benjamin eric " ben " woolf ( september 15 , 1980 – february 23 , 2015 ) was an american film and television actor .

he is known for his double roles in american horror story where he played " meep " and " infantata " .

he was also a pre-school teacher .

ben woolf

actor ben woolf from ‘american horror story’ reportedly died monday . ( tommaso boddi / wireimage )
so upset over the loss of ben woolf . so talented and beyond loved . # ripmeep
rip ben woolf . one of the most inspirational people i ' ve ever met . urltoken
ben woolf ' s passing is a major loss for the show , and television in general .
“ we’re all freaks in our own way , ” ben woolf says in the video below .
ben woolf has passed away aged 34 after suffering a stroke following a collision with a car .
ben woolf was born on september 15 , 1980 in fort collins , colorado , usa as benjamin eric woolf . he was an actor , known for
ben woolf as meep on ‘american horror story : freak show . ’ ( michele k . short / fx )
' american horror story ' star ben woolf - - struck by car mirror . . . condition critical | urltoken
so sadden to hear of ben woolf ' s passing . such an honor to have worked with you on insidious , ben . may you rip . will miss you dearly .
ben woolf , ' american horror story ' actor , passed away monday . ( tonya wise / invision / ap )
rip ben woolf . you are one of the nicest people i ' ve ever met . you will be missed .
ben woolf attends the
american horror story : freak show
premiere on october 5 , 2014 in hollywood , california .
american horror story : freak show
star ben woolf died on monday at the age of 34 , reports tmz .
ben woolf , an actor who appeared in five episodes of “ american horror story , ” has died . he was 34 .
' american horror story ' star ben woolf - - in stable condition . . . but not out of the woods | urltoken
ben woolf , much loved actor and pre - school teacher , passed away on february 23 , 2015 at the age of 34 after being hit by a car near his home in hollywood . ben is survived by his father nicholas woolf , his mother marcy luikart , his sister kathryn woolf , his stepmother sarajane woolf , his stepfather ralph luikart , and stepsister heather luikart .
“american horror story” actor ben woolf died on monday after suffering serious injuries when he was struck by a car in hollywood last week .
ben woolf arrives at the premiere screening of
american horror story : freak show
at tcl chinese theatre , in los angeles .
ben woolf in 2014 . an actor on “american horror story , ” woolf died monday afternoon in los angeles after being hit by a car last week . ( kevin winter / getty images )
ben woolf , the american horror story : freak show actor who was severely injured in a hollywood traffic accident , died today . he was 34 . woolf’s agency confirmed his death to deadline .
woolf died monday at cedars - sinai medical center , publicist zack teperman said . woolf ' s family was at his side .
rip ben woolf , ” tweeted ryan murphy , the creator of “american horror story . ” “one of the most inspirational people i’ve ever met . ”
american horror story : freak show actor ben woolf died at age 34 on monday afternoon after being hit in the head by a car last week .
just heard the awful news . rip ben woolf . such a sweet man and far too young to leave this world . @ ahsfx : . (
all are welcome to a celebration of ben’s life on march 21 at 1pm at tucker’s grove park ( area # 5 , kiwanis meadows ) . if ben touched your heart as it did for so many , we will welcome your story of knowing ben .
in a statement , ben ' s family said :
we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from all over the world for our beloved ben .
our thoughts and prayers go out to ben’s loved ones during this very difficult time .
contributions to the ben woolf fund will be used for memorial benches in his honor and four charities that reflect his values and ideals . more information at urltoken
his publicist , zack teperman , said that mr . woolf was survived by his father , nicholas woolf ; his mother , marcy luikart ; his stepmother , sarajane woolf ; his stepfather , ralph luikart ; his sister , kathryn woolf ; and his stepsister , heather luikart .
los angeles police are continuing to investigate the death of
american horror story
actor ben woolf , who was struck by a car in hollywood last week .
rip ben woolf . you were one of the first people i met when i moved to la and went to @ cirqueschool . forever an inspiration # ripbenwoolf 💔
ben woolf , an actor on
american horror story ,
has died after being injured in a street accident , a spokesman said . he was 34 .
los angeles — ben woolf , an actor on american horror story , has died after being injured in a street accident , a spokesman said . he was 34 .
we ' re told ben ' s organs are being donated and will help about 50 people .
according to his imdb page , ben was actually a preschool teacher who considered acting a hobby .
rest in peace ben woolf , ” finn whitrock , who also appeared on the show , wrote . “there never was a sweeter guy . you will be missed . ”
ahs showrunner ryan murphy paid tribute to the star , writing on twitter :
rip ben woolf . one of the most inspirational people i ' ve ever met .
ben woolf ,
american horror story
actor , passed away monday after being in critical condition since thursday , when he was hit by a car in los angeles .
ben woolf , a former teacher who took up acting and found success on the television show “american horror story , ” died on monday in los angeles . he was 34 .
rip to my american horror story co - star , ben woolf . he was a hell of a talented individual and such a kind man . gone too soon . . .
ben woolf arrives at the premiere screening of
american horror story : freak show
at tcl chinese theatre , in los angeles . ( tonya wise / invision / ap )
ben woolf from
american horror story : freak show
has died in an l . a . hospital from injuries suffered last week when he was hit by a passing car .
ben woolf , shown at the oct . 5 premiere of
american horror story : freak show ,
died monday . ( tonya wise / tonya wise / invision / ap )
thank you everyone for your love ,
woolf ' s family added .
woolf is survived by his father and stepmother , nicholas and sarajane woolf ; his mother and stepfather , marcy and ralph luikart ; his sister kathryn woolf and stepsister heather luikart . the family has set up a fund in his name to benefit charities in issues that woolf felt strongly about , such as animals and children .
just 4 feet 4 inches tall , woolf suffered from pituitary dwarfism . woolf said he received chemotherapy as a child for the condition that resulted in his stunted growth .
ben woolf , who played meep in “ american horror story : freak show , ” died monday from a head injury he sustained last week , his rep has confirmed . he was 34 .
actor ben woolf , who gained fame as meep on the television show
american horror story ,
died monday after being struck by a car in hollywood last week . he was 34 .
ben woolf , who played meep on
american horror story ,
died in a los angeles hospital after being hit by a passing car last week , his rep first confirmed on twitter monday .
“ben was one - of - a - kind , and will never be forgotten , ” said a statement from woolf’s agency , ztpr . “the time we all shared together will be remembered forever . ”
“even though he doesn’t say a lot , he’s saying a lot , ” woolf said .
ben woolf , an actor who got noticed for his role in the hit series “american horror story” , died last feb . 23 from injuries he got last week from a car’s sideview mirror while crossing a street .
“we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from all over the world for our beloved ben , ” woolf’s family said in a statement . “he touched so many hearts in his 34 years . ”
woolf ' s family told tmz ,
we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from all over the world for our beloved ben . he touched so many hearts in his 34 years .
dear ben , yours was a sweet and gentle soul .
may flights of angels sing thee to thy rest .
woolf ' s family tells us - -
we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from all over the world for our beloved ben . he touched so many hearts in his 34 years .
ben woolf , best known to tv audiences for playing meep on american horror story : freak show , died on monday from injuries he had sustained after being hit by a car , tmz reports . he was 34 .
family , fans and friends are mourning the death of ben woolf , an actor from the most recent season of “american horror story , ” who died on monday in los angeles . woolf played the character of meep , a dwarf who only spoke with one word , on “american horror story : freak show . ”
the investigation into the collision that led to woolf ' s death is ongoing . police said woolf was jaywalking . the driver stopped and was interviewed by officers , but no citations were issued .
ben woolf was born on september 15 , 1980 in fort collins , colorado , usa as benjamin eric woolf . he was an actor , known for american horror story ( 2011 ) , woggie ( 2012 ) and dexter ( 2006 ) . he died on february 23 , 2015 in los angeles , california , usa .
“ben was one - of - a - kind , and will never be forgotten , ” said a statement from woolf’s agency , ztpr , as variety reported . “the time we all shared together will be remembered forever . ”
ben was one - of - a - kind , and will never be forgotten ,
said a statement from woolf ' s agency , ztpr .
the time we all shared together will be remembered forever .
kendall jenner boats in sheer dress . . . after snuggling up to her nba beau ben simmons at khloe kardashian ' s party
police reportedly didn ' t ticket the driver of the vehicle in question because ben was
jaywalking
at the point of collision .
ben woolf , who played meep in
american horror story : freak show ,
died monday , four days after he was struck in the head by a car mirror as he crossed a street in hollywood , according to entertainment weekly .
this is so heartbreaking . actor ben woolf , who was known for playing meep on ‘american horror story : freak show’ , has died from head injuries he sustained when he was hit by a car in los angeles on feb . 19 .
near these grand men is cameron’s far more delicate photograph of woolf’s mother , and george charles beresford’s less dramatic but hugely famous images of woolf herself , emphasising how she inherited her mother’s handsome , elegant features .
the investigation into the collision that led to woolf ' s death is ongoing . police said woolf was jaywalking . the motorist , who stopped at the scene thursday night , wasn ' t cited or arrested .
woolf ' s condition was upgraded to critical but stable over the weekend , but he never regained consciousness .
