Why did Heather Langenkamp’s career go straight down the shitter?

Her and her husband run a successful Hollywood FX studio. She’s doing just fine.

she didn't want to stay in that side of the business.

i don't think she ever did anything other than those films in front of the camera.

Because she wanted more than the life of an actress, which is why she went into SFX. She was too bright and unique and human to be an actress, especially back then.

She was fairly limited as an actress but she improved by the time she did New Nightmare in the 90’s.

She wasn't doin' it the best she could.

In the Herbert Ross Troll thread, it was claimed that she crashed the auditions for "Steel Magnoilas" - i.e. her agent couldn't get her an audition. Thus, it sounds like Hollywood decided she was a b-movie type actress.

OMG., who was she going to play R6? It could've went in either direction.

She only got into special effects so she could keep working closely with her husband. He was going off on location on his own.

10:00 mark

She might’ve been an improvement over miscast Daryl.

No charisma.

It wasn't her time.

Now I’m going down a figure skating rabbit hole on YouTube!

[italic]“She’s a very powerful skater, but as I’ve said before, she has a tendency to do some goofy things from time to time...”

R1: Please grasp the basic rules of grammar referring to pronouns; the misuse belittles your otherwise informative and entertaining comments.

When in doubt, think which pronoun you would employ if you were speaking of only one person, so instead of HER and her husband run a successful...:

SHE and her husband run a successful....

SHE runs a successful...(utilizing the trick of dropping the second person as a guide; you would not write HER runs a successful...)

Oooh, one of the DL Grammar Queens got you!

When all is said and done, most actors/actresses are only remembered for one role. She has it. Some peak young. See also: Alicia Silverstone. Look at Drew Barrymore. Had a whole long career but will prob be remembered as the girl from ET.

That dull girl, Natalie Portman, peaked with "Leon - The Professional" when she was 12.

Maybe because she went prematurely grey.

She was a really bad actress and god she looked 20 years old!

And not that girl from Scream, R16?

Play a different record, Aspie Irrelevant Pop Cataloguer.

She wouldn't bend over for Harvey.

Forget her. Let's talk about Ashley Laurence AKA Kirsty Cotton from the Hellraiser franchise instead!

I played Drew Barrymore’s sister! I was so close to having a bigger career!

There were ten good reasons

She was perfectly cast in A Nightmare on Elm Street but she was not a great actress. She didn't have a lot of range.

She's guaranteed a lifetime of horror conventions and lots of $$.

And she could very well be part of a reboot if it ever happens. Though, I don't think she's at the quite same level as Jamie Lee Curtis, whose return to Halloween creates lots of interest.

Heather is great on social media. Anti-trump, pro-gay, all around cool.

Always heard nothing but good things about her. Very open and loves the fans....even after dealing with a nasty stalker that forced her to leave the country for awhile.

A girl I went to high school with claimed Heather was her first cousin. She said Heather was stuck up.

I just learned that Heather’s son died of brain cancer two years ago.

That must have been horrible for her.

I’m really the first to have to mention Just the Ten of Us??!? I thought that was a DL cult favorite.

[Quote] Her and her husband run a successful Hollywood FX studio. She’s doing just fine.

I had no idea who her husband was until I watched a bts video of Cabin In The Woods. They did a great job.

She did land a part on the ABC sitcom "Just the Ten of Us" that had a following. ABC canceled it prematurely even though it fairly good ratings in favor of a crappy Miller-Boyett Productions show, a big supplier to ABC at the time. And afterwards a succession of other shows that flopped.

Didn’t that show run like 8 years?

It just ran 3 seasons. The first season only ran 4 episodes, though. It was repeated on USA network for a while in the 90s.

I am so gay, but I honestly watched Just the Ten of Us because I had a “girl crush” on her and the redhead Jamie Luner. Like, if I were a girl, I’d want them to be my alter egos.

The Lubbock Babes!

I think it was the spinoff episode or the premiere episode where Heather's character is running through the house and she says "It's like A Nightmare on Elm Street!"

So meta!

All of the older daughters on JTTOU (Langenkamp, Brooke Thiess, and JoAnn Willette) except Jamie Luner were in the NOES series.

[quote]When all is said and done, most actors/actresses are only remembered for one role. She has it. Some peak young. See also: Alicia Silverstone. Look at Drew Barrymore. Had a whole long career but will prob be remembered as the girl from ET.

Drew Barrymore is the girl from Charlie's Angels & Never Been Kissed to me. Some of that is generational.

Heather wasn't a great actress and while she could have kept studying and improved I'm happy that she found something she liked to do besides acting and has been successful at it.

