Growing up in Colorado, young Pam Grier endures racism and trauma, but finds solace in horses and the beautiful countryside. As a teen, she visits Los Angeles for the first time, and gets caught in the middle of the historic Watts Rebellion. But after winning a beauty pageant, she meets a Hollywood agent who encourages her to give L.A. a second chance. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
This is the story of Pam Grier as only she can tell it. Her sudden stardom, her iconic roles, her fights against the system. It’s a story of bravery, both onscreen and off. It’s a story about race in Hollywood and race in America. And it’s a story about how real life is a lot messier than the movies. Pam Grier joins host Ben Mankiewicz for a new season of The Plot Thickens, starting October 25. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
We’re sharing a bonus episode from our friends at Revisionist History, Malcolm Gladwell’s podcast about things misunderstood and overlooked. This season, Malcolm’s obsessed with experiments – natural experiments, scientific experiments, thought experiments. In this episode, Malcolm explores a legendary Hollywood mogul, a famous author, a fatal drunk driving accident, and a brilliant bit of screenwriting left on the cutting room floor. Revisionist History engages in a pop culture what-if experime...
Ben Mankiewicz speaks with the Oscar-winning actor about playing William Frawley in Being the Ricardos , and how Frawley's tumultuous relationship with Vivian Vance informed the characters of Fred and Ethel Mertz. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Ben Mankiewicz speaks to three celebrity fans about how they were influenced by Lucille Ball, Lucy’s incredible talent for physical comedy, and why I Love Lucy is still beloved today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Ben Mankiewicz speaks to Aaron Sorkin, the writer-director of Being the Ricardos , about what drew him to Lucy’s story, Lucy and Desi’s intense relationship, and the danger they faced when HUAC thought Lucy was a communist. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
More from Ben Mankiewicz's fascinating interview with Lucie Arnaz, who speaks about working with her mom, growing up on the RKO studio lot, and what made I Love Lucy special. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Lucy sinks into a depression after the failure of her newest show and becomes a reclusive, fiercely competitive backgammon player. Yet she's still revered, and following a memorable final appearance at the Academy Awards, her heart gives out. As the memorials pour in, the public clamors to learn everything about her life, while those closest to her wonder if they ever really knew her at all. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
Escaping Hollywood after her split, Lucy heads east for a chance to star on Broadway. There she meets a new man, a Borscht Belt comedian with a bad toupee and even worse business sense. The new couple returns to Hollywood when Lucy takes on a surprising new role: as the first female head of a major studio. But she still prefers acting, and makes plans to return to the big screen – with disastrous results. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
Lucy and Desi's studio expands as they buy the RKO lot and produce new shows under the Desilu banner. The strain of running an empire takes its toll, and Desi falls further into gambling, drinking and philandering as a refuge from work. Lucy doubles down on her career, but after shooting a tearful final episode of her signature TV show, her marriage reaches its breaking point. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
At the height of Lucy’s popularity, the government kicks off a political investigation that threatens to ruin her career. Why had Lucy registered as a communist 20 years earlier? On the verge of her being blacklisted, Desi goes on the offensive to save his wife and their livelihood. But his infidelities soon become tabloid fodder, and their love affair begins to crumble in full view of the public. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
With a TV deal from CBS, Desi assembles a ragtag team of collaborators to make a new kind of program, one that would rewrite the rules of television. And they do it while hiding Lucy’s newest surprise: after ten years of trying, she’s about to have a baby. The result is the biggest hit in TV history, one that showcases Lucy's fearlessness and comic timing, and she becomes beloved by millions of fans from coast to coast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
From the start, Lucy and Desi fight as fiercely as they love. After a spur-of-the-moment elopement, the newlyweds buy a small ranch north of Hollywood and call it “Desilu.” They suffer miscarriages and career setbacks, which causes Desi to take his band on the road – where he frequently cheats on his wife. Lucy considers divorce, but when a TV offer comes in, she uses her stardom to keep Desi by her side. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
Forced from his native Cuba by violent revolution, 17-year-old Desi Arnaz is a stranger in a strange land. Armed with an appetite for girls and gambling, Desi sparks a dance craze in the nightclubs of Miami and sweet-talks his way into New York society. After a syphilis scare threatens his Broadway debut, his ambition leads him to Hollywood, where his head is turned by an older actress named Lucy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
For her first movie role, Lucy wears a flesh-toned bodysuit and waist-length blonde wig while chained to a rock. But her clowning on set gets her noticed, and she begins to land larger and larger parts. Soon she signs with RKO Pictures where she's mentored by Ginger Rogers’ demanding and powerful mother, Lela. She also meets a young Cuban musician, the man who would become her closest partner both on and off the screen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
