Let's Talk About Peter Allen

*too soon

Peter Allen made a flip remark "Between the moon and New York City" one day, and the song writer of the theme from "Arthur" never forgot it.

YEARS later, she added to the lyrics of the song, then asked Peter Allen if wanted to credit for that one line

Allen said "Hell yes"

That is how Peter Allen won his Oscar, that one line

I never got his appeal. I’m sorry he died of AIDS, of course, but as an entertainer he seemed more enthusiasm than talent—unlike his former wife, who had maybe an over abundance of the former and admirable amount of the latter.

I want to know if Liza Minelli was extremely dumb or whether he was a deceitful social climber.

He was a good songwriter, but his own voice was nothing special. I enjoyed other peoples versions of his songs.

Some of his songs are unintentionally hilarious by dint of their self-indulgent self-pitying: "Quiet, There's a Lady on the Stage" and "Don't Cry Out Loud" being the two most obvious.

He wasn't a great singer, but he was a great performer. In that he was like Liza, who is a better singer, but who is also a much better performer than she is a singer.

R6 I don't understand your last sentence.

Irony?

ᒪEGᔕ ᗪIᗩᗰOᑎᗪ

oops

[quote] Irony?

It's more likely you're just dumb.

R6 I think I'm beginning to understand you—

"Liza’s performances are better than Liza’s singing.

Liza’s singing is better than Peter’s performances.

Peter’s performances are better than Peter’s singing."

Taught by Experts is one of my favorite albums of all time. In 1976, I was going through the worst breakup of my life, felt really suicidal, and listened to this album nearly constantly, only taking it off to play Hasten down the Wind (Linda Ronstadt) or Silk Degrees (Boz Scaggs).

I got to interview him on my college radio station that November. We had a great talk about meeting and marrying Liza, and breaking up with her. I didn't out him on the radio, but afterwards we had a great talk, about the value of music, and not killing yourself because some guy dumps you. Great, great album. Great, great person.

"Everything Old Is New Again" is such an earworm.

Horrible. Get some taste.

Hugh Jackman shaking is maracas in "Boy From Oz"....

Saw the show with older gays who knew (in a few cases personally) Peter Allen from back in the days. Just got swept up in the music (you have to admit some of the tunes are catchy), as did most of the audience.

Next to Liberace, Peter Allen was "Mr. Showmanship" I suppose.

Mary!

Come on, you have to give it him, Peter Allen gave a good show.

Elton John could perhaps match the glitter, but never the energy....

Another great song from Peter Allen....

In many ways Peter Allen was among a group of songwriters and singers who provided soundtrack to 1970's and 1980's.

And of course.....

Another much covered great song....

Peter Allen had a good voice IMHO, but he (like many singers I'm afraid), lacked power and strength to hit and hold certain notes. Nothing is worse than a singer going for a soaring ending to a song when it's clear their instrument just cannot manage.

When Peter Allen remained comfortably within in range, things were great.

COULD NOT STAND HIM.

He wasn't out publicly btw, like you couldn't tell.

Greg Connell, Peter Allen's partner was one tall cool glass of Texas water......

Wonder how many queens went to see "Boy From Oz" on Broadway several times just to see Hugh Jackman shake his grove thing..

The queen I went with went to see Hugh Jackman, r24. I went because I so loved the music of Peter Allen. I didn't like the fact that they gave this song to Stephanie Block, however.

My boyfriend was pimped out to him one night. A friend of a friend asked my then boyfrind if he'd like to meet Peter Allen and he said sure. I guess riend was his "type'. Iit was just the two of them, PA and my boyfriend at PA's apartment accross the street from the Museum of Natural History. I'm certain they fucked. My boyfriend didn't tell me...but PA had aleady been diganosed with AIDs at the time, which made me nervous....at the time.

Peter Allen was always a bit of a joke. I remember as a young gay being profoundly embarrassed by him on TV. He was not out, but he was definitely "faggy."

One of my favorite movie moments ever

I’ve been taught by experts in the art of cruelty..... My gay teen self played that over and over again and it made me feel less alone. I was bullied and ridiculed for being gay and Peter’s music helped me get through that.

My ex’s aunt said she saw him swanning around the West Village in a full-length fur coat. She thought it was hilarious.

I was within earshot of a rehearsal room where Hugh Jackman was studying Peter's voice for The Boy from Oz. Hilarious!

Starts at 11:00. Dunno if they still do, but Qantas overseas flights would play it on the approach to Kingsford-Smith or Tullamarine.

Sure beats "Advance Australia Fair."

"Waltzing Matida"'s not a national anthem. "I Still Call Australia Home" should be.

Saw him live 5 or 6 times...great showman!

