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Harvey Fierstein (1954 - )
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 Mrs.
Doubtfire (1993)
This huge 1993 hit for Robin Williams and
director Chris Columbus (Home Alone), based on a novel
called Alias Madame Doubtfire by Anne Fine, stars Williams
as a loving but flaky father estranged from his frustrated wife
(Sally Field). Devastated by a court order limiting his time with
the children, Williams's character disguises himself as a warm,
old British nanny who becomes the kids' best friend. As with
Dustin Hoffman's performance in Tootsie, Williams's drag
act--buried under layers of latex and padding--is the show, and
everything and everyone else on screen serves his sometimes
frantic role. Since that's the case, it's fortunate that Williams
is Williams, and his performance is terribly funny at times and
exceptionally believable in those scenes where his character
misses his children. Playing Williams's brother, a professional
makeup artist, Harvey Fierstein has a good support role in a
bright sequence where he tries a number of feminine looks on
Williams before settling on Mrs. Doubtfire's visage. --Tom
Keogh
 Torch
Song Trilogy (1988)
Harvey Fierstein had a smash hit on Broadway
with the stage version of this story about a drag queen, but
whatever the magic there was doesn't show up in this film
adaptation. (Fierstein allegedly couldn't line up an A-list or
even B-list director in 1988 to tackle the gay story line, so he
agreed to work with Paul Bogart, a ubiquitous television director
but an undistinguished feature filmmaker.) Fierstein's performance
is fine, but likely a shadow of his live work, while Anne Bancroft
is very strong in the role of his character's mother. Matthew
Broderick went against the tide of fear shared by most Hollywood
actors at the time about playing gay characters. The times have
certainly changed since then. --Tom Keogh
Harvey Fierstein Filmography:
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From Plump
Records
Excerpt:
Harvey Fierstein is an award-winning playwright,
actor and Gay rights activist. For "Torch Song Trilogy"
he won the Broadway Theater's prestigious Tony Awards for both his
starring performance and for Best Play. Mr. Fierstein won a third
Tony for his book of the musical "La Cage Aux Folles."
His other plays include "Safe Sex", "Spookhouse"
and "Forget Him..."
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Taken from Harvey Fierstein's Commencement
Address to the 1992 class at Bennington.
 | Never lie, and never let anyone cause you to
lie. Truth, or the pursuit of it, is all we have.
| Never do anything you are ashamed of. If
you're ashamed that means somewhere inside you think it's
wrong; and if you think it's wrong, you shouldn't be doing it.
| Take full responsibility for yourself. You
are the only one who can say what goes into or comes out of
your body.
| Always admit when you're wrong. You'll save
thousands in therapy later -- and a few friendships too.
| Change your mind as often as possible. Just
because you thought something yesterday doesn't mean you have
to think it today. Don't ever become a prisoner of your own
opinion.
| Beware of anyone who says they know. Trust
me, they don't, or they wouldn't have to say they did.
| Take care of yourself first, then your
family, then your friends. And if you have anything left over,
share it.
| Do something, anything, every day to change
the world. It doesn't have to be big, it could be giving a
dime to a street person, planting a flower, picking up litter.
Anything will change the world.
| When you have nothing better to do, smile.
You'll have to trust me on the miracle this step brings.
| Make a bit of time every day to be alone and
think. Five or ten minutes is enough. It will keep you sane.
| Have all the sex you want -- safe sex. Get
lust out of your way. It's the only way I know to make sure
you fall in love for the right reasons. And I want you all to
find true love.
| Learn something new every day. Read a
newspaper article that you wouldn't normally read. Open a
dictionary to a word you never heard, or never understood. |
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Site by Christian Shadlock
Excerpt:
The musical is set in the swinging
night-club, 'La Cage aux Folles', in the seedy end of St.Tropez,
France. A night-club where the notorious 'Cagelles' perform.
These gorgeous lovelies dress in high-heels, tights, and fabulous
costumes are a joy to behold. - But can you guess which two are
women?!!
The production centres around
Georges, owner of the night-club, and Albin, Georges's gay lover,
and star performer at the club. Georges's son, Jean-Michel (from a
previous marriage (to a woman!)) has become engaged and wants
Georges and his Mother, (who have been separated for a number of
years), to meet their soon to be In-Laws. The problem is that
Jean-Michels' fiancée's parents come from a strict moral
background. Indeed the father, Dindon is in politics and the
leader of a moral reform group. To make matters worse, Albin
becomes insanely jealous that he is not to be involved in (what
he refers to as) their sons marriage. Jean-Michel wishes to
present himself as coming from a high moral background and
requests that Georges removes from their home, anything that may
be considered as in-appropriate (like naked male statues, for
instance!)...
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Names Index:
A B
C D
E F
G H
I J
K L
M N
O P
Q R
S T
U V
W X
Y Z
| Authors
Index | Scholars
Index |
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