Pop Culture Retrospective Episode #12 - Troop Beverly Hills - An 80s Movie & Cult Classic Flashback

Episode # 12 - Troop Beverly Hills

INTRO:

Let’s take a trip back to the year 1989.  The average cost of a new house was 120k, a gallon of gas was less than $1 and a postage stamp was 47 cents.  George H W Bush was sworn in as 41st President of the United States. Ron Brown was elected to the Chairman of the Democratic National Committee, he was the first African American to lead a major political party in the United States.  The first Reebok pumps were released.  The infamous Christmas commercial for Hershey Kisses started.  It’s the  one with silver, green and red kisses which ring individually to the tune of ‘We Wish You a Merry Christmas.’ It has run every year since then.  And finally, several well-known films were released:  Driving Miss Daisy, Indiana Jones & the Last Crusade, Dead Poets Society and Troop Beverly Hills.  

My sister and I absolutely LOVED Troop Beverly Hills and we somehow ended up with a copy of it on VHS which was probably dubbed from a video rental store’s copy.  Shhh, don’t tell anyone! We would stay up late together and watch it all of the time while growing up.  My sister used to send me a lot of letters where she would draw funny pictures and clip out silly advertisements from magazines.  One time she put together a fake newsletter called “Sisters Times” where she wrote a few different articles about different inside jokes between the two of us.  One of the articles had the headline:  “Troop Beverly Hills:  Available on DVD After All.”  She wrote:  Proving once again that the west coast is superior to the east coast (my sister lived in California for a number of years and I have lived in New England for 15 years) older sister, Becky, was able to find Troop Beverly Hills for sale at a local Target location.  “Not only does Southern California clearly have better weather and beaches, but it also appears that our DVD selection is superior to that of the Old Port” the older sister has said.  “Then again, I suppose there are some people that enjoy digging their car out of the snow.”  end quote.  This newsletter has to be at least 10 years old, probably older. I have a whole file of old letters and cards she has written me over the years.  It’s a good reminder about how hilarious and creative she was and also an indication of just how much we loved this cult classic movie.  

With all that being said, today we will be discussing the tremendous 80’s comedy film that is Troop Beverly Hills.  

We will not only discuss the plot of the movie, but also fun facts, behind the scenes details and why Shelley Long, the star of the movie is so incredibly underrated! 

So grab your opera length cigarette holder, start up your Roll’s Royce and grab your Wilderness Girls Cookies, here we go!

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Hello and thank you so very much for tuning in to the Pop Culture Retrospective Podcast, a show inspired by, and in memory of, my big sister Rebecca and her love for all things pop-culture, especially the people, places and things of the 80s, 90s and early 00s.  My name is Amy Lewis and I am your captain aboard this pop culture time machine.  You are tuning in to Episode #12, Troop Beverly Hills, a beloved comedy film from 1989.  

The film was released on March 24, 1989 and runs for 103 minutes.  It has to be one of the most quotable movies to date for those who love it as much as me and my sister do and did.  The film tells the story of a wealthy socialite named Phyllis Nefler, played by Shelley Long (who you may remember from Cheers), who is recently separated from her husband, Fred Nefler, played by Craig T. Nelson (who you may remember from Coach).  Phyllis and Fred have an adolescent daughter named Hannah played by Jenny Lewis (who starred in Wizard, which I briefly touched on in episode #5).  The film also stars other well known names including:  Kellie Martin (who you may remember from Life Goes On, ER or the infamous Rainbow Brite commercials), Tori Spelling (from 90210), Shelly Morrison (who starred as Rosario in Will & Grace) and a few brief cameos by:  Kareem Abdul Jabar, Dr. Joyce Brothers, Robin Leech, and Cheech Martin among many other talented actors and actresses.

A synopsis of the film (spoilers alert), I will give a bit of an overview and highlight some funny moments.  I am purposefully leaving out a lot of details, so please check out the movie if you can, it will be worth it!:  Hannah is a part of a girl-scout like group called the Wilderness Girls.  The group is without a leader (apparently the leaders keep quitting) and since Phyllis is at a bit of a crossroads in her life, she decides to take on the responsibility of leading Troop Beverly Hills.  Chaos and hilarity ensues! Troop Beverly Hills is mostly made up of wealthy girls from the city, including the daughter of a famous boxer, a daughter of a film director, and the daughter of a dictator to name just a few.  

When we are first introduced to her in the film, she is driving down rodeo drive in a Rolls Royce and shopping, including the purchase of a 5k bedazzled dress.  Phyllis Nefler’s character is certainly out of her elitist element and comfort zone when she becomes the troop leader.  For example, she does not care for the uniform she is required to wear.  She puts it on and shows it to the girls in the troop and they all sort of say- “it’s not that bad” and Phyllis responds with:  “Not that bad?  Except the color’s wrong, the collar’s wrong, the material is a nightmare, it’s cut badly, it itches and it’s not me, but all of that can be fixed!” So, in an early scene, she takes it to her fashion designer friend.  She asks- “what can you do with this?” and he says, “you mean, besides burn it?”  He then proceeds to grab the hanger with a silk handkerchief, indicating it’s so despicable that he doesn’t even want to touch it.  It’s a fabulous scene.  

