1989: sex, lies and videotape: Rob Lowe and James Spader (Erotic 80s Part 12)

Listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

American independent film is launched into the mainstream by Steven Soderbergh’s sex, lies and videotape, starring James Spader as an impotent man who gets off on filming women talking about sex. Videotape also plays a role in a Spader film released almost simultaneously, Bad Influence, in which he plays a meek yuppie at the mercy of alpha male Rob Lowe – who was trying to rehabilitate his career after a tape leaked shot by the actor and documenting his real-life threesomes — one with a 16 year-old girl. We close the first half of this season talking about Lowe, Spader and how camcorder mediation of sex changed pop culture forever.

Andie MacDowell in Sex, Lies and Videotape, 1989

SHOW NOTES:  

Sources:

Stories I Only Tell My Friends: An Autobiography by Rob Lowe

Down and Dirty Pictures: Miramax, Sundance, and the Rise of Independent Film by Peter Biskind

The Sex Education of James Spader by Trip Gabriel. GQ, October 1990

Saturday Night Live, March 17, 1990 

A Dance of Sex and Love, Through a Lens Darkly by Caryn James, New York Times, Aug. 4, 1989

Truth or Consequences, Interview w/ Steven Soderbergh by Harlan Jacobson, Film Comment, July-August 1989

“I Don’t Care If It Never Shows in a Theater”: Steven Soderbergh on sex, lies, and videotape, 4K HDR and the Studio System by Jim Hemphill Filmmaker Magazine, July 20, 2018

Andie MacDowell Remembers How ‘Sex, Lies & Videotape’ Changed Her Career by Diane Garrett, Variety, May 14, 2019

Trading In One's Innocence, Willingly by Vincent Canby, NYTimes, March 9, 1990

Film Is Close To Real Life For Rob Lowe by Bob Strauss Los Angeles Daily News via the Roanoake Times, March 9, 1990

Bad Influence, Roger Ebert March 09, 1990

Bad Influence by Rita Kempley, Washington Post, March 10, 1990

Bad Influence by Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly, March 16, 1990

Rob Lowe Would Just Like to Erase Atlanta Incident From Memory by Chuck Davis, The Oklahoman, March 18, 1990

Rob Bares All, Cover & Story, People Magazine, March 19, 1990

Now, Slyly, Comes The Yuppie Devil by Janet Maslin, NYTimes, Sunday, March 25, 1990

Life Lessons from Rob Lowe, Interview Magazine revisits March 1990 cover story with Rob Lowe, Photographed by Wayne Maser

Why Rob Lowe Calls His 1988 Sex Tape Scandal 'the Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me' by Natalie Stone, People Magazine, October 21, 2019

“Sex, Lies and Videotape” by Jim Jerome, US Magazine, August 7, 1989 

X Film Rating Dropped and Replaced by NC-17 : Movies: Designation would bar children under 17. Move expected to clear the way for strong adult themes by David J. Fox, LA Times, Sept. 27, 1990

How Snow White and Some Coconuts Killed 1989's Oscars by Stuart Heritage Feb 18, 2019

Sex, Lies, and Videotape by Peter Travers, Rolling StoneWhat ‘Brat Pack’ Rob Lowe Asks by Bob Thomas, Chicago Tribune, February 1, 1986

Hollywood’s Brat Pack by David Blum, New York Magazine, Sept 2, 2008

Romeo and Juliet, US Magazine, Dec, 29, 1986

Just For Variety Variety, April 19, 1988

Rob Lowe: The Heartthrob Kid, US Magazine, April 4, 1988

Rob Lowe Tapes: At Long Last, Sexess!” by Henry Sheehan, Los Angeles Reader, July 28, 1989

Sex, Lowe, and Videotape by Elvis Mitchell Village Voice, July 4, 1989

The Movies, Newsweek, August 14, 1989

A Directors’ Psyche, Split Into Four by Amy Nicholson, NY Times, August 25, 2019

Appeals Board Upholds 'Angel Heart' X Rating, New York Times, Feb. 21, 1987

Sex Lies and Videotape” by Kerry Doole, Music Express, October 1989

Ace of Spader by Dennis Hensley Detour Magazine, September 1996

Candid Camera: Sex, Lies and Videotape Director Faces Reality” by Gene Siskel, Chicago Tribune, August 6, 1989

When Humor Meets Heartbreak, TIME, July 31, 1989

Steven Soderbergh, After The Sex And Lies by Martha Sherrill, Washington Post, August 11, 1989

Now, Voyeur, New York Mag, August 7, 1989

The Truth About Sex, Lies by Peter Rainer, Los Angeles Herald Examiner, August 4, 1989

A Video Romp in the Buff Gives Heartbreaker Rob Lowe a Little Too Much Southern Exposure by Steve Dougherty and Joyce Leviton, June 05, 1989

Revisiting the Sex, the Lies and the Videotape” by Ella Taylor, LA Weekly, January 16, 2009

Spader Breaks Out of the Mold with Sex, Lies Daniel Cerone, LA Times, August 9, 1989

Prepped For Stardom by David Pinchbeck, Sept 1990

The Trouble with Jimmy by Stephanie Mansfield, Vogue, November 1990

James Spader’s Image Has Changed, Interview Magazine, Sheila Benson, April 1993

Bad Guy Makes Good, Esquire, Sept 1989

James Spader Made Easy by Jerry Lazar Playboy, April 1990

Please note: as an Amazon Associate Karina earns from qualifying purchases. #ad

James Spader in Sex, Lies and Videotape, 1989

Music:

The music used in this episode, with the exception of the intro, was sourced from royalty-free music libraries and licensed music collections. The intro includes a clip from the film Casablanca.  

Excerpts from the following songs were used throughout the episode: 

"Rumoi Night" - Kokura Station

"Even Dreams of Beaches” - Resolute

"Vik Fence Haflak" - The Fence

"JoDon" - Orange Cat

"Four Cluster" - Fornax

"The Kishner Method” - Kajubaa

"Pxl Eventuat” - The Fence

"Kamilah” - Sunflower

“Gemeni City” - Kajubaa

"Pxl Htra” - The Fence

"Trek VX” - Limoncello

"Kind of Regret” - Synapse

"Still Night” -Pglet

"Danse Morialta” - Kevin MacLeod

"Readers Do You Read" - Chris Zabriskie

Rob Lowe, c. 1980s

Credits:

This episode was written, narrated, and produced by Karina Longworth.

Our editor this season is Evan Viola. 

Research and production assistant: Lindsey D. Schoenholtz.

Social media assistant: Brendan Whalen.

Logo design: Teddy Blanks.

1988: Kevin Costner, Sean Young, No Way Out & Bull Durham (Erotic 80s Part 11)

No Way Out , 1987

Listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

The 1988 baseball blockbuster Bull Durham confirms Kevin Costner as the ultimate squeaky-clean, all-American hearthrob, building on a sexual persona sparked the year before with the neonoir No Way Out. Today we’ll talk about why Costner was the quintessential safe hunk for the 80s, his alchemic chemistry with co-star Sean Young in No Way Out, and her subsequent rocky road through Hollywood misogyny.

