)

OK, maybe it's because it's late, or maybe because it never existed, but I can't find the quote. However, I am SO sure I read it, that I will probably spend all of tomorrow looking for it. Maybe it was in the unofficial biography? Oh, you see, if I was AR's official biographer, I would have to know this right off! But I'm not. And I don't. And it's late. And I'm sorry, A-m. Maybe tomorrow, maybe never. Help me out, somebody!?!?
Julia
Calgary, Canada - Saturday, January 22, 2000 at 21:44:57 (PST)

Oooh, where *was* it? Racking my brains right now, I couldn't tell you. I'm sure if you searched Kel Clancy's site for "smoking" or "messy", you could find it. It was in an interview, I'm pretty sure. Does anyone else remember this, or am I the only one. (If I am, that doesn't make me a very reliable source, A-m!) Actually, Maybe I'll go and search right now.
Julia
Calgary, Canada - Saturday, January 22, 2000 at 21:18:04 (PST)

Julia, where did he say that? Just curious. Thanks!
A-m
LI, NY USA - Saturday, January 22, 2000 at 20:05:32 (PST)

I have acquired some polaroids taken on the set of Closet Land and would like to share them with everyone but I don't know how. Please let me know what I need to do so that this can happen. Being polaroids they are one of a kinds. Thanks.
Heather <arbgfan@yahoo.comfoo>
Atascadero, CA USA - Saturday, January 22, 2000 at 20:01:59 (PST)

Then again, now thinking about it, AR did say that he thinks smoking is "messy" and wouldn't do it... Hmm, some one must be lying!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Julia
Calgary, Canada - Saturday, January 22, 2000 at 19:57:00 (PST)

I just really have one thing to say. For being such an older guy than myself. I really think that he looks really good.
Ashleigh <ZoomCats@aol.com>
Love the page, - Saturday, January 22, 2000 at 18:24:47 (PST)

Hi Jane!

Hi Everybody for that matter...I'm still here! I still ready daily-quietly!

Waiting for GQ to get to us ruralites!
Dana
still here in Twisp, WA USA - Saturday, January 22, 2000 at 11:28:35 (PST)

Thanks, Magda, for the articles!

And a belated welcome, Barbara, Adrian, Sandy & Birgitte, to the Realm of Rickmania!

For those who missed AR's appearance as presenter at the Golden Globe Awards a couple years ago, you can catch a glimpse (within first five minutes) on the weekend edition of Access Hollywood.
Suzanne <SuzanneK@bigfoot.comfoo>
Hallettsville, TX USA - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 22:25:15 (PST)

Please forgive the personal note: Bonnie--puhleeeze drop a line. My address book didn't make it to the new computer and there's much to catch up on! Delia
Delia
USA - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 21:51:07 (PST)

FYI, there is a Fallen Angel Vol. 1 video for sale on ebay. This is a different one then the last one I wrote about. It is only at $15.50 right now. Thought someone might like to know.
Heather <arbgfan@yahoo.comfoo>
Atascadero , CA USA - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 21:08:14 (PST)

Well, I certainly hope he doesn't smoke. I had noticed the instances in QDU, CL, and DH but also thought he looked not at ease with it. I had wondered though since there is much more smoking in the UK.

In reference to GQ, I was so pleased when I saw the movie and its lack of foul language and thought to myself, "I can let the kids see this when it comes out on video". The line of what qualifies for "family fare" has been so blurred by people's seeming lack morals and what is "okay" for their kids to see, that when something like GQ comes along with an actual family focus I am sure it does make the decision of targeting harder, sad to say. It is interesting to hear what goes on "behind closed doors" though.
Heather-probably an overprotective mother <arbgfan@yahoo.comfoo>
Atascadero, CA USA - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 18:20:01 (PST)

The controversy over the new packages for cigarettes in Canada has been raging for quite a while. The new warning labels are to feature pictures of rotted teeth, blackened lungs, etc. In my personal opinion, the new labels are not going to help those who are "diehard" (excuse the pun) smokers, and will serve to give children and those with more sensitive nervous systems nightmares. So AR smokes: so what? In the words of Jeremy Brett as Sherlock Holmes, "It's my only vice." :-)
Julia, who has no such vices
Calgary, Canada - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 17:09:12 (PST)

I have read the movie novelization of GQ, and the language is definitely targeted towards an older audience. It should be interesting to see if there will be 2 versions released once it heads to video/DVD - one with a PG rating, the other with a PG-13 rating-they did the same with "Ever After", if memory serves.

Hi Jane! I did notice that Sigourney Weaver's mouth says, "F*ck" when they are about to go through those metal chompers. And at the very beginning of the movie, another crewman says "sh*t" but we hear "damn" I think. I actually thought it was part of the inside joking--and not last minute demographic targeting changes! Taking out the explicit profanity was VERY wise--I would have been angry as well. As for the story line, it's not at all hard to fit into 30 seconds. Before Georigiana posted, I was going to say: "Aging actors from a defunct sci-fi TV series rediscover what it's all about when real aliens seek their help." But I see Newsweek has already used it.

In our house, the movie Stuart Little sparked no discussion.
Renie <reniept@hotmail.comfoo>
CA, USA - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 16:45:22 (PST)

Sorry Georgiana and Magda about the duplication on the GQ article - it just goes to show how long it's been since I've visited the GB. I clearly didnt' read back far enough. Hello to the old timers - it's been at least a year and a half.
Jane
Seattle, WA USA - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 16:40:00 (PST)

From Newsweek 24 January: "Galaxy Quest Actors in a sci-fi TV show are pressed into duty by aliens who think they're the real deal. This droll comic sleeper works for both kids and adults. Funny as hell. (4 stars) D.A."
Georgiana
Seattle - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 16:30:42 (PST)

Ellen, darlin', you should quit cold turkey anyway. That way, if a miracle occurs, you'll be prepared! Magda, thanks for the GQ article. Interesting, but I can't help but find all the spinning and "positioning" a bit of a downer. My favorite line is, "You throw it out there if it's a good movie and hope that word of mouth carries it." In other words, let the people decide. And when it comes to GQ, they seem to have decided rightly.
Nancy R.
CA USA - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 16:29:43 (PST)

That was instructive, Magda! Don't go to GQ at a Sunday matinee. The audience of 50 % young children didn't get it and were silent. On the other hand, seeing it (as I did the first time) with an attentive audience of hooting adults was really fun, and I'm sure that every person there recruited at least one new viewer.
Melissa
Cambridge, MA USA - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 16:21:20 (PST)

On the smoking issue-I watched Fallen Angels the other evening and he smokes in that as well. I didn't see him inhale at all and he appeared quite awkward with it. Regarding his lighting up in the pub with Rima, I have MANY acquaintances who only smoke when they are out in a social situation. Stupid, but pretty common. I have always thought, as Georgiana mentioned, that his father's death from lung cancer at such a young age would have kept him away. It would be enough for me!
A-m
LI, NY USA - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 15:54:29 (PST)

I've often wondered if Alan smoked. Smoking is way more popular in the UK, and Rima smokes, but if we know Rima smokes, which we've known for a long time, I think if Alan smoked, we'd know it. I think he does not. and I'd quit, by the way, I want to go on record, right now, I'd quit cold turkey..
Ellen Sherman <ad_editorial@news-daily.comfoo>
GA USA - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 15:31:18 (PST)

Nothing like success to kick off a row: in the LA Times today, there's an article about the internal Dreamworks dispute over the GQ marketing strategy. Here are some interesting parts:

DreamWorks' Family Argument
The producer of 'Galaxy Quest' and the studio that marketed it debate the focus of the advertising campaign.
By JUDITH I. BRENNAN, Special To The Times

All filmmakers should have this handicap: Make a comedy for the 25-and-older crowd. The studio sells it as family fare for the preteen set instead. It evolves into one of the holiday season's brighter surprises. All involved are proved right--and wrong--for one simple reason: audience word of mouth, the best advertising money can't buy.

