The Music of The Flintstones

Before Family Guy, before South Park, before The Simpsons, the first prime time animated series was The Flintstones, which ran from 1960 to 1966 on ABC. I watched the reruns every day after school for years. Then suddenly, about ten years ago, I couldn't find the show anywhere on the dial. Come to find that the series' broadcasting rights in the U.S. had been acquired by Boomerang.

The Flintstones was groundbreaking in many ways. Among other things, it was the first cartoon series to include a laugh track and story arcs (e.g., Wilma's pregnancy.) The show was also revolutionary for its regular inclusion of guest star voices (Tony Curtis, Hoagy Carmichael, Elizabeth Montgomery, and James Darren, among others) and for its acknowledgement of and spoofs of pop culture icons and personalities. These included people like Alfred Hitchcock ("Alvin Brickrock") and Ed Sullivan ("Ed Sullystone") as well as TV and movie characters like James Bond ("James Bondrock") and Perry Mason ("Perry Masonary".) 

The Flintstones also made a point to recognize and sometimes parody various pop culture phenomena taking place during the 60s, such as the British Invasion ("The Way Outs" and "Bug Music"), the beatnik movement, the country's space program, surfing craze, and even "The Twist" ("Twitch".)

One of the most unforgettable things about The Flintstones is its music, which incorporated everything from vaudeville tunes, to commercial jingles, to modern pop music. Around the time the first Flintstones movie was released in 1994 (and by the way, how badly did they miss the mark on that one -- thirty-two different writers and that's the best they could do?) I wandered into a long since defunct music store called The Wall and picked up The Flintstones: Modern Stone Age Melodies, which featured many of the most memorable songs from the show's six year run. The best of these include "Rockin' Bird" (from the episode where Fred becomes singing idol "Hi-Fye") and "Open Up Your Heart and Let the Sunshine In" (which was later covered by Frente'.) 

As a bonus, the album also includes lots of dialog from the show, extra tracks consisting of instrumentals used for the show's transition and chase scenes, and background music.

I only wish Modern Stage Age Melodies included the two songs Ann-Margret performed when she appeared on the show in 1963 (the same year her breakthrough movie Bye Bye Birdie was released) -- "I Ain't Gonna Be Your Fool No More" and "The Littlest Lamb". 

Margret was on Phil Donahue's show many years ago and she fondly recalled her appearance on The Flintstones. A woman in the studio audience then remarked on what a beautiful song "The Littlest Lamb" was and asked Margret to sing it, but she politely declined.)

More Belinda

Was pleasantly surprised to see the positive reaction (both on this blog and on the YouTube channel) about the Belinda Carlisle on Arsenio video I posted recently, so here's another Belinda performance pulled from the Pop Culture Fiend Archives.
 
This one is from an MTV New Year's Eve Concert from 1988. That's quintessential 80s actress Jami Gertz (Square Pegs, Less Than Zero, Lost Boys) and Glenn ("The Heat is On") Frey hosting. Between them, their clothes, and the performers they announce (Poison, Loverboy, Richard Marx, Gene Loves Jezebel, etc.) this has to be the "eighties-est" video ever posted! 


Part 1



Part 2

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Belinda Carlisle on Arsenio Hall

Great Album Covers: The Score, Head Games & Vacation

Go-Go's Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (About F**king Time!)
5 Films Hollywood Needs to Get to Work On

Airline Magazines, Godfather III, and Madonna... What's the Connection?

Was flipping through an in-flight travel magazine (Departures) and came across this cool ad for Louis Vuitton, featuring five-time Academy Award winner Francis Ford Coppola and his daughter Sophia.

I met Francis Coppola in the early 90s. I was at a really nice movie theater (at least it was back then) –- Loews Ridgefield Park, which is in northern NJ, very close to Manhattan. This theater had ten screens, which back in those days was a lot. It was an odd night because all of the auditoriums were open to the public except one that was hosting a non-publicized special screening of Frankenstein, starring Kenneth Branagh and Robert DeNiro. I look over and there, by the concession stand, is the film’s producer, Francis Ford Coppola himself. He was doing nothing in particular, so I walked over and told him what a fan I was of his films (the three Godfather movies, The Outsiders, and The Cotton Club, in particular.) The greatest living American director (sorry Spielberg, Allen, Tarantino, and Scorsese) was then nice enough to autograph my popcorn bucket. 

