Episode 13: Diane Franklin Movies and Memories!

[00:00] Diane: This is Monique Junet, also known as Diane Franklin. I want you to listen to Bobby and Jason’s awesome ’80s podcast.

[00:12] Bobby: Hey now. We are here live.

[00:15] Jason: Live. That’s right, by stickin’ with a pen.

[00:18] Bobby: This is lucky number 13, 13, baby.

[00:22] Jason: Oh, 13-O.

[00:23] Bobby: Numero trese.

[00:26] Jason: Listen, listen to him.

[00:26] Bobby: Well, welcome. Welcome to Bobby and Jason’s Awesome ’80s Podcast.

[00:31] Jason: I am Jason Pascoe, and across the desk from me is-

[00:35] Bobby: I’m Bobby Catalano, in the flesh.

[00:37] Jason: That’s right. Roberto Catalano.

[00:40] Bobby: Oh, man. Today, I’m so excited about today’s show.

[00:45] Jason: I’m so excited too.

[00:47] Bobby: We have a special guest. I’ll tell you about her in a minute, but we wanna recap number 12 from last week.

[00:54] Jason: Yeah, last week.

[00:54] Bobby: That was a fun show.

[00:56] Jason: That was a foggy head show.

[00:57] Bobby: is also what it is. I mean, we had so much stuff in that show. We went Corey Feldman with his kinda like mental breakdown.

[01:04] Jason: I went back and watched it again, you know.

[01:06] Bobby: Yeah? After we talked about it?

[01:06] Jason: Watching it again, you’re just like-

[01:08] Bobby: Was it any better?

[01:10] Jason: It’s like he practiced dancing by himself with no one to give him any critique.

[01:16] Bobby: You think he used a mirror?

[01:19] Bobby: That’s what he did. Yes. Well, we did that, and then we did the whole Olive Garden deal. Unfortunately, Jason, I have no passes, and it’s okay, man. I don’t wanna go there.

[01:25] Jason: Yeah, and we appreciate your offers out there, but we’re gonna pass.

[01:29] Bobby: Oh, and by the way, I’m very excited. Bobby was glitch-free, but guess what? Mr. Pascoe had a glitch.

[01:37] Jason: Oh, God.

[01:38] Bobby: Do you know what it was?

[01:40] Jason: Well, I would say in high school my worst course was math. Okay. Maybe I was wrong in the numbers with the math?

[01:47] Bobby: Well, it’s possible you were wrong with the numbers with the Olive Garden math, but for one thing you’re definitely wrong was the name of the movie that Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie met. You said Mr. & Mrs. Jones.

[02:00] Jason: Oh, it’s Mr. & Mrs. Smith.

[02:03] Bobby: I know it’s a common error, Smith, Jones. I get it. But Bobby, I guess…

[02:08] Jason: You’re rubbing off on me.

[02:09] Bobby: Listen, I’ll let you go this time, but next time I’m gonna have to kick that ass.

[02:15] Jason: Anyway, we had, spend too much time in the same room with Bob and you end up, you know-

[02:19] Bobby: This is what happens, getting-

[02:20] Jason: defective.

[02:21] Bobby: My glitches rub off, as you’ve noticed. So anyway, back to today’s show. We have a special guest. She was probably in everybody’s top five babes of the ’80s list.

[02:35] Jason: She was probably also, if you were a young boy at this time coming into teenage years, one of those special women.

[02:44] Bobby: She’s stunning. Her name is Diane Franklin. Many of you probably know her from The Last American Virgin, and also Better Off Dead.

[02:55] Jason: Better Off Dead, with-

[02:56] Bobby: John Cusack, which is a cult favorite.

[02:59] Jason: Yes, love-

[03:01] Bobby: Better Off Dead, awesome movie. What I loved about her in that movie is where she did that cute French accent. She played Monique. She’s gonna be on the show in a little bit. We’re gonna have her call in, and we’re very excited.

[03:12] Jason: That’s gonna be really cool. We’re gonna talk some real ’80s stuff.

[03:16] Bobby: We’re gonna get into her life. We’re gonna see how she progressed in her career and what she’s doing now, so.

[03:22] Jason: But not just that. She’s an ’80s babe. She’s a babe.

[03:24] Bobby: I mean, she is. She’s an ’80s babe, and she’s still a babe today.

[03:29] Jason: Okay, so I’ve been excited about this all vacation. Been thinking about it.

[03:34] Jason: So it’s kind of like a little kid at the circus and all that kind of stuff. So ladies and gentlemen, children of all ages-

[03:42] Bobby: Wait, Jason, this is not the circus. We’re about to talk to one of the hottest babes from the ’80s.

[03:49] Jason: Do you think it’s gonna scare her away?

[03:51] Bobby: I don’t know. Diane, are you there?

[03:53] Jason: Are you there?

[03:55] Diane: I’m there, Jason.

[03:58] Bobby: It worked. It did work. You didn’t scare her away. Well, welcome to-

[04:01] Diane: I’m scary distance, okay?

[04:03] Bobby: Welcome to Bobby and Jason’s Awesome ’80s Podcast. And you know what? You’re our first celebrity guest.

[04:11] Diane: I am honored.

[04:13] Diane: That’s so totally excellent.

[04:16] Bobby: It really is.

[04:18] Jason: It’s almost like you are my second rite of passage here.

[04:22] Bobby: Well, you know you’re on everybody’s top five babes of the ’80s, probably number one on most lists. You know that.

[04:31] Diane: Aw, that’s so sweet. I’m always amazed when people, I say this at every interview, but I really mean it, I’m always flattered and amazed that people remember me. Because when the ’80s were around, people didn’t do as much publicity, and we didn’t really talk about ourselves because you really wanted to just believe that the people you were watching in those movies were those characters.

