FIRST SEEN: University Cinema 6, Tampa, Florida
FAVORITE SCENE: The grand finale'
FAVORITE LINE: "I didn't make him FOR YOU!"

Though if truth be told my favorite lines are the ones the audience yells at the screen during the film.

AWARDS

None!


In 1972 a struggling actor named Richard O'Brien began what was to be a disastrous one night run as King Herrod in a London production of "Jesus Christ Superstar." Dismissed by the shows' director, he took the firing in stride and even managed to give the director a script for a musical he had written entitled "They Came From Denton High." The director, Jim Sharman, was so enamored of what he read that he immediately began to workshop it. Soon, "The Rocky Horror Show," as it was re-named, was playing to packed houses and critical acclaim, finding itself named the Best Musical of 1973. Hollywood caught wind of the show and soon the rights were secured by 20th Century Fox for a big budget film version. However, in spite of the interest of such rock stars as Mick Jagger, who was keen to play Dr. Frank N. Furter, Sharman wanted to use his original cast. After much bargaining, the studio agreed with two conditions: American actors in the roles of Brad and Janet and a much smaller budget. With those stipulations in place, "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" went before the cameras. In an odd case of advertising, the film's producers mounted a Broadway production six months before the film opened. However, the show was not as well received in NYC and the production only ran for 45 performances, earning only (1) Tony Award nomination, for lighting. The Best Musical award that year went to "The Wiz."

Sadly for the film's producers the movie did not fare any better. Opening in September 1975, the film was gone from most theatres by October. Except in Los Angeles, where the college crowds kept the film going well past Christmas. Sensing something, a Fox executive decided to try the film as a midnight movie in New York City. Back then (a great time for movie fans) Times Square was full of huge single screen movie theatres that would play all kinds of films at midnight. I can remember visiting the city in 1981 and attending a screening of a Sonny Chiba film (the name escapes me thought I think it might have been "Shogun's Ninja") with Sonny Chiba at the theatre. A sad part of the clean up and renovation of Times Square was that these theatres were demolished and turned into giant Toys R Us and M & M stores. But I digress. Six months after its initial release, "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" hit the midnight-movie circuit (the film had a slightly edited ending, with the musical numbers "Super Heroes" and "Science Fiction Reprise" removed) by opening at the Waverly Theater in Greenwich Village. Within months, the film was playing other venues, including the aforementioned General Cinema University Six in Tampa, where I estimate I saw it at least 25 times over a two year period. Of course I would be remiss if I didn't mention that Ye Olde Editor and his band, BLADE, would often play at the theatre before screenings in the late 1980s. In fact, he and Matt even wrote a song for the evening, a hot little rocker that still sounds good decades later. Want to give it a listen? Then click here:

http://www.myspace.com/bladememories

So what happened to the stars of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show?" Let's find out: (* denotes part of the original London stage production)

*Tim Curry - Dr. Frank N Furter- embarked on a successful solo music career and an even more successful one as an actor. He has appeared in such films as "The Hunt For Red October," "Congo," "Home Alone 2" and on Broadway in the Monty Pyton musical "Spamalot." He currently makes his living doing voice over work for animated features and home video.

Barry Bostwick - Brad Majors - was signed to the film after leaving the Broadway production of "Grease," where he originated the role of Danny Zuko. As mentioned above, when the film was reissued the number "Superheroes" was cut. Another song, a Bostwick solo entitled "Once In A While," was recorded but not included in the movie. You can find both scenes on the 25th Anniversary DVD of "Rocky Horror." From the recent prints I've seen in theatres, it appears that Fox put "Superheroes" back in to the newer prints. He was a regular on the television show "Spin City" and won a Golden Globe award for his supporting work in the mini series "War and Rememberance." His most recent role was in "The Hannah Montana Movie."

