Live In Front Of A Studio Audience - General Discussion

[opus]

Kim Fields has been in front of the camera seemingly forever, and her step father was a long time technical director for Jimmy Kimmel Live (unsure if he's still there). Not sure why she'd be uncomfortable last night.

Edited December 8, 2021 by opus

[ByaNose]

I think Kim Fields was thinking, “I was Regina King before Regina King was Regina King! Where is my damn Oscar?”. LOL!!! She’s a good actress but even she couldn’t fake how much she didn’t want to be there. Also, the hat she wore was a horrible choice. You couldn’t see her face. It was funny in the closing credits Lisa was way in the back (not near Aniston) and seemed to be fine with it. Mindy was up front (to the left) and enjoying the fun and Kim was on the other side hanging with Damon. Ironically all three of them were even on Diff’rent Strokes, too. All in all, both shows were well done. So far it’s been a tribute to Norman Lear with all these events and I’m curious if they venture out of that format and touch other shows such as Happy Days or Three’s Company. 

Also, while I knew Todd Bridges was the only remaining living cast member I hadn’t really thought of it until he mentioned it. It’s like I thought one of them was still alive but they weren’t. Kind of sad. Conrad Bain was on Maude (another Norman Lear creation) which could be done and I wonder if they would use John Lithgow for that, too. 

[Vgmastr]

The problem with the acting in the Facts of Life was that most of the performers (Aniston, Hahn, Arnett, Bateman especially) were acting like it was a parody.  It's as if they were doing an SNL sketch of the Facts of Life, instead of the homage it's supposed to be.

Edited December 8, 2021 by Vgmastr

[LAgator77]

Does anyone else remember The Rerun Show, a very short-lived show on NBC that recreated classic sitcoms with a new cast? They must have had access to the same library as they did FoL, DS, The Jeffersons, etc. Anyways, on their version of FoL they had a man play Jo and of course made her super butch and OTT, I felt like Kathryn Hahn was doing that exact same take last night. That being said, Jo had the best one-liners so she got the most laughs out of me. 

[possibilities]

I'm a fan of Allison Tolman, too. In addition to the other shows mentioned, there was another show (briefly) where she was the lead. I can't remember the name of it, but it had something to do with her character's dog, who also got a lot of screentime. She really shined in Emergence, though. 

Kevin Hart was basically type cast as Arnold. He came off looking brilliant because he was basically playing himself. He IS Arnold. Still, enjoyable to see him working that cape. And I agree that Arnold needed to be told to stop being an obnoxious brat and maybe his brother wouldn't be so irritated by him. Just because you're younger doesn't mean no one should teach you how to behave. On the other hand, if you're going to use the bathroom as a darkroom, lock the door and put a sign on it explaining. 

Yes, I get irritated by stupidity in scripts.

Edited December 8, 2021 by possibilities

[Phebemarie]

1 hour ago, Vgmastr said:

The problem with the acting in the Facts of Life was that most of the performers (Aniston, Hahn, Arnett, Bateman especially) were acting like it was a parody.  It's as if they were doing an SNL sketch of the Facts of Life, instead of the homage it's supposed to be.

You are exactly right.  The Different Strokes actors were playing it like it was a real sit-com.  They didn't need to sell the laughs because they worked as an ensemble to sell the story.  I liked it so much more because they weren't constantly mugging and winking at the audience.

 

[UYI]

3 hours ago, ByaNose said:

Also, while I knew Todd Bridges was the only remaining living cast member I hadn’t really thought of it until he mentioned it. It’s like I thought one of them was still alive but they weren’t. Kind of sad. Conrad Bain was on Maude (another Norman Lear creation) which could be done and I wonder if they would use John Lithgow for that, too. 

He's the last living original cast member, but Mary Jo Catlett (Pearl, the third and final housekeeper) and Danny Cooksey (Sam, the son of Mr. Drummond's second wife, Maggie) are both still alive, along with recurring cast members like Shavar Ross, who played Arnold's friend, Dudley. 

Oh, and JANET JACKSON! She played Willis' girlfriend, Charlene! It would have been so cool if SHE was the one to do the DS theme last night. 

Edited December 9, 2021 by UYI

[GHScorpiosRule]

On 12/8/2021 at 8:31 PM, UYI said:

Oh, and JANET JACKSON! She played Willis' girlfriend, Charlene! It would have been so cool if SHE was the one to do the DS theme last night. 

