My wife and I wandered back to ABC's "Dancing with the Stars" this year, after having consciously avoided it for a couple of years, and we rediscovered why we liked the show in the first place. Much like the annual Golden Globes telecast, DWTS is a party. You sit back, sip a highball - or two - and enjoy the fizzy fun without having to dress up or leave the house.
Every year that we watched, there was a revelation and, this year, the pleasant surprise was Pamela Anderson, a personality who, frankly, had only existed on the periphery of my life. I never paid much attention to her. But, on this show, dancing with Aussie pro Damian Whitewood, she's been indeed a revelation. Hands-down. Anderson doesn't just dance - which she does extremely well, by the way - but rather inhabits each routine with a specific movie-driven character. Marilyn one week, Loren the next.
She was especially a knock-out Dolly Parton in the hugely clever "9 to 5" bit that Whitewood choreographed for her. One week, judge Carrie Ann Inaba declared, "I'd love to see you on Broadway!" Hey, me, too.
Bruno Tonioli, meanwhile, has enthusiastically noted and admired Anderson's deep, concentrated focus with each little character piece she danced. And she received well-deserved high praise from dance critic Gia Kourlas in her most astute New York Times assessment of DWTS:
"As a dancer, Ms. Anderson isn’t like other people, either: apart from being an actual celebrity, which is increasingly rare on “Dancing With the Stars,” she’s the only imaginative dancer in the bunch.
"Buxom, blond and full of saucy insouciance, Ms. Anderson has said that she had never had a dance lesson in her life. Even so, she is a natural performer, with rhythm, an understanding of when to be subtle or fierce and a sense of how movements connect to create a story. And that’s all accomplished with a tongue-in-cheek self-awareness.
"She’s flexible, has great legs and even in high heels could probably run the length of a football field. For a ballroom dancer, that’s key; just as a point shoe creates an extension of the foot, Ms. Anderson’s stilettos achieve the same sensation on the dance floor.
"In her mesmerizing rumba last week she floated along so smoothly, lingering in each pose a millisecond too long — this was genius — that her partner, Damian Whitewood, eyes flashing like a desperate Broadway dancer, was the one trying too hard to please. Ms. Anderson may be sexual, but that doesn’t mean that she is cheap. She doesn’t flaunt her sexuality; it’s simply a part of her. Bob Fosse would have loved that."
Where have you been all these years, Pamela Anderson?
Or perhaps I should ask, where have I been? More to the point, where is the management to push you in the right direction? You are so much more than an animated pin-up. You're a real movie star. Or could be.
Get this woman a good real! And quick.
10 comments:
Joe, I totally agree with you. P.A. is an unexpectedly pleasant entertainer, talky, cheerful and really hard-working. I love how she works the coy starlet angle. Very amusing and very charming.
So true... thanks for blogging!
I still can't fathom how either Chad Ochocinco or Niecy Nash managed to top Anderson in the vote, except that there's a sexist prejudice against Anderson for what she represents. Is it a cad of me to assume that mostly women vote and that women just don't like Anderson? That seems to be the case from where I sit.
Thank you for the magnificent take on Pamela Anderson's performance on "Dacing." Hopefully it may help steer people unaware of her hitherto unrecognized talents - much of which is of her own doing, of course - and have them discover the possibility of a brilliant performer that she is or could be. Kudos and gratitude!
You're right about the sexism that some women harbor towards other women. It's more subtle than what men convey but just as deplorable. Thank you for giving credit were credit is due.
Joseph: Nice to know that you are not embarrassed to give a hurrah to Pam Anderson. Like you, I was only vaguely aware of her and most through tabloid stuff. I've never seen her perform but she commanded my respect on DANCING WITH THE STARS. I, too, would like to see more of her.
I think people tend to dismiss Anderson as camp and that's partially her fault. OK, mostly her fault. She never seemed serious about having a legitimate or conventional career, but I'm not surprised she has it in her to do better things. There's a long line of performers like her. Maybe she'll reinvent herself.
I think you're absolutely right about the prejudice against Pam Anderson for the image that she projects, and I have to admit to being guilty of it myself. HOWEVER, I didn't think she deserved to go home (considering her age relative to the others on the show, she's awesome), and I'm waiting for Niecy to get the boot. IMHO, she should have left before Jake or Pamela
Not afraid to admit that I've been known to give a hurrah for Pamela Anderson, late at night, when I can't sleep.
Pammie Girl may just be coming into her own. A lot of women blossom in their 40s. Once the pinup work becomes tiresome, and it's no longer a challange to just please men, and one's looks are no longer the highest priority, it's the perfect time to stretch and challenge one's self and be free to try new things so one doesn't die feeling like one's potential was wasted. It's a time in life to accomplish more before death or illness comes to collect. I'm speaking from experience....
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