[04:58] Diane: And so today it’s so different. Everybody wants to know everybody’s business, you know? It’s cool. It’s different.

[05:07] Bobby: You said something in your book. By the way, I read your book, and it was great.

[05:11] Diane: Oh, thank you.

[05:12] Bobby: You said, “Audiences rooted for me and booed me. They adored me and they hated me, and wanted to be like me, or they just wanted me.” I just thought that was great. That was a great line. It captured it. It really did.

[05:30] Diane: I think what is interesting is that so many actors, they just wanna be loved. And here’s the deal. When an actor has no choice in how the audience perceives them, you do your work, and if somebody likes you, they’re gonna like you for their reasons, not your reasons. So I always think it’s presumptuous to say that someone’s going to, like, be remembered in a certain way.

[06:01] Diane: I really kind of just left that up to the audience, and just being remembered is the gift. I think it’s just interesting how everybody’s got their own reason that they’re gonna remember somebody. So if I can be stuck in your memory for some reason, well, that’s good enough for me.

[06:21] Jason: And I’m sure it’s very interesting when you hear different viewpoints that you probably never even thought of when you see people. It’s gotta be really interesting.

[06:30] Diane: It is. I have to say some of the most interesting ones are from women, because it depends on what they’ve seen me in. And I’ve found some women really loved me in Better Off Dead because I reminded them of, I was this girl who was capable and positive, and they saw themselves in my character. They went like, “I’m like that. I’m not a girly girl, but I’m not super tomboy” either.

[07:06] Diane: But they saw themselves in my role. And then some other women are like, “I was so attracted to you.”

[07:14] Bobby: Hey, that’s great.

[07:17] Diane: Right? And then other women were like, “Oh, I hated you in that film, you were such a bitch, you know?”

[07:24] Bobby: Oh, I know what you’re talking about. I know where you’re going with that.

[07:30] Bobby: Well, since you brought it up, let’s talk a little bit about Last American Virgin.

[07:36] Bobby: Great film. I think it was made in what, 1982, I think?

[07:41] Diane: Oh, Virgin, 1982. Yeah, it came out 1982 and we shot it 1981.

[07:46] Bobby: And you were Karen with a K, right?

[07:49] Diane: Yeah, Karen with a K.

[07:51] Bobby: Tell us about the role. How did you land that role?

[07:54] Diane: Oh my gosh, such a cool story. I was acting for years before, but I had not done any film work. I had done, like, an extra role in a film, but nothing, no words, absolutely none.

[08:13] Diane: And so when I went for the audition, it was a last-minute audition. I was actually taking a chemistry exam at NYU at the time, and I had actually told my manager, “I’m not going to the audition.” I refused to go on the audition, and once I saw that test, I went, “Hmm.

[08:38] Diane: You know, I have a better chance of becoming a movie star than I do finding the correct answers, seriously, right now.” So I raced over to the audition, and very quickly they said, “We want you to come next week to LA and screen test.” But the thing about it was that I had been auditioning for years, and I was capable and ready to move on to the next step.

[09:02] Diane: And I think it was probably kind of surprising just because I looked so young. I flew to LA by myself and screen tested, and then they were like, “Let’s shoot it,” and I was shooting right away.

[09:16] Bobby: Yeah, that takes guts, to go out there and do that.

[09:19] Diane: Yeah, as a 19-year-old, I think at 19 that’s pretty unusual.

[09:23] Diane: I mean, I have a daughter who’s 20 now. She would be able to do it, but only because she’s seen my life, and I’ve taken her around to different places, traveled with her. So you really have to, whether you’re 19 or 29, you have to live a little bit of life to go out and take chances and be adventurous.

[09:46] Diane: Do you know what I mean? You gotta have that kind of lifestyle.

[09:49] Bobby: Now, when you had the script and you read the ending of that film, I read that you wanted to change the ending, like you’re the director now. Is that true?

[10:00] Diane: Oh my gosh. Okay, well, first of all, that’s one of the things I learned about actresses, is you’re not the writer.

[10:08] Diane: You just show up on set and try to remember the script. But there’s something to be said, and I guess I just respect writers, because to me, when a writer writes something, he writes it for a reason, or at least a good writer writes it for a reason. Meaning it’s supposed to balance the script.

[10:25] Diane: It’s supposed to make sense. You put something at the beginning that later on is paid off at the end, you know? So what happened was, when I was at that age and I got the script, obviously my first reaction was, “Well, that’s not gonna happen at the end. Wait, did I just read that?

[10:44] Diane: It’s, no. That’s not, no, we’re gonna change that. I’m not gonna worry about it. When we get to the set, I’ll talk to the director, and that won’t happen.”

[10:53] Bobby: No, you know what’s great? The way the movie ended, that never happens in movies. And I think it’s why the movie is so remembered.

[11:03] Diane: Well, I think that’s one of the reasons it is remembered. I wrote a book about my career as an actress, and we can talk about that later. It’s on Amazon, and my first book did it, but now I have another book that’s coming out.

[11:19] Diane: The thing is it should’ve been out in August, but my editor’s had it for a while. He loves it, and I’m so excited, it just got back to me. So my guess is it’s gonna be out at the end of October or November, because I just gotta get the finishing touches done.

[11:36] Diane: But the whole thing about it is, I bring this up in the new book, this issue where the ending of Last American Virgin is not an American ending. It’s a European ending. Boaz Davidson, who was the Israeli director, and Menachem and Yoram Globus, who produced the film, are Israeli.