Nope! I LOVED that Boyz II Men sang it, and with the “Hmmmm!!” at the end.

 

Edited December 10, 2021 by GHScorpiosRule

[UYI]

1 minute ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

Nope! I LOVED that Boyz2Men sang it, and with the “Hmmmm!!” at the end.

 

The "Hmmmm!!" is essential, that's for sure. :D 

[ByaNose]

I thought they’d have Gloria Loring sing the FOL theme song since we heard it for 8 years. I also thought they’d have Robin Thicke (the son of Alan Thicke who sang it originally and Loring’s stepson) sing the Diff’rent Strokes theme song. Oh, well! It wasn’t meant to be. I’m a sucker for nostalgia. LOL!!!!

[UYI]

39 minutes ago, ByaNose said:

I thought they’d have Gloria Loring sing the FOL theme song since we heard it for 8 years. I also thought they’d have Robin Thicke (the son of Alan Thicke who sang it originally and Loring’s stepson) sing the Diff’rent Strokes theme song. Oh, well! It wasn’t meant to be. I’m a sucker for nostalgia. LOL!!!!

Robin is Gloria's biological son, not her stepson. 

[HyeChaps]

Aniston could have at least worn Blair's hairstyle.

[MsTree]

The whole point of recreating the series is to "recreate" ...including the actors. Having the original actors play their original roles is not recreating. That would be called a "reboot".

I look at the recreation as more of a parody, so if someone is portraying a character slightly different or over-the-top, that's all part of the fun. A parody is not meant to be a clone... because again, that would be called a "reboot".

I thoroughly enjoy TFOL, but hated Different Strokes. Simply not funny in any way shape or form.

[GHScorpiosRule]

4 hours ago, MsTree said:

The whole point of recreating the series is to "recreate" ...including the actors. Having the original actors play their original roles is not recreating. That would be called a "reboot".

I look at the recreation as more of a parody, so if someone is portraying a character slightly different or over-the-top, that's all part of the fun. A parody is not meant to be a clone... because again, that would be called a "reboot".

This was not recreating a series. It wasn't intended to be a parody or a satirical look at the shows. It was to pay homage to them, by performing an episode from the series.

And if they couldn't find someone who could do the job(s), and the original actress is RIGHT THERE and still LOOKS THE SAME, then why not have Lisa just reprise her role? Aniston was downright godawful. She didn't have any of the charm or nuance that Lisa has. 

[shapeshifter]

14 minutes ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

Aniston was downright godawful. She didn't have any of the charm or nuance that Lisa has. 

I was alternately horrified by Aniston's face and embarrassed on Aniston's behalf. I get that she might have gotten talked into getting Botoxed for a role in which she was playing 20-30 years younger. But no amount of Botox is going to do that, whereas she did have to go act Live In Front Of A Studio Audience with a frozen face.

I wonder if Jon Stewart chose the dental head gear prop in part as a commentary on Botoxed actors trying to emote.

[Ilovepie]

We just watched this last night, and I thought the whole thing was hilarious, mostly because of the ridiculous casting of older actors. I could not stop laughing at Will Arnett, Jason Bateman and Jon Stewart. So ridiculous! And Kevin Hart was fantastic as Arnold. I died when John Lithgow put him on his lap. And Snoop.....ha ha ha!

The last thing I saw Ann Dowd in was Handmaid's Tale, so this was quite a departure. It was fun seeing her play the exact opposite of Aunt Lydia. She completely nailed it - both the voice and in looks!

I also though Gabrielle Union nailed Tootie - her snarkiness and some of her facial expressions were spot on.

I also enjoyed the final lines of each episode:

Jen Anniston helping Carl eat the "boomerang bun": "I'll be there for you"

Kevin Hart: "Why does Vernon always smell like weed?"

The whole thing is ridiculous so taken that way it's funny. I wasn't watching for a faithful recreation of the original.

And add me to the group who was stunned at how amazing Lisa Welchel looks - she doesn't look like she has aged at all!

[Gharlane]

On 12/7/2021 at 10:48 PM, possibilities said:

Weird that the super wealthy Mr Drummond didn't have enough bedrooms. I never thought about that before.

I remember it was covered in an early ep, when Mr Drummond got a larger apartment but it either fell thru or none of the kids wanted to move.

