Fans,
Yesterday, I revisited the DVD Talk review of DS The Beginning collection III to help out a friend who's hoping to rent some Laura Collins episodes soon on his new Netflix account. (From what I can determine, the third set ends before the introduction of Laura Collins in December of '66.) Despite the hyperbolic language, I enjoyed the writer's description of our own beloved Big Lou, Louis Edmonds, and Mitchell Ryan in these classic shows. A couple of corrections: Louis WASN'T closeted (read the excellent biography of him, Big Lou, by the late, much lamented Craig Hamrick, to get more details about how blisteringly honest Mr. Edmonds was about his sexuality and every other aspect of his life), and however fey Roger's wardrobe may have occasionally seemed to the eye of a 2008 viewer, he was NEVER in drag. (I sometimes think that Roger's PT 1970 counterpart occasionally sported invisible drag--but that's another story for another time).
The passage:
[...]episodes 71 to 105 truly belong to two people. The first is Big Lou - Louis Edmonds. A closeted homosexual in the days when being gay meant possible physical harm (not to mention industry blackballing), his Roger Collins is nothing more than a drag version of a spoiled rotten dandy. With a voice so clipped he could cut glass, and a mannerism so foppish he practically channels Oscar Wilde, Edmonds owns this storyline - and with good reason. Roger is the center of all the intrigue. He's the supposedly guilty party Burke is trying to blame. He's the source of young son David's ongoing homicidal streak. He uses Victoria as an alibi and then turns around and threatens her. And he pitches one mean hissy. Indeed, Edmonds makes many of these early installments, saving us from otherwise drab line readings and strained New York stage acting. The other creative catalyst is Mitchell Ryan. As the conniving and scheming Devlin, he does everything except chew the scenery - and that's only because Big Lou leaves very little backdrop behind when he finishes with a performance. Ryan is the manlier yin to Edmonds yang, and together they create an engaging cat and mouse. (end)
The other thing that I would add is that as far as I'm concerned, all the members of the regular cast did stellar work in this part of the story. I would particularly mention Joan Bennett who has some of her best scenes, and Alexandra Moltke who gets to play a much more knowing, thoughtful Vicki than we get to see later on.
Have a nice weekend, fans!
cheers, G.