Susan Sarandon - Janet Weiss - is the most successful star to come out of "Rocky Horror." Roles in "Pretty Baby" and "King of the Gypsys" followed and then, on co-star Burt Lancaster's insistence, she was given the role of Sally Matthews in "Atlantic City," which resulted in her first Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. She was nominated four more times in this category, winning the award in 1996 for her work in "Dead Man Walking." Contrary to popular belief, she is NOT Tim Robbins' mother. She will next be seen in Peter Jackson's "The Lovely Bones."

*Richard O'Brien - Riff Raff - the creator of "Rocky Horror" followed up the film with a sequel, the underwhelming "Shock Treatment." He continues to act on British television. Though born in England his family emigrated to New Zealand, where he spent his formative years at the Embassy Cinema watching countless "science fiction double features." On November 25, 2004, a life-size bronze statue of Richard O'Brien in his Riff Raff space suit was unveiled in Hamilton, New Zealand. Commissioned jointly by a local theatre group and the Hamilton City Council, the statue stands on the site of the old Embassy Cinema.

*Patricia Quinn - Magenta - life long friend of Richard O'Brien (they met in 1972), Quinn retired from acting in 1995 following the death of her husband, Sir Robert Stephens. She is now formally referred to as Patricia, Lady Stephens. It is her lips that open the film with "Science Fiction Double Feature," though the singing voice belongs to Richard O'Brien.

*Nell Campbell (Little Nell) - Columbia - worked sporadically after "Rocky Horror," appearing in such films as "Shock Treatment," "Pink Floyd The Wall" and "The Killing Fields."

*Jonathan Adams - Dr. Everett Scott - worked steadily in British television until his death following a stroke in June 2005. In the London production, Adams played the Narrator. If I remember correctly, the actor who played Dr. Scott also played Eddie, saving on actors.

Peter Hinwood - Rocky - was a professional model with very little acting experience prior to being hired for the film. In what I've read I think he was embarrassed by the overtones of the film as he has shied away from almost all things "Rocky" over the years. He is a successful antique dealer in London. Hinwood's singing voice was provided by Australian singer Trevor White. In a rare tip to his "Rocky" heritage, both Hinwood and White were interviewed by Scott Michaels for his 2002 book Rocky Horror: From Concept to Cult. Incidentally, if you saw the movie "Laserblast" in the mid 1970s, the star of the film, Kim Milford, played Rocky in the Los Angeles production. He had the voice but obviously not the body for the film.

Meatloaf - Eddie - played Eddie in the popular Los Angeles production of "The Rocky Horror" show, which ran for 18 months. Of course, he went on to record such hit records as "Bat Out Of Hell" (one of my top 10 all time favorite albums) and star in such films as "Fight Club" and "Black Dog." FYI: "Bat Out Of Hell" is the third biggest selling album in history, with over 30,000,000 sold! Also, according to one of my Billboard Album books, Meatloaf sang the vocals on Ted Nugent's "Free For All" album, though I think Sweaty Teddy did the vocals on the title track.

Charles Gray - Narrator - is probably best known for his rare feat of playing both a good guy AND a bad guy in the James Bond world. Gray was Henderson (good guy), 007's Japan contact in "You Only Live Twice" then played Ernst Stavros Blofeld (bad guy) in "Diamonds Are Forever." Worked steadily in British television and films until his death from cancer in 2000.

Sadly, to me anyway, the original "Rocky Horror" experience is gone. Though I was proud to learn that the 2007 showing at the Tampa Theatre was recognized as the largest audience to watch the film at one time in history, I'm afraid that the local screenings have gone to hell. There used to be a set number of cat-calls the audience delivered during the film that made the experience memorable. The past few times I've gone to see it, I find that the audience will yell stuff just for the sake of yelling, most of it having nothing to do with the film. Years ago they released an "Audience Response Album" with a recording of the film and the audience so you could learn the cues. This should be required listening for all of the "virgins" who have yet to take that journey to Transylvania.

Next week I'll take a look at another musical, the animated "South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut!"

Well, that's all for now. Have a great week. Don't forget to set those clocks back. See ya!