Live Long and Prosper

You'll remember that we folks at "New @ MPL" are lifelong Star Trek fans. So it probably comes as no surprise to hear that we were rather brokenhearted at the news that Leonard Nimoy -- the actor behind the half-human, half-alien character of Spock in Star Trek: The Original Series, had passed away at the age of 83.

We've talked quite a lot about the character of Spock, and about the career of Leonard Nimoy (which encompassed far more than simply Spock), elsewhere on this blog. So, instead of a tribute from us, we've rounded up a collection of some of the best articles, essays, and reflections on the life and times of Nimoy and the unforgettable sci-fi icon he played.

Leonard Nimoy, Spock of 'Star Trek,' Dies at 83 -- from the New York Times.

"In Spock, I finally found the best of both worlds: to be widely accepted in public approval and yet be able to continue to play the insulated alien through the Vulcan character."


Leonard Nimoy's 10 Greatest Spock Moments in Star Trek -- from the Nerdist.

"That's nearly fifty years [playing] one character, and I can’t think of another actor who had the opportunity Nimoy had, to take one character successfully through that many stages in life over so long a period of time."


The Jewish Roots of Leonard Nimoy and 'Live Long and Prosper' -- from the Washington Post

"The man who would play Spock saw the gesture as part of a blessing, and it never left him."

Mr. Spock and the Consolations of Solitude -- from NPR.

"What matters is surviving to get back to the ship and your friends and your life's work, and leaving orbit to explore strange new worlds."


12 Ways Leonard Nimoy Made Spock More Human Than the Rest of Us -- from CBS.

"Thank you, Leonard Nimoy. Because of you, Spock was more than half human in our hearts."


President Obama, J.J. Abrams Pay Tribute to Leonard Nimoy -- from Rolling Stone.

"It was only logical to greet him with the Vulcan salute, the universal sign for 'Live long and prosper.' And after 83 years on this planet -- and on his visits to many others -- it's clear Leonard Nimoy did just that."


The Touching Tribute to Leonard Nimoy From Space -- from the Washington Post.

"Despite the fact he worked in fiction, anyone who can inspire that many people to look into the sky and wonder has done something really important for mankind."

George Takei Says Leonard Nimoy Was 'The Most Human Person I've Ever Met' -- from EW.

"Leonard played an alien, but to me, he was the most human person I’ve ever met."


Leonard Nimoy Reads Ray Bradbury Stories from The Martian Chronicles and The Illustrated Man (1975-76) -- from OpenCulture.

"In the mid-seventies, a pair of record albums came out that together offered a truly singular listening experience: the voice of Bradbury in the voice of Nimoy."


Leonard Nimoy's Final Tweet -- from Twitter.

"A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory.  LLAP"

Request Star Trek: The Original Series: Season One from the Catalog

Request Star Trek: The Original Series: Season Two from the Catalog

Request Star Trek: The Original Series: Season Three from the Catalog

Request a Nimoy-narrated documentary from the Catalog

Request his autobiography, I Am Spock, from the Catalog

-- Post by Tracy and Ms. B

A Friend Like Him

I don't think I ever before realized what a huge fan I am of Robin Williams. It shouldn't surprise me: I grew up on his movies, and he was the first actor I can ever remember being pleased to see onscreen. I knew I liked his comedy; what I didn't realize until this week was how much of an impact his art has really had on me. His comedy was as brilliant as it was full of hope, reminding us (or, at least, reminding me) what a powerful force laughter can be. Despite his own internal struggles, his presence made the world a bit more bright.

Williams's fans didn't know him (though, like all great comedians, he made you feel like you did). We'll miss him all the same. In honor of his humorous, heartwarming, and unforgettable career, we present a (highly subjective) list of five of his most memorable onscreen roles:



-- An Alien

For a lot of fans, he'll always be Mork. First premiering on ABC in 1978, Mork & Mindy was a four-season sitcom following the adventures of the alien Mork (from Ork), and his human pal Mindy.