virginia woolf’s life and work have been pored over in countless biographies and other media , not least stephen daldry’s 2002 part - biopic the hours , featuring nicole kidman as woolf , with that rather unfortunate prosthetic conk .
ben was diagnosed with pituitary dwarfism when he was a small child . the condition does not allow is glands to make the growth hormone necessary for his bones to grow as a person ages . before acting , ben was a pre - school teacher who considered acting just a side job .
police said woolf was jaywalking . the driver stopped and was interviewed by officers , but no citations were issued .
mr . woolf had been a preschool teacher before deciding to pursue acting full time , mr . teperman said .
ben will be known to fans of american horror story , having most recently and famously appeared in the fourth season of the series entitled freak show .
woolf was best known for his latest role on the tv show ,
american horror story : freak show .
his american horror story co - star kathy bates , 66 , took to twitter on monday in tribute to woolf .
woolf in a promotional video for ahs : freak show said he was a pre - school teacher when not acting .
woolf was not married and did not have children . his dog , lisa , will be adopted by his mother .
national research council ( us ) ; institute of medicine ( us ) ; woolf sh , aron l , editors .
with a ( ba ) in business administration at leeds business university , ben has previously pitched and created a position within alpha epsilon pi & moved to the usa to pursue international expansion . ben brings with him extensive knowledge & experience in strategic planning & action , international operations , events , and relationship building .
on “american horror story , ” woolf — a preschool teacher by day — was most familiar as meep , a character with a one - word vocabulary : “meep . ” woolf used that one word to convey a wide range of emotions .
tmz broke the story . . . woolf - - who played meep on the hit show - - got clipped in the head by the side view mirror of an suv as he was crossing a street in hollywood . the driver was not arrested or ticketed because ben was jaywalking .
“we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from all over the world for our beloved ben , ” woolf’s family said in a statement . “he touched so many hearts in his 34 years . his memory will live on within each of us and within his work . ”
we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from all over the world for our beloved ben ,
woolf ' s family said in a statement .
he touched so many hearts in his 34 years . his memory will live on within each of us and within his work .
woolf appeared in ryan murphy ' s ahs miniseries , first as infantata and most recently as meep . murphy and more of woolf ' s colleagues shared remembrances via social media following news of the actor ' s death monday night :
so sad . ben woolf has died at age 34 . the beloved actor passed away in a los angeles hospital on feb . 23 , four days after he was struck in the head by a car’s side - view mirror when he was crossing the street in hollywood on feb . 19 .
teperman , his publicist , called woolf “one - of - a - kind , ” a caring and hard - working man .
ben affleck ' s $ 19m la mansion is surrounded by moving trucks . . . as it ' s revealed girlfriend lindsay shookus plans to spend more time on west coast
“we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from all over the world for our beloved ben . he touched so many hearts in his 34 years . ”
ben woolf , the four - foot - four actor who played meep on american horror story : freak show , died monday from a head injury , according to variety . an suv driver reportedly struck woolf , 34 , in the head with the car ' s mirror last week while the actor was crossing a hollywood street . the ap reported that the driver stopped at the scene of the collision but was not arrested or cited .
it is , an actress playing woolf says here , “a great delight to put the severed parts together . ” with wit , elegance and a probing empathy , “waves” turns us all into everyday artists , accompanying woolf as she puts the pieces together once again .
teperman , his publicist , called woolf
one - of - a - kind ,
a caring and hard - working man .
ben starred as meep in american horror story last year as the fourth season told the story of one of the last freak shows in the us as they struggled to survive .
his publicists at ztpr added , “ben was one - of - a - kind , and will never be forgotten… the time we all shared together will be remembered forever . ”
after his death , woolf ' s family issued a statement :
we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from all over the world for our beloved ben . he touched so many hearts in his 34 years . his memory will live on within each of us and within his work .
following his death , woolf ' s family issued a statement :
we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from all over the world for our beloved ben . he touched so many hearts in his 34 years . his memory will live on within each of us and within his work .
members of woolf ' s family said in a statement that they were overwhelmed by the love and support they ' ve received for him .
american horror story
creator ryan muphy tweeted that woolf was
one of the most inspirational people i ' ve ever met .
so rest in peace , ben woolf - - and until we all hopefully meet again , here are two of my favorite moments of you making your damn mark on my beloved horror genre . you really did go balls to the wall , and we , the
ahs
thankful , will always love you for that :
decades later , who & apos ; s afraid of virginia woolf ? is considered a modern theater classic . various award - winning broadway revivals have been staged including a 1976 production starring colleen dewhurst and ben gazarra ; a 2005 production starring kathleen turner and bill irwin ; and a 2010 production starring amy morton and tracy letts .
woolf was hit by a car last week in los angeles . sideswiped , he was hit in the head by the car’s side mirror . though the accident was not immediately fatal , woolf died after suffering a stroke monday , as tmz reported . the driver was not cited or arrested .
woolf is credited in five episodes of the series , including three in “freak show . ” the most recent season aired its finale last month .
woolf , who was diagnosed with pituitary dwarfism , has previously starred in television movies such as haunting charles manson , dead in kansas and unlucky charms .
according to a story from variety , woolf was transported to the hospital in critical condition thursday , seemed to be getting better , but died monday .
“we are saddened to learn the tragic news about ben woolf , ” ahs ‘ producers , fx and 20th century fox television said in a joint statement tonight . “he was a tremendous professional and an incredibly kind person , beloved by the american horror story family . our thoughts are with his family , friends and fans during this difficult time . ”
american horror story has been renewed for a fifth season although - with casting typically changing for each series - it isn ' t know if ben was in line for a return before his death .
ben woolf , who played meep in “american horror story : freak show , ” died monday from a head injury he sustained last week , his rep has confirmed . he was 34 . the 4’4″ actor was struck in the head by the car mirror of a suv while he was crossing a street in hollywood last thursday night . he [ … ]
strachey suggested to leonard woolf that he should marry virginia , and their joint letter to strachey on their engagement acknowledged his role in their union , simply reading : “ha ! ha ! ” . her later affair with vita sackville - west is acknowledged in a section on woolf’s embrace of fashion as her fame grew .
in this oct . 5 , 2014 file photo , ben woolf arrives at the premiere screening of
american horror story : freak show
at tcl chinese theatre , in los angeles , calif . woolf , an actor on
american horror story ,
died monday afternoon , feb . 23 , 2015 , at cedars - sinai medical center in los angeles , publicist zack teperman said . woolf ' s family was at his side . the 4 - foot - 4 actor was hospitalized in critical condition after he was hit by the side mirror of a passing vehicle last thursday night on a street in los angeles . ( photo by tonya wise / invision / ap , file )
' dear ben , yours was a sweet and gentle soul .
may flights of angels sing thee to thy rest , ' ' ' she tweeted to her more than 135 , 000 followers on twitter .
ben had been heavily sedated at cedars sinai hospital in los angeles since the car accident , according to a new report from tmz . the actor reportedly died from a stroke monday afternoon , feb . 23 .
woolf , 34 , first appeared in
freak show
during the first season . he played infantata . he appeared in this season as the character meep .
paul ready in waves ,  a multimedia show inspired by a virginia woolf novel , produced by the national theater and playing at the duke on 42nd street .
when
american horror story : freak show
killed off meep
the geek
( ben woolf ) last october , fans of the beloved series completely lost their chill .
meep
and
ripmeep
trended throughout the entire night as fans expressed their love for the character on twitter , which was a pretty impressive feat considering he only appeared in two episodes .
after news broke , “ american horror story ” creator ryan murphy tweeted a tribute to woolf , calling him “one of the most inspirational people i’ve ever met . ”
woolf played meep in three episodes of fx’s american horror story this past season . he appeared in indie horror features haunting charles manson , dead kansas and unlucky charms .
woolf , best known for playing meep on ahs , was allegedly struck by the side - view mirror of a passing suv as he attempted to cross the street .
this is such a tragic turn of events , especially since ben’s health seemed to be improving over the weekend , with doctors reportedly upgrading him to “critical but stable condition , ” according to the new york daily news .
ben woolf , who played the infantata on the first season of american horror story and meep on freak show , died this week at 34 years old . he had suffered a head injury due to being hit by a car last week . the large cast of american horror story has been active on social media , tweeting about how woolf was an inspiration who will never be forgotten . creator ryan murphy has expressed his thoughts , as has kathy bates , denis o ' hare , naomi grossman , and others . here ' s how the cast has reacted .
ben’s courage , kindness , humor , talent , and determination in the face of challenges inspired everyone he met . he never doubted that he would make his dreams come true . ben is best known for his two parts in the hit tv show “american horror story , ” in which he played “infantada” and “meep . ” two weeks before he died he was honored in moscow for his contributions to the horror genre at the russian horror film awards .
woolf ' s rep told the daily news over the weekend that he was in
critical but stable condition ,
but it appears things took a turn for the worse .
a source close to woolf tells us he died from a stroke on monday afternoon . he had been heavily sedated at cedars - sinai medical center since the accident last week .
woolf ' s good friend and co - star naomi grossman told e ! news on saturday that it was ' awful ' to hear about him being involved in the accident .
woolf’s progressive ideals are also reflected — her feminism , as expressed in the great a room of one’s own and , perhaps less well known , her dismay at the spanish civil war — a conviction bolstered by the death of vanessa’s son and virginia’s nephew , julian , in the conflict . woolf supported the appearance of picasso’s anti - fascist painting guernica ( 1937 ) in london , and picasso’s weeping woman drawing , donated for a fundraising event for basque refugees at which woolf appeared , gives an unexpected jolt of dramatic modernist form .
ben was one - of - a - kind , and will never be forgotten . the time we all shared together will be remembered forever . we are still all in shock by the tragic news ,
his rep said .
