chunk_id
stringlengths 5
8
| chunk
stringlengths 1
1k
|
|---|---|
1235_18
|
bats. The segment combines hand drawn backgrounds using pastels and paint that were scanned into the Computer Animation Production System (CAPS), and computer-generated imagery (CGI) of abstract shapes and effects, which were layered on top. Hunt explained that scanning each drawing "was a one-shot deal" as the platen that pressed onto it would alter the pastel once it had been scanned. At one point during production, Hunt and Yasuda completed 68 pastel drawings in eight days. The segment was produced using Houdini animation software.
|
1235_19
|
Pines of Rome
|
1235_20
|
Pines of Rome was the first piece Disney suggested for the film, as well as the first to be animated; designs appeared in the studio's dailies as early as October 1993. Butoy served as director with James Fujii handling the story. The opening to the piece gave Disney the idea of "something flying". Butoy sketched the sequence on yellow Post-it notes. The story originally involved the whales flying around from the perspective of a group of penguins, but the idea was scrapped to make the baby whale a central character. The whales were also set to return to Earth but Butoy said it "never felt quite right", leading to the decision to have them break through a cloud ceiling and enter a different world by the supernova. Butoy created a "musical intensity chart" for the animators to follow which "tracked the ups and downs of the music ... as the music brightens so does the color", and vice versa. He explained that because CGI was in its infancy during development, the first third of the
|
1235_21
|
segment was hand drawn using pencil to get a feel of how the whales would move. When the drawings were scanned into the CAPS system, Butoy found the whales were either moving too fast or had less weight to them. The drawings were altered to make the whales slow down and "more believable". The eyes of the whales were drawn by hand, as the desired looks and glances were not fully achievable using CGI. Butoy recalled the challenge of having the water appear and move as naturally as possible; the team decided to write computer code from scratch as traditional animation would have been too time-consuming and would have produced undesired results. The code handling the pod of whales was written so the whales would move away if they were to collide and not bump into, overlap, or go through each other. The same technique was used for the stampede scene in The Lion King (1994), which was produced at the same time.
|
1235_22
|
Rhapsody in Blue
|
1235_23
|
Rhapsody in Blue is the first Fantasia segment with music from the American composer George Gershwin. It originated in 1992 when director and animator Eric Goldberg approached Al Hirschfeld about the idea of an animated short set to Gershwin's composition in the style of Hirschfeld's illustrations. Hirschfeld agreed to serve as artistic consultant and allowed the animators to use and adapt his previous works for the segment. Goldberg's wife Susan was art director. Duke is named after jazz artist Duke Ellington. The bottom of his toothpaste tube reads "NINA", an Easter egg referencing Hirschfeld's daughter Nina. Rachel was designed after the Goldbergs' daughter and John is based on animation historian and author John Culhane and Hirschfeld's caricature of Alexander Woollcott. Goldberg took Hirschfeld's original illustration of Gershwin and animated it to make him play the piano. Featured in the crowd emerging from the hotel are depictions of Brooks Atkinson and Hirschfeld, along with
|
1235_24
|
his wife Dolly Haas. The segment was completed two months ahead of schedule. Despite this, the sequence was so chromatically complex that the rendering process using the CAPS system delayed work on Tarzan.
|
1235_25
|
Piano Concerto No. 2
|
1235_26
|
Piano Concerto No. 2 was directed by Butoy with art director Michael Humphries. It originated in the 1930s when Walt Disney wished to adapt a collection of Hans Christian Andersen fairy tales into an animated film. The artists completed a series of preliminary designs based on the stories, including ones for The Steadfast Tin Soldier from 1938 by Bianca Majolie that were stored in the studio's animation research library and used for a 1991 Disney book that retold the story accompanied with the storyboard sketches. When Disney suggested using the Shostakovich piece, Butoy flipped through the book and found the story's structure fit to the music. When Humphries saw the sketches he designed the segment with works by Caravaggio and Rembrandt in mind to give the segment a "timeless" feel, while keeping the colors "as romantic as possible" during the scenes when the soldier and ballerina are first getting acquainted. Live action footage of a real ballerina was used as a guide for the toy
|
1235_27
|
ballerina's movements. Butoy found the Jack-in-a-box a difficult character to design and animate with its spring base and how he moved with the box. His appearance went through numerous changes, partly due to the lack of reference material available to the team.
|
1235_28
|
The segment marked the first time the Disney studio created a film's main characters entirely from CGI; only backgrounds, secondary, or tertiary characters had been produced using CGI beforehand. Initially Butoy asked Pixar Animation Studios to handle the computer graphics, but CGI artist Steve Goldberg convinced him to let Disney's own team produce it. The backgrounds were completed by hand. Originally the drain sequence included friendly rats who performed comical gags, but the team found it did not fit the mood of the rest of the segment. The drains became a more scary environment, something that Butoy said was "what the music was telling us to do". Rain animation from Bambi (1942) was scanned into the CAPS system and digitally altered to fit into the segment. The ending was to feature the original ending with the soldier and ballerina melting in the fire, but the music was too upbeat to animate it and was changed. An excerpt of the segment was shown at the 1998 SIGGRAPH
|
1235_29
|
conference.
|
1235_30
|
The Carnival of the Animals, Finale
|
1235_31
|
The Carnival of the Animals, Finale was directed by Goldberg; his wife Susan was its art director. The idea originated from animator Joe Grant, one of the two story directors on Fantasia who loved the ostriches in Dance of the Hours. When development for Fantasia 2000 began, Grant suggested the idea of having one of the ostriches play with a yo-yo to the last movement of The Carnival of the Animals. The ostriches were later changed to flamingos as Disney wished to avoid reintroducing characters from the original film and thought flamingos would look more colorful on the screen. Goldberg was partly inspired by co-director Mike Gabriel, who would play with a yo-yo as he took a break from working on Pocahontas (1995). The segment was produced with CGI and 6,000 watercolor paintings on heavy bond paper. Susan chose a distinct colour palette for the segment which she compared to the style of a Hawaiian shirt. The Goldbergs and their team visited the zoo in Los Angeles and San Diego to
|
1235_32
|
study the anatomy and movement of flamingos.
|
1235_33
|
The Sorcerer's Apprentice
Pomp and Circumstance
Eisner suggested Pomp and Circumstance as a piece after he attended a graduation and thought its familiarity would be suitable for a Fantasia segment. His idea involved a selection of Disney princesses and heroes in a wedding procession carrying their future children who would then be presented in a ceremony. The animators' preliminary designs depicted a Greco-Roman setting; one of the staff members described the artwork as "an appalling abuse" of the characters. Eisner agreed to drop the story, but insisted that the music be used. After numerous ideas were scrapped due to the difficulty in writing a clear plot, animator and director Francis Glebas came up with the Noah's Ark idea that he titled Donald's Last Roundup!, later retitled as Noah's Duck, and pitched it thinking it was "laden with comic possibilities".