I'm fine bitches.

She was playing a suburban teen. You don’t play that role the way you play Hamlet.

She kept sleeping in and missed all her auditions!

She's a total doll if you've ever met her at one of these conventions and, let me tell you, she always has long lines, so I doubt she's hurting for money. Actors can clean up at these cons. That's the one great part about being involved in a classic film like A Nightmare on Elm Street - the fanbase only keeps growing and they'll gladly wait in lines and pay $30 for an autograph and pic with their favorite actors from the films.

Heather could be brilliant or terrible depending on her director. I think she's pretty good in the original Nightmare, sort of awful in Nightmare 3, and downright brilliant in New Nightmare. I saw her in a recent movie called The Butterfly Room where it just seemed like she was angry and screaming the entire time and she wasn't very good. Maybe she needs a strong script and a strong director to get a great performance out of her. She still seems to act here and there, but most of the projects she picks aren't very interesting. She did another really awful horror movie a few years ago called Home where she played a lesbian mother, but she's in the movie for maybe 10 minutes altogether and, while she delivers a completely respectable performance, the movie doesn't know what to do with her character and she doesn't make a big impact.

A lot of the big horror con actors are similarly limited when you think about it. Look at someone like Linnea Quigley. She's still very popular at these things, but it's not like she ever delivered some great Oscar worthy performance. Her greatest talent was not taking any of the films she was in seriously and just having a good time. Once again, she's lucky that she has quite a few cult classics under her belt. She seems like a fun gal and is big into animal rescue I think.

She and her husband are total dollfaces. Their son was a respected SPFX makeup artist as well, and nice by all accounts.

[quote]Look at someone like Linnea Quigley. She's still very popular at these things, but it's not like she ever delivered some great Oscar worthy performance. Her greatest talent was not taking any of the films she was in seriously and just having a good time.

You left out the two biggest reasons for her enduring popularity.

Wow! It took 46 posts before mentioning that awful name.

It's fine for your next door neighbor/best friend in high school/your kid's 6th grade teacher but "Langenkamp" is a shitty name for anyone wanting to be a Star.

Jeez, r45, talk about bolt-ons!

R45 Linnea's breast implants look like the breast implants of a transwoman who was too impatient to do hormone therapy and skipped it altogether.

Didn't Linnea show off her rather small breasts early in her career? She must have gotten implants at some point in the early 80s.

Yeah, Linnea was topless in several movies (and skin magazines) in late 70s and early 80s when she had her original small natural set. She had them done around 1983 or 1984. They were still real in Savage Streets but then were fake by the time she did Silent Night Deadly Night (where the photo above was from) and Return of the Living Dead.

She didn't really have enough breast tissue, body fat or loose skin in the chest area to make her breasts look semi natural after her boob job. Even though she didn't go all that big.

Another NOES/Just The Ten Of Us meta moment: the son is sometimes seen wearing a Freddy Krueger t-shirt

"Linnea, I can see your arsehole" - John Gielgud.

Ronee Blakely was the absolute WORST actress in A Nightmare On Elm Street. Her line readings always induce laughter in me and that bitch was Oscar nominated for Nashville! Don't get me started on that awful doll they used for the shock ending...

Freddy and his Gals - Brooke Theiss, Lisa Wilcox, Lisa Zane, Heather Langenkamp, Toy Newkirk, Tuesday Knight and Amanda Wyss.

R54, where’s Kelly Jo Minter and Erika Anderson and Kim Myers and Lezlie Dean?

^When was this taken? They all look pretty good.

Thank goodness Tuesday eased up on the plastic surgery. She must've read all the comments about it on the internet.

R55 and Pat.....

No Jesse?? Those bitches ! Jesse was the best freddy gurl there ever was!

[quote]When was this taken? They all look pretty good.

August of last year. Amanda posted on Facebook.

Yeah, Tuesday looks better. She looked a fright in that documentary about the Nightmare series.

R53, I adore Ronee Blakely’s wretched acting in NOES. It really adds to the surreal, “nightmare” atmosphere of the movie. I still quote some of her awful line readings.

I'm gonna get her some help!

I thought Ronee Sue Blakely did a fabulous acting job in NOES. She was perfect as the forlorn, drunk and regret-ridden mother.

You do realize her character was always drunk, right? That's why she always seemed a little lost and out-of-it. Perfect characterization.

Ronee Sue and John Saxon were the stars. They were the only reason Bob Shaye and Wes Craven were able to get the money to shoot the film. They were bankable, recognizable names all across the world.

