# "The Next Big Things" that weren't **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 2, 2010, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890 "2010-08-02T14:09:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**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:** [August 2, 2010, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/21 "2010-08-02T18:39:42Z")
Going back there was [Anna Sten](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Sten), who in the early 1930s was promoted heavily as the next Greta Garbo by Samuel Goldwyn. Since you’ve probably heard of Greta Garbo, but not Anna Sten, you can see how well that worked out. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2010, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/22 "2010-08-02T18:57:00Z")
I remember back in '79, '80 _The Knack_ being called “The Next Beatles”. Errr… no. Sorry 'bout that. ETA: Didn’t see **Bup’s** post, since I left this thread open in a window for about 4 hours. Sorry! ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2010, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/23 "2010-08-02T19:40:13Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > I remember back in '79, '80 _The Knack_ being called “The Next Beatles”. > > Errr… no. Sorry 'bout that. > > ETA: Didn’t see **Bup’s** post, since I left this thread open in a window for about 4 hours. Sorry! To be fair, The Knack deserve credit for having one huge hit (“My Sharona”) that delivered the mortal blow to disco. A lot of bands from the 70s through the mid 90s were dubbed “The Next Beatles” and they all pretty much flopped or saw their careers fizzle the second the title was bestowed on them. In fact, it seemed that if you wanted to curse an up-and-coming band and guarantee their failure, calling them “The Beatles” would most certainly do it. ---
**Author:** ![Rrose\_Selavy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bcef8e/32.png) [@Rrose\_Selavy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rrose_Selavy)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2010, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/24 "2010-08-02T19:59:55Z")
Well there was Klaatu - who were incorrectly much rumoured at the time to\*\*\* be\*\*\* the Beatles. Known mostly for one song covered ny the Carpenters of course. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2010, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/25 "2010-08-02T20:10:08Z")
> [@NDP](#): > > A lot of bands from the 70s through the mid 90s were dubbed “The Next Beatles” and they all pretty much flopped or saw their careers fizzle the second the title was bestowed on them. In fact, it seemed that if you wanted to curse an up-and-coming band and guarantee their failure, calling them “The Beatles” would most certainly do it. As an example, I recall [Fountains of Wayne](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fountains_of_wayne) being compared to the Beatles after “Stacy’s Mom” became their first (turns out, only) hit single in the U.S. ---
**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:** [August 2, 2010, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/26 "2010-08-02T20:26:29Z")
“The next Beatles” deserves a whole thread (if not an entire forum) by itself. My favorite was Badfinger. Julia Ormond was going to be the next Audrey Hepburn. Not that she hasn’t continued to work, but she’s no Audrey Hepburn. ---
**Author:** ![ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chockfullofheadygoodness/32/511_2.png) [@ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2010, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/27 "2010-08-02T20:30:22Z")
Electronica. Starting around 1994, you couldn’t pick up a music magazine, newspaper entertainment section, alt-weekly, or log into a Usenet newsgroup without being inundated with multipage articles insisting that rock was dead, hip-hop was played out, and a huge seismic shift in popular music was coming and it was going to be electronica. In 1995, we got the same sources insisting “Well, maybe we jumped the gun, but it’s big in Europe, and it’s going to take America by storm this year.” In 1996, it was “No really, this year for sure, just you wait and see” In 1997, Prodigy headlined Lalapalooza, and the Chemical Brothers got a Gap commercial. Meanwhile, there was a ska revival. In 1998, Moby scored a ton of commercials. Swing revival dominated the airwaves. Then teen pop took over and that was it for the mainstreaming of electronica in America. ---
**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:** [August 2, 2010, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/28 "2010-08-02T23:39:26Z")
The “Next Bob Dylan” title was given to several people, most notably Bruce Springsteen (who became a big thing), Loudon Wainwright III, John Prine (both of whom were successful, if not big stars), and [Eliott Murphy](http://greatbutforgotten.blogspot.com/2010/04/eliott-murphy-aquashow-music.html), who you’ve probably never heard of. And who can forget “[The Bosstown Sound](http://www.punkblowfish.com/BosstownSound.html)”? It was a vastly hyped musical genre that was supposed to have Boston replace San Francisco as the center of the rock worldplace. But whereas San Francisco has The Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Santana, Big Brother and the Holding Company, and Sly and the Family Stone, Boston countered with Orpheus, The Beacon Street Union, The Ultimate Spinach, Earth Opera, and Eden’s Children. Note which list of groups sounds more familiar. It was hype, and the groups had little in common other than originating in the Boston area. Some were good, some were not, but the hype made sure they would fade away. Now when people think of rock from Boston it’s either Boston or, perhaps, the J. Geils Band. ---
**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2010, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/29 "2010-08-02T23:45:27Z")
> [@ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](#): > > Electronica. > > Starting around 1994, you couldn’t pick up a music magazine, newspaper entertainment section, alt-weekly, or log into a Usenet newsgroup without being inundated with multipage articles insisting that rock was dead, hip-hop was played out, and a huge seismic shift in popular music was coming and it was going to be electronica. > In 1995, we got the same sources insisting “Well, maybe we jumped the gun, but it’s big in Europe, and it’s going to take America by storm this year.” > In 1996, it was “No really, this year for sure, just you wait and see” > In 1997, Prodigy headlined Lalapalooza, and the Chemical Brothers got a Gap commercial. Meanwhile, there was a ska revival. > In 1998, Moby scored a ton of commercials. Swing revival dominated the airwaves. > Then teen pop took over and that was it for the mainstreaming of electronica in America. Yep. MTV actually had a really bizarre and on-point bumper that they used to play of a woman washing a chicken (live chicken) by hand, standing in a laundry mat. She talked about how everyone thought electronica was going to be the next big thing. “Going to a Chemical Brothers show is as exciting as walking through a COMPUSA.” ---