[12:00] Diane: When it was based on Boaz Davidson’s life, who grew up in Israel, that sensibility was, this is what it’s like, and reality teaches us lessons in life, and we have to be as real as possible. Which, as an American actress, you’re trained to be honest and real.

[12:23] Diane: So when you look at a script and it’s that real, you’re going, “Okay, I’m gonna just do this. This is reality.” But America is used to happy endings.

[12:33] Diane: That’s true. And that’s why I think it drove everyone crazy, because of the word American in the title. Everyone’s expecting a happy ending with these happy American teens, and it’s not happy. It throws everybody for a loop.

[12:47] Jason: What a thing to learn, though, right there at the beginning of your career.

[12:52] Bobby: The end scene with you and Rick, your head’s on his shoulder, and that look that you give the camera, I don’t know, what motivated you in that scene? Because you had that tear going. You did it perfect.

[13:10] Diane: Well, I love Virgin, I just love that film. And what happened was, because of the way it ended, I had to figure out and rationalize, why would I do this? Why would this character do it?

[13:30] Diane: And so, for me, when I did it, I really felt like, I as myself wouldn’t do that. Only under the circumstance of being a person who doesn’t have a center. A girl who sort of flies with the wind, who goes, “If you’re nice to me, I’m nice to you.

[13:52] Diane: If somebody else is nice to me, I go to them.” So it’s sort of like I didn’t have a center. But one of the things I did wanna do, I had my first love, I fell in love with this guy when I was 18, and I was so in love with him. I was like meant to marry him. It was so heart-wrenching.

[14:15] Diane: And so when we broke up, and actually I broke up with him because I wanted to have a career, so it is kind of like Karen, if you think about it. It was heart-wrenching, it’s hard, but so when I did this film, it was kind of like an ode to him.

[14:34] Diane: So the last scene was kind of me breaking up with him, and going, “As much as I love you, this is not the right timing. It’s just not the right timing.”

[14:45] Bobby: I felt so bad for Gary. Poor Gary, I feel bad for Gary today.

[14:52] Diane: Well, that’s true. People fall in love, but if the timing isn’t right, I think it’s more painful than if somebody cheated on you. If someone cheats on you, you can hate them, but if they don’t, and it’s not the right timing, oh my gosh.

[15:07] Jason: How do you find the reason for that? It’s the worst thing. If somebody cheats on you, you got a reason, but if they leave you, you can’t compute, you know?

[15:15] Diane: Yeah, you can’t, you wrap it around your head. You’re like, “I don’t understand,” because one person can be ready for a deeper relationship, and the other person may not be. What do you do about that, right?

[15:27] Jason: Well, you showed it. You showed what you do.

[15:30] Diane: You did. Oh, thank you. And I’m so grateful that it’s on film, because it meant so much to me, and I always think, as an actor, when you perform something that’s real and it’s deep, it should be shared.

[15:48] Diane: Do you know what I mean? It should be shared with people. I think that’s why there’s some great acting moments with people, because really great actors give of themselves. You have to.

[16:00] Jason: And you have definitely given in your movies, I’ll tell you. But tell us a little bit about the book. What made you, what motivated you to write the book?

[16:06] Diane: If you liked ’80s movies, or the movies I was in, or if you even wanna know how a regular, normal person winds up starring in a movie, how does that even happen, how do you get there, it’s just such a cool book. And even if you’re just interested in what was it like in the ’80s, what was the speech like, what did it feel like, I took such care of making it feel like when you read it, you’re in the ’80s.

[16:37] Diane: The words, the dialogue, the conversation, it’s like you’re sitting at Starbucks with me and we’re talking for two hours and I’m telling you about my life in the ’80s. So that’s what the first book is about. It’s called The Excellent Adventures. It’s a great book for people who just wanna go down memory lane.

[16:59] Bobby: I can vouch for it, because I actually picked this book up on Amazon a couple weeks ago, and I read it, and it’s a great read. Like you said, it covers your childhood. I remember you said something about a hamster that you had with one eye.

[17:14] Bobby: Do you have any hamsters today?

[17:17] Diane: Yeah, just a little bit of my childhood. Fluffy.

[17:23] Bobby: And you know what else I enjoyed? You talked about your childhood and the support that your mom especially gave you.

[17:31] Diane: Well, both my parents were very supportive, but I’d have to say my mom was the one who physically took me to the auditions when I was younger, and she really helped me.

[17:43] Diane: I think she helped me because she was very nurturing. She was like a European immigrant who didn’t know anything about the business, but was very, “Whatever you want to do, this is good, and I will help you.”

[17:59] Diane: “But I don’t know what’s going on, but I will help you,” you know, that kind of thing.

[18:05] Diane: So they’re staying out of your business, but at the same time they love you so much that they want to help you. And she helped me with, I think the thing that was really awesome about it is I really love my mom so much, and I think part of the business was, it made us share more things together.

[18:27] Diane: When she would take me into the city, I started at 10 years old, we’d spend time together on the train, I’d do my homework, she’d make sure I got food, or early enough so we could go on the auditions, and she’d say, “Okay, you gotta go to sleep, because you have a big callback tomorrow,” whatever, you know?

[18:46] Diane: But it wasn’t worried or panicked. Sometimes a parent’s like, “Oh my gosh, you gotta go do this,” freaking out. You do not want that. You do not want to have any career with a parent that’s a tiger-mom-esque, freaking out or demanding, because you don’t wanna do it then, if someone’s trying to make you.

[19:06] Diane: For me it was, I wanted to, and she’s like, “Okay, well, let’s do this.” And my father worked in the city. So as I got older, once I knew what to do, I would travel. Maybe I was 14, 15 when I started going into the city by myself, maybe 16.