All the Nightmare gals are looking pretty good, but especially Lisa Wilcox and Amanda Wyss. If they've had any work done, it's been very tasteful and natural.

[quote]Ronee Sue and John Saxon were the stars...They were bankable, recognizable names all across the world.

BWAHAHAHAHA! Welcome to the Datalounge, Ronee! We love ya!

I dramatized r64 post for a friend while beating my hands on the table. We're still laughing. Now we're watching NOES and, yeah, she's terrible. I wonder if her and Wes were friends and he didn't want to destroy their friendship by giving her direction.

[Quote] Ronee Sue and John Saxon were the stars. They were the only reason Bob Shaye and Wes Craven were able to get the money to shoot the film.

They should have done more with John Saxon in New Nightmare.

R30, you were not the first to reference "Just the Ten of Us". R5 craftily referenced the lyrics of the show's theme song.

I always thought Blakely's performance worked well in the movie. Sure, it's a little campy, but I do buy her as an alcoholic with a secret.

SCREW SLEEP!

You can run your ignorant mouth as much as you like, r66.

But several people behind the scenes of NOES have stated in interviews and documentaries that some investor money hinged on Saxon's and Blakeley's involvement.

BWAHAHAHAHA! Dumbass.

Lisa Wilcox deserved a better career. Not sure what happened there.

I was rewatching some of the Elm Street movies a year or two ago and what struck me was how great the casts were in these movies. They really did assemble great, charismatic actors for these movies that you really cared for. They were attractive, but in a very girl/guy next door kind of way. None of them looked like supermodels and they all looked and behaved like people you'd have gone to school with or lived down the street from. I miss that from horror movies these days where everyone seems plucked from a CW show or runway somewhere.

SCREW YOUR PASS

r72, I watched 2 and a half hours of that documentary and heard nothing about funding hinging on the participation of Saxon or Blakely. In fact Craven said it was fortuitous you could get experienced actors for a cheap price once their careers weren't at the top level anymore.

But it's an interesting documentary so thanks for linking!

I think Saxon and Blakely added a layer of class to the film that helped a bit, but I'm not sure if their involvement really sold the film to studios. It's not like they were ever big box office draws. They were respected character actors.

[Quote] They were attractive, but in a very girl/guy next door kind of way. None of them looked like supermodels and they all looked and behaved like people you'd have gone to school with or lived down the street from. I miss that from horror movies these days where everyone seems plucked from a CW show or runway somewhere.

I just miss that in general.

R27 are you sure it wasn't Adrienne King from Friday the 13th that you're thinking of? Adrienne had a really terrible stalker who would recurrently break into her apartment, and on one occasion he held her at gunpoint. It traumatized her and she ended up leaving the US for awhile after that and went to England to study at RADA. Today, she lives here in Oregon and works for a vineyard in the southern part of the state, where she has her own brand of "Crystal Lake" wines. She seems like a sweet lady.

R77 John Saxon had a role on Dynasty, like the biggest show in the world along with fellow nighttime soap opera Dallas, during the time he filmed his role in Nighmare 1, it was a big "get" for a low budget film

Heather Langenkamp auditioned for and came this close to landing the role of Terry during the final season of Melrose Place in 1999, Alexander Paul (John Carpenter's Christine, Baywatch) was cast instead, Langenkamp would have been reunited with her former JTTOU co star Jamie Liner, who was a regular on Melrose as Lexie Sterling

Oh dear, R80.

Heather and hubby

Heather and Adrienne both had stalkers. Oddly enough, Heather's stalker wasn't a fan of the Nightmare movies but of Just the Ten of Us. Wes Craven worked a bit of Heather's stalker problem into New Nightmare.

Why don't you jump to 14:40 in this clip and then eat shit, r76?

Then, if the producers' word isn't enough for you, you can Google the dozens of articles on the internet stating that John Saxon's and Ronee Blakley's involvement secured financing for the film.

You're a glib hater. Ronee did an excellent, appropriate acting job in NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET and you're not a true fan of this franchise. You would have known the behind-the-scenes trivia otherwise.

P.S. I watched the history of the post @ r67 for 2 and a half hours and read nothing that proves you have a friend to dramatize with. You obviously perform for yourself in the mirror while beating your microdick on the table. I'm still laughing!

My God, you are a sad, little emotional midget aren't you r84. That you would get your little filthy panties into an uproar over an 80's horror film just amplifies what a creepy little nutter you are. Stay sweet and drop dead.

She's no Grace Foster.

That's right, r85, you were dead wrong about the facts and you made an ass of yourself.

