Pictured Barbara Parkins in the original Valley of the Dolls, and in a current photo.
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Entries for the GLBT Pride Movie Survey were still pouring in at press time so the results will appear in next week's column. You can still take the survey by heading to www.knightatthemovies.com"
Gay pride is here! If you need proof, look no further than the slew of special-edition camp classic DVD releases that have been arriving since the end of May to celebrate our unofficial national holiday at the end of June. It's not just the home-viewing market that's gay friendly, either. Two of the summer's biggest releases—Superman Returns and The Devil Wears Prada—arrive in theaters next week. Although neither of these are overtly gay, what could be more gay-friendly than a hunky, misunderstood super hero in blue tights and a red cape and a fashion version of Mommie Dearest with Meryl Streep in the Joan Crawford role and Anne Hathaway as Christina? Those questions will be loudly answered when I review the films in next week's column. For now, onto those long-awaited camp DVD releases; there's enough here to hold you at least until the end of Pride weekend.
The wait is over and it has been worth it. The Mount Everest of all camp movies, 1967's Valley of the Dolls and its bastard child sequel-in-title only, 1970's Beyond the Valley of the Dolls, are finally here. Fox Home Entertainment has done its research and these two-disc special editions are aimed squarely at our people. What self-respecting gay man doesn't know the Broadway-Hollywood story of Anne, Jennifer and Neely, the three young hopefuls seeking fame, 'mass love,' sex and handfuls of pep pills?
This overripe concoction has been the basis for many a gay-bar theme night for decades. The first disc includes a commentary by star Barbara Parkins ( with an accompanying interview with her in this issue ) and E! gossip columnist Ted Casablanca ( who took his pen name from the gay costume designer in the movie ) . The second disc is jam-packed with pretty much every familiar gay media figure Fox could round up—the Advocate's Alonso Duralde, Michael 'La Dolce' Musto, etc.—opining like mad with lots of dish during the several new making-of featurettes.
There are also several vintage extras, including Sharon Tate's screen test, a hilarious piece on the 'doll' who wrote Dolls ( Jacqueline Susann ) as well as a detailed 'Backstory' episode that includes glimpses of Judy Garland's wardrobe tests. The entire audio soundtrack, a nifty bonus, is also included. Missing, sadly, are the 'What's My Line?' episode with Garland and Susann as well as Garland's audio track of 'I'll Plant My Own Tree.' Patty Duke is also missing from the commentary and new featurettes but I'm guessing that that's due to her recovery from open-heart surgery and unavailability.
'Boobies! Boobies! Boobies!' Neely O'Hara/Patty Duke complains at one point during one of her drunken ramblings in the original movie. She might have been talking about the Russ Meyer-Roger Ebert rip-off sequel, Beyond the Valley of the Dolls. The movie again follows three young ladies—typical Russ Meyer vixens with giant breasts—who go for glory via their rock band, The Carrie Nations. In their quest they're aided by super-cool, 'It's my freak out!' bisexual entrepreneur Ronnie 'Z-Man' Barzell. Screenwriter Ebert has dubbed his baby the 'first rock-horror-exploitation musical' and that's a pretty apt description of this '60s skin flick that includes lots of hot lesbian sex, plenty of gay references ( with a fetching Michael Blodgett as bikini-clad hustler Lance Rocke ) and lots and lots of drugs and gore thanks to the Manson murder-style finale. Several surviving cast members participate in the new making-of documentaries and I was happy that one of them pays special attention to the still-hot rock songs ( such as 'Come with the Gentle People' and 'Sweet Talkin' Candy Man' ) as well as the Stu Phillips score. Surprisingly, though, nothing is mentioned of the sublime pop-sugar title song sung by the Sandpipers. Naturally, these two camp titans make up the greatest double feature imaginable.
But there's way more. Paramount Home Entertainment has answered the call of gay fans far and wide with its Mommie Dearest ( Hollywood Royalty Treatment ) DVD release. This is a huge leap over its previous offering and will, of course, be of interest to gay men as it's the ultimate Hollywood diva biopic. Faye Dunaway, who melted the walls with her committed portrayal of Joan Crawford, again does not participate in any of the three new making-of documentaries about the 1981 film but her exclusion is discussed extensively. As is continually noted throughout the featurettes ( which all have pretty much the same gang of gay commentators as the Dolls set ) , Dunaway is extraordinary in the movie. ( Her commitment to Crawford's maniacal control and ego—both masking bottomless anger and self-doubt—is riveting and funny at the same time. ) Christina Crawford is another non-participant, though we get a great little bonus in which John 'Lypsinka' Epperson becomes Crawford and then chats about his idol when the transformation is complete.