[19:26] Diane: I’d meet my dad in the city, we’d go on auditions together, and then he took me home, and once I turned 18, or 17, then I went by myself into New York and went on auditions.

[19:36] Bobby: I thought it was impressive that some of the first money that you made, you bought your mom, tell everybody what you bought your mother.

[19:46] Diane: Oh, thank you for saying this. I bought my mom a dryer. It’s like a washer and dryer.

[19:54] Bobby: That’s awesome, because nobody, you’re such a great daughter.

[19:57] Jason: You’re just a great kid.

[19:59] Diane: Yeah, right? Nobody had a dryer, and she would work so hard, she’d wash the clothes and hang them on the line in the back, and I’d be like, oh my gosh, I could see how hard she was working.

[20:09] Diane: And so I get her this dryer, and we were lower middle class, and I was all excited and proud of it, like, “Look at what I got you, you don’t have to work so hard anymore.” And then what happens, my dad’s like, “Well, it’s too expensive to use, because you have to use a lot of electricity.”

[20:28] Jason: That’s awesome. Spoken like a dad.

[20:32] Diane: Oh, just like the European, “Let’s save the money.” So it was like, okay, I guess. But she used it eventually more, but it was kind of funny, the irony of it all was, you as a child want to get your parents nice things, and then they go into their own line of logic, and you’re like, “Whatever.”

[20:53] Bobby: What did your mother and father think when they saw your Last American Virgin or Better Off Dead? What were their thoughts?

[21:01] Diane: This was really cool. My parents were always very supportive of what I wanted to do.

[21:07] Diane: And I remember when I actually auditioned for Virgin, just to backtrack a little, well up until then, they were very proud, and they would save pictures, and they weren’t showing off, they didn’t go to people and say, “Hey, look at my daughter,” but they just saved it.

[21:21] Diane: They were so proud, you know?

[21:24] Diane: And amazed. Like, how is that even possible? They didn’t even realize, they were kind of amazed. So then when I did Virgin, I got the script, there’s nudity in that, and I said to my parents, “What do you think? Would you be ashamed or embarrassed if I did this?”

[21:40] Diane: And my parents, because they’re European, they were like, “In America everybody is so worried about sexuality, but they don’t worry as much about violence.”

[21:58] Diane: And they were more, “If you wanna do it, it’s a beautiful thing, that’s fine for you.” They were more concerned about maybe violence, using a gun or something like that, which never even came to happen in my career.

[22:13] Diane: I never wound up going for action films and things at that time, so I didn’t have to worry about having a gun on the set. But for that, they were more like, “It’s natural, it’s beautiful, whatever you wanna do.” And it was only my sister, I have a half-sister, she was born in Germany but she really got the American sensibility, the whole culture vibe.

[22:38] Diane: And she said to me, “You know, you’re gonna have to live with it. Whatever it is you do, you have to live with.” And I really remember thinking, that is such a good thing to say, because regardless of what your parents think, you have to live with it.

[22:58] Diane: And so if you make a move and you do something, you have to understand that you own it.

[23:03] Bobby: It was your decision.

[23:06] Diane: Yeah, exactly.

[23:06] Bobby: Let’s talk a little bit about a movie that didn’t do good in the box office, but it ended up being like a cult kind of following. You know what I’m talking about, right?

[23:19] Bobby: Oh, Monique. Monique, Monique, Monique. I love you, Monique. Bonjour.

[23:26] Diane: Bonjour, mon ami. Hi, how are you?

[23:28] Bobby: I am good. So yeah, we’re definitely talking about Better Off Dead, and you starred in that with John Cusack. And from what I read, this is one of your favorite movies you ever made.

[23:40] Diane: Yes, I was so fortunate to get this film. Better Off Dead, you have to understand that as an actress, you go for auditions, and at this time in the ’80s, mid-’80s, ’85, getting a girl lead was still difficult.

[24:02] Diane: Molly Ringwald I think started it as well. Actually Virgin I had a lead, but I was still the object of desire, the story wasn’t really about me, it was about Lawrence and Gary. But it just started with those John Hughes movies, where now teen girls were starting to be the leads in films.

[24:25] Diane: And when I got Better Off Dead, here was a girl who was capable, but she could be feminine. She was funny. I have to say it was kind of ironic that she has to be European to be that character, to be capable. But I just loved the role, and I’d wanted it so badly.

[24:48] Diane: I remember coming off another film where I had played a French girl, and I thought I was supposed to audition for Beth, the other girl in the film. But when I saw this French exchange student, I just had to go in and try to get it. And I remember going to the auditions-

[25:03] Bobby: Oh, I love that.

[25:05] Diane: “I don’t really want to see me as that,” but I still felt like this. I went in and said, “I really want to play Monique, because Monique is wonderful, and I like her, I know I can play her.”

[25:16] Bobby: That was great. Give me a little more Monique. I could listen to that for hours.

[25:24] Diane: Oh, I just love playing that character. I love accents in general, but that was just such a fun role.

[25:32] Bobby: What was it like working with Cusack?

[25:35] Diane: Lovely. John and I had a blast doing the film.

[25:40] Diane: I have so much respect and I just so adore him, and I was so fortunate to be doing that film with him. Everybody on that film loved working with each other. And there’s no nudity, there’s no bad language. And then it goes into an even more wonderful stretch with the animation and the claymation.

[26:10] Diane: And it was based on Savage Steve Holland’s life. Again, another film, Virgin, based on the director’s life, and Better Off Dead based on the director’s life. And how amazing is that, these films based on people’s actual experiences.

[26:25] Bobby: I love the characters. Mrs. Smith and her son Ricky, they cracked me up. Your interactions with them.

