Celebrity Jukebox #85: Tim Curry

I'm not one of those people who cherishes The Rocky Horror Picture Show as a highpoint in movie/musical history. Neither am I one of those people who hates the very mention of its name. I thought it was a pretty good movie, watched it a couple of times, had a laugh or two (I particularly like the bit with Meat Loaf)... but never felt the need to dress up and sing the songs at a revival night.

I don't have the legs for it.

Still, as powerful as that performance may well be, it'd be a shame if it was all we remembered Tim Curry for. He was also the original Pennywise, from the 1990 adaptation of Stephen King's It... not a classic, but better than the recent two part movie series (one good film, one terrible film - and they shouldn't have been split up to past and present like that anyway, it diminished the story). He was the Darkness in Legend and Long John Silver in Muppet Treasure Island. Perhaps not the most illustrious of career paths when you look at his full résumé, but that wicked twinkle of his eye generally improved any movie he showed up in.

Tim also gets a name drop from top Aussie hip hop group The Hilltop Hoods... always worth a spin.

And the thought of him helps Anna B. Savage finish... erm... what she's doing... in the song below...

Anna B. Savage - Chelsea Hotel #3

I was actually quite surprised how many times Tim's name crops up in song...

I am Tim Curry from "It" 

My heart is made out of shit

Shelf Life - Good Son

Went to see a movie

Face wasn't Tim Curry

I think I'm going to pop

I don't think I can stop

Ty Segall & White Fence - Tommy's Place

Living in a haunted home

Would be fine if I lived with a friend

It'd be no worry

If I lived with Tim Curry

But I don't, so this nightmare won't end

Let's Make A Music - Haunted Home

You may argue that some of those are even less illustrious than the lesser movies Tim appeared in... but immortality is immortality.

I've saved the best for last though. Not many of Tim's obits will mention his brief turn as a pop star, releasing three albums in the late 70s / early 80s. Coincidentally, I featured one of his best tracks on last week's Snapshots. But here's his biggest hit (#91 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1979)...