Such is the plight of DreamWorks' sleeper hit "Galaxy Quest," a movie that bowed Christmas weekend to $8 million and has steadily built an audience since then, amassing a cumulative box-office total of about $50 million.

The film's producer, Mark Johnson, contends an older audience stepped in and picked up the ball that DreamWorks dropped by not targeting the film to an adult crowd. "Galaxy Quest" garnered mostly upbeat reviews from critics who praised the film's witty sendup of a "Star Trek"-like TV show.

But some of DreamWorks' competitors and others see it another way: By marketing the film initially to kids, DreamWorks seized a prime opportunity for family-friendly fare during the holidays, then shrewdly waited for adults to pick up the buzz.

Last week, Johnson and DreamWorks' marketing chief, Terry Press, did something unusual: They confronted each other about how the $45-million film, which stars Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver and Alan Rickman, was sold and whether it could have become an even bigger hit. It offers a fly-on-the-wall glimpse of the kind of "creative differences" that are rarely, if ever, explained in Hollywood.

Here are some excerpts from their discussion--and some background on the debate.

Johnson: "Terry, I think you have to admit, the studio always wanted this to be a family movie. We didn't. When we would argue that it was a PG-13 comedy with an adult sensibility, I'd hear the expression, 'We don't want to leave any money on the table.' "

Press: "It's true we did try to sell it to everybody, from 8 to 80. We did see it as a family film. The question is, did we make [the marketing campaign] look clever enough for the adult audience to "get it"? I'd say, sporadically."

Johnson: "I'd say no. That's where we disagree strongly. That is the bone of contention."

(Johnson believes studio executives were premature in determining how they would sell this spoof of TV sci-fi shows with Tim Allen in the lead. Executives saw it four weeks after the production wrapped in early September. Missing were many of the 400 special-effects shots yet to be added in a rushed postproduction schedule for the film to meet a Dec. 10 release. For that many shots, postproduction usually takes six months. It was clipped to three.

The filmmakers got a small breather when DreamWorks moved the release date to Christmas Day. Shortly after executives saw the film, two early test screenings proved disastrous. The film was shown to very young audiences with their parents. Many swear words remained.)

Johnson: "The unfortunate thing is our first and only previews were with really young kids and the mothers were furious [over foul language]. The wrong audience was recruited for the version of the film they saw."

Press: "That is true. The [company hired] to do the recruiting was supposed to recruit what Mark wanted."

Johnson: "Well, that wasn't it. They fouled up big time."

Press: "There was a disconnect with the audience because they were very young kids and because of the language. Plus, many of the effects, like the rock monster that would have really played to that audience, hadn't been added. The third preview is the one that played to older audiences and it drew a great response, with people referring to the film as a Zucker Bros.' picture or 'Spaceballs' for TV shows. They got the inside jokes, especially on [washed-up] actors."

(Still, the studio targeted the marketing campaign to family audiences with elements like the rock monster taking center stage in all television ads. The element of parody was missing. "I had no idea what they were selling. The word was, here's a great funny movie for adults, but it looked like a cheesy, '50s B-movie for kids," said a Universal Pictures marketing executive. "They completely down-marketed a good movie, and that is not like DreamWorks. They are among the best at what they do."

DreamWorks was in a tough position in selling the parody aspect to older audiences, according to Press. Legally it could not poke fun at anything insinuating another studio's franchise, such as Paramount's lucrative "Star Trek" film and TV venture. Plus, she said the film's story line was complicated, making it difficult to sum up quickly in TV spots and print ads.)

Press: "First of all, we did believe in the movie or we wouldn't have released it at Christmas. Secondly, we spent a fortune on advertising because it was Christmas, which is the most expensive time of the year in terms of advertising. It is a very clever movie but the message [to adult audiences] was, in some ways, difficult to tell. Adults like this movie because of the humor; kids like it because of the monsters."

Johnson: "The material in the campaign showed rock monsters chasing Tim Allen around. That spoke to kids, not adults."

Press: "You have 30 seconds in a TV spot to tell a story and you can't even say the story line in 30 seconds! Try it: Here's a group of disgruntled actors on a TV show that's not on the air anymore that go to a fan convention and while they're signing autographs these real aliens show up and. . . . See my point? It's a clever idea but hard to fit in 30 seconds.

"We went back and forth on this: Do you show them as washed-up actors? Or, do you throw them in spacesuits and hope it conveys some TV space show parody? Was it played too young? It doesn't look like 'Stuart Little' but is it ultimately sophisticated? No."

(Tom Sherak, chairman of 20th Century Fox Domestic Film Group, lauded DreamWorks' move. "Look, they had a choice. Sell this movie, as they did and be the No. 3 family movie for the holidays [behind "Toy Story 2" and "Stuart Little"] or wind up being the No. 6 adult movie at Christmas. I'll take the No. 3 spot anytime, thank you.

"Plus, you have Tim Allen, who is very popular and his movies that have done well at the box office are family movies. My opinion? They did a very good job selling this, because I look at 'Galaxy Quest' as a family movie."

Still, Press insists the studio was trying to find the right sell for older audiences as well.) Press: "We literally looked at 300 different posters trying to convey the right tone for all audiences we believed would want to see this great little movie. Do I think we nailed it? No. But like everything else with this movie, we simply ran out of time."

Johnson: "That is true. They did try very hard, but the rush hurt us."

(The dilemma, as one top Sony marketing executive sees it, is "DreamWorks was rushing a 'tweener'--a movie caught between audiences, in this case kids and 25-year-olds. It wasn't a clean sell, to one or the other. You throw it out there if it's a good movie and hope that word of mouth carries it."

Word of mouth did sell the film. Press screenings didn't. Most movies, particularly around the holiday rush, have early screenings. That was not the case with "Galaxy Quest.")

Press: "We had one print to work with and we were running out of time. So we opted for a screening in New York to get critical response so we could use quotes in the ads. That is a tough audience, and I wanted to see how it would play."

Johnson: "Right. Well, there may have not been time for a bunch of screenings weeks in advance, but why not sell the sizzle? Clearly, when the press can't see the movie, I'd have to think they would believe it's not very good--that it has a stench on it."

Press: "That is not the case. Again, we had one print and that is not a criticism of the filmmakers. They killed themselves to get the film finished in time, and they did a fabulous job. Time was just working against us. And we did tons of promotional screenings for the public the week prior to the opening. That is all we could do. We did not want to show the press an unfinished movie. I guess you could argue that the December run of 'Galaxy Quest' was the most expensive word-of-mouth screenings in history."

(Some observers felt DreamWorks' lost its focus on "Galaxy Quest" over the holiday season because it was distracted by its academy campaign for "American Beauty," a critical favorite and anticipated contender for best picture, acting and directing Oscars. They point to a DreamWorks party held during the holiday period that had "American Beauty"--a September release--not "Galaxy Quest" as its theme.

Press said the "American Beauty" campaign took nothing away from promotions for "Galaxy Quest," and that the party for that film was a part of that academy promotion and in no way implied a snub. "Why would we [snub] our own movie?")

Press: We have changed the marketing campaign somewhat and it does skew older. Are you happy with it now?"

Johnson: "Yes."

(But one exhibitor and several marketing executives said if the movie is already selling word of mouth, changing the campaign midstream isn't really necessary. And if you "change the message significantly . . . you run the risk of confusing the audience."

Press: "This movie was a family movie for December and has become the adult movie to see in January. It's a sleeper in the classic sense, and I'm happy with that."

Johnson: "Agreed."

Magda
Canada - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 14:35:43 (PST)

Georgiana, totally agree with you. Slightly OT, but I happened to see on PBS last night (I think it was ITN news) that Canada is getting really agressive with their anti-smoking campaigns, wanting to place pictures of the affects of mouth cancer on cigarette packages, etc.

