It’s believed that JCS is the musical that has been recorded in the most different languages.
In one of the worst liner notes ever, the 20th anniversary recording of JCS states (paraphrased) It is said that Paul Nichols (who starred as Jesus in the first London production) was the first Jesus. Wrong. Jesus was the first Jesus. Nichols was the second Jesus.
I’ve told you about the time my boy was fascinated with JCS, right? He came to a couple of rehearsals when I was doing it in college (nothing exciting, just Mary’s Chorus Woman #3, but I had a fun pole dance during the temple scene, too) and listened to the record all the time.
Which wasn’t a problem, until we were in the middle of a store and he started pointing at people and screeching at the top of his little 4 year old lungs: “CRUCIFY HIM! CRUCIFY HIM! CRUCIFY CRUCIFY CRUCIFY!!! CRUCIFY HIM!”
A gigantic hole failed to open in the floor and swallow me whole.
There’s a particularly sleazy televangelist named Jeff Fenholtwho played Jesus in the original Broadway run. According to wiki, Ted Neeley was his understudy. Fenholt also bills himself as former lead singer for Black Sabbath, a claim that is not without truth has several asterisks by it.
Fenholt (pic) is a pathological liar who’s told about 5 different stories about how he was saved just in the few times I’ve watched him (out of morbid fascination). He said that one time while he was tripping on acid during the run of JCS Christ actually appeared to him during the crucifixion scene. (You’re on a powerful hallucinogen dressed like Jesus hanging on a cross- how odd you’d have a religious hallucination.)
I heard the 1970 album first as a little Miss Boods because my sister (15 years older than I) bought it when it came out – and my mother promptly went to the local priest in tears believing that it was blasphemous and that my sister was headed for hell. The slightly amused priest apparently agreed to bless the record for her.
Anyway, one of the main reasons I like the film is for Barry Dennen, who is on both the 1970 album and then appears in the film. I think he is fantastic as Pilate. He’s got such wonderful and nuanced expression and crunchy enuciation, and actually makes Pilate a sympathetic character, a man way out of his depth. There’s a quick moment in his first meeting with Jesus, at the end of the song, where his expression switches rapidly from sarcasm to sudden recognition (a call back to his dream) to absolute horror as he turns away.
It sounds a bit odd to say ‘Pilate’s my favorite character!’ I suppose, but he’s a knockout.
Another movie trivia note: Philip Toubus, who played Peter in the 1973 film went on to become a well-known porn actor under the name Paul Thomas.
Hard to believe he chose that name when “Peter the Rock” was so obvious.
I wonder if he could be talked into directing a porn version of JCS.
He could call it Jesus Christ Super Stud!
Is that the one where Mary gets nailed in the end?
>>>rimshot<<<
I’d like to thank the folks who brought up the JCS 2000 production - Just saw it, and it was wonderful!
Ditto. AFAI concerned, Dennen is star of the 1970 album & the 1973 movie.
Ten years from now, the 1970 album & 73 movie will still be discussed. The 2000 video/DVD will be a footnote.
I’ll second this.
I saw Trading Places for the first time last night; in the final few seconds of the movie Dennen appears in a bit part in which his talents are utterly wasted. I wouldn’t have recognized him but for this thread having primed me…
One of the only things I ever saw Dennen in was one of the lamer sketches in The Kentucky Fried Movie.. He played some kind of French adventurer, who was the guest on a TV talk show where the boom microphone had a mind of its own.