An unlikely spin-off from Happy Days, the series was Williams's first major acting role and owed much of its success to Williams's improv abilities. (The writers eventually began leaving gaps in the script where Williams could start improvising.) It was wildly popular upon its debut, earning the number-three slot in the ratings only behind Laverne & Shirley and Three's Company.

While subsequent seasons saw a decline (due, most likely, to a change in direction and an altered time slot), the show remains a staple in television pop culture. It also cemented Williams as a major comedic player, launching a Hollywood career that would last over three and a half decades.

- Request Mork & Mindy: The Complete First Season from the Catalog



-- A Doctor

It's often difficult to know exactly what category to put Williams's films into. Is Good Morning, Vietnam a comedy or a drama?  How about the cult classic The Fisher King?  Williams excelled at finding a balance between comedy and pathos in nearly all of his roles, seamlessly blending together humor and heart in the characters he portrayed.

Perhaps this can be best be seen in the 1998 film Patch Adams. Starring Williams in the title role, the movie was loosely based on the real-life story of Dr. Hunter "Patch" Adams. After spending some time in a mental hospital being treated for depression, Adams discovers that humor goes a long way towards helping his fellow patients. Upon release, he starts work towards a new career path, enrolling as the oldest first-year med student at the Medical College of Virginia -- with the goal of becoming a doctor who uses medicine and humor to heal his patients.

While perhaps leaning a bit too severely towards pathos in several scenes, the film nonetheless stays committed to a story about the importance of laughter in our lives.

- Request Patch Adams from the Catalog



-- A Cartoon

Robin Williams had a talent with voices. Despite lending his voice to several animated characters over the years, nowhere are his vocal talents more evident than in Disney's 1992 classic Aladdin.

Williams voiced the Genie, the wise-cracking, wish-granting inhabitant of the magic lamp discovered by the title character. The hilarious, memorable performance that Williams delivered is made all the more impressive by the fact that all but a handful of his lines were ad-libs.

His vocal talents allowed the Genie to be as skilled at improv and impersonations as the actor behind him. (Genie's celebrity impersonations throughout the film include Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ed Sullivan, Groucho Marx, Robert De Niro,  Rodney Dangerfield, and Jack Nicholson.) The result was a character that, while animated, is unmistakably and undeniably Williams.

- Request Aladdin from the Catalog

-- A Pirate

Steven Spielberg's 1991 film Hook had its share of critics. A sequel of sorts to J.M. Barrie's classic tale of Peter Pan, Hook asks the question of what would happen if Peter Pan, the Boy Who Never Grew Up, did just that. Having left Neverland, the Lost Boys, and his childhood memories behind, "Peter Banning" is now a hard-hitting lawyer and married father of two kids -- just about as far from being Peter Pan as someone could ever be. At least until Captain Hook (played by the fantastic Dustin Hoffman) returns and kidnaps Peter's two children, Jack and Maggie. Now Peter has no choice but to return to a life he left behind -- although he's going to need a lot of help, and just a little bit of faith.

The movie received heavy criticism for being saccharine and too plot-heavy. Those who grew up with the film, however, remember it as a fun and fantastical adventure romp, with a Peter Pan who had a sense of humor even before he found his way back to Neverland. (His battle of wits with Lost Boy Rufio, which Williams ad-libbed much of, brings a smile to my face to this day.)

- Request Hook from the Catalog

-- A Dad

Last September, CBS debuted The Crazy Ones, a single-camera comedy created by David E. Kelley (of The Practice and Ally McBeal fame). The show starred Williams as Simon Roberts, an advertising executive who oversaw his own ad agency. His business partner?  Sydney Williams, his daughter (played by Sarah Michelle Gellar).

Divorced and estranged from Sydney's mom, Simon did his best to be a part of Sydney's childhood but missed out on more than a few important moments. The show focused on Simon's efforts to strengthen his relationship with Sydney -- and Sydney's willingness to connect back. The show had a delightfully comedic supporting cast, but the story never lost its focus on Simon and his daughter, and their sometimes-crazy, sometimes-hilarious, but always-poignant relationship.