Kevin Costner and Sean Young in No Way Out, 1987

SHOW NOTES:  

Sources:

A Breakthrough Role in `No Way Out': Newsday, Combined editions; Long Island, N.Y. 09 Aug 1987

NO WAY OUT No Way Out surprise ending arouses unsettling questions Thrills in the Hitchcock tradition by Jay Scott, The Globe and Mail, Aug 14, 1987 

Search for a 'Difficult Character' in 'No Way Out' By Lawrence Van Gelder, NYTimes, Aug. 17, 1987 

Kevin Costner – The Untouchables' New Ness by Peter Biskind. American Film, June 1, 1987 

Will The Real Kevin Costner Please Stand Out? No Way by Jeannine Stein Aug. 19, 1987 

GQ Cover & Article, Kevin Costner, May 1987 

For 1988: The Sexy, Sexier, Sexiest, Kevin Costner Cover, US Magazine, Oct 17, 1988

Costner In Control, Vanity Fair Cover & Article, January 1992 Edward Klein Annie Leibovitz 

Reel Appeal for Women, LA Times, July 10 1988

Kevin Costner A Cool Breeze By Jesse Kornbluth, Vanity Fair, May 1989 

Kevin Costner: Pursuing The Dream by Richard Corliss Time Magazine, June 26, 1989  

No Way Out Review by Duane Byrge, Hollywood Reporter, August 11, 1987

Hollywood Report Martin A. Grove, July 30, 1987

No Way Out, Variety review, August 1987

”Behind Tinted Windows” LA Herald Examiner, October 20, 1987

Temperature Rising, LA Times, March 1, 1987No Way Out, Box Office, October 1987

Kiss and Tell: They Steam on Screen, But Stars Like Julia Roberts and Patrick Swayze Clutch Up in the Clinches, People Magazine, Spring, 1991

Capital Entertainment by David Denby, New York Magazine, August 17, 1987

Easy Way Out by John Powers, LA Weekly, September 4, 1987

Modern Hero by Andrew Sarris, Village Voice, September 1, 1987

Sean Young, Harpers Bazaar Magazine Pictorial, September 1987 

Sean Young Prepares For Upcoming Film by Melina Gerosa, Entertainment Weekly, September 14, 1990 

Clawing for Catwoman by Pat H. Broeske and Anne Thompson, Entertainment Weekly, August 09, 1991

Sean Young - an infamous plea to Tim Burton for Catwoman role - Joan Rivers Show 4:27, 3/16/91 

Sean Young, Out There Where The Trains Don’t Run, November 11991 Michael Angeli 

Sean Young, Seriously : She’s not just a wild spirit, she insists, but a sensitive soul too; certainly she’s brave--her next step is to sing and dance on stage BY Chris Willman, LA Times, MAY 17, 1992 

Sean Young: Young at Heart, Interview, Movieline Magazine

The Agony and Ecstasy of Sean Young by Melina Gerosa, Entertainment Weekly, January 30, 2007

Sean Young: The EW profile, by Karen Valby, Entertainment Weekly, January 29, 2008 

Blade Runner’s Sean Young: ‘if I Were A Man I’d Have Been Treated Better’ The Guardian, March 26 2015 

Actress Sean Young Alleges Harvey Weinstein Exposed Himself to Her by Rebecca Rubin, Variety, Oct 20, 2017 

Sean Young on Surviving Hollywood’s Many Toxic Men by Marlow Stern, The Daily Beast, Mar. 22, 2021 

What the Hell Happened to Sean Young? Lebeauleblog.com, 2011 

Conspiracy, Paranoia, #MeToo, and the Reparative Work of Sean Young’s Catwoman by Dolores McElroy, Film Quarterly, Fall 2020, Volume 74, Number 1

Sean Young Responds to Post-Oscars Arrest: ‘I Was Sober’ by Erin Carlson, Hollywood Reporter, February 28, 2012 

Talking With Sean Young: "Crazy" in Hollywood, Supporting Trump, and a Career That's "Mostly Over" by Rich Juzwiak, Gawker.com, April 2016

Sean Young as Catwoman by Jeff Labrecque, Entertainment Weekly, October 05, 2011

Sean Young Begs for Work in Bizarre Late Show Appearance by Matt Cherette, gawker.com, October 2011 

Sean Young Carl Reiner Interview 2009, youtube.com, Dec 11, 2019 

30 Years After Her Catwoman Costume Stunt, Sean Young Is Ready To Be The Hero Of Her Own Story By Ethan Alter, Yahoo Entertainment March 16, 2021

”No Way Out” reviewed by Pauline Kael in The New Yorkerpbook/096/

Can Orion hit and Run with Bull Durham?” Craig Modderno, LA Times, Jan 10. 1988 

Major league movie about the minors by Julie Salamon, Jun 16, 1988, WSJ

Diamonds are a girl’s best friend by David Denby New York Magazine, June 20, 1988 

Dark Look at Baseball by Patrick Goldstien, June 21, 1988

Sarandon Talks Baseball, Chess, Life” by Harold Reynolds,  Knight Ridder News Service, July, 1988

Durham Duo Flap Proves Pic’s Point, Variety, April 16, 2003

Interview: Lizzie Borden on Love Crimes

Bull Durham Criterion edition special features

Sean Young in her Catwoman costume before appearing on The Joan Rivers Show in 1991 | Photo- Richard Corkery, NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images

Music:

The music used in this episode, with the exception of the intro, was sourced from royalty-free music libraries and licensed music collections. The intro includes a clip from the film Casablanca.  

Excerpts from the following songs were used throughout the episode: 

"Rumoi Night" - Kokura Station

"Caveman" - High Horse

"Four Cluster" - Fornax

"Quindi Cavern" - LufaQuest

"Pxl Eventuat" - The Fence

"Pxl Htra" - The Fence

"WestDesert" - LufaQuest

"The Killjoy Brothers" - Kittyhawk

"Of Our Choosing" - LufaQuest

"The Kishner Method" - Kajubaa

"Quindi Cavern" - LufaQuest

"Dimming Circuit" - Limoncello

"Gemeni City" - Kajubaa

"Still Nite" - Hutter

"Readers Do You Read" - Chris Zabriskie

Kevin Costner and Susan Sarandon in Bull Durham, 1988

Credits:

This episode was written, narrated, and produced by Karina Longworth.

Our editor this season is Evan Viola. 

Research and production assistant: Lindsey D. Schoenholtz.

Social media assistant: Brendan Whalen.

Logo design: Teddy Blanks.