The Firebird
|
1235_34
|
To close the film, Disney wanted a piece that was "emotionally equivalent" to the Night on Bald Mountain and Ave Maria segments that closed Fantasia. Disney chose The Firebird as the piece to use after "half a dozen" others were scrapped, including Symphony No. 9 by Beethoven and the "Hallelujah Chorus" from Messiah by Handel. Disney thought of the idea of the Earth's destruction and renewal after passing Mount St. Helens following its eruption in 1980. French twins Paul and Gaëtan Brizzi from Disney's Paris studio were hired to direct the segment. The Sprite is a Dryad-like creature from Greek mythology. Her form changes six times; she is introduced as a Water Sprite who plants flowers as a Flower Sprite. She becomes a Neutral Sprite where her growth trail stops and an Ash Sprite when the forest has been destroyed. The segment ends with her as a Rain-Wave Sprite, followed by the Grass Sprite. The segment originally ended with the Sprite in the form of a flowing river that rises up
|
1235_35
|
into the sky and transforms into a Sun Sprite, but this was abandoned. The elk's antlers were produced by CGI and placed on top of its body that was drawn traditionally. The segment was produced using Houdini animation software.
|
1235_36
|
Music
The music to The Sorcerer's Apprentice was already recorded on January 9, 1938 for the first film at Culver Studios, California with Leopold Stokowski conducting a group of session musicians. The recording of Rhapsody in Blue used in the film is an edited version of Ferde Grofé's orchestration of the piece performed by the Philharmonia Orchestra with conductor Bruce Broughton. The shortened version was made by cutting 125 bars of piano solo in three different places. A recording of James Levine conducting both pieces with the Philharmonia appears on the film's soundtrack.
|
1235_37
|
The remaining six pieces were recorded at the Medinah Temple in Chicago, performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra conducted by Levine. Pines of Rome was re-arranged in 1993 by Bruce Coughlin, who reduced the four-movement piece by cutting the second movement and trimming sections of the third and fourth movements. The piece was recorded on March 28, 1994. The second recording involved Symphony No. 5, Carnival of the Animals, and Pomp and Circumstance, on April 25, 1994. Carnival of the Animals, Finale uses two pianos played by Gail Niwa and Philip Sabransky. Pomp and Circumstance was arranged by Peter Schickele and features the Chicago Symphony Chorus and soprano soloist Kathleen Battle. The next recording took place on April 24, 1995 for Piano Concerto No. 2 with pianist Yefim Bronfman. On September 28, 1996, The Firebird was the final piece to be recorded; its session lasted for three hours. The piece was arranged using four sections from Stravinsky's 1919 revision of the score.
|
1235_38
|
Interstitials
Disney felt the need to keep interstitials (bridges) as used in Fantasia in order to give audiences a chance to "cleanse their emotional palate" from the previous segment while also providing some information about the next one. Don Hahn directed the live action scenes which were designed by Pixote Hunt. Hahn came up with the set and backgrounds while eating lunch; he proceeded to sketch a rough idea of what he imagined on a napkin. He "wanted to show images on shapes like big sails of a clipper ship. They fly in on the wind and form a sort of Stonehenge concert hall in the middle of a vast, empty, imaginary plain".
|
1235_39
|
Hahn recalled some difficulty in finding someone to host the film, so the studio decided to use a group of artists and musicians from various fields of entertainment. The interstitials were filmed in various locations; the orchestra, Jones, Lansbury, and Bronfman were shot in Los Angeles, Perlman and Midler in New York City, and others in Boston, Massachusetts. Each scene was filmed in front of a green screen to allow shots of the orchestra or the set to be placed behind them. The shots of Levine, the artists, and the orchestra were filmed on October 31, 1998. The piano Grierson plays in his scene with Jones is the same one on which he played Rhapsody in Blue for the soundtrack.
Release
|
1235_40
|
Fantasia 2000 was officially announced on February 9, 1999 during a Disney presentation at the New Amsterdam Theater in New York City which featured a screening of The Carnival of the Animals. The film premiered at Carnegie Hall in New York City on December 16, 1999 for three nights as part of a five-city concert tour. The animation was presented on a screen above the stage while Levine conducted the Philharmonia Orchestra with a video auto-cue to time the music to the images. Performances followed at the Royal Albert Hall in London on December 21; the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris on December 22; the Orchard Hall in Tokyo on December 27; and the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Pasadena, California on December 31, where Derrick Inouye conducted as part of a black tie $2,000-per-head New Year's Eve event. Each of the seven performances cost over $1 million.
|
1235_41
|
Home media
Fantasia 2000 was first released on VHS and DVD on November 14, 2000, with both featuring a specially made introduction in which Roy gives a history of key innovations brought by various Disney productions (specifically Steamboat Willie,Flowers and Trees, Snow White, Fantasia, The Great Mouse Detective, Beauty and the Beast, Toy Story 2 and Dinosaur). While it was available as a single-disc DVD, a three-disc set titled The Fantasia Anthology was released, including a digital copy of the film, a restored print of Fantasia to commemorate its 60th anniversary, and a third disc containing bonus features.
On November 30, 2010, the film was issued for DVD and Blu-ray in a single and two-disc set with Fantasia and a four-disc DVD and Blu-ray combo pack. The Blu-ray transfer presents the film in 1080p high-definition video with DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 surround sound. The film was withdrawn from release after its return to the "Disney Vault" moratorium on April 30, 2011.
|
1235_42
|
The film, along with Fantasia and the 2018 compilation Celebrating Mickey (containing 13 Mickey Mouse shorts from Steamboat Willie to Get a Horse!), was reissued in 2021 as part of the U.S. Disney Movie Club exclusive The Best of Mickey Collection (Blu-ray/DVD/Digital). Both films were also broadly released for the first time in 2021 on multiple U.S. purchased streaming platforms, including Movies Anywhere and its retailers.
|
1235_43
|
Soundtrack
Walt Disney Records released 60,000 copies of a limited edition of the film's soundtrack on November 30, 1999 in the United States and internationally under the Sony Classical label. With a running time of 60 minutes, the album features Levine conducting the Philharmonia Orchestra on Rhapsody in Blue and The Sorcerer's Apprentice at AIR Studios in London, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for the remaining six tracks using the recordings from the Medinah Temple. The soundtrack went on to reach the number one spot on the Billboard Top Classical Albums chart in July 2000. A Fantasia 2000 Deluxe Read-Along cassette and CD followed which contains two tracks telling the stories of Pomp and Circumstance and The Sorcerer's Apprentice, with narration by Pat Carroll. Included in the set is a 44-page book containing some of the film's artwork.
Reception
|
1235_44
|
Box office
Fantasia 2000 first opened in IMAX theatres for a four-month run from January 1 to April 30, 2000, becoming the first animated feature-length film shown in the format. The idea to release it in IMAX first originated from Dick Cook during meetings the studio had about the best way to create "a sense of event" for the film. Roy Disney believed its uniqueness from typical feature films gave it a psychological advantage. A temporary 622-seat theatre costing almost was built in four weeks for its Los Angeles run as Disney was unable to reach an agreement to only have the film shown during the four months at the city's sole IMAX theatre at the California Science Center. Disney enforced the exclusive screening rule on the other IMAX cinemas that showed the film which limited its release. Each theater was decorated with a museum-like exhibit with educational material and large displays.
|
1235_45
|
After opening at 75 theaters worldwide, the film grossed over in 54 cinemas in North America in its opening weekend, averaging $41,481 per theater, and $842,000 from 21 screens in 14 markets. It set new records for the highest gross for any IMAX engagement and surpassed the highest weekly total for any previously released IMAX film. Its three-day worldwide gross surpassed , setting further records at 18 venues worldwide. Fantasia 2000 grossed a worldwide total of in 30 days, and at the end of its IMAX run.
|
1235_46
|
Following its release in 1,313 regular theatres in the United States on June 15, 2000, the film grossed an additional in its opening weekend that ranked eleventh at the box office. This followed nearly half a year of release in the IMAX format, possibly blunting the amount earned in the weekends of wide release. Fantasia 2000 has earned a total worldwide gross of over since its release, with $60.7 million of that total from the U.S. market, and the rest through foreign box office sales. The film had cost around $90 million and was viewed by Eisner as Roy Disney's "folly".
Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, Fantasia 2000 holds an approval rating of 81% based on 85 reviews, with an average rating of 7.00/10. Its consensus reads: "It provides an entertaining experience for adults and children alike." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 59 out of 100 based on 27 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".
|
1235_47
|
Entertainment Weekly gave a "B-" rating; its reviewer, Bruce Fretts, called Symphony No. 5 "maddeningly abstract", Piano Concerto No. 2 "charmingly traditional" and thought Rhapsody in Blue fit well to the music, but Pomp and Circumstance "inexplicably inspires biblical kitsch". The review ends with a criticism of the inadequate quality of The Sorcerer's Apprentice on the IMAX screen. Todd McCarthy of Variety pointed out that while the original Fantasia felt too long and formal, its "enjoyable follow-up is, at 75 minutes, simply too breezy and lightweight". He summarized the film "like a light buffet of tasty morsels rather than a full and satisfying meal".
|
1235_48
|
In his December 1999 review for the Chicago Sun-Times, Roger Ebert gave the film a rating of three stars out of four. He described some of the animation (such as Firebird Suite, his favorite segment) as "powerful", though he thought others, like the dance of the abstract triangles in Symphony No. 5, to be "a little pedestrian". He admired Rhapsody in Blue and its interlocking stories, pointing out its style was reminiscent of the Madeline picture books by Ludwig Bemelmans. He thought Pines of Rome presented itself well in the IMAX format and found the Piano Concerto No. 2 played "wonderfully as a self-contained film", while he found The Sorcerer's Apprentice to be "not as visually sharp as the rest of the film". He nonetheless described the film overall as "splendid entertainment". Film critic Stephen Holden of The New York Times wrote that the film "often has the feel of a giant corporate promotion whose stars are there simply to hawk the company's wares" while noting the film "is
|
1235_49
|
not especially innovative in its look or subject matter." Firebird Suite was his favorite segment which left "a lasting impression of the beauty, terror, and unpredictability of the natural world". He found The Sorcerer's Apprentice fit well with the rest of the film and the battle in Symphony No. 5 too abbreviated to amount to much. He found the segment with the whales failed in that the images "quickly become redundant". He found Rhapsody in Blue to be the second-best in the film with its witty, hyper-kinetic evocation of the melting pot with sharply defined characters. He found the segment with the flamingos cute and the one with the tin soldier to be romantic. James Berardinelli found the film to be of uneven quality. He felt Symphony No. 5 was "dull and uninspired", the yo-yoing flamingos "wasteful", and the New York City-based story of Rhapsody in Blue interesting but out of place in this particular movie. He found the story of the tin soldier to successfully mix its music with
|
1235_50
|
"top-notch animation" and "an emotionally rewarding story". He felt the Firebird section was "visually ingenious", and Pomp and Circumstance the most light-hearted episode and the one with the most appeal to children, in an otherwise adult-oriented film. To him The Sorcerer's Apprentice was an enduring classic.
|
1235_51
|
David Parkinson of British film magazine Empire rates the film three stars out of five, calling it a "curate egg, with moments of hilarity and beauty alternating with the pompous and the banal". Moments of Symphony No. 5 and The Firebird he thought lacked the "abstract grace" from Toccata and Fugue from the original, and Pines of Rome was "even less successful" due to the computer imagery which affected its quality. He claims Rhapsody in Blue is "guilty of some dubious racial and sexual caricaturing", but hailed the film's IMAX presentation as "a breathtaking spectacle". He summarized the film as "slightly more successful" than the original Fantasia, more child-friendly and a "mixed bag of delights". Richard Corliss of Time magazine wrote a positive review of the film, citing Pines of Rome as "a superb, uplifting flight of the spirit" and Piano Concerto No. 2 "a gorgeous blend of traditional and computer animation". He drew a comparison to The Firebird with the 1997 Japanese animated
|
1235_52
|
film Princess Mononoke. Brian Sibley wrote a mostly negative review in Sight & Sound, a monthly magazine published by the British Film Institute, in June 2000. He pointed out that though the film includes moments of comedy and pastoral, "the themes running through the old 'Fantasia' – the struggle between light and dark, the war between chaos and order, the ultimate triumph of goodness – find only a pale equivalent in this new version". He compared the film's orchestra set to scenes from A Matter of Life and Death (1946) and thought the CGI in Symphony No. 5 lacked the technical qualities of Toy Story. Sibley argued the film lacked an even quality, highlighting Pines of Rome with its "breathtaking" opening before "its magic has been overtaken by chronic boredom" when the baby whale reunites with his parents. Pomp and Circumstance, he thought, contained "shamefully sloppy animation" but is saved by Donald's comical gags, but pointed out Rhapsody in Blue, with its "strong lines and
|
1235_53
|
vivid, flat colours that are fashionably retro", and the "classic Disneyesque ... exquisite beauty and raw natural violence" in Firebird Suite, as the film's most successful segments as they "ironically, hark back to older times".
|
1235_54
|
Accolades
Credits
Note: All segments performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra with conductor James Levine, except where noted.
Short films and cancelled sequel
Development on a third film began in 2002 under the working title Fantasia 2006. Plans were made to include One by One by Pixote Hunt and The Little Matchgirl by Roger Allers in the film before the project was cancelled in 2004 for unknown reasons, with the proposed segments instead being released as standalone short films.
|
1235_55
|
Destino is an animated short film released in 2003 by The Walt Disney Company. Destino is unique in that its production began in 1945, 58 years before its eventual completion. The project was originally a collaboration between Walt Disney and Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí, and features music written by Mexican songwriter Armando Domínguez and performed by Dora Luz. In 1999, Walt Disney's nephew, Roy E. Disney, while working on Fantasia 2000, unearthed the dormant project and decided to bring it back to life.
|
1235_56
|
Lorenzo is a 2004 American animated short film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation about a cat named Lorenzo who is "dismayed to discover that his tail has developed a personality of its own". The short was directed by Mike Gabriel and produced by Baker Bloodworth. It premiered at the Florida Film Festival on March 6, 2004 and later appeared as a feature before the film Raising Helen; however, it did not appear on the DVD release of the film. Work on the film began in 1943, but was shelved. It was later found along with Destino.
One by One is a traditionally animated short film directed by Pixote Hunt and released by Walt Disney Pictures on August 31, 2004, as an extra feature on the DVD release of The Lion King II: Simba's Pride Special Edition.
|
1235_57
|
The Little Match Girl is a 2006 animated short film directed by Roger Allers and produced by Don Hahn. It is based on an original story by Hans Christian Andersen entitled The Little Girl with the Matches or The Little Match Girl, published in 1845.
