Hi everyone.
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Believe it or not, I *just* became a fan of Shannen Doherty, having somehow missed out all these years. I remember being impressed by her work in Heathers (she did a great job playing both sympathetic and then "evil" - and making the viewer regret that she made that choice) but you know how it is when you're young...you're not even really paying attention to the credits and someone's name might not register til years later. And I saw Heathers years before the internet made searching easy. You actually had to go to the video rental store, ask the guy to look up someone's name in his big catalogue thingy, and try to find out what other movies that actor was in!
I was a bit too young to watch Beverly Hills, 90210 when it originally aired...not that my strict parents would've let me anyway.
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(Btw, if you're wondering, I watched "Heathers" on the sly.
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It's much easier to sneak one forbidden movie than a regular weekly tv series!)
My next opportunity to discover Shannen came and went, when I foolishly ignored Charmed because I loved the movie "The Craft" and felt all protective of it, and was annoyed that the show used the same theme song that was identified with the movie. I felt "they" were trying to tell me this tv show was gonna be as awesome as "my" movie, and that was just impossible so...I boycotted it. (Silly, I know, but...intense moody teenager! Hence loving "The Craft" so much
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) Also, I didn't care for Alyssa Milano (a perhaps irrational dislike that has only increased since I've read some of the behind-the-scenes gossip about the Charmed set!)
Alright...so how did I finally find out that I liked Shannen Doherty and wanted to follow her career? Well, I accidently stumbled across "Christmas Caper" last Christmas while channel surfing. And I found both the actress and movie very charming. I love characters who are grumpy and snarky (and even somewhat amoral) but with a soft squishy heart underneath.
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Shannen was great. I started reading about her online, found out how kind and protective she was to her child actor co-stars in "Caper", which made me like her even more. It's a real sore spot with me, how child stars are often exploited and abused...and mostly have tragic lives. I liked that Shannen was trying to share her wisdom gained from growing up in the industry, and help these kids instead of feeling "threatened" like many older stars do when they make movies with children (see Wallace Beery vs. Margaret O'Brien ...he was such a ham himself, he hated the possibility of cute scene-stealing kids - and everyone who worked with him seems to agree, he was just ...not a nice man. Or Jeanette MacDonald being a diva to Jane Powell, who was crushed because she'd idolized her as a role model and inspiration to get into singing.)
Anyway, the more I read about Shannen, the more I liked her as a person and sympathized with the crap she's dealt with...the double standard in Hollywood that punishes outspoken independent women. I hope she continues to have a strong sense of self and ignore negative comments.
So I've started collecting her episodes of 90210 and Charmed - like many of you, I'm sure, I'm not interested in the later seasons without her! I think she has great range as an actress, capable of cute comedic moments, being tough and kickass, or emotional and vulnerable (some of her scenes on Charmed - and I'm only as far as season one - have actually made me teary!) She deserves more acclaim. Stupid Hollywood.
Well, that's all...sorry for the long intro. Thanks for the interesting website and forum!