by Erika Waddell
In an interview that aired last week on HBO's "Costas Now," Washington Redskins tackle Jon Jansen (left) said that "maybe 15, 20 percent" of NFL players use illegal performance-enhancing substances including human growth hormone. Less than 24 hours after the broadcast Jansen backed down from his initial estimate, saying, "What I meant by it was that it was a small number of players... being a football player, I'm not real good at math." Twenty percent of the NFL would translate into about 300 players.
But Jansen's high school math teacher thinks his former student was just flustered. He says Jansen knows percentages well enough.
"I think he was in the middle of an interview and probably came up with some small numbers thinking that they were small enough to cover the situation," explains David Waddell of Clawson High School in southeastern Michigan. Waddell, who retired in 1999, taught advanced algebra and trigonometry to Jansen when the future NFL star was in the eleventh grade. "I just think his math was off, and I can see that happening," he says.
According to Waddell, whose daughter, Erika, is a reporter for the Hollywood Heat web site, Jansen was actually "one of the smarter people," in his classroom. "He was a playful giant [who] was very respectful and did a good job in math... He was one of my favorite students, him and his brother."
Regarding Jansen's self-depreciating comments about his math skills, his former teacher says: "I enjoyed him saying that because that's the kind of jovial, fun person he is."
Though he took back his initial estimate, Jansen, 30, stands by his statement that it would be "very naive and foolish" to think players in the league aren't using human growth hormone. The league does not test for HGH.
Jansen joined the Redskins in 1999 after playing for the University of Michigan.
(Published on CourtTV.com Sept. 11, 2006)
Monday, December 10, 2007
The Great Chases
by Erika Waddell
In " The Greatest Movie Car Chases of All Time " (Motorbooks), British auto writer Jesse Crosse takes a loving look at what went into the making of some of the best automobile pursuits in the history of the cinema. Full of interesting details and great action photos, the book ranks Crosse's 20 favorite car chases, including " The Seven-Ups ," (1973) " The French Connection " (1971), and " The Bourne Identity " (2002).
We recently spoke to Crosse about his love of the genre and why it's become a bit of a lost art.
Q: Do you remember the first chase scene you ever watched?
A: It would have been in a UK TV program like "The Saint," which was a detective story with Roger Moore that ran in the '60s. Or another one I remember seeing early on was "Hell Drivers." It was a great film with Stanley Baker, and it was more about people going mad in trucks and cars, but it was the same kind of idea.
Q: You were fascinated with chases early on?
A: Yeah, I think we all get gripped by these things. It's partly to do with the whole excitement of the images you're watching, but it's also a way of engaging yourself with what other people are doing without having to take the risk yourself.
Q: Why do you prefer the original versions of movies over their remakes?
A: If there's one main reason why the earlier movies were better, it's because the filming technology was raw, which gave it a very gritty, real feeling. When you watch films like "Bullitt" (1968), or any of the films from that era, you get a sense of poor quality, a certain amount of vibration in the film. I used to race cars a little bit, and I can remember the view from inside a race car looking quite similar. Often your eyeballs are vibrating and everything's jiggling around.
The very fact that things have gotten so good and technology is so slick actually doesn't help. The other thing I don't like about modern movies is the tendency to fast-edit everything. If you watch "Ronin " (1998), you see shots lasting about one second, and you don't get a chance to look at the cars and savor the moment.
Q: So you think new technology takes away?
A: Yes, I do, and I know that a lot of people in the film industry feel this way, especially in the stunt industry. CGI (computer-generated imagery), which has become more and more popular, takes away a lot. It just isn't real, and you can always tell.
Q: But aren't there always elements in a movie car chase that would never happen in real life?
A: It's unlikely we'd ever see any of these chase scenes in real life, if the truth be known. But if you look at something like the original "The Italian Job" (1969), when the cars jump the gap in the Fiat factory, that was done for real, no safety net. Rémy Julienne, the great French stunt driver, told me that the Italian workers were all queuing up to shake his hand [before attempting the jump] and it was only afterwards he found out it was because they thought they'd never see him again. It's just fantastic to look at the pictures of that and realize that the guys just got in the cars and did this for real. Something about knowing that makes it more compelling. If it's just fake, then it's not compelling.
Q: What is the Golden Age of the car chase?
A: The 1960s and early '70s when most of the great ones came out, like "The Italian Job" and "Bullitt." But looking at the dates of my top 20, there's actually quite a broad range, from the '60s right through to the '80s and even the '90s, with "Taxi" and "Taxi 2." So it implies that there's still the opportunity to make great chase scenes. "Die Another Day " was released in 2002, so the story isn't over yet.
Q: What ruins a good movie car chase?
A: When people clearly aren't driving the cars. I think what makes some car chase movies into cult movies is when the public finds out that some of those [actors] were doing [their own driving] for real. There's always been a lot of debate over whether (Steve) McQueen drove the cars himself (in "Bullitt"), and we know that it was mixture of him and the stunt guys driving, but he no doubt did do a lot of those sequences, and that made it compelling.
Q: Do you prefer actors to do their own stunts?
A: I think it's very cool if they do. Nic Cage is a guy from this era of filmmaking who's known for being very keen to do this stuff. Roger Moore also did a lot of his own stuff. But it's not a crucial thing. What is crucial is that the cars are driven for real and that the action you see is real.
Q: How willing are actors to do their own stunts?
A: Oh, that's a tough one. I would think it's a two-fold thing; not everybody wants or has the ability to drive in that way, and they have a tough time with insurance. But if you look back over the years, there are people who've been keen on getting involved in the action themselves. Quite a lot of driving went on, going way back, in films like "Grand Prix," which is a 1966 John Frankenheimer film. It wasn't a chase film, but it's important because it was part of the dynasty of car-chase filmmaking. It was where people like Frankenheimer were learning their craft of making films with cars.
Q: How do you feel about real-life chases, like on "COPS"? Are they as exciting?
A: That's a very good question. Some of them are absolutely horrendous, aren't they? We can enjoy the films because they're fantasy, but coming into the reality of the danger is obviously worrying. I don't like to see people doing that in real life, I don't think any of us do. And the other thing is that the people doing it are usually completely unskilled and it nearly always ends up in an awful accident. So I guess we get a bit of comfort in watching the movies because our heroes are always very skilled people because that's what the scriptwriter has decided.
Q: How much of a movie's budget typically goes into a chase scene?
A: This was difficult for me to pin down because the figures aren't really published. But the most expensive was probably the freeway chase in "The Matrix Reloaded" (2003), and that was actually a film set. It wasn't a closed freeway. The cost of the highway was reputedly $30 million. Now that's many times more than the entire budget for "Bullitt." They had a huge number of cars to do that ("The Matrix Reloaded") scene, and General Motors provided the cars. With "Bullitt," they had four cars in total: two Mustangs and two Chargers. So the scale is hard to imagine compared to what was done in the early days. And then you have to ask yourself, "How good was that chase scene in 'The Matrix Reloaded,' compared to 'Bullitt'?"
Q: Is it more or less dangerous today for stuntmen?
A: I think it's less dangerous today because the craft of stunt performance has been developed and there are so many lessons being learned and so much experience being gained. Now there are so many specialized companies around that have developed all this technology and equipment for doing these stunts. Today, the emphasis is always on safety; stunt performers now will tell you that they never really take risks.
Q: How cooperative are local authorities when these chase scenes are being filmed?
A: I think a lot of it comes down to luck. But Hollywood carries a lot of clout and I get the impression that most authorities are eager to cooperate. You see this a lot with the "Bond" movies, where they have all these boat scenes down the Thames, where you aren't allowed to drive a jet boat.
Q: What's your opinion on cars being modified to make them go faster? Does that take away from the realism?
A: No! I grew up modifying cars. There's something exciting about taking a car and making it much better and more capable than it was.
Q: Which cities lend themselves nicely to car chases?
A: San Francisco, obviously. But I don't really think it matters where it is because the focus is on the cars and the action. For you to notice the background, it has to be somewhere that is very dramatic visually. And obviously because of the hills, San Francisco is, so you immediately know where you are with that. And places like New York, which has got such familiar landmarks.
Q: Is there a formula, a recipe for a great chase scene?
A: Yeah. Keep it real. Don't fast-edit everything. And no CGI, thank you.
(Published on CourtTV.com Feb. 8, 2007)
In " The Greatest Movie Car Chases of All Time " (Motorbooks), British auto writer Jesse Crosse takes a loving look at what went into the making of some of the best automobile pursuits in the history of the cinema. Full of interesting details and great action photos, the book ranks Crosse's 20 favorite car chases, including " The Seven-Ups ," (1973) " The French Connection " (1971), and " The Bourne Identity " (2002).
We recently spoke to Crosse about his love of the genre and why it's become a bit of a lost art.
Q: Do you remember the first chase scene you ever watched?
A: It would have been in a UK TV program like "The Saint," which was a detective story with Roger Moore that ran in the '60s. Or another one I remember seeing early on was "Hell Drivers." It was a great film with Stanley Baker, and it was more about people going mad in trucks and cars, but it was the same kind of idea.
Q: You were fascinated with chases early on?
A: Yeah, I think we all get gripped by these things. It's partly to do with the whole excitement of the images you're watching, but it's also a way of engaging yourself with what other people are doing without having to take the risk yourself.
Q: Why do you prefer the original versions of movies over their remakes?
A: If there's one main reason why the earlier movies were better, it's because the filming technology was raw, which gave it a very gritty, real feeling. When you watch films like "Bullitt" (1968), or any of the films from that era, you get a sense of poor quality, a certain amount of vibration in the film. I used to race cars a little bit, and I can remember the view from inside a race car looking quite similar. Often your eyeballs are vibrating and everything's jiggling around.
The very fact that things have gotten so good and technology is so slick actually doesn't help. The other thing I don't like about modern movies is the tendency to fast-edit everything. If you watch "Ronin " (1998), you see shots lasting about one second, and you don't get a chance to look at the cars and savor the moment.
Q: So you think new technology takes away?
A: Yes, I do, and I know that a lot of people in the film industry feel this way, especially in the stunt industry. CGI (computer-generated imagery), which has become more and more popular, takes away a lot. It just isn't real, and you can always tell.
Q: But aren't there always elements in a movie car chase that would never happen in real life?
