Ladies and Gentlemen, the Fabulous Stains [1981] dir Lou Adler

Ladies and Gentlemen, the Fabulous Stains (1981)


http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0082639/

The story behind Ladies and Gentleman, The Fabulous Stains is a messy and complicated one. It was riddled with production problems, an editing process that took over a year to complete, and after all was said and done, Paramount Studios decided to shelf the film for over 20 years. Director Lou Adler, who was best known for his work in the music industry (he was the manager of many classic acts, including The Mamas & The Papas and Carole King), had directed one other film before The Fabulous Stains: the Cheech & Chong classic Up In Smoke (1978). Adler at least had a wealth of talent involved, including Academy Award Winner screenwriter Nancy Dowd, 15 year old actor Diane Lane as the lead (coming off her very first movie, A Little Romance (1979), and real-life punk rock musicians from current acts such as The Sex Pistols , The Tubes, and The Clash. Dowd, who had previously won an Academy Award for penning the Hal Ashby-directed Vietnam veteran saga Coming Home (1978), had been inspired by punk rock band The Ramones to write ...The Fabulous Stains. She hired punk rock columnist Caroline Coon, who had done much of the initial writing about the UK punk scene years in previous years to lend her expertise to the costumes and make up on the film.

When it seemed like everything was in place, shooting began and things started coming apart at the seams. Dowd and Adler reportedly did not see eye to eye, with Dowd claiming she felt pushed out of the production by virtually everyone. She even claimed that she was groped by one of the cameramen. Dowd eventually took her name off the film completely and used a pseudonym instead. Adler also took over a year to edit the film after shooting wrapped up, allegedly changing the ending several times. Once Ladies and Gentleman, The Fabulous Stains was completed, it was previewed at a few test screenings and the response was so poor that Paramount decided not to release it at all. Many of the cast and crew hadn’t even seen the film in its entirety after it was completed.

Despite the unevenness of the pacing at times and the occasional gaps in plot (perhaps due to the lengthy editing process), Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains still manages to be very entertaining. The topics of media-created fame, gimmick over true talent, and the sexualization of young female musicians are all touched on in the film and the movie is also a great glimpse into the early 80’s punk scene. It’s amazing that Adler managed to score members of The Clash and The Sex Pistols while they were still in their heyday. Fee Waybill gives a memorable performance as the washed up Lou Corpse; it’s a shame he wasn’t able to make more films. The real treat however is 15-year old Diane Lane as the tough acting, rebellious Corrine “Third Degree” Burns. Fans of Lane will definitely be able to see her emerging talent as an actress of great promise in this film.

Despite all the problems Ladies and Gentleman, The Fabulous Stains has suffered along the way, there is a happy ending to the story; fans that have been waiting to see the film finally got their wish in September of 2008 when Rhino Records released the movie on DVD, including commentary tracks with Lou Adler and a very entertaining joint commentary track with Laura Dern and Diane Lane.


Diane Lane ... Corinne Burns
Ray Winstone ... Billy - Vocals for The Looters
Peter Donat ... Harley Dennis
David Clennon ... Dave Robell - The Agent
John Lehne ... Stu McGrath
Cynthia Sikes ... Alicia Meeker
Janet Wright ... Aunt Linda's Friend Brenda
Mia Bendixsen ... Pregnant Girl in Ladies' Room
Laura Dern ... Jessica McNeil
Stuart Ferguson ... Gold Key D.J.
Marin Kanter ... Tracy Burns
Paul Cook ... Danny - Drummer for The Looters
Steve Jones ... Steve - Guitarist for The Looters
Barry Ford ... Lawnboy
Paul Simonon ... Johnny - Bassist for The Looters
Fee Waybill ... Lou Corpse - Vocals for The Metal Corpses (as John 'Fee' Waybill)
Christine Lahti ... Aunt Linda
Vince Welnick ... Jerry Jervey - Guitarist for The Metal Corpses
Vern Willis ... Corpses' Bass
Douglas Mackinnon ... Corpses' Drummer
Susan Bracher ... Springfield Jill
Diana Wygod ... Billy's Groupie
James Nichols ... The Roadie
Angie Crowe ... Skunk #1
Venus Allin ... Skunk #2 (as Venus Allen)
Leeann Decou ... Skunk #3
Daniella Cicconi ... Skunk #4
Mary Arnold ... Skunk #5
Elizabeth Daily ... Motel Maid
John Morris ... Black Randy
The Metro Squad ... Themselves
Heather Elton ... Attacking Skunk

"All Washed Up"
Written and Recorded by Barry Ford
Courtesy of Warner Bros. Records

"It's You I Need"
Written and Recorded by Barry Ford
Courtesy of Warner Bros. Records

"Curfew"
Written and Recorded by Barry Ford
Courtesy of Warner Bros. Records

"Movin'"
Written and Recorded by Barry Ford and the Larsen-Feiten Band
Courtesy of Warner Bros. Records

"Waste of Time"
Music by Barry Ford
Lyrics by Nancy Dowd (as Rob Morton)
Performed by The Fabulous Stains

"Professionals"
Written by Paul Cook and Steve Jones
Courtesy of Virgin Records
Performed by The Looters

"Professionals"
Written by Paul Cook and Steve Jones
Courtesy of Virgin Records
Performed by The Fabulous Stains

"La La La"
Written by Paul Cook and Steve Jones
Performed by The Looters
Courtesy of Virgin Records

"Don't Blow It All The Way"
Written by Paul Cook and Steve Jones
Courtesy of Virgin Records

"Conned Again"
Written by Paul Cook and Steve Jones
Performed by The Looters
Courtesy of Virgin Records

"Roadmap of My Tears"
Written by Fee Waybill and Bill Spooner
Recorded by The Tubes

"I Slept in an Arcade"
Written by John Morris
Performed by John Morris (as Black Randy) and The Metro Squad
Courtesy of Dangerhouse Records

"Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow"
Written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King
Recorded by Carole King
Courtesy of Ode Records and of CBS Records

TORRENT ALSO CONTAINS WALLPAPERS CREATED FOR THE FILM'S SHOWING ON TCM UNDERGROUND