- Click here for more about The Crazy Ones

Other Robin Williams performances from the Catalog (click to request)

-- Good Morning, Vietnam

-- Dead Poets Society

-- The Fisher King

-- Moscow on the Hudson

-- Mrs. Doubtfire

-- Awakenings

-- What Dreams May Come

-- Jumanji

-- Good Will Hunting

-- Robin Williams: Live on Broadway [stand-up]

-- Robin Williams: Weapons of Self Destruction [stand-up CD/DVD]

From actor Christopher Reeve's memoir, Still Me:

"As the day of the operation drew closer, it became more and more painful and frightening to contemplate. ... At an especially bleak moment, the door flew open and in hurried a squat fellow with a blue scrub hat and a yellow surgical gown and glasses, speaking in a Russian accent. He announced that he was my proctologist, and that he had to examine me immediately. ... it was Robin Williams. For the first time since the accident, I laughed. My old friend had helped me know that somehow I was going to be okay."

"Comedy is acting out optimism."
-- Robin Williams

-- Post by Ms. B

The Voice

Mel Blanc and "friends"

You may not have heard his name -- but you've definitely heard him. Voice actor and comedian Mel Blanc provided the voices for nearly the entire cast of the original Looney Toons cartoons, including such characters as Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Elmer Fudd, Yosemite Sam, Foghorn Leghorn, Tweety Bird, the Tasmanian Devil, and even the Road Runner.

Born on May 30 (it would have been his 106th birthday), Blanc is fondly remembered to this day as "the Man of a Thousand Voices." In celebration of his birthday, we're taking a look at a few other actors whose faces may be unknown -- but whose voices have been entertaining us for decades.



Frank Welker

In some ways, it's odd that his name's not better known. After all, in terms of box office sales, Frank Welker held the highest career box office gross of any actor in Hollywood -- meaning that his movies had made more money than any other actor's. As of 2011, films in which Welker has played a role have made a combined $6.42 billion -- and still counting.

In the last 25 years, Welker has lent his voice to characters in more than 90 films, including such box-office hits as The Grinch, The Lion King, Shrek, Toy Story 3, 2010's Alice in Wonderland, and the Transformers film franchise. He's also voiced Fred Jones in the Hanna-Barbera series Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! since the show's inception in 1969.

-- Click here to request Transformers on DVD



Frank Oz

He's the original voice behind Miss Piggy and Fozzie Bear -- but he's also an accomplished actor, puppeteer, and even director.

Frank Oz performed with Jim Henson's Muppets for many years. In addition to voicing Miss Piggy and Fozzie Bear on The Muppet Show (as well as Animal and Sam the Eagle), Oz was also the original voice behind the Sesame Street characters of Grover, Cookie Monster, and Bert. His experiences with puppeteering also made him an ideal choice for voicing and operating Master Yoda in three of the Star Wars films (as well as voicing Yoda in two additional films, when puppeteering had been replaced by CGI animation).

It's arguable if Oz is better known as a voice actor or a director. Oz has directed such films as Little Shop of Horrors, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, What About Bob?, Death at a Funeral, and the remake of The Stepford Wives.

-- Click here to request The Muppet Show on DVD



Dan Castellaneta

One doesn't need to look much farther than Fox's The Simpsons (now in its 25th season) to see the evidence of Castellaneta's wide range of voices. In addition to voicing lovable schlub Homer Simpson, Castellaneta also lends his voice to Krusty the Clown, Groundskeeper Willie, Itchy, Mayor Quimby, and Grampa Simpson -- roles which have earned him four Primetime Emmy Awards.

Beyond The Simpsons, however, Castellaneta has played a wide variety of roles, appearing in such animated series as Batman Beyond, Justice League, Rugrats, and Scooby-Doo. He also has done plenty of work for Disney, even stepping in to replace Robin Williams as the voice of the Genie in spin-offs from the 1992 hit movie Aladdin.

Castellaneta often makes the occasional live-action appearance, guest-starring in shows like Everybody Loves Raymond, Friends, That '70s Show, Parks and Recreation, Castle, and How I Met Your Mother.

