Genius - General Discussion

[12catcrazy]

Another vote of agreement on the soap opera aspects.  For a bio about a guy who was burning to paint and create, it seems to be more about the number of women he bedded.  And despite the money which was obviously spent on this series, it seems to have a certain, I don't know, cheesiness about it.  I'll watch it through to the end but it really leaves me wanting to go pick up a good book about Picasso and that maybe gives me more of the real man.  

[SunnyBeBe]

I've been watching and catching up on repeats lately.  It's actually hard to watch most of it.  He is such a jerk, imo.  I guess people were drawn to him due to his genius.  The women confuse me though, so, I google them and try to keep straight during the show. 

[ProudMary]

Quote

Young Pablo designs a ballet and meets his first wife, Olga. Older Picasso struggles with the needs of his family and his desire to remain artistically relevant.

[ProudMary]

The synopsis should just read, "Another episode where Picasso is awful to women."  Truly, it's getting boring.  It makes me wonder why Picasso was chosen to be the Genius celebrated in S2.  Was he a genius?  Of course.  Was there enough interesting information about his life to create a season's worth of riveting television?  It's not looking as if there was.  There may have been women galore in his life but obviously, he loved no one but himself.  The scene where his daughter Maya realizes that Picasso left her and her mother not for his work but for another family was heartbreaking.  

I did enjoy the ballet angle.  I had no idea that Picasso had designed for the ballet.  Also, I was only familiar with Jean Cocteau as a director of film.  I was unaware that he had done early work with the ballet, or with Picasso for that matter.  

I sincerely hope that S3 of Genius (if there is one) will feature a female protagonist.  I'm quite tired of watching men who use and discard women.

[Nessie]

The cast this season has been stellar but the show itself has been tedious.   I'm not a big Picasso fan...I recognize his genius but I don't "get him" for the most part...so if I had known it was going to be what has essentially been an entire season of him being a jackass to one woman after another I wouldn't have bothered.  Judging by the lack of responses in any thread for this season I'm not the only one who feels this way and I wouldn't be surprised if the show isn't renewed for another season.

Bad choice on the part of the creators, writers, whoever.  Did they really think this would make good TV?  What a letdown after the excellent (IMO) Einstein season.  

[raven]

On 5/30/2018 at 5:58 PM, ProudMary said:

It really makes you wonder if he would have treated Eva, who is portrayed as his one true love, any better than all the other women we've seen him with, had she not died.

I wondered about that too.  We don't find out anything about her really; he loved her, some of his friends made snide remarks but they were happy, then she died.  The End.

I agree that Eps 6 and 7 had more substance.  I enjoyed seeing the collaborations with Braque; cubism and their talks about perspective. The Mona Lisa debacle and the political angles were also interesting and fun to watch, unless you're Apollinaire.  Apparently Picasso did deny knowing Apollinaire in court:

Quote

Apollinaire confessed to everything: harboring Pieret, possessing stolen art, conspiring to conceal evidence. Picasso—ordinarily at pains to project male bravado—wept openly in court, hysterically alleging at one point that he had never even met Apollinaire. Deluged with contradictory and nonsensical testimony the presiding Judge Henri Drioux threw out the case, ultimately dismissing both men with little more than a stern admonition. As suddenly as the pair had come under suspicion, they were free.

  I think the Young Picasso story has more meat - the group of struggling artists and models and Picasso was at least occasionally likeable.  Alex Rich as young Picasso is good, though not as much of a standout as Johnny Flynn as young Einstein.   Antonio Banderas has less interesting plot to work with IMO.  Both timelines look great though - the scenery, sets and costumes.

I'm still 2 eps behind - though interesting, this one isn't grabbing me the way the Einstein one did.

[ProudMary]

@raven. Thanks for the Picasso/Apollinaire info.  Interesting!

[SnarkEnthusiast]

It seems like a requirement to be featured on this show is to treat women like crap. Einstein was no peach either, but Picasso makes him look like Prince Charming. Picasso's revolving door and overlapping timelines of mistresses is hard to him track of. And what happened to, you know, showing his career? It's just all about him gaslighting his former/current partners while seducing his new flavor of the week.

[ProudMary]

Quote

Gilot defies Picasso and pursues her own goals. Younger Picasso finds respite from his strained marriage with Olga.

