Almost Famous- Actresses That Should've Done Better

How was Helen Slater not huge? "Supergirl" is the answer to that question. The infamous spin-off to Chris Reeve's "Superman" forced producers Ilya and Alexander Salkind to sell the franchise rights, killing the 20 year old newcomer's career before it ever really started. Sure, "The Legend of Billie Jean" was a relative rebound the following summer, and she had supporting roles in three comedy hits- "Ruthless People", "The Secret of My Success", and "City Slickers". The Bethpage beauty still found the industry unwilling to bank on her in bigger parts, and by the early '90s, Michelle Pfeiffer, Meg Ryan, and Julia Roberts ruled. Slater quickly faded from the film scene. She worked consistently in television in the 21st Century(DC projects were a respectful nod to the past), but it's hard to shake the feeling that Hollywood failed to make the most of Helen's wholesome appeal.

Mary Ellen Trainor appeared in countless popular movies, often in blink-and-you'll-miss-it roles. She's Kathleen Turner's sister in "Romancing the Stone". She's the Mom in "The Goonies". She's a news anchor in "Die Hard". She's a comic foil to Mel Gibson as a snippy psychiatrist in all four "Lethal Weapon" movies(her greatest part). She's a 2015 cop in "Back to the Future Part II" and Jenny's babysitting friend in "Forrest Gump"- she was married to Robert Zemeckis. This is an enviable list of credits, even if she only spent a day or two on the set. Trainor had the looks and talent to star in something, and could've lifted up any number of TV shows. Sadly, she died of cancer at age 62.

Kelly Preston IS famous, mostly as the wife of John Travolta. She didn't really have to work, but her biggest movies indicate an untapped potential that leads one to wonder what might have been. If you were a male with blood in your body, you were a not-so-secret admirer of her in the late '80s, it's as simple as that. Arnold Schwarzenegger has Preston to partially thank for the box office performance of Ivan Reitman's "Twins". Unfortunately, there was no real follow-up, and her next few movies("The Experts", "Run", "Only You") did nothing. It took eight years for Kelly to command the public's attention again, alongside fellow Scientologist Tom Cruise, in Cameron Crowe's "Jerry Maguire". She steals her scenes as his psycho soon-to-be ex Avory, and could've played comedic villains for the rest of her life(I don't mean "Battlefield Earth" and "Gotti"). Sadly, cancer cut that life short. Preston passed away in 2020 at age 57.

Bakke

Lauren Holly is a textbook example of momentary fame. Everyone knew her name in 1995. She probably has to show her ID to all but the biggest TV heads after 2010.

I think it was the accent. Hollywood didn't know what to to with the fetching French actress after 1995's Best Picture "Braveheart", even though every man in America had a few ideas. Settle down. Sophie

There's an alternate reality where Maria Pitillo is a major star. In a world where Sarah Jessica Parker doesn't exist, I could see her as Carrie Bradshaw. The NY/NJ native appeared in several short-lived TV projects, but nothing clicked. Legendary hitmaker James Burrows("Cheers", "Taxi") couldn't even make it happen. At least she got to be in one of the greatest movies of all time(for a minute), Tony Scott's "True Romance" with Bronson Pinchot and a sample-bag of uncut coke. The pretty, petite Pitillo was a standout in the large ensemble cast of 1995's "Bye Bye Love", an otherwise weak comedy about McDonald's and divorced dads. Does Matthew Modine actually think he can do better? Roland Emmerich's "Godzilla" was her close-up in 1998. The would-be blockbuster underperformed at the early summer box office, and Pitillo was an easy target for cruel critics and TriStar executives expecting another "Independence Day". Strangely, the then-thirtysomething year old Maria never got another high-profile role, and quietly retired from acting in 2008.

The sky seemed the limit for Alison Lohman

Elisha

The Best Movies From All 50 States

"transportation business" Jerry Bruckheimer. You won't find "Eyes Wide Shut" under NY

Alabama- The most famous fictional Alabama resident is Forrest Gump- but Bob Zemeckis actually filmed Tom Hanks primarily in South Carolina. Atticus Finch and Forrest Gump. Attaboy, Alabama.

Alaska- It's Al Pacino vs. Robin Williams in Nightmute. Population- 208. It doesn't get dark, but Will Dormer's murder investigation sure-as-hell does. Chris Nolan's big-studio breakthrough is his most underrated film, and the main reason he was hired to resurrect Batman in 2003.

