Three friends sit down to lunch at a famous celebrity hot spot in Hollywood. They peruse the menu:
“Look at the salads!”
“Look at the pastries!”
“Look at the prices!”
I’m ashamed of most of you if most of you weren’t able to immediately identify the three friends as Lucy, Ethel, and Fred, respectively. Their POVs are SO specific that DECADES later we know EXACTLY what’s on their minds.
This is one of my favorite bits from “I Love Lucy”, the “L.A. at Last” episode in the Brown Derby where William Holden gets a pie in the face. I love it because (a) it’s a work of art in just twelve words, (b) only one word differs from each line, and (c) we know EXACTLY who each character is and know EXACTLY what they’re thinking about the situation they’re in at that moment. Now, we actors could explain to whomever why/how it’s funny, the whole ‘introduction, repetition, variation’ concept, the ‘power of 3’s’, etc. But no one gives a shit about that, frankly. They want the SPECIFIC LIVES of these characters to follow intently and live vicariously through. My point with all this? Going for/relying on/being an expert of the TECHNICALS does NOT make up for a lack of SPECIFICITY with our point of view and our thought process!!!
I say… round up a couple o’ friends and go out to eat- chances are your point of view on the world will jump right out onto your plate for all to see. – scottyB, JRS Blog Moderator
