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Bob Minor Has Some Major Skills

He had the very first spoken line in The Greatest American Hero, a point that I had to call to Bob Minor's attention as we recorded his cameo in Just My Show's most recent podcast. If Minor wasn't aware of that little piece of personal trivia though, we'll give him a pass considering he has an IMDB credits list that could kill a small rainforest to print.

"That was an exciting show for me to do and I had a chance to drive the four wheeler," remembers Minor of the Greatest American Hero pilot. "It was just great." Seeing as his character was killed in the opening scenes of the show, it was the only episode he'd appear in, and it pales in comparison to another first. Minor, who broke into show business as a stuntman, became the first black member of the Stuntmen's Association in 1972.

Minor's first stunt credit came on Russ Meyer's 1970 film Beyond the Valley of the Dolls, which spring boarded a career that includes the Ed Zwick directed civil war epic Glory and a long run as Roger E. Mosley's stunt double on the classic series Magnum P.I., during which he lived in Hawaii nine months out of the year.

While stunt coordinator on Magnum, Minor did everything from crash cars to hang from a helicopter as it flew over water. It was on the set of the 1975 film Let's Do it Again though, that he pulled off his toughest challenge. As stunt double for Sidney Poitier, Minor had to jump 18 and a half feet from one building to another. "I threw my arms and my head up in the air and bicycled my way through the sky," he recalls. It's a stunt, he of course, wasn't able to fully enjoy until he landed. "I was so glad. I felt so good and the crowd went crazy."

It was on the set of a Martin Sheen film that Minor picked up the acting bug. After landing a small part in the movie, he enrolled in acting school, going on on to rack up a long list of TV and film credits including a substantial roll as "Gamble" in the 1988 box office hit Action Jackson.

If acting and stunt work weren't enough, Minor has also worked as a second unit director and competed in body building events after a friend convinced him to start training. Not only did he take that friend up on the suggestion, but he beat him to win his first competition. "My bodybuilding got me a lot of parts because they wanted big guys and things like that," says Minor, who also took runner up in Mr. Venice Beach. One of the judges in that contest: Arnold Schwarzenegger.

There have been tougher times for Minor, who suffered a serious injury while turning over a car during the filming of Blues Brothers 2000. "People thought I did not make it," he says. "I did everything perfect," he maintains. "It was just one of those deals."

Minor was knocked unconscious and suffered a frontal lobe injury which affected his short term memory to the point that he couldn't remember the countless people who came to visit him once they left. He does know of one person who was at his bedside though: his old Magnum pal Tom Selleck.

Minor would spend months in the hospital relearning basic skills like reading and writing. "It was almost like starting from the beginning," he remembers. He persevered though, and not only got back on his feet, but got back to work almost two years later playing Usher's father in the 1999 film Light it Up. "With the love of God and my friends, I was able to beat the odds on that and I made it," he reflects.

Not only has Bob Minor made it, but he's still going strong. Look for him along with Chris Rock, Martin Lawrence and Danny Glover in Death at a Funeral opening April 15...and if you haven't already, catch him in the latest episode of Just My Show.

Attention "A Christmas Story" Copycats!

There's already been one in Boise and another in Vancouver, WA this month. Attention A Christmas Story Copycats! You clearly didn't listen to our 2007 holiday podcast in which Scott Schwartz told Just My Show all about the filming of his legendary flagpole scene.

Before any more of you kids try it at home, do yourself a favor and hear how it actually happened right from the original tongue! Oh yeah, and if you haven't already, make sure to check out this year's holiday podcast featuring Christmas Vacation's Beverly D'Angelo!

Ralphie's House Rocks Cleveland

Put this in the blog category of "ideas I wish I'd come up with."

Five years ago, Brian Jones was selling leg lamps like the one seen in the modern holiday classic A Christmas Story. "Leg lamps were selling much better than I thought they ever wood, Jones told Just My Show earlier this month. "I thought it was just gonna be like a side business little hobby." So when he saw the Cleveland location used as Ralphie's house in the 1983 film go up for sale on eBay, he did what any good fan of the movie would do. He bought it.