As for  Sophia, back in 1990 she was bashed quite a bit for "ruining" The Godfather Part III. The criticism isn't really fair but I will say that when you watch the film, it’s painfully clear that Sophia's part was too much for her. Her father and others should have recognized this and recast the role. 

Few realize that the pivotal role in question, that of Mary Corleone, was supposed to be played by Winona Ryder. But Ryder was suffering from exhaustion -- she had just shot Welcome Home Roxy Carmichael, Edward Scissorhands and Mermaids back-to-back-to-back. What's more, the actress had experienced some very long work days shooting the last of these films because the production had fallen behind schedule after the original director (Lasse Hallstrom) was fired. When Mermaids did finally wrap, Ryder began shooting G III in Rome, but her then boyfriend, Johnny Depp, reportedly wanted her back with him in the US. Ryder claimed exhaustion and dropped out a month into the shoot. Sophia, who had almost no acting experience, was cast by her father (who had creative control of the picture) as a replacement. The part was rewritten to better suit Sophia and the sexuality of the character was toned down. And again, all of this took place after principal photography had already begun. So all of this considered, it's amazing Godfather Part III turned out as good as it did.

After being skewered by the critics, Sophia pretty much gave up acting but did go on to write and direct the critically acclaimed The Virgin Suicides and Lost in Translation, for which she won an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.

Despite Sophia’s poor performance, Godfather III is still a must-see that’s better than 99% of the movies out there. It has an intricate, compelling plot; maintains continuity with the two preceding films; features great performances by Andy Garcia, Joe Mantegna and others; and was Oscar-nominated for Best Picture of 1990.

Here’s the extended trailer:

Lastly, if you’re a hardcore fan of The Godfather films, I recommend the The Godfather Companion by Peter Biskind, which has the complete story of the production of the trilogy and lots of interesting details about Part III in particular. For instance:

• Diane Keaton wanted too much money to reprise her role as Kay, so Coppola was forced to cut her part down significantly.
• Mario Puzo wrote the first outline for G III way back in 1978. In it, Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) is a Howard Hughes-like recluse; the Mafia and the CIA are at war; and the film's climax tales place during a Bicentennial parade. (All of this is drastically different from how the final screenplay turned out.)
• During casting, Julia Roberts was the first choice to play Mary. Madonna was also considered but at 31, it was decided she was too old for the part.
• Later, Madonna was seriously considered for the role of Grace Hamilton, the reporter who sleeps with Vincent (Andy Garcia.) At the time, Madonna was coming off the hugely successful Like a Prayer album and was arguably the biggest name in music. Perhaps partially because of this, she demanded a salary of more than half a million dollars (for what amounted to about 15 minutes of screen time) and the producers passed, eventually giving the part to Bridget Fonda.

Related Links:
The Godfather Companion

Belinda Carlisle on Arsenio Hall

Last night, Belinda Carlisle earned the dubious distinction of being the first person bounced off Dancing With the Stars. Jewel and Nancy O'Dell dropped out before the season even began, so we officially no longer have any interest in this this season of DWTS ... Okay, maybe we'll flip over every once in a while just to see what Edyta is (or isn't) wearing. In the meantime, we'll just watch this rare video from the Pop Culture Fiend Archives and remember Belinda in better days.

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Farewell to the Ticket Stub

This week I’m buying tickets for Wicked on Broadway (an anniversary gift for my parents.) These will be "e-tickets" that you print at home, similar to the way you print boarding passes for airline flights. Moving forward, this looks to be the way all forms of ticketing will take place, which is sad in a way because the old box office machine generated paper tickets were nice souvenirs. Just for old times sake, I went into the Pop Culture Fiend Archives and dug out a few of my old stubs. 

(Click for enlarged view.)

USC vs Colorado at the LA Coliseum

Sept 2000

Muhammad Ali vs Larry Holmes

Oct 1980

The Bangles at the Beacon Theater, NYC

March 1989

Sting at Meadowlands Arena, East Rutherford, NJ

Feb 1994

Belinda Carlisle (her first solo tour) at the Beacon Theater

May 1988

The Go-Go’s at 4th and B’s (San Diego)

July 2004

Billy Joel (River of Dreams Tour) at Madison Square Garden, NYC
Oct 1993

Jacksons (Victory Tour) at Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, NJ
July 1984

Madonna (Who’s That Girl Tour) at Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, NJ
August 1987