1987: Fatal Attraction and Dirty Dancing (Erotic 80s Part 10)

Glenn Close and Michael Douglas, Fatal Attraction, 1987

Listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

The erotic thriller goes commercially mainstream with Fatal Attraction, a film which starts a national conversation about whether or not women can “have it all” – “it all” meaning both careers and marriage. Is Fatal Attraction an indictment of working women as “witches” and a call to roll back women’s rights, or a snapshot of extreme toxic masculinity? Plus: Dirty Dancing — is it evil?

Adrian Lyne and Glenn Close on the set of Fatal Attraction, 1987

SHOW NOTES:  

Sources:

Backlash by Susan Faludi

Leading Lady: Sherry Lansing and the Making of a Hollywood Groundbreaker by  Stephen Galloway

Fatal Attraction with Douglas and Close by Janet Maslin, New York Times, Sept. 18, 1987

Commentary: ‘Fatal Attraction' – The Mad Woman’s Case by Nancy Webber And Lowell Alexander Oct. 4, 1987 

'Fatal Attraction' Director Analyzes the Success of His Movie, and Rejoices By Aljean Harmetz, Special to the New York Times, Oct. 5, 1987

The Darkside of Love: In Life as in the Seasons Hottest Movie Some Attractions Can be Fatal, People Magazine, October 26, 1987  

The Thriller Is Back Fatal Attraction, Time Magazine, Nov 16, 1987 

Alternatives Exist to `Fatal Attraction' by Gene Siskel, Sun Sentinel, Jan, 1988

Feminism Might Be Facing Fatal Attraction by Janice Martin, St. Petersburg Times, Jan 6, 1988

Talking To... James Dearden by Edmund White, Vogue, Sep 1, 1988 

‘Fatal Attraction’ Oral History: Rejected Stars and a Foul Rabbit by Bruce Fretts, New York Times, Sept. 14, 2017 

Dialogue on Film: Adrian Lyne American Film Magazine, Sept 1988

Why Can't A Man Be More Like a Woman? by Arlie Russell Hochschild, New York Times, Nov. 15, 1987

Love and Hate by Joan Smith, The Guardian, Mar 21, 2000

The Attraction of a Storyline by Susan King, LA Herald Examiner, September 20, 1987

One-night Stand with Fatal Repercussions by Joe Baltake, Syndicated to Long Beach Press-Telegram, Sept 18, 1987

A Film that Gives Feminism a Bad Name by Richard Cohen, LA Herald Examiner, October 1987

In Bed with the Zeitguy by Johanna Schneller, GQ, April 1993 

Attraction to Close’s Alex Turned Repulsive, LB Herald Examiner, January 30, 1989

Hollywood Report by Martin A. Grove, The Hollywood Reporter, September 23, 1987

Rafelson Picks up Pace Following Widow by Bill Desowitz, The Hollywood Reporter, Feb 20, 1987

Sins of the Fathers by Ellen Willis, Village Voice, December 15, 1987 

Fanciful ‘Reality’: When the Reel Thing Ain’t That Real by Sheila Benson, LA Times, November 1, 1987

Home is Where the Handgun Is by Helen Knode, LA Weekly, October 2, 1987

What’s the Attraction Here? by Connie Benesch and Deborah Caulfield, LA Times October 15, 1987 

Killer! Fatal Attraction Strikes Gold as a Parable of Sexual Guilt by Richard Corliss TIME, Nov. 16, 1987

Adrian’s Line on Sex by Lynn Hirschman Rolling Stone, November 19, 1987

The Rabbit Died: Eight Capsule Comments on Fatal Attraction, Village Voice, Dec 15, 1987 

Please note: as an Amazon Associate Karina earns from qualifying purchases. #ad

Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction, 1987

Music:

The music used in this episode, with the exception of the intro, was sourced from royalty-free music libraries and licensed music collections. The intro includes a clip from the film Casablanca.  

Excerpts from the following songs were used throughout the episode: 

"Rumoi Night" - Kokura Station

"The Kishner Method" - Kajubaa

"Dear Myrtle" - Sunflower

"Akonan" - LufaQuest

Gemeni City - Kajubaa

"Hutter" - Piglet

"The Trundle" - Synapse

"Quindi Cavern" - LufaQuest

Vengeful - Warmbody

"Tower of Mirrors" - TinyTiny Trio

"Zeriba Village" - LufaQuest

"Vik Fence Haflak" - The Fence

"Of Our Choosing" - LufaQuest

"Four Cluster" - Fornax

"Readers Do You Read" - Chris Zabriskie

Credits:

This episode was written, narrated, and produced by Karina Longworth.

Our editor this season is Evan Viola. 

Research and production assistant: Lindsey D. Schoenholtz.

Social media assistant: Brendan Whalen.

Logo design: Teddy Blanks.

Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze in Dirty Dancing, 1987

1986: 9 ½ Weeks, Mickey Rourke & Zalman King (Erotic 80s Part 9)

Listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

Billed as the hottest Hollywood film since Last Tango, 9 ½ Weeks was considered to have missed the mark by everyone who made it – including director Adrian Lyne, stars Mickey Rourke and Kim Basinger, producer/writer Zalman King and his wife, writer Patricia Knop. Today we’ll talk about why this intoxicating and troubling film is worth a second look, how to square away the arguably feminist finished product from a production process that robbed Basinger of agency, and we’ll explore the film Rourke and King re-teamed on as a re-do, Wild Orchid. We’ll also talk about Rourke’s “bad boy” persona, and his problematic relationship with his second wife and co-star, supermodel Carre Otis. 

Kim Basinger and Mickey Rourke in 9½ Weeks (1986)

SHOW NOTES:  

Sources:
Nine and a Half Weeks: A Memoir of a Love Affair by Elizabeth McNeill

Beauty, Disrupted: The Carre Otis Story, by Carre Otis

People Are Talking About: Kim Basinger by David Denby, Vogue, April 1986

Making it Big in 9 ½ Weeks, Interview Magazine, March 1985, Vol 15 Iss 3 

Mickey Rourke, Playboy, February 1987

Vision Skeds Wild Orchid as ‘High-Class Erotic Pic by Hy Hollinger, Variety, May 12, 1988

Paradise Lust, People Magazine, June 15, 1992

King Comments, Hollywood Reporter, May 9, 1988

Just for Variety, Variety,  Feb 11, 1994

The Cutting Edge by Pat H. Broeske, LA Times, Feb. 16, 1986

Profile of Zalman King by Nancy Griffin, Premiere Magazine, September 1991

Former French Models Come Forward With Abuse Allegations Against Gerald Marie, NPR Morning Edition, Sept. 10, 2021

Who Was the Real Woman Behind “Nine and a Half Weeks? by Sarah Weinman, The New Yorker, Nov 30, 2012

Leading Man Named Zalman, New York Times, Feb 28, 1971

This Lady-Killer Bites by Janet Maslin, New York Times, April 28, 1990

‘Wild Orchid’ Makes Its Sex Seem Ludicrous by Michael Wilmington, LA Times, April 30, 1990