' we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from all over the world for our beloved ben . he touched so many hearts in his 34 year , ' a family representative for the 4ft 4in actor told tmz .
while american horror story fans will recognize ben as infantata from the show’s first season , and meep from freak show , he was also featured in several other films and television series , most notably dead kansas , woggie and tv face .
though he was praised by woolf as having “more knowledge and experience than the rest of us put together” , fry’s own painting is wretched — his portrait of woolf is clearly deliberately reductive and naive , yet it’s hopelessly weak . bell’s portrait of her at the same time is far better — more delicate in its handling , crisper in line and cleaner in colour .
in the video interview , mr . woolf said he had loved teaching “because when you’re with children , you kind of live in a different world that doesn’t have any rules . ”
a rep for the actor confirmed his death and told e ! news in statement ,
ben was one - of - a - kind , and will never be forgotten . the time we all shared together will be remembered forever .
woolf , who was 4 feet 4 , was diagnosed with pituitary dwarfism when he was young . he also worked as a preschool teacher in addition to appearing on the hit fx show .
now it’s the turn of an exhibition . the national portrait gallery’s show features 100 works , including family photographs , letters and diaries as well as paintings and sculpture by woolf’s bloomsbury peers .
woolf , who was 4 foot 4 , was diagnosed with pituitary dwarfism when he was young . he also worked as a preschool teacher in addition to working on the hit fx show .
his publicists ztpr added :
ben was one - of - a - kind , and will never be forgotten . . . the time we all shared together will be remembered forever . we are still all shocked by this tragic news .
we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from all over the world for our beloved ben . he touched so many hearts in his 34 years . his memory will live on within each of us and within his work .
american horror story creator ryan murphy , who also created glee and nip / tuck , took to twitter and said woolf was one of ' the most inspirational people i ' ve ever met . '
“we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from all over the world for our beloved ben . he touched so many hearts in his 34 years , ” the family told tmz . they are planning a memorial service in santa barbara next week .
overseen by the inspiring british director katie mitchell , “waves , ” which runs only through saturday as part of lincoln center’s great performers season , comes closer to capturing woolf’s throbbing love for — and fear of — the paradoxes of human existence than any play , movie or novelistic homage i’ve ever come upon . readers who are not admirers of woolf’s rarefied prose are unlikely to be won over by this production .
ben faced many challenges due to his short stature of 4’ 4’’ and the continuing health challenges of a serious childhood illness , but not once in his life did he complain . he remained unassumedly confident in himself regardless of whether his talents were recognized or appreciated . ben showed the world what a person of integrity , kindness and gentleness can accomplish no matter what obstacles appear to be in the way . the world has responded since his untimely death with an outpouring of love , affection and admiration that has brought comfort and pride to his family .
in a twitter post as news of the death spread , ryan murphy , a co - creator of “american horror story , ” called mr . woolf “one of the most inspirational people i’ve ever met . ”
we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from all of the world for our beloved ben ,
the family said .
he touched so many hearts in his 34 years . his memory will live on within each of us and within his work .
we ' re so glad that murphy and co . gave actors like woolf ( and mat fraser , who was born with phocomelia of both arms ) a chance to be seen and heard on a national scale with
freak show ,
we just wish woolf had been given enough time to go beyond meep , and play an everyday person who lived - - and , mostly , thrived - - with a handicap . these are the people we need to see more of onscreen , and to say that woolf ' s death will be felt through the
ahs
community , the handicapped community , and beyond is probably a massive understatement .
a great photo taken by leonard captures a sun - hatted woolf with t s eliot and his wife in the garden of monk’s house , the sussex home where woolf spent many of their later years . this was also the house from which woolf took her final walk before drowning herself in the river ouse . the walking stick she left on the bank , which spelt out to leonard that she had drowned , sits in a vitrine nearby — a banal object suddenly imbued with terrible significance . and the heartbreaking letters she wrote to leonard and to vanessa , both of which speak of the depression that so regularly engulfed her , are also on display .
cnn obtained a family statement which said , “we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from all over the world for our beloved ben . he touched so many hearts in his 34 years . his memory will live on within each of us and within his work . ”
woolf was a cast member on the fx show in its first season , in 2011 , when he played a character called the infantata . in the latest installment , american horror story : freak show , he appeared as meep .
ben was born in fort collins , colorado , and grew up in fairfield , iowa . he moved with his family to santa barbara in 1999 where he was an active league pool player , improv theater performer , and karaoke enthusiast . ben was a gentle , indomitable spirit , a well - known figure for walking everywhere around town and relaxing with the latest harlan coben thriller in local coffee shops . he earned a degree in early childhood education at city college , teaching in the head start program in goleta until 2010 when he moved to hollywood to pursue his lifelong dream of making it as an actor .
aside from being an actor , woolf also worked as a preschool teacher , which was something he had loved “because when you’re with children , you kind of live in a different world that doesn’t have any rules . it’s more imagination . ”
when the “freak show” season began , the fx network put together several short videos about the actors on the show , including one on woolf , who talked about his condition , how people responded to him and about his love of teaching .
woolf was a cast member on the fx show in its first season , in 2011 , when he played a character called the infantata . in the latest installment ,
american horror story : freak show ,
he appeared as meep .
the actor appeared in the most recent season of fx’s anthology series , in which his character had a penchant for biting the heads off small animals . woolf also had small roles in other projects , including the recent psychological thriller haunting charles manson .
“we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from all over the world for our beloved ben , ” his family said in a statement , as the new york times reported . “he touched so many hearts in his 34 years . his memory will live on within each of us and within his work . ”
virginia woolf : art , vision and life is at the national portrait gallery , wc2 ( 020 7306 0055 , urltoken ) until oct 26 . daily 10am - 6pm , thurs - fri 10am - 8pm . admission £6 . 30 , concessions available .
woolf had been in critical condition since he was struck by an suv last week . though his status was upgraded to stable over the weekend , he had suffered significant head injuries , and passed away from a stroke at cedars - sinai medical center .
pulitzer prize–winning playwright edward albee was considered one of the greatest american playwrights of his generation for his plays including ' the zoo story , ' ' who ' s afraid of virginia woolf ? , ' ' a delicate balance ' and ' three tall women . '
woolf , 34 , died of a stroke at cedars - sinai medical center on monday , said his publicist , zack teperman . the actor had been hospitalized in critical condition since thursday , when he was struck by a car mirror near hollywood boulevard , police said .
national research council ( us ) ; institute of medicine ( us ) ; woolf sh , aron l , editors . u . s . health in international perspective : shorter lives , poorer health . washington ( dc ) : national academies press ( us ) ; 2013 .
the new york times critic ben brantley once wrote about albee & apos ; s contribution to the theater world : “mr . albee has unsparingly considered subjects outside the average theatergoer’s comfort zone : the capacity for sadism and violence within american society ; the fluidness of human identity ; the dangerous irrationality of sexual attraction and , always , the irrefutable presence of death . ”
i say curious because woolf is so much more accomplished a modernist in words than any of the bloomsbury artists were in paint . in the prose poetry of the waves and to the lighthouse she powerfully achieved the kind of effects fry described , where emotion and impression supersede precise description .
of course , these letters are among the few snatches of writing that the show can reflect ; it can only go so far in illustrating what makes woolf so enduringly significant a figure . but you leave with a thirst for her writing and , in that sense , it’s invigorating .
benjamin eric woolf was born on sept . 15 , 1980 , in fort collins , colo . , and grew up in fairfield , iowa . his family learned he had pituitary dwarfism when he was a child . he moved to california in 2010 to pursue a career in entertainment .
woolf died of a stroke at cedars - sinai medical center about 3 : 20 p . m . , said his publicist , zack teperman . the actor had been hospitalized in critical condition since thursday , when he was struck by a car mirror while jaywalking near hollywood boulevard , police said .
in a video interview last january , woolf—who stood at four feet and four inches—shared his difficulties with dwarfism . he shared that people sometimes “don’t give me the value that i deserve” . nevertheless , he had soon learned to “ignore it and do what i can do to the best of my ability . ”
national research council ( us ) ; institute of medicine ( us ) ; woolf sh , aron l , editors . u . s . health in international perspective : shorter lives , poorer health . washington ( dc ) : national academies press ( us ) ; 2013 . 3 , framing the question .
in the first season mr . woolf played the infantata , the murderous ghost of a baby - turned - frankenstein monster by his grieving parents . in the recently concluded fourth season he played meep , a sideshow performer with a one - word vocabulary and a penchant for biting the heads off live animals .
woolf first appeared in the hit fx anthology series in its first season , playing infantata and donning heavy makeup to transform into the memorable character . he returned for the show’s most recent season , “freak show , ” in a small but beloved role as meep , who could only say one word : “meep ! ”
a source close to the actor , who played meep on the f / x series , told the website that woolf suffered a stroke at cedars - sinai medical center in los angeles after he was hit in the head by a passing car ' s mirror while he was crossing a street in hollywood last week .