[26:38] Diane: Hey, it’s Ricky.

[26:43] Diane: Oh my gosh. For Laura Waterbury, she unfortunately passed away, a couple years ago. So sad. She was absolutely hilarious, and we would do scenes together, and between her and Dan Schneider, who was so funny but obviously understated.

[27:04] Diane: That scene when she squeezes my face at Christmas, I was like, oh my gosh, we were crying tears, we were laughing so hard. I remember Savage, the director, we’d have to do retakes because everyone was laughing, the crew would laugh, and we’re like, “No, quiet, we have to do this again.”

[27:23] Bobby: Yeah, it’s gotta be hard to hold it together with these talented people just trying to make you laugh.

[27:30] Diane: Yeah, it’s just a great feeling. Every film you do has a tone and a feeling. So you do a horror film, and it’s like a sort of solemn, quiet feeling, a way of speaking. Every film has its own, I don’t know what the word for it is, but Better Off Dead, because it was a comedy, the director kept things light, and everybody followed suit. So we didn’t feel bad about laughing, we would laugh.

[28:02] Diane: We knew we had to work, but we had a blast, and it was great seeing the crew laugh, the reactions, oh my gosh.

[28:19] Diane: Oh my gosh, like where did this come from?

[28:21] Diane: And the other thing I wanted to say about Better Off Dead was, it’s a film you can pass on generation after generation, because the humor got cleaned up. Originally the script was a little more racy, but whoever, I think CBS, took it and cleaned it up enough so that it could grasp a larger audience.

[28:44] Diane: So what was really fun is that when this became popular with college students, it was passed from student to student in college, because that’s when everyone got VHS’s and would say, “You gotta see this film, man, it’s so cool.” So they would pass the VHS over, and people would watch it.

[29:02] Diane: But before that happened, you could not recommend this film, because if it was opposite, like, Officer and a Gentleman or something, you couldn’t say spend your $5 on this film instead of the more sophisticated film. So I think it just got to explode because we had more media choices, and you could then have a bigger audience to show it to.

[29:32] Diane: So I am just so thrilled you guys love it.

[29:35] Bobby: It’s hilarious, it doesn’t get old, you could just keep watching it. It’s just one of those kind of films.

[29:42] Diane: Right, and you can watch it over and over again. It’s, don’t just put your tentacles, what is it, on me, right?

[29:56] Bobby: Did I get it right? The tentacles? Oh, Shady, Shady. That’s great.

[30:01] Bobby: So Diane, I have a fun fact for you. I want, for the people listening, maybe they don’t know this. You did a television movie called Deadly Lessons.

[30:13] Bobby: And you worked with Bill Paxton. I heard there was a little romance there.

[30:21] Diane: Yes, I did. I loved Bill. I dated Bill. We did the film together. And my whole thing when I act is I never get involved while I’m working with someone, because it loses the magic. If you get involved with somebody while you’re working, you want that magic on screen.

[30:46] Diane: You don’t want it off-screen. Until after, if you like that person. And the thing with Bill was, I think what’s really fun is that you see the chemistry on film, and then, where do you meet people?

[31:02] Diane: You’re an actor, how do you meet people? Most people go to a job and they see people there, and that’s how they get to know them. But as an actor, you only get to meet people that you would wanna date when you’re going on auditions or getting a job. So that’s where we meet the people that we would go out with.

[31:19] Diane: And especially if you have another actor, they have a lot in common with you, so you tend to say, “Well, let’s get to know each other, and maybe we’ll date.” So we started dating, and we dated for a little while. He’s just a sweetheart, it was great. And the funny thing about it is I ran into him at a convention-

[31:38] Diane: within, like, the last year or so. I had my book, and he was being interviewed, and I snuck up behind him, and I wanted to give it to him. And when he saw me, he picked me up in the air and whirled me around like Ricky did in Better Off Dead.

[31:54] Bobby: He picked up all 5’2″ of you, right?

[31:58] Diane: He did, and he rolled me around, and it was so funny. So I gave him the book, and I said, “You’re in this book.” He was thrilled, and he was on his way to do a film with, I think, Tom Cruise or something.

[32:12] Bobby: He’s great. He did some really good ’80s movies. He did Weird Science, he did Aliens, which is one of my all-time favorites.

[32:20] Diane: Oh my gosh, my favorites too.

[32:21] Bobby: Love Aliens. So tell us some roles that you didn’t get that you wanted.

[32:28] Diane: Well, this is a part of my first book, and you can read in more detail about this. The biggest role I would say that I didn’t get was Amadeus, which is so interesting if you look at my career, because that was a huge film, but it was also critically acclaimed.

[32:42] Diane: And, okay, so, as an actress, you go on auditions, and some actresses just do action films, or maybe they get associated with them, or some do just horror, and I don’t know if it has to do with how people just see them that way, or what they choose. But for me, I’ve always been the kind of actress attracted to characters, so whatever film it is, big budget, small budget, if it’s a good role, I will do it.

[33:20] Diane: I love it. And this goes for even today, because I’ve actually got some fun things to tell you about.

[33:30] Bobby: Now, you didn’t get the role, but wasn’t there a blessing in disguise by you not getting that role?

[33:36] Diane: What happened was, I went for Amadeus, and if you wanna read details on it, get my book, but the deal was, it was for the role of Constanze, Mozart’s wife, and it was a huge deal. I was flown to Czechoslovakia, and it was screen testing and costume and makeup, and it was just a beautiful experience.

[33:52] Diane: But obviously I didn’t get the part, and Elizabeth Berridge got the role, and I think she did a really good job, she certainly put her heart into it. So what happened was, I was definitely disappointed, I was definitely like, “I wish I’d gotten it,” but at the same time, I’m the kind of person who believes that everything happens for a reason.