A: It's unlikely we'd ever see any of these chase scenes in real life, if the truth be known. But if you look at something like the original "The Italian Job" (1969), when the cars jump the gap in the Fiat factory, that was done for real, no safety net. Rémy Julienne, the great French stunt driver, told me that the Italian workers were all queuing up to shake his hand [before attempting the jump] and it was only afterwards he found out it was because they thought they'd never see him again. It's just fantastic to look at the pictures of that and realize that the guys just got in the cars and did this for real. Something about knowing that makes it more compelling. If it's just fake, then it's not compelling.
Q: What is the Golden Age of the car chase?
A: The 1960s and early '70s when most of the great ones came out, like "The Italian Job" and "Bullitt." But looking at the dates of my top 20, there's actually quite a broad range, from the '60s right through to the '80s and even the '90s, with "Taxi" and "Taxi 2." So it implies that there's still the opportunity to make great chase scenes. "Die Another Day " was released in 2002, so the story isn't over yet.
Q: What ruins a good movie car chase?
A: When people clearly aren't driving the cars. I think what makes some car chase movies into cult movies is when the public finds out that some of those [actors] were doing [their own driving] for real. There's always been a lot of debate over whether (Steve) McQueen drove the cars himself (in "Bullitt"), and we know that it was mixture of him and the stunt guys driving, but he no doubt did do a lot of those sequences, and that made it compelling.
Q: Do you prefer actors to do their own stunts?
A: I think it's very cool if they do. Nic Cage is a guy from this era of filmmaking who's known for being very keen to do this stuff. Roger Moore also did a lot of his own stuff. But it's not a crucial thing. What is crucial is that the cars are driven for real and that the action you see is real.
Q: How willing are actors to do their own stunts?
A: Oh, that's a tough one. I would think it's a two-fold thing; not everybody wants or has the ability to drive in that way, and they have a tough time with insurance. But if you look back over the years, there are people who've been keen on getting involved in the action themselves. Quite a lot of driving went on, going way back, in films like "Grand Prix," which is a 1966 John Frankenheimer film. It wasn't a chase film, but it's important because it was part of the dynasty of car-chase filmmaking. It was where people like Frankenheimer were learning their craft of making films with cars.
Q: How do you feel about real-life chases, like on "COPS"? Are they as exciting?
A: That's a very good question. Some of them are absolutely horrendous, aren't they? We can enjoy the films because they're fantasy, but coming into the reality of the danger is obviously worrying. I don't like to see people doing that in real life, I don't think any of us do. And the other thing is that the people doing it are usually completely unskilled and it nearly always ends up in an awful accident. So I guess we get a bit of comfort in watching the movies because our heroes are always very skilled people because that's what the scriptwriter has decided.
Q: How much of a movie's budget typically goes into a chase scene?
A: This was difficult for me to pin down because the figures aren't really published. But the most expensive was probably the freeway chase in "The Matrix Reloaded" (2003), and that was actually a film set. It wasn't a closed freeway. The cost of the highway was reputedly $30 million. Now that's many times more than the entire budget for "Bullitt." They had a huge number of cars to do that ("The Matrix Reloaded") scene, and General Motors provided the cars. With "Bullitt," they had four cars in total: two Mustangs and two Chargers. So the scale is hard to imagine compared to what was done in the early days. And then you have to ask yourself, "How good was that chase scene in 'The Matrix Reloaded,' compared to 'Bullitt'?"
Q: Is it more or less dangerous today for stuntmen?
A: I think it's less dangerous today because the craft of stunt performance has been developed and there are so many lessons being learned and so much experience being gained. Now there are so many specialized companies around that have developed all this technology and equipment for doing these stunts. Today, the emphasis is always on safety; stunt performers now will tell you that they never really take risks.
Q: How cooperative are local authorities when these chase scenes are being filmed?
A: I think a lot of it comes down to luck. But Hollywood carries a lot of clout and I get the impression that most authorities are eager to cooperate. You see this a lot with the "Bond" movies, where they have all these boat scenes down the Thames, where you aren't allowed to drive a jet boat.
Q: What's your opinion on cars being modified to make them go faster? Does that take away from the realism?
A: No! I grew up modifying cars. There's something exciting about taking a car and making it much better and more capable than it was.
Q: Which cities lend themselves nicely to car chases?
A: San Francisco, obviously. But I don't really think it matters where it is because the focus is on the cars and the action. For you to notice the background, it has to be somewhere that is very dramatic visually. And obviously because of the hills, San Francisco is, so you immediately know where you are with that. And places like New York, which has got such familiar landmarks.
Q: Is there a formula, a recipe for a great chase scene?
A: Yeah. Keep it real. Don't fast-edit everything. And no CGI, thank you.
(Published on CourtTV.com Feb. 8, 2007)
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Famous Fakes: Looking like the Stars
by Erika Waddell
In September, 2005, a man who looked remarkably like Rolling Stones lead singer Mick Jagger walked into New York City's Spirit nightclub. Within moments, club employees seated him, pampered him like a VIP and sheltered him from fans anxious to say hello or get an autograph. "Jagger" rang up an $800 bar tab and told at least one attractive female patron that he was the famous musician, offering her a part in his newest music video.
The man, of course, was not Jagger, but a fake.
Club director Fedor Banuchi attributes the case of mistaken identity to perfect timing on the look-alike's part. "The [Rolling Stones] tour had just happened, and [Jagger] had been in the area a lot," he says. "It sort of feeds on itself," Banuchi reflects, "because when he came in with one girl, maybe it was just some guy that looked like Mick Jagger. But by the time he was there for 20 minutes, it had to be Mick Jagger because he had bodyguards and an entourage."
With Internet sites like Gawker and Defamer covering anything related to celebrities in great detail, news of star look-alikes using their looks for some sort of gain are on the rise. There's a fake David Cross haunting New York's lower East side scoring free drinks and young tail. A couple of Paris Hilton imposters (including Natalie Reid, left) are practically making a living off of their looks.
But when is it illegal to pretend that you are someone else? Does a celebrity have any legal recourse in the matter?
The most obvious issue involves using a celebrity look-alike in an advertisement.
In New York, it is against the state's civil rights law to use a person's name, picture or portrait for advertising or commercial purposes, without first getting his authorization. In 1983, Rick Kurnit, partner in the law firm Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz, represented a Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis look-alike who had appeared in an advertisement for Christian Dior that featured several actual celebrities and a couple of look-alikes. It was not obvious that "Onassis" was a fake. A New York County Supreme Court judge found that in that context, the look-alike was using Jackie O's image without consent.
Also in New York, Jake Laufer, a partner in Laufer & Halberstam, sued a video rental chain for $10 million on behalf of Woody Allen in 1985 for a similar violation of U.S. federal law. An Allen look-alike had appeared in the company's ads smiling while renting Woody Allen movies. The case was settled out of court for a reported $425,000.
It's not only stealing a star's image that's against the law; musical acts including Bette Midler, Tom Waits and the Spin Doctors have prevailed in court against ad agencies that have used singers and musical styles that sounded nearly identical to the originals.
In California, the statute has been expanded to also protect the use of one's likeness or persona, which means that even if there is no picture of the person, it is still forbidden to use anything recognizable or a signature of that person without consent. In 1993, Vanna White won a lawsuit against Samsung Electronics over their use of a robot turning letters on a game show in a futuristic ad. White claimed that the ad evoked her image, even though Samsung did not use her name or picture.
But outside of advertising and commercial issues, it's not nearly as clear. Rick Kurnit says the key issue is fraud, or whether or not the look-alike has obtained a benefit or a value from someone under false pretenses. "To the extent that someone passes himself off as something else... and he gets anything of value from another person, he's defrauded that person," he says.
So does walking away with $800 in free alcohol make the fake Mick Jagger guilty of fraud? In order to have a fraudulent claim, there must be proof that the look-alike took affirmative action to misrepresent himself. But the imposter never told any bar employees that he was Jagger. "He didn't really say much or ask for anything," says Banuchi. "Everyone just assumed." According to Kurnit, "If you don't say anything to anybody... and you don't fail to correct anyone, then the fact that you look like somebody isn't your fault and you haven't done anything [wrong]. If somebody asks you to sign an autograph and you sign someone else's name, then you've taken affirmative action to mislead." But without such proof, Kurnit says look-alikes can get away with freebies on the argument that clubs like having them because their presence turns heads and creates a buzz.
In regard to the Spirit incident, the club director agrees with this theory. "It ended up working in our favor because we got more press because he was fake than if he had been real," says Banuchi.
According to Kurnit, look-alikes also have the good argument that if people gaze closely enough, it should become obvious that they're not the real thing. "We resemble one another. I don't look just like [Tom Cruise]," says part-time Cruise impersonator Mike Hoagland, 33, of Boston. "I'm not 5'7", I'm 5'10"," he says. "I don't have his nose. I don't have his teeth." Regardless, Jake Laufer doesn't believe the law would punish anyone for getting some free drinks.
But could Mick Jagger sue the imposter? According to Laufer, "There is a claim that can be filed called the right of publicity, or the right of the celebrity to exploit the value of his celebrity, but New York does not recognize the right in and of itself." And Mick Jagger would probably be unsuccessful in a lawsuit with regard to endorsement because there were no commercial elements to the look-alike's big night out. "If the only harm is that Mick Jagger's personal feelings are slighted, New York law does not recognize that. But California law might, under the right of publicity," explains Laufer. "Of course, I am not giving legal advice," Laufer adds.
But there are imposters out there who have darker and illegal intentions. In 1992, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that a man had been calling women, identifying himself as Howard Stern radio producer Gary Dell'Abate, and offering them money to appear on Stern's show. He would then ask the women personal questions and try to persuade them to meet him to engage in sexual activity. More recently, a New Jersey woman was arrested for posing as Jessica Simpson's assistant, CaCee Cobb, in order to entice designers to send free jewelry, clothing and handbags. She reportedly told companies that Simpson was interested in their products and received more than $12,000 in freebees.
In 2003, a man falsely identified himself as Pearl Jam bassist Jeff Ament, at The Cutting Room bar in New York City. Co-owner Steve Walter says the fake even fooled actress Janeane Garofalo, who had met the real Ament before. "She was performing at the bar and he went up to her and said, 'Remember me? We were on SNL together.' He really played it up and actually got her phone number out of her," he recalled. According to Walter, the fake would also attend fashion shows and convince designers to give him free clothing. The look-alike took his act so far that Pearl Jam's manager caught wind and eventually hired a private investigator to try to stop him.