but bell is still hugely inconsistent : her portrait of woolf in an armchair , in which the details of the face are all but obliterated , seems to follow fry’s idea that “the emotional elements of design” are more important in painting than the likeness of the sitter , but the paint seems heavy and aimless . it’s curious that woolf , after revisiting in 1928 another bell painting , three women ( 1913 - 16 ) , which rather lumpily and clumsily channels matisse and picasso , wrote of bell’s ability to “bring off a situation in a way that arouses my envy” , before adding : “i wonder if i could write three women in prose ? ”
mr . woolf reflected on the difficulties of life with dwarfism in a video interview released by “american horror story” in january . in it , he said that people sometimes “don’t give me the value that i deserve , ” but that he had learned to “ignore it and do what i can do to the best of my ability . ”
but that was just the kind of response that meep inspired in people . his childlike innocence ( minus the biting off animal heads thing ) and love for his fellow freaks made his early onscreen death feel like a travesty , but all tv plot - related feelings obviously pale in comparison to what the
ahs
family - - cast , crew , and fans - - are feeling today ( february 24 ) , due to the news that woolf died last night at the age of 34 . the 4 ' 4 ' ' woolf , who had pituitary dwarfism , was hit in the head by the side mirror of an suv while crossing the street last week , and never recovered from his injuries .
mr . woolf worked for two seasons on “american horror story . ” an emmy - nominated series on fx , it features an ensemble cast and new characters and a new story line each season . settings have included a haunted house , a 1960s mental hospital plagued by demons and extraterrestrials , a coven of witches , and a 1950s carnival freak show .
woolf wrote later that “great men stood in the background” of their lives . “greatness still seems to me a positive possession ; booming ; eccentric ; set apart ; something to which i am led up dutifully by my parents , ” she added . “it is a bodily presence ; it has nothing to do with anything said . ” she had much to live up to .
tangled love lives inevitably feature . woolf’s single - day engagement to strachey , who was gay , is marked by his embarrassed letter to her , in which he writes that “the future is blank to me” , that “whatever happens , as you said , the important thing is that we should like each other” , before closing with : “this world is difficult to manage . ”
woolf’s appearance is the result of a diagnosis of pituitary dwarfism as well as some chemotherapy he underwent in his youth , according to the video above . he’s capitalized on this and made a successful career out of acting , with roles in two seasons of “american horror story . ” in addition to this season , he played “infantata” in the show’s first season , “murder house . ”
mr . woolf , who was 4 feet 4 inches tall , was hit in the head by a side - view mirror of a passing car around 9 p . m . on thursday , said sara faden , a spokeswoman for the los angeles police department . the driver remained at the scene , and the police were treating the incident as “a tragic accident , ” she said .
life unfolds in a series of exquisite contradictions in “waves , ” a remarkable , genre - defying work from the national theater of great britain that raises the bar for literary adaptations . the world that is so magically summoned in this improbable page - to - stage translation of “the waves , ” virginia woolf’s most challenging novel , is one of fragmentation and flux , of impenetrable solidity and ghostly transparency , of simultaneous bloom and decay .
each character could be said to embody a different aspect of woolf , who herself shows up in the production , chain smoking and reading from the omniscient narrative sections of “the waves” and from personal diary entries in a flutelike upper - middle - class voice . it is clearly the voice that gives shape to all the other voices we hear , and the tone is sustained beautifully . ( only a recurring sexual joke , involving a banana , seems out of place . )
this sense of magicians showing their hands , of letting us in on the secret of their tricks , in no way diminishes our appreciation of their art . “the waves” is partly about forms of storytelling , of the ways different minds turn life into narrative . and woolf was always painfully aware of the inexactness and artificiality of art : that her words , however fine - spun , could only approximate what she really wanted to say . it seems appropriate to anatomize the tale as it is being told .
but they’ll be hard pressed to deny the insightful , meticulous craftsmanship of ms . mitchell , her eight performers and a media - mixing design team that plies sophisticated video and audio tools that the technology - challenged woolf could never have dreamed of . it is yet another of the show’s happier paradoxes that in evoking the “moments of being” that make up the novel , this band of artists using 21st - century tools parallel the process of an early - 20th - century novelist heroically trying to pin down the ephemeral with only pen and ink .
it was in golden square after 1904 that woolf made the first steps to her own greatness . she , vanessa and their brothers , thoby and adrian , began holding their thursday - evening “at homes” , discussion soirées that marked the beginning of the bloomsbury group . enter the familiar bloomsbury characters : duncan grant , lytton strachey , simon bussy , lady ottoline morrell , roger fry and so on . fry’s presence was crucial in providing the group with an artistic identity , formed out of his evangelical passion for the french post - impressionism of cézanne , gauguin and their followers .
albee made his broadway debut in 1962 with who’s afraid of virginia woolf ? , an over three - hour long play about the existentially fraught relationship between a middle - aged professor george and his wife martha , who pull a couple of invited guests into their dysfunction in a night of alcohol - fueled confrontations . some critics were horrified by the raw emotions on stage , others found it revelatory . the production was a major hit , winning the tony award for best play . a jury also awarded it the pulitzer prize , but the pulitzer advisory board rejected their recommendation .
of all woolf’s novels , which include syllabus staples like “mrs . dalloway” and “to the lighthouse , ” none is more adventurous or , on the surface , more baffling than “the waves , ” published in 1931 . she wrote in her diary that she was striving for the “abstract poetic . ” and the book is shaped as a musical counterpoint of subjective points of view , rendered in lyrical stream - of - consciousness monologues . the obvious course for bringing it to the stage would be to allow six performers to recite those monologues in rotation , perhaps with moody musical interludes .
playwright edward albee & apos ; s early popular one - acts plays , including the zoo story ( 1959 ) , established him as a critic of american values . he was best known for his first full - length play who & apos ; s afraid of virginia woolf ? ( 1962 ) , a tony award - winning production which also became a 1966 film starring elizabeth taylor and richard burton . albee received pulitzer prizes for a delicate balance ( 1966 ) , seascape ( 1972 ) and three tall women ( 1994 ) , among a host of other accolades . albee died on september 16 , 2016 at the age of 88 .
devised by katie mitchell and the company from the text of virginia woolf’s novel “the waves” ; directed by ms . mitchell ; video design by leo warner for fifty - nine productions ; design by vicki mortimer ; lighting by paule constable ; music by paul clark ; music director and arranger , simon allen ; sound by gareth fry ; company voice work by kate godfrey . produced by the national theater of great britain , presented by lincoln center’s great performers new visions series . at the duke on 42nd street , 229 west 42nd street , manhattan ; ( 212 ) 721 - 6500 . through nov . 22 . running time : 2 hours 30 minutes .
first , much of the association between early and adult health conditions results from the persistence of material , social , and cultural conditions over time . children who grow up in poverty not only endure immediate health risks such as poor nutrition and exposure to lead , allergens , and other pollutants , but they are also more likely to face poverty and its consequences as adults ( case and paxson , 2010 , 2011 ; case et al . , 2005 ; currie and widom , 2010 ; delaney and smith , 2012 ; isaacs et al . , 2008 ) . to the extent that such exposures remain stable across the life course , disadvantages during childhood and adolescence will persist later in life . accordingly , poor health status early in life is associated with poor health status during adulthood ( kuh and ben - shlomo , 2004 ; power et al . , 1991 ; wadsworth , 1991 ) .
this continuum of influences offers a potentially important systemic explanation for the higher prevalence of disorders ( e . g . , obesity , cardiovascular disease ) , violence ( e . g . , homicide ) , and risk factors documented in part i . over the past several decades , a great deal of social and biomedical sciences research has been devoted to looking across individuals’ life spans in an effort to better understand developmental and health trajectories over time and , more specifically , how characteristics and experiences early in life may influence health and biobehavioral pathways much later in life ( billari , 2009 ; braveman and barclay , 2009 ; braveman et al . , 2011b ; gluckman and hanson , 2006 ; halfon and hochstein , 2002 ; keating and hertzman , 1999 ; kuh and ben - shlomo , 2004 ; lynch and davey smith , 2005 ; mayer , 2009 ; palloni et al . , 2009 ; pollitt et al . , 2005 ; power and hertzman , 1997 ) . the life - course framework casts health as a developmental process influenced by multiple nested social , environmental , and biological spheres that continually interact over the course of one’s life and shape the quality and nature of each person’s growth , health , and development ( halfon and hochstein , 2002 ) .


soapdish is a 1991 american comedy film which tells a backstage story of the cast and crew of a popular fictional television soap opera .

it stars sally field as a mature soap star , joined by kevin kline , robert downey , jr. , elisabeth shue , whoopi goldberg , teri hatcher , cathy moriarty , garry marshall , kathy najimy , and carrie fisher , as well as cameo appearances by tv personalities like leeza gibbons , john tesh ( both playing themselves as entertainment tonight hosts/reporters ) , real-life soap opera actors stephen nichols and finola hughes , and ben stein .

kline was nominated for a golden globe award for best actor – motion picture musical or comedy for the film .