-- Click here to request The Simpsons on DVD



Mark Hamill

Mark Hamill breaks the typical voice acting role in a unique way: you know his face. His first film role is also the role he'll always be primarily associated with: Star War's Luke Skywalker. But in addition to his film roles (and some acclaimed theater work), Hamill has also become a superstar in the world of voice acting.

Among comic book fans, he's best-loved for his iconic take on the role of the Joker in the 1992 show Batman: The Animated Series. Citing such references as Hannibal Lecter, Jerry Lewis, and the Blue Meanies from Yellow Submarine, Hamill created a version of the Joker that was wholly unique -- no mean feat coming as it did just a scant three years after Jack Nicholson had put his own iconic stamp on the character.

Hamill went on to voice the Joker for two decades, with the character appearing in six different animated series, as well as several animated films, video games, and even an episode of the live-action series Birds of Prey. The enthusiasm of critics and fans alike for his performance led to a plethora of other voice acting roles for Hamill -- many the complete antithesis of his heroic turn as Luke Skywalker.

-- Click here to request Batman: The Animated Series on DVD



-- Post by Ms. B 

In Memorium: Peter O'Toole and Joan Fontaine

This past weekend we lost two great actors - Joan Fontaine and Peter O'Toole. Both were award-winning actors with long and prestigious careers. Read on for the roles and films they are most known for:

Peter O'Toole (1932-2013)

For all of Peter O'Toole's film success he never won an Academy Award even though he was nominated eight times. He was, however, awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2003. 

-- Lawrence of Arabia (1962) -- The sweeping epic story of T.E. Lawrence earned O'Toole is first Oscar nomination (he ultimately lost to Gregory Peck for his role in To Kill a Mockingbird).

-- The Lion in Winter (1968) -- O'Toole portrays Richard II as he fights his sons and his wife to hold on to his throne. He was nominated for this role and also for again playing Richard II in Becket (1964).

-- My Favorite Year (1982) -- O'Toole plays an Erol Flynn like former matinee idol with a drinking problem making an appearance on a 1950s variety show who has difficulty not getting his young watcher in trouble. Another great Oscar nominated performance.

-- Venus (2006) -- In one of his last starring roles, O'Toole plays an aging actor who becomes smitten with his friend's much younger great niece.

From the library collection:

DVDs: Peter O'Toole's film appearances

Books: Biographies of the late actor's life

Joan Fontaine (1917-3013)

Joan Fontaine was a three time Oscar nominated actress, winning her only Academy Award for Suspicion, her second film with Alfred Hitchcock. Fontaine was the younger sister of Gone With the Wind star Olivia de Havilland.

-- Rebecca (1940) -- Fontaine starred as the unnamed heroine of Daphne DuMarier's classic book. This role earned her her first Oscar nomination. This also marked Hitchcock's American directorial debut.

-- Suspicion (1941) -- This was Fontaine's second time working with Alfred Hitchcock and also starred Cary Grant as a charming playboy who convinces Fontaine's character to run away and marry him. She slowly begins to have suspicions about her new husband. 

-- Jane Eyre (1943) -- Fontaine stars, along with Orson Welles, in this telling of the Charlotte Bronte novel.

-- Ivanhoe (1952) -- This film, based on Sir Walter Scott's novel of the same name, also stars Robert Taylor and Elizabeth Taylor.

From the library collection:

DVDs: Joan Fontaine's film appearances

Books: Biographies of the late actor's life

-- Post by Tracy

Staff Recommendation #22: "The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside 'The Room,' The Greatest Bad Movie Ever Made" by Greg Sestero & Tom Bissell

Not all bad movies are created equally. Sometimes, a film can be so bad that it actually seems to warp back on itself to become entertaining.

It doesn’t always happen. If a movie’s merely sloppy, uneven, or (worst of all) boring, then it’s probably not bad enough to accidentally entertain. The badness has to be, well, fun – creating moments of inadvertent humor.

