Move over Alice, Florence Jean Castleberry's headed to the spotlight... - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

TALLguyinKY · 06-12-2007, 06:25 PM

Wow, after last night's wonderful episode, "Vera's Popcorn Romance", I can certainly see where the dynamics changed in the show.

Vera and Flo were the highlights, and Alice was pretty much a passive background character---her part in the episode wasn't very memorable at all. Naturally Vera had a lot of lines and laughs since the episode was centered around her, but while Flo was a supporting character in it, she had much funnier lines and got so many more laughs than Alice. That scene in the movie theater, when Flo and Alice are hiding in the back, it seemed like Alice was just mumbling plain lines, but every line Flo had was a zinger! Even Mel's part seemed more involved than Alice's.

And it was really funny when the popcorn got thrown at Flo and the drink thrown on Mel, but when the guy dumped the popcorn bucket on Alice and she mugged the camera wearing it---it just wasn't funny---and she was obviously trying to be funny. Alice can be a funny character, but she was such a plain straight man in this episode that it wasn't a big laugh for me. It would have have been much funnier had it been Flo, Mel, or Vera.

If this is how many of the following episodes were---Flo getting bigger and more laughs, and Alice more of a plain background character not doing much or generating much interest---then I can definitely see where Linda got her ego inflated. I don't condone that, I can just see where she thought that "Flo" might have been stealing attention, the spotlight, etc.

Very interesting...

I loved this episode though, especially the movie theater scenes!

mstewart · 06-12-2007, 07:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TALLguyinKY

Wow, after last night's wonderful episode, "Vera's Popcorn Romance", I can certainly see where the dynamics changed in the show.

Vera and Flo were the highlights, and Alice was pretty much a passive background character---her part in the episode wasn't very memorable at all. Naturally Vera had a lot of lines and laughs since the episode was centered around her, but while Flo was a supporting character in it, she had much funnier lines and got so many more laughs than Alice. That scene in the movie theater, when Flo and Alice are hiding in the back, it seemed like Alice was just mumbling plain lines, but every line Flo had was a zinger! Even Mel's part seemed more involved than Alice's.

And it was really funny when the popcorn got thrown at Flo and the drink thrown on Mel, but when the guy dumped the popcorn bucket on Alice and she mugged the camera wearing it---it just wasn't funny---and she was obviously trying to be funny. Alice can be a funny character, but she was such a plain straight man in this episode that it wasn't a big laugh for me. It would have have been much funnier had it been Flo, Mel, or Vera.

If this is how many of the following episodes were---Flo getting bigger and more laughs, and Alice more of a plain background character not doing much or generating much interest---then I can definitely see where Linda got her ego inflated. I don't condone that, I can just see where she thought that "Flo" might have been stealing attention, the spotlight, etc.

Very interesting...

I loved this episode though, especially the movie theater scenes!

That was one of the best episodes. That was in season 3 and the show was hitting its stride that year.

I noticed that Linda Lavin, Alice Hyatt, was looking more attractive. She wasn't as plain looking as she was in the previous seasons. Her hair was getting longer and looked more styled.

You are going to see Flo getting a lot more laughs. Polly Holliday definitely hit her stride playing Flo that season. The cast had more rhythm in their performances that year. Alice Hyatt was a lower class version of Mary Richards but not as interesting as Mary.

TALLguyinKY · 06-12-2007, 07:49 PM

I agree, this is one of the best episodes I've seen!

Linda did look nice, and the 70s flowers in her hair are a nice touch.

And yeah, Alice isn't anywhere near as interesting as Mary Richards. Mary was plucky and had cute little nervous/anxious/timid quirks. She was such an endearing, loveable character.

Ireneparalegal · 06-12-2007, 07:51 PM

Flo is a great character. One of the most memorable characters in tv history. You can't hide the fact that Flo with that accent, that hair and that "attitude" is what made her hysterically funny and a stand-out. However, it works well on ALICE, her own spin-off wasn't so great to watch. All that chemistry on ALICE blended so well together and it was a shame that Flo left under the circumstances that she did.

Here is a link to a thread I made a long while back regarding Polly Holliday and an interview she did on INSIDER:

http://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/...&highlight=Flo

06-12-2007, 06:25 PM	#1
TALLguyinKY Member Senior Member Join Date: Mar 18, 2002 Posts: 1,439	Move over Alice, Florence Jean Castleberry's headed to the spotlight... Wow, after last night's wonderful episode, "Vera's Popcorn Romance", I can certainly see where the dynamics changed in the show. Vera and Flo were the highlights, and Alice was pretty much a passive background character---her part in the episode wasn't very memorable at all. Naturally Vera had a lot of lines and laughs since the episode was centered around her, but while Flo was a supporting character in it, she had much funnier lines and got so many more laughs than Alice. That scene in the movie theater, when Flo and Alice are hiding in the back, it seemed like Alice was just mumbling plain lines, but every line Flo had was a zinger! Even Mel's part seemed more involved than Alice's. And it was really funny when the popcorn got thrown at Flo and the drink thrown on Mel, but when the guy dumped the popcorn bucket on Alice and she mugged the camera wearing it---it just wasn't funny---and she was obviously trying to be funny. Alice can be a funny character, but she was such a plain straight man in this episode that it wasn't a big laugh for me. It would have have been much funnier had it been Flo, Mel, or Vera. If this is how many of the following episodes were---Flo getting bigger and more laughs, and Alice more of a plain background character not doing much or generating much interest---then I can definitely see where Linda got her ego inflated. I don't condone that, I can just see where she thought that "Flo" might have been stealing attention, the spotlight, etc. Very interesting... I loved this episode though, especially the movie theater scenes!

06-12-2007, 07:51 PM	#4
Ireneparalegal LEGAL SPICE ;) Forum Legend Join Date: Jul 25, 2005 Location: OXNARD, CA - WHERE THE DALLAS COWBOYS TRAIN & PRACTICE Posts: 38,691	Flo is a great character. One of the most memorable characters in tv history. You can't hide the fact that Flo with that accent, that hair and that "attitude" is what made her hysterically funny and a stand-out. However, it works well on ALICE, her own spin-off wasn't so great to watch. All that chemistry on ALICE blended so well together and it was a shame that Flo left under the circumstances that she did. Here is a link to a thread I made a long while back regarding Polly Holliday and an interview she did on INSIDER: http://www.sitcomsonline.com/boards/...&highlight=Flo
	__________________ DALLAS COWBOYS ARE HERE AT TRAINING CAMP!!!

06-12-2007, 07:49 PM	#3
TALLguyinKY Member Senior Member Join Date: Mar 18, 2002 Posts: 1,439	I agree, this is one of the best episodes I've seen! Linda did look nice, and the 70s flowers in her hair are a nice touch. And yeah, Alice isn't anywhere near as interesting as Mary Richards. Mary was plucky and had cute little nervous/anxious/timid quirks. She was such an endearing, loveable character.