Sneaky

(Illustration Friday: November 19, 2010)

This is Lily latest favorite game. She always goes for the sneak attack.

Johnny's Angels--Depp Fans for Charity

Hi everyone,

Johnny Kitties has made a connection! I'm pleased to link Melissa's Kitties to Johnny's Angels--Depp Fans for Charity, a fan-run website that offers Johnny Depp's fans a meaningful way to honor his charitable efforts. Specifically, Johnny's Angels provides fundraisers throughout the year to benefit Children's Hospice and Palliative Care Coalition, an organization that Johnny has supported for years. Founded in 2001, Children’s Hospice and Palliative Care Coalition aims to improve care for children with life-threatening diseases and their families though children's hospitals, hospices, home health and grassroots agencies, and individuals.

Johnny's Angels also helps to raise public awareness of the needs of these children and their families and to assist them in learning more about local children hospice options available to them. Don't miss the Johnny's Angels holiday fundraiser running through December 31. Make a donation and have your own holiday postcard sent to Johnny himself! Read about this exciting opportunity here.

Happy holidays!

Melissa

Burning

I had to think about this week's Illustration Friday topic for a few days. At the moment, I'm busy working on the Johnny Kitties' tribute to Cry-Baby, which is full of burning moments. Instead of focusing on Johnny Depp, however, I went to my other love, Sting. 


Working as an English teacher in Newcastle, Sting wrote a song called "I Burn for You" while his students took an exam. A few years later, he decided to move to London to follow his dream of becoming a full-time musician. You know how that turned out. 


"I Burn for You" ended up on the 1982 soundtrack of Brimstone & Treacle, a disturbing movie in which Sting stars. But I knew the song first from Sting's excellent 1986 documentary, Bring on the Night, which chronicles his first world tour as a solo artist. Supporting his first solo album, The Dream of the Blue Turtles, Sting was backed by a varied group of consummate jazz musicians, including saxophonist Branford Marsalis, pianist Kenny Kirkland, bassist Darryl Jones, and drummer Omar Hakim, among others. That band was the best.


Check it out! (Feel free to turn it up and bow down to Omar.)



(©A&M Records)


Granted, I didn't fall in love with Sting until 1987 when I bought my sister his latest effort, ...Nothing Like the Sun and then listened to it more than she did. But imagine me rummaging backwards in Sting's career and finding a performance like this. My hopeless devotion was inevitable! 


I listened to the Bring on the Night soundtrack quite often in those days. (Sting aside, it's one of the best concert albums ever!) Consequently, The Kitties became Sting fans too--whether they wanted to or not.


Honestly, I think their admiration is true. Back then, when The Mother Kitty was just known as The Kitty, she was very popular in our neighborhood. One time, I came home and found her in my room listening to this song full blast and eyeing one of her many boyfriends. How romantic! 



(Illustration Friday: November 12, 2010)

Afterwards

After a rainstorm, Simon's first order of business is to head outside and sniff out the mysterious changes.


(Illustration Friday: November 5, 2010)

Johnny Kitties: Celebrating Johnny Depp--21 Jump Street, Season 2

What is Johnny Kitties? See Johnny Kitties: Celebrating Johnny Depp for all the details. 

From Splice magazine, 1988 
Source: DeppImpact.com 
©unknown

I think it was during Season 2 of 21 Jump Street that I went bonkers for Johnny Depp. The Sunday night show became the highlight of my week, and I bought every teeny-bopper "Johnny Magazine" (i.e., any magazine featuring Johnny--which was all of them) I could find in our little Ohio town. As soon as I got home, I'd read it, tear it up, and cover my large bedroom closet's fold-out doors with Johnny's photos. 

©TV Guide magazine

Can you imagine how I felt when I found him on the cover of our copy of TV Guide? I loved getting TV Guide in the mail every week and reading its articles about all the stars and shows, so it wasn't unusual for me to ask as soon as I got home from school whether it had arrived. Here's how the conversation went between Mom and me that week: 

Me: "Did we get the TV Guide today?" 