[ProudMary]

I realize that this had to happen as we got close to the end of the season, but I'm quite disappointed that the flashbacks have caught up and now feature Antonio Banderas instead of Alex Rich.   I'm glad to have Dora back as a character though.  I like her best of all the many Picasso women.  To me, she seems to be the most fleshed out character and the most interesting.  I also like Samantha Colley's performance.  She really provided the artistic component to this episode with her photography.  The rest, once again, was pure melodrama.  Ho hum.

I'll stick with the series as there's only one additional episode to this season, but it's been quite a disappointment.  It wouldn't surprise me at all should this series not get picked up for a third season but I feel badly about that as it's a very good concept.  It just wasn't put forth well in S2.  Acting and design were very good but the story line left a lot to be desired. :( 

[buttercupia]

i've been likewise disappointed this season, considering the rich cultural environment of young picasso's life. paris in the early 20th century was truly an amazing place for the amount of art, literature, theater, and music innovations taking place. picasso was in the thick of that movement and it's a shame that we've gone from guernica to mistress of the week.

[raven]

Here I was these 8 episodes thinking that Marcel (the driver) was the secret hero of the show and Picasso fires him!  OK, I know the guy took the car without permission and crashed it, but his family was injured, he had been running interference for Picasso for 25 yrs and said he would pay for the car.   Maybe because Picasso is such an unsympathetic figure, I just can't share his outrage.

[Arcey]

Ha! I watched ep 9 yesterday, and have thought before of Einstein's wife while watching Dora Marr, but she appears again in ep 9 after not being part of the story for awhile, and I kept picturing Dora with a limp, then I had to remind myself that I was thinking of the Einstein series. I confused the two because I'd seen a resemblnce throughout this series, but didn't know until now that it was indeed the same actress.

[Ms Lark]

On 6/14/2018 at 7:27 PM, ProudMary said:

It wouldn't surprise me at all should this series not get picked up for a third season but I feel badly about that as it's a very good concept.

It's already been picked up for a third season. The subject is:

Spoiler

Mary Shelley, author of "Frankenstein," and wife of the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley.

My mom, an artist, always hated Picasso. Not just his art, but his personal life. I never cared much for him, but I think I hate him now, too. What a womanizing jackass!

[BonnieD]

Ms Lark, thanks for the share about the subject of the upcoming season, now THAT's one I'll be very interested in. I was really glad to see the last of Picasso. What a self-involved ass!

[ProudMary]

Quote

In the season finale, Pablo finds companionship with a new woman. In near seclusion, Pablo obsesses over creating the perfect painting. Gilot struggles to escape Picasso's shadow even after remarrying and moving to the US.

[ProudMary]

The season finale wasn't bad.  I did enjoy the scene where Picasso sneaks off the property with his barber to go to the bullfight.  Extra points for the use of Bouree as the soundtrack for the scene.  

Wow, Jacqueline was a piece of work, not allowing him to see his children.  Although maybe Pablo got what he deserved.  The kids certainly didn't though.  How awful that he would never legally acknowledge Claude and Paloma.  He was never married to Marie-Therese either so I wonder if Maya suffered the same fate.  

Did anyone catch what his final words were on his deathbed?  I got "paper" but not the rest.

I did enjoy Francoise getting the better of the "greatest living artist."  "As far as I know, Matisse is still alive."  Zing!

[ProudMary]

Season 3 announced.
https://variety.com/2018/tv/news/frankenstein-mary-shelley-genius-season-3-1202758108/
 

Quote

National Geographic has named its newest genius.  The cable channel announced at its upfront presentation Wednesday night that Mary Shelley, author of “Frankenstein,” will be the subject of the third installment of anthology series “Genius,” whose renewal was confirmed.

No casting has yet been set for season three, which is slated to premiere in 2019 and will be produced by Fox 21 Television Studios.

[raven]

1 hour ago, ProudMary said:

Did anyone catch what his final words were on his deathbed? 

"I need paper and charcoal".  (thanks closed captioning)

I get that Picasso's family drama was integral to who he was; unfortunately it's not usually interesting.  Though it could get tedious, I'm still glad I watched it, there was a lot I didn't know.

I was happy Francoise at least made it out of the relationship and thrived.  Both Jacqueline and Marie-Therese committed suicide after Picasso died and Dora Maar lived in seclusion until her death.

