Movies vs. Reality (sort of?)
As many of you know, I have a sad obsession with really obscure movie musicals. Unfortunately, I’ve had this obsession since I was a little kid, which made me…not so popular. I can remember singing “Don’t Rain on My Parade” on the kickball field at recess and wondering why the other kids didn’t know the song. It became a bit awkward when I had crushes on geriatrics (Omar Sharif) instead of boy band members (it didn’t really process in my mind that the male stars in the movie were like 70 if they were alive)… Picture this if you will: 5’5 in 3rd grade….chili bowl haircut…gross crazy tooth gal…let’s now toss in the obsession with random movies and tendency to burst into song. This visualization experiment was just trying to help you gauge what a loser I was. Anyway, I was recently watching Deadwood, which has a ‘Calamity Jane’ character. I was appalled at the way she was depicted. One of my favorite old movies was Calamity Jane and I was certain that Deadwood had gotten it wrong. NO…my lovely little movies have totally glamorized these historical women. I mean, seriously, imagine my disappointment when I found out Calamity Jane didn’t really look like Doris Day. (No, I didn’t think she’d look exactly like Doris, but I expected something a bit different).
Comparison pictures are below so you can see what incredible makeovers these ladies received in the film version of their lives.
Although they did glam up the gals, I will always remember the similarities between these three films and why I liked them best. These women were outcasts and they overcame the odds.
I always thought that one day, when I was grown up, my peers would be able to catch my vague references to movies such as these. Not remotely true. I’m still the only person (my age) to have seen many of them. I’ve found that each time I converse with an older lady I ask if she’s seen Funny Girl. (Duh, that’s like asking if she enjoys the fine crooning of Sinatra).
Oh well, I guess I’ll be alone with my old music and movie taste. If you can’t find me, I’ll probably be at the senior center.
