Anne Bancroft
Tue Jun 07 18:30:00 +0200 2005
daBlog » Celebrity
One of the great dames of American cinema, Anne Bancroft, passed away
yesterday. One of my
favorite actresses of all time, she had an awesome wit about her and was a
inspiring, positive spirit. When I think of her, unlike some who will always
remember her as Mrs. Robinson from The Graduate, I recall the wonderful
things Patty Duke had written about Anne in her autobiography, Call Me Anna.
Patty wrote about her great friendship with Anne, how she filled a big sister
type role in her life, and on one occasion, had even helped her in one of
major manic-depressive episodes.
Quite honestly, I was never a big fan of Anne’s to start with. The first time
I recall watching her was in The Graduate, and I just absolutely hated Mrs.
Robinson. How could she come between Ben and Elaine… they belonged together!
LOL And unfortunately, I associated a lot of those feelings towards the actress
herself. The only other role I had seen her in was as Mary Magdalene in
Zeffirelli’s Jesus of Nazareth, which I thought she was lame in because all
her character did was ask men for money, and cry over miracle bread and Jesus’
feet. All in all, I couldn’t understand why many people thought of Anne as one
of Hollywood’s greatest actresses.
But then came The Miracle Worker which made me do a total 180. I don’t
recall the circumstances that led my brother and me to watch that movie; I
think we actually borrowed it from the library cuz it was free! I remember my
expectations were low because I absolutely loved the 1979 TV Movie version with
Patty Duke and Melissa Gilbert, and as we started the movie it such an old,
dated feel to it. Ya know, a bit emotionless and hokey. Somehow I thought I
was going to hate it. But wow, once Anne Bancroft and Patty Duke were together
on screen, it was magical. Both actresses were absolutely brilliant, and I had
newfound respect for Mrs. Robinson.
What made me change my mind about Anne was how it was so completely different
from anything else I’ve ever seen her in. It was quite a revelation.
In The Graduate she played a jaded, manipulative woman with no joy in life,
whereas in The Miracle Worker, she was the total opposite…. mischievous,
highly dedicated, with a wonderful sense of humor and an unwavering optimism.
For her to accomplish that, and make it totally believable, made me a believer.
I must say, watching her in The Graduate with fresh eyes is wonderful as well.
It’s actually a very subtle performance, but done with the right amount of
sexiness and humanity. Very nice. Other notable roles I remember: the gypsy
in Love Potion No. 9, the hard-nosed senator in G.I. Jane, the looney old
lady in Great Expectations, and mother superior, who likes to sneak a smoke
when the sisters aren’t looking, in Agnes of God.
Here’s to you, Anne. Coo coo cachoo.
Celebrity Disappointment
Mon Feb 07 22:21:55 +0100 2005
daBlog » Celebrity
You can ask several people who knew me 10 – 15 years ago. My absolute idol was
Carnie Wilson. I was completely obsessed with Wilson Phillips at the time. I
was constantly listening to their music, writing about them in my journals,
following their chart progress in all the trade publications, making trips to
the library to find and photocopy articles about them, and so on. Of the trio,
Carnie was my favorite. I loved her singing voice, and she had a personality
to boot. Outspoken, sometimes controversial, she seemed just so cool.
What made her stand out though, particularly when watching any one of their
videos, was not her talent or gift of gab. It was her weight. Just as each of
the Beatles had their own nickname (“the smart one,” “the cute one,” etc),
standing next to “the blond one” and “the dumb one” was Carnie, “the fat one.”
The late Chris Farley portrayed her in all his girth on Saturday Night
Live. Julie Brown ridiculed her in a spoof where she had Carnie wanting to
eat her fellow band members. Music video after music video, the record company
insisted they hide her in the shadows.
She’ll chronicle her plight in her books years later. But of course, what made
her even more famous was her well-publicized stomach-staple surgery. Heck, it was even broadcast on the internet.
I remember hearing about her doing this surgery. I was disappointed. She was my idol, and I thought she was taking the easy way out. At the time, I had gone through my own dramatic weightloss journey, going from 235 lbs to something around 160 lbs at the time. I didn’t need this gastric bypass. I did it naturally and on my own. How could someone I idolized not be able to do that too?
I’m not sure I still feel that way. After watching some of the videos at
Spotlight
Health
I changed my mind. Maybe she really did need the surgery. And I was proud of
her that she lost all that weight. Because when she went down to 150 lbs, she
looked gorgeous, happy and healthy.
Well, now I see these
pictures and I’m
disappointed again. It’s as though she never lost all the weight. All that
progress, gone. What happened? How could she let this happen? Sure she’s
pregnant, but she’s certainly gained more than what, I think, is normal. All
the women she has inspired to either lose weight or have the surgery, what are
they thinking now?