1 hour ago, ProudMary said:

How awful that he would never legally acknowledge Claude and Paloma.  He was never married to Marie-Therese either so I wonder if Maya suffered the same fate.  

Picasso didn't legally acknowledge them and he died without a will, but eventually they all were legally recognized and split the estate, which would be worth billions now.

Here's an interesting article about it.

[ProudMary]

@raven  That WAS an interesting article.  A captivating film could perhaps be made about the management of the Picasso estate!  

[Nessie]

I'm very glad to hear this.  I was afraid the ratings would be so bad after this terrible season that it would be cancelled.  Hopefully the writers have paid attention, and will focus on more next season than Mary Shelley's love life.

[Quilt Fairy]

I would assume that Mary Shelley is going to be more difficult to do completely accurately as she lived 200 years ago and there are not going to be as many contemporaneous records as there were for Picasso and Einstein.

[raven]

On 6/21/2018 at 12:14 AM, ProudMary said:

A captivating film could perhaps be made about the management of the Picasso estate!  

I know!  The information about how many fakes there are and how sometimes the family can't agree on what's authentic was interesting.  I had no idea Picasso was so prolific.

The more I think about it, I think the show failed in not showing why/how Picasso was so inspired by the women in his life, since that seems where most of his inspiration came from.  Maybe it was nothing more than "hey you have an interesting face, let's have sex" LOL.   I do believe that, as old Picasso says in this episode, he sacrificed close familial attachments in order to concentrate on his art.    My guess is that all of the surviving family members, whatever their relationship with him, are happy to be a "Picasso". 

[atlantaloves]

I loved this entire series, (fantastic sets and clothes as well) didn't think I would, because I simply could not get into the Einstein series, this was fantastic, both actors that played Picasso were RIGHT ON THE MONEY! God, he was a jerk.  Antonio you deserve an Emmy. 

[Arcey]

Quote

    atlantaloves
    yest. 11:25 AM

I loved this entire series, (fantastic sets and clothes as well) didn't think I would, because I simply could not get into the Einstein series, this was fantastic, both actors that played Picasso were RIGHT ON THE MONEY! God, he was a jerk.  Antonio you deserve an Emmy. 

I agree! I also couldn't stay interested in the Einstein series for more than 3 or 4 eps. I think I liked young Picasso and Francoise best (the actors and characters), and then Dora and older Picasso. Some of the women were so pretty. I wish they wouldn't have broken up this thread by each ep, especially since there were so few posts in each one. I would have preferred a continuous conversation about the whole series. I think I liked the series so much because I'm familiar with much of his work and his periods, and some of his history and the people connected with him.

[vavera4ka]

On ‎5‎/‎2‎/‎2018 at 11:48 AM, ProudMary said:

I hope it's OK that I started an episode thread for last night's ep. 

I thought T.R. Knight's performance as Max, especially as the young character, was very good.    

Perhaps not specific to just this episode, but I'm very much enjoying Alex Rich as the young Picasso more than I'm enjoying Antonio Banderas as the older Picasso.  This mirrors my feelings from last season where I much preferred Johnny Flynn's young Einstein to Geoffrey Rush as the older Einstein.  I guess it makes sense that the producers would spend the money for a big name actor for the older lead, especially when the rest of the cast has lesser familiarity, however, I'm very glad to see the younger actors shine.  I wasn't familiar with either Flynn or Rich prior to Genius but I'll pay attention to them moving forward. 

I do to, but I still love the casting of Banderas. At least it's somewhat believable that women will be standing in line to be with him. The old Picasso is an asshole, but he's a charismatic asshole (and I guess with a lot of energy in bed lol) 

Maybe not  in this makeup and hair as much, but all these years later Señor Banderas still does it for me lol

[ProudMary]

Primetime Emmy Awards' nominations for Genius:

Outstanding Limited Series

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie
Antonio Banderas 

Outstanding Cinematography For A Limited Series Or Movie
Mathias Herndl, Director of Photography
"Chapter One"

Outstanding Hairstyling For A Limited Series Or Movie
Kate Starr, Key Hairstylist
Alex Rouse, Hairstylist
Judit Halasz, Hairstylist
Janosne Kajtar, Hairstylist