 

[ByaNose]

16 hours ago, UYI said:

Robin is Gloria's biological son, not her stepson. 

Thanks. Yeah, I knew that but for some reason wrote step son.

[Bastet]

On 12/7/2021 at 8:57 PM, UYI said:

For what it's worth, Lisa Whelchel has evolved a LOT on her views--she's still a Christian, but from interviews I've seen in recent years, including one she did with Mindy Cohn earlier this year, she's MUCH more open-minded now--I think the turning point was her divorce a decade ago; she has talked about how the way religious views she grew up with led her to marry someone (her pastor at the time, at that--who was also over a decade older than her) who she otherwise didn't have very much in common with (although they still have three kids together); she has since remarried and seems to accept a Christianity that is not so uptight and old-fashioned.

She has also been open about her support for LGBTQIA+ rights, too. 

That's good to know.  Looking her up on IMDb, she was 25 when she pitched a fit about Blair having sex - and refused to appear in the episode even once Natalie was given the storyline instead in acquiescence to her beliefs - so one would think old enough to understand the difference between her and her character.

But that same year is when she at such a young age married her pastor ten years her elder, and not even two years later popped out what would be the first of three kids in three years!  If she was indoctrinated into something that strict her whole life, who's to say what she should know when; it's understandable she needed more time to mature then, and I'm pleased to hear she's indeed evolved in the time since.

Since I came in late when this aired, I just looked up the sequence of her singing the theme song with Mindy and Kim walking in at the end.  That was cute, but I wish the three of them had been incorporated some other way and we'd been treated to a musical performance the likes of two members of Boyz II Men singing the Diff'rent Strokes theme song, because that was great.

[Mittengirl]

I was hoping FOL would do the episode where the girls stayed up all night studying.  Natalie’s brain wave hat, “AU, give me back my watch!”  and the pillow fight would have been fun.  And all shot on just two sets.  One of my favorite episodes.

Edited December 10, 2021 by Mittengirl

[babyhouseman]

5 minutes ago, Mittengirl said:

I was hoping FOL had done the episode where the girls stayed up all night studying.  Natalie’s brain wave hat, “AU, give me back my watch!”  and the pillow fight would have been fun.  And all shot on just two sets.  One of my favorite episodes.

Yes, that was a great episode. NIce hat!  Oh, good, good. I'm losing a bolt! I'm working at half wattage here!

Can you tell I watched this a lot.? FOL lasted many seasons, and my father would roll his eyes every time it came on.

It was OK. I knew the FOL episode and remembered the Carl character had acne. The actor who played him on the original was on Head of the Class.  Jennifer Anison was so so. I liked the one who played Mrs. Garrett the best. I always thought the original Natalie had the best smile, and no actress can copy that. 

Kevin Hart always puts himself fully in any role. I was thinking John Lithgow has played a lot of crazy things so holding Kevin in his lap was no big deal. lol

[Bastet]

36 minutes ago, babyhouseman said:

The actor who played him on the original was on Head of the Class. 

Did that actor have acne or was it a make-up effect?  Because I wonder if they reason they switched to something other than acne for this version is simply not wanting to mess with doing prosthetic make-up on Jon Stewart for a live show.

[GHScorpiosRule]

12 minutes ago, Bastet said:

Did that actor have acne or was it a make-up effect?  Because I wonder if they reason they switched to something other than acne for this version is simply not wanting to mess with doing prosthetic make-up on Jon Stewart for a live show.

It was make-up effect. His skin was clear and blemish-free in Head of the Class, but he was the typical nerd with glasses.

[callie lee 29]

Ahh nostalgia. Neither scripts were standouts in the original series and I vaguely remember people not really loving the scripts that were chosen last year either so I do wonder how that gets chosen. Anniston was fine but grossly miscast and I have no idea who Ann Dowd or the Tolman (?) person is. No always annoyed me on the original cast so that colored my impression of Hahn, but wow even original Jo want quite as ridiculous. Honestly I think Arnett and O'Connell were my favorites. They seemed like they were having a blast. 

[MsTree]

17 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

This was not recreating a series. It wasn't intended to be a parody or a satirical look at the shows. It was to pay homage to them, by performing an episode from the series.

And if they couldn't find someone who could do the job(s), and the original actress is RIGHT THERE and still LOOKS THE SAME, then why not have Lisa just reprise her role? Aniston was downright godawful. She didn't have any of the charm or nuance that Lisa has. 