But what about the people who fake for a living and do so legally? For the purpose of this article, we will use the term "celebrity impersonator" to mean a look-alike who is paid to show up at events and simply look like a celebrity. Impersonators might be hired to mingle or even perform as the stars, but in almost every case, guests are aware that these are fakes. There are jobs where impersonators are hired to create an "is that...?" buzz; however, impersonators usually have agents to protect them from getting involved in sticky legal situations. But impersonators don't stop looking like celebrities once they're off the clock, which is where it can get interesting.
Twenty-three year-old Alyson Bradshaw of Las Vegas is a Britney Spears impersonator who occasionally finds herself in tricky ethical situations outside of work. On the subject of being approached by strangers, "I don't ever say, 'Yes, I'm Britney.' I'll say, 'What do you think?' or just smile and wave," she says. "I think it's fun for [people] because they might never get the chance to meet her... It's their choice whether they want to believe it." Bradshaw's agent at the Lookalike-USA agency educates her on the law so she stays out of trouble. She admits to posing for photos and even signing autographs in her everyday life, but Bradshaw knows better than to sign Spears' name. "I just [sign] my last name sort of scribbley... and it [looks] kind of like Britney," she confesses.
Mike Hoagland, the Cruise impersonator, is also with Lookalike-USA, and he believes that, although he's constantly told that he has the same quirks and mannerisms as Tom Cruise, people know he's not the real thing. "Never when I've been out in public has anybody been fooled," he says. "I'm sure there's some ambiguity in people's minds, but once you come up and see me, I don't look [exactly] like him." He does pose for photos, but claims that these people just want to "wow their husbands and wives," and that "it's really about the fun of it." But Hoagland still takes legal precautions, a smart idea considering how litigious the real Cruise can be. "I won't sign anything as Tom Cruise because I can get in major trouble for that. I might print something and put it in quotes so it's known that I'm not trying to portray myself as Tom Cruise," he says. And when asked if he would ever take advantage of his looks at a nightclub, "It's never happened... But if somebody was giving me the [VIP] treatment, I would probably run with it," Hoagland says. "I would not go out of my way to make sure that somebody thinks I'm him, but I can't say that I would necessarily dissuade someone from carrying on with what they believe."
According to Laufer, the acts of signing autographs and taking photos as celebrities are not punishable by law in the state of New York as long as there are no commercial elements and you are not garnering a monetary benefit. However, when it comes to sexual relations, there is another layer to the law to consider: that of assault. "[Sex with someone who claimed to be someone else] would come in the realm of assault because it's only consensual under affirmatively fraudulent pretenses," says Laufer. He likens this scenario to someone who knows he has a sexually transmitted disease claiming to a prospective partner that he is disease-free. "The other person would not have consented to the relations had they not been affirmatively misled, which is potentially criminal," he explains.
Not everyone enjoys looking famous or tries to take advantage. Actor Devin Harjes, 22, says his striking similarity to Leonardo DiCaprio hinders his professional success and is annoying in his personal life. The Texas native has not only been told he looks like DiCaprio, but also gets Matt Damon, James Van Der Beek, Val Kilmer, and Christian Slater on a daily basis. "[At auditions] they always want the new face, so considering I look like everyone, it doesn't leave much room for anything," he says. Devin works two jobs, one of which is located in touristy Times Square. He claims he can't even walk in the area without people following him, trying to get his attention. "I've learned to walk really fast through big tourist spots," he says. In addition to the annoyance of being hounded by young girls and gay men, Devin says he's also tired of the drunks sending him drinks at bars and the older women who try to fix him up with their daughters: "I don't want anything based off of looking like someone else," he says. "To me, it's more of a nuisance than anything."
(Published on CourtTV.com May 25, 2006)
In September, 2005, a man who looked remarkably like Rolling Stones lead singer Mick Jagger walked into New York City's Spirit nightclub. Within moments, club employees seated him, pampered him like a VIP and sheltered him from fans anxious to say hello or get an autograph. "Jagger" rang up an $800 bar tab and told at least one attractive female patron that he was the famous musician, offering her a part in his newest music video.
The man, of course, was not Jagger, but a fake.
Club director Fedor Banuchi attributes the case of mistaken identity to perfect timing on the look-alike's part. "The [Rolling Stones] tour had just happened, and [Jagger] had been in the area a lot," he says. "It sort of feeds on itself," Banuchi reflects, "because when he came in with one girl, maybe it was just some guy that looked like Mick Jagger. But by the time he was there for 20 minutes, it had to be Mick Jagger because he had bodyguards and an entourage."
With Internet sites like Gawker and Defamer covering anything related to celebrities in great detail, news of star look-alikes using their looks for some sort of gain are on the rise. There's a fake David Cross haunting New York's lower East side scoring free drinks and young tail. A couple of Paris Hilton imposters (including Natalie Reid, left) are practically making a living off of their looks.
But when is it illegal to pretend that you are someone else? Does a celebrity have any legal recourse in the matter?
The most obvious issue involves using a celebrity look-alike in an advertisement.
In New York, it is against the state's civil rights law to use a person's name, picture or portrait for advertising or commercial purposes, without first getting his authorization. In 1983, Rick Kurnit, partner in the law firm Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz, represented a Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis look-alike who had appeared in an advertisement for Christian Dior that featured several actual celebrities and a couple of look-alikes. It was not obvious that "Onassis" was a fake. A New York County Supreme Court judge found that in that context, the look-alike was using Jackie O's image without consent.
Also in New York, Jake Laufer, a partner in Laufer & Halberstam, sued a video rental chain for $10 million on behalf of Woody Allen in 1985 for a similar violation of U.S. federal law. An Allen look-alike had appeared in the company's ads smiling while renting Woody Allen movies. The case was settled out of court for a reported $425,000.
It's not only stealing a star's image that's against the law; musical acts including Bette Midler, Tom Waits and the Spin Doctors have prevailed in court against ad agencies that have used singers and musical styles that sounded nearly identical to the originals.
In California, the statute has been expanded to also protect the use of one's likeness or persona, which means that even if there is no picture of the person, it is still forbidden to use anything recognizable or a signature of that person without consent. In 1993, Vanna White won a lawsuit against Samsung Electronics over their use of a robot turning letters on a game show in a futuristic ad. White claimed that the ad evoked her image, even though Samsung did not use her name or picture.
But outside of advertising and commercial issues, it's not nearly as clear. Rick Kurnit says the key issue is fraud, or whether or not the look-alike has obtained a benefit or a value from someone under false pretenses. "To the extent that someone passes himself off as something else... and he gets anything of value from another person, he's defrauded that person," he says.
So does walking away with $800 in free alcohol make the fake Mick Jagger guilty of fraud? In order to have a fraudulent claim, there must be proof that the look-alike took affirmative action to misrepresent himself. But the imposter never told any bar employees that he was Jagger. "He didn't really say much or ask for anything," says Banuchi. "Everyone just assumed." According to Kurnit, "If you don't say anything to anybody... and you don't fail to correct anyone, then the fact that you look like somebody isn't your fault and you haven't done anything [wrong]. If somebody asks you to sign an autograph and you sign someone else's name, then you've taken affirmative action to mislead." But without such proof, Kurnit says look-alikes can get away with freebies on the argument that clubs like having them because their presence turns heads and creates a buzz.
In regard to the Spirit incident, the club director agrees with this theory. "It ended up working in our favor because we got more press because he was fake than if he had been real," says Banuchi.
According to Kurnit, look-alikes also have the good argument that if people gaze closely enough, it should become obvious that they're not the real thing. "We resemble one another. I don't look just like [Tom Cruise]," says part-time Cruise impersonator Mike Hoagland, 33, of Boston. "I'm not 5'7", I'm 5'10"," he says. "I don't have his nose. I don't have his teeth." Regardless, Jake Laufer doesn't believe the law would punish anyone for getting some free drinks.
But could Mick Jagger sue the imposter? According to Laufer, "There is a claim that can be filed called the right of publicity, or the right of the celebrity to exploit the value of his celebrity, but New York does not recognize the right in and of itself." And Mick Jagger would probably be unsuccessful in a lawsuit with regard to endorsement because there were no commercial elements to the look-alike's big night out. "If the only harm is that Mick Jagger's personal feelings are slighted, New York law does not recognize that. But California law might, under the right of publicity," explains Laufer. "Of course, I am not giving legal advice," Laufer adds.
But there are imposters out there who have darker and illegal intentions. In 1992, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that a man had been calling women, identifying himself as Howard Stern radio producer Gary Dell'Abate, and offering them money to appear on Stern's show. He would then ask the women personal questions and try to persuade them to meet him to engage in sexual activity. More recently, a New Jersey woman was arrested for posing as Jessica Simpson's assistant, CaCee Cobb, in order to entice designers to send free jewelry, clothing and handbags. She reportedly told companies that Simpson was interested in their products and received more than $12,000 in freebees.
In 2003, a man falsely identified himself as Pearl Jam bassist Jeff Ament, at The Cutting Room bar in New York City. Co-owner Steve Walter says the fake even fooled actress Janeane Garofalo, who had met the real Ament before. "She was performing at the bar and he went up to her and said, 'Remember me? We were on SNL together.' He really played it up and actually got her phone number out of her," he recalled. According to Walter, the fake would also attend fashion shows and convince designers to give him free clothing. The look-alike took his act so far that Pearl Jam's manager caught wind and eventually hired a private investigator to try to stop him.
But what about the people who fake for a living and do so legally? For the purpose of this article, we will use the term "celebrity impersonator" to mean a look-alike who is paid to show up at events and simply look like a celebrity. Impersonators might be hired to mingle or even perform as the stars, but in almost every case, guests are aware that these are fakes. There are jobs where impersonators are hired to create an "is that...?" buzz; however, impersonators usually have agents to protect them from getting involved in sticky legal situations. But impersonators don't stop looking like celebrities once they're off the clock, which is where it can get interesting.
Twenty-three year-old Alyson Bradshaw of Las Vegas is a Britney Spears impersonator who occasionally finds herself in tricky ethical situations outside of work. On the subject of being approached by strangers, "I don't ever say, 'Yes, I'm Britney.' I'll say, 'What do you think?' or just smile and wave," she says. "I think it's fun for [people] because they might never get the chance to meet her... It's their choice whether they want to believe it." Bradshaw's agent at the Lookalike-USA agency educates her on the law so she stays out of trouble. She admits to posing for photos and even signing autographs in her everyday life, but Bradshaw knows better than to sign Spears' name. "I just [sign] my last name sort of scribbley... and it [looks] kind of like Britney," she confesses.