"Chapter One"

Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Limited Series Or Movie 

Bob Bronow, Re-Recording Mixer
Mark Hensley, Re-Recording Mixer
Tamás Csaba, Production Mixer

"Chapter One"

Outstanding Makeup For A Limited Series Or Movie (Non-Prosthetic)
Davina Lamont, Department Head Makeup Artist
Hayden Bloomfield, Key Makeup Artist
Szandra Biro, Key Makeup Artist
Szilvia Homolya, Makeup Artist

Outstanding Period Costumes
Sonu Mishra, Costume Designer
Eudald Magari, Assistant Costume Designer
Balazs Labancz, Costume Supervisor

"Chapter One"

Edited July 12, 2018 by ProudMary
Added nominations in technical categories to those received for Series and Lead Actor.

[meep.meep]

Just watched this on demand - it's spectacularly awful!  Is the Einstein one any better?

[ProudMary]

1 hour ago, meep.meep said:

Just watched this on demand - it's spectacularly awful!  Is the Einstein one any better?

I did prefer the Einstein season.  It seemed to me to have more substance.  I think it lived up to the series' title more than the Picasso season did.  It did a better job of conveying how Einstein's mind worked; where he got his ideas and inspirations from.  Then again, it's possible that Picasso was just a shallower individual than Einstein was!  It certainly seemed that way from what we saw play out on screen this season.

[meep.meep]

Maybe I'll try Einstein.

Years ago I remember enjoying a performance of Picasso at the Lapin Agile, which features both Picasso and Einstein.

[raven]

1 hour ago, meep.meep said:

Maybe I'll try Einstein.

I also preferred Einstein for many of the same reasons that @ProudMary listed.  I didn't think the Picasso series was awful so I'm curious what you didn't like about it, if you don't mind answering :)

[ProudMary]

The Creative Arts Emmys are being awarded tonight and tomorrow night in advance of next week's Primetime Emmy Awards.
Genius: Picasso has won two awards this evening.
https://www.emmys.com/news/awards-news/2018-creative-arts-awards-saturday
 

Quote

Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Limited Series Or Movie

Genius: Picasso • Chapter One • National Geographic • Imagine Television and Fox 21 Television Studios
Bob Bronow, Re-Recording Mixer
Mark Hensley, Re-Recording Mixer
Tam'e1s Csaba, Production Mixer

Outstanding Cinematography For A Limited Series Or Movie

Genius: Picasso • Chapter One • National Geographic • Imagine Television and Fox 21 Television Studios
Mathias Herndl, Director of Photography

Congratulations to the winners!

[AAEBoiler]

On 6/30/2018 at 2:25 PM, atlantaloves said:

Antonio you deserve an Emmy.

Agreed. I thought he was outstanding!

[ProudMary]

Move over, Mary Shelley?  From Deadline:
‘Genius’: Aretha Franklin Eyed As Subject Of Season 3 Of National Geographic Series

Quote

EXCLUSIVE: The upcoming third season of National Geographic’s scripted anthology series Genius may be devoted to the Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin, who died in August at age 76.

Genius, which comes from Imagine Television and Fox 21 TV Studios, was renewedfor a third season in April, with author Mary Shelley revealed as its subject, to follow Albert Einstein and Picasso. I hear that installment remains in development.

I hear the idea for doing a Franklin-centered Genius came together quickly and was spearheaded by Imagine’s Brian Grazer. While sources close to the matter caution that there are still hurdles in securing all the rights necessary, I hear that everyone involved feels optimistic, and they are moving full-steam ahead with a potential Aretha Franklin third season while deals are being hammered out.

[MsTree]

Aretha? Hardly a genius. A great singer and entertainer, yes. But definitely not a genius. 

Mary Shelley is more in line of what's been presented so far. Poor Mary must be rolling over in her grave.

[ProudMary]

19 hours ago, MsTree said:

Aretha? Hardly a genius. A great singer and entertainer, yes. But definitely not a genius. 

Mary Shelley is more in line of what's been presented so far. Poor Mary must be rolling over in her grave.

