Russ Meyer’s 1965 drive-in classic “Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!”, is probably my favorite cult film, a true cult film that shouldn’t work on any level and somehow completely transcends its cheapie exploitation roots and transforms into something that makes you deliriously giddy and glad to be alive. Tura Satana playing the sexy, curvy and explosively violent Varla completely straight with that larger-than-life (literally) presence of hers is crucial to the film’s legendary and immortal status. Satana appeared in other films, most notably Billy Wilder’s “Irma la Douce,” and claims she once turned down a proposal of marriage from Elvis Presley, but “Pussycat” made her an immortal and vice versa. More from the New York Times:

Her breakthrough role came in “Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!”, a [Russ] Meyer exploitation film that, in stark opposition to the director’s later works, featured no nudity. In that film, Ms. Satana played Varla, the leader of a gang of go-go dancers who kidnap a couple, murder the boyfriend and force the girlfriend to follow them on further lawless adventures.

Ms. Satana’s portrayal of Varla as a brazenly violent but unapologetically feminine woman who frequently upbraids the men who dare to ogle her — when a gas-station attendant tells her he believes in “seeing America first,” Varla replies, “You won’t find it down there, Columbus!” — earned her a cult following that endured long after the drive-in era.

John Waters once said of “Faster, Pussycat”:  It’s ”the best movie ever made, and possibly better than any movie that will ever be made.”

If you catch me on the right day, I’ll agree with that wholeheartedly. 

Rest in peace, Varla.

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St. Petersburg Times:

A St. Petersburg Times investigation found their experiences were not unique. More than a dozen women said the culture in the Sea Org pushed them or women they knew to have abortions, in many cases, abortions they did not want.

Some said colleagues and supervisors pressured them to abort their pregnancies and remain productive workers without the distraction of raising children. Terminating a pregnancy and staying on the job affirmed one’s commitment to the all-important work of saving the planet.

“You just have a way of thinking,” said Sunny Pereira, who was 15 when she entered the order. ”It all has to do with the Sea Org and what we’re trying to accomplish. Everything that is a distraction is scorned.”

According to those speaking out, women who didn’t schedule abortions were shunned by fellow Sea Org members, called “degraded beings” and taunted for being “out ethics,” straying from the order’s ethical code.

Some were isolated, assigned manual labor and interrogated until they agreed to abortions, said church defectors, including men whose wives got abortions.

The church denied all their accounts.

Full story here.

Much has been written about the premiere of the new ABC drama “V” and its relationship to  the election last year of President Barack Obama. As an article from the Chicago Tribune noted:

Nominally a rousing sci-fi space opera about alien invaders bent on the conquest (and digestion) of all humanity, it’s also a barbed commentary on Obamamania that will infuriate the president’s supporters and delight his detractors.

While it’s true there are reasons why comparisons between the candidate of hope and the aliens who want change are plentiful, the show “V” is about much more than a critique of the Obama administration.

“V” begins as a show about aliens who suddenly appear in spaceships around the world and the reaction they receive.  At first, as can be expected, there is a lot of fear and anguish about the visitors (which is what “V” stands for) as the ships show up hovering above different cities. However, when the alien leader appears on a ship’s video screen and talks about the benefits they will bring to the people of this world, audiences applaud (an unrealistic action, but an important one nonetheless in the development of the program). As the show goes on, though, some people learn that the aliens have more in mind than providing “heal centers” and universal health care for people around the world (which they are in favor of).

As I noted above, there are reasons people are so eager to compare the Obama administration to the alien visitors. The Washington Post recently compared an HBO documentary about the election of Obama to the series premiere of “V.” It noted that…

In ‘V’ (a remake of the early-1980s series), the otherworldly ‘visitors’ want to bring us universal health care. They possess a knack for speechwriting and managing the message. In ‘By the People,’ well . . . same thing!

Another comparison between “V” and Obama’s campaign that many people have focused on, is that young people flock to the visitors in “V”  because they find something intriguing and possibly inspiring about them. Unlike many of the adults in the program, adolescents and young people are enticed by the visitors without understanding the consequences of aligning themselves with the alien race without questioning their motives or their intentions.

I do like the political aspect of the show and how it seems timely for many of those who have questioned or disagreed with the Obama administration. Deeper still, though, I think the idea of blind loyalty is a great aspect to the show. With little information known about the aliens upon their arrival, many people embrace this new group without knowing who they really are. The aliens may say the things that people support and they may have all of the right intentions (which they don’t), but people accept them without questioning their true motives. That blind allegiance, which could be compared to any number of people who accept things without asking questions, is a powerful and important aspect of the program.

In addition to that idea, the pilot of the new program introduces a variety of interesting ideas that will likely be explored as the show continues for the next several weeks and in the spring of 2010. One character, played by the boyish Scott Wolf (who has a knack for choosing quality television projects), is torn between being an “actual” reporter and exploring the truth about the visitors or getting attention as the “chosen” reporter who gets the high-profile interviews with the “V” leader (the Barbara Walters for extraterrestrial life forms). Wolf’s character chooses the latter option, at least in the pilot episode, which is the only episode that has aired thus far. 