Hollywood Report by Martin A. Grove, The Hollywood Reporter, May 2, 1990

Before ‘Fifty Shades,’ How ‘9 1/2 Weeks’ Director Put S&M Onscreen by Seth Abramovitch, Feb 12, 2015 

How '9 1/2 Weeks' Pushed An Actress To The Edge by Nina Darnton, New York Times, March 9, 1986

Orchid Sex Scenes Might Be Pirated by James Ulmer, The Hollywood Reporter, August 10, 1989

Take One, People Magazine, May 1, 1989

X Marks it Hot, Variety, March 28, 1990

True Love, Newsweek, April 23, 1990

Kim Basinger Cover & Interview, Interview Magazine, Feb 1986

Orchid Producers Sue Rourke, Otis, The Hollywood Reporter, June 20, 1990

The Last Anti-Hero, By Patrick Goldstein, LA Times, Feb. 24, 1991

Patricia Louisiana Knop Dies: Screenwriter For ‘9 1/2 Weeks’ And ‘Wild Orchid’ Was 78 By Bruce Haring, Deadline, August 16, 2019

‘Wild Orchid’ Star Carré Sutton Sues Former Elite Modeling Agency Execs Over Rape Accusations by Daniel Goldblatt,  August 12, 2021

Mickey Rourke ex Carré Sutton sues Former Elite Models Boss Over Alleged Rape by Ben Feuerherd, NY Post, August 13, 2021 

Please note: as an Amazon Associate Karina earns from qualifying purchases. #ad

Music:

The music used in this episode, with the exception of the intro, was sourced from royalty-free music libraries and licensed music collections. The intro includes a clip from the film Casablanca.  

Excerpts from the following songs were used throughout the episode: 

"Rumoi Night" - Kokura Station

"Quindi Cavern" - LufaQuest

"Tower of Mirrors" - TinyTiny Trio

"Kestral" - Kajubaa

"Pxl Cray" - The Fence

"Gruman's Thorn" - Kajubaa

"The Kishner Method" - Kajubaa

"Pxl Eventuat" - The Fence

"Gamboler" - Pglet

"Kamilah" - Sunflower

"Nightride" - Kajubaa

"WestDesert" - LufaQuest

"Zeriba Village" - LufaQuest

"Kind of Regret" - Synapse

Mickey Rourke and Carre Otis, c. 1980s

Credits:

This episode was written, narrated, and produced by Karina Longworth.

Our editor this season is Evan Viola. 

Research and production assistant: Lindsey D. Schoenholtz.

Social media assistant: Brendan Whalen.

Logo design: Teddy Blanks.

Mickey Rourke, photographed by Helmut Newton, c. 1980’s

1985: Fear Sex. Jagged Edge & AIDS (Erotic 80s Part 8)

Listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

Just as the AIDS-related death of Rock Hudson was finally forcing straight people – and Hollywood – to acknowledge that epidemic, a film was released that transposed the new climate of sexual fear onto a murder mystery. The sleeper hit of 1985, Jagged Edge turned Glenn Close from a respected actress into a star, and established the brand of screenwriter Joe Eszterhas, who would later write Basic Instinct and Showgirls. Almost a decade after radical feminists began to call for a crackdown on violent sexual imagery, Jagged Edge tried to have its cake and eat it, too: infusing its sex and violence – and its depiction of a career woman – with a fundamentally conservative point of view. 

SHOW NOTES:  

Sources:

Hollywood Animal by Joe Eszterhas

Murdering Women For Entertainment by Rita Kempley, aliciapatterson.org, 2002

Hudson Has Aids, Spokesman Says, AP via New York Times, July 26, 1985

40 Years Later: How Hollywood Has Shaped the Story of HIV, Until Very Recently, TV And Film Whitewashed HIV/AIDS. That’s Starting to Change, by Naveen Kumar, them.us, Oct 22, 2021

Rock Hudson: On Camera and Off by Jeff Yarbrough, People Magazine, Aug 12, 1985

Jagged Edge, Variety, Jan 1, 1985, Issue 1

'Jagged Edge' by Kirk Ellis, The Hollywood Reporter, Vol. 288, Iss. 31, Sep 9, 1985

Pictures: Twisty 'Edge' Plot No Accident; Directing 'Up' To The Audience by Gold, Richard. Variety Vol. 320, Iss. 8, Sep 18, 1985

Glenn Close: The Next Step; Years Of Work Have Finally Paid Off In Career Options And Security by Blowen, Michael, Boston Globe, Sep 17, 1985

Toplining Two New Movies? It's Great--Sort Of--Says Glenn Close by Smith, Sid. Chicago Tribune, Sep 29, 1985

Film: Glenn Close As Attorney In 'Jagged Edge' by Janet Maslin Oct. 4, 1985 

Jagged Edge Review by Roger Ebert, Oct 4, 1985 A Gripping Ride In `Jagged Edge' by Benson, Sheila, Los Angeles Times, Oct 4, 1985

Jagged Edge: Son of `Fatal Vision': By Carl Pisano, Newsday, Oct 4, 1985 

'The Jagged Edge': An All-American Killer? ny Blowen, Michael. Boston Globe, Oct 4, 1985 

The Men Who Round Out The Jagged Edge: Ron Base Toronto Star, 05 Oct 1985Watchable Year For Actresses by Champlin, Charles, Los Angeles Times, Oct 12, 1985

In Films, It's A Season For Strong Women Sterritt, David. The Christian Science Monitor; Oct 18, 1985

Film View; Are 'New' Women's Movies Guilty Of Sexism In Reverse? By Vincent Canby Nov. 10, 1985 

Ragged Ending To `Jagged Edge' Many Moviegoers Have Been Confused About The Identity Of The Killer After Seeing This Non-Gruesome, Genuinely Scary Thriller. And They Have Reason To Be Confused, Even Though The Film Is Good by Siskel, Gene, Sun Sentinel via Chicago Tribune, Nov 15, 1985 

Is Glenn Close The Ideal Heroine? by Maureen Dowd Dec. 22, 1985 

Dateline Hollywood by Steve Pond, Washington Post, Oct 10, 1985 

'Jagged Edge': Cut and Run by Rita Kempley, Washington Post, Oct 4, 1985

Please note: as an Amazon Associate Karina earns from qualifying purchases. #ad

Glenn Close and Jeff Bridges in Jagged Edge, 1985

Music:

The music used in this episode, with the exception of the intro, was sourced from royalty-free music libraries and licensed music collections. The intro includes a clip from the film Casablanca.  

Excerpts from the following songs were used throughout the episode: 

"Rumoi Night" - Kokura Station

"Pxl Cray" - The Fence

"Gamboler" - Pglet

"Pxl Deter" - The Fence

"Dimming Circuit" - Limoncello

"Vengeful" - Warmbody

"Ion Cruiser" - Kokura Station

"Quindi Cavern" - LufaQuest

"Hutter" - Piglet

"Dear Myrtle" - Sunflower

"Akonan" - LufaQuest

"Kamilah" - Sunflower

"Readers Do You Read" - Chris Zabriskie

Glenn Close in Jagged Edge, 1985

Credits:

This episode was written, narrated, and produced by Karina Longworth.