Mom: "Yes. DON'T tear it up! You have to wait till the end of the week! I want to read it. We have to use it."  

Me, upon finding it: [Gasp!!!]
Mom: Remember what I said!

Jump Street's on a Roll
Season 2 of 21 Jump Street may be my favorite of the series. By then, all of the actors on the show were making the characters their own. The cast chemistry was golden. Johnny was most often paired with Peter Deluise, who he later said was his closest friend on the set. Watching their scenes together, you can tell! They had lots of fun working together and coming up with characters and back stories for their undercover assignments.

©FOX

During Season 2, we all learned more about the personal lives and backgrounds of the show's characters, from the arrival of Penhall's high school sweetheart, Dorothy, to Ioki's harrowing escape as a teenager from Vietnam. Tom Hanson, who seemed a little more relaxed and cooler, had his own set of problems. In this season alone, he revealed the story behind his father’s death, was kidnapped, had a slight midlife crisis, considered quitting his job, witnessed his girlfriend’s murder, and got shot! Some of that was in consecutive weeks! 


No wonder I fell so hard for this guy: He needed several hugs!

The show continued to tackle difficult subjects, including AIDS, drugs, alcohol, weapons, and racism. Guest stars included Christina Applegate, Peter Berg, Mindy Cohn, Jason Priestley, and Ray Walston. Watching these episodes now, I found some that I knew entirely by heart, specific scenes and images that are still--after all these years--clear in my head, and moments that will remain there for at least another 20. There's no getting rid of them now. 

Here, The Kitties explore some of Season 2 episode highlights: 

• Episode 24. Christmas in Saigon: This exciting episode delves into Harry Ioki's past as a Vietnamese refugee, a story based on actor Dustin Nguyen's real-life escape during the war. How intriguing it was to find out that Harry Ioki wasn't who he said he was! As he retells his childhood story, we relive his horrific memories. On the lighter side, everyone spends Christmas dinner at Sal's house where we meet his wife Rosa (Mindy Cohn) and their four kids. [Kitty Note: Welcome, Lily, who is thrilled to take the role of Rosa. Mindy Cohn reprises her role once more in episode 27, "Chapel of Love."] Also in this episode, Hanson brings his girlfriend Amy home to meet his mom. (In one of the episodes that I nearly remembered by heart, Orpheus 3.3, Amy is tragically killed during a convenient store hold-up, and Hanson--who feels he could have saved her--nearly drowns in guilt. That episode is stellar but too sad to highlight in the kitty tribute.) 

• Episode 25. Fear and Loathing with Russell Buckins: In this episode, Hanson meets up with one of his childhood friends, who takes him on  road trip to crash the wedding of an old flame. During this trip, Hanson reveals a rebellious side--something he missed out on growing up. He gets a tattoo, wrestles a bear, misses a court date, considers quitting his job, and--as depicted here--crashes into a cow. 

• Episode 26. A Big Disease with a Little Name: Considering the time, I think it's fantastic that 21 Jump Street featured a story about AIDS. This is another episode in which Hanson is confronted with his beliefs, mortality, and the direction of his life. He does a lot of soul searching this season! For some comic relief, we're treated with the arrival of Doug Penhall's high school sweetheart, Dorothy, played by Peter Deluise's then-real-life-wife Gina Nemo. Dorothy appears in a few more episodes before she leaves Doug for good. They reminded me of The Honeymooners while it lasted--always arguing, but clearly in love. 

• Episode 27. Chapel of Love: It's Valentine's Day, and the Jump Street crew have no plans. Instead, they play poker and recount their worst dating stories. Judy shows up late to the game, having just returned from her worst date. This episode is really funny and entertaining until you get to Hanson's story. After dropping him and his date off at a Valentine's Day high school dance, Tom's father--also a policeman--went on patrol with his partner. During a stop at their usual coffee shop, he is shot and killed by a startled burglar! 