"There were obviously times where I thought to myself, 'what have I gotten myself into?' halfway through the project," said Jones. But he stuck with it, restoring the house to A Christmas Story form, and opening it up to the public in November of 2006. His visitors have increased each year since, as has the operation. He now owns another home on the street, which houses a museum and gift shop. This year, you can stop by and see Ralphie's costumes from the movie, which Jones recently purchased.

Several members of the film's cast have stopped by including Just My Show guest Scott Schwartz who played Flick. "I got Ian Patrella, who played Randy-the little brother, to get back underneath the sink and we got a picture of him there," recalls Jones. "I thought that was pretty funny."

This year, Jones is paying tribute to another modern classic by lighting up Ralphie's house like the Griswold's in honor of the 20th anniversary of National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. To hear his comments on that, listen to Just My Show's new holiday podcast, which features an interview with Christmas Vacation's Beverly D'Angelo.

"Christmas Vacation" Director "Very Very Proud" 20 Years Later

"In my heart of hearts, I always wanted to make a timeless movie and a classic movie, but really, I just wanted to make a funny movie," Christmas Vacation director Jeremiah Chechik told Just My Show. Twenty years to the day after it opened in U.S. theaters, he seems to have done all of the above.

Chechik followed in the footsteps of 80s film icons Harold Ramis and Amy Heckerling to helm the third installment of the National Lampoon series. It was the very first feature he directed before racking up a list of credits including Benny & Joon and The Bronx is Burning. Not a bad way to start. "I just consider it just very good fortune," he told me on the eve of the anniversary.

You can hear a little more from Jeremiah in Just My Show's upcoming episode, along with a special surprise guest who'll help us celebrate two decades of the Griswold family Christmas. Check back soon and in the meantime, check out Jeremiah on Twitter at @tinroof.

Overdubbing Gone Wild

Caught a little bit of "Can't Buy Me Love" while I was flipping channels over the weekend. (I own the DVD, but somehow felt the need to stop anyway.) If only it had been before my recent talk with Courtney Gains, I would have also had him recite the TV friendly version of his famous line..."You hit on my house!"

I know the studios have to clean it up, but how does that even make sense? Did they trash the house on Halloween or ask it on a date?

20 Years of "Can't Buy Me Love"

My late night party dance of choice has always been the worm. (That and the one where you pick up one leg and put it through the other, but I don’t know what that’s called.) One of these days, though, I’ll have the nerve to break into the African Anteater Ritual. As long as the age range of the room checks out, it can't miss.

I bring this up because it’s time to celebrate another 80's movie milestone. It was 20 years ago this very day that theater goers first saw Patrick Dempsey go from “totally geek to totally sheik” as Ronald Miller in “Can’t Buy Me Love.”

Last fall, Entertainment Weekly named “Can’t Buy Me Love” number 41 in its list of the 50 best High School movies. I’m calling this a little deceptive though as several movies higher on the list are a bit misplaced. EW took "high school" a little too literally on this one. Both “Hoosiers” and “Hoop Dreams” are great movies in which the characters are high school students, but have a much better place on a top sports movies list. For a movie to be on this list, high school life needs to be at the heart of the story. I certainly don't see how a documentary fits in with the spirit of a list topped by “The Breakfast Club” and “Fast Times.” The miscasting goes on, but the bottom line is that "Can't Buy Me Love" got robbed of at least a few rungs. (Feel free to debate the list by leaving comments). Not to worry though. Just My Show is here to show the love.

It’s 20 years later and Patrick Dempsey is totally sheik once again as McDreamy on “Grey’s Anatamy.” But what about Ronald’s best friend Kenneth? You know, the likeable red headed nerd that gave us one of the best movie lines of the 80s. He’s Courtney Gains, and he too, has been working steadily since "Can't By Me Love" ("The Burbs", "Memphis Belle", "Sweet Home Alabama"). Most importantly, he's here to help celebrate the big birthday with us. And yes, we’re gonna try to get him to say it! Have a listen...


MP3 File

Check out Courtney's Music!

The "La Bamba" Coin Toss

Hopefully some of you've had a chance to listen to my interview with Lou Diamond Phillips for the 20th anniversary of "La Bamba." This one was great to do in that I could talk about a movie that I really enjoyed as well as the great music of Ritchie Valens that it turned me on to.