Arizona- It's right there in the title. The Coen brothers established their quirky comic rep in the cable classic "Raising Arizona". Joel and Ethan's careers might not have gone the distance without Nicolas Cage's baby-snatching ex-con(profitability became an issue on their next few films). Shout out to Holly Hunter, John Goodman, Randall "Tex" Cobb, Trey Wilson(R.I.P.), Phoenix, Scottsdale, and Barry Sonnenfeld's camerawork.

Arkansas-

California- Here we go. I could have devoted this entire blog to the Golden state. Most movies are at least partially filmed there. Here's an incomplete list of every great California movie- "Sunset Boulevard", "Singin' in the Rain", "Rebel Without a Cause", "Vertigo", "The Graduate", "Dirty Harry"(all five), "American Graffiti", "Chinatown", "The Conversation", "Coming Home", "Grease", "The Driver", "Seems Like Old Times", "48 Hrs."(1982,1990), "The Terminator"(1984,1991), "Beverly Hills Cop"(all four), "Into the Night", "Fletch", the "Back to the Future" trilogy, "Ruthless People", "Twins", "Die Hard", "Lethal Weapon"(all four), "Colors", "Pretty Woman", "L.A. Story", "Boyz 'n' the Hood", "Point Break", "The Player", "Reservoir Dogs", "Falling Down", "Mrs. Doubtfire", "Pulp Fiction", "Clueless", "Heat", "Boogie Nights", "L.A. Confidential", "Jackie Brown", "Magnolia", "Training Day", "Collateral", "Sideways", "La La Land", "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood". Whew.

Colorado- Hands down, the best Rocky Mountain movie is "The Shining". But aside from the Going-to-the-Sun road opening, the interiors of the Overlook Hotel were staged at Elstree Studios in southern England(Stanley Kubrick was afraid to fly). Renny Harlin's "Cliffhanger" feels like more of a Colorado movie. But my research reveals that Sylvester Stallone was mostly hanging off cliffs in northeastern Italy(the Dolomites). I guess it's a tie.

Connecticut-

Delaware- From 1989 to 1999. "Dead Poets Society" is the best movie ever filmed in Delaware, but it takes place in 1959 Vermont. The precise location of David Fincher's "Fight Club" isn't obvious. My research reveals that Project Mayhem was unleashed in Wilmington(while Brad Pitt and Edward Norton were filmed in Los Angeles). Joe Biden's home state isn't as boring as I thought.

Florida- Every dog has his day, in Brian De Palma's Miami-set "Scarface". In the early '80s, it was worse than Chicago during Prohibition, the perfect playground for Al Pacino's coked-up Cuban antihero Tony Montana. The Dolphins employed Ace Ventura in 1994 to begin Jim Carrey's meteoric rise. More recently, writer-director Sean Baker made a name for himself with Willem Dafoe's rundown Orlando hotel(keep an eye on your kids over there) in "The Florida Project".

Georgia- Big city businessmen beware. Burt Reynolds, Jon Voight, Ned Beatty, and Ronny Cox should've stayed in Atlanta in John Boorman's backwoods opus. One of them squeals like a pig. On a lighter note, Morgan Freeman enters the A-list as Jessica Tandy's soft-hearted chauffer in 1989's Best Picture. I can hear Hans Zimmer's score in my head as I type this. Settle down, Spike Lee.

Hawaii- The 50th and most recent state to join the union doesn't have any professional sports teams, but it does have two great movies. Fred Zimmemann's "From Here to Eternity" won 1953's Best Picture Oscar, for it's depiction of the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Frank Sinatra, and THAT iconic beach embrace between Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr. Forty years later, Hawaii filled in for Costa Rican coast in "Jurassic Park". Writer-director Alexander Payne recognized the uniqueness of the island and it's storytelling potential in 2011's critical darling "The Descendants".

Idaho-

Illinois- The Prarie state has a rich film history. John Hughes is synonymous with his home state, as nearly all his films are either set or filmed there, most notably "The Breakfast Club", "Ferris Bueller's Day Off", and "Home Alone". But Hughes had competition from Brian De Palma, Kevin Costner, and Sean Connery. "The Untouchables" is a great Chicago movie. Even better is "The Fugitive". Harrison Ford's flight from Tommy Lee Jones caused as much jubilation as the Jordan Bulls.

