GOOD VIBRATIONS promo video ex-ci-ta-tions

[guitarfool2002]

I've spent a lot of time around Marilyn and Diane, but zip, zero, none around Barbara...so I can't say for sure. But it was Carole Wilson who orig. told me that was Barbara in the GV footage and I assumed she knew her sister-in-law. Guitarfool's A vs. B photo evidence actually looks to increase the possibility that its Barbara IMO. Look at the arm shape, hip shape, short legs, long torso, and yes, face shape. Yes, a different haircut for sure...but chicks change their hair, dates of filming could be slightly off etc... You really think those photos eliminate Barbara as the potential basketball girl? I don't. However, as I said I am no Barbara expert, it could be someone else, but no doubt the BBall girl certainly has a Rovell-esque body type. But it could be Derek Taylor's masseuse, Van Dyke's cousin, Jon Parks' sister, or Steve Korthoff's maid. Let's confirm while we have the energy...I'll do what I can.

I'm trying to get more on all of this, but what is holding me back a bit is the lack of those really high-quality photos to work from. The hairstyle is still the main point for me, plus the facial features to a lesser degree, and if we assume the dates are correct, I don't think Barbara would have cut her hair that differently in the span of 24 hours. But again, it's safe to assume to a degree but it's risky to carry an assumption all the way to become a fact.

I do think we can narrow the GV filming to at least the same week(s) in Fall '66 based on all the sources, if not the exact date of each scene of the film. The airport photo date is a definite.

It might be best to either contact Diane, Marilyn, or Barbara to confirm, if any of that is possible.

[Mikie]

Any discussion where we can get more information on this era is good, and for me any time the topic of the Good Vibrations video comes up, I enjoy talking about it very much. It's one of my favorite pieces of film in all of rock-pop history! I don't understand the hurting for good thread topics comment, because this to me is a *great* topic. Any time we can look at photos from the 66-67 time period, we're far from hurting for good topics.

And that's fine. I'm with ya. I like this era too - it's just the almost banal obsessiveness of some things, that's all.

I'm hoping to hell we can dig deep one of these days into the Sunflower era. The sessions especially. Who played on what, who was doing who, that kinda thing. And even moreso with the Carl & The Passiosns era. I hope Craig Slowinski makes it his next project! C-man, are you listening?  

Sorry, back to who the basketball girl is. Important stuff.

[Ian]

Should note that Keith Badman stated in his book that the film was directed by Brian and shot on Oct 23, 1966.  However that date is not possible. The BBs flew to Europe from NY (they were already in Paris on October 24-a day before the Paris show) Hence-the BBs never returned to the West Coast after the Michigan shows (this makes perfect sense-since otherwise why would Brian fly back alone).  So-since they played a show at Lansing on Oct 21 (badman misdated that show to Dec 66) and Ann Arbor on Oct 22-the absolute latest they could have filmed it was Oct 20 1966-but since they probably had lots to do before leaving town for over a month-I'd argue for sometime between Oct 14 and 19 1966.

[Margarita]

See, this is what happens when you're a chick reading a board with mostly male posters...

Basketball girl has a flip hairdo.
Barbara has straight hair in the airport photo.
Flip hairdos exist thanks to really big rollers and lots of hairspray.  They only hold for a day and have to always be re-done.  It's a lot of work. 
The airport photo was done late in the evening...Barbara may not have done her hair that day, or the flip had already gotten tired and was brushed out by then.

I can't believe I'm spending time on this.  But it's better than obsessing about a milisecond of sound before the new "Heroes and Villains" track, I guess.

Now for my question...who is the guy in the denim shirt with the sunglasses and camera in the hillside scenes?

[Ian]

Just to save time on explaining this-Disc & Music Echo (Nov 5, 1966) is the source for them flying into Paris from NY.  And I have two articles about there time in Paris that explain that they arrived early in the morning on Oct 24 1966 and spent that day sightseeing.  Murry was with them (bizarrely) and he ended up entertaining the press when the BBs skipped a press conference).

[hypehat]

See, this is what happens when you're a chick reading a board with mostly male posters...