References
Bibliography
DVD media
External links
|
1235_58
|
1999 films
English-language films
1999 animated films
2000 animated films
2000 films
1990s American animated films
2000s American animated films
1990s musical fantasy films
1990s English-language films
2000s English-language films
American films
American anthology films
American animated fantasy films
American dance films
American musical fantasy films
American sequel films
Dance animation
Donald Duck films
Mickey Mouse films
Fantasia (franchise)
Films about classical music and musicians
Films about fairies and sprites
Films based on works by Hans Christian Andersen
Films based on works by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Films directed by James Algar
Films directed by Paul and Gaëtan Brizzi
Films directed by Hendel Butoy
Films directed by Francis Glebas
Films directed by Eric Goldberg (animator)
Films directed by Don Hahn
Films directed by Pixote Hunt
Films set in the 1930s
Films set in forests
Films set in New York City
Films with live action and animation
IMAX films
|
1235_59
|
Animated films about dragons
Films about unicorns
Noah's Ark in film
Package films
Rotoscoped films
Films about sentient toys
Visual music
Walt Disney Animation Studios films
Walt Disney Pictures films
George Gershwin in film
Animated films based on Slavic mythology
Animated films about rats
Animated films without speech
Annie Award winners
Turn of the third millennium
Films with screenplays by Irene Mecchi
Works based on The Steadfast Tin Soldier
|
1236_0
|
is a Japanese professional wrestler. He is signed to DDT Pro-Wrestling (DDT), where is the current DDT Universal Champion in his second reign. In DDT, he is also a former three-time KO-D Openweight Champion, one-time DDT Extreme Champion, four-time KO-D Tag Team Champion, three-time KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Champion and a three-time Ironman Heavymetalweight Champion. Sasaki has also made several appearances for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), working in the promotion's junior heavyweight division.
Professional wrestling career
|
1236_1
|
Early career (2005–2007)
Trained by Dick Togo, Sasaki made his professional wrestling debut on October 22, 2005, facing Yuki Sato at a Super Crew event, which was promoted by Togo and mainly featured his trainees facing each other in matches. In early 2006, Sasaki took part in Kaientai Dojo's 2006 K-Metal League, where he won two of his five matches and failed to advance to the finals. In June 2006, Sasaki left for a year-long learning excursion to Mexico, during which he wrestled for promotions such Alianza Universal de Lucha Libre (AULL), Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre (CMLL) and International Wrestling Revolution Group (IWRG).
|
1236_2
|
Dramatic Dream Team / DDT Pro-Wrestling (2007–present)
After returning from Mexico, Sasaki made Dramatic Dream Team (DDT) his new home promotion, debuting on December 30, 2007, when he and Choun Shiryu were defeated in a tag team match by Kudo and Yasu Urano. Wrestling several opening matches from the beginning of 2008, Sasaki picked up his first win in DDT on March 9, when he and Masami Morohashi defeated Rion Mizuki and Yukihiro Abe, with Sasaki submitting Mizuki for the win. On August 8, Sasaki defeated eight other men in a Royal Rumble match to become the 2008 King of Stockholm.
|
1236_3
|
On October 13, Sasaki was renamed "Sasaki & Gabbana", when he joined his trainer Dick "Francesco" Togo's Italian Four Horsemen stable, with him, Togo and Antonio Honda defeating Kota Ibushi, Kudo and Masa Takanashi in the group's revival match. On September 13, 2009, Sasaki & Gabbana entered the Young Drama Cup. After winning all four of his matches, Sasaki made it to the finals of the tournament, where, on October 25, he was defeated by Keisuke Ishii. On December 13, Sasaki received his first shot at the KO-D Tag Team Championship, when he and Antonio Honda unsuccessfully challenged Kudo and Yasu Urano for the title in a three-way match, which also included Hikaru Sato and Masa Takanashi. After eighteen months of wrestling together, the Italian Four Horsemen disbanded on April 21, 2010, when Sasaki, Honda and Togo defeated Kenny Omega, Kota Ibushi and Kudo in a six-man tag team match. Afterwards, Sasaki returned to working under his real name. On August 8, Sasaki defeated Keisuke
|
1236_4
|
Ishii in the finals of a four-man tournament to become the number one contender to DDT's top title, the KO-D Openweight Championship. He then went on to unsuccessfully challenge Harashima for the title on August 29. On October 8, 2010, Sasaki made his debut for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), losing to Tama Tonga at NEVER.3, an event which was part of NJPW's new NEVER project, which focused on young up-and-coming workers and wrestlers not signed to the promotion. A month later at NEVER.4, Sasaki was defeated by Tomohiro Ishii.
|
1236_5
|
On November 14, Sasaki won his first title in DDT, when he and Antonio Honda defeated Danshoku Dino and Shiro Koshinaka for the KO-D Tag Team Championship. The former Italian Horsemen, now known as "From the Northern Country", named after Sasaki's favorite television program, made their first successful title defense on November 28, defeating Gentaro and Yasu Urano, and followed that up by also defeating Soma Takao and Tomomitsu Matsunaga for the title on December 12. After another successful title defense against Mikami and Onryo on January 16, 2011, Sasaki and Honda lost the KO-D Tag Team Championship to Gentaro and Yasu Urano on February 20, ending their reign at 98 days.
|
1236_6
|
Sasaki returned to NJPW on February 24 at NEVER．5, where he was defeated by Ryusuke Taguchi. On April 7 at NEVER.6, Sasaki picked up his first NJPW win, when he defeated Shinichiro Tominaga in the first round of the Road to the Super Jr. 2Days Tournament. The following day, Sasaki first defeated Ryuichi Sekine in the semifinals and then Tsuyoshi Kikuchi in the finals to win the tournament and earn a spot in the 2011 Best of the Super Juniors tournament. On April 19 at New Japan Brave 2011, Sasaki wrestled on his first NJPW main card match, when he teamed with fellow DDT workers Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi to defeat Kushida, Prince Devitt and Ryusuke Taguchi in a six-man tag team match. On May 26, Sasaki entered the 2011 Best of the Super Juniors tournament. When the tournament ended two weeks later, Sasaki finished last in his round-robin block, having lost seven matches and picked up his only win against Gedo.
|
1236_7
|
On June 19, Sasaki took part in Dick Togo's DDT farewell match, where he and Yasu Urano were defeated by Togo and Antonio Honda. On July 3, Sasaki won the Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship, surprising Antonio Honda after a match and pinning him for the title, taking advantage of the rule, where the title could be challenged for anytime and anywhere. He would lose the title back to Honda later that same day. Sasaki would regain the title from Honda on July 10 in a three-way match, which also included Tsuyoshi Kikuchi, but lost the title to Kikuchi immediately after the match. Sasaki won the title for the third time on July 21 and lost it to Honda in a Royal Rumble match three days later. The storyline around the Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship effectively ended the partnership between Sasaki and Honda, after which Sasaki joined the DDT Seikigun ("regular army") and began teaming regularly with Masa Takanashi. On January 8, 2012, Sasaki teamed with Takanashi, Keisuke Ishii and
|
1236_8
|
Shigehiro Irie to defeat the Crying Wolf stable of Antonio Honda, Keita Yano, Yasu Urano and Yuji Hino in an eight-man tag team match, pinning Urano for the win and handing Crying Wolf their first ever loss. As a result, Sasaki and Takanashi were granted a shot at Urano's and Hino's KO-D Tag Team Championship, but failed in their title challenge on January 22.