Indiana- Congratulations to director David Anspaugh for his entry into the sports movie HOF AND for receiving Indiana's highest civilian honor(Sagamore of the Wabash). He's retired and now lives there, hopefully secure in the knowledge that "Hoosiers" and "Rudy" are uflifting all-timers. Shout-out to Ralpie Parker, even though "A Christmas Story" was filmed in Canada and Ohio.

Iowa- Speaking of sports movies, there was only one choice for the "Food Capital of the World". Kevin Costner in a cornfield. He built it, they came. Call your father and watch "Field of Dreams". Another strong contender emerged in the mid-'90s, when Clint Eastwood met up with Meryl Streep in 1965. Surprise your wife this week with the "The Bridges of Madison County".

Kansas- "The Wizard of Oz" is a no brainer, even though it was filmed in California. Is any movie more strongly associated with a state? If you're a real movie buff, there's more. Eat your Coney Island, with Ryan and Tatum O'Neal in Peter Bogdanovich's 1930s-set con artist comedy "Paper Moon". For me, it's his best film.

Kentucky- The Bluegrass state has a clear winner and it's a career-best Sissy Spacek as country music star Loretta Lynn. "Coal Miner's Daughter" was one of my Mom's favorite movies, and she'd want you to check it out. James Bond never spent a lot of time in the States, but I have to mention the Fort Knox exteriors in 1964's "Goldfinger".

Louisiana-

Maine-

Maryland-

Massachusetts-

Michigan- Paul Verhoeven's violent opus was actually Dallas, Texas, but "Robocop" is strongly identified with a dystopian Detroit. So is Eddie Murphy's detective hero Axl Foley. That brings us to Marshall Mathers. Curtis Hanson's "8 Mile" details the early hardscrabble life of rap phenom Eminem and feels like the most athentic Michigan movie. Best Original Song "Lose Yourself" was an inescapable #1 hit for twelve weeks.

Minnesota-

Mississippi- Two of the easiest entries on the list, and they're both cop movies. Sidney Poitier befriends Rod Steiger during a backwoods murder investigation in arguably his best role/film. "In the Heat of the Night" was 1967's Best Picture, but it Sparta was really Illinois. That gives Gene Hackman and Willem Dafoe the title of truest Mississippi movie. Roger Ebert named the fact-based "Mississippi Burning" the best film of 1988.

Missouri- "Three Billboards" was filmed in North Carolina(Ebbing is a fictional town), so that brings us to George Clooney, Ana Kendrick, and Jason Reitman. "Up in the Air" was primarily shot in St. Louis and is timely, terrific film. David Fincher's "Gone Girl"

Montana-

Nebraska- The Cornhusker state had a great 1999. Reese Witherspoon took a step closer to superstardom as Tracy Flick in Alexander Payne's high school comedy "Election"(the writer-director would return to his home state for 2013's "Nebraska"). You voted for her, AND Hilary Swank. Legend has it she only got paid $3,000 for her Best Actress-winning role in the tragic transgender tale "Boys Don't Cry".

Nevada-

New Hampshire-

New Jersey- Marlon Brando coulda been a contender, instead of a mumbling dockworker in his 1954 masterpiece "On the Waterfront". If you've never seen it, please do so. Fifty years later, Zach Braff had some hype, and Natalie Portman's pixie dream girl, in his indie romcom "Garden State", which he also wrote and directed. Sylvester Stallone's fat sheriff Freddie gets an honorable mention for "Copland". He blew it.

New Mexico-

New York- Everyone wants to shoot here if they can afford it. Here's an incomplete list of NY movies- "Marty", "The Seven Year Itch", "The Apartment", "Butterfield 8", "The Hustler", "West Side Story", "Rosemary's Baby", "Midnight Cowboy", "Cactus Flower", "The French Connection", "The Godfather", "Mean Streets", "Serpico", "Dog Day Afternoon", "The Sunshine Boys", "Taxi Driver", "Annie Hall", "Saturday Night Fever", "Manhattan", "Kramer vs. Kramer", "Raging Bull", "Tootsie", "The King of Comedy", "Ghostbusters I and II", "Fatal Attraction", "Big", "Do the Right Thing", "When Harry Met Sally", "Ghost", "Goodfellas", "Jungle Fever", "Home Alone 2", "A Bronx Tale", "Die Hard with a Vengeance", "Ransom", "Men in Black", 'Big Daddy", "Summer of Sam", "Anything Else", "Elf", "Spider-Man 1 and 2", Let's hear it for New York!

North Carolina- Martin Scorsese's "Cape Fear" was filmed in Florida.