Speaking of voice, those out there who do not yet own The Return of the Native might want to visit www.borders.com, which has it, in stock, for $31.47 + shipping.
Fausta <emma-mail@mailexcite.comfoo>
USA - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 13:16:09 (PST)

I would hope someone dependent upon that voice for a living and whose father died of lung cancer at a young age would muster the personal resources required to avoid the most addictive substance known--tobacco.
Georgiana
Seattle - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 11:43:49 (PST)

Yes, Jane, the LA Times reprinted the Washington Post article.
Georgiana
Seattle - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 11:36:06 (PST)

Fantastic article today at www.latimes.com. Try this link: http://www.calendarlive.com/movies/20000120/t000006450.html
Jane <janeorens@mindspring.comfoo>
Seattle, WA USA - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 10:46:50 (PST)

I hate to be a pill, but I have an e-mail from a woman who was introduced to Rickman several years ago in a pub. She noted how "sweet" he was when he lit up two cigarettes, handing one to Rima Horton.

The only caveat to this is that it occurred several years ago. Does he smoke now? Go fish.
Robyn
USA - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 09:09:36 (PST)

Thanks, Melissa, for weaving the car and bug threads! As for the Post article, the author had his tongue firmly in cheek throughout -- the fact that made it most enjoyable!
susan
USA - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 08:28:08 (PST)

And what about the scene in ClosetLand? "I thought you said you didn't smoke!"

"This is my first . . ."

*shudder*

Mary Anne--seems that smoking endangers your health in lots of ways! =8-O
USA - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 05:18:43 (PST)

Heather, I can remember two scenes in which AR smokes: the first was in DH, where BW hands him a cigarette after their first face-to face confrontation. The second was in Quigley down under, in which he lights up a cigar (if I remember correctly) using the candle on the table. In neither case did he appear to inhale. I noticed that his motions were quite unnatural for a smoker; he didn't seem to be comfortable with the cigar and even less comfortable with the cigarette, so my guess is that he doesn't smoke. (Thank goodness.)
LynnP
Finally snow-covered York, PA USA - Friday, January 21, 2000 at 04:38:19 (PST)

Ah, Renie, bless your heart... a "Rickman research" project! I love it! Now I will just *have* to watch Rasputin again. (Oh darn.)
I confess, though, that I must bow to the master (Julia) as far as knowledge of Russian goes. Mine is pretty pathetic!
Deb <ceilidh@uniserve.comfoo>
Canada - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 21:34:31 (PST)

For me, one of the pleasures of GQ was that *all* the actors were hilarious. The cast was a real "crew" and no one actor was "unleashed" to upstage the rest of the ensemble. Is all this chat about GQ spoiling things for those in countries (galaxies?) where it hasn't yet been released?
Melissa <masmith@law.harvard.edufoo>
Cambridge, MA USA - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 20:05:43 (PST)

Georgiana, I must agree with you about An Awfully Big Adventure, it was his most delicious role. I must come clean and tell you my third child is thanks to that movie, had to do something with all that steam! I also like the fact that he has not allowed himself to get boxed in, like say Hugh Grant seems to have done. Wouldn't it be fun to see him in more roles like he played in AABA. More of AR would always be great, but I wouldn't want him to wear himself out then have to retire or something. BTW, does anyone know if he smokes (I certainly hope not)? I am figuring he doesn't since he never has in any of the movies I've seen him in (at least not that I can remember at this moment). I am so proud of him for that too. He certainly doesn't lose any of his power on screen by not, as some actors think they do when they smoke. Sorry for going on so long.
Heather <sometimes lost among all this greatnessfoo>
Atascadero, CA USA - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 19:18:59 (PST)

The Hunter article in the Post is an excellent (and rare) example of male appreciation of AR, who too many times is seen as either "that Die Hard guy" or a "chick flick" actor. We are not the most objective group when it comes to AR appreciation and it's good to get other views. 1999 was a good mainstream year for the man and hopefully we'll see some payback in good films for the next year or two. Let's not over-analyze the whole thing.
Magda
Canada - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 19:14:08 (PST)

JB, I've been thinking about your post, and the "Post" article. I'm one of the many that loves Rickman at his scenery-chewing best, first looming 20 feet above us on the big screen in "Die Hard," and bigger and bolder in "Robin Hood Prince of Thieves." It is grand to see an article in a major newspaper that savors the same delights--and ranks his current outing in "Galaxy Quest" as being essentially in the same league. But I agree with Stephen Hunter that it would have been better had he truly been unleashed. Not much time for it the way this film (GQ) flies. Liking him as Hans and George and Lazarus does not detract from the meticulous carol of "The Winter Guest" or--my personal favorite--the dark ecstasy of "An Awfully Big Adventure." The man can do anything. I personally wish only that he did more.
Georgiana
Seattle - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 17:57:30 (PST)

Thank you, Julia!
Georgiana
Seattle - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 17:24:27 (PST)

Renie, the song that AR sing in Rasputin is a gypsy song, not a peasant song. Peasant songs were not sung by men, but by women. men traditionally sang either romances (army officers, mainly) or gypsy ballads, such as the one here. (Hence the later refenrence to gypsies in the same scene) From what I was able to understand (AR's accent is terrible), the line is somthing like, "Oh eagle, do not fly too closely to the ground." However, I may just have to watch the film again to make sure. The accent is that bad!
Julia
Calgary, Canada - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 16:16:36 (PST)

In reply to your question, Magda,
Some weeks ago Fausta mentioned that there were over 30 Rickman sites in her page's links section. Yet there are only seven sites listed in the Rickman Webring. Why is this?
I don't know. My links page http://emma_on_line.tripod.com/links.html is, as of today, current and lists all sites I've found so far. Several of the sites, such as Celebsite, would probably not lend themselves as webring material. However, anyone wanting to join the ring, please e-mail Stezi stezi@wxs.nlfoo, who created the webring.
If anyone wants their site listed on my links page, please let me know. Thank you
Fausta <emma-mail@mailexcite.comfoo>
USA - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 15:52:17 (PST)

Thank you Magda for the article from the Washington Post. I'm glad that AR is getting more "ink" as someone put it, but I was concerned about the overall message of the article. The message that I got out of it was that the writer wants AR to play variations of Hans Gruber for the rest of his career. Fans of DH and RHPOT can flame away, but personally I like the fact that AR is trying not to be stereotyped by choosing a variety of roles. It makes him a much more interesting actor. I think that we have enough actors out there who are willing to "do their shtick" over and over again for a public that demands it. After awhile it gets boring. I like integrity and gosh darn it I liked The Winter Guest. I thought it was a good story and well told. I'm glad that he made the effort to tell a story that was, as AR himself put it, a story about a segment of the population (the elderly) that doesn't get told very often. If I could get a message Mr. Rickman it would be: Stick to your guns dude.
JB
USA - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 15:08:30 (PST)

Some weeks ago Fausta mentioned that there were over 30 Rickman sites in her page's links section. Yet there are only seven sites listed in the Rickman Webring. Why is this?
Magda
Canada - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 14:20:19 (PST)

I know! He could have sped away from the Four Seasons in one of the new Volkswagens...a Big Ugly Bug!
Melissa
Cambridge, MA USA - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 13:33:57 (PST)

Ah, thanks, Sandy! So I was hoping for filet mignon and got Kep-Mock bloodticks instead!
Georgiana (Does this mean I can skip a third viewing??? Naaah.
Seattle - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 13:29:24 (PST)

The Travis Latke GQ site has this summary of an "episode"

"Friends Never Forget" - In this tear jerker about friendship and commitment Dr. Lazarus finds himself pregnant with his mother's child. (His species carries the fertilized embryo in a volvac sac until certain hormonal changes brought on by behavioral patterns occur.) The good doctor has to choose between the service he loves and fatherhood. The Commander is torn up when he receives his friend's resignation, only to be relieved when he learns that the suspected pregnancy were merely stomach cramps brought on by batch of bad Bloodticks

Those critters jumping in and out of the bowl are called Kep-Mock Bloodticks (checked the Travis Latke website just to make sure I got the spelling right). The expression of disgust on his face was so perfect! I'm sincerely glad that he wasn't made to eat one of them to keep up the pretense...yuck...