• Episode 28. I'm OK, You Need Work: This week, Hanson goes undercover--without telling anyone--in a drug rehabilitation center to help one of the kids he busted during Season 1. Sadly, the kid dies during a lone escape attempt, and--for being a troublemaker--Tom is drugged up and nearly sent to a state institution to be "lost in the system." Luckily, Captain Fuller figures things out and comes to his rescue. Oh the drama!

• Episode 32. Raising Marijuana: I didn't remember this episode when I watched it this time around. (Johnny's not in it. Is that why?) It's not a favorite, but it marks the first time that Harry Ioki lets loose and takes on a fun undercover character. Although usually paired with Judy Hoffs, he was teamed up with Penhall for this one. They play geeky Siamese twins with matching clothes, moles, and hairdos.

• Episode 35. School's Out: During the last episode of the season, the Jump Street program is under threat to be shut down, so everyone is out looking for a back-up job. Judy Hoffs got the best one--to her great dismay--as Officer Milk Carton. On a field trip while teaching grade-schoolers about street safety, she spots a thief running out of a convenient store, orders the kids to stay put, runs him down, and saves the day. Thanks, Officer Milk Carton! (Holly Robinson in this costume is one of the images that has always remained in my head! Do you think she'd be pleased with that?)

What are your favorite episodes from Season 2? 


Tune in next month to catch highlights from Season 3 of 21 Jump Street. (Johnny is getting antsy.)


Did you miss the Johnny Kitties' tribute to Season 1? See it here! 

Spent

For the last couple of months, my calendar has been full of travels and visitors.

My spare time has gone toward an online course, Blogging Your Way, and the resulting laundry list of things to do to improve my blog. While on a break from that, I've been watching the movies of TCM's October Star of the Month Fredric March.

Fredric March

Side note: While I usually fall in love with an actor and then go on a mission to see everything they've ever made, the opposite happened with this guy. I saw all these great movies and had a sudden realization that all had Fredric March in common. Lily and I have concluded that Fredric March is one of those actors that makes a movie better just because he's in it. While we still have a few movies to go in our marathon (Thanks, TCM!), and they've all been good so far, we still like and recommend our old favorites: The Best Years of our Lives, Inherit the Wind, Nothing Sacred, A Star is Born, and Hombre. Do you have a favorite?

Lily has been equally occupied: Two weeks ago, she went on her first field trip. While our apartment was getting its annual pesticide treatment, she stayed in a friend's apartment for a day and didn't eat, play, or speak until she returned home.

Last week, I was off to the suburbs for a three-day work meeting and came home to find Dad who visited for the weekend. We were happy to attend The Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear on The National Mall Saturday, though I'm not sure the sanity we sought has returned.

This week, I'm fighting allergies while Lily battles the nightly shadows she finds on the walls. We're both exhausted by Project Runway's season-long drama and crushed by its finale.

Now, I'm finding it hard to stare at the computer as long as I have been, and Lily--as always--is annoyed that I'm sitting at the computer for any length of time at all.

In short, we are spent. Shhh...

(Illustration Friday: October 29, 2010)

Racing

(Illustration Friday: October 22, 2010)

When Ashes first arrived, she made Comet quite anxious. Eventually, though, he warmed up to her and now they are great pals. Finally, something other than worry gets Comet's heart racing.

Spooky?

When the lights go out....



[Illustration Friday: October 15, 2010)


The Kitties are still watching.... Spooky? 

The Kitties have taken over.

Hello all!


What do you think of the new blog header? Too big, too small, too distracting, just right? I think I like it... and The Kitties are still playing up there. Thanks to Holly Becker and her wonderful online course, Blogging Your Way, for giving me this easy tip for beautifying my blog. 


Best,
Melissa

Transportation

This weekend, I went home to Ohio to celebrate my nephew Liam's 7th birthday. While nearly every gift was somehow related to Star Wars, he had lots of fun outdoors in the sunshine throwing his new gliding airplanes from one end of the backyard to the other. 


When we took a break to build another Lego Star Wars Speeder, we found Simon testing this one out. He approves. 



[Illustration Friday: October 8, 2010]

Johnny Kitties: Celebrating Johnny Depp--21 Jump Street (Season 1)

[What is Johnny Kitties? See Johnny Kitties: Celebrating Johnny Depp for all the details!]

