h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Good to see that Beaver wasn't all that dry then. And surely coming from a tropical place like India might make you susceptible to fevers of some kind. It is remarkable that British accents didn't give people prestige in Beaver, the way they do now. Of course it might cause people to distrust you as most movie and quite a number of TV shows feature British speakers as villains.

I've often put forward a theory on why all the villains are English and the heroes are American.

To be a hero, you just have to look pretty. But to be a convincing villain, you have to be able to act

They certainly get the better lines, but on the other hand Americans tend to treat the actors better than their home folk. You've lost Tim Roth, Liam Neeson and several others to the US. But the classical training that the British stage offers, has no US eqivalent. But a lot of Americans are putoff by British snobishness. They even treat their own best people shabily if they are from the wrong class no matter how talented they are.

Aye, and there's no reason why US actors couldn't act well with the right training.

Maybe some sort of academy should be set up by the movie houses?

Amen to that. The US has suffered for far too long from the errors of the Stanislavsky Method. It's a curse, I tell you...

When you see what an actor like Damien Lewis can do with an American role, you just want to cry. He's so great at it. Or Hugh dancy. Then you watch Cruise, De Niro, Damon, et al, and just groan.

Right now, we're rewatching episode of 'Medium'. Very nice actor playing the lady's husband, a regular joe rocket scientist type. Ah, the down-to-earth New Mexico-ness of him...where was he born? Er, London. Of co8urse, ,he DID go to university in Vermont...

Well I think a number of good actors have tried to set up schools here--including a number of high schools that specialize in the performing arts. But we really have nothing like RADA or Old Vic. I think the problem is that Southern California is rather than being snobbish and having a lovie cult,is rather lookist an judges by appearances. Then there are the soap operas which get people some of the skills they need but the stories are all various cliches and so they don't get to have to exibit subtle emotions. Soap opera experience helps actors get used to blocking and memorizing lots of drivelly dialog quickly but that certainly doesn't help you with rich high-tone speech that is required by Shakespear. It might be how 'fame' is reckoned. I don't know but when I watch Liam Neeson or Damian Lewis I am wowed. There is a big difference between stage actors and film stars. Film stars just play themselves in different costumes. Frank Langella is one of the few really good American actors I know.

Sorry, that was me under Post Team.