[34:17] Diane: And what happened was, after that film, I got Better Off Dead, and if I had gotten Amadeus, my whole career would’ve been drama. Because once you do something critically acclaimed, you would’ve had to be more choosy, I couldn’t do just anything I wanted.

[34:41] Diane: It’s just a different world when you start doing critically acclaimed things and having to pick and choose your projects. But when I got Better Off Dead, oh my gosh, that just led to an incredible experience. I loved working doing comedy. Also, if I hadn’t done that film, I wouldn’t have gone in the direction which I did, and met my husband, who is awesome-

[35:05] Diane: and had my gorgeous, wonderful kids. And so my life right now, I’d have to say, is amazing, because I took a road and a path that led me to my true happiness. Here I am, I’m still happy, so.

[35:21] Bobby: And things happen for a reason, you know? Tell us about your daughter, Olivia.

[35:29] Diane: Oh my gosh. All right, we’d have a whole podcast based on her. And my son too, I adore my kids. And maybe it’s because of my mom, I saw what she did for me, so now I pass it on to them.

[35:44] Diane: I’m supporting their careers, what they love to do. So what happened was, my daughter, she’s a filmmaker. She writes, directs, acts, and edits films, but she is only 20. She was in the LA Film Festival, she got a film in there, she got an award for future filmmaker.

[36:07] Diane: I guess they pick the future filmmaker award, and she was in that with a film called Humanized, a 15-minute short, around. And then she got into the Soho Film Festival when she was 16, and she was the youngest filmmaker that they had selected.

[36:26] Diane: She didn’t win an award, but she was selected with adults, you must be proud.

[36:30] Jason: You gotta be proud.

[36:31] Diane: Yeah. And I’m proud because she’s doing it on her own, she’s not coming from a place where, all I can tell you is all my experience as an actress and learning about film really gives her a great perspective as a filmmaker.

[36:56] Diane: And she does comedies, that’s her thing. So keep your ear out for Olivia De Laurentiis. She’s in film school now, at UCLA, in an elite kind of program, they only took 15 kids into it, and she got in. So she’s in her junior year, and she’ll then graduate, and then we’ll see what happens.

[37:18] Diane: But right now, if you wanna see her stuff, she does work on this show, she writes and acts in skits for a show called After Dark with Julian Clark, it’s an internet show. So if you look, they have these skits, she’s in it.

[37:40] Diane: So you look for Olivia De Laurentiis, or you can go to oliviadelaurentiis.com and you can look at her film page and see some of the older stuff, and I’m acting with her, which is amazing.

[37:50] Bobby: We need to check that out.

[37:53] Diane: It’ll be daughter and mom acting together.

[37:55] Bobby: So let’s talk about the decade of the ’80s. It’s like in vogue today. All the stars of that time, like yourself, are going to these conventions, Comic Cons, all these different events. Tell us some of the events you’ve been doing and you will be doing in the near future.

[38:13] Diane: Oh, this is so amazing.

[38:14] Diane: If you would’ve told me in the ’80s that I would be going to conventions and doing signings and acting again and traveling all over the world, I would say, “You’re crazy, this isn’t even possible.” Maybe it’s because I didn’t expect it, but I’ve always had this feeling that in life you have to put out the energy that you want something, that you’re interested and you’re open, and then things will come to you.

[38:46] Diane: If you have that expectation attitude, like, “I expect this and I need this to happen,” it will never happen, because that’s not a very fun person to be. What happened was, I was open to going and doing new experiences, and I met Scotty Schwartz, who was the actor who had his tongue stuck on a pole.

[39:16] Jason: In A Christmas Story, right?

[39:18] Diane: I ran into him, and he had done these conventions, so he’s the one who recommended it to me. He got me into my first convention, and after that I was like, “Oh my gosh, this is so wonderful,” because I got a chance to meet people who knew the films and were so excited and appreciative, going back with nostalgia and meeting me, and it’s sort of like bringing back nostalgic memories with me there.

[39:42] Diane: So I started doing conventions, and then I decided I was gonna write my book, because I thought, “Well, people seem to be interested, I’m not sure.” So what I did was I made this sort of tester book, I made like 100 of them, and people bought them all.

[40:00] Diane: And so I thought, “Okay, if people are interested, then I will publish a book.” So I published the book in 2012, and I still bring that to conventions and sign it. Or if you buy it on Amazon and bring it to me, I will sign it for free, which is very cool. And then at the conventions I would tell people to friend me on Facebook.

[40:22] Diane: But then what happened was my Facebook account got full, and I thought, “I’ll open another one.” But then I had like thousands of people on this second Facebook one, and Facebook shut me down.

[40:35] Diane: So now I’m telling everybody go to Twitter, @DianeFranklin80, because if they want to know what’s going on with me, you’ve gotta follow me, because a lot of things are happening. I’ll bring up ’80s nostalgia, and I’ll post pictures from the ’80s, and things I’ve done, movies and films I’ve done.

[40:56] Diane: I also like when people post anything from the ’80s there, I think it’s really fun.

[41:03] Diane: Anything that brings us back, right? Even if it’s a different actress, I back them. I love seeing other actresses from the ’80s. I’m a big fan of E.G. Daily, and Amanda Wyss, and Betsy Russell, and Deborah Foreman. I love Deborah. In fact, Deborah, we wound up becoming friends on Facebook, and she actually invited me to this thing called ’80s in the Sand, which is in 2017. Right now it would be Deborah Foreman, me, and I think Andrew McCarthy, if he’s still going, and Anthony Michael Hall.