There is no professional film critic who faulted Ronee Blakley's performance in A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET. Why don't you start by telling us what was wrong with it? Name one thing she did wrong.

Ronee was a hell of a lot better than Connie Britton in the same role in that abysmal remake. They didn't even make her a drunk or give her any memorable lines. I'm not even sure if she had more than 2 or 3 lines altogether. At least Ronee was memorable and made an impression.

R74, I think a lot of them looked like supermodels.

Heather looked particularly ravishing in Dream Warriors.

Andras Jones and Danny Hassel were both hunks.

Kim Myers had this Tiffany look in Freddy’s Revenge.

And Erika Anderson played an aspiring model.

R74 I can not agree at all. The only great actor was probably Patricia, everyone else was average to downright awful. I like Hearher but I wish they cast Courtney Cox instead as Nancy!

Thank goodness Wes cast Courtney for Scream I think he regretted not casting her for Nightmare.

Johnny Depp, Robert Englund, John Saxon, Ronee Blakley, Amanda Wyss, Mark Patton, Craig Wasson, Breckin Meyer, Patricia Arquette, Ken Sagoes, Thomas Dekker Laurence Fishburne and Kyle Gallner — all great actors, most of whom proved themselves in bigger and better things (except Ken).

Just wait until you see Kyle Gallner in DINNER IN AMERICA, coming in 2020.

The only weak acting links I can think of in the franchise are Heather Langenkamp and Rooney Mara themselves, and then Tuesday Knight, Jackie Earle Haley and Kellan Lutz.

But these movies aren't demanding much from the actors, so even lame actors or pretty faces (Danny Hassel) are perfectly adequate.

Heather is great in some parts and mediocre in others. She was definitely good enough to carry her shows. Rooney is always dull as dishwater to me, but her movie was one of the worst. Tuesday was kind of whiny but not enough to ruin her installment. Jackie Earle Haley has been awesome in other works (LITTLE CHILDREN). I just found him to be a weak Freddy with poorly written lines anyway. And Kellan Lutz was perfectly adequate for his small role — he only sucks when he has A LOT to do.

Courtney is too "supermodel."

Heather is more appropriately "Girl Nextdoor."

R93 and what was johnny depp supposed to be? He was too hot back then to be believable as Nancy’s boyfriend. Courtney could have been uglied up a bit.

R92 I thought we were discussing the 80’s nightmare movies not the 2010 version. You seem to confuse serviceable acting with great acting.

In your addled, obviously undetected syphilis ridden, pea of a brain r87, you are confusing any and all posters who disagree with you. My guess is that peaked when these movies came out and have stayed in the bargain basement of the 80’s ever since. Take off your Chess King duds and arrive before it’s too late but, I feel that it has been too late for you for quite awhile.

Good day. I said, good day.

Oh, anyone is free to explain what was wrong with Ronee Blakley's acting.

The acting in this scene......is something

Dear r95,

Go back and read r90. It was r74 and r90 who expanded the discussion to the entire franchise.

And r90 had the gall to argue Patricia Arquette was the only great actor, when Johnny Depp has 3 Oscar nominnations and several hit movies under his belt, Ronee Blakley has one Oscar nomination and one National Board of Review win for NASHVILLE, John Saxon has one Golden Globe and several hit, iconic shows, Brekin Meyer has 4 Emmy nominations and successful TV shows, Jackie Earle Haley was Oscar-nominated, Mark Patton was in a well-regarded Altman film himself and Laurence Fishburne has one Oscar nomination, several hits and critical favorites under his belt, too.

DON'T SHOOT THE MESSENGER. Shoot r74 as much as you like, but when people start bullshitting, I will correct them.

P.S. Heather Langenkamp had a good performance in one of the best ELM STREETS ever made in the 1990s, not just the '80s.

I don't remember much about the remake, other than being annoyed at Katie Cassidy's scene having no originality. No wonder she's the queen of the CW.

Wow, I'm shocked this thread got to 100. Which Lubbock Babe should we do next? Jo Ann Willette?

Heidi Ziegler, naturally.

I don't remember much about the remake either except that Freddy looked weird and Katie Cassidy made for a much more interesting lead than Rooney and I'd wished they'd switched roles, but then I suppose, most people would have turned it off in the first 20/30 minutes.

The main thing missing from the remake was the dark comedy. The original Freddy was pretty gleeful when he was killing off those teens.

OH, and I'll just leave this article here for the unhinged freak.

So you found one blogger who shares your hate fetish, before ever sharing why you disliked Blakley's performance yourself. Wow.

And the blogger is completely projecting his anti-Blakley bias on to Craven and Langenkamp. They in no way faulted Blakley in their interviews or made fun of her.