soapdish was directed by michael hoffman , from a screenplay by robert harling and andrew bergman .

the film was produced by aaron spelling and field 's then-husband alan greisman , and executive produced by herbert ross .

soapdish

soapdish follows the behind the scenes scandals on the set of a fictional soap opera .
if you want to answer the questions ,
who starred in the movie soapdish ?
and
what is the full cast list of soapdish ?
then this page has got you covered .
soapdish aims at a satiric target as big as a macy ' s float and intermittently hits it .
looking for movie tickets ? enter your location to see which movie theaters are playing soapdish near you .
this cast list of who was in soapdish includes both lead and minor roles . ( 45 items )
photo : “the soap scum in the soapdish we were greeted with as we enetered our first room . ”
soapdish was meant to be read through a camp sensibility . which instantly disqualifies it as camp , itself .
soapdish cast list , listed alphabetically with photos when available . this list of soapdish actors includes any soapdish actresses and all other actors from the film . you can view additional information about each soapdish actor on this list , such as when and where they were born . to find out more about a particular actor or actress , click on their name and you ' ll be taken to page with even more details about their acting career . the cast members of soapdish have been in many other movies , so use this list as a starting point to find actors or actresses that you may not be familiar with .
further information about soapdish the musical are yet to be announced . sign up to our newsletter to keep up to date !
soapdish is pure joy , a lemon - fresh spoof of daytime drama that does the dishing and may even soften your hands .
soapdish is a flurry of activity without a dedicated core , neutering displays of slapstick and the force of the satiric crescent kick .
according to sources , wicked and glee star kristin chenoweth could be set to return to london in stiles and drewe ' s soapdish .
i think there’s a key criterion that soapdish fails at , in order to be a true camp classic : it’s trying to be campy .
the soap scum in the soapdish we were greeted with as we enetered our first room . - picture of nh collection barcelona gran hotel calderon , barcelona
families can talk about the many stereotypes in soapdish . are stereotypes more acceptable when the main purpose is humor and they are presented in a satire or spoof ?
the soap scum in the soapdish we were greeted with as we enetered our first room . - picture of nh collection barcelona gran hotel calderon , barcelona - tripadvisor
after shooting would wrap each day , the cast would get together to eat and play games - - and that ' s how
soapdish
was born .
broadway star kristin chenoweth has announced via watch what happens live that she is set to star in the new stiles and drewe musical adaptation of soapdish in london .
soapdish may not be one of those misuses fortunately , but it still falls into the same category of movie where the writers and directors are in on the joke .
during watch what happens live with andy cohen , a savvy caller asked tony - and emmy - winning actor kristin chenoweth if the rumors are true that she will headline the west end musical adaptation of soapdish .
considering the intricacy of the plot and how easy comedy is to belabor ,
soapdish
is amazingly streamlined and coherent . a new and improved approach to summer comedy , it brightens as it lightens the days of our lives .
since all of the characters in
soapdish
are shamelessly venal and banal ( the big motivations are lust , greed , jealousy and vanity ) , the movie has the purity of a marx brothers comedy . also some of the anarchy .
whoopi gave in , and perhaps entertainment history has been made . for all its zany turns and self - parodies , its splendid tackiness and glorious venality , soapdish may ultimately be remembered as the movie in which whoopi goldberg made a fashion statement .
in 2010 , at the show ' s first reading , baz bamigboye reported in uk daily mail that
gavin creel and sally ann triplett were among the cast doing a workshop today in london for another stiles and drewe show , a musical based on the comedy film soapdish .
soapdish is based on the 1991 film directed by michael hoffman and written by robert harling and andrew bergman that tells the backstage story of a cast and crew working on a popular fictional television soap opera . the film starred sally field , kevin kline , robert downey , jr , whoopi goldberg and teri hatcher .
one new plot development proposed during the course of
soapdish
involves a brain transplant performed in a restaurant . another introduces a young woman who is mute and homeless ( elisabeth shue , as the story ' s ingenue ) with
a chemical imbalance ,
which someone refers to casually as
the bill styron thing .
soapdish the musical first had a reading in new york back in 2010 with gavin creel and sally ann triplett and was last workshopped in 2012 with kristin chenoweth starring alongside jane krakowski . it is thought that the musical might have its london premiere at the other palace theatre in victoria which has recently opened as a home for new musical theatre .
crowned the “unknown king of comedy” by new york magazine , andrew bergman is the writer and director of the freshman , honeymoon in vegas , it could happen to you , so fine and striptease . he has also written the in - laws , fletch , and co - wrote soapdish , as well as the scout and oh , god , you devil .
urltoken soapdish : sally field , kevin kline , robert downey jr . , cathy moriarty , elisabeth shue , whoopi goldberg , teri hatcher , garry marshall , kathy najimy , arne nannestad , paul johansson , sheila kelley , michael hoffman , aaron spelling , alan greisman , herbert ross , joel freeman , victoria white , andrew bergman , robert harling : movies & tv
soapdish
is pure joy , a lemon - fresh spoof of daytime drama that does the dishing and may even soften your hands . an uproarious look behind the scenes of a fictional soap opera , it soaks the conventions of the genre with unfailing zest to leave a shine so bright you can see your face in it - - art mirroring life and all that .
in the 1991 comedy soapdish , sally field plays celeste talbert , a middle - aged soap opera star at the peak of her career whose life suddenly turns upside down when her daughter ( that’s a spoiler , but who cares ) lands a high - profile role as her co - star while her coworkers secretly begin plotting to have her written off the show entirely . sad !
soapdish
is rated pg - 13 ( parents strongly cautioned ) . it includes mild profanity and sexual references . soapdish directed by michael hoffman ; screenplay by robert harling and andrew bergman , story by mr . harling ; director of photography , ueli steiger ; edited by garth craven ; music by alan silvestri ; produced by aaron spelling and alan greisman ; released by paramount pictures . running time : 100 minutes . this film is rated pg - 13 . celeste talbert . . . sally field jeffrey anderson . . . kevin kline rose schwartz . . . whoopi goldberg david barnes . . . robert downey jr . montana moorehead . . . cathy moriarty lori craven . . . elisabeth shue betsy faye . . . carrie fisher edmund edwards . . . garry marshall
i’m all for agreeing to disagree . it’s mostly that i find it hard to see text that isn’t on the surface with soapdish . what’s there is hilarious , but my argument is that’s not what makes camp . lines and costumes weren’t enough to make to wong foo particularly campy , and it was trying its dear little heart out . although big ups for stockard channing — fierce !
soapdish is one of my guilt pleasures . . . such a funny movie with such good actors such as : sally field , whoopie goldberg , elizabeth shue , robert downey jr , cathy moriarty , kevin kline , and teri hatcher . this movie directed by michael hoffman shows you what happens behind closed doors on a soap opera . . . . apparently another drama ensues . . . too funny !
films that discuss sunset boulevard in their screenplays or pay homage in scenes or dialogue include soapdish ( 1991 ) , the player ( 1992 ) , gods and monsters ( 1998 ) , mulholland drive ( 2001 ) , [ 6 ] inland empire ( 2006 ) and be cool ( 2005 ) . the ending of cecil b . demented ( 2000 ) is a parody of sunset boulevard ' s final scene .
then : carrie fisher , known to audiences best as princess leia from the & apos ; star wars & apos ; films , played betsy faye sharon , an executive on the show . that same year , fisher appeared in the film & apos ; drop dead fred & apos ; with phoebe cates , wife of fisher & apos ; s & apos ; soapdish & apos ; co - star kevin kline .
ouch . i see your point , but i have to stand by my opinion . i’m certainly not saying that soapdish isn’t a great flick , but it’s a great flick that isn’t traditional camp . the very definition of camp is subversion . it’s hard to make a case for outright parodies and satire to really qualify as camp — i don’t think anyone would make the same claim for airplane ! or dr . strangelove .
nonetheless it was field who actually helped jump - start soapdish . while filming steel magnolias , from robert harling’s off broadway play , she and harling began scheming . ”i’d been trying to develop a film about actors , ” she says , ”and bobby thought it would be fun for me to play an out - and - out bitch . i thought , great ! a bitch with a heart of gold ; someone who is just very , very crabby . ”
released in 1991 , & apos ; soapdish & apos ; starred sally field as an aging soap opera star challenged by a bitter rival and struggling to retain her role in the spotlight . bolstered by co - stars like robert downey jr . and kevin kline , this satirical comedy took audiences behind the scenes of the world of daytime soaps . twenty - three years later , we revisit the cast of this delightful classic and see what they & apos ; re up to now .
but then
soapdish
seems akin to a playground for all its stars . a dizzy ensemble piece directed by michael hoffman , it also finds kevin kline at the top of his form as a former soap star , jeffrey , who is currently playing willy loman at a florida steak ' n ' play house for mostly deaf patrons . poor jeffrey has been unable to make a comeback since his legendary feud with celeste . and then to his delight he is invited to return to the series .
bergman began his motion picture career at the very top , writing the story and co - writing the screenplay of the classic blazing saddles . he went on to write such other memorable comedies as the in - laws , fletch , and soapdish . in fact these four bergman movies , plus the freshman , were nominated by the american film institute as among the greatest comedies of all time . in 2007 the writers guild of america awarded him the ian mclellan hunter award for lifetime achievement in writing .