I disagree, as the word "recreate" was used several times. But forget that for a moment....

If (as you say) it was to pay homage to the series, if you have the original actor(s) playing their original character(s), then who are they paying homage to? Themselves?!?

I never said the show was intended to be a parody. What I said is "I look at the recreation as more of a parody". It's all about perception, and that's how I perceived the show.

Edited December 10, 2021 by MsTree

[cpcathy]

On 12/9/2021 at 2:51 PM, Mittengirl said:

I was hoping FOL would do the episode where the girls stayed up all night studying.  Natalie’s brain wave hat, “AU, give me back my watch!”  and the pillow fight would have been fun.  And all shot on just two sets.  One of my favorite episodes.

FOL had a lot of crap episodes, but this one is laugh out loud funny. My favorite, too.

[Lisa418722]

I just watched this.  Ann Dowd was the best part of both shows. She had Charlotte Rae/Mrs. Garrett down perfectly.   Jo was a tough girl but to me Kathryn Hahn made Jo more of a mean girl, than tough.  She also reminded me some of Juliette Lewis in her younger days the way she moved her head and facial expressions a few times.  I always thought she was pretty, Lisa Whelchel looks fabulous for 58.  Todd Bridges both made me smile when he said he couldn't remember because of (what 40 years or however many years it has been) and broke my heart when he made the comment he is the only one from the original cast still alive.  Honestly for a few years there, I wondered if he would live.  
Count me in on wishing they would do Maude and One Day at a Time next time.  

Edited December 11, 2021 by Lisa418722

[TheGreenKnight]

Like others, I was hoping the next Live show they did would include Maude, although I have no idea who they could get to even attempt to fill Bea Arthur's shoes. I sort of felt that way about Charlotte Rae, too. Dowd certainly gave it her best, but it just didn't quite work for me. I did get a laugh out of the male actors breaking at one point and Allison Tolman as Natalie. The actress for Jo made me laugh when she had taken the dinner box and was making the faces at Blair.

I haven't seen Diff'rent Strokes in so long, which may have something to do with why it was less funny to me, but I admit Kevin Hart playing a little child made me LOL so hard. The beginning when he's running around with the cape and then when John Lithgow picked him up were probably the funniest moments.

I wonder why Nancy McKeon wasn't there? She wasn't in the Reunion film years back either. Is it because the actors didn't receive residuals from the show that she's distanced herself from it since?

Edited December 11, 2021 by TheGreenKnight

[babyhouseman]

38 minutes ago, TheGreenKnight said:

I wonder why Nancy McKeon wasn't there?

I saw an interview with the actress who played Blair. She said Nancy and her family had moved and her children were in a new school. I don't think she lives around LA.

[UYI]

2 hours ago, babyhouseman said:

I saw an interview with the actress who played Blair. She said Nancy and her family had moved and her children were in a new school. I don't think she lives around LA.

That would make sense. Lisa lives in Nashville now, but all of her kids are grown and have moved out, so it would be easier for her to fly out to LA for this.

(And to just make everyone feel even older: Lisa just recently became a grandmother--yeah, I KNOW!) 

[Tdoc72]

On 12/9/2021 at 5:51 PM, Mittengirl said:

I was hoping FOL would do the episode where the girls stayed up all night studying.  Natalie’s brain wave hat, “AU, give me back my watch!”  and the pillow fight would have been fun.  And all shot on just two sets.  One of my favorite episodes.

I love that episode!  It’s still the only reason I remember the symbol for gold. 

[starri]

Has Lisa ever done Hallmark movies?  She's perfect for the genre.

Of the three specials we've seen, this was my least favorite by a mile.  I didn't hate it, but when the thing that excited me the most was seeing the FOL girls and the completely out of left field Snoop Dogg appearance, something's not quite working.

Although I did think Mindy saying that Charlotte Rae would have loved Ann Dowd's Mrs. Garrett was very sweet.

[peachmangosteen]

3 hours ago, starri said:

Has Lisa ever done Hallmark movies?  She's perfect for the genre.

Checking her IMDb, she's done a few Christmas movies, one of which was on Lifetime.

[starri]

5 minutes ago, peachmangosteen said:

Checking her IMDb, she's done a few Christmas movies, one of which was on Lifetime.

