Monday, July 13, 2009

AS SEEN ON TV: JIM CROCE & MARC BOLAN

I think enough time has passed this year to talk freely about the finale for the American version of 'Life On Mars'. I know I've already done so in the past. But just in case, let this stand as a spoiler, please walk away if you haven't seen it already.......

JIM CROCE
AS SEEN IN:
'Life On Mars' (US)

AS PLAYED BY:
Don Puglisi

In the episode "Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby, Standing In The Shadows?", Sam was at a nightclub in 1973, technically on business, when he spotted Jim Croce on the dance floor. Sam was actually an astronaut on a mission to Mars in 2035, but his stim program for his hibernation cycle had him living in 1973 as a NYC detective.

Actually, he originally was programmed for a stim dream as a 2008 NYC cop, but a meteor strike on the ship caused damage to the system and threw him into a new program. (I think he was getting bleed from one of the other simulation programs, probably Annie's or his Dad's.)

And that's why he saw Croce, whom he tried to warn about getting into small planes - not that it would do any good, being an incredible simulation and not the real thing. From Wikipedia:

James Joseph Croce (January 10, 1943 – September 20, 1973), popularly known as Jim Croce, was an American singer-songwriter.

Croce scored a handful of hit songs in the first half of the '70s, but died in an airplane crash just as he was beginning to capitalize on his success. He is probably best remembered for the songs "Operator [That's Not The Way It Feels]", "You Don't Mess Around With Jim", "Time in a Bottle", and "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown," both #1 hits in 1973.

I went looking for that scene of Sam Tyler and Jim Croce to embed for you to see. I found it, but with no ability to embed it.
I do have the link, but it's not in English. Still you'll get the idea of what's going on.....

The real Jim Croce....

Now, in the original series from the UK, the same scene had the British Sam Tyler meeting Marc Bolan of T. Rex... and giving him a similar warning about riding in minis.....
Again, from Wikipedia:

Marc Bolan (born Mark Feld; 30 September 1947 – 16 September 1977), was an English singer, songwriter and guitarist whose hit singles, fashion sensibilities and stage presence with T.Rex in the early 1970s helped cultivate the glam rock era, though he preferred to call his music Cosmic Rock, and made him one of the most recognisable stars in British music. (The real Marc Bolan is pictured to the right.)

Bolan died on 16 September 1977, two weeks before his 30th birthday. He was a passenger in a purple Mini 1275GT (registration FOX 661L) driven by Gloria Jones as they headed home from Mortons drinking club and restaurant in Berkeley Square. Jones lost control of the car and it struck a sycamore tree after failing to negotiate a small humpback bridge near Gipsy Lane on Queens Ride, Barnes, southwest London. Bolan died instantly, while Jones suffered a broken arm and broken jaw and spent time in the hospital; she did not learn of Bolan's death until the day of his funeral. Neither were wearing seat belts. Bolan's home, which was less than a mile away at 142 Upper Richmond Road West in East Sheen, was quickly looted.

MARC BOLAN

AS SEEN IN:
'Life On Mars' (UK)

AS PLAYED BY:
William Matheson

And at least in this case, I can embed the original scene:





Two For Tuesday!

BCnU!

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