Thanks guys for the positive comments on the cARtoon page, inspired by Kari with thanks to Dianne, Maxine, Gilda and Renie for their contributions.

Claire
- Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 12:52:28 (PST)

I thought they called them ticks. Mobile little critters in any case. Hmm, may just have to see it again to be sure...
Georgiana
Seattle - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 12:44:26 (PST)

I thought poor Alex was served a steaming bowl of Cricket (or maybe Locust or Grasshopper) Soup. Then again, maybe on the planet Dr. Lazarus came from, ticks grow this large.
Melissa
Cambridge, MA USA - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 11:47:36 (PST)

"Mall Rats" was such an overwhelmingly poor and unpopular film that Mr. Smith knew the DVD would sell only if it had added value... I think he admits as much in the commentary--and, hey, I like listening to the guy!
Georgiana
Seattle - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 11:40:41 (PST)

Gilda, I wondered about the Die Hard DVD so thanks for the info. I'd heard about the RHPoT DVD not being a particularly good buy. If Kevin Smith and other cast members provide the director's commentary for Dogma as they did on the Mall Rats DVD, then Dogma DVD will be well worth it. Realize that KS and his humor may have limited appeal, but some of the observations on MR DVD were very funny.
Lin
Canada, USA - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 11:30:04 (PST)

Thanks, Renie! :-)

Magda, speaking of DVDs, widescreen, letterbox, etc., if you're in the market to buy DVDs to get extra footage, buyer beware: Some of the dimwits at the movie studios don't know how to make a decent collection of movie memorabilia and may not be worth your while. Though I was happy to get the S&S DVD, which has the pan & scan and widescreen version, different languages, and the trailer, I was annoyed that it didn't include the 30-minute or even the 5-minute documentaries on S&S; instead, they put in two trailers for other Emma Thompson movies! (Howard's End and something else). What a waste of space. As much as I admire Emma, I'd think a GOOD DVD would have as much on said movie as possible and nothing else. Who in the heck is at the controls?!?
Also, check out the customer reviews on Amazon.com and other sites for DVDs. Most people who have bought the RHPOT DVD were very disappointed that not only were there no real extras but they also had to flip the disc halfway through the movie (a disc like this is aptly called a "flipper") when there is absolutely no reason to do so. I'm just as happy with my laserdisc version. The Die Hard DVD is worth getting for the trailers (though my LD has a different version), photos, interviews, etc. Michael Collins appears to be not worth buying from what I read of the liner notes.
I can't wait for the Dogma DVD, which I hear has extras, and the Galaxy Quest one will be a lot of fun to watch as well. If I get any more info on new releases of movies, I'll let you all know.
Gilda
USA - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 10:54:20 (PST)

From The Guardian (London), January 20, 2000, HEADLINE: THE BEST ANGELIC SCENE DOGMA: Night. As Bethany (Linda Fiorentino) sleeps, a spectral presence (Alan Rickman) appears in her bedroom, enveloped in fire. Waking in terror, Bethany attempts to put the flames out with an extinguisher. Reaching for her baseball bat, she screams" and the entire scene's dialogue follows, with comments on Rickman's 'unearthly voice,' ending with these recommendations:
See also: A Matter of Life and Death, Wings of Desire.
Don't see also: City Of Angels
. And . . . Pointless trivia: Kevin Smith's daughter Harlequin is named after Harley Quinn from the Batman comic-book series.
Georgiana (yes, ticks--Dr. Lazarus' unwelcomed dinner fare in GQ)
Seattle - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 10:29:04 (PST)

Melissa, I'm SO sorry ! I completely mis-read your posting and took it the wrong way. When I read it again I realised what you were saying. I think the huffiness is just down to general "Yorkshire-ness". There are people up here who feel very uncomfortable with the idea of "stardom" and I think there is a general feeling that you should be down-to earth and not get too big for your boots. Although I DO come from Yorkshire I have never felt that way but I know lots of people who do. I can't quite get my head around Liam Neeson, AR and Uma Thurman eating pie and peas at the interval, though !!
Catherine <catherine.bowles@virgin.netfoo>
Yorkshire, England - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 09:54:18 (PST)

There is also the Dogma cartoon from the New Yorker magazine, which I posted here.

Adding to the list of AR's singing: he sings part of a Russian song at the end of Rasputin. I've assumed it's a peasant song, and wondered whether the words were relevant, but can't seem to translate anything. (Deb, is your newly-acquired Russian any better?) Rasputin also bellows out "Die, die, we're all going to die", but that's not really singing.
Renie <reniept@hotmail.comfoo>
A *tick*, Georgiana?! LOL!, - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 09:41:19 (PST)

Claire, in response to your question on your site of cARtoons, you can snag a copy of the one I have on my LLD page from the Village Voice; everyone else can too, of course. If you can't get to it via the link on my name (the new address for my site), then use http://w3.nai.net/~ab234, which is still active today. The new address will be http://members.iconn.net/~ab234 and is up on that ISP as well, but I'm still working out the kinks. Cheers! (BTW, thanks, Claire, for those cARtoons!)
Gilda <Prisab234@aol.comfoo>
USA - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 06:57:16 (PST)

Thanks Robyn. So letterbox is a good thing to have. I've noticed those black lines on my DVD screen but some films take up the whole screen. And I meant to say (below) that I hope some people in the film industry read that article.
Magda
Canada - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 05:40:23 (PST)

Letterbox, Magda, is when the entire frame of the film is seen on the TV screen at the same time. The image is accompanied by black borders at top and bottom. It has to do with the different aspect ratios of movies and television.
Robyn
USA - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 05:38:02 (PST)

You're welcome, Ellen. It's an excellent article and hopefully some people (including AR) will read it. And Georgiana, what's "letterbox"?
Magda
Canada - Thursday, January 20, 2000 at 05:09:26 (PST)

Maxine, they usually "pan and scan" onto video, picking which portion of the 35 mm frame they will put on the smaller screen. This one will probably go to letterbox. The alternative is DVD--which seem to (1) come out earlier (since they are more difficult, if not impossible, to copy) and (2) all seem to be 'letterbox.'
Georgiana
Seattle - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 21:31:37 (PST)

Thanks for the bumper to bumper coverage on the car issue (I couldn't help myself, my husband restores MG's for a hobby). I had a really awful day and you guys made me laugh, here's to all of you. Claire great cARtoons!! Can't wait to see GQ again, I'm begging anyone around here to go with me. Maybe I'll get lucky. And I agree HE is not in it enough.
Heather <arbgfan@yahoo.comfoo>
Atascadero, CA USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 21:02:05 (PST)

I agree with you, Georgiana, it is very disconcerting how fast the scenes move when you want to just sit and take in Dr. Lazarus and his expressions, etc. I enjoyed it from the start, and sat through it twice the first viewing, and went back again two weeks ago; and really look forward to the video, when I can pause certain smiles and just stare for a while! HOWEVER, I'm really concerned that we're going to lose a lot of his scenes as he is often at the very edge of the screen and will be cut out when it is reduced to video. In the previews I've seen on TV when they were all walking down the hallway of the docking station, he is not seen... although is there in the film. I'm not confident of what they do when they put a movie on video, and am already mourning the loss of that precious smile at the end of the film when he is watching Tim and Sigourney kissing on the stage... I fear it will not make the tv screen from the video. Does anybody know what they do when transfering to video? Do they ever "center" anything so it will fit or leave it as is... with only a letter-box format allowing for the whole shot to remain?
Maxine <maxinerose@prodigy.netfoo>
Greeley, CO USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 20:27:25 (PST)

