What famous persons life story do you think would make a great movie? - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

gilligan fanatic · 08-04-2006, 08:51 PM

I didn't know if to post this here or in movies but since we aren't discussing movies really I thought I would post this here.

Anyway there are some people who I think have such interesting stories. The first being Johnny Horton. He had a very modest life and didn't start to get popular to the last two years of his life. He had a dream he was going to die and he took classes on how to avoid and get out of dangerous situations and just a few days latter he died in a car crash. He was friends with a lot of other people including Hank Williams (his wife was married to him before he died) Glenn Cambell, Johnny Cash, and many others. He is a very interesting person.

Second is Barry Sadler, not really that famous of a person, but he had one really hit song (Ballad of the Green Berets) and wanted to continue writing songs. I have heard about 20 other songs of his and I like them all. He struggled trying to get back on the top and even wrote a series of books that have a cult following (I have never read the books though) He was shot while walking down a street one day and was in a coma for a long time. At one point his body was even stolen but latter put back. Another interesting person who doesn't get the recognition they deserve.

Third person is Ricky Nelson. Pioneer in music and on longest running live action sitcom in history. Another interesting person who was successful for many years but had it rough towards the end. Never made it into the 70's (minus Garden Party). Died in a plane crash almost 26 years ago when things were finally starting to look up for him.

Fourth person is Tony Randall. Just read Jack Klugman's book Tony and Me. Explains basically everything I would say here.

Some other people include Dave Aikeman, Jim Reeves, Sherwood Schwartz, and Bill Bixby.

Who do you think could be the basis of a movie.

Ireneparalegal · 08-04-2006, 08:52 PM

Ricky Nelson did have a movie made of his life. It was a tv movie, and not a very good one, IMO.

gilligan fanatic · 08-04-2006, 08:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ireneparalegal

Ricky Nelson did have a movie made of his life. It was a tv movie, and not a very good one, IMO.

hmm, I didn't know that. I am going to have to look for that even if it isn't that good.

Ireneparalegal · 08-04-2006, 09:01 PM

As a matter of fact, it was just on television a few weeks back, but I can't recall what channel it was on.

dawsongirl · 08-04-2006, 09:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gilligan fanatic

Bill Bixby.

I agree. That would be a sad movie.

Interesting stuff about Barry Sadler.

Ireneparalegal · 08-04-2006, 09:06 PM

This person is NOT famous, but her life story is worthy of being told...she has a book out on her life and she is a phenomenal woman. She went from foster care, to prostitution, to drug addict and is NOW AN ATTORNEY!

Cupcake Brown (yep, that is her real first name):

http://www.cupcakebrown.com/main.php...bout&PIC=about

(CBS) Every so often, a story comes along that reminds people of both the best and the worst that life has to offer. Such was the case of Cupcake Brown, whose amazing and moving story (video) was featured on The Early Show Tuesday.

Her life began with no hint of the pain that was to come.

"I had a mom and a dad and I lived in a wonderful neighborhood," she told Dave Price, "in a big Victorian style house. And I had my own bedroom. I had a white princess canopy bed."

Brown grew up in San Diego, in a loving and stable home. But everything changed when she was 11 years old and her mother died of a seizure. "Sometimes it hurts like it happened yesterday," she said.

To make matters worse, her step-father, Tim Long, who had raised Brown all her life, tried to get custody but lost when her biological father came to claim her.

"There was nothing I could do. She was taken away," Long said. "She was there and I could not get her back."

Her biological father put her into foster care, which, Brown says, was an utter nightmare.

"In foster care, I was raped and beaten. And so I ran away," she said. "I'm 11 years old, I'm on the streets. I'm cold. I'm hungry."

Brown says she met a prostitute that night who showed her some kindness and a way to make some money. Within weeks of her mother's death, she says she was well on her way to a life on the streets.

In her new memoir, "A Piece of Cake," Brown writes that she hitchhiked up and down the coast of California, joined a gang at 14, and was shot at 15. At 17, she found her way back to her stepfather, all grown up and all strung out. To convince herself she wasn't really a hopeless junkie, she wanted to work.

"If you work, you can't be an addict, so keep a job. You've got to keep a job," she said.

Attorney Ken Rose hired Brown, unaware, at first, of her problems.

