Author Archives: robin
Before They Were Stars: Jay Leno Performs Stand-Up on “Freddie Prinze and Friends”
Yesterday marked Jay Leno’s final episode as host of The Tonight Show (for real this time!), so I dug up what may be his earliest existing stand-up footage on Youtube. In 1976, Leno performed on Freddie Prinze and Friends, a stand-up … Continue reading
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Before They Were Stars: 7-Year Old Keira Knightley on “Screen One”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XI1-QHRQQgk A lot of people forget that Keira Knightley is a former child actress who has been acting consistently since the age of seven. Her first job was on the British anthology TV series, Screen One, which featured a 1993 … Continue reading
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Before They Were Stars: 6-Year Old Bruno Mars in “Honeymoon in Vegas”
Last week, I posted a clip of 4-year old Bruno Mars impersonating Elvis on an episode of Pauly Shore’s MTV show. For brief period during the early nineties, Bruno (while going under the name “Bruno Hernandez”) actually had a bit … Continue reading
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Before They Were Stars: Tom Hanks on “The Love Boat”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73r7bJJ-vVc Given what a naturally likable guy Tom Hanks is, it’s amusing to see that he was often cast to play douchebags early on in his career. He once played a bully who had a karate duel with the Fonz … Continue reading
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Before They Were Stars: Philip Seymour Hoffman in “The Fifteen Minute Hamlet”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CP33oxsyDKY As you’ve no doubt heard, the world was shocked by Philip Seymour Hoffman’s untimely death this weekend at the age of 46. So, of course, I felt obliged to go out and dig up one of the more obscure projects … Continue reading
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Before They Were Stars: Mark Wahlberg on a Children’s Variety Show
I’m sure you all know that Mark Wahlberg the movie star started out as the leader of Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch. So it’s amusing to discover that Marky Mark’s first official television appearance was on a kids show! … Continue reading
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Robin’s Underrated Gems: Shattered Glass (2003)
Last week, we recorded a Shouts From the Back Row podcast about good performances from bad actors, and I made mention of an uncharacteristically good turn from Hayden Christensen. In 2003, Christensen had already become a major Internet whipping boy … Continue reading
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Before They Were Stars: Bill Murray Voices the Human Torch on a “Fantastic Four” Radio Series
Big props to Gill for sending this my way as it’s definitely one of the more obscure “Before They Were Stars” entries I’ve ever done. In 1975, an unknown Bill Murray was still two years away from Saturday Night Live, … Continue reading
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Before They Were Stars: CM Punk Wrestles Rey Mysterio & Eddie Guerrero in 2002
World Wrestling Entertainment seems to be in a state of chaos right now as one of their top stars, CM Punk, has seemingly become burned out by his profession and will likely be leaving the company. As a tribute, here … Continue reading
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Before They Were Stars: Conan O’Brien as a Background Extra on “Saturday Night Live” (with Wayne Gretzky!)
Conan O’Brien got his first major break when he joined the Saturday Night Live writing staff during the late 1980s and would sometimes pop up in the odd sketch as a background extra. Recently, Conan had Wayne Gretzky on his show … Continue reading
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