Basketball girl has a flip hairdo.
Barbara has straight hair in the airport photo.
Flip hairdos exist thanks to really big rollers and lots of hairspray.  They only hold for a day and have to always be re-done.  It's a lot of work. 
The airport photo was done late in the evening...Barbara may not have done her hair that day, or the flip had already gotten tired and was brushed out by then.

I can't believe I'm spending time on this.  But it's better than obsessing about a milisecond of sound before the new "Heroes and Villains" track, I guess.

Now for my question...who is the guy in the denim shirt with the sunglasses and camera in the hillside scenes?

I was wondering about that....

[Andrew G. Doe]

October 1966:

18 - Smile session: Do You Like Worms ?/'Bicycle Rider'
18 - Smile session: 'Brian's Smile party' [Columbia]
20 - Smile session: Heroes And Villains/'Barnyard'
21 - Michigan State University, Lansing MI*
22 - University of Michigan, Ann Arbor MI* [2 shows]
23 - "Good Vibrations" promo film shot in LA (allegedly)
2nd European Tour
25 - Olympia Theatre, Paris, France [w/The Coco Briavel Quartet, Michael Polnareff and Graham Bonney]
26 - Tilt Magazine TFI-1 TV show, Paris
26 - Grande Polka TV show* [broadcast 29th]

[Ian]

Andrew-I have been meaning to update that-but check my above post to see why that date is wrong

[guitarfool2002]

The part in Barbara's hair is in a different place than the girl in the GV promo. I'm no hairstylist or expert but they're two different people, unless a hairline can be changed that way...


And to put it rather bluntly, if this topic isn't of interest than don't fucking read it. Better than knocking it or being sarcastic. My two cents. I'm interested to find out who the people in the video are.

"Insider" info courtesy of an old-school Smile historian whom I asked about that: He thought that guy with the camera in the film could be Bob Gordan (or Bob Gordon, however it's spelled). He's heard on outtakes, experimental reels, the chanting tapes, and even has a piece of tape in the vaults named after him, all from the Smile era and this specific period of time. And he was a photographer who can be heard filming in the studio during a Good Vibrations session where Brian tells him to not film because his camera was making too much noise.

If it's not Bob Gordan in that film, that's another topic to take up.

[send me a picture and i'll tell you]

It's Maureen Wilson. 

Dribbling the basketball...
on the hillside with glasses...
she's everywhere.

[Andrew G. Doe]

The part in Barbara's hair is in a different place than the girl in the GV promo. I'm no hairstylist or expert but they're two different people, unless a hairline can be changed that way...

Yeah - you just comb the hair to the left instead of the right. Even I can do that.  

[monicker]

See, this is what happens when you're a chick reading a board with mostly male posters...

Basketball girl has a flip hairdo.
Barbara has straight hair in the airport photo.
Flip hairdos exist thanks to really big rollers and lots of hairspray.  They only hold for a day and have to always be re-done.  It's a lot of work.  
The airport photo was done late in the evening...Barbara may not have done her hair that day, or the flip had already gotten tired and was brushed out by then.

I can't believe I'm spending time on this.  But it's better than obsessing about a milisecond of sound before the new "Heroes and Villains" track, I guess.

Now for my question...who is the guy in the denim shirt with the sunglasses and camera in the hillside scenes?

I was going to say something earlier about how bad most men are identifying stuff like this and with detecting similarities in different women. Truly awful. For the record, my reason for thinking that it's not Barbara has nothing to do with the different hair style. It's the face, the features. As i said before, eyes, eyebrows (very distinct feature of the Rovell sisters), nose, cheekbones, mouth, jawline, etc. To me the girl dribbling the ball looks nothing at all like a Rovell, who all have a very distinct look. When you have long hair (and obviously especially when you're a woman, in the 1960s no less) you can do a million different things with it to make it look different. And if a woman cuts her hair (a CUT not a trim) and cuts a good amount, well then, guess what, yes, it's going to look very different and be a very different length 24 hours later.

EDIT: One more thing regarding hair. Even though it's obviously possible to go against one's natural hair part and part the other way, or down the middle instead of a side, not many people do that or do it often. The different part may be more of a clue that it's someone else, but i don't even think you need that. Just look at the two faces.

