Episode 192 - Striptease: LIVE!

[JoelSchlosberg 352]

Did anyone else notice how similar the logo in the poster and the font of the opening credits is to the title design of a very different work of cinema that begins with the letters S, T and R?

 

 

 

They both seem to be based on a font called ITC Benguiat - and most of the differences were changes made for the Stranger Things logo:

 

 

 

The logo is admittedly and obviously a throwback to '80s horror book covers by the likes of Stephen King, but I like to think that it's also a nod to how even Eleven would be horrified by some of the sights of Striptease:

 

[JoelSchlosberg 352]

According to a 1996 CNN article "Demi Moore puts her all into movie roles" Ms. Moore did in fact "research" her role at real-life strip clubs:

 

And yes, she did research for her role as a dancer.

 

"I went to Club Tier in New York, I've been to clubs in Florida and Los Angeles and various places," said Moore. "You know, on my path of enlightenment of the stripping world."

 

And on that path, Moore says, she found some women just like the one she plays, and one that was even doing better than her character in the movie.

 

"(There was) one in particular who I was most fascinated with because she was a mother of two," Moore said. "So beautiful this girl, (she) had two kids in private school, owned her own home, had a rental property, had her own car, had live-in help, was able to work nights and have her days available to her children, which meant she spent more time with them."

[Cameron H. 23786]

Did anyone else notice how similar the logo in the poster and the font of the opening credits is to the title design of a very different work of cinema that begins with the letters S, T and R?

 

Do you think the kerning represents the Upside Down?

[Smigg. 509]

Swear to god, my mind's eye was picturing "Until it Sleeps" when reading the title, and the whole time I was thinking to myself "Ginger Lynn wasn't in that video." Then I reread it and felt foolish.

 

 

To be fair, Until It Sleeps is also a belting video.

 

[Cameron H. 23786]

If Shad thinks whatever the fuck was going on with Stuart Pankin’s face in the morgue looks “like lasagna,” remind me never to eat over at his house.

[Cam Bert 8145]

TIL: Strip clubs in Florida are sticklers for correct grammar and formatting.

[PollyDarton 1807]

Did anyone else notice how similar the logo in the poster and the font of the opening credits is to the title design of a very different work of cinema that begins with the letters S, T and R?

Do you think the kerning represents the Upside Down?

^Me when I see people making font observations.

[sycasey 2.0 2301]

While I would never defend this garbage movie, I will say that Carl Hiaasen's original novel is quite good. It's very funny, makes its villains far less ridiculous and bumbling, and has Erin as a much more professional stripper. She is passionate about her work and genuinely enjoys it. None of this reluctant "i'm just doing this for my daughter" act. And she doesn't look down on her industry or co-workers. It's been years since I read the novel. I remember having very high hopes for the movie. Burt Reynolds actually would have been great casting if he had been directed to be more like the character in the book. It's a shame the adaptation was such a disaster.

 

I haven't read this one, but having read other Hiaasen books I suspected as much. His writing doesn't take on the same moralistic tone the movie does. Heck, just reading the plot summary from Wikipedia, it says that in the book Erin doesn't lose custody just because she lost her job, rather she was in the middle of a custody battle and lost because the judge found out about her stripping and looked down upon it. First of all, that immediately makes more sense than what we got in the movie. Secondly, it probably better functions as a satire/criticism of the moralizing judge, not the strippers themselves.

 

This was a weird thing in the 90s, where you had movies and TV that wanted to leer at the seedier aspects of culture but also had to have some old-fashioned moral lession couched within them. Like how Jerry Springer would do some disingenuous speech at the end of his show talking about how bad what we just watched was. Please, Jerry, you know we were there to watch the freaks and weirdos fight! Similarly, this movie just can't wait to get to the stripping. It rolls over the plot setup like a speedbump, just so we can get to the naked ladies. And then it tries to get all emotional on us about Erin and her daughter. Pfft.

 

That said, I did appreciate how committed Burt Reynolds was to playing his weirdo Congressman character. That shot of him with a signed photo of Newt Gingrich in the frame, seemingly as some kind of meta-commentary on Congressmen's terrible hairstyles . . . loved it.

