Mickey Rooney as Archie Bunker - Rare TV Casting Almosts & Behind-the-Scenes Stories | Classic Television Trivia for Pop Culture Fans
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Product Description
Would Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts be the superstars they are today if they had not been turned down for roles on soap operas? Would Everybody Loves Raymond ever have been created if Ray Romano hadn't been fired from Newsradio? Would the character of Fonzie have become such a pop culture icon in the 1970s if it had been played by Micky Dolenz? How different would Lisa Kudrow's career have turned out if she had not been turned down for a spot on Saturday Night Live? MICKEY ROONEY AS ARCHIE BUNKER and Other TV Casting Almosts answers these questions and many more. Mickey Rooney was producer Norman Lear's first choice for the starring role of Archie Bunker on All in the Family. Worried about the public's reaction to the bigoted character, he turned the role down. Carroll O'Connor was cast and became a star. TV's most famous and infamous casting decisions are explored in MICKEY ROONEY AS ARCHIE BUNKER and Other TV Casting Almosts. You'll read the stories behind the choices that have altered the course of TV history. Inside you'll learn many fun facts including: Katie Holmes was the first choice to play Buffy the Vampire Slayer Rosie O'Donnell auditioned for Elaine on Seinfeld Gene Hackman was rejected for the part of Mike Brady Sandra Bullock didn't have the right look for Baywatch Lara Flynn Boyle was considered to play Carrie Bradshaw on Sex and the City The shows are listed alphabetically from According to Jim to Zorro. This book lets you imagine how different your favorite shows could have been.
Customer Reviews
Eila Mell's 2008 book is a compendium of TV series and TV movie casting decisions that television and trivia buffs should love. Mell casts a pretty wide net so casting decisions for winners like ALL IN THE FAMILY, ST. ELSEWHERE, THE FUGITIVE, DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES, GENERAL HOSPITAL and THE VIEW compete with also-rans like HAWAII, THE JOB and BABY BOOM. As 524 pages, it's one hefty dose of trivia.Mell's book is alphabetically organized. Entry length can vary from a few sentences to three-four pages. A small number of entries come with photos so that, for instance, you can see what Kennneth Johnson - producer of THE INCREDIBLE HULK - looks like. Eight pages of 'Random Quotes' on casting choices follow the main text.I'm ambivalent about MICKEY ROONEY AS ARCHIE BUNKER AND OTHER TV CASTING ALMOSTS. I gave it four stars but still wonder about that. The trivia buff in me applauds the completeness of Mell's book. The leisure reader in me counters with "too much, too much."Most entries in the book are interesting enough, furnishing background info on different casting judgement calls. Some of the bare bone entries are about as exciting as the back of a cereal box. They cross the line from "That's interesting" to "So what?" For instance, the entry for IT'S ALL RELATIVE reads as follows: "Christine Lakin tested for the role of Maddy O'Neil in the ABC comedy, IT'S ALL RELATIVE. The role went to Paige Moss instead." Christine Who? Maddy What? See my point?The best way to approach this book is to dip into it. Pick a favorite show or TV movie and see what Mell has to say. There is some interesting television history here so jump in and have a ball! Recommended.