Fox’s weekly hour-long drama, 21 Jump Street followed undercover cops who posed as students in high schools to investigate crimes. Creators Stephen J. Cannell and Patrick Hasburgh based the show on a real program in Los Angeles. 


Filmed in Vancouver, 21 Jump Street became the first big hit for Fox, a network fighting for an identity among the major stations. I didn’t watch the show from its start, so when the series became available on DVDs in 2004, I was first in line to buy them. 

The Cast

Meet the cast! [clockwise] Holly Robinson, 
Johnny Depp, Dustin Nguyen, 
Peter Deluise, and Frederic Forrest

The 2-hour pilot introduces officers Judy Hoffs (Holly Robinson), Harry Ioki (Dustin Nguyen),  Doug Penhall (Peter Deluise) and Tom Hanson (Johnny Depp) and Captain Richard Jenko (Frederic Forrest). 

Sal Jenco

The cast also includes one of Johnny’s childhood friends, Sal Jenco, as maintenance engineer (as he always called his position) Sal “The Blowfish” Balducci.  Sal is prominent in several episodes—mainly for comic relief—and you’ve got to appreciate that! [Trivia Alert: Sal appears in two of Johnny's later movies, Arizona Dream and Donnie Brasco. Johnny also mentioned his name in Dead Man.]


Officer Tom Hanson

In the series pilot, Tom Hanson is a recent police academy graduate, whose green behavior and baby face land him in trouble at his precinct. They reassign him to the Jump Street Program, where his young looks can work to his advantage in local schools.

Hanson reports to work, located in an abandoned chapel, dressed in full uniform and bogged down by procedure. He initially clashes with everyone, especially Captain Jenko. Captain Jenko, head of the Jump Street Program, acted like a hippie trapped in the ‘60s.  Frederic Forrest, who played him, was a big draw for the cast. Assuming that the series would not last more than a year, Johnny took the role of Hanson for the chance to work with him.


Like A Nightmare on Elm Street, someone else was originally cast in Johnny's role. Can you imagine??? Jeff Yagher filmed for the first few weeks before the producers realized that things weren't working with the character. They went back to the audition tapes and called Johnny. He reshot the scenes, and everything was a go! 


Tom Hanson shows up as a geeky, straight-laced, nonsmoking, saxophone-playing Republican who has no idea who Jimi Hendrix is. That's about as far away from Johnny as you can get. As he put it, “The only thing I have in common with Tom Hanson is that we look alike.” 

New captain, Adam Fuller (Steven Williams) 
takes the show in a different direction. 

A New Leader

Captain Jenko was killed off the show after six episodes and a new captain, Adam Fuller, took over and made some changes. Suddenly, the chapel is filled with employees, who bustled around in the background pushing paper and answering phones. Serious, imposing, and definitely in charge, Captain Fuller (Steven Williams) was just who they needed.

Once Captain Fuller arrived, my memories came flooding back with each new episode. Let the giddiness begin!

The Legacy

It is well documented that Johnny felt trapped by 21 Jump Street, as Fox fed off his looks and turned him into a teen idol to sell the show. He felt like a product in a massive machine, over which he had no control. “He had serious chops as an actor. He was beginning to realize that Marlon Brando wasn't going to be on the cover of next week's Teen Beat and maybe he shouldn't be there either," series creator Stephen J. Cannell said. "And maybe this show wasn't taking him where he wanted to go, so there was some frustration."

Johnny can rest assured that 21 Jump Street isn’t as dark a chapter in his career as he may think. I and millions of others loved and learned from the show. Season 1 covered such topics as burglary, vandalism, arson, drug use, gangs, and abuse. Guest stars included Jason Priestly, Josh Brolin, Blair Underwood, and Johnny's then-girlfriend Sherilyn Fenn.

The Tribute

Drawing something about 21 Jump Street was daunting. It wasn’t until I started watching Season 1’s 18 episodes—covering different topics, characters, and storylines—that I started to panic. I decided that each season deserved its own drawing. After all, this show represents four years of Johnny’s life and should not (and could not) be squeezed onto one page.  