|
1236_9
|
Sasaki returned to NJPW on May 27, when he entered the 2012 Best of the Super Juniors tournament. Sasaki managed to pick up wins against Hiromu Takahashi and Jado, but lost his other six matches in the tournament and finished seventh out of the nine wrestlers in his block. On June 16 NJPW's Dominion 6.16 pay-per-view, Sasaki teamed with Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi to defeat Bushi, Prince Devitt and Kushida in a six-man tag team match. Back in DDT, Sasaki and Masa Takanashi received a shot at the KO-D Tag Team Championship on June 24, but were defeated by the defending champions, Homoiro Clover Z representatives Kudo and Makoto Oishi. On July 8, Sasaki and Takanashi joined Antonio Honda, Hoshitango, Yasu Urano and Yuji Hino to form the Monster Army. On July 19, Sasaki made another appearance for NJPW as part of a build-up to a match between Kota Ibushi and IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion Low Ki. In the match, Sasaki and Ibushi were defeated by Ki and Jado, with Ki pinning Sasaki for
|
1236_10
|
the win. The Monster Army wrestled its first match together on July 22, when they were defeated by Akito, DJ Nira, Poison Julie Sawada, Rion Mizuki and Tetsuya Endo in a ten-man tag team match, after Hino and Hoshitango began brawling with each other. The brawling continued after the match with Sasaki and Takanashi siding with Hoshitango and Honda and Urano with Hino, which led to Takanashi announcing that the Monster Army was history and that he, Sasaki and Hoshitango were now known as "Familia". On August 18 at DDT's 15th anniversary event in Nippon Budokan, Sasaki, Takanashi, Hoshitango, Tetsuya Endo and Tsukasa Fujimoto, representing Familia, defeated Antonio Honda, Tanomusaku Toba, Yasu Urano, Yoshiko and Yuji Hino, representing Crying Wolf, in a ten-person tag team match, contested under "Soccer rules". On August 26, DDT General Manager Amon Tsurumi ordered all stables in the promotion disbanded, effectively ending the short-lived Familia. On September 9, Sasaki, along with
|
1236_11
|
Antonio Honda and Yasu Urano, traveled to La Paz, Bolivia, to take part in Dick Togo's retirement match; an eight-man elimination tag team match, where the four were defeated by Ajayu, Apocalipsis, Guerrero Ayar and Halcon Dorado.
|
1236_12
|
On September 19, Sasaki and Antonio Honda turned on their respective tag team partners Masa Takanashi and Yasu Urano and formed a new stable named "Los Calientes" with Hoshitango. Four days later, Sasaki returned to NJPW, losing to Low Ki at the Destruction pay-per-view. On September 30, Los Calientes faced off with Masa Takanashi's new stable, formed with Toru Owashi and Yuji Hino in a six-man tag team grudge match. During the match, Hino turned on Takanashi, handing Los Calientes the win and reforming the Monster Army with Sasaki, Honda and Hoshitango, with Honda claiming that Takanashi and Urano were the ones who ruined the original stable. On November 15, Sasaki returned to NJPW, entering the NEVER Openweight Championship tournament, from which he was eliminated after losing to Tomohiro Ishii in his first round match. DDT's 2012 ended with a storyline, where Sanshiro Takagi brought in the NJPW tag team of Hiroyoshi Tenzan and Satoshi Kojima to stop the Monster Army, in particular
|
1236_13
|
Antonio Honda, who had begun stealing other wrestlers' clothes. At the final event of the year on December 23, the entire Monster Army was defeated in a four-on-three handicap match by Takagi, Tenzan and Kojima, after which Sasaki, Honda, Hino and Hoshitango were all supposedly arrested by the NJPW duo. On January 27, 2013, Sasaki, Hino and Honda defeated Team Drift (Keisuke Ishii, Shigehiro Irie and Soma Takao) to win the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship. They made their first successful title defense on March 20 against the team of Danshoku Dino, Gabai-Ji-chan and Makoto Oishi. On April 13, the Monster Army made another successful title defense against Dino, Oishi and Alpha Female. On April 21, Sasaki defeated Yasu Urano in a singles match and, as a result, took over his "Right to Challenge Anytime, Anywhere" contract, which gave him the right to challenge for the KO-D Openweight Championship anytime and anywhere he wanted to. As the contract was on the line in every match its
|
1236_14
|
holder took part in, Sasaki entered a storyline, where he began attacking referees whenever he was close to losing a match, causing a disqualification, which would cost him the match, but save the contract. On May 26, the Monster Army lost the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship to Golden☆Rendezvous～ (Gota Ihashi, Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi) in their third defense. Sasaki finally cashed in his "Right to Challenge Anytime, Anywhere" contract on June 23, but was defeated in the match for the KO-D Openweight Championship by the defending champion, Shigehiro Irie, after the interfering Monster Army was taken out of the equation by Irie's Team Drift stablemates Keisuke Ishii and Soma Takao. On June 28, Sasaki earned the final spot in the annual King of DDT tournament by winning an eight-man battle royal. He entered the tournament later that same event, defeating Soma Takao in his first round match. On July 6, Sasaki was eliminated from the tournament in the second round by Kenny Omega. In
|
1236_15
|
mid-2013, Sasaki and Honda once again began stealing clothes from other wrestlers, resuming the storyline from the previous year. This built to an eight-man tag team match on August 17, during the first day of DDT's 16th anniversary weekend in Ryōgoku Kokugikan, where Sasaki, Honda, Hino and Hoshitango were defeated by their victims Akito, Kazuki Hirata, Masa Takanashi and Yukio Sakaguchi. On January 13, 2014, Sasaki and Honda attempted to regain the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship with new partner Shoichi Uchida, but were defeated by the defending champions, Team Homo Sapiens (Aja Kong, Danshoku Dino and Makoto Oishi). On January 17, DDT announced that Sasaki had signed a contract to officially make DDT his home promotion, ending his days as a freelancer. On February 23, after Sasaki, Antonio Honda and Hoshitango were defeated by Mikami, Sanshiro Takagi and Toru Owashi in a six-man tag team match, Honda announced that the Monster Army had decided to disband. On March 9, Sasaki won
|
1236_16
|
the Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship for the fourth time by attacking Kazuki Hirata before his title defense. He then went on to lose it to DJ Nira later that same event. On March 21, at Judgement 2014, Monster Army wrestled its final match together, where Sasaki, Honda, Hino and Hoshitango defeated Gorgeous Matsuno, Gota Ihashi, Sanshiro Takagi and Toru Owashi.