"She wasn't the perfect image of a secretary from the way she dressed, but other than that, just being kind of a bit funky, no, I did not have any idea," he said.

Brown did good work for Rose but, within months, her addictions caught up with her job.

"She was absent a lot," said Rose, "and I really felt I might have to terminate her employment."

It was when she saw her reflection in a window one day, after a four-day crack binge, that Brown knew this life was over.

"For the first time I really, really saw myself," she told Price. "My eyes were sunken in my face. My lips were scabbed and burnt from the crack pipe … and I knew then that I was dying. And it was then that I realized that I didn't want to die like that. And that was the beginning of the beginning."

With Rose's support, she kept her job and went into rehab, where she met a sponsor who inspired her to reach for more.

"She said, 'What is a dream you had that drugs and alcohol stole from you?' " Brown said. " 'I want to be a lawyer.' And she said, 'Well, steal it back.' And I thought, 'Steal it back?' And she said, 'Yeah, steal it back.' And I said, 'Well, how am I going to steal it back?' And she said, 'Well, Cup, how do people become lawyers? They go to school.' "

Brown spent the next 11½ years in college and then law school, graduating in the top 10 percent of her class.

"I think everybody was shocked, including me, when I ended up in the top 10 percent. At the same time, I worked my butt off for that," she said.

David Balabanian's San Francisco law firm hired Brown and he became her mentor.

"What impressed me at the time was her extraordinary good cheer, enthusiasm, energy," Balabanian said. "I was completely unaware of her background and what she had been through prior to getting to law school."

At 41, and now a fifth year associate at one of the nation's top law firms, Cupcake Brown is taking inventory of her life and considers what her mother would say if she could see her now.

"I think she would say what I think God says, 'Well done, my child.' "

Brown is taking four months off for a book tour and a vacation, her first in more than a decade, and then she intends to return to her work as an attorney.

gilligan fanatic · 08-04-2006, 09:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ireneparalegal

As a matter of fact, it was just on television a few weeks back, but I can't recall what channel it was on.

is this the movie?

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0212468/

I rarely watch the Early Show but I think I saw that. You are right, I just hope if that is made Lifetime doesn't do it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dawsongirl

I agree. That would be a sad movie.

Interesting stuff about Barry Sadler.

I didn't realize how much stuff he did. I knew he acted in a lot of series but he directed almost as much as he stared in.

gilligan fanatic · 08-04-2006, 09:14 PM

I don't really follow this completly at all, but has anybody been reading this thread here? D.B. Cooper

Since it has so many replies I have been recently following it. The widow of Cooper has been commenting the last few months and somebody yesterday said they should make a movie about her. That is what got me the idea for this thread.

Ireneparalegal · 08-04-2006, 09:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gilligan fanatic

is this the movie?

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0212468/

I rarely watch the Early Show but I think I saw that. You are right, I just hope if that is made Lifetime doesn't do it.

I didn't realize how much stuff he did. I knew he acted in a lot of series but he directed almost as much as he stared in.

Yep, that's the movie!

Courtnee · 08-04-2006, 09:57 PM

Marilyn Monroe

Tootie · 08-04-2006, 10:06 PM

Dave Pelzer

LuLu Rogers · 08-04-2006, 10:07 PM

John Ritter
Harry Anderson
Katey Sagal
Marilyn Monroe

Hollow · 08-04-2006, 10:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tootie

Dave Pelzer

i agree with that.

i think my own life would make a good movie or book, actually.

SBTB Geek · 08-04-2006, 11:13 PM

Lisa Lopes

PZelda · 08-04-2006, 11:26 PM

Irene, I agree about Cupcake. I want to buy her book - people like her fascinate me. It is amazing when they turn their lives around like that. It takes major determination and the will to do so. It's not very easy to change your life around.