Magda, you may be tired of hearing this but thanks so much for the article. It made my day! The article was "right on".
Ellen <kjw@rcn.comfoo>
USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 20:02:51 (PST)

I decided to give "Galaxy Quest" another chance and liked it much better. It is very frantic--which I found distracting and annoying on first viewing. But it does have a number of precious moments--however compact--and the density was more fun on second viewing. Still disconcerting that the moments are so fleeting...
Georgiana (sort of like getting ticks when you were hoping for steak...)
Seattle - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 19:14:39 (PST)

Claire, may I add my thanks for the cARtoons! The baseball cap is a bit odd. What was the cARtoon featured with? While I think it's cute I don't think I get it--I'm having a slow day--sorry!
A-m
LI, NY USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 19:03:09 (PST)

And yes, I agree about the cARtoons...thanks for the laughs! Somehow a baseball cap just doesn't suit...
LynnP
USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 17:58:49 (PST)

Julia, one of the most wonderful meals (both food and service) I've ever had was at the very apex of your lovely city (so you know which restaurant, hint hint) - maybe some people think y'all eat whale fat and seal blubber, but I know better! ;-) And incidentally, we Yanks could take a few lessons from your transit system...
LynnP (sides still aching from laughing at the day's posts...)
York, PA USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 17:56:23 (PST)

Magda, there are people out there who think we all eat whale fat and seal blubber up here. We should be grateful that they at least know we *have* political leanings, eh? ;)
Julia
Calgary, Canada - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 17:25:38 (PST)

Hang on, Natasha Richardson is in "Blow Dry" and she's married to Liam Neeson, so that must be why he came to the party. I don't see why AR should be taking the rap from the disgruntled, sweetie-and-footy-loving crew. Still to be explained: Uma Thurman's appearance.
Nancy R.
CA USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 17:22:07 (PST)

My guess is that the huffiness of the crew (who aren't necessarily from Huddersfield, are they?) was caused by Neeson & Thurman, Hollywood stars and outsiders to the film, swanning in to the end-of-shoot party, presumably at AR's invitation. Don't quite see why that's perceived as anti-egalitarian, but I've never fully understood the nuances of the English class system. The American class system (can you spell "money"?) is hard enough for me to cope with.
Nancy R.
CA USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 17:12:53 (PST)

My heart belongs to Jaguar. Julia, there are people who think we're all socialists up here. Suzanne, if I'm going to mail you something, I need your non-virtual address.
Magda
Canada - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 17:05:12 (PST)

Thank you for the Washington Post article! It's too bad some of us just can't accept socialists. In the words of my old English teacher (Whose name was also Alan!) "I used to be a socialist too---once..." It's also rather too bad that some people can't just accept a "big" actor driving a Volvo. I have to say, I personally think Volvos are nicer-looking than Mercedes, but I still prefer BMWs! :)
Julia, who knows little about cars, and less about socialists.
Calgary, Canada - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 16:51:24 (PST)

Claire, love the cARtoons!

Melissa is referring to the article that Jeff quoted, Catherine. Anybody got any explanations?
Magda
Canada - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 16:27:48 (PST)

Melissa, I was just joking !!! Why such huffiness amongst non Huddersfielders ?
Catherine <catherine.bowles@virgin.netfoo>
Yorkshire, England - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 16:13:27 (PST)

Yes, Claire, and yes, Fausta...but this thread will cycle through to completion soon, I'm sure.
Meanwhile, in re: that other highly significant topic, why such huffiness amongst the Huddersfielders?
Melissa (Oh God, and I *hate* puns...)
Cambridge, MA USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 16:03:09 (PST)

Is the automotive thread driving people to distraction?

Fausta <emma-mail@mailexcite.comfoo>
can not resist a chance for a pun, USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 15:50:49 (PST)

[Sorry. I post in Lynx and have not done so for a while.] To continue, the 4th project was to have been about Himalayan adventurer Alexandra David-Neel, with Debra Winger and Ben Kingsley. None of these projects was made, and for no lack of boldness or inclination on AR's part. (We'll leave that to the Hollywood establishment.) If GQ and DOGMA increase AR's name recognition in certain quarters, so that films like these get funded, we can all rejoice.
R.Faey
USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 15:34:36 (PST)

RE: AR and big lead roles. If I remember aright, he's been proposed for at least 4 since 1996: Moon & Sixpence, the Aliste Crowley project, Brown Sugar with Alfre Woodard, and
R.Faey
USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 15:24:32 (PST)

In LA, Melissa, that would mark you as a target.
Georgiana (yes, Pam, and don't know yet...)
Seattle - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 15:13:04 (PST)

Have I missed something? Or is it a pretty sad state of affairs when ordinary things in life like renting a car have to become a statement of ones political persuasion!

Claire
- Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 15:12:38 (PST)

In the transportation follies, wouldn't the ultimate scenario be setting off on a sensible bicycle, with trouser clips a la Sandy in TMD, and maybe even one of those tee shirts with One Less Car printed in large letters on the back? (Probably in LA this would mark you as a true-blue Thermian.)
Melissa
Cambridge, MA USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 14:30:16 (PST)

Hi, folks! I see the Wash Post article on The Man was copied here. You might also like to know that it was on the front of the Style section (not tucked inside to take up space), and it "jumped" inside, where more pictures ran (him in GQ alien garb, him as the sheriff sitting astride the horse when the forest village was being destroyed, and one of him as Hans holding a gun to Bonnie Bedelia's head. lovely, all of them! But no Jamie? How dare they! (lol!). Also, Georgiana--how did the eBay auction of his costume go off? Were you the lucky one? If so, how do you plan to display it? (or how would you, had you won?)
Pam
Chicago, IL USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 12:32:27 (PST)

You are all too funny! Reagan '80's, Robyn? All my '60's socialist friends drove old Volvos, and the standing joke in Seattle in the '70's was, if an out-of-towner wanted to attend the Democratic convention and couln't find it, he'd just queue behind the first Volvo station wagon found--and if there was a Greenpeace sticker on the back, even better.
Georgiana
Seattle - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 12:29:52 (PST)

Would a good and proper socialist not taken the bus to show his solidarity with the bus drivers' union?
Magda
Canada - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 11:42:59 (PST)

Oh, come now! You know darn well what's wrong with Volvos! They smack of insufferable American Yuppies from the Reagan '80s!

Of all the cars to pick, why did Rickman choose a Volvo? What?... he's got kids to ferry around to soccer practice? Plants to haul to the garden club? Sorry LynnP, but a good and proper socialist would have rented a Ford!
Robyn
USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 11:39:18 (PST)

Reminds me of the old joke -- How can you tell a Porsche from a porcupine? With a porcupine the pricks are on the outside. (Pardon my French.) Definately not an AR car. He can borrow my Toyota Sienna too, anytime!
susan
USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 10:03:00 (PST)

I'm also pleased that Huddersfield Town get a mention. They are the most fantastic footy team in the world !!! The man obviously has good taste.
Catherine (waving the stripy scarf for Huddersfield) <catherine.bowles@virgin.netfoo>
Yorkshire, England - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 09:34:06 (PST)

And what's wrong with Volvos? Have you seen the new S80s? They're absolutely gorgeous, and I would think one of those beauties would suit Alan to a T. He definitely doesn't strike me as the Porsche type. C'mon, the guy's a socialist.
LynnP
USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 07:58:22 (PST)

heck, it might even start a trend, like at the end of Get Shorty
Fausta
USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 06:34:28 (PST)