North Dakota-

Ohio-

Oklahoma-

Oregon-

Pennsylvania- The Keystone State hosted more great films than people realize. First and foremost, there's Sylvester Stallone, punching his way toward immortality in the "Rocky" franchise. Philadelphia is a character in most of the films(including "Creed"), and fans still run up those famous steps. Speaking of Philly, it's a favorite of writer-director M. Night Shyamalan, and the setting of his two masterpieces- "The Sixth Sense" and "Unbreakable". Lancaster and it's Amish community was indelibly captured in Peter Weir's "Witness" with an Oscar-nominated Harrison Ford. I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Pittsburgh, which we saw in "Slap Shot", "Jack Reacher", and "Fences".

Rhode Island- Cher, Susan Sarandon, and Michelle Pfeiffer resorted to witchcraft to defeat a devilish Jack Nicholson. George Miller's "The Witches of Eastwick" was one of the top-ten grossing films of 1987. If we're talking horror comedies, I'll take it over "Hocus Pocus". The Farrelly brothers were partial to Providence, as seen in "There's Something About Mary".

South Carolina- Edward Zwick's "Glory" is a better film, but loses points for it's location work in Massachusetts and Georgia. That brings us to Mel Gibson and Roland Emmerich. "The Patriot" was shot entirely in Charleston, Rock Hill, Lowrys, and Fort Lawn, and is one of your pop's favorite movies.

South Dakota-

Tennessee- The two best movies to come out of The Volunteer state are country music classics separated by thirty years. Director Robert Altman's "Nashville" is among his defining works, with 24 main characters, and a record eleven Golden Globe nominations. Joaquin Phoenix is Johnny Cash in James Mangold's romantic biopic. He's brilliant, and so is Reese Witherspoon in her Oscar-winning role as June Carter Cash.

Texas- The second-largest U.S. state claims the two best films of 2007. What an amazing coincidence. The Coen brothers first shot Texas in "Blood Simple", a warm-up for their Best Picture-winning Western crime thriller "No Country For Old Men". Javier Bardem and his haircut are burned into our brains in that unforgiving desert. Not to be outdone, Daniel Day Lewis and Paul Thomas Anderson dug for oil in their early 20th Century epic "There Will Be Blood". I HAVE to include Richard Linklater in this paragraph- his affinity for Austin and Houston is at the heart of "Slacker", "Boyhood", and "Dazed and Confused".

Utah- It's impossible to talk about Utah without taking about Robert Redford. The "Jeremiah Johnson" star had a deep connection to his adopted home state, where he established the Sundance Institute and Film Festival. "Footloose" was filmed there, and Dead Horse Point filled in for the Grand Canyon for the iconic ending of "Thelma & Louise". James Franco's arm was trapped under a boulder in Danny Boyle's true story "127 Hours" to earn his first(and most likely last) Oscar nomination.

Vermont- Director George Roy Hill's 14th and final film is Chevy Chase's personal favorite of his many '80s comedies. That's saying something. Andy and Elizabeth Farmer's struggles to adjust to the fictional town of Redbud(actually Townshend) still makes for ideal family viewing. Siskel and Ebert gave "Funny Farm" a VERY enthusiastic thumbs up, which is funny considering they usually vetoed Chase.

Virginia- Daniel Day-Lewis is cloaked in immense power as the 16th President in Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln". It should be mandatory viewing for middle-schoolers. "The Last Detail", "Dirty Dancing", "Argo", and "Foxcatcher" are all top-tier movies with scenes filmed in Virginia, without necessarily taking place there.

Washington- This is a no-brainer. Nora Ephron's masterpiece made Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan one of the most iconic romcom couples. "Sleepless" made Seattle cool in the '90s, with obvious help from Nirvana, TV's "Frasier", and Cameron Crowe's "Singles" the previous year. With a high life expectancy and employment rates, why aren't you checking out the prices on a Washington houseboat right now?

West Virginia-

Wisconsin-

Wyoming- While "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" and "Brokeback Mountain" are the best movies set in the least-populous state(but 10th largest by area), Steven Spielberg and Ang Lee didn't really film there, so the last spot goes to Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen taking a break from Marvel to investigate a murder on a snowy Indian reservation. Writer-director Taylor Sheridan wanted to raise awareness of the high number of victimized Indigenous women, and made one of 2017's most underrated films. His TV hit "Yellowstone" would make the state more famous the following year.