Jamie Lee Curtis and Scream Queen?
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simest — 9 years ago(August 14, 2016 01:00 AM)
Indeed.and her performance in that horror classic, for me has not been topped by any of the subsequent scream queens that have come along since.
Her co-star Teri McMinn (red shorts) is also another very sweet person and the two were like sisters right up til Marilyn's passing.
McMinn paid her a lovely tribute on her Facebook page.
And Darkness and Decay and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all. -
simest — 9 years ago(August 14, 2016 03:22 PM)
I met Gunnar here in the UK about 7 years ago. He was such a friendly chap, very humble and down to earth with a lot of time for his fans.
Teri has shared many fascinating insights on the film and has even written a short story about her character (Pam)'s survival of the events in the film!
She has a seperate Facebook page called Pam - The Original Chainsaw Gal with all the TCM stuff in one place.
And Darkness and Decay and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all. -
simest — 9 years ago(August 14, 2016 11:47 PM)
I think this should link to it - it's the two part piece entitled "What Really Happened To Pam?".
https://m.facebook.com/PamTheOriginalChainsawGal/about/?ref=page_internal&mt_nav=1
And Darkness and Decay and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all. -
IGetSoEmojinal — 9 years ago(August 18, 2016 12:20 AM)
Texas Chainsaw is every bit as famous and iconic as Halloween and Burns' performance in Chainsaw is actually far better than Curtis' performance in Halloween though she never seems to get credit for it. Curtis was only in one really good horror film herself. The Fog was decent but not great and the rest are mediocre or just plain bad.
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dave626 — 9 years ago(August 19, 2016 08:04 AM)
Yeah, well, here's the thing. One went on to have a phenomenal career while the other didn't. I'll leave it to you to decide who is who. TCM did not inspire Halloween. Halloween inspired the entire slasher genre and many dated/holiday movies. TCM hardly is the merchandising juggernaut that Halloween is. These are facts. TCM, famous or infamous, hasn't had the success of sequels and prequels Halloween has. Burns' performance in TCM is a matter of your opinion, which you are entitled to.
It certainly didn't boost her career. I can honestly say I've never seen another Burns movie. Ever. Going through her IMdb page confirms it. Mostly cameos, TV one shots or movies I've never heard of.
I get that perhaps you are biased about her. Honestly watching it again last night she got annoying at the end. Laurie and JLC only got annoying at the end of Halloween II for me. Maybe I'm biased too, but the fact remains while one went on to rocket to stardom, the other went on to do paying gigs. I don't blame her for that.
I'm just saying TCM gets far too much credit sometimes. It's a decent film, and a classic no doubt, but it certainly hasn't maintained the level of success the Halloween franchise has.
"He came home." - Dr. Sam Loomis from the original HalloweeN -
simest — 9 years ago(August 19, 2016 04:22 PM)
The problem with THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE for it's cast, is that the film gained such a notorious and controversial reputation that many of them found it difficult to find work thereafter.
Teri McMinn has discussed how the film put the kiss of death on her acting career almost immediately. At auditions when asked what else she'd been in, casting agents would respond with "Ooooh.you were in
that?"
when she'd mention TCM. It was looked down upon almost like a work of pornography would be.
The film therefore put McMinn and Burns at something of a disadvantage for securing future roles. Certainly it closed more doors than it opened.
With Janet Leigh and Tony Curtis for a Mam and Dad, Curtis hardly had to burst a gut to get her foot in the Hollywood door. It was somewhat on a plate for her, whereas unknowns like Burns didn't have the benefit of Hollywood royalty coursing through their veins nor enjoy the privileges that would provide.
That's not to say Curtis didn't deserve or earn her success - she did.and she showed a good deal of talent.
But the very real possibility exists that if she had started out from the same humble and obscure origins as young unknowns like McMinn, Burns or countless other hopeful actresses with dreams of stardom that never fully blossomed..then she too may never have enjoyed the achievements and prestige she did.
And Darkness and Decay and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all. -
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simest — 9 years ago(August 20, 2016 01:07 AM)
It is cj. I have enjoyed her performances in those movies among others, even if I don't regard any of them as classics personally.
She's had a colourful career and touched many genres with her ability to shift from one to another very capably.
It was fun seeing her play the psycho in MOTHER'S BOYS - Myers would have had his hands full dealing with her in that one.
And Darkness and Decay and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all. -
IGetSoEmojinal — 9 years ago(August 20, 2016 01:13 AM)
Yeah, well, here's the thing. One went on to have a phenomenal career while the other didn't.
No one is denying that. Doesn't mean some can't be more impressed with Burns' work in ONE film over Curtis' in another.
TCM did not inspire Halloween. Halloween inspired the entire slasher genre and many dated/holiday movies.
I never said that it did. And I have huge respect for Halloween and recognize it as the classic it is.
TCM hardly is the merchandising juggernaut that Halloween is. These are facts. TCM, famous or infamous, hasn't had the success of sequels and prequels Halloween has.
Another fact is that the tide has turned and the TCM franchise is more popular now. The 2003 remake of Texas Chainsaw Massacre grossed over 80 million domestically on an 8 million budget and has spawned two successful sequels since plus a fourth film that just wrapped production. The remake of Halloween PLUS its sequel grossed about the same as only the 2003 TCM yet cost over 30 million to make. A third new Halloween film has been in production limbo forever. The remakes of Friday the 13th and A Nightmare on Elm Street, crappy as they may be, also outperformed Halloween at the box office. Seems its popularity has fallen considerably in the franchise pecking order.
It certainly didn't boost her career. I can honestly say I've never seen another Burns movie. Ever.
As mentioned elsewhere, Curtis had the luxury of celebrity parents. It was Debra Hill's idea to cast "Janet Leigh's daughter" as a bit of stunt casting and to connect the film to an already-established classic. No one is saying Jamie Lee isn't talented. However, that doesn't change the fact she wouldn't have even gotten the role in the first place if not for her mother.
Burns on the other hand had to try to work her way up from scratch and faced the same problems most face when they aren't connected in the business. Director Sidney Lumet cast her in one of his films for Columbia Pictures and was forced to replace her because the agency representing several other actors who were cast withheld the OK on two of the stars until the director agreed to give the part to Susan Sarandon (who got HER very first film role through her husband) instead. That's how it works much of the time and there are countless talented actors who get passed over for the likes of Tori Spelling, Jaden Smith, Rumer Willis, Mamie Gummer etc. etc. I'm sure getting screwed over for a part you auditioned for and earned for someone's wife or someone's daughter would make anyone disillusioned with the business.
Either way, a ton of people showed up for the TCM auditions and Burns, a nobody, landed the lead role because she was good. I agree that the film didn't do her career any favors. Despite it being a huge hit, most who were connected to it were blackballed by Hollywood afterward. It didn't even really help out Tobe Hooper himself until years later. The same exact thing happened to Wes Craven after Last House on the Left and George Romero after Night of the Living Dead. As far as Hollywood was concerned, the actors who appeared in these notorious horror films may as well have made a porno. Carpenter and Curtis never had to go through any of that.