|
1236_17
|
On March 30, Sasaki announced he wanted to form a new partnership with Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi. Omega and Ibushi accepted Sasaki's proposal, which led to a six-man tag team match, where the three defeated Kazuki Hirata, Sanshiro Takagi and Toru Owashi, with Sasaki pinning Hirata for the win and in the process taking over his "Right to Challenge Anytime, Anywhere" contract. Post-match, the new trio was named the next challengers for the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship, which led to Omega and Ibushi naming Sasaki the official fourth member of their Golden☆Rendezvous～ stable. On April 5, Sasaki lost his contract to Shigehiro Irie in a tag team match, where he and Ibushi were defeated by Irie and Keisuke Ishii. On April 12, Sasaki, Omega and Ibushi defeated Team Drift to become the new KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Champions. They made their first successful title defense on April 29 against Danshoku Dino, Makoto Oishi and Yoshihiko. On May 4, Sasaki, Omega and Ibushi lost the title to
|
1236_18
|
Shuten-dōji (Kudo, Masa Takanashi and Yukio Sakaguchi) in their second defense, ending their reign at just 22 days. Despite losing the title, Sasaki, Omega and Ibushi decided to stay together and on May 11 revealed their unit's new name; Golden☆Storm Riders. The formation of the unit led to Ibushi and Omega's old associate Gota Ihashi breaking away from the two, renaming himself "Darth Gota" and forming a new partnership with Michael Nakazawa and Tomomitsu Matsunaga. On May 29, the two groups faced off in a six-man tag team match, where Sasaki pinned Ihashi for the win and, as per pre-match stipulation, forced his new stable to disband after only one match together. After the match, Ihashi re-joined Ibushi, Omega and Sasaki, turning Golden☆Storm Riders into a four-man stable. On August 2, Ihashi turned on Sasaki and re-joined Nakazawa and Matsunaga, starting a feud between the Golden☆Storm Riders and his new Booing stable. Later in the year, after Kenny Omega had left DDT for NJPW,
|
1236_19
|
Sasaki and Ibushi started a match series to find a new member for the Golden☆Storm Riders. The series ended on December 23 with rookie Suguru Miyatake being chosen as Omega's replacement. The new Golden☆Storm Riders received a shot at the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship on January 3, 2015, but were defeated by the defending champions, Gorgeous Matsuno and the Brahman Brothers (Kei and Shu).
|
1236_20
|
In April, Sasaki began feuding with Akito over the DDT Extreme Championship. After the two wrestled to a 30-minute time limit draw in a non-title match on April 11, Akito announced that the title match between the two would be contested in a 60-minute Iron Man match. The title match on April 19 originally ended in a 2–2 draw, resulting in a sudden death extra time, where Akito retained his title. Afterwards, Sasaki entered a storyline, where he began collecting the numerous "Right to Challenge Anytime, Anywhere" contracts spread out among the DDT roster. By May 17 Sasaki possessed three contracts, a "Right to Challenge Anytime, Anywhere Triple Crown", which earned him three separate opportunities to challenge for the KO-D Openweight Championship anytime and anywhere, but instead of cashing them in, he chose to continue chasing the fourth and final contract. However, on May 24, Sasaki lost all three of his contracts; one to Kudo and two to Danshoku Dino. On May 31, the Golden☆Storm
|
1236_21
|
Riders received another shot at the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship, but were defeated by Team Drift. On June 14, Sasaki scored a major win, when he defeated stablemate Kota Ibushi in the second round of the 2015 King of DDT tournament. He was eliminated from the tournament in the semifinals on June 28 by Konosuke Takeshita. On August 23 at Ryogoku Peter Pan, DDT's biggest event of the year, Sasaki and Ibushi defeated Daisuke Sekimoto and Yuji Okabayashi to win the KO-D Tag Team Championship.
|
1236_22
|
On September 7, upon returning from wrestling in Vietnam, Sasaki debuted a new finishing maneuver, Vietnam Driver II, using it to pin new KO-D Openweight Champion Yukio Sakaguchi in a tag team match. This led to a match on September 27, where Sasaki unsuccessfully challenged Sakaguchi for his title. On November 2, Sasaki and Ibushi vacated the KO-D Tag Team Championship, when Ibushi was sidelined indefinitely with a cervical disc herniation. On November 18, Sasaki, Yuki Sato and Yusuke Kubo held a special event to celebrate their tenth anniversary in professional wrestling. In the main event, Sasaki successfully defended his newly won Chilean Max Lucha Libre Championship against Sato. On March 21, 2016, at DDT's 19th anniversary event, Sasaki and Shuji Ishikawa defeated Konosuke Takeshita and Tetsuya Endo to win the KO-D Tag Team Championship.
|
1236_23
|
On April 16, Sasaki submitted Antonio Honda in a tag team match, capturing his "Right to Challenge Anytime, Anywhere" contract in the process. He cashed in the contract on April 24, surprising Harashima after he had successfully defended the KO-D Openweight Championship against Kazusada Higuchi, and defeated him to win the title for the first time. Already holding the KO-D Tag Team Championship, the win made Sasaki a "double crown" champion. Sasaki lost the KO-D Openweight Championship to Konosuke Takeshita in his second defense on May 29. Afterwards, Sasaki announced he was planning to retire from professional wrestling. After three successful title defenses, Sasaki and Ishikawa lost the KO-D Tag Team Championship to Kai and Ken Ohka on July 3. Afterwards, Sasaki became the leader of the new Damnation stable, which also included Ishikawa, Mad Paulie and Tetsuya Endo. On August 6, Sasaki, Paulie and Endo defeated Shuten-dōji (Kota Umeda, Masahiro Takanashi and Yukio Sakaguchi) in a
|
1236_24
|
tournament final to win the vacant KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship. On September 25, Sasaki and Endo attempted to win another title, but were defeated by Harashima and Yuko Miyamoto in a match for the KO-D Tag Team Championship. On October 9, Sasaki and Endo defeated Harashima and Miyamoto in a rematch to become the new KO-D Tag Team Champions. They lost the title to Konosuke Takeshita and Mike Bailey in their second defense on December 4. On December 11, Damnation also lost the KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship in their second defense against Shuten-dōji (Kudo, Masahiro Takanashi and Yukio Sakaguchi). On January 29, 2017, Sasaki received a shot at the KO-D Openweight Championship, but was defeated by Harashima.
|
1236_25
|
On March 20 at DDT's 20th anniversary event, Sasaki defeated Jun Kasai to win the DDT Extreme Championship for the first time. On August 20 at DDT's 20th anniversary show, Sasaki successfully defended the title against Akito in a Cabellera Contra Cabellera (Hair vs. Hair) match, forcing Akito to have his head shaved afterwards. On September 24, Sasaki took part in a three-way match, where he faced KO-D Openweight Champion Konosuke Takeshita and Independent World Junior Heavyweight Champion Ken Ohka with all three defending their titles. Sasaki won the match by submitting Ohka, retaining the Extreme Division Championship and winning the Independent World Junior Heavyweight Championship. Sasaki lost the Independent World Junior Heavyweight Championship back to Ohka on December 20. Ten days later, Sasaki lost the Extreme Division Championship to Yuko Miyamoto in his ninth defense at an event produced by Damnation.
|
1236_26
|
Sasaki won King of DDT tournament by defeating Tetsuya Endo. At Ryogoku Peter Pan 2018, Sasaki defeated Danshoku Dino for KO-D Openweight Championship.
At DDT Judgement 2019 which was held on 17th Feb 2019 Sasaki lost his championship to Takeshita. Later on 5 April DDT is coming to America Sasaki regained the title by defeating Takeshita with 2 low blows and hurricana. Later on Endo cashed Gauntlet and defeated him in which Endo became KO-D Openweight championship for first time.
