# Showbiz Comebacks **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 13, 2009, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154 "2009-01-13T21:48:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/1 "2009-01-13T21:48:40Z")
Mickey Rourke’s Golden Globe-winning performance in _The Wrestler_ is being hailed as one of the great comeback performances of all time. This has gotten me thinking about comebacks, specifically those of an equal magnitude, if any. Rourke has been [working steadily](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000620/), albeit in fairly crappy movies, for the last decade or more. John Travolta’s _Pulp Fiction_ performance is often cited as a comeback. He’d been doing a downward spiral of [_Look Who’s Talking_ sequels](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000237/) when it came along. Fred Astaire’s performance in [_The Band Wagon_](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000001/#actor) portrayed someone making a comeback, which was supposed to have some resonance with his actual situation, but I’d argue that though his late-'50s movies were better than his early-'50s movies, he hadn’t exactly been completely out of sight after leaving RKO. What are the great showbiz comebacks? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/2 "2009-01-14T14:26:26Z")
Moving this to Cafe Society. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/3 "2009-01-14T15:50:45Z")
Probably the classic of all time is Frank Sinatra in _From Here to Eternity_. Mickey Rooney had pretty much been relegated to occasional TV appearances and kitschy cameo roles until he made _The Black Stallion_. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/4 "2009-01-14T16:21:49Z")
The best example I can think of is **Neil Patrick Harris.** Forever sentenced to a life of being called “Doogie” while taking parts in TV guest spots and B-movies before coming back as Barney in “How I Met Your Mother”. I would have to guess that his hilarious cameo as a bizarro version of himself in _Harold & Kumar_ started the comeback rolling. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/5 "2009-01-14T17:00:34Z")
I thought _Sin City I_ got Rourke back out of the ghetto. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/6 "2009-01-14T17:02:08Z")
You might consider “George Burns,” in his Oscar winning role in the “Sunshine Boys,” which started a second career for him and finally allowed him to get out of the shadow of Gracie Allen. Of course you could also make the argument, George Burns never had arrived in the first place TILL the “Sunshine Boys.” That’s the problem with the therm “Comeback,” you have to figure out those people who were never really there in the first place. Like Neil Patrick Harris, he was the star of a minor hit show. And he now is in another minor hit show. It may be a comeback on some level, but Neither of his shows hit the top ten (the mark of a bonefide hit) and he’s still much better known as Dougie Howser or that “gay guy,” then he is for his role as “Barney.” ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/7 "2009-01-14T17:29:42Z")
> [@Markxxx](#): > > Of course you could also make the argument, George Burns never had arrived in the first place TILL the “Sunshine Boys.” Not really. He had a prime time hit TV show in the 50s. Let’s consider: **Gloria Swanson** – Major silent and early film star, she only made one filme from 1934 to 1950 and was pretty much forgotten until **Sunset Boulevard** made her a film icon. Similarly, **Buster Keaton** was considered so washed up that he appeared in **Sunset Boulevard** as one of Norma Desmond’s bridge partners. However, he was rediscovered at around this time and had a relatively successful second career. \*\*Harve Presnell \*\*-- Lead actor in **The Unsinkable Molly Brown**. The movie flopped, and his career petered out. He went from 1976 to 1996 with only one IMDB credit, but made a second career as a character actor starting with **Fargo** , including a recurring part in **The Pretender**. **Gloria Stuart** – successful starlet of the 30s and 40s, dropped out of acting for almost 30 years, and made a big splash in **Titanic**. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/8 "2009-01-14T18:12:15Z")