Re: cars, Porches are for girls. It takes a man to drive a Volvo. But I'll really be IMPRESSED if I ever read he's been seen leaving the Four Seasons driving a Toyota Sienna minivan.
And he could probably drive Uma, Liam, & the new friends the other article mentions in the Sienna, plenty of room for all!
Fausta <emma-mail@mailexcite.comfoo>
guess what I drive . . ., USA - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 06:27:19 (PST)

The daily mail article I posted below ends with the words "he said". The comments that followed are mine. Sorry about any confusion.
jeff Rickman <jeff.j.rickman@si.shell.comfoo>
London, UK - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 03:43:37 (PST)

Article in todays Daily Mail; "Alan Rickman, who has been shooting a £12.5 million film in Yorkshire with Natasha Richardson, bought sweeties for runners, teaboys and staff. They took him to watch Huddersfield Town Football club. But the egalitarian spirit did not endure, says a crew member. 'His friends, Uma Thurman and Liam Neeson, arrived for the end-of-shoot party and that didn't go down well with his new pals'he said". Am I missing something in this 'in depth' piece of trivial nonsense? Whatever can it all mean?
Jeff Rickman <jeff.j.rickman@si.shell.comfoo>
London, UK - Wednesday, January 19, 2000 at 03:19:20 (PST)

I was just passing on the info.I absolutely agree about Volvos. What was it they said in that Dudley Moore movie about mental patients succeeding in advetising? "They're boxy, but they're safe!" It shows AR is a man concerned with safety. Remember he failed his driving test for proceeding too carefully through a green light. Jose the Peruvian driving instructor would be proud.
A-m
LI, NY USA - Tuesday, January 18, 2000 at 22:25:05 (PST)

Yeah, really what's wrong with a Volvo??!! We know they are much safer than a Porsche (remember James Dean) and heavens knows with all those crazy drivers in LA (excepting any on this GB) we certainly want AR to be well protected. What purpose does talk like that serve anyway. Did anyone get to see the Charlie Rose with Kevin Smith? The Charlie Rose on my television was on Russia last night :(.
Heather-thanks A-m and Georgiana <arbgfan@yahoo.comfoo>
Atascadero, CA USA - Tuesday, January 18, 2000 at 21:45:55 (PST)

Will someone please tell me what's so embarrassing about getting into a rented black Volvo??
Georgia
Anaheim, Ca USA - Tuesday, January 18, 2000 at 19:16:30 (PST)

AR was in Beverly Hills some time last week. He was mentioned in a kind of snippy way in The Awful Truth column ar E! online. The columnist remarked that he must have been embarrassed getting into his rented black Volvo outside the Four Seasons when Nia Long was getting out of a silver Porsche Carrera.
A-m
LI, NY USA - Tuesday, January 18, 2000 at 19:12:11 (PST)

Over at News Askew they've posted pictures of the characters for the new "Clerks" animated series. The picture of Leonardo Leonardo, the character that AR was originally supposed to voice, is now being voiced by Alec Baldwin. In looking at the drawing he certainly looks like AR to me. Sort of Hans-like. Too bad he won't be doing the voice.
A-m
LI, NY USA - Tuesday, January 18, 2000 at 18:39:09 (PST)

Hallo everyone! After having seen Alan Rickman in Robin Hood the first time when I was about fourteen years old, I dare say a thing or two changed!The perfect villain Sheriff of Nottingham, posessed me and I wanted nothing more in the whole world than Jump back to mid evil times and meet him (me being a Marian type woman and not a fourteen year old chubby kid with glasses and a real bad hairdue!) Today (being twenty years old) I still wouldn´t mind meeting Sheriff all though Rickman in person would be even more delightfull, since he is also the sweet colonell Brandon and all his other parts in one man!!
Birgitte Sønderskov Bager <ENGBSB@stud.hum.au.dkfoo>
Århus, Denmark - Tuesday, January 18, 2000 at 04:47:49 (PST)

FYI, the copy of Fallen Angels Vol. 1 with AR is on ebay and going off in about 3 hours from this post. It is at $42 right now and if I had the money I would buy it and make copies for anyone who wants one, but I don't. If anyone on here ends up with it I would be willing to pay for a copy. Thanks.
Heather <arbgfan@yahoo.comfoo>
Atascadero, CA USA - Monday, January 17, 2000 at 18:42:33 (PST)

Thanks Maxine, you might be right. My TV guide says the 4 and 11 p.m. shows are both Dogma, but this is one of those cheapy guides that comes with the local newspaper. It's usually wrong half of the time so maybe Dogma will be on at 11 p.m. We'll see...
Lisa
Riverside, USA - Monday, January 17, 2000 at 18:37:48 (PST)

Winona Ryder and Angelina Jolie were on Friday night... so maybe they show it twice in your area? The early show would be a rerun from the night before (Monday's repeat would have originally been aired on Friday; Tuesday's from Monday; etc.) and then the actual show for the day would be on at 11pm or later that night. (It's on at 11pm here.) That's the way some programs (like Access Hollywood, E! and Extra) do it.
Maxine <maxinerose@prodigy.netfoo>
Greeley, CO USA - Monday, January 17, 2000 at 18:18:43 (PST)

Well rats! My TV guide said Charlie Rose would have Smith and Rock, but if it is them, they look remarkably like Winona Rider and Angelina Jolie. Oh well...never mind...
Lisa
Riverside, USA - Monday, January 17, 2000 at 16:04:26 (PST)

To state the obvious, "Winter Guest" the play was earlier than "Winter Guest" the film...
Georgiana
Seattle - Monday, January 17, 2000 at 15:35:00 (PST)

Magda - Positive! Winter Guest in rehersalRickman as director, picture was taken late 1994 and appears in the Yorkshire Playhouse programme. TWG premiered January 1995.

Claire
- Monday, January 17, 2000 at 15:30:53 (PST)

Hi all! Just thought I'd come out of the shadows to mention that Charlie Rose will have Chris Rock and Kevin Smith on his show today to discuss Dogma. In my area Charlie Rose is on at 4 p.m. and 11 p.m. Check you local listings.

Heather, I had to laugh when you mentioned that you had read the Washington Post article to your husband, I had just finished doing the same thing! He loved it, but took great offense to the "suggestion of effeminancy" bit. As a member of the Secret Society of Masculine Rickmaniacs, he likes to believe that AR is just "one of the dudes". Nevertheless, a great article. Thanks Magda!
Lisa W. <cap10hook@dreamsoft.comfoo>
Riverside, CA USA - Monday, January 17, 2000 at 14:25:49 (PST)

Claire, are you sure about the "Winter Guest in Rehearsal" pic? AR's hairstyle looks like it belongs to an earlier era; ditto the women's looks. Could it be an earlier play?
Magda
Canada - Monday, January 17, 2000 at 14:10:47 (PST)

Thanks for the 'new' scenery, Claire.
Georgiana
Seattle - Monday, January 17, 2000 at 13:52:01 (PST)

Yeah, Renie, I had noticed the same things in that review, but those were relatively minor speed bumps to my enjoyment of it; the article said some of the very things I had thought so many times but could never express with such verve and panache. I keep wishing for a film for Rickman that would do for him what, say, The Silence of the Lambs did for Sir Anthony Hopkins--Hopkins had been a terrific actor for years and years, but people really sat up and took notice. (And every time I remember that the role of Lecter might have been Rickman's, I shiver. It still would have been good, but quite different.)

By all means, Rickman should do his art films (which I will see on video, because most of them never come here!) but please let there be some good popular successes as well. One of the great pleasures of looking forward to GQ was that I knew I'd actually be able to see it in a theatre!