soapdish
is
network
crossed with
beyond the valley of the dolls ,
a soap opera about a soap opera , with a plot that churns together sex , scandal , jealousy , secrets from the past , television in - jokes and the supreme sacrifice of becoming a brain donor . it ' s the funniest movie since
the freshman ,
and was written by the same man , andrew bergman , this time with the collaboration of robert harling and the screwball timing of director michael hoffman .
a remake of soapdish has been proposed ; if it must proceed , celebrity tabloids would make more sense than reviving the idea of the country ' s eyes fixing with such interest on one of the few remaining daytime soap operas ( unless it ' s a period piece ) . moreover , though , it seems unlikely that a remake could match this film ' s craft , which only looks easy and silly ( well , okay , it is silly ; gloriously so ) - - even on another bare - bones dvd .
soapdish is also blessed with the gilded touch of miller , he of dynasty fame , whose costumes are synonymous with soapery . at the moment , he is admiring his handiwork : an array of principals decked out in custom couture , an army of extras in dynasty hand - me - downs . there’s field , dressed in a strapless gold ball gown , punching the floor with her stilettos . and there’s whoopi , wearing a demure maroon satin floor - length number . her gibson girl hairdo and a pearl choker render her almost unrecognizable .
no , i completely disagree with you motard . i feel like “soapdish” has been taken by people to be something outside of its original text . i think , yes , it was made to be outrageous , but it was supposed to be a send - up of soap operas , soap operas to the extreme . the fact that makes it campy has nothing to do with the soap element it was intended to lampoon . instead it’s all of the lines and costumes and little things that make it draggy and campy that have nothing to do with the intended idea .
particularly nice touches in
soapdish
include its jaunty neo - 1950 ' s title sequence , in which ms . goldberg ' s rose takes celeste for
a trip across the george washington bridge
( their code for surprise appearances at new jersey shopping malls , where rose pretends to be a fan and triggers a stampede of autograph seekers to bolster celeste ' s wobbly ego ) and mr . kline ' s explanation of why jeffrey envisions himself as a one - man hamlet , since he thinks all the play ' s action essentially takes place in hamlet ' s head .
ah yes , ‘tis tuesday morning once again…the time of the week when your intrepid soapdish columnist turns his steely gaze to our fair city’s urban streets , its hearty inhabitants , its bon vivants… . its neighborhoods…and , as of last wednesday’s little reception at bang nightclub , its , um , “soapbox district” ? that’s right folks , apparently some enterprising and eager entrepreneurs on west 4th street decided to designate their little corner of downtown the “soapbox district . ” [ note of disclosure : urltoken is in no way connected to this nascent and plucky new “soapbox district , ” other than as an interested observer and booster , of course ]
perspective in the frenetic new comedy
soapdish
is provided by jeffrey anderson ( kevin kline ) , a down - at - the - heels actor appearing in a dinner - theater production of
death of a salesman
in opa - locka , fla . dinner theater : this means jeffrey performs in the corner of a big room that is otherwise filled with restaurant patrons , many of whom are hard of hearing .
death of a salesman
: that means a poster touting jeffrey ' s appearance as
willie
loman and a stage manager who insists on calling him
mr . loman
because she doesn ' t remember his real name .
too bad . even if the movie ' s plot engine is approaching time - capsule quality , soapdish itself is an uncommonly well - executed farce . the film ' s obvious but satisfying gimmick is that the set of the long - running soap opera the sun also sets is a twisty soap opera unto itself , with a cast full of dark secrets and entanglements to match its characters . the center of both the show and the movie is celeste talbert ( sally field ) , an aging actress convinced that some of her coworkers , including costar montana moorehead ( cathy moriarty ) and producer david barnes ( robert downey jr . ) , are plotting against her .
the surprising stumbling block in all this was finding an actor to play jeffrey . ”basically , in the 40 - year - old age group , after you get past michael douglas , william hurt , and harrison ford , who is there ? ” asks hoffman . ”mostly people who have proven themselves not to be leading men . ” kline had been considered , but he’s so choosy that he’s known at caa , his agency , as kevin decline , and nobody thought he’d go for soapdish . but kline turned out to be a fan of hoffman’s promised land . after hours of conversation ( ”kevin likes to talk , ” says hoffman ) , kevin signed on .
soapdish ,
an uneven but often sidesplitting look at the soap opera cast and its conspiratorial backstage antics , needs jeffrey anderson to open up its otherwise very small world . mostly confined to a deliberately infernolike studio set , with offices extending from its sound stage and with decor and costumes often a hellish red , it enters wholeheartedly into the iffy mental state of longtime soap opera denizens living in a weirdly elastic universe . after years of experience , the show ' s creative team has learned to believe that no plot development is too contrived , dishonest or counterproductive if it helps to further the private interests of at least one staff member with an ax to grind .
soapdish ,
directed with good - natured zest by michael hoffman , has as serious a split - personality problem as any of its characters , perhaps because its screenplay is the work of robert harling ( who wrote the story ) and andrew bergman , two screenwriters with decidedly different comic sensibilities . the story ' s antic off - camera melodrama about the actors ' real lives has the ring of mr . harling ' s
steel magnolias ,
and thanks to too many dread secrets it often feels like overkill ; the problems between the newly reunited celeste and jeffrey wear thin long before celeste climbs a fire escape to peer into jeffrey ' s apartment window .
these aren’t regular shoppers , of course . they’re hired hands clutching prop bags from gucci and f . a . o . schwarz . ( the real fans are behind security ropes . ) and although the escalator scene could be a moment of cinema verité — the sally field version of truth or dare — it’s actually a moment from soapdish , paramount’s just - released ensemble comedy . directed by michael hoffman ( promised land ) , the spoof takes aim at the surreal terrain of daytime - tv soapland , sending up the very notion of celebrity . this is daring fare for a hollywood movie that reportedly cost $ 25 million . this is most certainly daring fare for sally field .
although the film ' s milieu feels dated , especially the notion of glamorous soap stars that capture the public ' s imagination , soapdish maintains a certain amount of currency . at this point , celebrity culture has become its own soap opera , supplanting , to a large degree , the daily scripted version in favor of more efficient
real
versions . the genre has been divided in two : the reality soaps , with their time - killing anti - twists ; and celebrity - centric tabloids , which essentially script their own twists and turns and apply them to famous faces against their will . the latter is not so different from the heightened melodrama played for laughs in the film .
really , though , they do this throughout the movie , just as the actual actors use these characters to indulge in heedless screwball silliness . the plotting of soapdish illustrates the thin line between soap and farce ; its twists and revelations are accompanied by lots of entrances , exits , screaming , and pratfalls , which could add up to off - key camp if director michael hoffman didn ' t show such command of his actors and material . hoffman makes strong use of the depth of the physical depth of a soap opera set and surrounding studio , as the camera tracks characters , finds them in the background of other shots , and whips around the room with perfect timing . was this a particularly ambitious technical undertaking for a comedy , or has studio farce - craft been in a precipitous decline since 1991 ?
as long - running soaps disappear from the air or migrate online , it ' s an odd ( if not unwelcome ) time to reissue the 1991 behind - the - soaps comedy soapdish on home video . even given the ostensible reason - - the film ' s 20th anniversary - - paramount ' s release strategy is bizarre : rather than putting out a blu - ray version of the film and / or adding some special features , the studio has simply reissued the exact same dvd ( not even yet out of print ! ) with uglier cover art and a sticker touting the 20th anniversary . paramount upgraded initial bare - bones of other comedies like airplane ! and clueless , but michael hoffman ' s farce is afforded no such treatment , still bearing only the original trailer and a musty making - of featurette from the year of its release .
in the comedic farce soapdish , the behind - the - scenes lives of several soap opera actors are just as melodramatic as those of their television counterparts . sally field stars as celeste talbert , the star of a declining tv show . to make matters worse , talbert ' s career is thrown into turmoil when her rival , montana moorehead ( cathy moriarty ) , tries to persuade producer david barnes ( robert downey jr . ) to write talbert off the show . smitten by moorehead , barnes comes up with a scheme to get talbert off the show by hiring her niece lori ( elisabeth shue ) and then jeffrey ( kevin kline ) , an old flame and cast member who was written out of the show 20 years prior . soon , mayhem rules on the set as the cast and crew tangle , culminating in a special episode , broadcast live .
together , they have written betty blue eyes , just so , tutankhamun , honk ! , peter pan , and the new songs for the cameron mackintosh / disney production of mary poppins . they have two new shows in development , soapdish and soho cinders . honk ! has received almost 5 , 000 productions and has been seen around the world by over 7 million people . mary poppins is playing on broadway , in amsterdam , is touring the usa and opened last summer in melbourne to rave reviews . in 2008 stiles and drewe celebrated 25 years of writing together with a sell - out concert at her majesty’s theatre , which resulted in a live cd , a spoonful of stiles & drewe . george and ants first met cameron mackintosh in 1985 when they won - and he judged - the vivian ellis prize and they have been friends ever since . they are delighted that he fell in love with their pig , betty .