I think the idea behind Genius is to show the various types of "genius" that exist in the world.  Einstein fit the bill for the traditional idea of a genius; someone whose intelligence was far above the norm.  Picasso's genius was in his artistic creativity.  Certainly Mary Shelley will fit the bill well for literature.  Do you not think that musical genius should be included under the "genius" tent?  Alternatively, if you do believe that musical genius should be included but specifically that Aretha doesn't qualify, what other modern musical artists do you think fall into the category?  (Arbitrarily say, within the last 75-80 years or so.)  I think that the producers of the show like the idea of having the subject be a modern era musician as opposed to going back in time to Mozart, Beethoven, etc.

Aretha, in addition to being the great singer and entertainer that you have acknowledged, also was a brilliant piano player and was considered a child prodigy in that area.  She also wrote many of her own hits and her compositions have been covered by many other artists.  She is also credited with arranging and interpreting the songs of others.  In my opinion, she would be a worthy inclusion for the series.  

[MsTree]

3 hours ago, ProudMary said:

Do you not think that musical genius should be included under the "genius" tent?  Alternatively, if you do believe that musical genius should be included but specifically that Aretha doesn't qualify, what other modern musical artists do you think fall into the category? 

Yes, I absolutely believe that a musical genius should be represented. I can think of several, and I'll tell you why. Briefly, in no particular order, Phil Spector for producing & creating the "wall of sound". His story & abusive marriage to Ronnie Spector (lead singer of the Ronnettes) could be interesting as to what made the crazy guy a genius. There's also Berry Gordy who produced and created Motown. His story, along with his romance with Diana Ross and their "love child" as well as his relationship with his artists and his then wife also compelling. And then there's the duo of Lennon/McCartney with their incredible song-writing AND singing along with all the Beatlemania drama as well as their personal drama. I could go on, but suffice it to say, any one of those 3 examples deserve the title of "genius" more than Aretha. And of course, that's just my opinion.

Edited October 15, 2018 by MsTree
grammar

[ProudMary]

18 hours ago, MsTree said:

Yes, I absolutely believe that a musical genius should be represented. I can think of several, and I'll tell you why. Briefly, in no particular order, Phil Spector for producing & creating the "wall of sound". His story & abusive marriage to Ronnie Spector (lead singer of the Ronnettes) could be interesting as to what made the crazy guy a genius. There's also Berry Gordy who produced and created Motown. His story, along with his romance with Diana Ross and their "love child" as well as his relationship with his artists and his then wife also compelling. And then there's the duo of Lennon/McCartney with their incredible song-writing AND singing along with all the Beatlemania drama as well as their personal drama. I could go on, but suffice it to say, any one of those 3 examples deserve the title of "genius" more than Aretha. And of course, that's just my opinion.

As far as Genius, the television series goes, you could write off Lennon and McCartney as potential subjects since Ron Howard and Brian Grazer recently produced The Beatles: Eight Days a Week - The Touring Years.  I doubt they'd want to go back to that well again so soon.  HBO produced Phil Spector five years ago with Al Pacino and Helen Mirren so no need to spotlight Spector again.  Berry Gordy would make an interesting subject for the series but in my opinion, it's his business acumen that makes him a genius and a business genius has not yet been spotlighted.  In the Deadline article linked above, it seems that Brian Grazer, himself, is the one who's pushing for the Aretha Franklin project and I think it will be very interesting.

Just as an aside, IMO John Lennon and Paul McCartney are ALWAYS held up as genius musicians and I don't think anyone would argue with that, but I'd like to see a spotlight focused on Mick Jagger and Keith Richards.  Great performers, musicians, producers (The Glimmer Twins!) and the area that always gets overlooked, outstanding songwriters.  That always seems to be forgotten.  Who do people think WROTE all those phenomenal Rolling Stones' songs FOR DECADES!  JMO, but McCartney's songwriting has been suspect for a long time now.  He was always a better songwriter in collaboration, be it with Lennon or with the members of Wings.  I think as a solo songwriter, George Harrison ran rings around McCartney.  

[MsTree]

5 hours ago, ProudMary said:

As far as Genius, the television series goes, you could write off Lennon and McCartney as potential subjects since Ron Howard and Brian Grazer recently produced The Beatles: Eight Days a Week - The Touring Years.  I doubt they'd want to go back to that well again so soon.  HBO produced Phil Spector five years ago with Al Pacino and Helen Mirren so no need to spotlight Spector again.  Berry Gordy would make an interesting subject for the series but in my opinion, it's his business acumen that makes him a genius and a business genius has not yet been spotlighted.  In the Deadline article linked above, it seems that Brian Grazer, himself, is the one who's pushing for the Aretha Franklin project and I think it will be very interesting.