Lucy heads back to Broadway where she meets her first girlboss: fashion baroness Hattie Carnegie, who hires Lucy to model coats and dresses for New York high society. But a mysterious ailment sends Lucy home to Jamestown, followed by a bizarre medical treatment. Still determined to make it in the big city, Lucy returns to Manhattan one more and is discovered on the streets, landing the role that would kickstart her career. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
In a small town in New York, young Lucille Ball becomes enamored with showbiz after watching vaudeville acts and silent movies at the amusement park near her home. As a teenager, she falls for a handsome 21-year-old bootlegger, and is promptly shipped off to drama school in New York City. But Lucy soon returns home as a life-altering tragedy threatens to tear apart her family. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
From her early years as a model to her triumphant takeover of television, this is the story of Lucille Ball, as never heard before. Join host Ben Mankiewicz as he delves into the private world of America’s funniest redhead and hear for yourself the many triumphs and tragedies, with surprising revelations at every turn. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Author Julie Salamon joins TCM Host Alicia Malone for a revealing interview about what you didn’t hear during our second season of The Plot Thickens. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Bonfire of the Vanities tanks with both critics and the moviegoing public. Brian De Palma leads the autopsy, trying to understand how all these smart people made all the wrong decisions. The only upside is for Julie Salamon, whose book on the production is instantly hailed as a modern classic. But even that success comes at a price, as not everyone is thrilled to be immortalized by the book. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
With production now in Los Angeles, Brian De Palma feels the pressure from prying studio executives – and from Bruce Willis, who starts directing other actors on how to be funnier. De Palma gets some much-needed encouragement from his friend Steven Spielberg, who is an old pro at playing the Hollywood game. Then, as post-production ramps up, studio heads see a first cut and love the film, though they have no idea how to market it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoi...
"Hollywood Heat" exposes the difficulties women encountered during the production of "The Bonfire of the Vanities" in Los Angeles. Actresses Melanie Griffith and Kim Cattrall faced immense pressure regarding their appearance, leading to drastic measures like plastic surgery and significant weight loss, alongside stark pay inequalities. The episode also highlights the objectification and demeaning treatment experienced by other cast members, such as Beth Broderick, and the broader systemic sexism ingrained in the film industry through the unique perspective of the on-set reporter.
Dive into the tumultuous New York leg of "Bonfire of the Vanities" production, revealing director Brian De Palma's intense pressure and innovative, yet costly, filmmaking techniques. The episode highlights the varied experiences of cast and crew, from the grounded Tom Hanks to the demanding Melanie Griffith and the complex Bruce Willis. It also details the logistical nightmares of night shoots, the creation of a legendary Steadicam shot, and the backlash from Bronx residents over the film's stereotypical portrayals, encapsulating the chaotic journey of a Hollywood fiasco.
"The War Zone" explores the early struggles of filming Bonfire of the Vanities, chronicling the escalating budget and the intense friction between director Brian De Palma and studio executives. It details how media attention, socialite involvement, and political pushback from the Bronx Borough President added to the chaos. The episode also highlights the grueling search for key locations and the unique bond between De Palma and second unit director Eric Schwab, who even made a significant bet over a single, challenging shot.
Delve into the tumultuous pre-production of "Bonfire of the Vanities," where director Brian De Palma faced pressure to cast likable stars like Tom Hanks and Bruce Willis, despite their initial unsuitability for the novel's unlikable characters. Discover the last-minute, racially charged decision to cast Morgan Freeman as Judge Kavitsky, leading to significant budget and scheduling chaos. The episode also highlights the logistical nightmares and high costs of filming in New York, all while the line producer struggled to keep the ambitious project afloat.
Brian De Palma, reeling from personal and professional setbacks, accepts the daunting task of directing The Bonfire of the Vanities, a highly anticipated adaptation of Tom Wolfe's complex novel. The episode highlights the challenging casting process for the seductive Maria, pitting established star Melanie Griffith against newcomer Uma Thurman, and reveals the high-stakes decisions and behind-the-scenes power struggles. It also delves into De Palma's personal history, tracing how his difficult childhood and past film experiences shaped his approach to filmmaking and contributed to the chaotic production.
A blockbuster book, an all-star cast... what could possibly go wrong? For our second season, we're telling the inside story of The Bonfire of the Vanities , a movie that was supposed to be a hit – but wasn't. Come with us onto the closed set and hear actual recordings of Brian De Palma, Tom Hanks, Melanie Griffith and others, to find out how a highly-anticipated film became a cautionary tale for the ages. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
We've got two new seasons coming your way in 2021, and the first is dropping soon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
TCM host Alicia Malone hosts a conversation with Peter Bogdanovich and Ben Mankiewicz, who share memorable stories and answer questions from listeners about Season 1 of The Plot Thickens. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Highlights from Peter Bogdanovich’s interviews with three of Hollywood’s biggest movie stars, who talk about the unique challenges of working with director and legendary curmudgeon John Ford. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
