#Cleavant Derricks

[evilhorse]

Sliders Special #2: Blood and Splendor

[tuttle-did-it]

Mark Sheppard in Sliders (4.15, "Net Worth")

Episode aired Jan 11, 1999

[raven-curls]

X X

[lobbycards]

Moscow on the Hudson, US Lobby Card #7. 1984

[theonlyadawong]

anyways wildest fact abt dreamgirls (musical) is that it was written, directed, and choreographed entirely by white people

[lizardsfromspace]

I didn't submit it to the worst finales thing bc it's too obscure but I have THOUGHTS on the finale to SLIDERS

If you haven't seen it Sliders was a 90s sci-fi adventure show where people travel from universe to universe, hoping the next leap jump is the jump home. The parallel dimensions early on had high-concept premises like "what if the Soviets won the Cold War?" "What if the world prized intellectualism the way ours does sports?" "What if women dominated politics and a man ran to break the glass ceiling?" And also "what if the world was entirely cowboys?" Big, deep philosophical questions

Early Sliders was done pretty well, and had some nice touches - for instance, many bit parts were played by the same actors each time, so we got to see the same minor characters across multiple worlds as well.

Then after two seasons it became a bunch of ripoffs of movie plots, had frequent cast changes, latched onto an arc about an alien invasion, and was cancelled and jumped to Sci-Fi Channel. Jerry O'Connell, star of the show, made them hire his brother, and then both of them left for the final season, which starts with...

The main character merging with his double as he slides into a new world, killing the protagonist, and recasting him, bc somehow, Jerry O'Connell and Jerry O'Connell's brother merged with an alternate Jerry O'Connell results in a different guy.

So there's only one original cast member left, Cleavant Derricks. This show only ran five seasons and only had one guy stay for all of them! So in the final season, naturally, his loyalty is rewarded by giving his character a deadly virus and having him go through the portal to another world, where he may or may not die, and we'll never know bc that's how the show ends

What a series

[onehandonmycamera]

Wicked (Broadway) February 20, 2023

Notes: MK’s second performance as Elphaba s/b on Broadway

Mary Kate Morrissey (s/b Elphaba), McKenzie Kurtz (Glinda), James D. Gish (Fiyero), Michele Pawk (Madame Morrible), Cleavant Derricks (The Wizard), Michael Wartella (Boq), Mikayla Renfrow (Nessarose), Clifton Davis (Dr. Dillamond)

Release Info & Screenshots

[hooked-on-elvis]

"Just A Little Talk With Jesus" (1956)

The Million Dollar Quartet (Jam Session): Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash. December 4, 1956 at Sun Studios, Memphis, Tennessee

LYRICS — "Just A Little Talk With Jesus" Songwriter: Cleavant Derricks I once was lost in sin but Jesus took me in And then a little light from heaven fill my soul He bathed my heart in love and He wrote my name above And just a little talk with Jesus makes me whole Now let us have a little talk with Jesus Let us tell Him all about our troubles He will hear our faintest cry And He will answer by and by And when you feel a little prayer wheel turnin' And you will know a little fire is burnin' Find a little talk with Jesus makes it right I may have doubts and fears My eyes be filled with tears But Jesus is a friend who watches day and night I go to him in prayer He knows my every care And just a little talk with Jesus makes it right Now let us have a little talk with Jesus Let us tell Him all about our troubles He will hear our faintest cry And He will answer by and by And when you feel a little prayer wheel turnin' And you will know a little fire is burnin' You will find a little talk with Jesus makes it right Now let us have a little talk with Jesus Let us tell Him all about our troubles He will hear our faintest cry And He will answer by and by And when you feel a little prayer wheel turnin' And you will know a little fire is burnin' You will find a little talk with Jesus makes it right Right, right, right

The Million Dollar Session. Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Elvis, and Johnny Cash at the Sun Studio, December 4, 1956.

When I listen to Elvis harmonizing in the 50s like that I wonder what went wrong when he tried to get into a gospel quartet a little time before his music career begun. Like, who the hell said his voice didn't fit? I wonder if he was too nervous, too shy to show his singing skills properly on that occasion or either if his voice didn't fit the other members of that quartet because it was too prominent, too thunderous for gospel music as they might have (mistakenly) judged or something - because listening to the Million Dollar Quartet jam session recordings it's clear Elvis' voice took over but in a way that combined perfectly well with the other voices there. Anyway... their loss, our win.

[medium-observation]

April Release!

Beetlejuice - First US National Tour

March 5, 2023 - Medium Observation

Video | Matinée

Cast:

Matthew Michael Janisse (u/s Beetlejuice), Isabella Esler (Lydia Deetz), Britney Coleman (Barbara Maitland), Will Burton (Adam Maitland), Jesse Sharp (Charles Deetz), Kate Marilley (Delia Deetz), Lexie Sharp (u/s Miss Argentina), Abe Goldfarb (Otho), Brian Vaughn (Maxie Dean), Karmine Alers (Maxine Dean/Juno), Jackera Davis (Girl Scout), Morgan Cane Harrison (s/w Ensemble)

Notes:

Matthew's Beetlejuice Debut! great video from the orchestra, with some obstructions on the sides but always worked around. Great color and sound.

NFT Date: October 1, 2023

Screenshots: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjAuG6i

Video is $20

Wicked - Broadway

January 15, 2023 - Medium Observation

Video | Matinée

Cast:

Talia Suskauker (Elphaba), Brittney Johnson (Glinda), Dan Gleason (u/s Fiyero), Cleavant Derricks (The Wizard), Michele Pawk (Madame Morrible), Mikayla Renfrow (Nessarose), Michael Wartella (Boq), Clifton Davis (Doctor Dillamond), Nicky Venditti (u/s Chistery), Mattie Love (u/s Witch's Mother)

Notes:

Absolutely Perfect video with no obstruction, and very little washout.

