1990:
The trivia:
- Long before the hugely successful musical comedy series concerning the William McKinley High School Glee Club, there was another TV show that tried to fuse drama with big show tunes. "Cop Rock" was created by "Hill Street Blues" supremo Stephen Bochco and centred on the Los Angeles Police Department as they went about their usual duties, but routinely broke out into musical and dance numbers throughout the storylines. It's bizarre nature and a critical drubbing meant it lasted a mere eleven episodes.
- An even quicker departure from TV screens was the fate of an incredibly ill-considered "situation comedy" from fledgling UK satellite TV channel 'Galaxy'. "Heil Honey I'm Home!" was a parody of early American domestic comedies with their corny characters and wildly applauding audiences. The problem was that the situation was Adolf Hitler and his wife Eva Braun living in Berlin and repeatedly trying to get rid of their Jewish neighbours next door! Needless to say although a number of episodes were recorded, only one was ever shown amidst a storm of protests and the whole thing was quietly shoved under the carpet never to be seen again.
- Launched in October 1990, the now world famous Internet Movie Database (IMDb) started life as a Usenet posting by British film fan Colin Needham. Back then however it was known as "Those Eyes" and its sole interest was...actresses with beautiful eyes.
Twin Peaks
It's hard to believe that twenty-six years after it ended, here I am able to turn on my television screen and watch brand new episodes of "Twin Peaks". I don't think I have been this excited about the revival of a TV show since "Doctor Who" came back in 2005. This is probably because when it first aired on British screens in 1990, "Twin Peaks" became something that consumed me.
To be honest I don't really want to talk about the minutiae of the plot or the quality of the scripts and actors and programme makers. Far better people than I have written thousands of words on the subject and there have been lots of articles and look-backs in recent months leading up to the revival. But for the sake of those who may have been living under a rock, let 's get the basic information out of the way first - the stuff that pretty much everyone is aware of even if they have never watched the show, because it's seeped into the public consciousness. Mark Frost and David Lynch. Special Agent Dale Cooper. Who killed Laura Palmer? A body wrapped in plastic. Damn fine coffee and cherry pie. One-armed men, giants, a red curtained room and lots of weird stuff that no one quite understands.
But "Twin Peaks" was so much more that just an odd murder / mystery / soap opera. As it's popularity grew during those weeks of October / November 1990, my friends and I began to get together to watch the show, having weekly Twin Peaks evenings where we could view the episode and then chat about what it all meant. The haunting music by Angelo Badalamenti became our soundtrack. We poured over the details, every new snippet of information in newspapers and magazines. Considering the UK was six months behind original transmission at the start (we caught up significantly by the end of season two), I don't remember any spoilers leaking out about the shooting of Agent Cooper at the end of episode eight. Luckily we only had to wait over the Christmas break before finding out the resolution...
That meant I personally had time to read "The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer" - an official 'novel' which fleshed out the personal history of the tragic teenager and her descent into a world of prostitution, drugs and the manipulations of an evil creature called BOB. It was the perfect way to continue my fascination with the series and it's characters.
When the programme returned in January it was full steam head into 22 episodes of drama, weirdness and horror. The revelation of Laura's killer was just the start. I know I may be in the minority here, but I really enjoyed the involvement of Cooper's old partner Windom Earle and the lengths he went to to gain access to the Black Lodge. The more mystery and mythology the show added the better as far as I was concerned - which meant that the final episode was an astonishing mix of the mundane and the mad, culminating in one of the best cliffhangers in TV history.
Sadly there was to be no immediate follow-up. But I consoled myself with the other assorted official merchandise. "The Autobiography of FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper" gave a lot of background to the unconventional agent. "Twin Peaks: An Access Guide to the Town" was my travellers guide. But my favourite was "Diane... - The Twin Peaks Tapes of Agent Cooper". Performed by Kyle MacLachlan, this was a cassette tape only release which consisted of newly recorded Cooper messages to his unseen assistant Diane, mixed in with sound clips from the broadcasts. This was material set both before and during his trip to Twin Peaks and included Cooper being shot and recovering afterwards. It was as close as I could come to a new episode.