[41:44] Bobby: That’s a nice ’80s lineup there. That’s a good lineup.

[41:46] Diane: Right. And then there’s ’80s bands, I forgot which ones now, I don’t wanna misquote, but there’s a whole bunch of ’80s bands, and Downtown Julie Brown’s gonna be there.

[42:03] Diane: It’s gonna be a week of ’80s fun in the Dominican Republic, for a week in November 2017. So if you go to ’80s in the Sand, you buy this vacation, you go down and have a week, and we’ll all be down there, bringing back the ’80s memories.

[42:22] Bobby: That’s gonna be awesome. And you’re gonna get to interact with all these fans who love the ’80s.

[42:30] Diane: Plus I get to see the actors that I didn’t necessarily meet when I was acting, because maybe we were up for the same role, but we would never see each other.

[42:39] Diane: Like, she was blonde, I was dark, so we’d kind of not be up for the same role. There’s a lot of actors that I know in the business, but I don’t get to see except at the conventions. At the conventions, I go, “Oh my gosh, I was a fan of your work.” And then they come up, “Oh, I used to love that movie.”

[42:54] Diane: So it’s a much more, it’s generous, because it’s like going to high school, you see, “Oh my gosh, I haven’t seen you in so long,” and, “What are you doing?” That kind of feeling. But that’s with conventions. Now the most recent thing has been-

[43:13] Diane: Well, there’s a convention coming up. On October 7th and 8th, I will be in Louisiana at Louisiana Comic Con. So you see why you need to follow me on Twitter, because there’s too much going on these days.

[43:24] Bobby: Diane, we’re actually following you on Twitter, so we’ll definitely post all these events for you.

[43:31] Diane: Aw, yay, thank you. And that’s gonna be so much fun, I’m gonna be there with the other Princess Babe, Kim LaBelle, or Kimberly Cates, whatever her name is today. So the two English princesses will be showing up at the Louisiana Comic Con. So bring your children, because we are going to meet them, and we’ll have very many lovely things to give them.

[43:55] Diane: And it’s quite lovely. And then on top of it all, I got approached by two Better Off Dead fans, two directors, one is a director named, trying to think, Brian Farmer, and Scott Craig, the two directors together, and they did a film called Waking Nightmare, which I have a day left to shoot, and I have an amazing role.

[44:30] Diane: And then I did a psychological thriller. Granger Hines plays my husband, and it’s about the final interview of a serial killer. I play, he’s the, like, he gets interviewed by sort of a journalist, like a Walter Cronkite kind of person, and I play his ex-wife and the news director.

[44:55] Diane: It’s basically a play, a three-person film, but in both these films you have never seen me play roles like this. I have busted out.

[45:07] Bobby: Oh, good stretch. We definitely need to check this out.

[45:10] Diane: You have never seen me play these characters, and you’re gonna freak out.

[45:13] Diane: So anybody who’s a Diane Franklin fan is going to freak out, I like that. Both of the roles are very different and totally different characters, and it was so exciting to do them. All I can tell you is it’s going to be totally worth it to see these films.

[45:35] Bobby: It’s gonna be totally awesome, no doubt.

[45:40] Bobby: Diane, we wanna thank you. We are so happy. This has been so awesome. We got to talk with-

[45:44] Jason: one, totally awesome.

[45:47] Bobby: We, that’s the name of our podcast, where everything’s awesome, and it was great to talk to one of the hottest babes of the ’80s.

[45:55] Bobby: Diane, you’re looking great today too. You look great.

[46:01] Diane: Thank you. I tell you something, for me, I look at it and go, why can’t, well, ’80s actresses, I’ve found this to be even with the conventions, we take good care of ourselves, you really do.

[46:14] Diane: You take good care of yourselves as you get older. So it’s kind of interesting, and I love seeing other actresses looking good, because it’s sort of like role modeling what we can be.

[46:26] Diane: We can still be hot. I think that’s kind of why not, you know?

[46:32] Diane: So I think it’s good. My feeling for that is, if it shows good role modeling for other people, and even for my daughter, that’s awesome. I am very happy that I’ve even been considered an ’80s babe, or even today.

[46:51] Bobby: Well, what did you think? Did you have a good time on the show?

[46:55] Diane: I had a great time, I had a blast.

[46:57] Bobby: Awesome. Can you give us a little bit of that sexy French accent on our way out?

[47:02] Diane: Je t’aime. I love you very much, Bobby and Jason.

[47:06] Jason: Oh, thank you, Diane.

[47:08] Bobby: Thanks, Diane Franklin. That was awesome. She loves us. She said it.

[47:12] Jason: I can’t believe it.

[47:14] Bobby: Well, we love you too, Diane, and we really appreciate you coming on the podcast.

[47:18] Jason: Yeah, and being our first. Diane, you were our first.

[47:21] Bobby: You always remember your first.

[47:24] Jason: That’s right, always.

[47:25] Bobby: So Diane, we will always remember you.

[47:28] Jason: Always. Again, the second thing for us to always remember you for.

[47:31] Bobby: She’s definitely a sweetheart. You can tell, she’s just a real person. It was just a great interview.

[47:38] Jason: Yeah, she’s just, wow, I’m still sitting here, kinda like pinching myself.

[47:43] Bobby: I know. That’s the girl you, when you’re a teen, you’re watching in Last American Virgin, or Better Off Dead, or in Amityville Horror number two.

[47:52] Bobby: She’s been in quite a few movies. She is a babe.

[47:55] Jason: She is a babe, and she’s definitely legit. Just sitting here, bud, when you and I were just sitting here thinking about doing this podcast not too long ago, and then here we are, talking to Diane Franklin.