NFT Date: October 1, 2023

Screenshots: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjAoTmK

Video is $20

Beetlejuice - Broadway Remount

December 13, 2022 - Medium Observation

Video

Cast:

Alex Brightman (Beetlejuice), Dana Steingold (u/s Lydia Deetz), Kerry Butler (Barbara Maitland), David Josefsberg (Adam Maitland), Adam Dannheisser (Charles Deetz), Natalie Charle Ellis (u/s Delia Deetz), Michelle Aravena (Miss Argentina), Kelvin Moon Loh (Otho), Danny Rutigliano (Maxie Dean), Zonya Love (Maxine Dean/Juno), Brooke Leigh Engen (u/s Girl Scout)

Notes:

Nice 4K video of Dana from the orchestra, starts halfway through invisible. The video is on a slight angle and has some shakiness and blackouts but for less than a couple seconds at a time. Overall a nice video and definitely worth a watch due to the book falling into the hole.

NFT Date: October 1, 2023

Screenshots: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjAjzAD

Video is $20

All videos can be purchased through me.

Email to purchase: mediumobservationtrading@gmail.com

[lboogie1906]

Dreamgirls is a Broadway musical, with music by Henry Krieger and lyrics and a book by Tom Eyen. Based on the show business aspirations and successes of R&B acts such as The Supremes, The Shirelles, James Brown, Jackie Wilson, and others, the musical follows the story of a young female singing trio from Chicago called “The Dreams”, who become music superstars.

Staged with a mostly African American cast and originally starring Jennifer Holliday, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Loretta Devine, Ben Harney, Cleavant Derricks, Vondie Curtis-Hall, and Obba Babatundé, the musical opened on December 20, 1981, at the Imperial Theatre on Broadway. The musical was nominated for 13 Tony Awards, including the Tony Award for Best Musical, and won six. It was adapted into a motion picture. #africanhistory365 #africanexcellence

[evilhorse]

Sliders: Darkest Hour #2

[pintsizeddeepthoughts]

25 of 250: Favorite Films - Moscow on the Husdon

Not long ago, work colleagues and I got into a discussion about what our favorite films were. Given my categorical nature I could not resist writing down a list and, as a writing challenge, have decided to write 250 word reviews of my favorite 25 films of all-time. Note: these are my favorite films, not what I think are the best films of all time.

Directed by: Paul Mazursky

Written by: Paul Muzursky and Leon Capetanos

Starring: Robin Williams, Maria Conchita Alonso, Cleavant Derricks

Year/Country: 1984, United States

I watch this film every Fourth of July. Why? Because it shows America at its best. The film tells the story of Vladimir (Williams), a Soviet circus saxophonist who defects to America during a tour in New York City. Before the defection, we follow Vladimir’s life in Soviet Moscow. Director Paul Mazursky films the scenes in Russia in darkness or a gray palette that reflects Vladimir’s mood. In contrast, important scenes in America are filmed in bright sunshine. Case in point - a meet up with Vladimir’s Russian girlfriend happens in the dark in a borrowed apartment; a similar scene of intimacy in America is filmed in the daylight, out in the open, while the couple studies for an American citizenship test.

The late Roger Ebert noted that every single character in the film is either an immigrant or a person of color. This is clearly no accident and it’s a subtle way for Muzursky and co-writer Leon Capetanos to emphasize the promise of America, and its challenges. Last summer I watched this movie with my father-in-law, who immigrated to America from Sicily as a boy. During a pivotal scene, when Vladimir is having a crisis of identity brought on by homesickness, my father-in-law paused the film, pointed, and said, “what he’s feeling, I know that feeling.” That’s how I knew this film was true - it spoke to someone who lived through the same experience. It doesn’t hide from an immigrant’s challenges, which makes the film’s conclusion all the more sweeter.

[jessy-the-martian-girl]

If I recall correctly, this was the first ever tv series that introduced me to the concept of parallel dimensions. When I was around 12 or 14 years old, I saw some VHS tapes at the local rental shop, found the name of the show quite interesting and asked my older brother to rent one of them for home movie evening. I got hooked with the story, but never had a chance to watch all seasons.

[mthguy]

Classic Fosse!

The Broadway company of Big Deal performs “Beat Me Daddy Eight to the Bar” at the 1986 Tony Awards.

Big Deal is a musical with a book by Bob Fosse using songs from various composers such as Ray Henderson, Eubie Blake, and Jerome Kern. It was based on the 1958 film Big Deal on Madonna Street by Mario Monicelli. The musical received five Tony Award nominations, with Fosse winning for Choreography. The production was Fosse's final work, as he died the next year.

Big Deal opened on Broadway at the Broadway Theatre on April 10, 1986, and closed on June 8, 1986, after 69 performances and six previews. Directed and choreographed by Fosse, with Christopher Chadman as associate choreographer, the musical featured Cleavant Derricks as Charley, Loretta Devine as Lilly, Wayne Cilento, Cady Huffman, Valarie Pettiford, and Stephanie Pope.

[moviereviews101web]

Miami Magma (2011) Movie Review

Miami Magma – ABC Film Challenge – Thriller – M – Miami Magma – Movie Review Director: Todor Chapkanov Writer: Declan O’Brien (Screenplay) Cast Rachel Hunter (The Benchwarmers) Brad Dourif (Child’s Play) Cleavant Derricks (Sliders) Melissa Ordway (17 Again) Griff Furst (Focus) Plot: Follows prodigy vulcanologist Antoinette Vitrini and her sister Emily as they attempt to blow the whistle…