I am a child of the ’80s who grew up with the Brat Pack and their movies. So, I was like, what is wrong with them for not wanting to be associated with the title?
Therefore, I have been anxiously waiting for Brats since Andrew McCarthy announced it almost two years ago.
When ABC News Studios and Hulu announced that they were going to be streaming it, I felt like a teenager getting excited to see one of their films in a movie theater.
The Brat Pack was an article written in 1985 by David Blum for New York Magazine. It was a feature on three up-and-coming actors, Emilio Estevez, Rob Lowe, and Judd Nelson.
Estevez was the main subject because he and Lowe were promoting their film St. Elmo’s Fire, which came out that same month. Which as we know, was a huge hit and propelled a group of actors from playing teenagers to portraying adults in film.
This was supposed to launch their careers as 20-somethings. But then the article came out, and the actors who were considered members of the Brat Pack felt it stalled their careers.
So much so that they don’t talk to each other, and some of them have not seen their co-stars since the movies came out.
McCarthy, after the success of his book Brat: An ’80s Story, decided to do a documentary about what it was like to be a member of the Brat Pack.
If you ask any ’80s kid what they would do to be a member of the Brat Pack, they will tell you that they would sell their soul. However, the members hated it.
McCarthy traveled to LA, and the first actor who is featured is Estevez. You can tell he didn’t want to do this interview because he is still dealing with the ramifications of being named a Brat.
Next, he talks to Ally Sheedy, who is a little more accepting of it. But she also has problems with being declared a member.
So, at this point, I am not loving the doc. I hate that they are shitting on such a remarkable legacy.
But then he talks to Demi Moore and Rob Lowe, and they wear the title with honor. Lowe says they opened the door for future teenagers. And now I am enjoying it a little more.
McCarthy also spoke to Blum about his inspiration for the article. He did not mean any harm with the article or the title. But he does admit that as a 29-year-old writer, he was pompous and made mistakes. He also agreed that some of the article was mean, yet he wouldn’t change it.
At this point, I am not sure how I feel about the doc. My BFF from my teenage years loved it. She texted me, “Andrew McCarthy for President!”
I decided to take a breather. And by breather, I mean read the article that started it all.
And that is where everything changes and how I feel about them hating being in the Brat Pack. They have every reason to be pissed. And it looks like it destroyed most of their careers because most of them never had a hit like they did in 1985.
They suddenly became typecasted with a title, not for their work. We will never know what could’ve been. But it was intriguing to hear where they are today and who still holds a grudge.
In case you are wondering how bad this article is, here is the only mention of McCarthy in it: “And of Andrew McCarthy, one of the New York–based actors in St. Elmo’s Fire, a co-star says, ‘He plays all his roles with too much of the same intensity. I don’t think he’ll make it.’ The Brat Packers save their praise for themselves.”
If I was an actor in my early 20s with the world about to become my oyster and I read that about myself, I would be fucking pissed too.
That is just half a paragraph. They were not shown in the best light in the cover story, and I felt bad for them. It was a tough read. And Brats is light-hearted as compared to Blum’s words.
So now, I appreciate the doc. I have been telling my friends to watch Brats and then read the article. I think you need to go into it with an open mind. I also think if you watch it, you need to read the article because it puts everything into perspective.
There is so much more I can say about the feature, but you need to read it. It is more important for you to watch the program.
McCarthy needs to do more documentaries because he gets people to open up and make them feel comfortable. That, and you want to know more about the story as he is telling it.
And I am saying all of this as someone who was Team Steph (James Spader) in Pretty in Pink.
We are used to game shows having small groups of people competing against each other for a prize. Most of the time, it is one person going head-to-head with another. But some of the larger competition shows have around 20 people trying to win the big prize.
Fox is going to up the ante with The Floor, hosted by Rob Lowe. They will have 81 people vying for $250,000 over ten weeks. They will each be given a square to stand on, and when their box is called, they will have a battle of the brains. Only one of them will return to a square and the other one will go home. At the end of the game, only one person will be left standing, and they will be a quarter of a million dollars richer.
John Stamos and Rob Lowe were teen idols at the same time in the ’80s. And both actors are ageless, with dark hair and light eyes. So I get why some people would confuse the two if they saw one of them in person.
For example, Uncle Jesse was recently mistaken for Sodapop. So did he reveal who he truly is? No, because the guy was “close enough.”
Warning that headline is totally deceptive! But it’s my site, and I’ll do what I want to.
So back to the story. When Drew Barrymore was a little girl, she had chickenpox. And when Rob Lowe heard about it, he called her to see how she was doing. And she can still remember everything about that call.
That is because back in the ’80s, everyone was obsessed with him, including her. So his call was something she will never forget.
Just like the night when he invited her to his birthday party. The actress told the actor on The Drew Barrymore Show today, “It was the best night of my life!”
The Lowe said to her, “You were so great on the dance floor, cutting it up. You were like a little mini-Madonna.” And that is what she was going for.
With all of the women he dated, it is a shame these two never hooked up. Well, I guess there is that 11-year age difference. So by the time she was old enough to date him, he was already married. But they would’ve been great together. Could you imagine them skipping on the red carpet together?
Rob Lowe and Josh Groban went to the Dodgers game yesterday to watch them play. What do you do if you are at a baseball game besides buy peanuts and Cracker Jacks? You root, root, root for the home team. And that is what they did when they sang Take Me Out to the Ball Game.
I am shocked to say that the actor was able to keep up with the singer after his infamous Oscar performance. But he hit it out of the park. So I am impressed.
Maybe Lowe can sing the National Anthem at their upcoming World Series game. That is if they make it.
