|
|
General Hospital Discussion Group
I am sincerily curious.
Do I think Maurice/MB/Maurice Bernard is The BEST Pure Actor on DayTime?
Not hardly...Do I think he is Very Good? Yes. - Above Average?, Definitely.
Ive seen him at Fan Events and on Interviews...VERY funny and nice and APPRECIATIVE of the Fans.
He strikes me as a guy thankful for his job and - whether we like it or not - has endured a heavy workloard the past few years.
Now...there are CHARACTERS on shows that have maybe not been great actors but have just played a specific character so long that just play it with a familiarity and ease that is remarkable.
I would give you Ted Danson as Sam Malone as an example of this.
Also, remember - just because something LOOKS easy does not mean it IS.
The way MB plays Sonny - whether you like the character or not - he plays Sonny with a consistency and ease that I personally think is impressive.
I don't know if in any other role MB would be a skilled actor, but I think he does a GREAT job portraying Sonny.
The posture, the little tics, pauses, gestures, mannerisms etc...MB knows Sonny very well and I like the job he does even if sometimes I don't like the character sonny.
And that just what I think about it.
What do you think what bout it?
chris/pt
Replies: (list all replies)
My sister said she read somewhere that a couple that Maurice knew were killed, I believe in a car accident, & he took their daughter in & is raising her as his own. I'm sure gets alot of love from Maurice & his family.
Replies: (list all replies)
Replies: (list all replies)
I used to love 'Sonny' - now i can take him or leave him, and like him better in small doses. Sonny / Maurice Bernard is simply over-exposed, that's all... and that is not his fault, it's the fault of the idiots at ABC & GH.
Do i think Maurice is a good actor? Yes and No. I used to think he was good, just not the greatest. But in more recent years, I feel he is very limited in his range, but i'm not criticizing. I kind of feel that way about James Gandolfini/Tony Soprano. JMO. Again, i think part of this may be due to our overdose of Sonny. However, i did see the recent ep of Claudia's 'public scolding' - and thought he did great work.
Maurice Bernard the actor - i think he's a VERY nice person. Not only from what i've seen on interviews, or on Oprah... but from observations in real life. I hadn't done anything like this in about 15 years or so, but my sister and i actually went to one of his fan events / club gatherings while he was in NY - and i just got a nice impression. He was simple, very human, had a good sense of humor and was extremely patient with the fans & crowd, even when they showed their 'wackyness' - he just cracked up! He also struck me as a person with very little ego, and one who laughs at himself and even laughs when other people make fun of him. He also seemed very loving and very respectful to Ron Hale, who is 'Mike' - his tv dad, at the appearance.
This is the other thing that sealed the deal for me. I was at the ABC party after the Emmys one year, and he was there, along with many other GH & ABC actors. He was in my view a lot and not far from my circle at times. He was with his wife and also pulled in a lot of directions and in coversation with ABC Brass and all kinds of people. There were some 'fans' that were also at the party, probably partially people who snuck in or people who were related to people in the industry, etc and some just people who did work the industry that were also fans. This man was approached CONSTANTLY the whole time i was there - and granted everyone's wish, without even batting an eye. Autographs, picture after picture, meeting fans, etc... it did not let up for a minute. And this was while he was with his wife, and in the middle of what might have been 'business' conversations with execs or abc peeps or other actors. He would gracefully excuse himself for a moment and take a photo with a fan, through the entire night and seemed happy to do it, and that really impressed me.
Once i saw everyone else doing it (i was kind of surprised) - i tapped him on the shoulder (again, he was engaged with people) and asked him if we could take a photo. He said, 'Sure'. He was very nice, genuine and struck me as partly shy but extremely humble. He was so accomodating to everyone and made you feel like you were not intruding - and I cannot say the same about Tony Geary (or Ingo Rademacher) who were also at the party.
I am a huge fan of TG the actor and think there is probably no bigger talent in daytime, but when i asked him for a photo as well at that same party - i almost felt like i was asking Sean Penn for an autograph. I managed to get it (barely), but he was rushed, reluctant, and seemed pretty much, annoyed. I never would dreamed in a million years that i could snag a photo with him but at the party at one point, i saw so many other people doing it so thought, this is my big chance, ha ha and it was now or never. I could see clearly that he was not enoying it and trying his best to make his escape... probably had enough of the party, etc. I got my photo and i'm still very happy to have it - he's an icon... but if opportunity knocked i don't think i would ever ask him again. But more to the point, having this [kind of different] experience made me appreciate Maurice more than i did before.
Also, Ingo Rademacher kind of seemed like the jerk many people say he is. He only seemed interested in himself, and all the very young, pretty girls that were flocking him at the party. I'm not even a fan of his, but i thought it would be funny to get a photo for my sister and bring it home, etc. I was on the drink line at one point with my date, and he came by. I just looked at him and said, 'Hi' - and he didn't answer me! LOL... My impression of him was also cemented right there.
So in regards to Sonny, liked him more in the past but he is way overexposed. But i bet if he left the canvas for some time, i would probably miss him eventually and then like him better when he returned. In regards to Maurice, like him very much and do not think he has the ego -at all- that some people on here think he might have. JMO.
Replies: (list all replies)
Replies: (list all replies)
Thanx Mightily For Everyone Answering and Sharing!!!
Sharing is The Essence of Life!!! :)
Going to try to hit everyone back!!!