Our editor this season is Evan Viola. 

Research and production assistant: Lindsey D. Schoenholtz.

Social media assistant: Brendan Whalen.

Logo design: Teddy Blanks.

"Vioporn," Body Double and Crimes of Passion (Erotic 80s Part 7)

Listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

In a time of bombastic blockbusters (and Reagan’s re-election), two auteurs defy the norms by releases violent films about sexual obsession, sparking a controversial mini-trend which one critic dubs “Vioporn.” Kathleen Turner, then also starring in a family-friendly blockbuster, plays a sex worker with a double life in Ken Russell’s Crimes of Passion. Brian DePalma, the most talked-about director of the moment, takes his tribute/critique of Hitchcock to the next level by casting Melanie Griffith – daughter of Hitchcock blonde Tippi Hedren – as a porn star in Body Double.

Melanie Griffith in Body Double, 1984

SHOW NOTES:  

Sources:

Make My Day: Movie Culture in the Age of Reagan by J. Hoberman

Altered States by Ken Russell

Double DePalma by Susan Dworkin

Tippi by Tippi Hedren

A Paper Life by Tatum O’Neal

Brian de Palma’s Death Wish by Lynn Hirschberg, Esquire Magazine, January 1, 1984

Body Double' Is Creepy Crud By Rita Kempley, Washington Post, October 26, 1984,  

Film: Depalma Evokes 'Vertigo' In Body Double by Vincent Canby, The New York Times, Oct. 26, 1984

Brian De Palma As Son Of Hitchcock by Paul Attanasio, Washington Post, November 4, 1984 

On Brian De Palma-Crossing The Line Between Art and Pornography? by Nina Darnton, The New York Times, Nov. 18, 1984

The Fans Are Showing No Taste For Turkeys by Joe Baltake, Philadelphia Daily News, Nov 24, 1984

How Two Directors Confront 'Vioporn' by Jay Carr, Boston Globe, Nov 30, 1984

A Movie is a Work of Art: An Interview with Brian De Palma by Matt Zoller Seitz, June 09, 2016 

Melanie Says ‘It’s No Big Deal’ The Indianapolis Star, April 29, 1975 

Growing Up Too Fast? Daily News, April 1975 

Melanie Griffith's Nightmare Has Ended by Michael Landon, Philadelphia Inquirer, Jan 3, 1984

People Are Talking About: Movies: Body by Brian by Deborah Mason, Vogue, 174, Iss. 11, Nov 1, 1984 

Noel Marshall’s “Roar”: Humans Were Harmed in the Making of This Film, by Richard Brody. April 22, 2020

Ratings Rile Studio Head, New York Magazine, Oct 1, 1984

Sex Films Without X Rating by Joe Baltake, Philadelphia Daily News, Oct 23, 1984

Her Brilliant Career by Christine Doudna, American Film, Vol. 10, Iss. 2, Nov 1, 1984

Mystery Woman: Kathleen Turner by Richard Schickel. Film Comment; New York Vol. 21, Iss. 2, Mar/Apr 1985

Interview with Brian De Palma by Marcia Pally, Film Comment, October 1984

The Many Lives of Kathleen Turner by Keaton Bell, Vogue Magazine, December 13, 2021

Kathleen Turner Meets Her Monster by Jesse Green, New York Times, March 20, 2005

Kathleen Turner: The Last Movie Star by Tim Appelo and Gregg Kilday, Entertainment Weekly, August 02, 1991

In Conversation: Kathleen Turner, Vulture, Aug 7, 2018

Kathleen Turner: ‘Decades after Body Heat I Am Still Referred to as a Sexual Icon’ by Ruth Huntman, The Guardian, Apr 14, 2018

Barry Sandler | Crimes Of Passion, by Ian White, Starburst Magazine, August 8, 2016

Bad Boys of Cinema Ken Russell, Barry Sandler Will Screen Cult Classic 'Crimes of Passion' by Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel, Mar 27, 2009

Don Johnson & Melanie Griffith At Home and In Love, US Magazine, November 1991

Fast Starter, Playboy, October 1976

The Dark Side of the Moon by Joe Queenan, Movieline Magazine, October 1990

'Psycho' Altered Ideas On Censorship, All Things Considered, June 18, 2010

De Palma, 2015, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1683048/

Please note: as an Amazon Associate Karina earns from qualifying purchases. #ad

Melanie Griffith and Craig Wasson in Body Double (1984)

Music:

The music used in this episode, with the exception of the intro, was sourced from royalty-free music libraries and licensed music collections. The intro includes a clip from the film Casablanca.  

Excerpts from the following songs were used throughout the episode: 

"Rumoi Night" - Kokura Station
"Pxl Cray" - The Fence
"Hutter" - Pglet
"The Killjoy Brothers" - Kittyhawk
"Divider" - Chris Zabriskie
"Pxl Htra" - The Fence
"Pxl Eventuat" - The Fence
"Single Still" - Vermouth
"Four Cluster" - Fornax
"Still Nite" - Pglet
"Tower of Mirrors" - TinyTiny Trio
"Valley VX" - Limoncello
"Kovd" - Fjell
"Vik Fence Haflak" - The Fence
"Trek VX" - Limoncello
"Readers Do You Read" - Chris Zabriskie

Credits:

This episode was written, narrated, and produced by Karina Longworth.

Our editor this season is Evan Viola. 

Research and production assistant: Lindsey D. Schoenholtz.

Social media assistant: Brendan Whalen.

Logo design: Teddy Blanks.

Kathleen Turner as China Blue / Joanna Crane in Crimes of Passion, 1984

1983: MTV Aesthetics, Flashdance and Risky Business (Erotic 80s Part 6)

Listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

While the music video was still in its infancy as a cultural phenomenon, two films were released that were accused of aping the “MTV aesthetic”: Adrian Lyne’s Flashdance, and Risky Business, which turned Tom Cruise into a major star. Today we’ll talk about what the “MTV aesthetic” was and why it was considered a big deal for movies to be influenced about it, and we’ll examine how both of these movies treated sex work and race within the context of 80s social mores and Reagan capitalism.