On March 20, 2020, at Judgement 2020: DDT 23rd Anniversary, Sasaki defeated Chris Brookes to win his first DDT Universal Championship.
|
1236_27
|
Championships and accomplishments
Dramatic Dream Team / DDT Pro-Wrestling
DDT Extreme Championship (1 time)
Independent World Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
Ironman Heavymetalweight Championship (5 times)
KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship (3 times) – with Antonio Honda and Yuji Hino (1), Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi (1), and Mad Paulie and Tetsuya Endo (1)
KO-D Openweight Championship (3 times)
KO-D Tag Team Championship (5 times) – with Antonio Honda (1), Kota Ibushi (1), Shuji Ishikawa (1), Tetsuya Endo (1) and Soma Takao (1 time)
DDT Universal Championship (2 times, current)
King of Stockholm (2008)
KO-D 6-Man Tag Team Championship Tournament (2016) – with Mad Paulie and Tetsuya Endo
KO-D Openweight Next Challenger Tournament (2010)
King of DDT Tournament (2018)
Japan Indie Awards
Best Unit Award (2016, 2017) Damnation with Mad Paulie, Shuji Ishikawa and Tetsuya Endo
Max Lucha Libre
Max Maximo Championship (1 time)
New Japan Pro-Wrestling
|
1236_28
|
Road to the Super Jr. 2Days Tournament (2011)
Pro Wrestling Illustrated
Ranked No. 161 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2020
|
1236_29
|
Luchas de Apuestas record
Footnotes
References
External links
DDT Pro-Wrestling profile
Official blog
1985 births
Living people
Japanese male professional wrestlers
People from Nerima
Sportspeople from Tokyo
|
1237_0
|
Starr Manning is a fictional character from the daytime drama One Life to Live. Born onscreen on January 8, 1996, the role was initially portrayed by infant children. In 1998, Starr was rapidly aged when young actress Kristen Alderson debuted in the childhood role, which retconned the character's birth year to 1992. Following the cancellation of One Life to Live and its conclusion in 2012, Alderson carried the role over to ABC's last remaining soap opera, General Hospital, winning a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Series for the portrayal in 2013. Alderson is the second One Life to Live actor after Gerald Anthony (Marco Dane) to win an Emmy for a crossover role to General Hospital.
|
1237_1
|
Starr is the oldest child of Todd Manning and Blair Cramer. Starr and younger brother, Jack and distant cousin, Zane Buchanan, are the only three characters biologically related to both longtime One Life to Live rivals Victoria Lord and Dr. Dorian Cramer Lord. The character's most significant storylines featured her dealing with her parents' volatile relationship, her early adolescent friendship with Matthew Buchanan, portrayed by Alderson's real-life brother, Eddie, and her close friendship with Langston Wilde, as well as her romantic relationships with Cole Thornhart and James Ford on One Life to Live and Michael Corinthos on General Hospital.
|
1237_2
|
Casting and creation
The role of Starr was originated by child actors, Ariella and Natalie Jamnik who appeared in the role from in January 1996 upon the character's birth onscreen. The Jamnik sisters departed from the series in January 1998 and Meghan Rayder briefly appeared in the role throughout February 1998. Kristen Alderson first made her debut in the role of Starr Manning on March 20, 1998 on One Life to Live. After a 3-year stint, in April 2001, Alderson signed a 5-year contract making her at the time the youngest performer in daytime television to appear in a contract role. In the spring of 2009, rumors began to circulate that Alderson was about to leave the series due to her not getting along with co-star, Brandon Buddy who played Cole Thornhart. However, Alderson later revealed in an interview that both rumors were completely false.
|
1237_3
|
Upon the serial's cancellation, it was announced that production company Prospect Park would continue production of the series, along with ABC's other cancelled soap opera All My Children as web series. In October 2011, it was reported that Alderson was in negotiations to continue with the soap opera online. However, Soaps In Depth later confirmed that Alderson and her brother, Eddie, had declined the offer to continue with the series, and would be relocating to California. Two days before the airing of One Life to Live'''s series finale on ABC, the network announced that Alderson, and several other co-stars including her onscreen parents Kassie DePaiva and Roger Howarth would be reprising their roles on the last remaining ABC soap opera, General Hospital.
|
1237_4
|
Alderson began taping her first scenes on January 27 and several days later revealed through Twitter that she had signed a three-year deal. It was then announced that Van Hughes would briefly reprise his role as Cole. Alderson would make her first appearance during the week of February 20, with she and Hughes first appearing on February 24.
|
1237_5
|
In January 2013, news broke that Alderson and other One Life to Live co-stars who had been airing on General Hospital were to depart or "at least temporarily exit". One Life to Live was in the process of being brought back by Prospect Park's The Online Network, and according to Zap2it, "Prospect Park realizes these three characters could initially help draw fans to the new One Life [...] There are ongoing talks between ABC and Prospect Park about the characters returning to General Hospital at some point, which could be fine with [Prospect Park] as they eventually want to go much younger with their soaps." However, it was confirmed that Starr would not appear on either soap opera until a contractual agreement is signed. At the time, Prospect Park owned the rights to all One Life to Live characters; TV Guide reported that because ABC does not want to risk any further legal disputes with Prospect Park concerning the characters, the only way to avoid such disputes may be to have the
|
1237_6
|
former One Life to Live actors portray "characters that in no way resemble the current ones" in order to stay on General Hospital. As a result, Alderson made her final appearance as Starr on General Hospital on March 20, 2013. She later returned to the series in May as Kiki Jerome.
|
1237_7
|
Development
Characterization
|
1237_8
|
As a child, Starr is known for her mischievous behavior, exacerbated by her parents' chaotic relationship. Still as strong-willed as ever, Starr nonetheless settles down during her teen years. Alderson described Starr as being very stubborn when she does not get things her way or when someone goes against what she honestly believes is right; very much like her parents. "When Starr was younger, she was a brat and if she wanted something, she would fight until she got it," Alderson said. Though Starr mellows out during her teen years, a 2010 storyline in which another girl threatens her relationship with Cole forces the character to revert to her old ways. Alderson said, "Lately, we haven't seen that side of her because it hasn't had to come out. The fans were missing that spunk and backbone, so they'll be excited to see Starr back in her element. She's going to fight for what she believes in." In a 2009 interview, Michael Fairman highlighted that Starr changed a lot after becoming a
|
1237_9
|
teenage mother. Alderson said that the storyline helped her mature personally, and also allowed the maturation of the character. Starr shares similarities with both her parents. Very much like her mother, when Starr is very distraught, she leans on the nearest man. This is displayed on two separate occasions when Starr falls for other guys due to her relationship with Cole being in shambles.
|
1237_10
|
Musical element
|
1237_11
|
In 2007, the series produced "Prom Night: The Musical", a number of musical episodes focusing on the Llanview high school prom. Cole and Starr are the center of attention as it features songs performed by Alderson, Buddy and several other cast members. The episodes began airing on June 15 and concluded on June 20, 2007. The cast members also appeared ABC's The View for a performance of the song, "We Belong" written by Pat Benatar. In 2008, after forgetting Starr's 16th birthday, her family throws her a surprise birthday bash featuring R&B superstar, Mary J. Blige. In 2010, the series produced a sequel to the original musical, named "Starr X'd Lovers" to coincide with May Sweeps. Within the series, the title is actually a musical written by Starr's best friend, Langston (Brittany Underwood), based on Cole and Starr's love story. According to head-writer Ron Carlivati, the night is very significant for Starr as it is her senior prom. Though the original musical focused mainly on Starr
|
1237_12
|
and Cole, the 2010 revival featured more characters allowing Alderson to share her performance of Benatar's "We Belong" with co-stars, Underwood, Kelley Missal (Danielle Manning) and Meghann Fahy (Hannah O'Connor). Alderson performed on eight of the nine songs featured in the episodes. Some critics accused the series of trying to "rip off" the very successful Disney franchise, High School Musical and the Fox musical series, Glee. Alderson defended One Life stating that the show had always had a rich musical history, and that what set them apart from the things they were being compared to was the unique characters and storylines.