On the show, as the softball interview airs, the show cuts to a meeting where rebels are talking about the hidden plans of the visitors. In other shows, this scene might have seemed too obvious but the scene works here because it creates a clear delineation between the image of the Vs that their leader is trying to present and the conspiracy theories about them that the visitors are trying to quell.     

Erica, one of the attendees at that meeting, played by Elizabeth Mitchell from “Lost,” is beginning to understand the true motive of the Vs while her son has been drawn, like a cult member, to them. For the sake of her son, she will likely need to convince him that the visitors are not who he hopes and believes they are.

On the show, there is also the story of a recently-engaged visitor, a traitor to his kind, who has to decide if he wants to join a rebellion against them, and if he wants to reveal the truth about himself to those he loves. Additionally, there is also a storyline about how priests and congregants react to these new alien visitors. With all of these interesting stories, “V” is a show that has a lot of potential to build on.

At the end of the program, Erica turns to a potential ally and notes that the visitors are “arming themselves with the most powerful weapon out there.” When asked what it is, she replies with one simple word: “Devotion.” Soon enough, her son is seen in an alien spaceship pledging his support to the alien race as the leader of the “V” looks on. The show has set up a basic premise with its first episode and if it is able to build on it effectively, it could end up being one of the most interesting and addictive programs of the 2009-2010 television season.

The conversation turns to Scientology. There had recently been a expose in Time magazine (and astute readers can now speculate on how long ago this was). “It’s a really evil institution,” I start, “Kind of a cross between the Mafia and Oral Roberts with just a dash of the Manson Family.”

The girl who had been getting all my attention chuckled condescendingly, “Well, I read that Kirstie Alley is a Scientologist, and I don’t think Kirstie Alley would belong to anything like that!”

Oh. There’s the flaw. She is stupid. (And probably a pre-clear TR-4).

Scientology has been dismissed and despised by most thinking individuals, but before we throw out the Thetan with the bath water, maybe we should look a little closer at Scientology Inc. Because this kind of marketing has been quite effective. By winning over celebrities, Scientology has been able to  gain a sizable following of Americans who look to the stars for guidance.

Scientology has a Celebrity Centre inside of Hollywood set up to pamper those stars. They have a staff of masseuses to rub the backs of actors while they’re waiting off-set for the next scene. In return, Scientology has many famous followers.

This kind of marketing  has come of age in the new century. Advertising people now go into high schools and encourage popular girls to use their lip gloss. They know the less popular girls will imitate them, hoping that the new lip gloss holds the secret to popularity. We will never know how many short men and chubby women became Scientologists just because they wanted to be the next Tom Cruise or Kirstie Alley.

The Democrats have done the same thing. Most actors have a desire to be taken seriously (beautiful people never want  to be known just for their pretty faces even though we aesthetically less gifted wouldn’t mind such notoriety).  Democrats have convinced celebrities they can gain intelligence by osmosis. Just by appearing onstage with Obama, or Al Gore, they too have advanced Ivy League degrees (even high school dropouts like Sean Penn or Martin Sheen). Democrats have given actors credibility. In return, the actors sell Democrat politics to the nation.

Oprah’s endorsement of Obama cannot be understated. If Oprah finds something she likes, millions of women will try it. The difference between a starving author, and a NY Times best seller is having Oprah read your book. It doesn’t even need to be the truth, it just has to appear that way. Both James Frey and Herman Rosenblat passed off works of fiction to Oprah as memoirs. There is speculation that Obama’s books were also fabricated by a third party. (Apparently Oprah likes to be lied to, which is probably why she is still engaged to straight man Steadman.)

There is no reason why our side’s politics shouldn’t appeal to Hollywood. We have something much more valuable to offer: genuine intellectualism. Our message of lower taxes and respect for the First Amendment hits Hollywood celebrities right square in the man-purse. And (if perhaps) some of the more conservative elements of our party listened to the supply-side arguments for drug legalization, we could win on that one, as well. Because despite the appearance of “tolerance,” Democrats do not want to legalize marijuana as much as they want to outlaw tobacco.

The difference between the parties is as vast as the difference between Scientology and traditional religions. While one religion massages celebrities and tells them they are heirs to a great galactic empire, the others tell them they are born of sin and must subjugate themselves under the glory of God. The Democrats tell celebrities they are the agents of change, while Bill O’Reilly screams at them for destroying American Culture. That has to stop.

It’s hard. I know it’s hard. Part of the secret of being able to survive in Hollywood is the ability to say with a straight face something completely inhuman, like: “I’ve always admired Morgan Fairchild’s work.” Or: “The second season of ‘Family Matters’ was clearly the best.” It’s not unlike being a good parent: you have to put all the art up on the refrigerator.

It’s how Al Gore does it. When Sheryl Crow says we need to limit ourselves to one square of toilet paper, or Leonardo DiCaprio tells us that Global Warming will cause human extinction, Al Gore admires their commitment and pats them on their tiny heads. Meanwhile, the girl I left standing at the bar so many years ago is probably an OT 5 today and driving a Prius with an Obama sticker.

*For information on some of my upcoming gigs check out: TimSlagle.com