 

[RyanSz 3140]

Seeing that photo reminds me of something when I saw this movie, it is unsettling to see old Burt Reynolds without facial hair. It worked in his younger years when he was in Deliverance or Longest Yard, but with shock white hair and being oiled up, it just doesn't sit well with me for some unknown reason.

[Cam Bert 8145]

The subject of Ving Rhames and the ridiculous yogurt plan have already been made fun of but there is so many ways that it makes no sense that haven't been touched upon. First, the plan. He was going to claim the fright from finding a beetle in his yogurt made his hair fall out. As discussed bad plan because he's never had hair but what makes it an even worse plan is there have been dozens and dozens of cases of people finding weird objects like fingers, rats, bugs, etc. in their food and not one of them sued because of lose of hair. No, they all sued because there was a foreign object in their food. Why bring the hair into it at all? Second, where was he going to discover this yogurt beetle? If you work for the legal department of America's number one yogurt and you get a case where a man found a beetle in his yogurt your first question is not going to be "how's the hair?" No, rather you'd ask where was this and what was he doing. He was eating it at home, okay then how do we know he didn't put in there himself if nobody else was around. They're not going to instantly cut a check because they get claims like this all the time. So was Ving Rhames planning on eating this in public and creating a scene? Was he planning on wearing a wig and doing this? Third, he opened the yogurt, removed the protective seal and left it unrefrigerated. This is just going to make you sick if you wait too long. Also, he takes it to his lawyers and leaves it in their fridge. Not to mention that he leaves in fridge right next to multiple packages of the same yogurt. Not in a bag or on a different shelf, rather he just puts a sticky note with his name on it. As anybody that works in an office can tell you, that means nothing! Why did he even bring it to the lawyers in the first place? To show him what a good job he did? Was he going to eat it there? That doesn't seem fishy you finding a beetle in your yogurt while at the office of a huckster lawyer. Nope that's on the level. There are so many ways that this would not work and make no sense, and that's not even taking into account is the type of beetle he's putting in the yogurt even native to where ever it is packaged and made.

[FrancisRizzo3 212]

I know it was touched on that the lighting in the Eager Beaver is too elaborate for such a club (and it is, considering how dramatic it is during Erin's first dance) but I was wondering who exactly is running that lighting. There's no way a club like that has a computerized system (hell, the idea that they have robotic lighting like the ones in the ceiling is ridiculous.) There are maybe four non-dancing employees seen in the film (the owner, Shad, grown-up Samm Levine and the bartender) and the one who might be working the lights--the DJ--definitely isn't, as he can be spotted clapping (completely out of rhythm) to the music. Since the owner was looking at creamed-corn wrestling as a way of making money, I doubt he sprung for a lighting tech.

[FrancisRizzo3 212]

As I own this motion picture on Blu-ray (jealous?) I got to enjoy the benefit of a high-definition image, and saw a sign on the wall that says "No more that 3 girls in the dressing room at one time." Now, it makes sense as a business practice (the owner would want girls on the stage and floor bringing in more money) but it's a rule that is never followed. At one point there are at least 10 girls backstage, and there are usually around four or five. Now, we know Shad is terrible at his job, but Orly wasn't likely to let this slide.

 

On a similar note, there's another sign that says "Haircuts Tue & Thur - 7:00 to 9:00" I can't even begin to explain that one.

[FrancisRizzo3 212]

Maybe I missed it, but how did Jerry know about Erin's custody battle? It doesn't seem like girls at the Eager Beaver interact much with customers (walk on stage, then off) so how in the world did he have this knowledge? The only thing I could come up with is the fact that she unbelievably danced under her real name, and Jerry the crazy stalker tracked her down through court records. This would tie in well with the fact that they found photos of Erin all over his place (which is another issue, since, at the time, they would have no real way of knowing who this woman is.) Where did Jerry get photos of Erin? I don't believe taking photos is normal at strip clubs. Jerry was a dangerous man.