SHOW NOTES:  

Sources:

Hollywood Animal by Joe Esterhas

They Can Kill You But They Can’t Eat You by Dawn Steel

Imagining the Mulatta: Blackness in U.S. and Brazilian Media Paperback by Jasmine Mitchell, May 25, 2020

Pittsburgh And Dance, by Janet Maslin, the New York Times, April 15, 1983

Movie Review: When The Plot Is Just A 'Flashdance' In The Pan by Sheila Benson, Los Angeles Times, April 15, 1983

Ok, Jennifer, Who Did The Dancing? by Deborah Caulfield, Los Angeles Times, April 1983

Truth In Dancing by Marvin Jones, Los Angeles Times, May 1, 1983

Sure-footed Beals, Screen International, Issue 402, July 9, 1983

The Real Flashdancer Finally Gets Her Due, by Fawn Vrazo, Philadelphia Inquirer, August 8, 1983

High Concept: Don Simpson and the Hollywood Culture of Excess by Charles Fleming, apnews.com 

Flashdance, by Roger Ebert April 19, 1983 

Film Reviews: Flashdance, Variety, Apr 20, 1983

Film View; Under The 1983 Chic, Movies Still Leer At Women by Janet Maslin, May 22, 1983 the New York Times 

'Invisible Marketing' Helps 'Flashdance' Sell by Aljean Harmetz, Special To the New York Times June 4, 1983

MTV Aesthetics At The Movies: Interrogating A Film Criticism Fallacy, Journal of Film and Video, Vol. 59, No. 3, Fall 2007, pp. 15-31, Published By: University of Illinois Press

Beals Would Prefer Yale to Stardom, Los Angeles Times, Oct 8, 1982 

Flashdance' Star Taps Her Own Beat London, Michael. Los Angeles Times, May 8, 1983

Flashdance, The Dead End Kid by Kathryn Kalinak, Jump Cut: A Review of Contemporary Media, no. 29, February 1984, pp. 3-5

Bein’s Believing by Gary Susman, Time Magazine, April 14, 2013

‘Flashdance,’ 30 Years Later: B-Boy Recalls Girling Up for Final Scene, Yahoo.com, April 15, 2013

What Hurt Feelings: The Untold Story Of The 31-Year Battle Over "Flashdance" Buzzfeed.com, Aug 14, 2014 

‘I’ve Had Letters From Klansmen’: Jennifer Beals on Flashdance, The L Word and fighting to get Diverse Stories Told by Zoe Williams, The Guardian, Mon Feb 7, 2022

The Flashdance Phenomenon When 'Flashdance' Premiered 17 Years Ago, Movies and Music Were Welded Together by Rebecca Ascher-Walsh, Entertainment Weekly, April 21, 2000

Jennifer Beals: Sultry Student Strikes Stardom In 'Flashdance', Jet Magazine, June 6, 1983 

Risky Business by Duane Byrge, The Hollywood Reporter, Vol. 277, Iss. 45, Jul 25, 1983

Film Reviews: Risky Business CART.Variety (Archive: 1905-2000); Los Angeles Vol. 311, Iss. 13,  (Jul 27, 1983): 21

Film: Paul Brickman's 'Risky Business' by Janet Maslin, The New York Times, Aug. 5, 1983 

He Coos And She Bills In 'Risky Business': 'Risky Business' by Sheila Benson, Los Angeles Times, Aug 5, 1983

Risky Business: Kid Cruise Critiques Capitalism, In honor of the Drafthouse's Summer of '83 screening, resident Tom Cruise expert Amy Nicholson talks RISKY BUSINESS! by Amy Nicholson, birthmoviesdeath.com, May. 31, 2013

Cameron Crowe on Tom Cruise, Interview Magazine via theuncool.com, May, 1986

My Wild Summer With Tom Cruise: Women, Sean Penn and the Making of ‘Risky Business’ By Curtis Armstrong, The Hollywood Reporter, June 21, 2017

"Risky Business" Director: “Some People Like The Visibility. I Don't", The Reclusive Director Of The 1983 Hit Talks To Salon About The Film, Tom Cruise, And Turning Down "Forrest Gump by Jake Malooley, Salon.com, September 2, 2013

Why It Took So Long For MTV To Play Black Music Videos by Margena A. Christian, Jet Magazine, October 9, 2006

Flashback: David Bowie Rips Into MTV for Not Spotlighting Black Artists, Interview from MTV, 1983, Rollingstone.com 

The 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born: Number 1, Blender, October 2005

How the 'Billie Jean' Video Changed MTV by Tamara Palmer, theroot.com, March 10, 2013

Jets, Jeans and Hovis by Sam Delaney, The Guardian, Aug 23, 2007

Special Section on MTV, Film Comment, July/August 1983 

Please note: as an Amazon Associate Karina earns from qualifying purchases. #ad

Tom Cruise in Risky Business, 1983

Music:

The music used in this episode, with the exception of the intro, was sourced from royalty-free music libraries and licensed music collections. The intro includes a clip from the film Casablanca.  

Excerpts from the following songs were used throughout the episode: 

"Rumoi Night" - Kokura Station
"Dimming Circuit" - Limoncello
"Pxl Htra" - The Fence
"Kovd" - Fjell
"Even Dreams of Beaches" - Resolute
"Trek VX" - Limoncello
"Pxl Deter" - The Fence
"Hutter" - Pglet
"Still Nite" - Pglet
"Pxl Cray" - The Fence
"The Killjoy Brothers" - Kittyhawk
"Gamboler" - Pglet
"Readers Do You Read" - Chris Zabriskie

Credits:

This episode was written, narrated, and produced by Karina Longworth.

Our editor this season is Evan Viola. 

Research and production assistant: Lindsey D. Schoenholtz.

Social media assistant: Brendan Whalen.

Logo design: Teddy Blanks.

Rebecca de Mornay and Tom Cruise, Risky Business, 1983

1982: Teen Sexploitation, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Porky's and The Blue Lagoon (Erotic 80s Part 5)

Phoebe Cates and Jennifer Jason Leigh in Fast Times at Ridgemont High, 1982

Listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

1982 saw the release of three hit high school-set comedies about sex: Porky’s, The Last American Virgin and Fast Times at Ridgemont High. The only one to survive as a classic, Fast Times turned Phoebe Cates – who also appeared in the Blue Lagoon rip-off Paradise the same year – into a frozen-in-time icon of adolescent sexuality. Today we’ll talk about this sudden explosion of teen sex on movie screens, and compare Cates’s public persona and attitude to on-screen sexuality to that of Blue Lagoon star Brooke Shields.