Peter Allen's Broadway show "Up in One: More Than a Concert" was one of my top favorites of the 70s. It had a short run at the Biltmore Theater and it was Peter at his best in a relatively intimate space. The end of the first - act where Peter (wearing his signature sequined jacket) becomes a human mirror ball while he rides to the heavens on top of a grand piano - was showmanship plus.

This was Peter's most sensual performance. He looks so healthy and happy... and hot!

When will Liza expose the truth about their sham marriage?

R36

Liza will go to her grave saying what she's always done; that everyone knew Peter Allen was gay but her, and she didn't find out until coming home early that fateful day and catching her husband in bed with another man.

Maybe in her memoirs or something posted after death Liza may come clean, but I doubt it. Peter Allen and everyone else who would be affected by Liza telling the "truth" have long been dead. She could have said something different by now if it wasn't the story she wants to cling to about Peter Allen.

[R18] Also covered by DL fave Debbie Gibson:

His songs are all either "Everything's FABULOUS!" or "I have to take a moment and get really maudlin now..."

He had zero taste.

I mean he is so OBVIOUSLY homosexual especially in that clip at R35. There is just no fucking way in hell she didn't know he was queer so why did they need to get married?

I had a friend who was pimped out to PA after one of Allen's concert in New Jersey. His boyfriend was inconsolable and slept with me to assuage his heartbreak the same night.

[quote] I mean he is so OBVIOUSLY homosexual especially in that clip at [R35].

Hopefully Jane Fonda got paid for that. Peter totally stole her routine!

[quote] I had a friend who was pimped out to PA after one of Allen's concert in New Jersey. His boyfriend was inconsolable and slept with me to assuage his heartbreak the same night.

I feel much, much sorrier for the pimped-out friend than for his boyfriend.

[quote]everyone knew Peter Allen was gay but her

And we all thought Joey was the dumb one.

To be fair, Liza's father was gay, so she may well have grown up just thinking a gay affect was common to all men.

I was ushering for Broadway when Peter Allen died. I think the show was Falsettos at the Golden Theater.

I was hanging out with the old ladies in the theater, waiting for the house to open, and one of the old bitties turned to me and said "Peter Allen just died. You know why? He put his pecker in the wrong place!". I just laughed.

[quote]I’ve been taught by experts in the art of cruelty..... My gay teen self played that over and over again and it made me feel less alone.

And now here you are on the DL, R29, where your education doubtless continues!

I had friends in Sydney who knew Peter Allen. My favourite thing about him as a performer was his wit. The stories he told between songs were as good as stand-up. My friends said he was that funny IRL, and gave me many examples which unfortunately I've long since forgotten. (I know, big DL fail.) As a further insight, my friends were not big stars, and by then he was.

In those days it was very risky for an international performer to just openly tell the world he was gay. It was still illegal in so many countries - including his own - well into the 1980s, and then there was AIDS hysteria on top of that. But Allen sure as hell didn't do anything to hide his homosexuality. In Australian interviews in the 70s and early 80s he used to make remarks such as, "So then Liza and I got divorced --[aside to camera] Who could have seen THAT coming?"

^ He was such a wag.

If you believe the gossip, Peter Allen had a torrid affair with Mark Herron, Judy Garland's fourth husband while he was still married to Liza's mother.

Mother like daughter Judy Garland walked in on then husband Vincente Minnelli having sex with another man. Liza however unlike her mother didn't attempt suicide after that shock. That's saying something considering Liza caught Peter Allen in flagrante delicto on their wedding night.

"Sounds great. But one day Judy came back and found Minnelli in bed with another man. There followed her first suicide attempt. Liza can top that: she caught her first husband, Peter Allen, in bed with his boyfriend on their wedding night. Peter had been recommended to Judy by her fourth husband, Mark Herron. Judy in turn pressed him on Liza. Herron carried on a sexual relationship with Allen during their respective marriages to Judy and Liza. One is all for being broad-minded and tolerant about these things and Peter Allen was certainly a fetching young Aussie hunk in those days, but, how heartless does a guy have to be to screw his stepdaughter's husband?"

You can see from pictures in link Peter Allen was quite handsome as a young man. It's easy to see how Liza fell for him... But why she remained married for several years *after* catching her husband in bed with another man, that she never has explained.

Telegraph story above quote was sourced. In case DL bans the link made it a separate post.

Peter Allen didn't have a huge volume of recordings. However songwriting is another matter with several of his songs covered extensively in many languages and still active. Am guessing his estate went to the mother and or sister, someone must be collecting royalties.

Anniversary of Peter Allen's death is coming up next week (DOD 18 June 1992, aged 48).