One thing I talked about with Lou is the factual accuracy of the film. While it sounds like there was a great effort to portray events correctly, there are usually at least some minor liberties taken in biographical movies for the sake of telling a good story in a short period of time. That being said, I give you the real story behind one of the most important moments in the film. On the actual 20th anniversary of "La Bamba's" release, I chatted with Grammy Award winning musician Tommy Allsup, who lossed the coin toss to Ritchie Valens for the final seat on the tragic flight. Have a listen...


MP3 File

Check out Tommy's new CD!

20 Years of "Summer School"

I can't say that I ever had to go to summer school, but I probably came dangerously close once or twice. (Thanks for nothing Mr. Gendreau!) Every June though, some teenager somewhere has to can their big July plans after report cards come out. But since it never happened to me, I'll call it a small sacrifice for inspiring one of the great 80's movies.

Before the film snobs start in, yes, I'm aware that classics like "Raging Bull" and "Rain Man" opened between 1980 and 1989. When I say 80's movies, I mean the fun ones that Roger Ebert loves to tear apart ("Fast Times," "Can't by me Love," etc.), but most of us can just enjoy for what they are.

20 years ago this very day, one of those memorable ones hit theaters. "Summer School," you may forget, was actually directed by comedy legend Carl Reiner and starred Mark Harmon, who's up there in that Tony Danza likability group (who hates Tony Danza?) It gave us a pre-"Cheers" Kirsty Alley and, of course, a great group of subpar students. Yes yes, an early appearance by the beautiful Courtney Thorne-Smith as Pam definitely made (ok, it still makes) this movie even more enjoyable. But it's horror film buff Francis "Chainsaw" Gremp, who leads the classroom anarchy and helps carry the movie. Chainsaw was played by Dean Cameron, who you've also seen in "Men at Work" and the "Fast Times" TV series, among other things. I caught up with the very friendly and VERY honest Dean Cameron in the car, to chat about his time on the "Summer School" set. And here is my first ever graphic language warning! (Dean loves to drop the F-bomb). Have a listen...


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Links: Urgent & Confidential: Dean Cameron's Nigerian Spam Scam Scam
(DVD cover art courtesy of Paramount Home Video)

Controversy Surrounds "Project X" Chimp...Again

I’ve been on a bit of a research kick lately, looking for big movie anniversaries to celebrate here in the blog. With that on my mind, when I recently flipped past “Project X” on HBO, I did a quick IMDB search. No, it’s not as memorable as “Fast Times” and some of the others that turn 20 this year, but I was curious. Sure enough, April 17 marked two decades since Matthew Broderick hit theaters with his follow up to “Ferris Bueller.”

Right off the bat, this doesn’t seem like the best choice for a where are they now story. After all, we know that Broderick's had no problem finding work, nor has co-star Helen Hunt. What I didn’t know before last week, though, is that Willie (the chimp who starred as Virgil), is still very much alive. In fact, twenty years later, he’s found himself right in the middle of another controversy. (I didn’t even know there was a first controversy. More on that in a minute.)

After “Project X,” Willie and some of his co-stars were sent to live at Primarily Primates, a non-profit animal sanctuary in San Antonio, Texas. This should be a happy ending for an animal that had previously lived at a biomedical research center. But last year, Primarily Primates found itself the target of accusations over mismanaged money and poor living conditions. In the fall, a Texas judge put Primarily Primates under the temporary control of a receiver, at which time several animals were relocated. Then, in April of this year, a settlement was reached. The agreement barred founder Wallace Swett from any involvement with the fascility and named board member Stephen Tello executive director. In addition, Primarily Primates merged with Connecticut animal rights group Friends of Animals. The story continues, though, with a new law suit involving the return of evacuated animals and settlement objections by PETA, which calls Primarily Primates “hell on earth for animals.”

I called Primarily Primates to request a current photo and update on Willie for this blog. While an employee did verify that Willie currently lives there, I was told such a request would need to go to Stephen Tello. As of this posting, multiple phone messages to Mr. Tello have not been returned.

Back up 20 years to another issue I wasn’t aware of...

