Gimme a “TEEEEE”!

Oh, whatever--I don’t have the will power required to spell out Thursday Three, so we’ll just dive right in.

AS YOU ALL RECALL from yesterday’s episode, there was an intense interest expressed in our exciting new upcoming television show, PossumblogLIVE! that will be airing on our local NBC station this fall (potentially), and it put me in mind of some of the great television shows and movies that have been set in the South--The Andy Griffith Show, Miami Vice, Dukes of Hazzard, Kentucky Fried Movie (you know, the classics)--and it got me to wondering. And wondering always leads to questions. And questions are just exactly what I need right now, because I forgot to write this yesterday, and I’m running behind now.

BE THAT AS IT MAY--knowing how popular the South is a destination for your various film producers and television mavens:

1) Have you ever been a cast member or extra in a movie or television show about our beloved South?

2) Knowing that all of you are screenwriting wannabes, give us the outline of the movie or television show you’ve got on perking away on the back burner.

3) Who do you think is the best actor ever to come from your state? (International readers may substitute province, canton, prefecture, special military district, diocese, etc., as necessary in lieu of state.)

AS ALWAYS, although this is sort of geared toward those of us with ruddy necks and molasses tongues, ANYone can play along! Those of you with blogs be sure to leave a link in the comments below, and the other three of you without blogs can put your entire set of answers in there (remembering Haloscan’s absurd 1,000 character limit--if need be, you can comment as many times as necessary to complete your thoughts). Or you can send an e-mail for Chet the E-Mail Boy to transcribe--he’s on his second bowl of corn flakes right now, but after that and after he moves all the 55 gallon drums of ink out of the basement, he should be ready to go.

SO, go answer already!

As for me, since I didn’t get to work on this yesterday, I’ll give you my answers in just a bit.

UPDATE: Okay--here we go with my answers--

Number One--Kinda sorta. Back when I worked at Southern Research in the Long Ago Days, they did a promotional movie touting their skills in developing new technologies and in materials testing. For some bizarre reason, they came to our testing lab to film, and they decided I would be the on-screen talent. The shot was of me, in a blue shop coat and Gomer goggles (that I never wore in real life) carefully removing a carbon fiber rocket nozzle ring (these rings are sections cut out of the nozzle, and look something like a fan belt in a car, except perfectly round--and rigid, of course) out of our compression test fixture, perusing a visible crack on the side, nodding slightly, and then exiting camera right.

I believe it was one of the finest, most moving moments in screen history. The lighting, the look of faux interest on my face, the easy, graceful movement of a young Raymond Burr--even today I still get a shiver just thinking about it.

Number TWO--Well, this is one I’ve talked about before, but back when I was at The Bad Place, My Friend Jeff ^™ and I concocted a complete, full season of a sitcom called Two East, in the genre of inexplicably banal late ‘80s ensemble sitcoms. The show was set in a suburban spec office building (the address being the inspiration for the title), and chronicled the misadventures of a group of young architects. There was the Aging Hippy Guy, The Tall Brainy Guy, The Curmudgeonly Spec Writer Who Had Been with the Company Forever, The White Collar Redneck, The REAL Redneck (Complete with Mullet), The Insane HVAC Engineer, The Behemoth (a large, unattractive blonde East German girl--remember, this was back when there was an East Germany), The Avuncular Boss Given to Fits of Rage, The Disinterested Boss, The Interior Design Girl, The Receptionist (a part that rotates among nine or ten different dumb busty girls throughout the season), Me (played by Me), and Jeff (played by My Friend Jeff^™). Of course, there are also the characters in the building, too--the Boiler Room Insurance Agency, The Large Provider of Outpatient Medical Rehabilitation Services, The Building Management Office (with the Cotton Candy Hair Lady), The Snack Bar, and the Mysterious Tenant of the Week.

As with all shows of this sort, there would be the occasional Very Special Two East, in which one of the cast members would have A Problem, but it would be handled with Care and Humor. Then there are at least two “…To Be Continued” episodes, and The Wedding, and The Fistfight with Maintenance Guys, and all sorts of wacky hijinx with elevators and parking spots and the camaraderie that comes from architects having to stay awake for five straight days to finish a project, and Intense Philosophical Discussions about carpet.

The idea’s gold, I’m telling you! GOLD!

Number Three--I am at an advantage here thanks to AL.com’s handy listing of celebrities born in Alabama. I don’t think the list is quite complete as far as actors go--Wayne Rogers isn’t on there, you know, but of the ones listed, you pretty much have to go with Louise Fletcher. Of course, probably the most notorious was Tallulah Bankhead, but I have never seen any of her movies, so I can’t really say how good of an actress she was--she was a striking-looking young woman, though.

Anywho, there you go.
posted by Terry at 8:16:00 AM