Mary Anne (Renie, the D.o.C. is a kinder, gentler thralldom, no? *Grin*
USA - Monday, January 17, 2000 at 12:41:05 (PST)

Correction made.
Suz (D.o.C. at your service)

That's "despite it being" . . .
R, again
(oh, DOC, I will always be in your thrall. , - Monday, January 17, 2000 at 11:31:16 (PST)

Enjoyable article, thank-you Magda. Though I don't remember any reference to "Hamlet at 23" (it was Richard III) and "Never Give Up . . . " is Tim Allen's line, not Rickman's. And AR does star in TMD, despite it being rather ensemble-ish.

Last night, Geraldine McEwan, Stephen Fry, Sir Derek Jacobi, and Dame Judi Dench were among those who paid tribute to Kenneth Branagh as he received the Golden Quill award from the Shakespeare Guild. Details will be here at the Daily Telegiraffe. In his acceptance speech, Branagh took a moment to do something very cool: he thanked his online supporters, who put together the charity projects (such as the Henry V Tenth Anniversary Project) in his honor. So even though I couldn't be there (though more than 25 others of us were), I was there. Thanks to those of you GB denizens who took part in the project!

Renie <reniept@hotmail.comfoo>
CA, USA - Monday, January 17, 2000 at 11:28:47 (PST)

What a well-written article by Stephen Hunter! He really nailed the Rickman allure. I loved the imagery.
susan
USA - Monday, January 17, 2000 at 11:07:53 (PST)

I really love this site. This is my first message. I am learning to use this computer I hope there are no mistakes. I have bee a fan of Alan Rickman for a long time and hopefully we will see Dogma and Galaxy Quest soon here in Australia.
Barbara Murphy <-foo>
Gold Coast, QLD Australia - Sunday, January 16, 2000 at 21:52:02 (PST)

Funny all this GQ commentary should be going on, especially with references to Hans Gruber. I went to see GQ (again) today and had to go the post office afterwards. I was standing in line, sort of musing to myself, thinking something like, "Yow, Doctor Lazarus is quite a different thing from playing Hans Gruber . . ." when all of a sudden the post office muzak caught my attention. Just a familiar note or two . . .

And then the chorus of voices burst forth in Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" finale from the 9th Symphony.

I started laughing out loud and by the time I reached the front of the line, I was still grinning so hard it hurt. What timing! It was delicious.

Mary Anne
USA - Sunday, January 16, 2000 at 17:13:40 (PST)

Great find, Magda. Alas, I, too, "wish the film had freed Rickman to really do his big Rickman thing."
Georgiana (another addict, who lives in hope...)
Seattle - Sunday, January 16, 2000 at 15:12:19 (PST)

Magda, thanks so much for sharing that Washington Post article! So wonderful to see our man finally getting some ink!
Georgia
Anaheim, Ca USA - Sunday, January 16, 2000 at 14:10:51 (PST)

What an awesome article! Thanks, Magda for sharing that. I even read it to my husband who thought it was great too.
Heather
Atascadero, CA USA - Sunday, January 16, 2000 at 12:23:51 (PST)

And this in today's Washington Post.:

'Galaxy's' Dark Star
Alan Rickman, Demonstrating Once Again His Sneer Genius
By Stephen Hunter
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, January 16, 2000; Page G01

It's late. You're bushed. Maybe you had a little in the recreational beverage department. Or maybe you had a lot. (We're not condoning this kind of behavior, of course, but, folks, it does happen!) You're alone because she/the kids/he/it/the dog/whatever has gone upstairs/died/left/been abducted by aliens. You turn on the tube. You surf through inane nothingness, just looking for some white noise to chill you toward sleep. Nothing, however, is white enough or noisy enough. Finally, pay dirt! "Die Hard," the white-noisiest movie ever made!

So there you sit. Yadda-yadda-yadda, blah blah and blah, all receptors closed, all data interpretation systems cooled out and darkened, synapses in the non-firing mode, just awaiting the arrival of a late-night energy rally so that you can hit the sack and . . .

Someone steps out of that movie so big he smacks you in the mouth.

It's never the star. The star is uninteresting and always will be uninteresting, especially the Bruce-star. But someone is interesting.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you: Alan Rickman.

Has he ever been in a movie he hasn't a) been better than? and b) stolen handily? Well, okay, there was "Michael Collins." And it's true, in most of his "regular" movies he's a cast member, a part of the team.

But at a certain pitch, a certain level of shrieking comic intensity, he stands for a secret movie ecstasy, which is the character actor who seems at cross purposes to the general thrust of the piece but who manages to commandeer the film anyhow. When it has disappeared from mind, he remains. Yet at the same time you wonder if he could ever carry a film; he's much better when you're not expecting him, where your attention is elsewhere.

I think of others: James Woods was the great American exemplar, always better than the movies he was in, always the most interesting thing in them. Then he became a star and couldn't hold our attention; his ripply mannerisms and constant chatter seemed out of place and antiheroic at the center of a movie.

Of course Rickman's niche is slightly different: His lineage is British, not American, and he connects with another line in character artistry, namely the key of superciliousness. He seems to hark back to the greatest cad of them all, George Sanders.

Now there was a big nasty! Sanders, who left the best suicide note ever ("Dear World, I am leaving because I am bored"), played languid English snots for years, with dead eyes and skin so cold and white it appeared to be a cod's belly. He stood for English superiority as pure languid pose: He was Jeeves with a mace and chain ("I chose this day the mace and chain," he says in "Ivanhoe" where he loses the battle to Robert "I Am Wood" Taylor but carries the movie). He was a big bag of English rectitude served cold as suet pie, the snob as force of nature.

But where Sanders was frosty and distant, Rickman's irritation is of a slightly different declension. He is more voluble. Sanders dispatched with a rapier; Rickman is more of a shotgun man. He's a ranter, an emotionalist, almost sociopathic in his intensity. He seems to spit when he talks. A somewhat fleshy, meaty, thick-throated fellow, with the acerbic Brit stage superiority, a nose long and sniffy, eyes narrowed in perpetual snickery contempt, lots of hair, a Royal Academy of Dramatic Art plumminess in his rich voice, an accent so arch it could be James Bond's tailor addressing James Bond's fish delivery boy. He's always a joy to watch. There's something about his mouth, chin and throat; they seem fishy, somehow, and overactive. He also has the English thing of a slight suggestion of effeminacy under his big gestures, a man too comfortable crossing his legs thigh to thigh or holding his cigarette between the tips of his fingers.

I thought of this as I grooved on Rickman's exquisite turn as terrorist turned armed robber Hans Gruber in "Die Hard"--what a toot! Gruber is the worst kind of terrorist, one who's in it for the money and the bespoke suits. His suavity and self-possession and ironic contempt for the pathetic mortals who oppose him truly hijacks the movie from the stewardship of Bruce Willis, who thunders through it with the unidimensionality of an airline pilot on the vector to Toledo, Ohio. If he didn't have a Beretta and a South Jersey accent, you wouldn't notice him. In nominal plot terms, Willis's "good" may trump Rickman's "bad," but in movie universe terms, Rickman wiped out Willis.

He did the same to poor Kevin Costner in "Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves," though one must acknowledge a sense of regret for Kevin, who was in way over his head. Talk about overmatched: He was flanked on the left by Rickman and on the right by his own ostensible sidekick, Morgan Freeman, who stole what little of the movie Rickman hadn't already purloined. Where's the rest of me, he must have wondered when he finally saw it.

As for Rickman, it was another great, showy turn: blazing spittle and perfect dithery outrage. Rickman's Sheriff of Nottingham was grand opera to Costner's amateur theater. It was like man and boy. Of course Rickman did the same to the still more awkward Tom Selleck in "Quigley Down Under." And it seemed that his career could have been a cash cow to end all cash cows: making millions playing extravagant stage-English villains to wooden American stars. (Imagine . . . Rickman in a Schwarzenegger film!)

