Author Archives: robin
Before They Were Stars: 12-Year Old Ryan Gosling is Interviewed on “Canada AM”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmbRPuQ5oM4 It seems like every other week, someone uncovers an obscure clip from Ryan Gosling’s youth and I could probably sustain my “Before They Were Stars” features with nothing but Ryan Gosling footage, particularly since he originally hails from The … Continue reading
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Before They Were Stars: Alan Arkin Sings “Day-O” in “Calypso Heat Wave”
In last week’s Shouts From the Back Row podcast about our favourite movie musical numbers, we naturally mentioned the famous dinner scene in Beetlejuice where the characters all break out into a spontaneous dance number set to Harry Belafonte’s “Day-O” … Continue reading
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Before They Were Stars: John Goodman in A&W Root Beer Commercials
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dxn99e6WSRc John Goodman acted in a shitload of commercials before he became famous. In the mid-eighties, he became a bit of a spokesman for A&W and appeared in quite a few of their ads as a guy who gets mocked … Continue reading
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Before They Were Stars: 14-Year Old Zach Braff on “The Baby-Sitters Club”
You’re probably familiar with the very popular children’s book series, The Baby-Sitters Club. Well, in 1990, the Disney Channel produced a short-lived TV series based on the books and one of the episodes just happened to feature a guest appearance … Continue reading
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Before They Were Stars: 14-Year Old Michelle Williams on “Home Improvement”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BwSXSEQ0E2I Today, we celebrate the birthday of Earl Hindman, a.k.a. the guy who played Wilson on Home Improvement. And ironically enough, the Home Improvement episode entitled “Wilson’s Girlfriend” concluded with a “Before They Were Stars” moment: an early role for … Continue reading
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Robin’s Underrated Gems: City of the Living Dead (1980)
As Halloween grows closer, it s about time that “Robin’s Underrated Gems” finally put the spotlight on a film from the director who is known as the “Italian Godfather of Gore”: Lucio Fulci. Unlike many horror filmmakers, Fulci did not … Continue reading
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Before They Were Stars: 14-Year Old Rachel Weisz on “Good Morning Britain”
At the age of fourteen, Rachel Weisz started a modelling career and was even offered a major role in the Richard Gere film, King David. She decided to turn the role down in order to focus on her education and … Continue reading
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Before They Were Stars: Alex Trebek Hosts “Music Hop”
While it may seem like Alex Trebek has been hosting Jeopardy! since the invention of television, he actually worked a LOT of different TV gigs before he took over that show. In fact, next year will officially mark the 50th … Continue reading
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Before They Were Stars: James Cromwell in a Pillsbury Commercial
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h35uqQp360s Man, it seems like a lot of future stars did Pillsbury commercials in the late 1970s. I’ve already posted old ads featuring Drew Barrymore and George Wendt, and now here’s character actor extraordinaire James Cromwell shilling Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls … Continue reading
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Before They Were Stars: Chris Rock in a Student Documentary Short
In 1989, a New York University film student named Michael J. Dennis decided to make a documentary short and really hit the jackpot when he found his subject: a young up-and-coming comedian named Chris Rock. The end result was called … Continue reading
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