For Pride month!

" His first Broadway appearance was in 1970 in "Soon" with Richard Gere and Nell Carter."

What was that show?

" You know why? He put his pecker in the wrong place!"

Sadly that comment or line was used at the time by scores if not hundreds of nasty biddies that ought to have been shot. We're not just talking about loose comments in a shop or theater, but professional women in working environment.

Had friends who were nurses and nursing assistants during 1980's when AIDS/HIV patients were filling NYC hospitals. They would tell stories of nursing staff saying the most hurtful things about patients (including men who were dying) as they were providing care (if you could call it that), all right in front of the person. One former aide told a few patients with tears in their eyes from being talked about like dog. How AIDS was "God's vengeance on gay men for putting their dick/pecker where it didn't belong..".

Jarrod Emick, another cool drink of water.

R31

Those must have been very short lessons because Hugh Jackman sounded nothing like Peter Allen in that show.

Now and then a twinge of Oz accent came through, but otherwise was mostly some sort of American to my ears.

Previous ancient DL thread on Peter Allen where the man and his memory are largely trashed.

I love my bootleg of "Legs Diamond" which was the theater that closed the Mark Hellinger before it came the Times Square Church. I used to go there and was rebaptized so I got to be backstage for about half an hour and it was thrilling. Harvey Fiersten (who wrote the book) calls Legs a big smelly flop. Apparently Bruce Vilanch also did some writing on it. It actually has a very good cast album, topped by Julie Wilson with her 11:00 number, "The Music Went Out of My Life". Randall Edwards, who had played Delia on "Ryan's Hope" between Ilene Kristen's stints, play the character very similar to Lesley Ann Warren's in "Victor/Victoria". Apparently the show changed quite a bit during its extremely lengthy preview period, cutting out several roles including one played by Christine Andreas. There was a reunion of the surviving cast at 54 Below a few years ago.

Peter Allen and Bernadette Peters perform Irving Berline at 1982 Oscars

Somebody upthread said that one of Allen's two main genres was "I have to take a momento and get really maudlin now," but sometimes his maudlin could also be sublime.

"Peter shurely was a homoshexshual, but he was alsho a sphlendid encourasher of yoursh truly."

Hugh Jackman doing "Love Don't Need A Reason" from "The Boy From Oz"....

Yes, there were more than a few teary eyes night I was there....

He was homosexualist who made Oliva Newman-John the lesbian.

For those that say Peter Allen never "came out", he didn't have to did he?

Love Don't Need A Reason was released and began being performed by Peter Allen in 1998, just four years after his life partner Gregory Connell died of HIV/AIDs related illness, and four years before Mr. Allen's own demise from same causes.

There was no mistaking what the song was about and when Peter Allen sang and contributed writing who he was thinking about.

Michael Callen co-wrote Love Don't Need A Reason, and again the meaning is quite clear.

Song may be sappy, maudlin or whatever, but this is one of the few tools gay community had back then.

Carole Bayer Sager was a friend, writing several songs with him (including Arthur's Theme) - she had some good anecdotes about him in her book.

I go to Rio

I saw him in concert WITH MY MOTHER circa 1982 in suburban Philadelphia. We were fans from PA’s appearances on Merv Griffin.

Top that teenage gays.

A bunch of my very gay friends and I saw Peter and Bernadette Peters 21 Jul 1989 at Poplar Creek, a suburban Chicago outdoor venue. Near the stage it was us surrounded by blue-haired old ladies. We were in hysterics at how he taunted the old fans. His Rio number had him shaking those maracas positioned like two balls and him jacking someone off. It was a great show, full of camp fun and the ladies really had no clue as to what was going on.

I have friends who knew him professionally and personally in NYC and they still talk about how much fun he was.

[quote] and one of the old bitties turned to me

Oh, [italic]dear.[/italic]

Oh, dear, r71.

See sense 2, below.

I think Peter Allen would approve and is smiling wherever he is now.

Qantas must be paying Peter Allen's estate plenty....

IIRC Qantas no longer flies 747's from USA to OZ. More the pity because it was such a wonderful to make that very long flight quite bearable.

Qantas no longer flies anything from the USA to Oz. The borders are shut.

R76

My dear, don't you comprehend difference between temporary and permanent?

Air travel eventually will resume to Oz to and from other countries. But Qantas won't be flying 747 aircraft any longer.

Patronising much? No Australian could have missed all the publicity about the retirement of the 747s at the time. I was making a small attempt at flippancy, is all. Your "eventually" is still a bloody long way off.

[quote]Your "eventually" is still a bloody long way off.

Ain't it, sister.

Sympathies, R79. I hope you make it back soon, but I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you.