Who's that girl?

The illustration concept is courtesy of the show’s ending credits sequence. As the credits roll, an unidentified woman with long red fingernails casually flips through a yearbook. My sister and I always wondered about this lady, and we were not alone. In his DVD commentary, Peter Deluise asks, “Who was this woman? Where does she come from? Is she a streetwalker?” Exactly. After the first season, they switched from the yearbook action to a montage of student sports and other activities. But, come on, the mysterious streetwalker is much funnier. I’m sticking with her.

Here, The Kitties share the highlights from 21 Jump Street, Season 1.

Meet the kitty cast with '80s flair!

• Norman as Doug Penhall, who loved wearing his key earring.
• Comet as Harry Ioki, who was always stylin' with bright colors, interesting ties, or shiny jewelry.
• Ashes as Judy Hoffs, who rocked the biggest hair and a jean jacket smothered in pins and badges.
• Gordon as Tom Hanson, who was awesome.
• B.J. as Captain Adam Fuller, who always looked coolest in his shades. (B.J. is digging the beard.)
• Simon as Sal Balducci, who was nicknamed "The Blowfish" because of a certain trick that Simon is still perfecting. 

Sing the song! 

I loved 21 Jump Street’s theme song, sung by Holly Robinson. But, now that I’ve heard it an infinite number of times on the DVDs, I’m over it. When I heard it on Sunday nights at 7, though, it was the greatest because it marked the start of a new episode.

Check out some episode highlights!

• Episode 3. America, What a Town: Throughout the show, the Jump Street cast created different handshakes to pass the time and entertain themselves. (Watch the show and you'll find more!) The one that The Kitties demonstrate here ended up in the opening credits' montage.

• Episode 4. Don't Pet The Teacher: Inherited from his father, Hanson's Mustang got a key role in this episode when one of its tires blew and Tom made a date with the woman who came to his rescue. I loved that car.

• Episode 6. The Worst Night of Your Life: The Kitties insisted on documenting this moment. Investigating a possible arson threat, everyone dressed up to attend prom. You've got to love the '80s outfits!

• Episode 9. Blindsided: This episode introduced The McQuaid Brothers. Hanson and Penhall created these covers, high school student bullies who became recurring characters for the next few years.

• Episode 13. Mean Streets and Pastel Houses: Investigating rival gangs, Hanson went punk for this episode and enjoyed it! Here, Gordon dives into the crowd at a rock concert. (He does his own stunts.)

What are your favorite episodes from Season 1? 


Tune in next month to see some of my favorite moments from 21 Jump Street, Season 2! 


Note: Aside from my own illustration, all images ©Fox Broadcasting Company.

Johnny Kitties: Celebrating Johnny Depp delayed this month

Hi everyone,

I planned to post my Johnny Kitties series on the 9th of every month, but we'll have to make an exception in October. So sorry, but I have a good excuse: I'm in Ohio for the weekend to celebrate my nephew Liam's 7th birthday. (Even though there's no way he's 7!) I didn't have time to scan my latest drawing before I left this morning. (I was going to ask Lily to do it, but she'd rather look out the window. Figures.

I promise to post the next Johnny Kitties installment, 21 Jump Street, next week when I return to my own computer. In the meantime, think Happy Johnny Thoughts and--of course--happy, happy birthday wishes for Liam!

Best,
Melissa

Beneath

After a long string of September visits and visitors, Dad arrived for a relaxing weekend of sunshine, baseball games, and movies. 


Whenever Dad visits, Lily is ready for "The Blanket Game." One time, she disappeared under the folds without her tail in view to save her from a good smoosh. Luckily, I saw her slink underneath before Dad, focused on his drink and the TV, sat back down! 


I'm considering using this drawing as a warning sign for her. Do you think it'll work? 



(Illustration Friday: October 1, 2010)

[I'm] Old-Fashioned.

I waited a few days, but I couldn't get the song by Jerome Kern and Johnny Mercer--or the dance by Rita Hayworth and Fred Astaire--out of my head.