Mike Hoagland, the Cruise impersonator, is also with Lookalike-USA, and he believes that, although he's constantly told that he has the same quirks and mannerisms as Tom Cruise, people know he's not the real thing. "Never when I've been out in public has anybody been fooled," he says. "I'm sure there's some ambiguity in people's minds, but once you come up and see me, I don't look [exactly] like him." He does pose for photos, but claims that these people just want to "wow their husbands and wives," and that "it's really about the fun of it." But Hoagland still takes legal precautions, a smart idea considering how litigious the real Cruise can be. "I won't sign anything as Tom Cruise because I can get in major trouble for that. I might print something and put it in quotes so it's known that I'm not trying to portray myself as Tom Cruise," he says. And when asked if he would ever take advantage of his looks at a nightclub, "It's never happened... But if somebody was giving me the [VIP] treatment, I would probably run with it," Hoagland says. "I would not go out of my way to make sure that somebody thinks I'm him, but I can't say that I would necessarily dissuade someone from carrying on with what they believe."
According to Laufer, the acts of signing autographs and taking photos as celebrities are not punishable by law in the state of New York as long as there are no commercial elements and you are not garnering a monetary benefit. However, when it comes to sexual relations, there is another layer to the law to consider: that of assault. "[Sex with someone who claimed to be someone else] would come in the realm of assault because it's only consensual under affirmatively fraudulent pretenses," says Laufer. He likens this scenario to someone who knows he has a sexually transmitted disease claiming to a prospective partner that he is disease-free. "The other person would not have consented to the relations had they not been affirmatively misled, which is potentially criminal," he explains.
Not everyone enjoys looking famous or tries to take advantage. Actor Devin Harjes, 22, says his striking similarity to Leonardo DiCaprio hinders his professional success and is annoying in his personal life. The Texas native has not only been told he looks like DiCaprio, but also gets Matt Damon, James Van Der Beek, Val Kilmer, and Christian Slater on a daily basis. "[At auditions] they always want the new face, so considering I look like everyone, it doesn't leave much room for anything," he says. Devin works two jobs, one of which is located in touristy Times Square. He claims he can't even walk in the area without people following him, trying to get his attention. "I've learned to walk really fast through big tourist spots," he says. In addition to the annoyance of being hounded by young girls and gay men, Devin says he's also tired of the drunks sending him drinks at bars and the older women who try to fix him up with their daughters: "I don't want anything based off of looking like someone else," he says. "To me, it's more of a nuisance than anything."
(Published on CourtTV.com May 25, 2006)
John Langley: The Man Behind "Cops"
by Erika Waddell
John Langley is the creator and executive producer of "Cops." Since he developed the show in 1988, "Cops" has filmed across the U.S. and the world, taping episodes in Hong Kong, London, Russia, and South America.
Last week, "Cops" aired its 600th episode. To mark this accomplishment, we spoke with Mr. Langley to hear his thoughts on why it has succeeded.
Q: Why are people so fascinated with this show?
A: Maybe because it's still unpredictable and immediate and deals with raw reality.
Q: I understand that you can only show the faces of people who have signed a release form. What percentage of people sign it?A: I'd say 90%.
Q: And is that up or down since the show started?
A: It's more. It may even be 95% now. And I think it's because "Cops" has become part of pop culture, almost everybody knows the show even if they haven't watched it. They've heard of it or they know what it deals with, or they know the theme song. Over the years it's become almost de rigueur to be on "Cops" if you happen to get caught.
Q: That's why I asked that question. I feel like people would want to do it now, it's sort of cool.
A: Yeah, they're very receptive. I mean, we have people say "Get that damn news camera out of my face," and my crew will say, "We're not with the news, we're with 'Cops'," and they'll go "Cool!"
Q: How do you go about getting people to sign the release? If someone is hesitant, how do you try to talk him or her into it?
A: Our guys say, "Look, why shouldn't you be on? This really happened, nobody's saying it didn't happen, this shows what happened. If you claim that the cops have mistreated you or aren't being fair to you or whatever the case may be, you have the proof of it. It's right on tape. Why wouldn't you want it to be shown?" I mean, they just use psychology along these lines, or try to convince them that there's nothing to lose.
Q: And when does this happen? Does it happen at the scene, or do you wait a while?
A: It usually happens at the scene because they're going from call to call. It's very difficult to track people down afterwards.
Q: What if someone's intoxicated?
A: [With] intoxicated people, we go back to get releases. So that it's ironclad.
Q: Are people ever paid to sign the release?
A: No, we don't pay people for a release, and the reason is we're a reality show, we're a documentary. It's about what's real. These aren't actors. We're not going to pay them to be who they are.
Q: Do people ever try to get out of the releases?
A: Occasionally. But signing a release is a contract, and contract law is pretty specific. Once you sign it, that's it, baby. You're an adult. You know what you're signing. It's just like signing a purchase for a car.
Q: At the end of the show, a disclaimer says that all suspects are innocent until proven guilty. What percentage of people are actually convicted?
A: I have no idea, because we don't follow up on every call. It's more of a slice-of-life show. It shows you what's happening when it's happening. It's not a traditional documentary in that it follows the case all the way through the courts... It doesn't go into the epilogues.
Q: How and why do you choose locations?
A: Well, I try to make "Cops" a road show. I like to travel it across the country because I think it keeps it fresh and it also gives a portrait of law enforcement all over America. So rather than just see one eye or an eye and an eyebrow, I like to show the ears, the nose, the chin, the entire portrait.
Q: So how do you choose those locations? Do you go back to cities that have given you good stuff before?
A: Sometimes, yes. Sometimes we repeat cities, but never one year after another. I usually wait and give them a break for a while. We're filming our 18th season now. The luxury of longevity is that we can keep going back to places where we've been before and still travel the show and still incorporate new locations.
Q: How long do you tape in each location?
A: Usually about eight weeks.
Q: How much footage do you generally have before something worthy of being on television happens?
A: I may have eight to ten crews out at any given time, and I try to get a show a week. I don't always succeed. Sometimes I'll get half a show and the next week I'll get a show and a half. But it kind of averages out to that, so we're on the road for 30 to 40 weeks a year.
Q: Do you take all the officers in an area, or do you choose certain officers?
A: It's like a casting call in some respects. We like to be with the most proactive cops because that's where the most stuff happens. We like to be in the busier areas. Otherwise you can never do a show like this because you'll sit around. There's a lot of paperwork involved in this work and a lot of downtime, and that doesn't make for good television. So we try to find the most proactive, telegenic cops and the most active areas just as a matter of practicality.
Q: Are officers willing to do this?
A: Pretty much, yeah. We have a really good reception, obviously, because it's a show about police officers, so it's kind of their show in that sense. They're the protagonists.
Q: Do your crews ever help apprehend criminals?
A: No, that's not our job. We're there to capture what's going on, not to create what's going on. The minute we become the story, there is no story. So that's my mandate to all of our crews: "If you're in the middle of a riot and they start focusing on you, turn off the cameras. Get out of there." We're under the supervision and direction of law enforcement when we're filming with them. They're the cops, not us.
Q: I've always wondered that, because when you watch a chase and the cameraman almost has him, you're kind of rooting for him to do it.
A: What's happening is the cameraman is trying to get the shot, he's not trying get the suspect. Sometimes the cameraman may be in better shape than the cop and will outrun the cop, but he has to fall back and let the cop catch up.
Q: Is "Cops" footage ever used as evidence in a trial?
A: Yes.
Q: How often does that happen?
A: Not as often as you would think, but it does occasionally happen.
Q: So do you provide attorneys with footage that was not broadcast?
A: No, never. In fact, we just recycle footage that isn't broadcast, because I don't have the wherewithal to keep thousands upon thousands of tapes that aren't being used.
Q: Has a police officer ever been fired or sued because of his behavior on the show?
A: No.
Q: Has "Cops" ever caught a celebrity doing something illegal?
A: Oh yeah. Many years ago an Academy Award-winning composer was on one of our shows. Jack Nitzsche. I think he was waving a gun around and might've been drunk. It was in Hollywood.
Q: Does the show ever revisit arrestees from past episodes?
A: No, but we've had arrestees from prior episodes show up in a different city and appear again. Not intentionally, it just shows recidivism is a reality.
Q: What is your favorite segment ever?
A: You know, I'm sometimes asked this and I genuinely and honestly do not have a favorite segment, because there have been so many, and they're like flavors of ice cream. One day you might like Neapolitan, another day you might like chocolate, vanilla or rocky road...
Q: Do you have a favorite genre, like Bad Girls or Shots Fired, or Best Chases?
A: Well, to be honest with you, those are all promotional tools to get people to watch the show. To me, the show is best when it's balanced, when it maybe has an action piece, and then a lyrical piece, and then a think piece. Because it's a three-segment structure. If you do all chases, my theory is you'll get tired of the chases after a while. So you don't want to do just chase, chase, chase. It's better to have a chase and then something that's a little slower, more humorous, more lyrical, more whatever, and then it's nice to shift gears again and have something that provokes thought about our laws or the nature of law enforcement or the nature of human behavior or crime or whatever the case may be. It's just more interesting to me that way.
Q: Do you have a favorite cop?
A: No. I've seen a lot of really great cops over the years, really proactive and courageous, just good guys. I mean, not all cops are good guys, but the good news is that most are. I came to appreciate police officers over the years, because I wasn't a big fan when I was a kid. I'm a kid of the 60s, so I never thought I would do a show called "Cops." It just turns out that I like the documentary form and I like so-called reality television. To me there's nothing more interesting then what's real, what's true.
Q: You're pretty much the founder of reality TV.
A: Oh, I don't know if I can be blamed for that, but I was probably one of the early guys in that genre.
Q: Tell me about the moment when you realized "Cops" was such a big part of the country's pop culture.
A: When my kid came to me one day and said, "Oh, my friend was on 'Cops' last night!" (laughs). And probably when I started seeing all the spoofs. "Saturday Night Live" and "Mad TV" have done things on us, "The Simpsons" has done things on us. And [the movie] "There's Something About Mary." "Cops" was in that.
Q: What do you think about "Reno 911"?
A: Oh, I love it! It's flattering and amusing.
Q: Do you think there's a limit to how much you can say about law enforcement?
A: You know, I don't think it's just about law enforcement I think it's about human behavior, and it's about man in extremes, or woman in extremes. It's about a context that involves a lot of different issues. It's not only law enforcement, it's crime and punishment, it's good and bad. All the fundamental themes of literature and film are involved in that arena.