And there is one movie whose badness has skyrocketed it to the status of cult classic. It’s a movie so terrible that none of its fans would make the argument that there’s actually hidden genius inside it -- and they don’t need to. It’s beloved and celebrated because it’s so awful, rightfully earning the moniker of “the Citizen Kane of bad movies.”

I’m talking, of course, about The Room.

Trying to describe The Room is a little bit like trying to describe a dream you had: 

there’s no way to explain it that could do the weirdness justice. 

The “plot” of the film centers on Johnny, a man who seems to have it all: great job, good friends, and a loving fiancée named Lisa. But as the story (such as it is) unfolds, Johnny’s world begins to unravel as Lisa begins an affair with Johnny’s best friend, Mark.

And it’s the most hilarious movie you’ll ever see.

That’s because The Room never manages to actually tell the story it set out to tell. It tries to be a story about love, trust, and betrayal. What it actually does is present the audience with the most bizarre film ever committed to screen.

The structure is insane. Plotlines are introduced, then forgotten by the next scene. Non sequiturs dominate the dialogue. Continuity is an impossibility; a character disappears halfway through and is replaced by an entirely new character, which happens without comment or explanation. The acting is pretty uniformly dreadful, in large part because none of the lines sound like anything an actual human would ever say. (There's also some terrible -- and terribly unnecessary -- scenes that earn the movie its R rating, so be advised that this is one bad movie definitely not for younger viewers.)

It’s been ten years since The Room was released. Its cult following is not to be denied: sold-out showings play monthly across the country, attended by fans who dress up as the characters, quote lines along with the movie, and throw spoons at the screen during key scenes. (That last one’s an inside joke.) There’s an unofficial video game and traveling stage show.

And now, there’s a book.

The Disaster Artist was written by Greg Sestero, who played Mark in the movie – and who, therefore, has an insider’s scoop on the making of The Room. 

Wiseau, Sestero, and a football --

three of The Room's biggest stars.

The “warped, accidental genius” of The Room’s inadvertent hilarity all come from the same place. The movie was written, produced, directed, and starred in by a single individual: Tommy Wiseau.

It is Wiseau’s quirky, uncanny, unsettling, and downright bizarre personality that infuses The Room, and so, too, does he infuse The Disaster Artist. The book alternates between the filming process of The Room (which, much like the film itself, must be experienced for oneself to do the weirdness proper justice), and how Sestero came to develop a friendship with the indefinable Wiseau.

The result is a book which I simply couldn’t put down. It’s as much an insider’s look of the film industry and the moviemaking process, as it is an exploration of the struggle for success and the true definition of artistic merit. In that respect, it becomes a far deeper story than the movie it’s dissecting.


-- Request The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside 'The Room,' The Greatest Bad Movie Ever Made by Greg Sestero & Tom Bissell from the Catalog

-- Request The Room on DVD from the Catalog

-- Post by Ms. B

Mob Mentality

Six years after going off the show, The Sopranos is still remembered by fans and critics alike as one of the best-loved television series ever made. The six-season show told the story of Tony Soprano, an Italian-American mobster living in New Jersey and trying to balance the demands of "work" ... and family. Critically acclaimed for its sharp writing and talented actors, the show is remembered both for its impact on pop culture -- and its maddening "fade-to-black" series finale.

Sopranos' star James Gandolifini, who played Tony Soprano, unexpectedly passed away yesterday while on a family vacation in Italy. Fans and fellow actors have already taken to the internet, writing tributes to the actor best remembered for his role in the acclaimed HBO series.

So in honor of his most iconic role, let's take a look at some other classic films in the crime-and-criminal genre.


-- The Public Enemy [1931]

James Cagney is best remembered for playing "tough guys," and this film was the reason why. In his seventh film role, Cagney played Tom Powers, a tough guy rising through the gangster ranks during the Prohibition. His tough, harsh, cruel performance made an unforgettable mark on the genre of gangster pictures.



