As we ease into this week, which promises to be as chaotic as last week, let's look at a slightly comedic, but highly cautionary tale about a backfire of camp.
Once upon a time, there was a successful and openly gay producer by the name of Allan Carr. He invested money in several successful Broadway productions such as La Cage aux Folles and motion pictures such as Grease. He even won a Tony award. He also managed the marketing and ad campaigns for the motion pictures Tommy and Saturday Night Fever, which were also successful. In addition, he was known for his lavish and wild parties. All of that success meant that he could withstand a few failures, such as the motion picture disaster Can't Stop The Music.
Then came 61st Academy Awards, which he was hired to produce in 1989. It was a disaster. To put it honestly, it was tacky as hell The aftermath was like fire from the sky. The show was viciously condemned, sued by Disney, and ended up generally wrecking Carr's career? the late actor Gregory Peck was allegedly so mad that he threatened to return his Oscar?
But was it actually as bad as it was made out to be. I think so. But you decide after seeing the 11 minute opening which was the center of a lot of condemnation, including Disney's lawsuit (which was later dropped.)