[Mikie]

Wonder how they got to ride on the back of the fire truck. And complete with fireman's coats and hats. You'd be very hard pressed to get a fire station to allow non-firefighters to ride on the back of a fire truck these days. Even celebrities/Rock stars! Same with allowing people into the sleeping quarters. Wonder if they had contacts to the station personnel or just asked if they could do it for a promo film. And where was this neighborhood?

[guitarfool2002]

Here's the guy who may or may not be the mysterious Bob Gordan.

[guitarfool2002]

And where was this neighborhood?

This was the fire station which covered Hollywood and the Sunset Strip area. In the film the firetruck turns right out of the station onto Cole, and the station itself is still at 1355 N. Cahuenga. For the record, Wally Heider had his studio at 1604 N. Cahuenga, and all of this is located within a few miles of the Sunset Strip.

[monicker]

That guy has always looked so familiar to me. Like i knew him in a past life or something.

[guitarfool2002]

The part in Barbara's hair is in a different place than the girl in the GV promo. I'm no hairstylist or expert but they're two different people, unless a hairline can be changed that way...

Yeah - you just comb the hair to the left instead of the right. Even I can do that.  

It could be Barbara Rovell-Gaddy, for all we know! I'm just going on my first impressions that it doesn't look like the same girl in both photos.

[Andrew G. Doe]

Here's the guy who may or may not be the mysterious Bob Gordan.

Looks a lot like Jules Siegel to me.

[Andrew G. Doe]

And where was this neighborhood?

This was the fire station which covered Hollywood and the Sunset Strip area. In the film the firetruck turns right out of the station onto Cole, and the station itself is still at 1355 N. Cahuenga. For the record, Wally Heider had his studio at 1604 N. Cahuenga, and all of this is located within a few miles of the Sunset Strip.

The actual building is now the Hollywood museum of the Los Angeles Fire Department Historical Society.

[Ian]

It's a pretty amateurish video-but then again the Beatles video for Strawberry Fields and Penny Lane-filmed only a few months later-are just as amateurish. I don't think anyone was losing any sleep over making these things.  I like the I Can Hear Music one because it captures them in the studio (though actually recording Time To Get Alone) which is neat.  Everyone was doing these-ever seen the Who video for Happy Jack-where they are burglars? Stones did one for We Love You and Child of the Moon.  Best Stones was is Jumpin' Jack Flash-really the best realization of the Stones on video ever.

[Mikie]

This was the fire station which covered Hollywood and the Sunset Strip area. In the film the firetruck turns right out of the station onto Cole, and the station itself is still at 1355 N. Cahuenga. For the record, Wally Heider had his studio at 1604 N. Cahuenga, and all of this is located within a few miles of the Sunset Strip.

So the fire station and Wally Heider's studio was just a couple of streets over from Capitol Records and one street over from the Beach Boys' old business offices on N. Ivar.

[guitarfool2002]

This was the fire station which covered Hollywood and the Sunset Strip area. In the film the firetruck turns right out of the station onto Cole, and the station itself is still at 1355 N. Cahuenga. For the record, Wally Heider had his studio at 1604 N. Cahuenga, and all of this is located within a few miles of the Sunset Strip.

So the fire station and Wally Heider's studio was just a couple of streets over from Capitol Records and one street over from the Beach Boys' old business offices on N. Ivar.

Yes! Do you recognize any other landmarks or streets in the film, Mikie? It's all within a few mile radius...and here's an interesting shot: Isn't that the Capitol building in the background, in this shot where Brian and Vosse are getting sprayed?

[guitarfool2002]

Here's the guy who may or may not be the mysterious Bob Gordan.

Looks a lot like Jules Siegel to me.

Honestly I thought the same thing the more I looked at the film. This extreme closeup...it could be Jules after all.

[Andrew G. Doe]

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=1355%20N.%20Cahuenga&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wl

A is the fire house - the Tower is just to the left of the 101 badge top center.

Oops, need to drag it a bit.

[Andrew G. Doe]

Here's the guy who may or may not be the mysterious Bob Gordan.

Looks a lot like Jules Siegel to me.

Honestly I thought the same thing the more I looked at the film. This extreme closeup...it could be Jules after all.

It is - earlobes (as in 'lack of') are identical. Compare with airport shots.