-- The Godfather Trilogy [1972, 1974, 1990]

Okay, okay, you know this one. But no list of gangster movies would be complete without the Godfather trilogy. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola (and based on a novel by Mario Puzo), the trio of films following the story of the Corleone Mafia family received a total of 29 Academy Award nominations, winning nine (including acting Oscars for Marlon Brando and Robert De Niro, Best Director for Coppola, and two Best Picture awards).



-- Once Upon a Time in America [1984]

Director Sergio Leone is best remembered for his Spaghetti Western films, like the Dollars trilogy and Once Upon a Time in the West. But Leone should still get credit for this, his final movie. Starring Robert De Niro, the film chronicles the life of David "Noodles" Aaronson, and his fifty-year dark struggle in pursuit of the American dream.



-- The Untouchables [1987] 

With Kevin Costner as Eliot Ness -- and Robert De Niro as Al Capone -- this Brian De Palma film has become the definitive adaptation of American Prohibition agent Ness's autobiography.



-- Miller’s Crossing [1990] 

From the ever-unique Coen Brothers, this film follows the personal fallout as a war unfolds between rival Irish and Italians gangs.



-- Reservoir Dogs [1992]

Director Quentin Tarantino is your go-to guy when you're looking for something a little off the beaten path. Think of this one as The Avengers for gangsters. Here, six strangers are pulled together by a local mob boss to pull off the perfect heist. Trouble is, it looks like one of them's a police mole.



-- Donnie Brasco [1997]

Based on a real-life story (as written in FBI agent Joseph Pistone's autobiography), Donnie Brasco tells the story of an undercover agent who infiltrates New York's Bonanno crime family ... for six years. In the end, Pistone is left with the choice of whether or not to betray his mob boss "mentor," Lefty Ruggiero.



-- Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels  [1998]

Four kids owe money to the local gang boss; what're they to do?  The plan they concoct -- to steal the cash from their drug-dealing next-door neighbors -- might not be their best call. Or is it?  Directed by Guy Ritchie, this is one of the more surreal entries on the list.



-- Road to Perdition [2002]

Recently voted as the most trustworthy person in America, Tom Hanks might be an unexpected choice to play a mob hitman. It's precisely what makes this movie so memorable, as Michael Sullivan (Hanks) must navigate between his job and his responsibilities to his son.



-- The Departed [2006]

It's another undercover story -- with a twist!  While an undercover officer is busy infiltrating a family of organized crime, the crime family is returning the favor, with one of their members joining the police force. The film, which won Martin Scorsese his first-ever Best Picture Oscar, is actually a remake of the Hong Kong film Internal Affairs -- which is worth a watch in its own right.


-- Post by Ms. B

An Actor's Life For Me!

A character actor -- someone you've probably seen in several films, but you don't know their name or even what you might have seen them in before. Most definitions of character actor seem to be that they are actors in supporting roles. Or someone who plays an eccentric or odd character. But to me, a character is these things and more. They are usually very memorable and often "steal" the show. Occasionally, these actors, will end up getting some lead roles of their own. And very often, they do a little of both.

One of my favorite actors, who could be considered a character actor, is Paul Giamatti.  He's one of those actors that, unless you are a big fan of films, you might not know who he is. But you've probably seen him, but just didn't know who he was.

He tends to fly below the radar and is so good at playing a wide variety of characters. Who else can say he's played a founding father, a wrestling coach, a wine snob and even Santa Claus!

Paul Giamatti grew up the son of a Yale University President (and future Major League Baseball commissioner) and a former actress. So, it's not much of a surprise that he became an actor. After graduating from the Yale School of Drama he started getting roles in stage productions throughout the country.

His first significant film role was in Howard Stern's Private Parts, playing the radio executive who battled with Stern. This led to many more roles in movies such as, My Best Friend's Wedding, The Truman Show, Saving Private Ryan, and Planet of the Apes (he played an orangutan!).

Giamattie's first leading role was in American Splendor which led to other leading roles and more recognition of his work from the media and his peers.