Q: Now here's an urban myth: When police officers see people with either a big, baggy shirt or no shirt at all, does that signal to them that they are using drugs?
A: (Laughs) No. Not at all. Because crimes and misdemeanors come in all shapes and forms. You can have a crew cut, wear glasses, be dressed in a suit and be a murderer or a criminal or a crook or a con man, or you could have tats all over your arms and wear baggy pants and be an upstanding citizen. But having said that, if you see a bunch of kids riding around in a car and they look like gangbangers, chances are they are gangbangers, you know what I mean? And if it's a new car, chances are they might've stolen it.
There are just fundamental experiential issues that aren't so-called "profiling," which is a big controversy. There is natural profiling that takes part of life, and it's based on experience. If you see a guy with tattoos all over his arms and wild, dilated pupils and he gets on an elevator with you, are you going to feel comfortable, as opposed to a guy that gets on that has a Brooks Brothers suit and a briefcase? I mean, how are you going to feel at midnight on an isolated elevator? Well, cops use that same technique based on their experience to look at likely suspects.
Q: What about that theme song? Are you going to use that forever?
A: Oh yeah, it's too much a part of [pop culture]. It's too associated with "Cops," and I wouldn't change it. I was fortunate to find it, and I'm happy I put it in.
Q: Well, that's all I've got. Do you have anything that you'd like to say about the show?
A: I would say that "Cops" is an existential variety show with authentic décor. How's that? Designed to instruct and entertain, in equal parts.
(Published on CourtTV.com May 5, 2005)
John Langley is the creator and executive producer of "Cops." Since he developed the show in 1988, "Cops" has filmed across the U.S. and the world, taping episodes in Hong Kong, London, Russia, and South America.
Last week, "Cops" aired its 600th episode. To mark this accomplishment, we spoke with Mr. Langley to hear his thoughts on why it has succeeded.
Q: Why are people so fascinated with this show?
A: Maybe because it's still unpredictable and immediate and deals with raw reality.
Q: I understand that you can only show the faces of people who have signed a release form. What percentage of people sign it?A: I'd say 90%.
Q: And is that up or down since the show started?
A: It's more. It may even be 95% now. And I think it's because "Cops" has become part of pop culture, almost everybody knows the show even if they haven't watched it. They've heard of it or they know what it deals with, or they know the theme song. Over the years it's become almost de rigueur to be on "Cops" if you happen to get caught.
Q: That's why I asked that question. I feel like people would want to do it now, it's sort of cool.
A: Yeah, they're very receptive. I mean, we have people say "Get that damn news camera out of my face," and my crew will say, "We're not with the news, we're with 'Cops'," and they'll go "Cool!"
Q: How do you go about getting people to sign the release? If someone is hesitant, how do you try to talk him or her into it?
A: Our guys say, "Look, why shouldn't you be on? This really happened, nobody's saying it didn't happen, this shows what happened. If you claim that the cops have mistreated you or aren't being fair to you or whatever the case may be, you have the proof of it. It's right on tape. Why wouldn't you want it to be shown?" I mean, they just use psychology along these lines, or try to convince them that there's nothing to lose.
Q: And when does this happen? Does it happen at the scene, or do you wait a while?
A: It usually happens at the scene because they're going from call to call. It's very difficult to track people down afterwards.
Q: What if someone's intoxicated?
A: [With] intoxicated people, we go back to get releases. So that it's ironclad.
Q: Are people ever paid to sign the release?
A: No, we don't pay people for a release, and the reason is we're a reality show, we're a documentary. It's about what's real. These aren't actors. We're not going to pay them to be who they are.
Q: Do people ever try to get out of the releases?
A: Occasionally. But signing a release is a contract, and contract law is pretty specific. Once you sign it, that's it, baby. You're an adult. You know what you're signing. It's just like signing a purchase for a car.
Q: At the end of the show, a disclaimer says that all suspects are innocent until proven guilty. What percentage of people are actually convicted?
A: I have no idea, because we don't follow up on every call. It's more of a slice-of-life show. It shows you what's happening when it's happening. It's not a traditional documentary in that it follows the case all the way through the courts... It doesn't go into the epilogues.
Q: How and why do you choose locations?
A: Well, I try to make "Cops" a road show. I like to travel it across the country because I think it keeps it fresh and it also gives a portrait of law enforcement all over America. So rather than just see one eye or an eye and an eyebrow, I like to show the ears, the nose, the chin, the entire portrait.
Q: So how do you choose those locations? Do you go back to cities that have given you good stuff before?
A: Sometimes, yes. Sometimes we repeat cities, but never one year after another. I usually wait and give them a break for a while. We're filming our 18th season now. The luxury of longevity is that we can keep going back to places where we've been before and still travel the show and still incorporate new locations.
Q: How long do you tape in each location?
A: Usually about eight weeks.
Q: How much footage do you generally have before something worthy of being on television happens?
A: I may have eight to ten crews out at any given time, and I try to get a show a week. I don't always succeed. Sometimes I'll get half a show and the next week I'll get a show and a half. But it kind of averages out to that, so we're on the road for 30 to 40 weeks a year.
Q: Do you take all the officers in an area, or do you choose certain officers?
A: It's like a casting call in some respects. We like to be with the most proactive cops because that's where the most stuff happens. We like to be in the busier areas. Otherwise you can never do a show like this because you'll sit around. There's a lot of paperwork involved in this work and a lot of downtime, and that doesn't make for good television. So we try to find the most proactive, telegenic cops and the most active areas just as a matter of practicality.
Q: Are officers willing to do this?
A: Pretty much, yeah. We have a really good reception, obviously, because it's a show about police officers, so it's kind of their show in that sense. They're the protagonists.
Q: Do your crews ever help apprehend criminals?
A: No, that's not our job. We're there to capture what's going on, not to create what's going on. The minute we become the story, there is no story. So that's my mandate to all of our crews: "If you're in the middle of a riot and they start focusing on you, turn off the cameras. Get out of there." We're under the supervision and direction of law enforcement when we're filming with them. They're the cops, not us.
Q: I've always wondered that, because when you watch a chase and the cameraman almost has him, you're kind of rooting for him to do it.
A: What's happening is the cameraman is trying to get the shot, he's not trying get the suspect. Sometimes the cameraman may be in better shape than the cop and will outrun the cop, but he has to fall back and let the cop catch up.
Q: Is "Cops" footage ever used as evidence in a trial?
A: Yes.
Q: How often does that happen?
A: Not as often as you would think, but it does occasionally happen.
Q: So do you provide attorneys with footage that was not broadcast?
A: No, never. In fact, we just recycle footage that isn't broadcast, because I don't have the wherewithal to keep thousands upon thousands of tapes that aren't being used.
Q: Has a police officer ever been fired or sued because of his behavior on the show?
A: No.
Q: Has "Cops" ever caught a celebrity doing something illegal?
A: Oh yeah. Many years ago an Academy Award-winning composer was on one of our shows. Jack Nitzsche. I think he was waving a gun around and might've been drunk. It was in Hollywood.
Q: Does the show ever revisit arrestees from past episodes?
A: No, but we've had arrestees from prior episodes show up in a different city and appear again. Not intentionally, it just shows recidivism is a reality.
Q: What is your favorite segment ever?
A: You know, I'm sometimes asked this and I genuinely and honestly do not have a favorite segment, because there have been so many, and they're like flavors of ice cream. One day you might like Neapolitan, another day you might like chocolate, vanilla or rocky road...
Q: Do you have a favorite genre, like Bad Girls or Shots Fired, or Best Chases?
A: Well, to be honest with you, those are all promotional tools to get people to watch the show. To me, the show is best when it's balanced, when it maybe has an action piece, and then a lyrical piece, and then a think piece. Because it's a three-segment structure. If you do all chases, my theory is you'll get tired of the chases after a while. So you don't want to do just chase, chase, chase. It's better to have a chase and then something that's a little slower, more humorous, more lyrical, more whatever, and then it's nice to shift gears again and have something that provokes thought about our laws or the nature of law enforcement or the nature of human behavior or crime or whatever the case may be. It's just more interesting to me that way.
Q: Do you have a favorite cop?
A: No. I've seen a lot of really great cops over the years, really proactive and courageous, just good guys. I mean, not all cops are good guys, but the good news is that most are. I came to appreciate police officers over the years, because I wasn't a big fan when I was a kid. I'm a kid of the 60s, so I never thought I would do a show called "Cops." It just turns out that I like the documentary form and I like so-called reality television. To me there's nothing more interesting then what's real, what's true.
Q: You're pretty much the founder of reality TV.
A: Oh, I don't know if I can be blamed for that, but I was probably one of the early guys in that genre.
Q: Tell me about the moment when you realized "Cops" was such a big part of the country's pop culture.
A: When my kid came to me one day and said, "Oh, my friend was on 'Cops' last night!" (laughs). And probably when I started seeing all the spoofs. "Saturday Night Live" and "Mad TV" have done things on us, "The Simpsons" has done things on us. And [the movie] "There's Something About Mary." "Cops" was in that.
Q: What do you think about "Reno 911"?
A: Oh, I love it! It's flattering and amusing.
Q: Do you think there's a limit to how much you can say about law enforcement?
A: You know, I don't think it's just about law enforcement I think it's about human behavior, and it's about man in extremes, or woman in extremes. It's about a context that involves a lot of different issues. It's not only law enforcement, it's crime and punishment, it's good and bad. All the fundamental themes of literature and film are involved in that arena.
Q: Now here's an urban myth: When police officers see people with either a big, baggy shirt or no shirt at all, does that signal to them that they are using drugs?
A: (Laughs) No. Not at all. Because crimes and misdemeanors come in all shapes and forms. You can have a crew cut, wear glasses, be dressed in a suit and be a murderer or a criminal or a crook or a con man, or you could have tats all over your arms and wear baggy pants and be an upstanding citizen. But having said that, if you see a bunch of kids riding around in a car and they look like gangbangers, chances are they are gangbangers, you know what I mean? And if it's a new car, chances are they might've stolen it.
There are just fundamental experiential issues that aren't so-called "profiling," which is a big controversy. There is natural profiling that takes part of life, and it's based on experience. If you see a guy with tattoos all over his arms and wild, dilated pupils and he gets on an elevator with you, are you going to feel comfortable, as opposed to a guy that gets on that has a Brooks Brothers suit and a briefcase? I mean, how are you going to feel at midnight on an isolated elevator? Well, cops use that same technique based on their experience to look at likely suspects.