**Author:** ![FordTaurusSHO94](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f07891/32.png) [@FordTaurusSHO94](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FordTaurusSHO94)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2010, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/30 "2010-08-03T00:08:27Z")
I’ll argue about Roxette, they had several singles that were played on the radio. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2010, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/31 "2010-08-03T00:29:49Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > > [@The New and Improved Superman](#): > > > > Mena Suvari, Thora Birch & Wes Bentley (all the kids from “American Beauty”) never did much after that movie. > > Not sure about the others, but the New York Times ran an article about Wes Bentley a few months ago, saying that his career had been sidelined when he got addicted to drugs. 😕 How would that sideline a Hollywood career? ---
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2010, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/32 "2010-08-03T00:38:41Z")
Is it just me or was Geovanni Ribisi supposed to be the next big “IT” star for a year or two there back in the early 2000’s, until finally dropping off the radar completely a few years ago? He was everywhere for a bit and then, nothing… ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2010, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/33 "2010-08-03T00:51:20Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > 😕 How would that sideline a Hollywood career? [Re: the actor Wes Bentley] From the [article](http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/08/theater/08bentley.html): > [@](#): > > He would spend nights doing cocaine at clubs and then sleep until 5 p.m. . . . He said he spent days in drug dens. At the same time, he said, he had “stacks of scripts, great scripts with great offers attached,” that he would never read because of his addiction. . . . From 2002 to 2009, Mr. Bentley said, he stopped caring about acting, and only did the occasional film for money to pay bills or buy drugs. ---
**Author:** ![cormac262](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f14d63/32.png) [@cormac262](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cormac262)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2010, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/34 "2010-08-03T00:59:41Z")
> [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](#): > > Is it just me or was Geovanni Ribisi supposed to be the next big “IT” star for a year or two there back in the early 2000’s, until finally dropping off the radar completely a few years ago? > > He was everywhere for a bit and then, nothing… He was just in a little movie called… “Avatar” ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2010, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/35 "2010-08-03T01:07:40Z")
> [@Rrose\_Selavy](#): > > Well there was Klaatu - who were incorrectly much rumoured at the time to\*\*\* be\*\*\* the Beatles. > Known mostly for one song covered ny the Carpenters of course. Gack! I came here knowing I’d be first to mention Klaatu. I should have known you can never count on firsts in th SDMB! ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2010, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/36 "2010-08-03T01:16:56Z")
> [@gallows\_fodder](#): > > > [@RealityChuck](#): > > > > Hollywood history is filled with hyped stars and starlets that never did anything to warrant it. > > Like Gretchen Mol. As her wikipedia entry puts it: > > > [@](#): > > > > In 1998, she appeared in several notable films including Rounders, starring Matt Damon and Woody Allen’s Celebrity opposite Leonardo DiCaprio. It was in 1998 that she also came to prominence and notoriety when she was featured on the cover of Vanity Fair magazine. Her appearance was both a triumph and a failure — it brought her great attention, but her movies bombed. Dubbed the “It Girl of the Nineties” by the magazine, her career did not live up to the hype - her early success was not sustained and she faced several lean years before a notable comeback with The Notorious Bettie Page in 2006. > > She’s been in a few more things since then, like the US _Life on Mars_, but she never has been “the next big thing” as promised. Gretchen Mol, exactly who I thought of. She appeared on the cover of Vanity Fair along with her erect nipples. Did that help, or hurt? ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2010, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/37 "2010-08-03T01:20:15Z")
Among mystery fans, apparently Raymond Chandler is the Holy Grail, and every couple of years someone comes along who is “the next Raymond Chandler” or “What Raymond Chandler was to the 50s, \_\_\_\_ is to the \_\_\_\_\_s.” And then the writer in question goes along a different path. A few years later, you can’t even remember their names. (Well, I can’t; that actually may not mean much.) ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2010, 6:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/38 "2010-08-03T06:30:31Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > Gretchen Mol, exactly who I thought of. She appeared on the cover of Vanity Fair along with her erect nipples. Did that help, or hurt? It certainly ensured that I’ll never forget the name Gretchen Mol. ---
**Author:** ![Promethea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Promethea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Promethea)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2010, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/39 "2010-08-03T07:32:02Z")
The NME always used to be terrible for promising untold fame and fortune for tiny indie bands who never actually got anywhere. Sad, really. Personal favourite of this: Hipsway. Band from the mid '80s who made the cover of the paper on the basis of one top 20 hit. “HIPSWAY: BORN TO BE KINGS!”, the cover proudly and confidently declared. As Stuart Maconie was later to wrly comment during the NME 40th anniversary issue, “HIPSWAY: BORN TO HAVE 2 TOP 60 SMASHES AND THEN DIE LIKE DOGS” would, in hindsight, have made a more accurate headline. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2010, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890/40 "2010-08-03T07:46:53Z")
Pretty much any artist that wins Best Newcomer Grammy. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-next-big-things-that-werent/548890.md?page=3)