Rita Hayworth is best known for her femme fatale character in Gilda,  but I knew her first as a fantastic dancer in Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire musicals. When I finally saw Gilda, I preferred her sunny side.


In You Were Never Lovelier (1942), Rita plays the second-eldest daughter of a wealthy Argentine family. Her father (Adolfe Menjou)  wants his four daughters to marry in order, but Rita--having not met anyone interesting yet--is holding up the line. To speed things along, he sends her flowers and gifts from a secret admirer and plans to find her a suitable husband later.


Meanwhile, Fred Astaire shows up looking for work, and Rita--of course--falls for him. Her father does not approve! Oh, the drama!


Most musicals are the same.  You know how things will end and that you'll feel all warm and fuzzy inside. But the joy is in getting there: the cheesy lines, the music, the dancing. It'll all make you smile!


Here is Rita and Fred's wonderful performance of "I'm Old-Fashioned" from You Were Never Lovelier. Fred Astaire once said that Rita was his favorite of all his dancing partners. What do you think? 



© Columbia Pictures


Here, The Mother Kitty and B.J. pay tribute to Fred and Rita's beautiful dance:



[Illustration Friday: September 24, 2010]


B.J.'s a little disappointed that I cut out his lines, which he'd been practicing all day: "Sister, I was raised amongst the grasshoppers. I am strictly from corn!" But I didn't have enough room.


Don't worry, he's over it. Who complains when you get to be Fred Astaire?


Are you smiling? Warm and fuzzy? Now, this song and dance be stuck in your head all week!

Best of 2006

In January 2006, my friend Anastasia was eager to invite more creativity into her life. She found Illustration Friday and thought the site--which provided a word each week to serve as artists' drawing inspiration--offered a good start. 


Knowing that I made birthday cards featuring drawings of my family's pet cats, Anastasia suggested I join her in creating drawings each week. We agreed to support each other in nurturing our creativity through Illustration Friday's weekly challenges, though I assumed that it would only be a few weeks before I lazily gave it up. 


Here I am 4 years later! Who knew?!


Since recently reviewing the 260+ illustrations I've made since the start of my blog, I thought it'd be fun to revisit some of my favorites from that first year:


1. E is for...Environment is my first drawing for Illustration Friday--the start of it all! This drawing was an early birthday card idea. On the front, the kitties hid in a big tree. Inside, they'd jump out and floating down using helium birthday balloons--Surprise!  


2. I always thought it was funny that Cats showed up as a topic just after I started Illustration Friday. Before I started my blog, I decided that all of my drawings would feature my cats. Yet, I had no idea what to draw when this word appeared for inspiration. It turned out to be a fitting introduction for my readers. 


3. Tattoo marks my first Johnny-Depp-inspired drawing. While one of his hands looks a bit monsterish, I still love the simplicity of this drawing and am grateful that Johnny had simple tattoos in just the right places. Aside from that, it sparked the beginning of many Johnny-inspired drawings to come. 


4. Robot was of the first drawings inspired by classic cartoons I watched as a kid. Remember the ones where a Robokitty was purchased to catch the mouse in the house? I loved that the mechanical cat would pause during a chase to clean its foot just like a real one. Maybe this one would do the same.


5. Only one idea came to mind for the topic Rain. Always inspired by classic films, who can resist a little joy from Gene Kelly any day of the week? 


6. The Kitties are always eager to put on a show, as seen in Play. 


7. The Kitties are devoted fans of the Baltimore Orioles. Here, they participate in a friendly game at Camden Yards in Safe!


8. In some drawings, such as Farm, The Kitties and I can't get enough sun. 


9. Ghost honors all kitties--past and present. 


10. Wind still makes me laugh. The Mother Kitty claims it's a true story. 


Browse all of my illustrations from 2006. Which are your favorites? 

Acrobat

Before we met Simon, he was a star performer for the original cast of Cirque du Soleil. Some days, if you listen closely, you can hear remnants of his French accent. Here, he is doing one of his most popular tricks on the tightrope.