[48:05] Bobby: Yep. And you know what? We have more celebrity guests gonna come in the future, so stay tuned.

[48:10] Jason: Stay tuned. We’re just opening the floodgates right now, and what an awesome, I mean, we set the bar real high with this one, didn’t we?

[48:17] Bobby: We did. Do you have anything from our fans?

[48:21] Jason: Of course I got stuff from the fans, from fans and friends.

[48:28] Bobby: Let’s hear them.

[48:29] Jason: Here we go. I got some fan comments, went and picked out some stuff. I know everybody out there, I don’t post too much on the page and whatnot, but I do stalk, I stalk every one of you.

[48:40] Bobby: I can tell you, he is a stalker.

[48:42] Jason: Yes I am, and I’ve got the record to prove it. Just kidding. But I know I don’t post much, but I do read everything you put up there, and this is my week to pick some comments out. So here we go. I’m trying to pick the hardest names possible, by the way, too. So, Helena Joseph Milneck. Sometimes I think you guys invent these names, okay?

[49:05] Bobby: What’s up, Helena?

[49:06] Jason: Yeah, you guys have these fake Facebook accounts, and you make these hard names, and you say to yourself, “I can’t wait to hear them.”

[49:13] Bobby: Helena’s a normal name. It’s actually a pretty name.

[49:16] Jason: Sorry, Helena. I’m still on cloud ten from Diane here. “Super excited to listen to the new podcast.

[49:24] Jason: I will make myself a cup of coffee and chill on the couch and listen tonight. I really look forward to hearing them. It’s becoming a routine.”

[49:32] Bobby: Wow, great. A cup of joe-joe, Bobby and Jason, what else could you ask for?

[49:37] Jason: That’s all you need. What a routine, I’ll tell you.

[49:39] Bobby: A soft pillow, you know?

[49:41] Jason: Melanie Lindsbee Miller.

[49:44] Bobby: What’s up, Melanie?

[49:45] Jason: Okay, Melanie. “I think I heard a glitch or two, but this time it was Jason.”

[49:54] Jason: There were a few. What the hell? That’s what I say. Wrong movie name, and I believe, the math was wrong on the Olive Garden pizza discussion, but I’m not 100% sure. That’s great. Okay, well, I am a good tipper, I understand the importance-

[50:09] Bobby: that I’m not the only glitch person around.

[50:11] Jason: So stop, you’re rubbing off on me, come on. “Will have to go back and listen again. Jason’s brain must still be in vacation mode.” Okay, back to listening to the podcast.

[50:21] Jason: Melanie, you got your priorities right.

[50:23] Bobby: I love you, Melanie. That was great. Keep looking for those Jason glitches.

[50:26] Jason: All right, Gia DiDomenica. I know you put it up there phonetically, I won’t tick her off. What’s up, Gia?

[50:32] Bobby: Gia’s a big fan.

[50:33] Jason: Yes, and she’s got, oh man, all these consonants running on here, I’ll tell you. “OMG, guys, I was getting ready to do the Chaka Chaka Khan, Chaka Chaka Khan thing-“

[50:43] Bobby: Chaka Khan, Chaka Khan.

[50:44] Jason: too, when you said her name, and you did it right when I did.” See that? Great minds think alike. “I always love, love you guys, great job and loved listening.” Well, we love getting your comments too.

[50:58] Jason: We love it.

[50:59] Bobby: Thank you, Helena, Melanie, and Gia.

[51:02] Jason: We love that you listen. Thank you, awesome comments.

[51:04] Bobby: We do appreciate it. Okay, well I have the mail bag. Do your little mail bag thing.

[51:10] Speaker: It’s the ’80s email bag.

[51:11] Bobby: ’80s email bag. That’s always interesting. Anyway, this one is from Jasmine Sinclair, and she says, “A friend told me about your podcast and I’m glad she did.

[51:25] Bobby: I remember both of you from Dance Party USA. It was one of my favorite TV shows in the ’80s. What I loved most was the lip syncs. I remember the Valentine’s Day show when Bobby removed his sunglasses.” Hey, Bob, the Careless Whisper.

[51:43] Jason: Hey, Bob.

[51:46] Jason: Can you share Careless Whisper, man?

[51:48] Bobby: No, I can’t.

[51:49] Jason: It’s part of my childhood, man.

[51:49] Bobby: I can’t.

[51:50] Jason: Come on, Bob.

[51:50] Bobby: Copyright. And she continues, “I also loved Wham Rap and Last Christmas.” We like those too.

[51:59] Bobby: And she says also, “You both look so natural doing those performances. I also remember Kelly Ripa-“

[52:07] Bobby: being on the show. “It’s amazing to see how far she’s come in her career.” It is, she’s doing great, and we’re proud of her.

[52:14] Jason: Yeah, it’s kinda crazy to see all that, but-

[52:17] Bobby: it’s awesome.

[52:17] Jason: It’s great for her.

[52:18] Bobby: And she also says, Jasmine says, “Your podcast is awesome and I’m hooked. It’s amazing to see you both together again. Just remember, you have a big fan here in Austin, Texas.”

[52:30] Jason: Ooh.

[52:30] Bobby: Well, thank you, Jasmine, that was awesome.

[52:33] Jason: Awesome, love Austin too, Austin’s a great town.

[52:36] Bobby: Okay, it’s that time, brother.

[52:38] Jason: It’s that time.

[52:39] Bobby: It’s that time. This podcast will self-destruct-

[52:43] Jason: In five, four, three, two, one.

[52:48] Bobby: A-boom.

[52:49] Jason: A-boom. We’ll see you next time, everybody.