Q: What about that theme song? Are you going to use that forever?
A: Oh yeah, it's too much a part of [pop culture]. It's too associated with "Cops," and I wouldn't change it. I was fortunate to find it, and I'm happy I put it in.
Q: Well, that's all I've got. Do you have anything that you'd like to say about the show?
A: I would say that "Cops" is an existential variety show with authentic décor. How's that? Designed to instruct and entertain, in equal parts.
(Published on CourtTV.com May 5, 2005)
Rocker Feels Heat, Doesn't Care For It
by Erika Waddell
For over a decade, Nick Hexum has devoted his time and energy to being the frontman of alternative rock-and-reggae band 311. Nowadays he's got a new cause, and there's nothing musical about it. After his beloved home in the Florida Keys was ravaged last year by devastating hurricanes, Hexum became driven to raise awareness about global warming, which he believes to be our most dire environmental issue. He recently started the non-profit organization Liberal Hexum, which is dedicated to various environmental and social causes, the first of which is to fund research on global warming.
As the son of a scientist, taking up such a cause seems like a natural step for Hexum, who continues to educate himself and doesn't profess to know everything. But should he stick to being a rock star and keep his politics to himself? You be the judge.
Q: What inspired you to get the word out about global warming?
A: Well, I have a vacation home in the Florida Keys that got hit by four hurricanes last year, so that made it kind of personal. But I think if anybody really looked into it and really considered it, they would become alarmed. It's our biggest crisis; it's bigger than terrorism, immigration, and all of these different things that you see in the polls that Americans are really worried about.
The waters are getting warmer, the hurricanes are getting stronger, and that's one of the first negative effects of global warming. If people understood, they would be a lot more concerned. But I guess people don't get worried about things until they start affecting their pocketbooks. Global warming is already affecting peoples' pocket books; they just don't know it, because it comes in the form of insurance premiums, and taxes that have to go to FEMA to bail out these places with emergency funding.
Q: How are you educating yourself?
A: Reading and watching every documentary I can find on the subject. On Earth Day, I saw HBO's "Too Hot Not to Handle" documentary, which I thought was just brilliant, really well done.
Q: Have you seen Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth"?
A: Yeah. I pledged to see it on opening day. It's really exciting to see that he's finally being paid attention to for something that he's been warning everybody about for so long. In the same way that Jimmy Carter talked about our addiction to foreign oil when he was president, and nobody listened to that. The whole political aspect of global politics and the business of importing oil, that's one thing in itself, but global warming and the greenhouse effect are also serious problems. But they basically both can be solved by the same ingenuity and a shift in our economic energy policy.
Q: So what are some things that we can do to help prevent global warming?
A: If people, for both economic and conscience reasons, switch from SUVs to a hybrid cars, that would reduce our emissions by 75-80 percent. Solar and wind have become really viable lately, to the point where people are powering their whole houses and actually selling energy back to the power companies.
Q: But is it as simple as reducing the amount of energy used?
A: No, the government has to take the lead, there's no question about it. And that's the last thing on Bush's agenda, which is what's so upsetting.
Q: Have you tried to get involved politically?
A: Absolutely. I went on a one-month tour with my brother [Zack Hexum], called "Hexum Brothers Rock for Kerry," trying to support Kerry a couple years ago. It was really disappointing, but at least I feel like I tried.
Q: How hands-on are you with Liberal Hexum?
A: Very. I have even learned to design Web sites. A lot of young people are interested in environmental issues, but understanding the science of it is pretty confusing. So at Liberalhexum.org I've made a primer course, like Global Warming 101. It's an overview of why this is so serious and what the problems are projected to be. In the scientific community, there isn't this big debate about whether it's going on or not; that's been over for quite some time. That's just something that conservatives do to try and put off having to clean up their acts.
Q: Do you ever get the reaction: What does a musician know about global warming?
A: I haven't gotten that. I just try to collect as much information as I can from as many different sources as I can.
I have a lot of liberal beliefs, and I had been involved in anti-war things previously. In doing that, I learned more and more about global warming and about how the Bush administration has blurred the issue and silenced the scientists, so that kind of made the transition for me. Then, when you add to it that I had also been victimized by a hurricane, it all kind of worked together to motivate me.
Q: How has being in a band helped your cause?
A: It's just a platform. I've always felt that when something really urgent comes up, for example the invasion of Iraq, I've felt that I had a responsibility to try and use whatever sort of platform where I had peoples' ears and their attention to speak my mind about what I felt was a grave mistake being made. There are plenty of people who say that musicians have no business to be talking about politics, but I just have to follow my conscience.
Q: Does it ever scare you that you can affect so many people, especially because your fan base is heavily made up of young, impressionable people?
A: No. I think that people are more affected by their family and people around them than they are by Hollywood people. I certainly do take responsibility. I would be worried if I was spreading any sort of hateful message or anything destructive or even just a sort of a pessimistic, life-sucks message. I think a lot of people just wash their hands of what they're doing and say that they're just reporting what they see on the streets, but people are listening and impressionable.
Q: Do you find it hard to stay positive these days?
A: Yeah. After the disappointment of the presidential election, I went through a time when I just had to really wash my hands of politics for a while because I was so disheartened.
Q: So how did Liberal Hexum come about, and what do you do with your donations?
A: Originally I was thinking about a political action committee, but those are much more lobbyist-oriented, and being an educational non-profit environmental charity is a lot easier to get the paperwork through. I just talked to a lawyer about it, and just the start-up cost of getting yourself registered as a non-profit organization is substantial, and running a Web site. But we do have a significant war chest now, so I'm doing research as to where the money that we've raised so far would be best spent.
Q: In school, were you a science guy? I've noticed that science even creeps into your song lyrics.
A: Yeah. My dad is a Ph.D. in biochemistry, and I always loved to go to the lab with him. He researches the most basic building blocks of human anatomy as far as amino acids and stuff like that. And I was really into physics class; I guess it's sort of a hobby of mine.
Q: What motivates you?
A: At this stage in my life, it's feeling like I'm having a positive effect, whether it's by encouraging people through lyrics or my side projects.
Q: What fascinates you?
A: Well, I've become fascinated with meteorology, and that's been my obsession lately, and politics. But let's have something fun. I love power pop. I love Jellyfish, you know, that band. I can't wait to hear Jack White and Brendan Benson's new band, The Raconteurs.
Q: What would you do if you weren't a musician? Would you be a scientist?
A: I've always said I'd go into law, because I like to debate. I don't think I would be happy just being in the laboratory like my father. I'm much more into human contact.
Q: What keeps you up at night?
A: Is the trend of hurricane seasons getting longer and the hurricanes getting more severe going to continue as it has over the past three years? That worries me. And not just for myself. There are a lot of people whose lives are ruined, and those insurance companies do everything they can to find loopholes and ways not to pay.
Q: 311 is touring this summer - will you be doing anything to raise awareness while you're on the road?
A: I try to keep them separate. We don't sit as a band and come to a collective political stance on anything. Though I know I have support and agreement from members of the band, I just think that 311 is an all-inclusive; it doesn't matter if you're a red state or blue state or whatever, it's about bringing people together. Therefore if each night if I decided to take a few minutes to talk about global warming, I would piss off a lot of people who think that it's just a liberal nutcase sort of thing. And I have had a couple of people who say that global warming doesn't even exist, you're off your rocker, and you should shut up and stick to music. But the vast majority of people have been saying that's so cool that you're trying to help out with something you believe in. But there's not going to be a big global warming booth or something like that on the 311 tour. They're separate things.
(Published on CourtTV.com June 28, 2006)
For over a decade, Nick Hexum has devoted his time and energy to being the frontman of alternative rock-and-reggae band 311. Nowadays he's got a new cause, and there's nothing musical about it. After his beloved home in the Florida Keys was ravaged last year by devastating hurricanes, Hexum became driven to raise awareness about global warming, which he believes to be our most dire environmental issue. He recently started the non-profit organization Liberal Hexum, which is dedicated to various environmental and social causes, the first of which is to fund research on global warming.
As the son of a scientist, taking up such a cause seems like a natural step for Hexum, who continues to educate himself and doesn't profess to know everything. But should he stick to being a rock star and keep his politics to himself? You be the judge.
Q: What inspired you to get the word out about global warming?
A: Well, I have a vacation home in the Florida Keys that got hit by four hurricanes last year, so that made it kind of personal. But I think if anybody really looked into it and really considered it, they would become alarmed. It's our biggest crisis; it's bigger than terrorism, immigration, and all of these different things that you see in the polls that Americans are really worried about.
The waters are getting warmer, the hurricanes are getting stronger, and that's one of the first negative effects of global warming. If people understood, they would be a lot more concerned. But I guess people don't get worried about things until they start affecting their pocketbooks. Global warming is already affecting peoples' pocket books; they just don't know it, because it comes in the form of insurance premiums, and taxes that have to go to FEMA to bail out these places with emergency funding.
Q: How are you educating yourself?
A: Reading and watching every documentary I can find on the subject. On Earth Day, I saw HBO's "Too Hot Not to Handle" documentary, which I thought was just brilliant, really well done.
Q: Have you seen Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth"?
A: Yeah. I pledged to see it on opening day. It's really exciting to see that he's finally being paid attention to for something that he's been warning everybody about for so long. In the same way that Jimmy Carter talked about our addiction to foreign oil when he was president, and nobody listened to that. The whole political aspect of global politics and the business of importing oil, that's one thing in itself, but global warming and the greenhouse effect are also serious problems. But they basically both can be solved by the same ingenuity and a shift in our economic energy policy.
Q: So what are some things that we can do to help prevent global warming?
A: If people, for both economic and conscience reasons, switch from SUVs to a hybrid cars, that would reduce our emissions by 75-80 percent. Solar and wind have become really viable lately, to the point where people are powering their whole houses and actually selling energy back to the power companies.
Q: But is it as simple as reducing the amount of energy used?
A: No, the government has to take the lead, there's no question about it. And that's the last thing on Bush's agenda, which is what's so upsetting.
Q: Have you tried to get involved politically?
A: Absolutely. I went on a one-month tour with my brother [Zack Hexum], called "Hexum Brothers Rock for Kerry," trying to support Kerry a couple years ago. It was really disappointing, but at least I feel like I tried.
Q: How hands-on are you with Liberal Hexum?