Just as an aside, IMO John Lennon and Paul McCartney are ALWAYS held up as genius musicians and I don't think anyone would argue with that, but I'd like to see a spotlight focused on Mick Jagger and Keith Richards.  Great performers, musicians, producers (The Glimmer Twins!) and the area that always gets overlooked, outstanding songwriters.  That always seems to be forgotten.  Who do people think WROTE all those phenomenal Rolling Stones' songs FOR DECADES!  JMO, but McCartney's songwriting has been suspect for a long time now.  He was always a better songwriter in collaboration, be it with Lennon or with the members of Wings.  I think as a solo songwriter, George Harrison ran rings around McCartney.  

Totally agree with you regarding McCartney...and definitely not a fan of his "silly love songs", suspect or not.  His song "Yesterday" sounds like a dirge. But that said, unfortunately, it probably would not be PC to name John Lennon without Paul McCartney. It's as if they are attached at the hip when accolades are given out to songwriters. But, bottom line, you are correct in the 'been there, done that' documentary already.

And while there was a Phil Spector movie, I believe that a series (usually 13 episodes) could delve a bit more into his mind. But as mentioned, it's probably not a priority to revisit at this time.

So for me, that leaves Berry Gordy. What do you think about the possibly of Dick Clark?  He started out with a local dance show in Philly which became nationwide. That led to a game show, a short-lived "talk" show, as well as forming his own production company producing a multitude of programming including Dick Clark's New Year's Eve. Very interesting man.

Nothing against Aretha, but I just feel if she hadn't recently died, Brian would not be pushing the Aretha Franklin project, which IMO would not be as interesting (to me) as what was already in the works or planned.

[ProudMary]

11 hours ago, MsTree said:

Totally agree with you regarding McCartney...and definitely not a fan of his "silly love songs", suspect or not.  His song "Yesterday" sounds like a dirge. But that said, unfortunately, it probably would not be PC to name John Lennon without Paul McCartney. It's as if they are attached at the hip when accolades are given out to songwriters. But, bottom line, you are correct in the 'been there, done that' documentary already.

And while there was a Phil Spector movie, I believe that a series (usually 13 episodes) could delve a bit more into his mind. But as mentioned, it's probably not a priority to revisit at this time.

So for me, that leaves Berry Gordy. What do you think about the possibly of Dick Clark?  He started out with a local dance show in Philly which became nationwide. That led to a game show, a short-lived "talk" show, as well as forming his own production company producing a multitude of programming including Dick Clark's New Year's Eve. Very interesting man.

Nothing against Aretha, but I just feel if she hadn't recently died, Brian would not be pushing the Aretha Franklin project, which IMO would not be as interesting (to me) as what was already in the works or planned.

Glad we agree on Sir Paul.  And the mediocrity continues:  Have you heard his latest single, "Come On to Me?"  Purely subjective, of course, but I think it's downright awful.

I love the Dick Clark idea.  He definitely had his finger on the pulse of many phases of the entertainment industry and was at the forefront of many.  Would be an interesting subject for the series.  (I'm not discounting your Berry Gordy idea though.  That would make for an interesting series.  I just think his genius was business oriented; always knowing just which button to push, as opposed to straight musical genius.)

While I'm happy with the idea of S3 of Genius being about Aretha Franklin, I do agree that at least part of Brian Grazer's thinking on this has to be prodded by striking while the iron's hot.  Part of me can't blame him for that.  The ratings for Genius have not exactly been stellar and I'd think that a study of Aretha Franklin might very well bring more eyeballs to the screen right now than one of Mary Shelley.   

Not a Stones' fan, huh? ;-)

[Nessie]

14 hours ago, MsTree said:

So for me, that leaves Berry Gordy. What do you think about the possibly of Dick Clark?  He started out with a local dance show in Philly which became nationwide. That led to a game show, a short-lived "talk" show, as well as forming his own production company producing a multitude of programming including Dick Clark's New Year's Eve. Very interesting man.