|
1237_13
|
In summer, 2011, One Life to Live returned to musical themes for the character of Starr by having her develop a friendship with college DJ Baz Moreau (Barret Helms). The two began writing and recording music together, much to the dismay of her then-boyfriend, James (Nic Robuck). The relationship is complicated even further when Baz suddenly kisses Starr and she rejects him. When Baz wants to sign a record contract with former adult film producer turned music mogul, Rick Powers (Austin Peck); Starr is hesitant due to his part in blackmailing James's ex-girlfriend, Deanna Forbes (Nafessa Williams) into doing a porn scene with her sister Danielle's boyfriend, Nate Salinger (Lenny Platt). Alderson as Starr later shot a music video for the song featuring James. Rick, fearing Starr's original video was not racy enough capitalizes on Starr's recent arrest for helping Todd (Howarth) escape jail, and convinces her to record the song "Jail Bait" and another video featuring Nate fueling rumors
|
1237_14
|
that they are sleeping together.
|
1237_15
|
Cole Thornhart
|
1237_16
|
In the fall of 2006, Brandon Buddy made his first appearance as Cole Thornhart creating a Romeo and Juliet-esque story as Todd raped Cole's mother, Marty Saybrooke (Susan Haskell) in college. Early on in their relationship, the couple faces off with the mean girl, Britney Jennings (originally Katrina Bowden, then Portia Reiners) who sets out to ruin Starr after Cole rejects her in favor of Starr; Britney's torture starts with teasing Starr about her parents. Britney goes so far as to dose Cole with steroids which leads to him attacking Starr at a party. With everything in the world against them, Starr and Cole realize their love for one another on prom night in 2007. Starr does her best to comfort a grieving Cole when Marty (Christina Chambers) is "killed" in an explosion. This causes tension between Starr and Langston who believes she can understand Cole more because she has dealt with losing her parents. Starr does not like that Langston thinks she knows Cole better than she [Starr]
|
1237_17
|
does and becomes a bit overprotective. According to Alderson's costar, Brittany Underwood (Langston), "Starr hates not being able to relate or understand the way Langston can understand Cole." Starr also feels left out when Langston and Cole must attend grief counseling sessions together. "Your best friend and your boyfriend, the two people you hang out with most in your life, all of a sudden start hanging out together and you're not allowed to be with them or talk to them about it."
|
1237_18
|
Teen pregnancy
In 2008, One Life to Live launched a storyline featuring Starr focusing on teen pregnancy as part of The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy. Despite disapproval from some fans — as well as Starr's father, Todd — Starr and Cole have sex for the first time in March 2008. To coincide with the storyline, Alderson started a blog on the official ABC Daytime website in which she discussed her take on the storyline, and the issues of teen sex and pregnancy, and Starr's choices, as well the consequences of those choices. Alderson's blog launched on March 7, 2008. ABC previously partnered with the campaign for the teen pregnancy storyline featuring Starr's cousin, Jessica Buchanan (Erin Torpey) in 1998 and Lulu Spencer (Julie Marie Berman) in 2006. Alderson discussed the storyline in an issue of Seventeen:
|
1237_19
|
In an interview with Soap Central's Dan J. Kroll, Alderson described the plot as being "a very adult storyline… It's a very big issue and we feel very honored to be doing such a powerful storyline and hopefully educate some viewers about teenage pregnancy because it's a very big issue and it [can be] scary."
|
1237_20
|
In January 2009, Soap Opera Digest conducted an interview with Amy Kramer, the director of Entertainment Media for the campaign. Kramer discussed the campaign's history with ABC and also gave some facts about the storyline:
|
1237_21
|
Baby switch and Schuyler Joplin
|
1237_22
|
Starr's decision to put the child up for adoption and the child's supposed "death" eventually drives the couple apart. By 2009, Cole is struggling with a drug addiction and Starr's attempts to help him deal start to bring them closer together. For May Sweeps, Starr's storyline involves the investigation into her late daughter, Hope's mysterious death. Starr finally learns the truth [that her child was switched at birth by her cousin Jessica (Bree Williamson)'s alternate personality, Bess, when Jessica's baby is stillborn] and she is finally reunited with daughter. However, Starr is now faced with a tough decision, "Do I keep her? Or, do I still give her to Marcie (Kathy Brier)?" Brier and her costar Chris Stack who portrayed Marcie's husband, Michael were about to leave the show, leaving fans to wonder if they would be taking Hope with them. The reveal also coincides with Llanview High school's annual prom and Alderson revealed that Starr and Cole finally get the chance to be
|
1237_23
|
teenagers again. However, "they can’t take their minds off of it, because their daughter is being exhumed that night." Starr is also kidnapped by one of Todd's enemies, Zach Rosen forcing Blair to exchange her freedom for Starr's.During Starr's time away from Cole, she develops a crush on her biology teacher, Schuyler Joplin (Scott Clifton), the son of the woman who delivered baby Hope, the late Dr. Leah Joplin (Maureen Mueller). Alderson revealed that when her character suddenly begins falling for Schuyler, she is on the rebound because she is missing Cole. "[Cole] was her best friend, and she wanted to be with him so bad. Langston is her best friend, but at the same time, Cole was going through terrible times like Starr was." Starr knows she and Cole can't bet together because they both are dealing with their own individual issues, so she goes and finds someone else, Schuyler, and projects her feelings for Cole onto him. Alderson stated that Starr's attraction to her teacher
|
1237_24
|
developed "out of desperation." Schuyler helps her realize that the feelings they had for one another were not real, as they were both on the rebound from failed relationships.
|
1237_25
|
Hannah and James
|
1237_26
|
In the spring of 2010, Starr does not have a date to prom because Cole is in prison. At the time, Cole and Starr's relationship is being threatened by Cole's college lab partner, the crazed Hannah O'Connor (Meghann Fahy). Alderson describes Starr's life as being blown apart. Starr and Cole at the time are juggling being parents finishing high school, and their lives appear to be "settling down," — enter Hannah. "She spills coffee on herself with Cole, and then Todd, my dad, walks in on the two of them. Something innocent gets blown out of proportion, and then when Marty's pushed down the stairs, Cole automatically thinks it's Todd. It's been upsetting for Starr." Carlivati stated Hannah as being a "real problem." Cole's incarceration for his brutal attack on "Todd" allows for the introduction of another love interest, James (Nic Robuck), the younger brother of Robert Ford (David A. Gregory), the man Langston is cheating on Markko with. When James and Starr are forced to go on the run
|
1237_27
|
together, they fall for one another very quickly. When asked if Starr would get revenge on Hannah for interfering with her relationship with Cole, Alderson revealed that Starr is more focused on whether Cole will be able to make it to the prom. Starr's trust in her father, "Todd" (Trevor St. John) that Hannah is responsible for Cole's mother, Marty miscarriage, while Cole blames "Todd" thanks to Hannah's accusations. When asked if the couple would make it past the next obstacle, Alderson explained, though they love one another and they still have a connection, Cole's friendship with Hannah is what tears them apart. Cole taking Hannah's side when Marty miscarries only makes matters worse. Starr knows Hannah intends to win Cole for herself forcing Starr to fight for Cole. According to Alderson, Cole and Starr are forced to grow up very fast, while their parents continue acting like children, in order to deal with all the issues they face, including the tension between their parents, and
|
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.