“Project X,” the movie that's main character took on the military testing of chimpanzees, had an animal rights controversy of its own. According to animal rights group NEAVS, “training methods were harsh and punitive.” No More Monkey Business, a PETA run website opposing the use of animals in show business, says trainers on the film "allegedly physically and mentally abused the chimpanzee actors." While this apparently made headlines at the time of its release, it’s just not something that was on my radar as an eleven year old. All these years later, there’s little information easily found on the internet about the charges and no response from the filmmakers. With few specifics and no defense available, I wanted to get the point of view of a person who was actually there. This time, I was able to get someone to talk. Here's what Mark Harden, Willie's "Project X," animal trainer, told me...

“The movie making experience was actually a great experience, and I trained Virgil, the lead chimp in it and it was the best relationship I ever had with a chimp. I mean, I loved working that chimp and I had a great relationship with him and it was a shame, the controversy, because I thought the movie was good, the message was good and it was sad that it had so much negative controversy.”

On the fairness of the controversy…
"Is it unfair? I mean everybody has their right to an opinion, you know. Is it founded? It wasn’t, but it was a controversy and it shadowed the whole experience. So, that's the shame that I get out of it, that it overshadowed the experience which I thought was a great experience as an animal trainer. I was a kid. I mean I was…that was 20 damn years ago."

On responding to specific accusations…
"We took the tact that there is no response to it. I mean, it was said by people who weren’t there and, you know, we stopped trying to defend ourselves. We do what we do. We put our positive selves forward and there are people who don’t like what we do and they have always been and will always be there. There’s no defense to them. You know? They just don’t like animals in movies, so that’s fine. I am not spending that 20 years defending what I do. All I do is do what I do as positively as I can. And that’s what we do."

On whether there was anything that made "Project X" different or if it was just about general objections to animals in films...
"Exactly. Exactly. It’s been a long time and I’m not going to defend it. I don’t defend our industry. I don’t defend what we do. I don’t defend, you know, there’s no…for the people who don’t want us to exist, there’s no way we can defend it, so what’s the point? That’s what I learned out of it. The experience hardened my heart a little bit and there was a lot of other controversies involved in it. It opened my eyes. I grew up a lot having gone through that experience. But everything happens for a reason, you know. I mean, it was not pleasant but it was a learning experience and it’s 20 years later."

On whether he'd handle things differently 20 years later...
"I would have not handled my chimp any differently. You know? I would not have handled my chimp any differently because of what people think. I would choose not to work a chimp if I couldn’t handle it the way I thought was the way a chimpanzee needed to be handled. That’s the difference. I maybe wouldn’t have done the movie now looking back 20 years later. It’s not like I would have done my work differently because I think I did my work well. It would have been weather I would have done it or not done it. You know what I mean?"

Further clarification...
"Well I don’t believe I did anything wrong with my chimp, that time or today. If society believes today that handling chimps that way is not anything anybody wants to do, then the choice would be whether I do it or I don’t do it, not weather I did something wrong looking back 20 years. I don’t think I handled the chimps wrong, not today, not yesterday, not if it was a hundred years before. Whether society wants us to do it or not, that’s up to society, you know, and if you can’t work a chimp, then don’t work a chimp. That’s the way it pretty much boils down to."

No, my chat didn't uncover all that much in terms of facts from 20 years ago (we’re not exactly known for our investigative journalism here), but I should say that Mr. Harden could not have been more courteous or patient as I attempted to ask him the same question over and over again in different ways. At least he took my call, which is more than Mr. Tello was willing to do. Unfortunately, since Harden didn’t own Willie, he wasn’t able to fill in any of the blanks about his current situation. As he put it, "I was just a kid training a monkey on a movie.”

I don’t claim to be qualified to pass judgment on either story. The fact that Mr. Tello has not returned my calls, certainly does not mean that the accusations are true. It does, unfortunately, stop me from doing what I initially intended to do…simply give an update on Willie, the unlikely star of an 80s movie. So feel free to read up and form your own opinion. Me? I just hope Willie's ok. I’m off to set my DVR for the subject of my next entry…"Scott Baio is 45...and Single." What else do you want from me? I’m just a kid writing a blog about a monkey in a movie.