[Cameron H. 23786]

...that's not even taking into account is the type of beetle he's putting in the yogurt even native to where ever it is packaged and made.

 

I mean, we can dig into this if you want...

 

In order for Shad to get the biggest payout, he has to prove that the roach got into his cup of yogurt where it was packaged. If he can't do that, then the defense will probably argue that the roach got into his yogurt cup sometime during distribution and would make the case that they cannot guarantee the condition of their products during transit. At best, Shad could maybe sue the distributor or seller, but it would be a lesser payout, and more than likely, they will point to the fact that if roach got in there after packaging, it means that the seal was already broken. They could then make the argument that he shouldn't have been eating it anyway (caveat emptor - let the buyer beware). So the *only* way for his plan to conceivably work is if he can prove the roach got into the cup during the packaging process.

 

While the name of the yogurt company is never specified in the movie (for good reason), we do know that it is the "best-selling" brand in America. The only yogurt brand at that time that could probably come close to that distinction is Yoplait. Yoplait is a French company that has only one franchisee in America: General Mills. General MiIls is headquartered out of Minneapolis, Minnesota, but has 49 production facilities across America. Of those facilities, only ONE (in Covington, GA) is located in an area that is within the natural habitat for the Florida Woods cockroach (or Palmetto bug). Does Shad even know if that facility packages yogurt? I mean, his case is going to fall apart really quick if he they don't. What if they only do cereal there?

 

I'm just saying, unless he's just hoping for a cash settlement, he better be aware that's it probably going to take a little more than "put bug in yogurt, make money."

[FrancisRizzo3 212]

When the bodyguards shoot at the congressman, Terminator and Erin, the congressman says "That's why I voted against gun control. Weapons can end up in the wrong hands."

 

Isn't that the entire point of gun control?

[FrancisRizzo3 212]

Nevermind.

[Cam Bert 8145]

I'm just saying, unless he's just hoping for a cash settlement, he better be aware that's it probably going to take a little more than "put bug in yogurt, make money."

Exactly! But let's go even further!

 

Let's assume they were planning on suing. As he was never planning on actually consuming the insect, rather his plan was discovery and shock, there are no real damages. When perusing a case in a foreign object in food case there are two main factors to consider, liability and damages. Now as you mentioned the question of whose liability is in doubt. There is a beetle in my yogurt that shouldn't be there but who is at fault. They'd need to pinpoint exactly who is liable for this act. Like you said this is difficult. However the main thing missing in his case is damages. The only "damage" he can claim is emotional distress. "I can never eat yogurt again, I am too traumatized." However, given that yogurt is a food item which can easily be avoided or cut out of a diet there is not real long lasting emotional damages to be had. Yes it was shocking to discover it in your yogurt, but that's that. To actually mount a case he is looking at approximately $1,000 dollars in time with the lawyer, filling fees, and to put the motion forward. However, emotional damages can be a token amount to a large amount. It could be so low he only gets the value of the yogurt back which is very likely.

 

As they legally have no real leg to stand on and emotional damages are a gamble the best Shad could hope for is to bring their case to Yoplait and threaten to go to the media about it. At that point Yoplait would have to do some mental math as to how much this news would effect the brand, how much potential sells would be lost, etc. Realistically this would be a small blip. It might make the national news and the rounds but it would quickly be forgotten as well. In fact if they go straight to the media and potential damage would be said and done before they even file. Thus hurting their case even more.

 

On top of that the FDA does cover for a certain amount of insect parts and materials to be in your food products. In fact, if there is only one yogurt that contains insect parts out of a whole line, that is say less than 0.1% of yogurts produced by General Mills/Yoplait contained insect matter (allbeit a whole insect) that would fall perfectly within the FDA regulations. Again further hurting Shad's case. They're the number one company they would make them a low ball offer or even and apology and free yogurt which is another likely case. If not accepted knowing they have FDA guidelines and no real damages on their side they could have them jump through hopes and paper work so if they ever did actually go to court they'd be getting less money that they put in.

 

So bug in yogurt is a long gamble on the courts finding you deserving of high level of emotional damage but in the end Shad will probably have to put more money in than he'll get out of it.