Brooke Shields in a 1980s Calvin Klein ad

SHOW NOTES:  

Sources:

Long Live the New Flesh! Or, Why Video Stores With Real Employees Will Always Win, By Ross Scarano, Matt Barone, Complex.com, Nov 06, 2013

Teen Sexploitation --The Young Girls Talk: Movies by Kristine Mckenna, Laura Daltry Los Angeles Times, Sep 25, 1983

’They Want us to Look’ Through the Lens of the Teen Sex Comedies of the Early 1980’s by Andy Selsberg, believermag.com, May 1, 2006

In ’80s Comedies, Boys Had It Made. Girls Were the Joke. by Wesley Morris, New York Times, Oct. 4, 2018

The 'R' Rating-A Lure Or A Barrier by Susan Heller Anderson, New York Times, May 2, 1982

The Movie No Theaters Thought Worth Showing; Rationale Explained Atkins Used Alone in Publicity Focus on Scantily Clad Youths Some Controversy Stirred by by Aljean Harmetz, New York Times, Nov. 4, 1980

Brooke Shields Tells the Story Behind Her 80's Calvin Klein Jeans Campaign, Vogue.com, October 28, 2021

Joseph Cates, 74, a Producer Of Innovative Specials for TV by Robert Mcg. Thomas Jr., New York Times, Oct. 12, 1998

Audio discussion from 1982 with Amy Heckerling at the American Film Institute, from the Fast Times at Ridgemont High Criterion Edition

New Talent Featured in ‘Fast Times' by Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times, August 13, 1982

The Life and Times of ‘Fast Times’” Dale Pollack, Los Angeles Times

Watching Innocence Take Wing by Charles Champlin, LA Times, September 2, 1982

Jennifer Leigh and Her Trip Trom X to R, New York Times, September 3, 1982

Fast Times' Director On Fast Track To Fame by Lawrence O’Toole, The Globe and Mail, 10 Sep 1982

Fast Times at Ridgemont High 1 Star Review by Roger Ebert, January 01, 1982

The Test Screening That Almost Killed Fast Times at Ridgemont High by Dana Stevens, Slate.com, May 27, 2021

Pheobe Cates Cover & Story, Interview Magazine, June 1982, Vol 12 Iss 6

Jennifer Jason Leigh Can Be Fearless Because it’s Pretend by Phoebe Cates, Photographed by Eli Russell Linnetz, Interview, September 14, 2018

Film Reviews: Paradise, Variety Vol. 307, Iss. 2, May 12, 1982

Paradise Review Box Office Vol. 118, Iss. 7, Jul 15, 1982

‘Paradise': A Lovers' Oasis Revisited by Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times, May 7, 1982

A Suitful Of Trouble In 'Paradise': Film Clips by Deborah Caulfield, Los Angeles Times, May 19,  1982

Judge Rejects Attempt to Block Advertisement for 'Paradise' Los Angeles Times, May 20 1982

Paradise Star Phoebe Cates Hangs Her Own Film with a One-Word Review—'Rip-Off' by Josh Hammer, People Magazine, June 14, 1982

Film Review: Blue Lagoon, Variety, Jun 11, 1980

Despite Success, a Tough Fight for Backing” The Philadelphia Inquirer, July 7, 1980

The Blue Lagoon, The Director A Common Denominator,  The Cincinnati Post, July 11, 1980

Brooke Shields Cover & Fashion Spread, Vogue Magazine, October 1980

Brooke Shields, US Magazine, May 15, 1979

The Day Blue Jeans Became Sexual; Those TV Ads Anger Some - But They Sell by Julie Hatfield Globe Staff, Boston Globe, October 16, 1980

WNBC Also Bans Sultry Jeans Ads, New York Times, Nov. 21, 1980

Brooke Shields on Barbara Walters c. 1980/81

Brooke Shields Calls Her 1980 Interview With Barbara Walters “Practically Criminal” By Emily Kirkpatrick,Vanity Fair, December,  7, 2021 

There Was a Little Girl: The Real Story of My Mother and Me by Brooke Shields

Please note: as an Amazon Associate Karina earns from qualifying purchases. #ad

Music:

The music used in this episode, with the exception of the intro, was sourced from royalty-free music libraries and licensed music collections. The intro includes a clip from the film Casablanca.  

Excerpts from the following songs were used throughout the episode: 

"Rumoi Night" - Kokura Station
"Dimming Circuit" - Limoncello
"Pxl Htra" - The Fence
"Kovd" - Fjell
"Even Dreams of Beaches" - Resolute
"Trek VX" - Limoncello
"Pxl Deter" - The Fence
"Hutter" - Pglet
"Still Nite" - Pglet
"Pxl Cray" - The Fence
"The Killjoy Brothers" - Kittyhawk
"Gamboler" - Pglet
"Readers Do You Read" - Chris Zabriskie

Credits:

This episode was written, narrated, and produced by Karina Longworth.

Our editor this season is Evan Viola. 

Research and production assistant: Lindsey D. Schoenholtz.

Social media assistant: Brendan Whalen.

Logo design: Teddy Blanks.

1981: Neonoir, Body Heat and Postman Always Rings Twice (Erotic 80s Part 4)

Listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

The New Hollywood directors of the late 1960s and 70s were the first generation of Hollywood filmmakers to grow up studying Hollywood movies as art. In 1981-1982, a number of those directors made actual or virtual remakes of classic Hollywood noir films, including Lawrence Kasdan’s Body Heat, and Bob Rafelson’s The Postman Always Rings Twice; and Paul Schrader’s Cat People. What was the value of revisiting the tropes and narratives of 1940s noirs in the 80s, beyond the fact that the sexual relationships implied in the original movies could now be depicted graphically? Today we’ll talk about how these films played into the personas of stars Jack Nicholson and Kathleen Turner, how they challenged the standards of what could be shown in movies of the 80s – and how and why they were received extremely differently.

William Hurt and Kathleen Turner in Body Heat, 1981

SHOW NOTES:  

Sources:

Easy Riders Raging Bulls: How the Sex-Drugs-And Rock 'N Roll Generation by Peter Biskind

Send Yourself Roses: Thoughts on My Life, Love, and Leading Roles Kindle Edition by Kathleen Turner 

Lawrence Kasdan Knows How To Listen, Hear Him Talk by F.X. Feeney. Written By Magazine, August 2001

Detours and Lost Highways: A Map of Neo-Noir by Hirsch Foster

Pictures: Hurt And Turner For 'Body Heat' Leads Variety, Los Angeles Vol. 300, Iss. 13, Oct 29, 1980

Body Heat by Arthur Knight, The Hollywood Reporter; Hollywood Vol. 268, Iss. 7, Aug 17, 1981

Film review: Body Heat, Variety; Los Angeles Vol. 304, Iss. 3, Aug 19, 1981

Cinema: Torrid Movie, Hot New Star TIME Magazine By Richard Corliss Monday, Aug. 24, 1981 

Reviews: BODY HEAT by David Linck, Boxoffice; New York Vol. 10, Iss. 117, Oct 1, 1981

Film View; THE PLEASURES OF 'BODY HEAT' New York Times, By Vincent Canby Oct. 25, 1981

'Body Heat' at 40: Kathleen Turner recalls 'misguided' decision to film all-nude sex scene on the first day Yahoo Movies Kevin Polowy·Senior Correspondent, Yahoo Entertainment August 27, 2021

Kathleen Turner, Playboy, May 1986 

Kathleen Turner, Cover & The Queen Of Curves, Vanity Fair, September 1986, Brad Gooch Annie Leibovitz