Awesome.  It's probably nothing I would seek out, but it's exactly the kind of thing she should do with her skillset and generally sunny personality.  I know after she divorced and her kids were grown she wanted to act more.  I'm glad she's been able to.

[Mrs. Hanson]

Wow I am one of the outliers - but I loved it!  Home with Covid so I watched it three times!  Having grownups play teens and tweens was just brilliant to me.  Turns out Jimmy Kimmel asked Kevin Hart to play Arnold in this production in 2016 and waited five years for him to be free.  To me, that was part of what made me laugh - a guy with a beard wearing a brace headset acting like he is 15.

Best - Will Arnett and Jason Bateman with their bromance, just having a ball.  The wigs!  When Snoop showed up, I lost it.  Damon Wayons dancing?  Stopping and starting and stopping?

I think the FOL episode was chosen for the anti-bullying message.

Apparently someone on set thought Ann Dowd was Charlotte Rae!  

It was a tribute to Norman Lear and made a lot of people laugh, so I am going to watch a fourth time.

Next up:  Maude and I nominate Jane Lynch.

Edited December 16, 2021 by Mrs. Hanson

[Kiki777]

I’m not familiar with Jane Lynch’s work but I can see Allison Janney as Maude.

Aniston’s face startled me - but on the bright side it discouraged me from getting under-eye filler 😂 

[shapeshifter]

3 hours ago, Kiki777 said:

I’m not familiar with Jane Lynch’s work but I can see Allison Janney as Maude.

I am familiar with Jane Lynch's work, and it is very one note. 

Allison Janney, OTOH, would make a perfect Maude.

[UYI]

I'll admit, I had never truly considered who could play Maude on a show like this before, but Allison Janney is truly the PERFECT choice.

Which, of course, means none of this will ever happen lol. 

[Atlanta]

On 12/9/2021 at 5:38 PM, Bastet said:

That's good to know.  Looking her up on IMDb, she was 25 when she pitched a fit about Blair having sex - and refused to appear in the episode even once Natalie was given the storyline instead in acquiescence to her beliefs - so one would think old enough to understand the difference between her and her character.

She explained her problem with it. She said she didn't have a problem with Blair doing naughty things and didn't want her to be perfect (she was fine with her doing drugs in an episode), but had an issue that it sent the message that not every high schooler is having sex. 

[Bastet]

4 minutes ago, Atlanta said:

She explained her problem with it. She said she didn't have a problem with Blair doing naughty things and didn't want her to be perfect (she was fine with her doing drugs in an episode), but had an issue that it sent the message that not every high schooler is having sex. 

They weren't in high school anymore (looking it up, Blair wasn't even in college anymore that season - she'd started law school), and only one of them, Natalie, was ever said to have had sex - at age 21, with the boyfriend she's been dating over a year.  I hardly think that sends a message about high schoolers having sex.

[Atlanta]

4 hours ago, Bastet said:

They weren't in high school anymore (looking it up, Blair wasn't even in college anymore that season - she'd started law school), and only one of them, Natalie, was ever said to have had sex - at age 21, with the boyfriend she's been dating over a year.  I hardly think that sends a message about high schoolers having sex.

I'm just recalling a radio interview she did. I thought the episode she referred to was when they were high schoolers.

[GHScorpiosRule]

18 hours ago, Atlanta said:

She explained her problem with it. She said she didn't have a problem with Blair doing naughty things and didn't want her to be perfect (she was fine with her doing drugs in an episode),

Except Blair didn't do drugs. She ended up refusing to smoke marijuana when she saw how it affected Tumpy and the other girls in the dorm room. So it was Sue Ann, who, to be defiant and prove she wasn't Blair's "puppet" that got high.

[greekmom]

On 12/15/2021 at 10:08 AM, shapeshifter said:

I am familiar with Jane Lynch's work, and it is very one note. 

Allison Janney, OTOH, would make a perfect Maude.

Great choice. I totally forgot about Allison Janney!

[Gharlane]

On 12/9/2021 at 5:51 PM, Mittengirl said:

I was hoping FOL would do the episode where the girls stayed up all night studying.  Natalie’s brain wave hat, “AU, give me back my watch!”  

"AU, give me back my gold watch!" 

[DanaK]

https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/norman-lear-maude-abortion-live-in-front-of-a-studio-audience-episode-1235320632/