[RyanSz 3140]

The yogurt thing was the most realistic thing in the entire film, simply for the fact that there are people in the world that are that stupid to think that that plan would work. In the last four years I have personally seen or heard about numerous get rich quick schemes from inmates and they are all at this level of terrible. This includes the number of suits I've seen filed by "sovereign citizens" who if you don't know who they are check out some videos on youtube and see how bonkers they are. So to see Shad thinking he would get a big payout for a stupid roach yogurt plan was the only thing that actually landed for me.

[taylor anne photo 11311]

The yogurt thing was the most realistic thing in the entire film, simply for the fact that there are people in the world that are that stupid to think that that plan would work. In the last four years I have personally seen or heard about numerous get rich quick schemes from inmates and they are all at this level of terrible. This includes the number of suits I've seen filed by "sovereign citizens" who if you don't know who they are check out some videos on youtube and see how bonkers they are. So to see Shad thinking he would get a big payout for a stupid roach yogurt plan was the only thing that actually landed for me.

And, in all fairness to Shad, someone did get McDonald's to pay up for spilling coffee on themselves. So this whole idea is not out of the realm of possibility.

[Cameron H. 23786]

And, in all fairness to Shad, someone did get McDonald's to pay up for spilling coffee on themselves. So this whole idea is not out of the realm of possibility.

 

To be fair, she wasn't suing because she spilled her coffee. She was suing because the coffee was served too hot (190 degrees). When she spilled her coffee, it caused third degree burns which required hospitalization and skin grafts. She also only sought money for her medical expenses and time lost from work (approx $18,000). McDonalds only offered her $800. That's why she sued. She didn't make millions off of the deal, either.

 

Cam and I aren't saying the lawsuit isn't frivolous. We're just saying he's probably going to lose.

[sycasey 2.0 2301]

When the bodyguards shoot at the congressman, Terminator and Erin, the congressman says "That's why I voted against gun control. Weapons can end up in the wrong hands."

 

Isn't that the entire point of gun control?

 

I could not tell if this was supposed to be a statement (by the movie) for or against gun control. On the one hand, he says this. On the other hand, this character is presented as an idiot.

[taylor anne photo 11311]

 

To be fair, she wasn't suing because she spilled her coffee. She was suing because the coffee was served too hot (190 degrees). When she spilled her coffee, it caused third degree burns which required hospitalization and skin grafts. She also only sought money for her medical expenses and time lost from work (approx &18,000). McDonalds only offered her $800. That's why she sued. She didn't make millions off of the deal, either.

 

Cam and I aren't saying the lawsuit isn't frivolous. We're just saying he's probably going to lose.

Cameron, I know...

 

I didn't go into specifics because I figured we all knew this story...

[hotironskillet 137]

Here are my stray thoughts on this movie:<

 

 

Shad, the bouncer who is terrible at his job, seems to be using a drill to threaten people with like one would with a gun, at various points in the movie.

 

At one point, they show Shad, who again is a terrible bouncer, openly watering down liquor at the bar. First, why is it the bouncer's job to do this and secondly, why would they do it right out in the open on a busy night?

 

Is the subcommittee on sugar on actual thing? I did some pretty basic research on this and found no such subcommittee. Sugar policy is probably discussed in the House Committee on Agriculture but I don't think they have their own separate subcommittee.

 

Edited July 9, 2018 by hotironskillet

[Geans 193]

I was at this show, and I just wanted to pop in to say that during June's moment, Paul and Jason basically put their mics down the whole time. No one was waiting to jump in (they are better than this, of course, but some comedians would...). Anyway I just wanted to say that it really struck me as a powerful visual. Made me love HDTGM even more.

[Cameron H. 23786]

I was at this show, and I just wanted to pop in to say that during June's moment, Paul and Jason basically put their mics down the whole time. No one was waiting to jump in (they are better than this, of course, but some comedians would...). Anyway I just wanted to say that it really struck me as a powerful visual. Made me love HDTGM even more.

 

That’s very cool