next »

[kforab]

seen at http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/entertainment/film-tv/news/article3073781.ece


Thursday, October 18, 2007

By Amol Rajan

The singer Debbie Harry has leapt to the defence of the actress Kirsten Dunst after fans of the singer accused the Hollywood star of not having " the edge, quirkiness or charisma" to play Harry in a planned biopic.

Dunst received a torrent of abuse from fans of Harry, lead singer of the group Blondie, who claimed that she lacked both the necessary acting and singing ability to play the 1970s icon.


Dunst was forced to declare publicly that she had received the singer's blessing for the role following campaigns to revoke the casting on internet message boards. "Debbie chose me for this role so anyone who disputes this can take it up with her," said Dunst, who recently starred in Spider-Man 3. She added: "I'll work hard on this character because she is the coolest women of all time."


Harry moved to quell the controversy by speaking out for the first time about the casting. "[Kirsten] is a really sweet person," she said. "I've met her a couple of times and hung out with her socially.


"She's just a sweetie. She's probably capable of a lot of things she hasn't been asked to do yet, and doing something that's sort of left-of-centre would be great for her".


Fans of Harry, whose sassy East Coast voice featured on a long list of huge hits including "Hanging on the Telephone" and "Heart of Glass", used message boards to voice their disgust at Dunst's casting for the film, to be directed by Michel Gondry.


On cinemablend.com, fans' comments included "Please no, not Dumbst" and "How the hell can Dunst possibly play Debbie Harry? They don't even look remotely similar... Kirsten Dunst is so bottom-of-the-barrel". One fan said, "Does anyone besides gullible Sofia Coppola [who cast her in the title role for Marie Antoinette]... and silly brainless girls actually think Dunst can act", while another added, "We can only hope and pray that Kirsten doesn't sully the Blondie icon".


Such views were part of a sustained bout of criticism that followed the initial rumours about who might play Harry. On the stereogum.com site, one fan asked: "Doesn't playing a singer like Debbie Harry actually entail singing?"


Another said: "Kirsten Dunst would be a horrible choice to play the hottest rock chick in history. I don't think she has the edge, quirkiness, or charisma for such a role."


Harry's public defence of the Hollywood A-lister, who was applauded last year for her performance in Marie Antoinette, is testament to the increasing influence on the film industry of fans' blogs and message boards.


The film is still only in planning stages, but shooting is scheduled for early next year. It will be the first time Harry has been portrayed on the big screen.


The Florida-born singer, herself a veteran of more than 40 films, rose from being a waitress and dancer in Union City, New Jersey, and then a Playboy Bunny, to become one of the most distinguished performers of the 1970s. Blondie have released eight albums since 1976, selling over 13 million copies in the US alone.


It will not be the first time that Dunst, who is starring in the film version of Toby Young's memoir How to Lose Friends and Alienate People due for release next year, has been required to sing in a film. She performed two songs in the role of Kelly Woods in Get Over It (2001), and in The Cat's Meow (2002), she gave a jazz rendition of Henry Creamer and Turner Layton's "After You've Gone".

[kforab]

seen at http://showbiz.sky.com/showbiz/article/0,,50002-1290123,00.html


Kirsten as Debbie Harry? Ray Quinn as Clark Gable?

Which stars deserve to take on the role of a legend?


Here on the Showbiz casting couch we have our own ideas.

News of Kirsten Dunst playing Debbie Harry in an upcoming film has provoked some objection from those who don't think Kirst is edgy enough to play the singer.

But Ms Dunst is none too pleased and has had her say about the casting decision.

"Debbie chose me for this role so anyone who disputes this can take it up with her," she fumed in OK! magazine.

Okey dokes, dear, calm yerself.

But Debbie's decision got us thinking.

With so many young up-starts vying to play the legends of old, who would we pick?

So jump on to the Showbiz casting couch and join us as we choose the best bright young things to play the world's great icons.

 
Last Updated: 08:42 UK, Monday October 29, 2007

[kforab]

in http://www.philadelphiaweekly.com/articles/15794 they wrote:
More than 30 years after forming the band that ordained the communion of New Wave and punk, Deborah Harry still rocks the same DIY attitude and experimental spirit that netted Blondie more singles than a hometown stripper.

Icon or not, Harry isn?t content to lounge about stargazing into punk?s storied past. A Jersey girl in a folk band doesn?t become canonized as ?the Marilyn Monroe of punk? without more than a little moxie.

