Why isn't Disney getting sued for "High School Musical"? — Page 2

True. You'd have to sue their agents.

Or just sue the treble clef.

Unless it was written for viola. Then you could sue the alto clef, which is in dire need of publicity.

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I agree that the ripoffs (and I am going to continue to call them that; get used to it) in HSM could technically qualify as "parody." I guess I'm just used to parodies being funny.

And to whomever told me to "accept the success of HSM because it's giving everyone in this business lots of work"--what good is making a living if you wake up every day hating your life?

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This is probably one of the least popular opinions I'll ever give, but I find the HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL series, as insipid, formulaic, and completely unoriginal as it is, to be a worthy successor to the B-level musicals Hollywood was churning out in the 30s and 40s.

Anyone who has seen these films (the Deanna Durbin series from Universal, Esther Williams and the Mickey/Judy series from MGM, among many others) knows that the situations are completely stock with reed-thin characters, and any conflict is simply an excuse for the fresh-faced cast to burst into song. As fun and cutesy as they are, they don't have the wit or brains of an A-level musical like SINGIN' IN THE RAIN or MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS, much like HSM will never be MOULIN ROUGE or CHICAGO.

Am I saying that HSM is Busby Berkeley caliber, or that Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens are comparable to Mickey and Judy? Absolutely not. I'm just pointing out that the formula used throughout the years is exactly the same, the same paradigm that created GREASE, the Frankie/Annette beach party movies, GIDGET, FOOTLOOSE, etc.

The first two films were more or less lazy TV movies with the occasional burst of charm and energy, but I thought the third really stood out and was certainly more unabashedly entertaining than a lot of new Broadway musicals we've seen recently. The actors had grown into their performances and the choreography was surprisingly inventive at times. Call me crazy, but it's the truth!

Updated On: 9/16/09 at 04:05 PM

And to whomever told me to "accept the success of HSM because it's giving everyone in this business lots of work"--what good is making a living if you wake up every day hating your life?

Who is waking up every day and hating his/her life because of this show? Just because you despise the show doesn't mean everyone else hates it. And it can be fun to have a laugh at how awful certain shows are. I'm sure the cast and crew of the touring company have had a good laugh during the run of this show.

Did you also think about how it's entertaining the younger generation? If this show makes some children smile, then what is the problem? This show isn't physically or emotionally abusing anybody, so what's the problem?

I also highly doubt that those involved with the touring production are waking up every day hating his/her life. Though I can't give an exact number, I'm sure the cast and crew of HSM are making a pretty decent pay. What's to hate about performing/running a show for Disney and getting paid to do so?

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Updated On: 9/16/09 at 04:11 PM

Roquat, did you just wake up from a coma or something?

I wish I could hate my life like that

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Phyllis - That made me laugh myself into a coughing fit. It sounds like the premise to a new Lifetime movie.

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For that matter, why isn't American Pie suing Glee?

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Actually, when I worked on HSM, everyone in it routinely made fun of every single moment, including the director. The stage manager would say, "It's time to rehearse the 'Summer Nights' scene", or "Time to do the 'Chorus Line' segment." They weren't enjoying themselves, though; it was a defense mechanism. They laughed to keep from crying (or going nuts).

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Then there was the time the director wanted to make a slight adjustment to an actress' line, saying, "I know what they were going for here; they just didn't write it very well." With perfect timing, she responded, "You mean, like the rest of the script?" Everyone fell on the floor laughing.

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Yes, but how many other people on this board have worked on shows they hated (or found psychologically repulsive)? Doesn't seem to me that any of them "kept quiet" about it...

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Then you've never done STARMITES...

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"Grease 3" wasn't the working title. It was a nickname given to the project, because Disney was hoping that it would become this generation's Grease.

I agree that there is no way that someone could use "_____blank is like Grease", or "_____blank is like Bye Bye Birdie".

In Jerry Herman's autobiography, he speaks about when he was sued for the opening vamp of the song "Hello Dolly". I believe it was Jule Styne who told him that he was now a famous songwriter, now that someone was suing him, and to think of the incident as a form of flatery. That's the way these musicals should feel about HSM. The makers of HSM are paying their dues to the famous musicals that paved the way for something like HSM (although its nowhere near West Side Story, etc,)

I also feel that HSM is good for the younger generation because if they like HSM, then it will *hopefully* nudge kids into researching other musicals, and lead them to a great love of classic shows like The King And I, Mame, Fiddler, etc.

They are