(Illustration Friday: September 17, 2010)


When Simon first came into our lives, he suffered from a slight limp, which has since healed. He claims that the injury is a result of a freak accident during rehearsal in Oslo. Apparently, he saw an old friend in the crowd and just forgot where he was for a second. Don't worry, he landed on his feet.


These days, you can sometimes find him doing his old tricks in the backyard. Remember this? 

Proverb

(Illustration Friday: September 10, 2010)


"Every life should have nine cats." --Anonymous proverb


A big welcome goes out to Mini, the latest addition to our kitty family. She's a 9-month-old Mini-Me version of Norman, who adores her. She was brought into my sister's vet office over the summer. Inexplicably, no one was able to find a home for her, so my sister brought her home. Could that have been Mini's plan all along? She's not talking. So far, Mini's favorite pastimes include playing and purring and rolling and playing and purring and rolling. 

Johnny Kitties: Celebrating Johnny Depp Film #4--Platoon (1986)

"I could tell a mile away. I said, 'You're going to be a star. There's just absolutely no question. You've got a great face, you're unbelievably handsome, and you have an original character. You have a quality.'" Oliver Stone on casting Johnny Depp in Platoon


War movies are not my favorite, but Platoon is a good one. Oliver Stone's semi-autobiographical drama set in the jungles of Vietnam won 4 Oscars in 1986. It's not fun to watch, but it made many people see and think differently about the Vietnam War and its veterans. 

[What is Johnny Kitties? See Johnny Kitties: Celebrating Johnny Depp for all the details!]

Following a soldier who voluntarily enlists, we experience with him the horrors of war and the internal battles he faces to survive. Led by Charlie Sheen, the movie included an all-star ensemble cast on not-yet-famous actors: Forest Whitaker, Willem Dafoe, Tom Berenger, and Johnny Depp.

Johnny as Lerner
©MGM

Johnny scored the small role of an interpreter named Lerner. Like everyone else in the cast, he committed to the rehearsal period in Luzon, Philippines, prior to shooting. Johnny's first trip out of the United States landed him in the middle of the Philippine Revolution. Nice timing.

As the actors arrived, they were immediately treated as their characters--rank and all--and their "rehearsal period" was actually 2 weeks of bootcamp under the supervision of Marine Seargant Dale Dye. "They were new guys coming into a unit in Vietnam. Nothing else existed," Dye said. "We wanted them to understand the pain and the agony and the angst and the psychology of being a grunt in Vietnam."

On this compressed schedule, they learned everything they would have learned through basic and advanced infantry. They received military haircuts, had no access to showers, slept in the jungle, and rotated nightwatch duty.  "The rations we were given to eat were the most shocking thing you've ever seen," Johnny said. "It would be things like 'bean component,' 'turkey loaf.' But I'd have eaten my socks by that point, man. We were all starving to death."    

Oliver Stone's got a reputation for his aggressive directing style, and--according to Platoon's behind-the-scene's documentary--everyone hated him during filming because he pushed his actors to the brink. "I didn't know if I was going to make it out of there alive," Charlie Sheen said of the experience. 

©MGM

Despite its hardships, for Johnny, the experience of making this film was a step in the right direction: "I'm really very proud to have been involved in Platoon. It gave me a hunger. It sort of gave me a drive to go somewhere else, to try to do other things, and learn more."   

As you may imagine, there are no scenes in Platoon that lend themselves to happy kitties. We all watched it with our hands (paws?) poised to shield our eyes from the violence when needed. 

In the end, we chose the most peaceful scene we could find: Two soldiers gazing up at the stars on a quiet night in the jungle, reflecting. The war is almost forgotten for a moment. 

I know, Johnny's not technically in this scene.  Is that cheating on my project rules? Well, The Kitties and I imagine that, given the chance, any soldier would look up at the stars for a moment of  peace in the middle of the Vietnam War--or any war, for that matter. So, we assume that Johnny is doing the same--even if it's off camera.

   

Next up, Johnny takes over [my] TV on 21 Jump Street!