A: Very. I have even learned to design Web sites. A lot of young people are interested in environmental issues, but understanding the science of it is pretty confusing. So at Liberalhexum.org I've made a primer course, like Global Warming 101. It's an overview of why this is so serious and what the problems are projected to be. In the scientific community, there isn't this big debate about whether it's going on or not; that's been over for quite some time. That's just something that conservatives do to try and put off having to clean up their acts.
Q: Do you ever get the reaction: What does a musician know about global warming?
A: I haven't gotten that. I just try to collect as much information as I can from as many different sources as I can.
I have a lot of liberal beliefs, and I had been involved in anti-war things previously. In doing that, I learned more and more about global warming and about how the Bush administration has blurred the issue and silenced the scientists, so that kind of made the transition for me. Then, when you add to it that I had also been victimized by a hurricane, it all kind of worked together to motivate me.
Q: How has being in a band helped your cause?
A: It's just a platform. I've always felt that when something really urgent comes up, for example the invasion of Iraq, I've felt that I had a responsibility to try and use whatever sort of platform where I had peoples' ears and their attention to speak my mind about what I felt was a grave mistake being made. There are plenty of people who say that musicians have no business to be talking about politics, but I just have to follow my conscience.
Q: Does it ever scare you that you can affect so many people, especially because your fan base is heavily made up of young, impressionable people?
A: No. I think that people are more affected by their family and people around them than they are by Hollywood people. I certainly do take responsibility. I would be worried if I was spreading any sort of hateful message or anything destructive or even just a sort of a pessimistic, life-sucks message. I think a lot of people just wash their hands of what they're doing and say that they're just reporting what they see on the streets, but people are listening and impressionable.
Q: Do you find it hard to stay positive these days?
A: Yeah. After the disappointment of the presidential election, I went through a time when I just had to really wash my hands of politics for a while because I was so disheartened.
Q: So how did Liberal Hexum come about, and what do you do with your donations?
A: Originally I was thinking about a political action committee, but those are much more lobbyist-oriented, and being an educational non-profit environmental charity is a lot easier to get the paperwork through. I just talked to a lawyer about it, and just the start-up cost of getting yourself registered as a non-profit organization is substantial, and running a Web site. But we do have a significant war chest now, so I'm doing research as to where the money that we've raised so far would be best spent.
Q: In school, were you a science guy? I've noticed that science even creeps into your song lyrics.
A: Yeah. My dad is a Ph.D. in biochemistry, and I always loved to go to the lab with him. He researches the most basic building blocks of human anatomy as far as amino acids and stuff like that. And I was really into physics class; I guess it's sort of a hobby of mine.
Q: What motivates you?
A: At this stage in my life, it's feeling like I'm having a positive effect, whether it's by encouraging people through lyrics or my side projects.
Q: What fascinates you?
A: Well, I've become fascinated with meteorology, and that's been my obsession lately, and politics. But let's have something fun. I love power pop. I love Jellyfish, you know, that band. I can't wait to hear Jack White and Brendan Benson's new band, The Raconteurs.
Q: What would you do if you weren't a musician? Would you be a scientist?
A: I've always said I'd go into law, because I like to debate. I don't think I would be happy just being in the laboratory like my father. I'm much more into human contact.
Q: What keeps you up at night?
A: Is the trend of hurricane seasons getting longer and the hurricanes getting more severe going to continue as it has over the past three years? That worries me. And not just for myself. There are a lot of people whose lives are ruined, and those insurance companies do everything they can to find loopholes and ways not to pay.
Q: 311 is touring this summer - will you be doing anything to raise awareness while you're on the road?
A: I try to keep them separate. We don't sit as a band and come to a collective political stance on anything. Though I know I have support and agreement from members of the band, I just think that 311 is an all-inclusive; it doesn't matter if you're a red state or blue state or whatever, it's about bringing people together. Therefore if each night if I decided to take a few minutes to talk about global warming, I would piss off a lot of people who think that it's just a liberal nutcase sort of thing. And I have had a couple of people who say that global warming doesn't even exist, you're off your rocker, and you should shut up and stick to music. But the vast majority of people have been saying that's so cool that you're trying to help out with something you believe in. But there's not going to be a big global warming booth or something like that on the 311 tour. They're separate things.
(Published on CourtTV.com June 28, 2006)
Rhonda Saunders: Stopping the Stalkers (video interview)
by Erika Waddell
Rhonda Saunders has been prosecuting stalkers since 1991. She has handled the high-profile cases of celebrities such as Madonna, Steven Spielberg, Anna Nicole Smith, and Gwyneth Paltrow. Although best known for putting away the "stalkers to the stars," Saunders has also handled hundreds of terrifying cases involving less well-known victims. After 22 years as Los Angeles County prosecutor, Saunders is still as active as ever in her crusade for victims' rights and stricter stalking penalties. In this interview with Court TV's Erika Waddell, she discusses the legal issues of stalking and recounts the details of some of her most famous cases.
(Published on CourtTV.com May 19, 2005)
Rhonda Saunders has been prosecuting stalkers since 1991. She has handled the high-profile cases of celebrities such as Madonna, Steven Spielberg, Anna Nicole Smith, and Gwyneth Paltrow. Although best known for putting away the "stalkers to the stars," Saunders has also handled hundreds of terrifying cases involving less well-known victims. After 22 years as Los Angeles County prosecutor, Saunders is still as active as ever in her crusade for victims' rights and stricter stalking penalties. In this interview with Court TV's Erika Waddell, she discusses the legal issues of stalking and recounts the details of some of her most famous cases.
(Published on CourtTV.com May 19, 2005)
Eleven Reasons You Should Be Watching "Arrested Development"
By Erika Waddell
"Arrested Development" is the best show on network television. Sadly, its ratings aren't representative of its brilliance. Many viewers were surprised when the show was picked up for a second season, but after winning five Emmys and receiving unremitting praise from television critics across the country, Fox wouldn't give up on its little treasure. Currently in its third season, "Arrested Development" fans are still fighting to secure the show's future by writing letters to Fox, proposing strategies to the network on message boards and creating Web sites dedicated to saving their beloved Bluth family. While those who have seen the show love it, the hard part is rousing new viewers to tune in. So here is our list of the reasons you should be watching. We hope the hilarity will compel you to turn the dial to Fox on Monday nights at 8/7c. We know we will.
The Scripts
The writing is undeniably genius, with a perfect balance of in-your-face funny and over-your-head funny. Fans versed in the show's complex storylines and quick-witted humor still tend to miss a joke or four, as many of the family's predicaments result from misunderstandings rooted in crafty wordplay. Like when the youngest son, Buster, looses his hand to a "loose seal" (which escaped from his brother's magic show) while swimming in the ocean in an act of rebellion against his mother, Lucille. Or when the Bluth Company employs the slogan "Solid As a Rock" after George Sr. is jailed for doing business with Iraq. In an email interview with Courttv.com, actor Michael Cera (who plays George-Michael) says his favorite thing about the show is that they are able to get away with filthy humor. "It always amuses me," he says, "how critics go on about the plot twists and how not just anybody can watch, when really it's just the dirtiest show on TV. All we do is disguise it with fancy talk."
The Cast
Talk about group dynamic, there hasn't been a show cast this perfectly since "Seinfeld." Veteran actors Jeffrey Tambor, Portia de Rossi, and Jason Bateman, along with Will Arnett, David Cross, Tony Hale, and Jessica Walter give the show's writers an extremely talented lot to work with. Not to mention some of the best young actors we've ever believed.
Bateman, who plays Michael, the only level-headed Bluth, truly shines. His balance of frustrated company president and compassionate brother and father is absolute perfection. We think we're in love.
The Model Home
As much a character as any animate being, the model home is probably the single funniest element of the show. It was built by the Bluth Company to function as the model unit in their latest housing tract, but after the family got into legal hot water, Michael, his son, and the Fünke family decided to move in together. At any given time, additional family members can be found squatting there as well, making it so crowded that first cousins who are in love with each other (although their parents are unaware of it) are forced to share a room. Items like the television set and dining-room turkey are plastic fakes (like in the showroom of a furniture store), and the place is falling apart due to "shoddy workmanship." In a pivotal scene, Michael catches a news report on American-built mini-palaces in Iraq and recognizes that one of the homes resembles the Bluth Company's Sea Wind unit. The reporter points out the "shoddy workmanship" while reminding viewers that there have been sanctions against doing business with Saddam Hussein's regime since the early 1990s. Looks like George Sr. is in bigger trouble than we originally thought.
The Stair Car
You'll laugh out loud when you see the family's mode of transportation, a truck with a full staircase descending from its cab (it was once used as a gangway to the family jet). Though the Bluths make good use of the staircase -- Michael runs the stairs while training for a triathlon, Lindsay walks an activist down from a tree -- many mishaps result too. In one very funny scene, while attempting to park at the airport, Lindsay's husband, Tobias, is waved onto the tarmac and makes headlines after causing delays to the entire western flight grid. And, of course, stair-car drivers must watch out for "hop-ons." Cera tells us his favorite hop-on scene is when George Sr. escapes prison and heads to Mexico, where locals use the stairs to jump over the border into the United States.
The Never-Nude
One of our favorite characters, Tobias Fünke (pronounced Fyoonk-A), suffers from a seriously funny phobia. Tobias is what the Bluths call a "never-nude," or one with a psychological aversion to being completely naked. He wears tiny denim cut-offs at all times, under clothing, under towels and even in the shower.
Tobias also always chooses the wrong words. A favorite example is his business card, indicating that he's both an analyst and a therapist. It reads: "Tobias Fünke, Analrapist." Priceless.
The Names
Whether they're puns, indications of the character's personality, or just sound funny, character names are reflective of the show's clever writing. You've got Michael's son, George-Michael, which is the unfortunate combination of his grandfather and father's names. Then there's GOB (pronounced "Jobe"), short for George Oscar Bluth II, which is constantly being mispronounced as Gobb. Lindsay and Tobias' daughter is named Maeby, pronounced "Maybe." There are wonderful wordplays almost every time her name is spoken -- for example, "This is Tobias' daughter, Maeby." Maeby is also Michael Cera's favorite character name, which he says, "actually came from [creator] Mitch Hurwitz's two daughters, Maisie and Phoebe." And of course there's Bob Loblaw (Scott Baio), the family's newest attorney. Say his name and it comes out "blah blah blah."