I highly recommend three distinct viewings of the film: one unadorned, with your closest and wittiest friends making with their own gay version of Mystery Science Theater 3000, a second with the language set to French ( very funny during the 'wire hangers' scene ) and, finally, the third with John Waters' hilarious commentary. Any DVD that features a Waters' commentary automatically gets added to my collection and this may be his most hilarious. There are two regrets, however: There are none of those deleted sequences we've all been waiting for and I'd also like to see Henry Mancini's soundtrack released—it's wonderful.
Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has given classic-movie fans and Bette Davis divas a Christmas present in June with its new Bette Davis Film Collection, Volume 2. The first volume includes many of the Great Ones' biggest hits: Now, Voyager, Dark Victory and The Letter as well as the lesser known Mrs. Skeffington and The Star. This new batch, with five films and a new documentary, spans a greater period of time and gives a clearer picture of Davis' phenomenal gifts. There's not a dud in the bunch.
Marked Woman ( 1937 ) finds Davis in top form as a tough clip joint 'hostess' out to get a mobster. The following year, she played southern belle Jezebel ( 1938 ) and took home the Oscar a year before Vivien Leigh's Scarlett O'Hara. Davis is willful and spoiled, spiting convention by wearing a red dress to the big ball, thus shaming herself and losing her man, Henry Fonda.
Davis made a rare, delightful comedy, The Man Who Came to Dinner ( 1942 ) , in which she takes a backseat to star Monty Wooley as the witty, overbearing and oh-so-gay Sheridan Whiteside, who takes over the household of his Ohio host and hostess after slipping on their front steps and being forced to recuperate at their home. Based on the hit play, this is a perennial holiday favorite in our household and I'm thrilled to toss my worn-out video copy for this pristine transfer.
Miriam Hopkins teamed with Davis in The Sisters ( 1938 ) and again in Old Acquaintance ( 1944 ) , which is making its DVD debut here. The off-screen feud between the two had been in the making for years ( with Hopkins starring in Jezebel on the stage ) and the fireworks flew on the set. This is a perfect example of a wartime 'woman's picture'—a story of competing writers—one serious ( Davis, natch ) and one popular but a writer of junk ( Hopkins ) and a major drama queen. There are lots and lots of silly fun in the 1981 remake ( titled Rich and Famous ) with Jacqueline Bisset and Candace Bergen, which was helmed by the gay director George Cukor ( his last film ) .
The centerpiece of the collection and most hotly anticipated by camp fans, naturally, is the two-disc special edition What Ever Happened to Baby Jane ( 1962 ) , the infamous on-screen pairing of Davis and her arch rival, Joan Crawford. Warner has included some nifty vintage feature material ( including a game Davis belting out the title song on the Andy Williams show! ) and a rare film profile of Crawford done while the star was in England promoting Beserk! in 1967. There's also a new featurette that details the feud between the battling Hollywood titans that features another enthusiastic gabfest of those same gay media figures ( Musto, Durade, Busch, etc. ) . An early '90s full-length documentary, the Jodie Foster-narrated 'All About Bette,' is another wonderful extra. Finally, a fun, fact-filled commentary track by Busch and the aforementioned Epperson is just the ticket to round out this terrific feature. Now, if only we could get a soundtrack release of Frank DeVol's wonderful score and some deleted footage, I'd be completely happy.
There's also a new feature-length documentary, Stardust, that gets into Davis' tempestuous personal life ( though Bette's daughter and turncoat, born-again B.D. Hyman, doesn't participate ) . After a myriad of documentaries on Davis, this offers some nice—and juicy—insight into what made her tick. It's only available with the set.
Each of the movies includes brief new featurettes and vintage material to give the viewer the feeling of returning to the era in which these were originally released. New transfers of several of the titles is also a boon. Volume 3 is expected next year. ( In the meantime, I'm hoping to see 1956's The Catered Affair, which will be 50 this year. )
