Discuss: '70's Poster Children (and Some Adults) as Bronze Age Teen Icons
Doug: Shaun Cassidy, Leif Garrett, Cheryl Tiegs, Lynda Carter, the Bay City Rollers, Cheryl Ladd, Farrah Fawcett... or many more?!? Who were those larger-than-life teen-oriented celebrities of the 1970's?
To me it doesn't get any sexier than those '70s beauties. I still lust after Cheryl Ladd, Lynda Carter, Jaclyn Smith, Barbara Carrera, Barbara Bach, Farrah Fawcett, Raquel Welch, Kate Jackson, et al. Nobody before or after compares in my book.
Oh, man. Those images bring back memories, some quite embarassing. Such as, for example, the Bay City Rollers. To this day, I have no idea why, from ages 5 to about 7/8, I totally loved a Scottish boy band that mainly sang covers of old Motown tunes. Also, I can't believe you didn't include Jimmy and Kristy McNichol - those two were everywhere from the mid to late '70s: TV series, TV movies, variety shows, commercials, and at least one record album, and Kristy appeared in a few feature films.
Funny, as it was, I was never into these posters, oh and like everyone, we saw these posters (like Farrah) everywhere. My parents would never had allowed them up anyways, well, talking about the ones like Farrah and Lynda.. All I had up was a Spock poster from a Trek poster book and the FOOM poster.
Which was fine.. Once you see that Farrah poster printed on some middle-age balding, rotund guy back in '77.., it loses it's appeal, trust me
Yeah I remember Cheryl Tiegs in one of the old swimsuit magazines. She was hot! Lynda Carter was and still is one of my favourites. I believe one of the reasons a Wonder Woman movie/TV series reboot hasn't been successful is due to the character's association with her.
What's the first mental image you get when someone mentions Wonder Woman? The 1940s comic book character? For me, and I suspect for millions of other people too, Lynda Carter's definitive portrayal springs to my mind immediately.
Leif Garrett was big too. What happened to all that hair? :) Of course, no discussion about iconic posters is complete without mentioning Farrah's unforgettable turn. It seemed as if every teenaged boy's room in the 70s had Farrah's smiling face looking out at them. I do recall vaguely Farrah stating in an interview that the photographer had trouble finding an appropriate background for her, so she went in and found an old towel which she used in the poster. It's amazing to think that she probably thought it was just another boring photoshoot; she must have been pretty surprised when that poster became mega-popular.
For a Wonder Woman movie or TV show to work, they need to (A) stop fiddling with her story and costume and go with the classic, and (B) realize that casting is key--the girl they tried for that awful pilot was so woefully miscast, she could have had the best script and direction ever and it still wouldn't have worked. It'll be hard to match Lynda Carter, and I daresay she will never be surpassed.
All these comments have convinced me that I need to do a Discuss post on the Wonder Woman TV show. SO kindly save your comments on that show and we'll get to it soon!
I saw but never got or particularly wanted any of those famous '70s posters. The only posters I put up on my walls were either drawings I did myself or posters that came with albums I bought, such as one from the Beatles' White Album, another from Wings Greatest, two from Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon and another from Fleetwood Mac's Rumours. Like a lot of guys of various ages I'm sure, I fell madly in lust with Stevie Nicks around the time that album was a massive hit and I thought it was fun when Doug Moench spent an issue of Master of Kung Fu with Shang Chi and Leiko Wu listening that album and referencing Stevie's lyrics, relating them to their own romantic turmoil. I supposed it wouldn't have worked so well for them to loudly quote Buckingham's "Go Your Own Way".
To me it doesn't get any sexier than those '70s beauties. I still lust after Cheryl Ladd, Lynda Carter, Jaclyn Smith, Barbara Carrera, Barbara Bach, Farrah Fawcett, Raquel Welch, Kate Jackson, et al. Nobody before or after compares in my book.
ReplyDeleteXrayman
Mmmmmmm ... Lynda Carter .... mmmmm.
ReplyDeleteShe's still pretty hot.
Oh, man. Those images bring back memories, some quite embarassing. Such as, for example, the Bay City Rollers. To this day, I have no idea why, from ages 5 to about 7/8, I totally loved a Scottish boy band that mainly sang covers of old Motown tunes.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I can't believe you didn't include Jimmy and Kristy McNichol - those two were everywhere from the mid to late '70s: TV series, TV movies, variety shows, commercials, and at least one record album, and Kristy appeared in a few feature films.
Funny, as it was, I was never into these posters, oh and like everyone, we saw these posters (like Farrah) everywhere. My parents would never had allowed them up anyways, well, talking about the ones like Farrah and Lynda.. All I had up was a Spock poster from a Trek poster book and the FOOM poster.
ReplyDeleteWhich was fine.. Once you see that Farrah poster printed on some middle-age balding, rotund guy back in '77.., it loses it's appeal, trust me
I still remember Cheryl Tiegs in her see- thru swimsuit in Sports Illustrated, too...!
ReplyDeleteXrayman
Yeah I remember Cheryl Tiegs in one of the old swimsuit magazines. She was hot! Lynda Carter was and still is one of my favourites. I believe one of the reasons a Wonder Woman movie/TV series reboot hasn't been successful is due to the character's association with her.
ReplyDeleteWhat's the first mental image you get when someone mentions Wonder Woman? The 1940s comic book character? For me, and I suspect for millions of other people too, Lynda Carter's definitive portrayal springs to my mind immediately.
Leif Garrett was big too. What happened to all that hair? :) Of course, no discussion about iconic posters is complete without mentioning Farrah's unforgettable turn. It seemed as if every teenaged boy's room in the 70s had Farrah's smiling face looking out at them. I do recall vaguely Farrah stating in an interview that the photographer had trouble finding an appropriate background for her, so she went in and found an old towel which she used in the poster. It's amazing to think that she probably thought it was just another boring photoshoot; she must have been pretty surprised when that poster became mega-popular.
RIP Farrah.
- Michael from Trinidad & Tobago.
For a Wonder Woman movie or TV show to work, they need to (A) stop fiddling with her story and costume and go with the classic, and (B) realize that casting is key--the girl they tried for that awful pilot was so woefully miscast, she could have had the best script and direction ever and it still wouldn't have worked. It'll be hard to match Lynda Carter, and I daresay she will never be surpassed.
ReplyDeleteXrayman
I remember a review of the 70's WW show started...."Two things keep this show going, and both of them hold up Lynda Carter's costume." :)
ReplyDeleteAll these comments have convinced me that I need to do a Discuss post on the Wonder Woman TV show. SO kindly save your comments on that show and we'll get to it soon!
ReplyDeleteKaren
I saw but never got or particularly wanted any of those famous '70s posters. The only posters I put up on my walls were either drawings I did myself or posters that came with albums I bought, such as one from the Beatles' White Album, another from Wings Greatest, two from Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon and another from Fleetwood Mac's Rumours. Like a lot of guys of various ages I'm sure, I fell madly in lust with Stevie Nicks around the time that album was a massive hit and I thought it was fun when Doug Moench spent an issue of Master of Kung Fu with Shang Chi and Leiko Wu listening that album and referencing Stevie's lyrics, relating them to their own romantic turmoil. I supposed it wouldn't have worked so well for them to loudly quote Buckingham's "Go Your Own Way".
ReplyDelete