living famously;karen carpenter

[Grainne]

just finished watching the uk documentary on karen carpenter. for those of you who didn't see it , not to worry as it was just more of the same stuff we're used to hearing. a bunch of (mostly) miss-informed people who had little if nothing to do with the carpenters, exceptions being jerry moss & randy schimcth. lots of old interviews thrown in to fatten it up .. caroline corr (of the corrs) looked beautiful & had nice things to say, but again, nothing insightful.

norma, i've recorded it for you & it's on the way
grainne.

 

[jomy]

So I just finished watching it too. As you say there was nothing new but then I did not really expect there to be. It was nice however to see some footage of concerts or t.v. shows (I'm not sure which!) that I have never seen before. I have never seen the stuff that had Karen in the purple patterned outfit before does anyone know if that show is available on video or even dvd(ha ha ha!)

I have also just discovered that, that E show on Karen is on u.k. SKY DIGITAL on friday afternoon 31/01/03 on the E channel so I may take a look at that even though I think it will probably be the same sort of thing. I don't know if the E show has been on over here before but if it has I missed it! so it's nice that it is being repeated if that is the case.


Jo....still waiting for some decent Carpenters t.v. shows and concerts to be put on video dvd or even the telly!!!

 

[PHIL]

I agree that a lot of the old comments were recycled, but were any other viewers appalled by Anna Raeburn? Anyone from the US is probably not familiar with this lady, but I can remember her infamous 70's "relationship" phone-in shows on London radio.

I'm sure she's well qualified in her field ( agony aunt) but she was so aggressive in this film! Anyone agree?

I was interested that somebody referred to "Richard's book" in the film; I have the excellent biography by Ray Coleman but wasn't aware that Richard had written a book. Does anyone have any info on that?

 

[Grainne]

hey phil,

i think that the 'richard book' was in fact the ray coleman book. an example of just how mis-informed some of the speakers were.

i'm so glad you mentioned that lady anna raeburn. i've never heard of her. she came accross as somebody who really didnt know the facts surronding the carpenter family, and who had listened to every rumour and story that had ever been written about them. also, she was so aggressive & angry whenever she spoke. i think she was probably delighted to be asked to speak and used this as a chance to be a dramatic as possible.

i enjoyed listening to what jerry moss had to say but that was about it. the bbc could have done so much better. as it stands, they may aswell have asked all of us to participate in the interviews. as i see it, we are much more qualified than alot of the people they used!

 

[PHIL]

Grainne,

couldn't agree more - why do they bother with people who probably couldn't even name one of the albums!

I'm sure there is a really good film to be made about K & R but I haven't seen it yet.

They showed some clips from the concert recorded in November 1976 when they did a week of shows at the London Palladium. I was at the Friday early show, having "persuaded" my parents to buy me a ticket!! So glad I was there. Anybody else got any memories of that week? I seem to recall they also did a midnight "toys for tots" show.

 

[PJ]

Wow-so much hostility towards this Doc

Perhaps Carpenters Fans were expecting too much ? Richard Declined to Participate or Provide any Rare Material -so the BBC were limited to their Interviewees , previous BBC Documentary and Music Special Material

There were never going to be Stunning Relevations -Legal Threats and the Doc Series Basis -Providing an Overview of Deceased Music and Film Artists -precluded that.

Overall this was a Good Documentary with Interesting Additions from Jerry Moss, Frank Pooler and Phil Ramone.

Caroline Corr was Charming and added that Working Musically with Siblings and Families Produced Tensions.

Footage from BBC 70's Specials was Welcome for Fans who did not see original transmissions -although too short -for instance And When He Smiles and From This Moment On were only clips

As for Anna Raeburn - she made a number of good points -particuarly on Women who start Diets and then Starve themselves, Controlling Influences and on Richard and Karen -even when they had Left Parents's Home -Still Allowing Parental Control and Decisions to Dictate their Life Choices

Had Karen and Richard been more Assertive in the Mid- 1970's then Later Problems Could Have Been Avoided ?

Karen's Great Drumming / Singing Energetic Performances are from 1974 BBC Special -which with the other BBC Specials -Need to be Issued for the Fans

Peter...Not So Critical of KC Doc.......

 

[Grainne]

you made some good points peter...but what the hell dod they interview the editor of the national enquirer for???!!!!! that just said it all really

 

[PJ]

Grainne :

There were weak points to KC Doc -and this Nat Enq Tabloid Journalist was the low point ....

Another weakness was not using more Karen and Richard Interviews -whether from TV or Radio -in the BBC Archives to provide more rarely used Material and more interest for Fans


Peter....Thinking About Next Doc....

 

[close2u]

I am really interested in hearing more details about this program, especially what some other the people "new" to Carpenters docs had to say. I have yet to see the video, but supposedly a copy is on the way from BBC. I sure hope it wasn't me who called the Coleman bio "Richard's Book," because I often think of it as being just that -- if you compare the finished book to copies of pre-publication galleys, it's just amazing that Richard's editing hand was allowed to roam so freely! I really feel like it was his book written by Ray Coleman... I would actually love to read the story as Richard remembers it, in his own words. Over the years, just judging some of the articles he has contributed to (PEOPLE '83, TV Guide '89 and others), he is an incredible writer. I really like his style and vocabulary. I think the Coleman book is as close as we will get to that.

Randy

 

[thestitch]

Hey, Randy, I have to agree with you 100% on Richard's style of writing. It seems to me, too, that he had major input on the Coleman book. IMHO Richard is a fantastic writer. That's why I'm so very pleased when he does his own liner notes on albums! His intelligence and wit just shine!

As for the BBC documentary, were you one of the people interviewed for this show? Would love to see it myself.

Marilyn

 

[close2u]

Marilyn,

Nobody does better liner notes than Richard. And when he gets REALLY detailed and really picky about the tiny little facts... ALL THE BETTER!!!

I was interviewed by BBC back in March 2002... just a lot of general bio and fact sort of stuff. I assume the only reason I was contacted was that the book I compiled is the only one on the subject of the Carpenters currently "in print" -- I don't claim to know anything more about the Carpenters than any other average fan... any one of us could have done the same thing.

Randy

 

[thestitch]

Oh, I don't know about that, Randy. I would readily bow to your expertise!

By the way, how is your new teaching position? I'm sure your students are learning a lot with you leading them!

Much luck to you.
Marilyn

 

[close2u]

Marilyn,

The new teaching position is not all I had hoped. The program was such a success before I arrived there is nothing left for me to do and it's tough to maintain what someone else developed there. The majority of the kids still do not want me there (they see it as MY fault the previous director left), so it's been hard to deal with. I know it would be fine after three years or so but I am not sure I want to hang around that long to find out. I need to be at a place where I can see progress being made and feel like something is happening... for the BETTER! We'll see...

Thanks for asking!

Randy

 

[thestitch]

That's a tough spot to be in! I also don't imagine there are that many jobs for music director available. Maybe there is some new type of music format you could initiate there to get the kids behind you? Since I'm not aware of what you DO have there, it's hard to offer a suggestion. I can merely offer my sympathies and moral support.

Marilyn
online and thinking ....

 

[Grainne]

hi randy,

your interview piece was good , and it was fun to see you on t.v, knowing that it was 'you'!!!!!

i don't recall you calling the coleman book 'richards book'!!

grainne.