The Magician
GOB, the eldest Bluth son, adds another layer of hilarity to the show with his magic tricks. He attempts outrageous "illusions" like making the family yacht disappear (he sinks it) and taking a sword in the stomach (he loses two fingers). Michael Cera says that GOB's best trick is when he attempts to impress people with mini-explosions from the palms of his hands, but ends up squirting lighter fluid all over them, to which he responds, "But still, where did the lighter fluid come from?" GOB even tries his hand at ventriloquism, with an African American puppet that says all the racist things GOB can't away with. And like a true magician, GOB uses live animals in his act... but almost always accidentally kills them. He also thinks he should be able to return the dead animals to the pet store.
The Cameos
Often playing the most eccentric of characters, celebrity guests are highlights of the show. Liza Minnelli, Heather Graham, Ben Stiller, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Charlize Theron as a British spy have all made appearances. The list goes on and on, but our favorite scene involving a guest star takes place when Zach Braff plays a director for the video series, "Girls With Low Self-Esteem," which Lindsay and Tobias protest for its exploitation of young women. In order to give Braff's character a taste of his own medicine, Lindsay and Tobias pull down his pants in the middle of a spring break shoot, revealing his cut-off jean shorts -- turns out he's a never-nude too.
The Legal Stuff
Any fan of the crime and investigation genre will enjoy this satirical take on the legal process. Take, for example, George Sr. (who was convicted on a host of SEC violations) who thinks of jail as a vacation. When reminded that he's doing time, George Sr. replies, "I'm doing the time of my life!" He's often shown in the pen playing baseball and eating ice-cream sandwiches. He even discovers Judaism in solitary confinement and produces a series of inspirational videos under the title, "Caged Wisdom." And of course there are hilarious cracks at lawyers. Henry Winkler, whom Michael Cera calls "mind-blowingly funny," plays the family's longtime attorney, who has more amusing, creative and terrible ways to wiggle out of a legal bind than any other TV lawyer.
The Frozen Banana Stand
A big hit in the '70s, kids had turned the Bluth's banana-shaped business on Balboa Island into a pot-dealing mecca so widely known that a song had been written in its honor, "Big Yellow Joint."
But more recently, it had served as more of teaching tool for Michael to instill values in his son, requiring George-Michael to work there the same way that he had. Out of rebellion, father and son torch the stand, not realizing that when George Sr. had repeatedly said, "There's always money in the banana stand," he was speaking literally — he had stashed $250,000 in the walls.
The Blue Man Group
Many of the show's best jokes and plot twists stem from Tobias' fascination with the performance art group, The Blue Man Group. Feeling low about his failing marriage, he stumbles upon a flyer for the act and attends a performance under the impression that it's a support group for depressed men. From that moment on, the struggling actor is obsessed with becoming an understudy, often walking around the house painted blue. But when he finally makes the trek to Las Vegas to audition for an opening, he learns the spot has just been filled by someone whom the casting director says is "always in character" -- none other than George Sr., who is on the run and incognito.
(Published on CourtTV.com Nov. 10, 2005)
"Arrested Development" is the best show on network television. Sadly, its ratings aren't representative of its brilliance. Many viewers were surprised when the show was picked up for a second season, but after winning five Emmys and receiving unremitting praise from television critics across the country, Fox wouldn't give up on its little treasure. Currently in its third season, "Arrested Development" fans are still fighting to secure the show's future by writing letters to Fox, proposing strategies to the network on message boards and creating Web sites dedicated to saving their beloved Bluth family. While those who have seen the show love it, the hard part is rousing new viewers to tune in. So here is our list of the reasons you should be watching. We hope the hilarity will compel you to turn the dial to Fox on Monday nights at 8/7c. We know we will.
The Scripts
The writing is undeniably genius, with a perfect balance of in-your-face funny and over-your-head funny. Fans versed in the show's complex storylines and quick-witted humor still tend to miss a joke or four, as many of the family's predicaments result from misunderstandings rooted in crafty wordplay. Like when the youngest son, Buster, looses his hand to a "loose seal" (which escaped from his brother's magic show) while swimming in the ocean in an act of rebellion against his mother, Lucille. Or when the Bluth Company employs the slogan "Solid As a Rock" after George Sr. is jailed for doing business with Iraq. In an email interview with Courttv.com, actor Michael Cera (who plays George-Michael) says his favorite thing about the show is that they are able to get away with filthy humor. "It always amuses me," he says, "how critics go on about the plot twists and how not just anybody can watch, when really it's just the dirtiest show on TV. All we do is disguise it with fancy talk."
The Cast
Talk about group dynamic, there hasn't been a show cast this perfectly since "Seinfeld." Veteran actors Jeffrey Tambor, Portia de Rossi, and Jason Bateman, along with Will Arnett, David Cross, Tony Hale, and Jessica Walter give the show's writers an extremely talented lot to work with. Not to mention some of the best young actors we've ever believed.
Bateman, who plays Michael, the only level-headed Bluth, truly shines. His balance of frustrated company president and compassionate brother and father is absolute perfection. We think we're in love.
The Model Home
As much a character as any animate being, the model home is probably the single funniest element of the show. It was built by the Bluth Company to function as the model unit in their latest housing tract, but after the family got into legal hot water, Michael, his son, and the Fünke family decided to move in together. At any given time, additional family members can be found squatting there as well, making it so crowded that first cousins who are in love with each other (although their parents are unaware of it) are forced to share a room. Items like the television set and dining-room turkey are plastic fakes (like in the showroom of a furniture store), and the place is falling apart due to "shoddy workmanship." In a pivotal scene, Michael catches a news report on American-built mini-palaces in Iraq and recognizes that one of the homes resembles the Bluth Company's Sea Wind unit. The reporter points out the "shoddy workmanship" while reminding viewers that there have been sanctions against doing business with Saddam Hussein's regime since the early 1990s. Looks like George Sr. is in bigger trouble than we originally thought.
The Stair Car
You'll laugh out loud when you see the family's mode of transportation, a truck with a full staircase descending from its cab (it was once used as a gangway to the family jet). Though the Bluths make good use of the staircase -- Michael runs the stairs while training for a triathlon, Lindsay walks an activist down from a tree -- many mishaps result too. In one very funny scene, while attempting to park at the airport, Lindsay's husband, Tobias, is waved onto the tarmac and makes headlines after causing delays to the entire western flight grid. And, of course, stair-car drivers must watch out for "hop-ons." Cera tells us his favorite hop-on scene is when George Sr. escapes prison and heads to Mexico, where locals use the stairs to jump over the border into the United States.
The Never-Nude
One of our favorite characters, Tobias Fünke (pronounced Fyoonk-A), suffers from a seriously funny phobia. Tobias is what the Bluths call a "never-nude," or one with a psychological aversion to being completely naked. He wears tiny denim cut-offs at all times, under clothing, under towels and even in the shower.
Tobias also always chooses the wrong words. A favorite example is his business card, indicating that he's both an analyst and a therapist. It reads: "Tobias Fünke, Analrapist." Priceless.
The Names
Whether they're puns, indications of the character's personality, or just sound funny, character names are reflective of the show's clever writing. You've got Michael's son, George-Michael, which is the unfortunate combination of his grandfather and father's names. Then there's GOB (pronounced "Jobe"), short for George Oscar Bluth II, which is constantly being mispronounced as Gobb. Lindsay and Tobias' daughter is named Maeby, pronounced "Maybe." There are wonderful wordplays almost every time her name is spoken -- for example, "This is Tobias' daughter, Maeby." Maeby is also Michael Cera's favorite character name, which he says, "actually came from [creator] Mitch Hurwitz's two daughters, Maisie and Phoebe." And of course there's Bob Loblaw (Scott Baio), the family's newest attorney. Say his name and it comes out "blah blah blah."
The Magician
GOB, the eldest Bluth son, adds another layer of hilarity to the show with his magic tricks. He attempts outrageous "illusions" like making the family yacht disappear (he sinks it) and taking a sword in the stomach (he loses two fingers). Michael Cera says that GOB's best trick is when he attempts to impress people with mini-explosions from the palms of his hands, but ends up squirting lighter fluid all over them, to which he responds, "But still, where did the lighter fluid come from?" GOB even tries his hand at ventriloquism, with an African American puppet that says all the racist things GOB can't away with. And like a true magician, GOB uses live animals in his act... but almost always accidentally kills them. He also thinks he should be able to return the dead animals to the pet store.
The Cameos
Often playing the most eccentric of characters, celebrity guests are highlights of the show. Liza Minnelli, Heather Graham, Ben Stiller, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Charlize Theron as a British spy have all made appearances. The list goes on and on, but our favorite scene involving a guest star takes place when Zach Braff plays a director for the video series, "Girls With Low Self-Esteem," which Lindsay and Tobias protest for its exploitation of young women. In order to give Braff's character a taste of his own medicine, Lindsay and Tobias pull down his pants in the middle of a spring break shoot, revealing his cut-off jean shorts -- turns out he's a never-nude too.
The Legal Stuff
Any fan of the crime and investigation genre will enjoy this satirical take on the legal process. Take, for example, George Sr. (who was convicted on a host of SEC violations) who thinks of jail as a vacation. When reminded that he's doing time, George Sr. replies, "I'm doing the time of my life!" He's often shown in the pen playing baseball and eating ice-cream sandwiches. He even discovers Judaism in solitary confinement and produces a series of inspirational videos under the title, "Caged Wisdom." And of course there are hilarious cracks at lawyers. Henry Winkler, whom Michael Cera calls "mind-blowingly funny," plays the family's longtime attorney, who has more amusing, creative and terrible ways to wiggle out of a legal bind than any other TV lawyer.
The Frozen Banana Stand
A big hit in the '70s, kids had turned the Bluth's banana-shaped business on Balboa Island into a pot-dealing mecca so widely known that a song had been written in its honor, "Big Yellow Joint."
But more recently, it had served as more of teaching tool for Michael to instill values in his son, requiring George-Michael to work there the same way that he had. Out of rebellion, father and son torch the stand, not realizing that when George Sr. had repeatedly said, "There's always money in the banana stand," he was speaking literally — he had stashed $250,000 in the walls.
The Blue Man Group
Many of the show's best jokes and plot twists stem from Tobias' fascination with the performance art group, The Blue Man Group. Feeling low about his failing marriage, he stumbles upon a flyer for the act and attends a performance under the impression that it's a support group for depressed men. From that moment on, the struggling actor is obsessed with becoming an understudy, often walking around the house painted blue. But when he finally makes the trek to Las Vegas to audition for an opening, he learns the spot has just been filled by someone whom the casting director says is "always in character" -- none other than George Sr., who is on the run and incognito.
(Published on CourtTV.com Nov. 10, 2005)
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