08-04-2006, 08:51 PM	#1
gilligan fanatic Born to Be Bad Forum Fanatic Join Date: May 06, 2001 Location: down by the Lagoon Posts: 9,954	What famous persons life story do you think would make a great movie? I didn't know if to post this here or in movies but since we aren't discussing movies really I thought I would post this here. Anyway there are some people who I think have such interesting stories. The first being Johnny Horton. He had a very modest life and didn't start to get popular to the last two years of his life. He had a dream he was going to die and he took classes on how to avoid and get out of dangerous situations and just a few days latter he died in a car crash. He was friends with a lot of other people including Hank Williams (his wife was married to him before he died) Glenn Cambell, Johnny Cash, and many others. He is a very interesting person. Second is Barry Sadler, not really that famous of a person, but he had one really hit song (Ballad of the Green Berets) and wanted to continue writing songs. I have heard about 20 other songs of his and I like them all. He struggled trying to get back on the top and even wrote a series of books that have a cult following (I have never read the books though) He was shot while walking down a street one day and was in a coma for a long time. At one point his body was even stolen but latter put back. Another interesting person who doesn't get the recognition they deserve. Third person is Ricky Nelson. Pioneer in music and on longest running live action sitcom in history. Another interesting person who was successful for many years but had it rough towards the end. Never made it into the 70's (minus Garden Party). Died in a plane crash almost 26 years ago when things were finally starting to look up for him. Fourth person is Tony Randall. Just read Jack Klugman's book Tony and Me. Explains basically everything I would say here. Some other people include Dave Aikeman, Jim Reeves, Sherwood Schwartz, and Bill Bixby. Who do you think could be the basis of a movie.
	__________________ Matt Filmaf ~ Twitter ~ Last.FM

08-04-2006, 08:52 PM	#2
Ireneparalegal LEGAL SPICE ;) Forum Legend Join Date: Jul 25, 2005 Location: OXNARD, CA - WHERE THE DALLAS COWBOYS TRAIN & PRACTICE Posts: 38,691	Ricky Nelson did have a movie made of his life. It was a tv movie, and not a very good one, IMO.
	__________________ DALLAS COWBOYS ARE HERE AT TRAINING CAMP!!!

08-04-2006, 09:57 PM	#10
Courtnee MAN VS SAMMICH. Forum Star Join Date: Mar 23, 2005 Location: Louisiana Posts: 16,413	Marilyn Monroe
	__________________ Whether I'm the rose of sheer perfection A freckle on the nose of life's complexion The Cinderella or the shine apple of its eye I gotta fly once, I gotta try once, Only can die once, right, sir? Ooh, life is juicy, juicy and you see, I gotta have my bite, sir. Get ready for me love, 'cause I'm a "comer" I simply gotta march, my heart's a drummer Don't bring around the cloud to rain on my parade

08-04-2006, 10:06 PM	#11
Tootie Member Senior Member Join Date: May 09, 2006 Posts: 2,223	Dave Pelzer
	__________________ Tootie: Theres gonna be trouuuble Natalie: Make that a Douuuble

08-04-2006, 10:07 PM	#12
LuLu Rogers Colonel Brandon Forum Fanatic Join Date: Mar 23, 2004 Location: The Hogwarts Dungeons Posts: 11,013	John Ritter Harry Anderson Katey Sagal Marilyn Monroe
	__________________ -Lauren- "I can teach you how to bewitch the mind and ensnare the senses. I can tell you how to bottle fame, brew glory, and even put a stopper in death."-Professor Severus Snape

08-04-2006, 09:01 PM	#4
Ireneparalegal LEGAL SPICE ;) Forum Legend Join Date: Jul 25, 2005 Location: OXNARD, CA - WHERE THE DALLAS COWBOYS TRAIN & PRACTICE Posts: 38,691	As a matter of fact, it was just on television a few weeks back, but I can't recall what channel it was on.