So in honor of his birthday (June 6), here are five of my favorite Paul Giamatti films:

-- American Splendor

In this, his first leading role, Paul Giamatti portrays file clerk turned comic book writer Harvey Pekar.  By the time this film came out in 2003, Pekar was very famous around his home town of Cleveland and in the world of comic books for his introspective series American Splendor. The books were written by Pekar, but illustrated by a variety of artists. They told the story of his daily struggles. Pekar was quite a "character" himself and he and his wife appear in the film as themselves. Now I know this sounds confusing, but you have to see it to a appreciate it. 

-- Sideways

The success of American Splendor opened up the opportunity for Giamatti to play Miles, a frustrated, middle aged writer, who makes ends meet as a high school English teacher. His best friend Jack is getting married, so they decide to spend a week exploring the wine country of California. Along the way, they explore their friendship and the many disappointments they've both had over the years. 

-- John Adams

This made for HBO film, based on the John McCullough non-fiction best seller, was a huge success. The film covers Adams's life from his time as a young lawyer through his stint as the second President of the United States and on to the end of his life. It also gives a wonderful insight into the marriage of John and Abigail Adams. Giamatti, along with Laura Linney as Abigail, won an Emmy and a Golden Globe for their performances. It is not to be missed.

-- Win Win

This independent film has Giamatti starring as a small town lawyer, Mike, who volunteers his time as the high school wrestling coach. He struggles with putting a competitive team together when a young man shows up in town who seems to be a natural. But this also leads to a lot of trouble for Mike, since the client is double crossing the young man's grandfather. Here he is again as the lead, but in a small film that many might have missed. A wonderful performance of an everyman who gets himself into a lot of trouble.

-- The Last Station

During the last days of Leo Tolstoy's life, there was a power struggle between him, his family and his devoted followers. Tolstoy's wife, Sofya, was in a battle to retain the copyright to all of her husband's works. Tolstoy, on the other hand, decides to leave all of his property to the people of Russia. In a small role, Paul Giamatti, plays Tolstoy's devoted follower and leader of his disciples. 

-- Post by Tracy

A Professional Pirate

The irreplaceable, irrepressible Tim Curry

I've been a fan of Tim Curry for years. An actor, singer, and voice actor, he's appeared on stage and screen in a huge variety of shows, plays, and films. He first came to my attention in such kid-friendly fare as the film adaptation of the hit Broadway show Annie, and as the deliciously villainous Cardinal Richelieu in The Three Musketeers. As I got older, I discovered how far his range truly stretched with such iconic roles as Dr. Frank N. Furter in The Rocky Horror Picture Show, and Pennywise the Clown in the Stephen King miniseries It. (And, of course, one of my favorite Curry roles is his appearance as the Moriarty-inspired character of Dale Biederbeck in the TV series Monk.)

Despite having such a wide range -- from comedic roles to the dramatic, from period pieces to horror, from voice acting to musicals -- one of the things that Curry brings to every role is precisely why I think he has so many fans: his sense of fun. Curry is clearly an actor who loves what he does, and in every role, no matter what it is, that enjoyment and high good humor is shining through. There are many actors who I'm a fan of, but Tim Curry might be the one who's the most consistently fun.

So in honor of his upcoming birthday (April 19), let's take a look at five of his most memorable roles:

-- The Rocky Horror Picture Show

Starting life in 1973 as a London musical, The Rocky Horror Picture Show was quickly adapted into a film that was released two years later. The movie musical was Curry's first major film role -- appropriate, since he'd originated the role in London during the play's premiere.

A musical send-up of the science fiction and horror B movies of the 50s and 60s, this cult classic features Curry in the role of Dr. Frank N. Furter. This nearly-indescribable musical focuses on a newly-engaged couple who leave their broken-down car and walk down the road to a castle owned by Dr. Frank N. Furter, only to get caught up in all manner of increasingly bizarre and wild hijinks. The best way to describe it, I think, is simply to say: you gotta watch it for yourself.

Strangeness aside, this cult classic nonetheless features one of Curry's most iconic roles. And the film's effects on pop culture are decidedly far-reaching: the movie has remained in theaters to this day. Don't forget to check out the soundtrack!