Her new album Necessary Evil was produced mostly by Williamsburg- based duo Super Buddha (Barb Morrison and Charles Nieland). Collaborators include Jazz Passengers? Roy Nathanson and Bill Ware, the Toilet Boys? Guy Furrow, and usual suspect Chris Stein.

Necessary Evil scours the last few decades, then boomerangs back with the best bits and pieces. Chilly synth sounds zipper through deep boiler room beats on the dance tracks. High school hooks that could?ve alley-ooped right out of an angrier Avril?s songbook pierce through the pop tunes, while ?90s riot grrl riffs slice big chunks of rowdy Olympia fun. There are even echoes of Newcleus? ?Jam on It? in there.

PW caught up with Deborah by telephone from N.Y.C. for some girl talk about fashion and what?s up with men these days.

ADVERTISEMENT
 

How are you feeling on the cusp of the Necessary Evil tour?

?I feel pretty good. I have a lot of work to do in a pretty short period of time, but I?m looking forward to doing some shows. I did a bunch of them with the Cyndi Lauper True Colors tour.?

You?re referred to as a fashion icon. Ever thought about putting out a fashion line? Are clothes as exciting to you now as in the early days?

?I like clothes. I like fashion. I?ve been approached several times over the years to endorse a line or possibly design and launch a line of my own. I don?t really consider myself a designer in the truest sense of the word ? I guess in a way the reason people think of me as a fashion icon is that I did it such a long time ago and it stuck, and some of the things I was wearing back then have become normal. That usually happens in fashion anyway, you know?trends start and the kids start wearing stuff that maybe is a little fun or weird. It gets taken over and co-opted by designers.?

I saw a spread in Glamour that featured Debbie Harry?s signature look and then offered items like a $795 striped shirt and $1,000 shoes.

?Considering that most of the stuff we wore was free, vintage or secondhand, it?s kind of amazing how it goes around.?

In interviews you?ve said this album is about love. And sex. Got love and sex on the brain?

?And who doesn?t??

What would an admirer have to do to court the affections of Debbie Harry?

?I guess they?d just have to be, you know, uh, friendly. Able to hold up a good conversation. Someone who?s pretty much comfortable with themselves and not really afraid of me.?

It?s hard to find those fearless men.

?Yes it is! Everyone seems to be very fragile or thin-skinned. I like to have a good time, I like to laugh. It?s that simple for me really. Whoever is out there and likes to have a good time and tell some jokes and make me laugh, you know, look me up.?

I?m going to switch gears to talk about your method as a songwriter. Do you have any writing rituals, or has your method changed over the years?

?I put myself into the frame of mind by being open to ideas and paying attention to ideas and taking notes, and I try to think about phrases that ring true. Then I develop a story or some kind of phrasing around them that polishes them up a little bit. I guess it?s sort of a state of mind.?

The first time I remember seeing you act in film was in Heavy ?that was an amazing performance. How?s a film performance different from an onstage persona for you?

?Usually in acting, in film, there?s a script or story [or character] someone else has written and created, so my responsibility is to bring that to life and make it appear as realistic as possible, versus when I?m onstage I?m completely responsible for everything I do. Being onstage is big. You?re dealing with a live audience. There are usually hundreds of thousands of people in front of you, and your actions have to be big. But on film you?re working into this little lens, so everything has to be very intense?as big in intensity but very focused and small so that it?s related to the size of the eye. It?s just that one eye looking at you versus hundreds or thousands of eyes.?

A biopic film seems inevitable. You get to cherrypick the lead actress. Any ideas?

?It?s been rumored I would be working with Kirsten Dunst, but nothing?s been decided yet. I haven?t got a script or anything?it?s just an idea that?s been kicking around for a while. You never know how these things are going to turn out, but I?m just keeping my fingers crossed.?
Deborah Harry

[kforab]

I was just yesterday for a one-day holiday- trip in London.
When I was going by bus trough the city a saw in a theater that there is a Blondie- musical...
I checked now the internet for it and found this:
http://www.abc.net.au/dig/stories/s1975669.htm:

A new musical featuring Blondie's back catalogue opens in London's West End in October, based on the film that made Madonna a star - 'Desperately Seeking Susan'

The show will feature Blondie hits including 'Heart of Glass', 'Atomic', and 'The Tide Is High', as well as a new composition from Debbie Harry, 'Moment of Truth'.