08-04-2006, 09:06 PM	#6
Ireneparalegal LEGAL SPICE ;) Forum Legend Join Date: Jul 25, 2005 Location: OXNARD, CA - WHERE THE DALLAS COWBOYS TRAIN & PRACTICE Posts: 38,691	This person is NOT famous, but her life story is worthy of being told...she has a book out on her life and she is a phenomenal woman. She went from foster care, to prostitution, to drug addict and is NOW AN ATTORNEY! Cupcake Brown (yep, that is her real first name): http://www.cupcakebrown.com/main.php...bout&PIC=about (CBS) Every so often, a story comes along that reminds people of both the best and the worst that life has to offer. Such was the case of Cupcake Brown, whose amazing and moving story (video) was featured on The Early Show Tuesday. Her life began with no hint of the pain that was to come. "I had a mom and a dad and I lived in a wonderful neighborhood," she told Dave Price, "in a big Victorian style house. And I had my own bedroom. I had a white princess canopy bed." Brown grew up in San Diego, in a loving and stable home. But everything changed when she was 11 years old and her mother died of a seizure. "Sometimes it hurts like it happened yesterday," she said. To make matters worse, her step-father, Tim Long, who had raised Brown all her life, tried to get custody but lost when her biological father came to claim her. "There was nothing I could do. She was taken away," Long said. "She was there and I could not get her back." Her biological father put her into foster care, which, Brown says, was an utter nightmare. "In foster care, I was raped and beaten. And so I ran away," she said. "I'm 11 years old, I'm on the streets. I'm cold. I'm hungry." Brown says she met a prostitute that night who showed her some kindness and a way to make some money. Within weeks of her mother's death, she says she was well on her way to a life on the streets. In her new memoir, "A Piece of Cake," Brown writes that she hitchhiked up and down the coast of California, joined a gang at 14, and was shot at 15. At 17, she found her way back to her stepfather, all grown up and all strung out. To convince herself she wasn't really a hopeless junkie, she wanted to work. "If you work, you can't be an addict, so keep a job. You've got to keep a job," she said. Attorney Ken Rose hired Brown, unaware, at first, of her problems. "She wasn't the perfect image of a secretary from the way she dressed, but other than that, just being kind of a bit funky, no, I did not have any idea," he said. Brown did good work for Rose but, within months, her addictions caught up with her job. "She was absent a lot," said Rose, "and I really felt I might have to terminate her employment." It was when she saw her reflection in a window one day, after a four-day crack binge, that Brown knew this life was over. "For the first time I really, really saw myself," she told Price. "My eyes were sunken in my face. My lips were scabbed and burnt from the crack pipe … and I knew then that I was dying. And it was then that I realized that I didn't want to die like that. And that was the beginning of the beginning." With Rose's support, she kept her job and went into rehab, where she met a sponsor who inspired her to reach for more. "She said, 'What is a dream you had that drugs and alcohol stole from you?' " Brown said. " 'I want to be a lawyer.' And she said, 'Well, steal it back.' And I thought, 'Steal it back?' And she said, 'Yeah, steal it back.' And I said, 'Well, how am I going to steal it back?' And she said, 'Well, Cup, how do people become lawyers? They go to school.' " Brown spent the next 11½ years in college and then law school, graduating in the top 10 percent of her class. "I think everybody was shocked, including me, when I ended up in the top 10 percent. At the same time, I worked my butt off for that," she said. David Balabanian's San Francisco law firm hired Brown and he became her mentor. "What impressed me at the time was her extraordinary good cheer, enthusiasm, energy," Balabanian said. "I was completely unaware of her background and what she had been through prior to getting to law school." At 41, and now a fifth year associate at one of the nation's top law firms, Cupcake Brown is taking inventory of her life and considers what her mother would say if she could see her now. "I think she would say what I think God says, 'Well done, my child.' " Brown is taking four months off for a book tour and a vacation, her first in more than a decade, and then she intends to return to her work as an attorney.

08-04-2006, 09:14 PM	#8
gilligan fanatic Born to Be Bad Forum Fanatic Join Date: May 06, 2001 Location: down by the Lagoon Posts: 9,954	I don't really follow this completly at all, but has anybody been reading this thread here? D.B. Cooper Since it has so many replies I have been recently following it. The widow of Cooper has been commenting the last few months and somebody yesterday said they should make a movie about her. That is what got me the idea for this thread.

08-04-2006, 11:13 PM	#14
SBTB Geek Smooth Moderator Forum Veteran Join Date: Feb 21, 2002 Location: Southern California Posts: 6,004	Lisa Lopes

08-04-2006, 11:26 PM	#15
PZelda Two Valeries! <3 Forum Addict Join Date: Jul 15, 2002 Location: I'm STILL missing NYC. :( Posts: 78,223	Irene, I agree about Cupcake. I want to buy her book - people like her fascinate me. It is amazing when they turn their lives around like that. It takes major determination and the will to do so. It's not very easy to change your life around.