The ageless teen angst of That '70s Show
When Mark Brazill was a teenager growing up in Buffalo, NY he would surreptitiously visit Canada with regularity.
"We snuck across the border," he remembers. "It wasn't easier for us to get beer in Canada, but there was better beer.
It had a higher alchohol content, and it just tasted better. We'd drive over all the time for beer."
Brazill, co-creator of That '70s Show, bases many of the episodes on his own life experiences - he was propositioned by a gay pal as a teen , as his broadcast counterpart, Eric Forman (Topher Grace), was this past year (Brazill says, "I thought, 'Oh so that's why he bought me a camera!"). So it's not a stretch to imagine that a border beer-run could turn up someday in some future episode of the series, which returns this week for a five episode summer run, capping off a successful debut season.
That '70s Show focuses on a disparate group of Wisconsin pals slogging through their bell-bottomed, smiley-faced high school days. Besides Eric, there's his sometime girlfriend, Donna (Laura Prepon); his exciteable hipster buddy, Hyde (Danny Masterson), the foriegn-exchange student of estoeric origin, Fez (Wilmer Valderrama), none-too-clever Kelso (Ashton Kutcher) and his spoiled girlfriend, Jackie (Mila Kunis).
Grace, who had no professional acting experience prior to getting his Forman's job, says that all appearances notwithstanding, the show isn't really about the era of mood rings, video Pong and Trick Dick.
"Most of the stuff I play is with Donna, Hyde or Kelso, which is just very relationship-based," Grace points out. "I wind up doing a lot of timeless stuff. What [gives] it a '70s thing is that today there's always something to do - play video games, watch TV or get on the Internet. What's great about these kids is they have absolutely nothing to do [in suburban Wisconsin], and that's what creates such a strong bond between them. The gimmick is that it has to do with the '70s, and the truth is that it has a lot to do with timeless emotions."
Masterson, whose character figures significantly in the five summer episodes, agrees : "We've got different music and outfits and we talk about differnet political figures; other than that
it's just the same old crap it's always been. [The period] is a really good way to stay in character - I put on that outfit and I can just go out and do my thing."
Adds Valderrama : "It has a great combination of characters,
each has something interesting to get a hold on. Each has a distinct juice, and put together, they make a very delicious cocktail. I love to see such a variety of characters getting along."
The series got off on an awkward, unintentionaly controversial foot - critics complained about a veiled but joky marijuana scene in the premiere episode and overlooked the series stregnth and sweetness.
"That hurt us," Brazill admits. "We should have waited a few episodes. It took away from what we were trying to accomplish - if people had spent more time discussing the cast and characters, it would've been better ultimately for the show."
Indeed, there's more to the show than gaudy production design and wacky stunt casting ('70s icons Eve Plumb, Danny Bonaduce, Marion Ross and Gloria Gaynor have made appearances). It has actually
tackled a number of teen issues in a thoughtful fashion in its first season. Episodes have involved a number of teen issues
in a thoughtful fashion in its first season. Episodes have involved a gay friend coming out - in Brazills' experience, "Nobody really cared, we just knew he was gay - we were hippies, so we were always cool with things" - as well as sexism, earning a belated respect for one's parents, and safe sex (circa 1976).
Brazill rates that last episode, in which Donna experiences al of the hassles and none of the perks of "the pill," as his favorite, as well as the one most admired by the show's writing staff. "We had to fight for it- people said that it was irresponsible - the mother let her daughter be on the pill," he recalls. "But it was interesting as far as capturing what happened at the time, the burgeoning awareness of the sexual revolution."
And Brazill gives his cast top marks as they've grown into industry power players over the past year. "They've been astonishing to us," he says. "Bonnie [Turner, a fellow executive producer] used to joke that working with young actors was just like herding cats. We thought 'Geez, if they just show up on time.' They're [except for Masterson] not showbiz kids. We didn't want anyone doing the hacky, wisecracking TV-kid bit. But it was hard work. When a take would go wrong, they would immediatly blame themselves. They didn't understand how things worked, but they've learned everything in a season."
For example : "Topher didn't quite understand at first that being dead-pan and put-upon, like Bob Newhart or Ben Stiller, gets laughs. Now he earns them in a way that's really refreshing. When he's embarrassed, in a horrible situation, that's when he's brilliant."
Even more impressive, when you consider learning curves, are Mila Kunis and Wilmer Valderrama, who grew up in Russia and Venezuela, respectively. Kunis has completely shed her accent, and Valderrama has used his cleverly, tweaking it just enough so that the other characters have no idea where Fez hails from.
More daunting, they've taken on tough jobs while still in high school - we caught up with them on a day after they both had test.
Valderrama, who received tickets on the 50-yard-line to the super bowl - next to Cameron Diaz and Simpsons creator Matt Groening, no less - as a birthday present from his network, says that Fez's halting education in American culture mirrors his own.
"I was that kid, you have no idea," he says. "My first American friends remind me of saying things I really shouldn't have said, but I had no idea. It's awesome to bring something of myself into the show - I made comments similar to what I do on the show. Now, I look back and think, 'Omigod, what did I do?' My friends are in shock and proud that I've overcomethe language impediment.
Valderrama thinks that besides being a god running joke, Fez's fuzzy background underscores a positive point. "They don't care what race he is," he observes. "He's the only brown kid, and he's able to get along with them and become a big part of the gang."
Kunis, who jokes that her research into '70s consists of watching reruns of old sitcoms, says she's adapted to playing a less-than-popular beauty.
"I enjoy my character," she declares, "She's sassy, she's fun to play, bossy and obnoxious - who would not like to be like that? I don't get to be like that in real life. I would like not to be so pesty, but I don't think she'll ever be sweet. I get fan mail - 'Stop treating Kelso so mean, he's nice.'"
Besides receiving relationship advice for a fictional character from factual viewers, Kunis adds that she's been amused to find further evidence of fan obsessions with the show on her surfing excursions on the Net.
"I've found a Kelso worship page and one called 'The Jackie Experience'," she says, adding archly, "if I knew how to do it, I'd make a webpage myself, called 'Leave me alone - I'm just a normal human being!' Even worse, I took an online test about the show, thinking I'd know everything - but I failed. That's not right! I protest!"
She better start boning up on the show - Brazill has plenty of ideas for future episodes. He has a wealth of life experiences to draw from, evenbefore the inevitable title revision to That '80s Show (coming circa 2002; admits Brazill, "Ill be glad to change the name").
We've just touched the tip of the iceberg," he says. "I worked in a dog-food factory, sold cars. My friends had interesting lives, too. We'll easily be able to create more shows."