-- Clue

You wouldn't expect a movie based on a boardgame to become a cult classic in its own right -- until you've seen Clue, anyway. This murder mystery story is very much a spoof of the mystery genre, and a comedy in its own right, starring such actors as Christopher Lloyd, Martin Mull, Madeline Kahn, and Tim Curry as the butler, Wadsworth.

Borrowing heavily from Agatha Christie's classic And Then There Were None, the film draws together six strangers who are invited to a secluded mansion. They're promptly given code names by the butler (of the "Professor Plum" and "Colonel Mustard" variety, natch), before the reason for their invitation becomes clear: all six of them are being blackmailed by their host, Mr. Boddy. (Get it?)  When Mr. Boddy turns up murdered, the culprit has to be one of the guests -- but who?  Antics ensue as the guests (with Wadsworth's help) try to figure out the guilty party.

Since "the butler did it" is such a staple of murder mysteries, you might expect Curry's dry, droll Wadsworth to be the culprit -- but, well, it actually depends. There are three different solutions to the mystery, and, when the movie was first released to theaters, how you saw the ending was determined by what theater you happened to see the film in. (The DVD release features all three versions.)

-- Muppet Treasure Island 

Tim Curry as a pirate in a movie starring the Muppets?  Yes, please!  This Muppet-ified version of Robert Louis Stevenson's classic novel Treasure Island stars Tim Curry in the role of the peg-legged sea cook Long John Silver -- alongside Kermit the Frog as Captain Smollett, Fozzie Bear as Squire Trelawney, and Miss Piggy as Benjamina Gunn.

This family-friendly musical manages to be both a delightful Muppets spoof and also a fairly faithful adaptation of the original novel (well, more or less). Like most Muppets movies, the film's a fun romp for kids while also having plenty of humor for the adults in the audience (Gonzo and Rizzo find a copy of Henry Kissinger's Diplomacy in Billy Bones's sea chest).

The cartoony, off-beat humor and fun make this classic Muppets fare. But the story's also got heart, in the paternal friendship that forms between Long John Silver and the orphaned Jim Hawkins (played by  Kevin Bishop). 

-- Spamalot

We've talked about Spamalot before -- the Eric Idle-penned musical adapted from the Monty Python cult classic Monty Python and the Holy Grail. When the show premiered on Broadway in 2005, the production starred Curry in the role of King Arthur.

I got to see Spamalot when it toured to Pittsburgh several years ago, but, alas, Curry was no longer playing the role of Arthur. Luckily for all of us who missed out, the original Broadway cast recording is available on CD. Curry shines as the devoted, often slightly-exasperated King of Camelot who just wants to find the Grail and get back to Camelot -- but who can't seem to help but get involved in all sorts of weirdness along the way.

-- A Series of Unfortunate Events 

As a major animation buff, one of the reasons I'm such a Curry fan is because of the vast amount of voice acting he's done. He's famous among animation fans for the wide variety of cartoon characters he's voiced -- and also the ones he hasn't. Bruce Timm, the showrunner of the popular 90s show Batman: The Animated Series, confessed that he originally hired Curry to provide the voice of the Joker in the show. Unfortunately, the producers had to let Curry go after he'd recorded the dialogue for only a few episodes. Curry was doing such a good job the producers were afraid his performance would traumatize the show's youngest viewers!

But you don't have to be an animation enthusiast to experience Curry's amazing vocal repertoire. Try, instead, his performance as the audiobook reader on Lemony Snicket's well-known children's series A Series of Unfortunate Events. This thirteen-book series features the misadventures of the Baudelaire orphans -- Violet, Klaus, and Sunny -- as they struggle to escape from the clutches of their new guardian, Count Olaf. Olaf is after the fortune that the Baudelaire parents left for their children.

Promising from the first page to be a book "with no happy ending," Unfortunate Events still manages to be a darkly humorous series, making it a match made in heaven to Curry's voice acting skills. He finds distinctive voices for the huge cast of characters, and his wry reading (matching Snicket's wry writing) makes this series primed to be enjoyed by listeners of all ages.

-- Post by Ms. B