Does **William Shatner** on _Boston Legal_ count? Or actually, [Priceline.com](http://Priceline.com) commercials? (which was first?) He was always “around” and “known” since _Star Trek_ but he wasn’t really a major part of the public consciousness again until he started his Priceline gig. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/9 "2009-01-14T18:43:49Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > Does **William Shatner** on _Boston Legal_ count? Or actually, [Priceline.com](http://Priceline.com) commercials? (which was first?) > > He was always “around” and “known” since _Star Trek_ but he wasn’t really a major part of the public consciousness again until he started his Priceline gig. I would tend to disagree about Shatner. He starred in two other series, T. J. Hooker, and Rescue 911, which while not hits,were both long-running. T. J. Hooker ran for five seasons and Rescue 911 for seven seasons, so Shatner appeared on TV screens weekly for more than a decade. Don’t forget the seven Star Trek films he starred in, directing one of them (Star Trek V: The Final Frontier). So he was never really in the background since his “Star Trek” days, he’s regularly been in the prime time lineup. I would nominate Meat Loaf. His smash 1977 debut album _Bat Out of Hell_ was followed up by a string of largely ignored albums. In 1993, Meat Loaf recorded _Bat Out of Hell II: Back Into Hell_, which sold 14 million copies and was #1 in the US, Australia, and the UK, and jump-started his career all over again. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/10 "2009-01-14T19:35:53Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > So he was never really in the background since his “Star Trek” days, he’s regularly been in the prime time lineup. Between Star Trek: Generations in 1994 and Boston Legal, I’d say he was mostly thought of as a self-parody ham actor. I know he won an Emmy during that period, but he had more of a reputation than a career. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/11 "2009-01-14T19:40:59Z")
> [@HelloNinja](#): > > The best example I can think of is **Neil Patrick Harris.** > > Forever sentenced to a life of being called “Doogie” while taking parts in TV guest spots and B-movies before coming back as Barney in “How I Met Your Mother”. I would have to guess that his hilarious cameo as a bizarro version of himself in _Harold & Kumar_ started the comeback rolling. I’m given to understand that his Broadway career has actually been pretty substantial. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/12 "2009-01-14T19:58:13Z")
Tina Turner. She rose to quite respectable heights with Ike, then divorced him and started over basically nothing. It took a number of years before she regained and then far surpassed her prior fame. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/13 "2009-01-14T20:35:40Z")
Leslie Nielsen went from forgotten Western actor to comic icon thanks to _Airplane_. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/14 "2009-01-14T20:51:55Z")
> [@Antinor01](#): > > Tina Turner. She rose to quite respectable heights with Ike, then divorced him and started over basically nothing. It took a number of years before she regained and then far surpassed her prior fame. Excellent one. She didn’t really become an icon until 1984, when she blew us all away with the _Private Dancer_ album. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/15 "2009-01-14T21:51:47Z")
**Robert Downey Jr.** He practically rendered himself unemployable through substance abuse. Now he’s at the top again. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/16 "2009-01-14T22:03:34Z")
> [@HelloNinja](#): > > The best example I can think of is **Neil Patrick Harris.** > > Forever sentenced to a life of being called “Doogie” while taking parts in TV guest spots and B-movies before coming back as Barney in “How I Met Your Mother”. I would have to guess that his hilarious cameo as a bizarro version of himself in _Harold & Kumar_ started the comeback rolling. He said in an interview (“Fresh Air”) that the _H&K_ bit led directly to Barney. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/17 "2009-01-15T13:46:11Z")
Cher–After splitting with Sonny, she played Vegas until scoring huge in movies. Will Smith–Fresh Prince, then nothing until he scored huge in movies. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/18 "2009-01-15T14:39:06Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Will Smith–Fresh Prince, then nothing until he scored huge in movies. Gotta disagree – he started making movies while on TV, and _Independence Day_ came out the same year that _Fresh Prince_ ended. [link](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000226/). ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-comebacks/481154/19 "2009-01-15T15:34:00Z")
In 1981 [James Cagney](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Cagney) came out of retirement to play the police commissioner in [_Ragtime,_](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ragtime_(film)) his first onscreen role since 1961. Don’t know if that counts as a “comeback,” as it was also his **last** film role and he died five years later.