Of course in 1992 we did get something new, although "Fire Walk With Me" wasn't quite what I personally had in mind. It's disturbing narrative and time-twisting prequel / sequel nature meant that on first viewing many didn't get it - including, I hate to admit, me. It's not a "Twin Peaks" continuation - it's more a David Lynch horror movie set in the same world. Of course subsequently I came to realise what a brilliant piece of cinema it is and how it draws so many of the themes together.
I continued to stay connected to "Twin Peaks" fandom over the next couple of years, buying the regular fanzine "Wrapped In Plastic" from Win-Mill Productions. But by the time that folded in 1996 any sign of a third series was a non-existent and the television world had moved onto other things - and to be honest so had I. But the series (and my interest in it) was always there at the back of my mind, and I eagerly purchased the various DVD and Blu-ray box sets as they came out, relishing the additional material each one provided.
Over the years rumours continued to surface of a continuation / mini-series / film to explain everything and resolve the dangling plotlines but they never came to anything until...well, here we are in 2017 with eighteen new episodes written and directed by the mastermind behind it all. Judging from the first few I have watched, this is pure unfiltered Lynch - unrestrained by corporate network interference and able to deliver his vision the way he wants to. I couldn't be happier.
Honourable mentions:
- Parker Lewis Can't Lose - In the wake of the success of the 1986 movie "Ferris Bueller's Day Off", the Fox TV network debuted a high school comedy series that riffed on the same idea of a student constantly getting one over on the teachers and other antagonists. The difference was that "Parker Lewis Can't Lose" embraced a far more surreal element that saw it teeter on the edge of destroying the fourth wall. As the titular cool guy, Corin Nemec strolled through the halls of Santo Domingo High with his best buds with unshakeable self confidence, a plan for every situation and an endless supply of loud shirts. Every episode brought a new problem - whether it was outwitting the machinations of the Cruella de Vil-like Principal Musso or Parker's own maniacal little sister. There was an almost Chuck Jones cartoon-like quality to the production, with endless sight gags, visual cues and pop culture references (that will seem incredibly outdated by now). Importantly it was one of the first shows that I ever watched on satellite television. Late 1990 was the year that we got a Sky dish after my parents had initially gone with the "squariel" dish and the five BSB channels - not the first time that my dad backed the loser in a technology race. In a plethora of new imported shows on "Sky Channel", this little comedy stood out as being fresh and different, even if it'a a little cheesy.
- Dances With Wolves - Kevin Costner's epic historical western which tells the story of a Union Lieutenant and his relationship with a tribe of Lakota Indians was my favourite film of the year by a wide margin. Although I was already a fan of the genre through exposure to the classics by my parents, I vividly remember going to the cinema with my friends and being blown away (even if the projectionist did get the screen ratio wrong at the beginning so everything was squashed and had to start the reel again). This was also a time where a three hour long movie was rare, which made the whole thing seem even more of an event (the eventual four-hour special edition was even better). Like "Jaws", I have bought multiple versions over the years in different formats, along with the Oscar-winning soundtrack by John Barry.
- Postcards From The Edge - The film version of the late Carrie Fisher's semi-autobiographical novel starring Meryl Streep, Shirley MacLaine and Dennis Quaid is a quality piece of drama. But it's on purely this list because of how much I love the song - "I'm Checkin' Out" - that Meryl's character Suzanne Vale performs in the closing moments. Even if you don't like country music, it's still a fantastic performance:
- The Crystal Maze - The original and best version of the classic puzzle-solving adventure game show with mercurial host Richard O'Brien. The challenge saw teams of contestants travelling across four different "zones" to compete in a series of different mental, physical, skill or 'mystery' games against the clock. Each successful game won a time crystal. These allowed the players a certain amount of time in the "Crystal Dome" where they had to collect as many gold tokens as possible from those blown into the air by gigantic fans. Getting over a certain number of gold tokens won the prize - usually activity days out. O'Brien was a perfect if unconventional host - genial and welcoming but also quick with a deadpan quip and jokes to camera about the contestants stupidity. His presence made the programme hugely successful and I religiously watched every week. After his departure it limped on with Ed Tudor-Pole but it was never the same. However the format is so well remembered and loved that a 2017 revival has just started and there are even two real world version you can take part in. I must get a team together...
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