(I don't mean really ''Hit'' people, I mean answer the replies as soon as I can.)
chris/pt
Replies: (list all replies)
Am I a Maurice hater? Yeah, pretty much. I think he's one of the worst actors ever to work in soaps. Some combo of the long pauses, stuttering, mumbling and all around atrocious diction ruins his every performance. I hate Sonny too. I'm pretty sure I would hate Sonny no matter who played him, because he's an emotionally stunted little megalomaniac, but he could be more fun to watch if played by a better actor. Right now, he's just a loss all around for me, and I would cheer his (Sonny's, of course) death.
Replies: (list all replies)
How could anyone know MB enough as a "person" to love or hate him? No one here knows what he's really like. TV and magazine interviews are another form of acting. I've seen him on Oprah twice and he seems like a decent guy, but that's all I know.
As for MB as an "actor" he's been type cast and that's really as far as it goes. I can't see him ever playing anyone but Sonny, a part real part fantasy replica of his own life. Not only that he's had years of practice and for the most part throw away dialogue. I see no challange with the character that would make MB work any harder than usual. MB is good as Sonny.
But Sonny is on too much with too little to interest me. I tolerate his at times and he has even made me laugh years ago, but I find Sonny too serious, too selfish, too predictable and too present.
Replies: (list all replies)
I find it hard not to dislike Maurice Bernard a little because of the way his character has dominated General Hospital for so long. I know it's not his fault, but you'd think he could encourage the show to broaden the character and give him something more interesting than the same mob plotlines over and over.
As for his acting, I think he's talented but the character is completely played out. How many times do we have to see the guy deal with the consequences of his violent lifestyle for the people he loves? At this point it seems like everything that happens to Sonny's family is another opportunity for him to wallow in self-pity.
One thing I will give Maurice credit for is a masterful performance when Michael awoke from the coma. I could really see his talent there -- I got a lump in my throat as he played Sonny on the razor's edge of crying and held him there.
It's corny, but I wish GH would give Sonny a lookalike who isn't a mobster and has nothing to do with crime or investigating crime. Something playful he could portray for a while to show some range.
Replies: (list all replies)
There have been long stretches when I hated Sonny, but NEVER the actor. My goodness, he's a soap star, who's making a good living. He can't help when the writers chose to put him on every single day. I'm sure he's happy when he gets a break from the madness that is Sonny.
On the other hand, I am loving Sonny right now. MB does denial so very well. It's as if Sonny actually believes himself.
N
Replies: (list all replies)
I'm not currently a Sonny Hater. Three years ago, I used to think he was an air hog. I tolerate Sonny as the mobster that he is. I do hate the double standard that the guy is about 46 years old and he gets to live his life and attract all the wimmins like he's 30, while any female character on the show is not allowed to get any older. They will never make that guy a grandpa--it would gasp! age him.
But today, I'm really into the Sonny character and Maurice. To echo the posters below, the work he has done using his role as Sonny to educate about bipolar disorder is fantastic. And it hits close to home because it affected me. I recently got a copy of my 2006 medical records. I swear to God, this is a real excerpt here. Mo saved my life, in a way. Oh, and OLTL is my fav soap--not GH.
Replies: (list all replies)
Replies: (list all replies)
Replies: (list all replies)
For me, it's never been a MB hate, He is great and a amazing, actor with an amazing style and Sonny is like Victor on Y/R, or Stefano on Days, you need that polarizing figure on these shows but here's my thing:
I've been watching GH on and off since the 90's
And AG was the one constant, he was the headliner w/ GF, JJ, RH, TR, JZ, VM and so on as the supporting cast each with there own stories and issues but are connected to each other in different ways.
Then Sonny comes and little by little he becomes a central figure.
Then overnight it becomes Sonny and the muderous gansters of PC hour. Jason's whole history in a way becomes erased and he becomes a hitman. and I know SB didnt want Jason to be a happy Quartermine anymore but he was a Quartermine, but thats a different story.
Then SJB comes on the scene as Carly and Carly is biologically part Spencer, but that gets completely ignored because she loves Sonny so much I dont think I have ever seen Carly interact with Luke Laura or Lucky.
Then every woman in the town falls madly in love with him. Of all the decent men in PC, you love the ruthless gangster? (Brenda, Carly(SJB), Lily, Alexis, Kate, Sam, Carly(LW), Emily, Olivia, Claudia, etc.)
Then the mood gets darker, Quartermines are eliminated, the love turns to lust,
and Luke leaves Laura for Felicia...What??? Once again another story for another time.
Then Sonny is turned into this Anti-hero in the vain of Luke, but Luke was always for doing the wrong things for the right reasons. Sonny is just a mobster who does bad things to thrive.
Then you equal it up to the Tony Soprano complex, a mental flawed mobster who deals with his business, while thats good, it overtake's the show. It's not the Corinthos Family...It's GENERAL HOSPITAL.
So for me it's about how Guza attempts to alter history, people's attitudes, and create these situations so mobster Sonny can be looked at as this heroic figure, but someone like Mac is bad because he wants Sonny in jail. Or Legendary Luke is this cheap con artist hustler who just wrecks of sleaze(Not Lately though)
But I think MB is great, he knows Sonny, so much of himself is in Sonny, it's just the writing.
Replies: (list all replies)
Replies: (list all replies)