Marge Thomspon was drunk and Blakley's performance was appropriate for that. And I don't fault good actors trying to elevate shallow movies, or doing their best within.

Cody Fern acted the shit out of AMERICAN HORROR STORY: 1984 even though it was a cheap ripoff of a shallow franchise. He made it a little better, though he couldn't save it.

Girls, girls, you both suck cocks in hell!

R102, Heidi Ziegler was not a Lubbock Babe.

R104 sadly they turn Freddy into a laughing stock by the time Freddy vs Jason rolled around.

She was a National Merit Semifinalist while a student at National Cathedral School.

Ronee Blakley is a legend, and will be treated here as such!

The book about the making of NASHVILLE is fascinating. Blakley was an unknown, last minute addition to the cast, and everyone was surprised that she challenged director Robert Altman about many aspects of her scenes. But then, she was the only one in the cast who was an actual SINGER SINGER (though Barbara Harris had done Broadway musicals) and she knew what she was talking about.

She had a high fever shooting this scene, had been up all night writing the monologue, and Altman didn’t know which of the songs she’d written she would perform. He liked to keep his cast vulnerable, on edge and uncertain, but she was the sole one who held her ground and instead made HIM uncertain.

(It’s also ironically fitting that Altman was the one who insisted Blakley lose weight before filming, and then part of the reason she was sparky on set was that she hadn’t eaten for about two months!)

Ahem, R99...

You forgot to mention that I went on to earn, not one, but TWO Oscar nominations...

Unlike my predecessor Heather Langenkamp.

And R99, you forgot to mention ME!

I got a Best Actress Emmy nomination for playing a country music singer in “Nashville!” I outdid my predecessor Ronee Blakely, who only got a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination for playing a country music singer in Nashville.

Here’s to me and Rooney outdoing the original Nightmare actresses!

Yeah, but the original Nightmare actresses are genuinely likeable people.

-18.75/10, r113.

I did not forget Rooney Mara. I clearly described what I disliked about her @ r92.

She is monotone. I think a star actress, director and production carried her to a nomination for [italic]Carol[/italic] in a pretty weak year. And I think she owes her [italic]Girl With a Dragon Tattoo[/italic] nomination to the popularity of a pre-existing, hit franchise. She's not a transformative actor who has to stretch.

Heather and Ione Skye always remind me of one another.

What happened to Ione?

I remember some of that DVD commentary with Heather and Wes. Heather burst out laughing when Ronee first appeared on screen and Wes had an amusing tone discussing her. It didn't seem like they disliked her at all, but they obviously thought she was, um, out there and could be high strung.

That Nightmare commentary is one of the best. Everyone seems to be having a great time. Any of Wes Craven's commentaries are worth a listen. He was a very smart, articulate man.

As much as I like her, she just can't act.

Dr. King: Okay, she's asleep now.

Marge Thompson: Sank God.

R15 Feel sorry for the Frau R14 She only has her muumuus & lapdog for comfort.

Bad actress! Bad actress! BAD ACTRESS!

Blakely was awful but mesmerizing at the same time. She didn't act like someone who was drunk but as someone who was under hypnosis.

Rodney Eastman may be my favorite of the Elm Street boys but I also liked Depp. Breckin Meyer was cute too.

Eastman seemed to have a cuteness shelf life of about 3 years.

OMG. Eastman was my first real crush followed by Danny Hassel. This is hot.

R123, was that a blow up sex doll they used?

Were there any other gay guys in the series besides the gay guy in part two?

Hmmm, good question, r129. I can’t think of any offhand. There have been rumors that John Saxon was a kept boy early in his career but if he’s gay or bisexual he’s certainly not out. 3 different marriages to women. And watching that documentary linked above I noticed how often Rodney Eastman kept mentioning he shared a weakness for beautiful women with his character. Made me think of closeted guys overcompensating.

Her dad worked for Jimmy Carter when he was president. A lot of her friends from back in the day worked for the government (maybe still do)?

I remember John Saxon fucking the hell out of Kim Novak on 80s nighttime soap opera Falcon Crest when I was a kid. He had a great body for a then 50 something actor

Saxon played Lorenzo Lamas's characters (Lance Cumson) father, Tony Cumson, which him the father in law to Ana-Alicia, who played Nurse Janet In Halloween II, and played the villianess Melissa Agretti Cumson on Falcon Crest. Melissa's cousin on Falcon Crest, Robin Agretti, was played for a year and a half by Barbara Howard, Sarah from Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter

Love those slasher/80s connections