Sitting atop the New York Times nonfiction bestseller list this week is a volume that is neither a political tome nor a historical treatise nor even a self-help book. It’s Tori Spelling’s memoir Stori Telling, which climbed to the top of the list at last after 14 weeks in stores. (H/t to E! Online.) It’s the My Big Fat Greek Wedding of celebrity autobiographies! I guess I shouldn’t be surprised; interest in all things 90210 was bound to make the book suddenly relevant. My colleague Lindsay Soll says it’s a great read, full of backstage dish from Tori’s Donna Martin days (according to Spelling, the entire cast agitated to get Shannen Doherty fired) as well as accounts of her bitter battles with her mother.
Anyway, Tori’s literary success got me thinking. Today saw the announcement that a forthcoming biopic about Allen Ginsberg will star James Franco as the Beat poet. Now, Franco’s a terrific actor, but he’s a lot more glam than Ginsberg, who more closely resembled Franco’s Freaks and Geeks co-star Samm Levene. But now I’m thinking, why should Hollywood glamour disqualify an actor from playing a nicotine-and-ink-stained literary icon? (Imagine how much better at the box office Capote and Infamous would have done if Truman Capote had been played by George Clooney or Brad Pitt instead of Philip Seymour Hoffman or Toby Jones.) So why shouldn’t Tori star in a biopic of, say, Charlotte Brontë or Joyce Carol Oates or Eudora Welty? After all, she’s got literary cred now.
to be fair…although franco is much, much prettier than ginsberg (and would probably be better suited for a neal cassidy/dean moriarty character), franco has always had that “beat” air about him…so i can see him doing a credible ginsberg. as long as they give him crazy hair and ugly him up a bit. tori spelling in anything literary, however…ugh. no thanks.
Sus, I got to part company with you on this one. Actors who portray famous people are rarely anything like them. Paul Giamatti did John Adams, turning one of America’s toughguy heroes into a whiny fatboy (yeah, I said it). Will Smith played Heavyweight Champion Muhammad Ali as a skinny smart alec. Jared Leto’s fine azzed stylish self (he’s got had “James Franco” gravitas in the 1990s) played the fat crazy loser who killed John Lennon, skinny and white Adrian Grenier played an overweight and Colombian Pablo Escobar, Anthony Hopkins played Richard Nixon, and I won’t touch how far from character Marc Anthony and J.lo’s portrayals were of Hector Lavoe and Puchi.
Yes, Robert Downie Jr. made a believable Chaplin, and yeah, Dustin Hoffman made a believable Lenny Bruce. But I’d argue that more often than not, the actor is nothing like (and frequently LOOKS nothing like) the person they portray.
clooney and pitt haven’t had a box office success in years (except the oceans movies which don’t count) so i don’t think either ‘capote’ or ‘infamous’ would have been more successful with either of them in it. as much as i love clooney, idk why his movies don’t make any money. and tori spelling cannot act so i don’t think she’ll be cast in any credible biopic anytime soon.
While I will give Tori slack on her acting ability (good sense of comedic timing – see “Trick”) the Shannon bashing is sort uncalled for (and possibly suicidal) especially years after it all alledgedly took place.
I’d say the biggest reason why is because she can’t act. James Franco, on the other hand, is a talented actor.
It’s VERY hard to ‘uglify’ Mr.Franco! He’s just too handsome! Look how they did him in Pineapple Express with a long greasy wig & his clothes in shambles and his handsomeness STILL came thru! (He’s soooooooo easy to ‘obsess’ over!!)
Good for you Tori. Tori just drips everything campy, right down to the book cover that gives a nod to Perez Hilton. Thank god they let Donna Martin gradaute! Oh, and on the subject of James Franco, he’s way too cute for words, he can’t uglify, it won’t work!
Franco’s incredibly talented; he’s certainly an underrated actor stuck with a crappy resume. With the right make-up and a powerhouse performance, he can pull it off. I mean, most people thought it would be impossible to “uglify” Marion Cotillard enough to play Edith Piaf, but she gave a near perfect performance. As a life-long fan of Edith Piaf, I was thoroughly convinced I was watching a life being lived rather than an actress pretending.
Don’t count Franco out just yet just because of his looks.
I actually can’t stand Tori, but while sitting for a few hours in Chapters, I read the book. She’s hilarious. I know, you’d never know it, but she is. It was a good “kill a couple of hours in a bookstore and not pay for the book” read.
I too wasn’t a fan of Tori’s till I saw her shows…now I’m hooked – She’s a hoot!! I am laughing hard with every page.
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Why Does Mr. Susman Wonder Why
There Are NO Black Oscar Nominees
This Year?
Why Is It That Media Folk ONLY
Worry About the Presence-Or Lack
Of-Blacks In “VIRTUALLY” Every
Darn Area of Life In The USA?
Look Around Susman? There ARE
Other So-Called Minorities You Could Worry About or PANDER TO.
We Are Sick Of The USA and Its
SACRED COWS! The Oscar Is One
Area That is STILL about TALENT!!!
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