sally field , in a vanity - free performance , hits all the right notes and takes a profusion of fine actors along for the ride in this show biz farce that holds up after decades . subtlety is not the goal here . actors chew scenery with delight in soapdish . costumes , makeup , and set design don ' t get any broader . the pace is brisk ; the dialogue is crisp and features cultural references that still hit the mark for older viewers . younger ones , even those without a fan ' s passion for the passion that rages in daytime drama , will still get the jokes , and find the send - up of show biz types as relevant as ever . whoopi goldberg is the only reality - based character , and she ' s the touchstone that gives all the other comedic roles someone to play against . while there ' s occasional swearing , sexual innuendo and flirtations , even a hero on a drunken binge and a plot point that involves ( spoiler alert ) a transgender character , circa 1991 , there ' s a wholesome quality to the fun , and it ' s never mean - spirited .
the actress stars in soapdish as celeste , a histrionic scene chewer who has endeared herself to a fawning public as maggie , leading lady of that beloved soap the sun also sets . whoopi plays rose , sun’s head writer , who has just brought celeste to the mall and orchestrated a show of fan support in an effort to buoy her spirits . celeste , alas , is having some really bad days . she’s being edged out of sun by the show’s scheming costars , montana ( cathy moriarty ) and ariel ( teri hatcher ) . they’re in cahoots with the slimy producer , david ( robert downey jr . ) , who is motivated by visions of kinky sexual recompense . hoping to unsettle celeste , and thereby finally seduce montana , david hires celeste’s old flame jeffrey ( kevin kline ) back to the show . and while jeffrey , who has fallen on bad times and vodka at a godforsaken dinner theater , still carries a torch for celeste , he also seems to be falling for lori ( elisabeth shue ) , who plays the beautiful , homeless deaf woman . trouble is , lori might be… ( music up ) celeste’s niece !
the popular 1908 children’s novel the wind in the willows will receive new life in london . playwright julian fellowes and composer and lyricist duo george stiles and anthony drewe will team up for a new musical adaptation of the classic tale . the three first collaborated on disney and cameron mackintosh’s hit musical mary poppins . the production will be developed and produced by jamie hendry productions ( legally blonde , spring awakening , la cage aux folles ) . no dates or casting have been announced at this time . the wind in the willows , written by kenneth grahame in 1908 , follows the adventures of mole , rat , badger and toad on the river , in the countryside and in the wild wood . this will be the eighth stage adaptation of the novel , the most famous being the 1985 tony - nominated production starring nathan lane as toad . fellowes’ credits include the emmy award - winning downtown abbey , the oscar - winning gosford park , the importance of being earnest and an upcoming remake of romeo & juliet . music duo stiles and drewe won an olivier award for honk ! ; other credits include betty blue eyes , peter pan and the upcoming stage adaptation of soapdish .
it’s a saturday morning in january , and whoopi goldberg and sally field are making a scene at the topanga plaza mall outside los angeles . goldberg has just parked the balance of her greek gyro ( hold the lettuce , tomato , and ”that sour yogurt sauce” ) , donned a winter coat ( never mind that it’s 70 degrees outside ) , and now heads for the mall’s balcony . field , who has stocked up at gap kids , hands her 3 - year - old son , sam , off to his father , soapdish coproducer alan greisman , loses her gum , and joins goldberg at the top of the freestanding escalator . ”ready ? ” asks goldberg . ”ready , ” says field . off come field’s dark glasses and head scarf ; on comes the serene look of a public deity as she begins a regal descent . as the cameras roll . goldberg suddenly gets antic . ”look who it is ! ” she announces loudly , pointing at field . ”aren’t you on that show ? ! ” in a matter of seconds field is where many an actress would want to be : in the center of a giddy crush of autograph seekers who really , really like her .
there weren ' t many nightlife options in natchitoches , which today has a population of about 18 , 000 , so the cast would play games like pictionary and charades in the evenings . one night , after they ' d exhausted most of their typical options , the group took to posing questions for everyone to answer . harling asked each actress to name the role she ' d most like to play . dolly parton ' s was medea . shirley maclaine said she ' d never portrayed an alcoholic ( that changed the following year when
postcards from the edge
came out ) . julia roberts reminded everyone she still
just wanted to work .
and sally field , after pondering it , said she always played
really noble , earnest women that wear crummy clothes . for once i ' d like to play a bitch that gets to wear nice clothes .
and that was how
sopadish
came about . harling found himself thinking about the idea of america ' s sweetheart actually being someone who
really destroyed the lives of everyone around her .
he put the concept to use in the 1991 comedy , which starred field as an aging soap - opera actress who conspires to ruin the career of her co - star . (
soapdish
will soon become a broadway musical starring kristin chenoweth . )
one can only feel sympathy for celeste talbert ( sally field ) , the put - upon star of
the sun also sets ,
a soap opera with sagging ratings in soapdish . celeste ' s live - in boyfriend has left her with only a message on her answering machine . there ' s a conspiracy against her promoted by her by a jealous co - star , montana moorehead ( cathy moriarty ) and the show ' s producer ( robert downey , jr . ) , who desperately wants to bed montana . and , part of their evil plan involves bringing celeste ' s old paramour and leading man back to the show , a man whom she loved and hated with equal passion . jeffrey anderson ( kevin kline ) , whose career has fallen like a rock , is thrilled to come back , not only for the decent role , but to get revenge on the woman he feels has destroyed his career . enter celeste ' s niece , lori ( elisabeth shue ) , who has left college to join her aunt in nyc and become an actress . when jeffrey begins a flirtation with lori , who has been given a tiny role on the show , celeste is apoplectic . soon aware of the conspiracy against her , the treachery of jeffrey , and constant efforts by the crew to
age
her relentlessly , it ' s only a matter of time before celeste risks all , dredges up long - hidden secrets , and reveals the true heart of the woman who was once called america ' s sweetheart .
parents need to know that soapdish , released in 1991 , is a send - up of television ' s daytime dramas (
soap operas
) , with an outstanding cast of solid comic actors , broad slapstick story elements , and loving comic attention paid to the personal lives of the show ' s characters that make their fictional personalities seem tame in comparison . abounding in intrigue , romance , show biz insincerity and boorishness , along with outrageous revelations about past indiscretions and youthful mistakes , the story moves from one outrageous character and / or situation to another in short order . comic flirtations , seductions , and large bosoms mean that farcical sexuality is a constant thread , hovering just beneath the surface of the story . that is , when those flirtations , seductions , et al , are not right up on the screen . occasional sexual jokes (
can i touch your breasts ?
) , cursing and profanity are heard :
s - - t ,
bitch ,
hooters ,
peeing ,
t - ts ,
one each use of
f - - k ,
and
coloreds .
spoiler alert : reference is made to a transgender female . a leading character gets drunk in one scene ; another uses alcohol to dull a disappointment . characters smoke cigarettes . far from mean - spirited , all the players seem to relish the chance to play big , exaggerated show biz types , and they appear to be having as much fun as their prospective audiences . teens and up .
is an american actor who made his screen debut at the age of five , appearing in his father ' s film pound . he has appeared in roles associated with the brat pack , such as less than zero and weird science . other films he has starred in include air america , soapdish , and natural born killers . he starred as the title character in the 1992 film chaplin , earning him a nomination for the academy award for best actor . after being released from the california substance abuse treatment facility and state prison in 2000 for drug charges , downey joined the cast of the tv series ally mcbeal playing calista flockhart ' s love interest . his performance was praised and he received a golden globe award for best performance by an actor in a supporting role in a series , miniseries , or television film . his character was written out when downey was fired after two drug arrests in late 2000 and early 2001 . after one last stay in a court - ordered drug treatment program , downey finally achieved sobriety . his more recent films include the singing detective , kiss kiss bang bang , a scanner darkly , gothika , zodiac and tropic thunder . in 2008 , downey played the role of marvel superhero tony stark / iron man in the live action film iron man . he reprised the role in iron man 2 and the avengers , and will do so again in iron man 3 , set to release in 2013 . in 2009 , he played the title character in guy ritchie ' s sherlock holmes and again in 2011 ' s sherlock holmes : a game of shadows .