Nothing against Aretha, but I just feel if she hadn't recently died, Brian would not be pushing the Aretha Franklin project, which IMO would not be as interesting (to me) as what was already in the works or planned.

I agree about Aretha Franklin.  Maybe I just don't know enough about her to consider her a musical genius (which I guess would make the show a good idea), but I'm just not that interested.  Dick Clark is interesting, as is Berry Gordy.

But honestly?  The first person I think of when I think of a musical genius is Prince, and I wouldn't mind seeing a season about him, if they have to do a modern-day person.  Overall, I kind of liked that this show was about historical geniuses, not more modern-day people.

After the last disappointing season (IMO), I was looking forward to Mary Shelley, and I really hope - if it's set aside for Aretha - the show is not cancelled before they do it. 

[orza]

I would like to a musical season devoted to Irving Berlin. George Gershwin called him the greatest songwriter that has ever lived. Berlin lived to be 101 and his extraordinary life spanned a remarkable time from the Victorian era to the modern computer age. The greatest names in many genres have recorded his music.

[MsTree]

11 hours ago, ProudMary said:

Not a Stones' fan, huh? ;-)

LOL...not enough to watch a full series, but who am I kidding?  I'm a HUGE music fan going back to the dowop days, so if that happens, move over because I have the snacks :-)

[MsTree]

8 hours ago, Nessie said:

I agree about Aretha Franklin.  Maybe I just don't know enough about her to consider her a musical genius (which I guess would make the show a good idea), but I'm just not that interested.  Dick Clark is interesting, as is Berry Gordy.

But honestly?  The first person I think of when I think of a musical genius is Prince, and I wouldn't mind seeing a season about him, if they have to do a modern-day person.  Overall, I kind of liked that this show was about historical geniuses, not more modern-day people.

After the last disappointing season (IMO), I was looking forward to Mary Shelley, and I really hope - if it's set aside for Aretha - the show is not cancelled before they do it. 

Nessie, I like the way you think :-)   ...And I think Prince would also be very interesting. In fact, wasn't he known as a genius in his circle?  As an aside, REELZ is airing a Prince special this weekend.

I also enjoyed the show as it taught us about historical geniuses... so I, too, was surprised to hear that Brian was flipping the script, so to speak.

But that said, I do enjoy his story-telling, so I'm sure I'll tune in no matter who/what the subject.

[Jaybliss]

I can't wait to introduce you all to this new news and entertainment blog in town, talking about https://www.featnews.com you will surely thank me for introducing you to this site

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Golden Globe nomination!

Best Performance by an Actor in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television: Antonio Banderas

[ProudMary]

I found this interesting and thought others who watched the Genius: Picasso season might also.  The New Yorker has a new article posted, complete with photos, about the works of Dora Maar. An exhibition of her photographs will be opening in Paris, moving to London and ultimately to the Getty in Los Angeles in 2020. Her time with Picasso is addressed late in the article. It is mentioned that she documented Picasso's creation of "Guernica" and one of those photos is included.

The Voraciousness and Oddity of Dora Maar’s Pictures

[ProudMary]

Spring, 2020
‘Genius’ Season 3 Finds Its Aretha Franklin in Cynthia Erivo

[MsTree]

Could someone please explain to me why Aretha is considered a Genius? IOW, what makes her more talented/inspirational than let's say, Diana Ross, or for that matter, Berry Gordy??

Unless I'm missing something, she's no more of a Genius than either of them.

[ProudMary]

9 hours ago, MsTree said:

Could someone please explain to me why Aretha is considered a Genius? IOW, what makes her more talented/inspirational than let's say, Diana Ross, or for that matter, Berry Gordy??

Unless I'm missing something, she's no more of a Genius than either of them.

In June, 2018, it was announced that the third season of Genius would turn its focus to Mary Shelley. not too long after that, Aretha Franklin died and rumblings began that she would now be the focus of season three. We talked a great deal here about whether or not AF qualified as a genius. I'm linking to the post where we began to discuss the potential season three. If you follow the topic thread from there, you'll see a lot of the ""Is Aretha a genius?" posts.
https://forums.primetimer.com/topic/54789-genius/?do=findComment&comment=47496

Edited to add:  Never mind.  I see now that that you, @MsTree were one of the active posters in those discussions!

Edited October 25, 2019 by ProudMary