But the actor seems to have resisted that temptation. He is a socialist (ARGGGHHHHH!!!!! . . . oh, sorry, folks, it just slipped out) who lives with his longtime lover in a London apartment; she is a social activist and college professor of some sort (!). So Rickman has for the past half-dozen years fought the temptation to do the big commercial thing. He's appeared in art films and as a team player if at all. (He also directed an art film, the bleak "Winter Guest," and brother, do I hope he's got that out of his system!) He's resisted the big Tinseltown bucks. He has integrity. (I hate that in a man! Memo to Alan Rickman: Sell out.)

Well, here's the good news. It looks as though he has. He's playing, at long last, the kind of role that made him almost famous. He's a kind of mock-Spock in "Galaxy Quest," a delightful spoof of the tackiness of the "Star Trek" phenomenon that then morphs into its own delightful sci-fi movie. Rickman is fabulous in a role conceived to play off the long-suspected Nimoy-Shatner tension that formed an undercurrent--delicious to nonbelievers--in the "Star Trek" phenomenon.

As "Galaxy Quest" has it, Rickman's Alexander Dane is a failed Shakespearean ("I played Hamlet at 23") who became reluctantly famous as a wise alien on a cheesy TV series called, of course, "Galaxy Quest." To make his humiliation even more loathsome, his character, Dr. Lazarus, must wear a crown of makeup about his head, a kind of rubbery, neo-reptilian brain mutation that turns him ridiculous. Worse, as the story progresses, the prosthesis grows tattier and tattier until it is all but disintegrating. It looks like a woman's bathing cap with a bad case of gangrene.

How wonderful! There is Rickman in the full blossom of self-love, his Royal Academy dignity at highest, snootiest pitch, and all about his head is a rotting crown of rubbery plastic that is slipping and cracking and peeling all at once. His big, fluid, saggy face is animated with self-loathing and contempt for American film culture. His signal line, "Never give up!," makes him ill. He hates the sad little strip malls of the Valley, the "Galaxy Quest" conventions where people without lives line up and pay a buck for an autograph. To think that this is what an heir to Laughton, Gielgud, Richardson and Olivier could have come to! But he's also a trouper who loves tess is further enraged by the shallow narcissism of Tim Allen in the role of the Shatner clone Jason Nesmith.

I wish the film had freed Rickman to really do his big Rickman thing. I am a hopeless addict. I don't want story, I don't want pretty, I don't want love--I want attitude. I want Rickman fulminating at full blister at the clowns and retards that peep about his feet. Is that so much to ask?

Alan, the only thing you have to lose is your soul.

Magda
Canada - Sunday, January 16, 2000 at 10:45:09 (PST)

According to the Dreamworks SKG site:

"The latest box office report is that the film has been holding on the 5th spot during the week as well. It's total is now close to hitting $40 million and you can expect another $8 million suggesting extremely positive word of mouth. At this rate, the film can hit $80 million in domestic earnings with $60 million budget and yet to be released worldwide." That's as of Friday the 15th. This would put GQ in the Die Hard and RHPOT category as a money maker.
Magda
Canada - Sunday, January 16, 2000 at 10:38:25 (PST)

Thanks for the info on AR's cello playing in TMD. I was curious about that too. With all this talk about music, I wonder if anybody out there knows if he actually does play a musical instrument?

I am a big Savage Garden fan also. It's great to know that one of my favorite songs is inspired by one of my favorite movies. Thanks Georgiana for the info about AR in TMD. I am going to watch it again and again so I am sure I will have more questions. I can't wait to see how Galaxy Quest did at the box office this week. I know I'm telling all my friends to go see it. I only wish I could go see it again.
Heather <arbgfan@yahoo.comfoo>
Atascadero, CA USA - Sunday, January 16, 2000 at 09:49:12 (PST)

Heather, I know what you mean. It must be something about turning 30 (I'm 35) - or maybe it's just maturity! All the actors I really adore, with the exception of Morgan Freeman, are over 50 and British or Welsh.

And Sandy, my experience was the same as yours. I went to Robin Hood to see Kevin Costner, having loved him in Dances with Wolves, and when AR took off that mask, I forgot Costner completely (and permanently). I spent the rest of the film wondering "Who is this guy?" and after the show I went straight to index at the video store to check out what else he'd appeared in. Hook, line, and sinker. By the way, Georgiana, thanks for the info about the cello. I'd wondered about that myself!
LynnP (watch your mail, Nancy C!)
York, PA USA - Sunday, January 16, 2000 at 04:24:20 (PST)

Thanks for the website, Claire! :)
Neva
USA - Sunday, January 16, 2000 at 00:44:41 (PST)

Savage Garden are an Australian group, TMD written well after but inspired by the film. Their current hit I knew I Loved You on the Affirmation album, seems inspired by Mesmer, check out the lyrics on their web site.

Claire
.. big Savage Garden fan!, - Sunday, January 16, 2000 at 00:22:42 (PST)

Just a question- I heard the song "Truly, Madly, Deeply" by Savage Garden tonight on the radio; does the song connect with the movie in any way (especially since Savage Garden is a British group)?
Neva
USA - Saturday, January 15, 2000 at 23:04:27 (PST)

Heather, he took cello lessons (and complained about having to haul one around London) for his role in "Truly, Madly, Deeply." He signs quite a few snippets in his reading of "Return of the Native," including a French folk tune, and has been offered singing parts, including at one point Juan Peron in "Evita" (too high) and several Broadway musicals. As in other areas, 'we live in hope...' (Thanks, Claire! 'though some of us would think Sigourney with the 'Aliens' link!)
Georgiana (off to Boris Godunov tonight and...) <gellis@drizzle.comfoo>
(battling a winter cold in...) Seattle - Saturday, January 15, 2000 at 18:12:38 (PST)

I just got my copy from ebay of TMD and watched it for only the second time ever last night. This led me to some questions. 1) Does AR play the cello or did he just do it for this movie? 2) Has he done anything else in which he sings as it seemed he didn't have too bad of a singing voice? It was so wonderful watching that again as it had been about seven years.
Heather <arbgfan@yahoo.comfoo>
Atascadero, CA USA - Saturday, January 15, 2000 at 17:52:02 (PST)

This is a very good site. Keep up the good work.
Adrian Rector <lavinia_17@hotmail.comfoo>
Marion, VA USA - Saturday, January 15, 2000 at 17:12:16 (PST)

Heather, we certainly don't know all, nor should we, but when it comes to AR's work and what people are saying about it, there's a synergistic effect - I think that's the word I want. There are quite a few of us, with diverse interests and reading habits, so we manage to keep each other pretty well informed. How else would I know what the Calgary Herald is quoting from the London Times? And it was thanks to this guestbook that I found out about AR & Helen Mirren in "Antony & Cleopatra" in time to secure myself a ticket. Others on this guestbook managed to meet each other and the man himself in New York - for that story, take your time and read through the g'book archives. It's quite a club you have joined.
Nancy R.
CA USA - Saturday, January 15, 2000 at 16:47:54 (PST)

The Calgary Herald today ran a story from the Times about film and psychology called "Prozac or Its a Wonderful Life? Try cinema therapy for what ails you". Here's a quote: "Boss From Hell Syndrome (Male):...For men, try Robin Hood; Prince of Thieves, in which Alan Rickman's unspeakable Sherriff of Nottingham tries to cancel Christmas." Ahh, gotta love the Times of London. Thank you Celia Brayfield, whoever you are!
Julia
Calgary, Canada - Saturday, January 15, 2000 at 15:10:13 (PST)

Heather, I know exactly what you mean (having just turned 30 myself this past October)! My first exposure to AR was when I saw "Robin Hood" when it was released in theaters. I was blown away by his acting (and that voice-WOW), and I've been a fan ever since.

First, I must beg everyone on this site to forgive me because even though I have admired Alan Rickman for many years, it is only recently that I have become a wholly devoted and (dare I say) obsessed fan. Maybe it's tu