Body Heat Review by Pauline Kael, New Yorker, Nov 11, 1981  

The Postman Always Rings Twice by Roger Ebert, January 01, 1981

The Postman Always Rings Twice by Robert Osborne, The Hollywood Reporter, Hollywood Vol. 265, Iss. 47, Mar 13, 1981

Film review: The Postman Always Rings Twice, Variety, Los Angeles Vol. 302, Iss. 7, Mar 18, 1981 

A New 'Postman Always Rings Twice' By Vincent Canby, New York Times March 20, 1981 

Jack Nicholson, GQ Magazine, March 1981

Jack Nicholson, Film Comment, March-April 1981

Jack Nicholson, Rolling Stone, April 16, 1981

The Story Is The Same But Hollywood Has Changed By Janet Maslin, New York Times, April 26, 1981

Jessica Lange Life with Barishnikov and Baby, People Magazine, June 15, 1981 

Jessica Lange Blond Obsession, Rolling Stone Magazine, March 1983 

Jessica Lange: From King Kong to The Postman, New York Magazine, April 1981

Jessica Lange, Naturally by David Richards, Washington Post, October 5, 1984

The Postman Always Rings Twice, AFI Catalogue of Feature Films

The Monologist and the Fighter: An Interview with Bob Rafelson Rainer Knepperges and Franz Müller, April 2009, Senses of Cinema, Conversations on Film Issue 50

"Let Me Put It This Way: It Works for Me": An Interview with Bob Rafelson by Monika Raesch, Journal of Film and Video (2013) 65 (3): 49–55

Bob Rafelson Emerges to Reflect on His Feud-and-Brawl-Filled CareerRafelson profile, Esquire by Josh Karp, Apr 2, 2019

Please note: as an Amazon Associate Karina earns from qualifying purchases. #ad

Production still on set of American Gigolo 1980) with Paul Schrader and Richard Gere | Photo Courtesy of The University of Texas at Austin

Music:

The music used in this episode, with the exception of the intro, was sourced from royalty-free music libraries and licensed music collections. The intro includes a clip from the film Casablanca.  

Excerpts from the following songs were used throughout the episode: 

"Rumoi Night" - Kokura Station

"Pxl Htra" - The Fence

"Even Dreams of Beaches" - Resolute

"The Killjoy Brothers" - Kittyhawk

"Pxl Eventuat" - The Fence

"Four Cluster" - Fornax

"Vik Fence Haflak" - The Fence

"Vengeful" - Warmbody

"Tower of Mirrors" - TinyTiny Trio

"Pxl Cray" - The Fence

"Ion Cruiser" - Kokura Station

"Pxl Deter" - The Fence

"Readers Do You Read" - Chris Zabriskie

Jack Nicholson and Jessica Lange in The Postman Always Rings Twice, 1981

Credits:

This episode was written, narrated, and produced by Karina Longworth.

Our editor this season is Evan Viola. 

Research and production assistant: Lindsey D. Schoenholtz.

Social media assistant: Brendan Whalen.

Logo design: Teddy Blanks.

1980: Richard Gere and American Gigolo (Erotic 80s Part 3)

Listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

One of the most aesthetically influential movies of the ‘80s, Paul Schrader’s American Gigolo sets a template for much of what we’re going to discuss this season: it’s about sex as a conduit for wealth, masks and double lives, and the role of danger in desire. Today we’ll talk about the sexual persona of Gigolo star Richard Gere in the early 1980s; the ways in which Gigolo and other films from 1980 (Dressed to Kill, Cruising) grapple with straight male anxiety over gay male visibility; and the tension between the promotion of sex-positivity for women and the anti-feminist backlash.

Richard Gere in American Gigolo 1980

SHOW NOTES:  

Sources:

Film Reviews: American Gigolo, Variety, Jan 30, 1980

American Gigolo, Films in Review, March 1980, Vol 31 Iss 3

American Gigolo Review, by Arthur Knight, The Hollywood Reporter, 1980
Schrader Deep In 'Gigolo', Variety; Vol. 298, Iss. 4, Feb 27, 1980

Screen: 'American Gigolo,' a Southern California Melodrama: Gauging the Glitter By Vincent Canby, The New York Times, Feb 1, 1980

WET Magazine – Vol. 4, No. 4, Issue 22, Jan/Feb 1980

“The Male Idols” Newsweek, May 23,1983

GQ Magazine September 1979 

Playgirl, June 1985

"Richard Gere: Stripped Down and Sexy" Rolling Stone, March 6, 1980

Call Me! American Gigolo swaggered into theaters 40 years ago this month and forever rocked the worlds of film, fashion, music, and sex. An oral history by Lili Anolik, Feb 8, 2020

Schrader by Schrader & Other Writings, edited by Kevin Jackson

Easy Riders Raging Bulls: How the Sex-Drugs-And Rock 'N Roll Generation by Peter Biskind

Was Hemingway Gay? There's More to His Story By Christopher Lehmann-Haupt, The New York Times, November 10, 1994

The Rise of Richard Gere by Hollis Alpert. American Film, October 1979

On the Make with American Gigolo by Steven M. Silverman. American Film October 1979

As Hollywood Gigolo or Broadway Gay, Richard Gere Slouches Toward Stardom, People Magazine, April 7, 1980

Playboy Viewpoint: The New Puritans, Playboy, November 1980

Playboy Isn’t Playing: An Interview with Judith Bat-Ada 

Travolta to leave the starring role of 'American Gigolo', The Hollywood Reporter, Vol. 255, Iss. 5,  Jan 23, 1979

Stateside: All for the good of 'Gigolo' by Tony Crawly, Screen International Iss. 209, Sep 29, 1979

The Rise Of Richard Gere by Hollis Alpert, American Film Vol. 5, Iss. 1,  Oct 1, 1979

Please note: as an Amazon Associate Karina earns from qualifying purchases made when you click the links above. #ad

Production still on set of American Gigolo 1980) with Paul Schrader and Richard Gere | Photo Courtesy of The University of Texas at Austin

Music:

The music used in this episode, with the exception of the intro, was sourced from royalty-free music libraries and licensed music collections. The intro includes a clip from the film Casablanca.  

Excerpts from the following songs were used throughout the episode: 

"Rumoi Night" - Kokura Station

"Pxl Htra" - The Fence

"Even Dreams of Beaches" - Resolute

"The Killjoy Brothers" - Kittyhawk

"Pxl Eventuat" - The Fence

"Four Cluster" - Fornax

"Vik Fence Haflak" - The Fence

"Vengeful" - Warmbody

"Tower of Mirrors" - TinyTiny Trio

"Pxl Cray" - The Fence

"Ion Cruiser" - Kokura Station

"Pxl Deter" - The Fence

"Readers Do You Read" - Chris Zabriskie

Credits:

This episode was written, narrated, and produced by Karina Longworth.

Our editor this season is Evan Viola. 

Research and production assistant: Lindsey D. Schoenholtz.

Social media assistant: Brendan Whalen.

Logo design: Teddy Blanks.