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Friday, March 8, 2013

Retroality's "Reimagine That!" podcast, episode 17! ............................................................ Chris Mann's special guest, Morgan Brittany, opens up on a possible return to "Dallas," remembering Larry Hagman. Also: TV Guide editor William Keck on J.R.'s funeral, Victoria Principal's decision not to revive Pam Ewing; & a Texas-size dream dissected

Click here to listen to the podcast!
Episode 17, "Reviving TV Villainy" ... In the first of her two-part exclusive Retroality.TV interview, child star-turned-Dallas diva Morgan Brittany tells "Reimagine That!" host Chris Mann about the possibility of returning to Southfork -- in TNT's hot revival of the legendary soap -- as primetime's original queen of mean, Katherine Wentworth.

The blue-eyed enchantress and fan favorite also fondly remembers the late Larry Hagman, whose recent death as J.R. Ewing leaves a historically-rich villainous void on the TNT drama. "I have this fantasy," Morgan spills with an infectious laugh, "that they ask me to come back and my entrance into the show is literally (me) sitting in a chair. And you don't see anything except the back of the chair. The chair turns around and there's a big hat, and all of a sudden I look up, and it's Katherine."

And she responds publicly for the first time to her former TV half-sister Victoria Principal's recent press revelation that she will never return as Pam Ewing. "I think Victoria closed the door on Pam when she left the show," Morgan says. "And I think she moved on and does not want to revisit it for whatever reason ... I respect her for that. Maybe she does feel that she wants people to remember her as she was and as Pam was, and keep that image -- which I think is great. Now for me, I don't care if people see me as a 60-year-old Katherine. Doesn't bother me a bit!"



Morgan discusses various ways she could re-enter the Dallas scene, and reveals how she developed the wicked Wentworth during her original stint on the CBS hit. After a successful run as a child actor in the 1950s and 60s -- she worked with the likes of Henry Fonda, Lucille Ball, Natalie Wood, a young Ron Howard and Alfred Hitchcock -- the former Suzanne Cupito shares what drove her to abandon that name and identity in favor of reinventing herself in the 1970s as Morgan Brittany.

Also, TV Guide senior editor and TV scoop-savvy columnist William Keck offers insights into J.R. Ewing's funeral in the TNT episode airing on March 11. Having extensively covered this revival for multiple TV Guide cover stories -- and via multiple trips to Southfork -- Keck is the ultimate Dallas insider. He fondly recalls Larry Hagman and "the gift" he gave viewers during the final year and a half of his life, salutes Brenda Strong's portrayal as Patrick Duffy's new TV wife, and discloses that Linda Gray has struggled with a storyline suggesting that long-recovering alcoholic Sue Ellen falls off the wagon following the death of the love of her life.

Also for the first time, he responds to Principal's press statement shooting down speculation -- and the hopes of fans -- that she would make a triumphant return as Pam Ewing. Principal labeled a rumored return to this iconic role "a desperate reappearance." Says Keck, "Unfortunately, Victoria set the record straight that fans who'd been dying for a Bobby-Pam reunion are gonna be eternally disappointed. And that's Victoria's decision. That's her gift to fans."

Keck will likely pose and/or field all of these questions -- and many more -- while moderating a panel discussion of the current Dallas cast and executive producers at the PaleyFest television festival in Beverly Hills this Sunday at 1 p.m. PT. Check out a live stream of this event here.

Finally, our dream weaver Yvonne Ryba analyzes a Texas-sized dream she had in 1980 -- the year J.R. was shot (for the first time) -- revealing the stinging and smooth sides that reside in all of us.

For more great info about Dallas, check out UltimateDallas.com, DallasFanzine.com and DallasDivasDerby.com and Dallasfan.net


Host: Chris Mann

Announcer: Linda Kay

Created by: Chris Mann

Producers: Linda Kay, Chris Mann

Copyright 2013 by Chris Mann/Retroality.TV (http://Retroality.TV)

Friday, February 1, 2013

Retroality's "Reimagine That!" podcast, episode 16! ............................................................ Chris Mann's special guest, Lara Jill Miller, opens up about "Gimme a Break!," loving Nell Carter and giving life to various animated kids and creatures; also: Normand Authier's reimagined reality and Yvonne Ryba's crystal-clear dream interpretation

Click here to listen to the podcast!

Season 2 premiere, episode 16, "Re-envisioning Your Voice" ... In the Eighties, after a stint on Broadway with Dick Van Dyke in "The Music Man,' Lara Jill Miller grew up before our eyes as Nell Carter's sweet-faced "little girl" Samantha Kinisky on the hit NBC sitcom "Gimme a Break!" In the Nineties she went back to the East Coast, earned a law degree and became a practicing New York attorney ... but her passion for showbiz brought her back to Hollywood once more. In the last decade, Lara Jill has become one of the industry's most in-demand voice artists, with starring roles in several animated series, films, video games and more. In aspecial Valentine-themed episode of the hit Disney Jr. series "Doc McStuffins"--premiering at 10 a.m. today on the Disney Channel and 4 p.m. on Disney Junior--the former child star again takes the spotlight, this time as Doc's lovable pal Lambie. (Check out her Facebook page here and her Twitter page here.)

In this exclusive, in-depth interview about her amazing journey, Lara Jill opens up about her close relationship with the late Carter, revealing how being the "Ain't Misbehavin'" star's "baby" kept Sam in the "Gimme a Break!" fold after the show was extensively retooled (and much of the original cast let go) during its final season. Lara Jill recalls some of the long-running sitcom's landmark episodes (Joey in blackface?! Katie has an IUD?!) and discloses that, had the show been renewed for a seventh season, the focus would have shifted to Nell's misadventures with Sam in college. (NBC, instead giving us "A Different World," missed the boat on this one, folks.)



And after a special clip of Lara Jill singing the Charlie Chaplin-penned tune "Smile," Retroality.TV founder and host Chris Mann chats with singer-songwriter Normand Authier in the first installment of this podcast's new "Reality Reimagined" segment. Norm explains how a recent weight-loss transformation helped reawaken his long-shelved dream to write and perform music -- and, to quote is first recorded single, "To Live Again." And he tells how Annie Lennox and the Eurythmics inspired his artistry.

In connection with "Smile," Chris pays homage to Nell Carter (who died Jan. 23, 2003) and three other TV greats we've lost more recently: "Dallas" icon Larry Hagman, "Three's Company" Regal Beagle bartender (and stage star!) Paul Ainsley and "Maude" and "Diff'rent Strokes" star Conrad Bain.

Finally, our resident dream weaver Yvonne Ryba deconstructs a client's crystal-clear sleeping dream and relates this vision to her client's waking ambitions.

Host: Chris Mann

Announcer: Linda Kay

Created by: Chris Mann

Producers: Linda Kay, Chris Mann

Copyright 2013 by Chris Mann/Retroality.TV

Friday, January 25, 2013

Exclusive sneak peak: My interview with "Dallas" star Linda Gray in the Feburary issue of WellBella

My exclusive interview with the lovely Linda Gray, who's kicking butts and taking names as the stronger, wiser Sue Ellen in TNT's revival of Dallas. The magazine is available nationally at GNC stores on February 1 and at Wellbella.com