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written by robert harling of
steel magnolias
and andrew bergman of
blazing saddles ,
it is a kind of blazing magnolias with sally field and cathy moriarty as rival divas on
the sun also sets .
field is marvelously shallow as the reigning queen of bubbledom , celeste , a bitch goddess thrown off - kilter by the machinations of the ferocious moriarty . the actresses and their characters go after their roles with the freedom of gals who have just shucked their girdles .
never mind that his character was decapitated , says the show ' s producer ( robert downey jr . ) to his chief writer ( whoopi goldberg ) . she tries to explain that the character can ' t talk because he no longer has a head , but the slippery young executive is undeterred . in league with moriarty ' s blond dominatrix , he hopes to bump celeste from the show . instead , the move provokes a fiery reconciliation between celeste and jeffrey , and
the sun also sets
becomes even more popular than before .
elisabeth shue , carrie fisher and teri hatcher join the party as an extra , the casting director and a third - string diva . garry marshall , who directed
pretty woman ,
is wryly on target with a toothy portrayal of a bottom - line - oriented network executive with a heart .
cheap and peppy , cheap and peppy ,
he intones . a facile hollywood type , he hopes to make the show more socially relevant by adding a huddle of attractive homeless people .
the plot of the tv show spins about like laundry in a dryer but is no less strange than the ups and downs in the players ' not - so - private lives . an overstuffed celebration of the happy improbabilities of life , it is reminiscent of pedro almodovar ' s frenzied
women on the verge of a nervous breakdown .
so too is hoffman ' s quirkily melodramatic direction , which he pioneered in the inventive but unsuccessful
some girls
and
promised land .
urltoken has exclusively learned the cast for an upcoming late october reading of soap dish the musical , directed by rob ashford , with a book by robert harling , music by george stiles and lyrics by anthony drewe .
the cast of the new reading will include kristin chenoweth , john stamos , jane krakowski , cristin milioti , anne l . nathan , michael park , miriam shor and daniel torres . at this time there has been no formal announcement , or set timetable for the show . the reading is being presented by laurence mark , donald de line and broadway across america .
an ambitious tv soap actress connives with her producer to scuttle the career of the show ' s long - time star , but nothing works as they plan . celeste talbert has been the queen of the soaps for over two decades . montana moorehead needs to get her out of her way before she can move on and begins her program to get her to leave . she hires an old boyfriend of celeste to be on the show and has celeste become a murderer in the script , but each attempt has unforseen consequences
the musical theatre songwriting partnership that is george stiles ( music ) and anthony drewe ( lyrics ) have been writing together since they met at exeter university over twenty years ago .
st . louis : backstage bite : deluca celebrates the muny ' s 100th season w / ooey gooey st . louie bars
the tomatometer score — based on the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics — is a trusted measurement of critical recommendation for millions of fans . it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
movies and tv shows are certified fresh with a steady tomatometer of 75 % or higher after a set amount of reviews ( 80 for wide - release movies , 40 for limited - release movies , 20 for tv shows ) , including 5 reviews from top critics .
this movie certainly has its dopey moments , but if you ' re feeling indulgent you ' re likely to have a good time with it .
not as funny as the real thing and unlikely to be anywhere near as successful as the leading real - life exponents of the art .
a funny , sharply - written film more pertinent in the noughties than it was upon its first release .
the show within a show concept is the thing here with the question being : isn ' t the business of making a show more interesting than the show itself ? played , as daytime television frequently does , larger than life . . . the result is the guilty pleasure of this film . fields and kline are marvelous .
mildly amusing spoof of daytime soap operas with an amiable cast . but the laughable soap opera scenes are far funnier than the behind the scenes antics , and the similar tootsie is better .
i love you , tawny , wardrobe mistress :
and for tomorrow ' s fight with bolt , you ' ll wear this , and then for when blade accidentally shoots the contessa . . . . . .
i love you , tawny , wardrobe mistress : and for tomorrow ' s fight with bolt , you ' ll wear this , and then for when blade accidentally shoots the contessa .
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an ambitious television soap actress connives with her producer to scuttle the career of the show ' s long - time star , but nothing works as they plan .
check out highlights from some of the best recent trailers including mandy , the predator , zoe , and the king of thieves .
robert downey , jr . movies : 20 greatest films , ranked worst to best , include ‘iron man , ’ ‘tropic thunder , ’ ‘chaplin , ’ ‘zodiac’
want to share imdb ' s rating on your own site ? use the html below .
a businessman is reunited with the four lost souls who were his guardian angels during childhood , all with a particular purpose to joining the afterlife .
a reincarnated man unknowingly falls in love with his own daughter from his previous life . once he realizes this , he tries to end their relationship before angels erase his memory .
a college freshman returns to l . a . for the holidays at his ex - girlfriend ' s request , but discovers that his former best friend has an out - of - control drug habit .
a womanizer meets his match when he falls for a woman in debt to the mafia .
after losing her job , making out with her soon - to - be former boss , and finding out that her daughter plans to spend thanksgiving with her boyfriend , claudia larson faces spending the holiday with her family .
celeste talbert has been the queen of the soaps for over two decades . montana moorehead needs to get her out of her way before she can move on and begins her program to get her to leave . she hires an old boyfriend of celeste to be on the show and has celeste become a murderer in the script , but each attempt has unforseen consequences .
( 1984 ) ,
a prime - time soap opera
. stephen nichols would appear as dr . skyler gates in seven episodes of
in the scene where david and montana are conspiring on the
beach
set , david is wearing his glasses , but when the angle switches to an over - the - shoulder shot from behind him , his glasses are suddenly off .
early in the opening credits we see the words
a hamon cheimafflo film
. the letters of the two middle words then rearrange themselves , one
o
slipping off the side of the screen , to form the name of director
this is one of the best comedy ever ! the writing of this parody of soap is brilliant and the cast , well just look at the names of the cast and you ' ll understand why it is so great . if you ' re a kevin kline fan , he does ( as always ) an fantastic performance , and robert downey jr is perfect . if you don ' t laugh while seen this movie , you don ' t have any sense of humor .
30 of 36 people found this review helpful . was this review helpful to you ? yes no | report this
explore popular sci - fi movies and tv shows available to stream with prime video .
basically the story of a man forced to finally see the injustice around him . riley’s movie is designed to do the same thing to you . …
the ballad of narayama
is a japanese film of great beauty and elegant artifice , telling a story of startling cruelty . what a space it opens…
roger ebert ' s speech on empathy for the
11th hour
series on april 9th , 1994 , being republished here in honor of his birthday june 18 .
roger ebert was born on this day in 1942 , and died a little over five years ago . i owe a good part of my success…
a look back at robert zemeckis ' half - animated classic , who framed roger rabbit , on its 30 - year anniversary .
a tribute to the late tab hunter , a gay matinee idol and hollywood trailblazer .
the movie takes place onstage and backstage at one of those long - running daytime soaps with endless plot twists and an almost acrobatic ability to combine sex with the headlines . the current plot line involves the homeless in jamaica , neurosurgeons , lascivious nurses , and a mute girl in a bathing suit who turns out to be a long - lost daughter , and miraculously regains her power of speech , but contracts a rare condition that will cause her brain to explode within a few days unless her mother agrees to a brain transplant , to be undertaken on the bar of a jamaican resort , as the surgeon mutters ,
i ' ve operated under worse conditions .
the plot , as i have briefly sketched it ( and believe me , i ' ve left out most of it ) , intertwines shocking events that are happening to the characters with equally shocking events affecting the actors in the soap . it literally defies description . and yet the actors somehow hold it together with gifted farcical acting , which involves playing everything completely seriously - especially the completely goofy parts .
sally field stars as
america ' s sweetheart ,
the beloved and famous long - running heroine of the soap , who is now the victim of a conspiracy involving the predatory montana moorehead ( cathy moriarty ) , a blond sex bomb who promises the show ' s callow young producer ( robert downey jr . ) a roll in the hay if he will write field out of the part .
field ' s interests are defended by her best friend and longtime head writer ( whoopi goldberg ) , who can ' t believe downey wants to resurrect a character who was beheaded in an old episode , but will now be miraculously restored to life . the character was played by field ' s long - ago flame ( kevin kline ) , who is now reduced to appearing in
death of a salesman
in a florida dinner theater .
the movie knows a lot about television , and has fun with such characters as the network boss ( garry marshall ) and the producer , who is played by downey as a shameless liar who will blame anything on anybody just to protect his position on the show . then there is a surprise subplot involving a balloon messenger girl ( elizabeth shue ) , who wrangles a bit part as one of the jamaican homeless , only to suddenly finding herself playing a leading role , both on camera and behind it .
if it doesn ' t work , it fails spectacularly , but it does work , and it succeeds in making its plot clear even though the basic story device is unending confusion . the bravura scenes are distributed nicely among the cast ( kline in front of a senile dinner theater audience , goldberg and field artificially staging a scene in a mall to inspire autograph hounds , moriarty seducing downey with promises of unimaginable sexual license , if only he writes field out of the show ) . even a teleprompter is funny for a scene .
of the filmmakers , the one best known to me is andrew bergman , who wrote and directed
the freshman
and wrote the hilarious
the in - laws .
his inventions are like a juggling act , in which three or four plots are kept simultaneously in the air , while the connections between the characters grow increasingly bizarre .
an interview with terry gilliam , director of
the man who killed don quixote .
the ebert club is our hand - picked selection of content for ebert fans . you will receive a weekly newsletter full of movie - related tidbits , articles , trailers , even the occasional streamable movie . club members also get access to our members - only section on urltoken
sally field leads an all - star cast in this sidesplittingly funny look at a scandal - ridden tv soap opera . kevin kline , robert downey , jr . , whoopi goldberg , cathy moriarty and elisabeth shue star as the zany cast and crew of the sun also sets , america ' s hottest
soap ,
where on - screen drama and off - screen craziness combine for outrageous hilarity ! there ' s enough dirty laundry to keep everyone in hot water in this unadulterated comedy hit that ' s
99 and 44 / 100 percent fun !
- joel siegel , good morning america .
sally field , kevin kline , robert downey , jr . , cathy moriarty , whoopi goldberg
an ambitious tv soap actress connives with her producer to scuttle the career of the show ' s long - time star , but nothing works as they plan . ( paramount pictures )
i ' m doctor monica demonico , the neurosurgeon assigned to this case . . .
roman j israel , esq . official trailer # 1 ( 2017 ) denzel washington , colin farrell drama movie hd
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