We soon more formally meet Phyllis’ future nemesis, Velda Plendor who is the troop leader for the Culver City Red Feathers.  She also has somewhat of a leadership role with the WG organization.  When she is doing a presentation to new troop leaders, we learn that Velda is a retired Army nurse, takes WG just a little too seriously and will soon be driven nuts by Phyllis as she arrives late to the presentation, suggests having a star studded telethon to raise money and she is smoking a cigarette on an opera-length cigarette holder.  It’s clear that Velda is very irritated by Phyllis.  One indication of Velda’s overly assertive nature toward the new troop leader recruits shows when she says:  “If any of you little Betty Crockers out there think that you’re just going to be teaching some little toddlers how to bake cuppy-cakes then you can leave now!”  Funny enough, two women do leave.

In one of her first tasks as a troop leader, Phyllis takes her troop out for a camping trip.  The trip starts out relatively well, they are chauffeured to their campsite via a few limousines and Phyllis sort of sits down wearing a fur coat, cigarette in hand and is sort of an outsider from the troop at this point.  She isn’t really engaging with the group and is sort of expecting that the girls will amuse themselves.  All of a sudden it starts to rain and Phyllis starts to panic.  In a solid demonstration of how strong a comedic actress Shelley Long is, we see her covered in rain and mud, falling over and then crawling toward the dry tent.  When she gets to the tent, the girls are all dry and feel terrible for their rain-soaked leader.  Phyllis seemingly out of nowhere, insists the group sing kumbaya.  Following the sing-along we again see the limos, but this time they are headed for the Beverly Hills Hotel. After arriving, Phyllis calls the Wilderness Girls Organization and says in reference to Velda’s recommendation for a campsite:  “her recommendations for a campsite were totally unsuitable.  There were no outlets.  And there was dirt, bugs and it rains there.  So anyway, we found a place that is much more us: the Beverly Hills Hotel.”  When Velda later calls out Phyllis for her apparent “glamping” if you will.  Velda says to Phyllis:  “you call this roughing it?” to which Phyllis says:  “1 bathroom for 9 people?  Yes.” From this point on, Troop Beverly Hills decides to do things in their own way and not conform to the typical Wilderness Girl Troop. 

Phyllis’ non-traditional approach to being a troop leader increasingly frustrates Velda as she feels like perhaps Troop Beverly Hills may take the Red Feathers place at the top as the strongest Wilderness Girls Troop.  Some examples of Phyllis’ unorthodox methods include developing her own patches for jewelry appraisal, divorce court and dancing to name just a few.  In one classic scene, Phyllis teaches the girls how to dance and shows them the twist, the mashed potato and the ironic “Freddy” dance.  In addition to her comedic chops, Shelley Long is a pretty darn good dancer and in heels no less!  I don’t think I am physically capable of even walking in heels, let alone dancing in them! Later, Troop Beverly Hills visits a nursing home and showcases some of their newly learned dance steps.  

While Phyllis and Hannah are teaching a group of seniors the Freddy dance, one older gentleman starts to roll away in his wheelchair.  Phyllis chases after him and continues to do the Freddy dance even while she is rolling him back to wear he was previously located.  Again, it's a just quick moment of physical comedy by Shelley Long, but it is brilliant.    

Troop Beverly Hills ends up having the most Wilderness Girl Cookie Sales despite Velda and the Red Feathers attempts to sabotage their sales.  Troop Beverly Hills blows the Red Feathers out of the water by performing the song “Cookie Time” in front of a large crowd in front of a Giorgio boutique store.  The song is incredibly catchy and their performance is complete with choreography.  They also sell their cookies in front of Jane Fonda’s workout studio, at a fashion show and they also walk around high end restaurants selling cigars, cigarettes and of course, cookies.  By surpassing the minimum requirement of selling 1,000 cookies, TBH qualifies for the annual jamboree- a competition to see which Troop in Southern California is the best of the best! 

As you can probably imagine and predict, this event eventually ends up pitting Troop Beverly Hills against the Culver City Red Feathers.  Just like in so many movies, good prevails over evil and Troop Beverly Hills wins the jamboree after overcoming a lot of setbacks.  And of course, Phyllis and Fred end up back together.  And toward the end of the movie, we learn that Velda is fired from her role with the Wilderness Girls and we see her get on a microphone at K-Mart and say:  “attention K-Mart shoppers, blue light special in aisle 13.”

This movie was received with mixed reviews, Roger Ebert said:  “The story turns out to have a heart of gold.  Instead of being a merciless evisceration of the lifestyles of the rich, it’s a little morality play in which Long transfers herself into a warm and useful person.”  

The Washington post said:  "Troop Beverly Hills" is a dog of a movie, one of those nasty little yappy dogs with fancy hairdos, pedicures and pedigrees. Professional prisspot Shelley Long sets the tone, down and out as a recently separated Rodeo Drive heroine. A flighty housewife, she has heretofore ignored her child to devote her life to shopping. But all that's about to change, thanks to Scouting.

The Girl Scouts, who know a varmint when they see one, obviously didn't want to sully their name, so these neurotics are called Wilderness Girls. The daughters of sports and movie stars, deposed dictators and romance novelists, the little troopers are neglected by their busy parents and suffer low self-esteem. None of them is cute as a bug.

Writers Pamela Norris and Margaret Grieco Oberman (who should throw out their word processors, pens and all other instruments for the recording of ideas) treat the filthy rich as if they were the homeless. Now it's the rich as a minority group.”  Ouch.

More recently though, a lot of people are revisiting this movie and are declaring it a cult-classic and a good escapism movie.  Nothing too sad or intense happens, it’s just silly and endearing all at the same time.  Elissa Strauss of Elle Magazine said:  “Rewatching it and discovering it was actually a dud would have been a major blow. But good news: Troop Beverly Hills is not a dud. Watching it again allowed me to not only confirm how funny and emotionally energizing it is, but also helped me understand just what made so many of us see it as an expression of our very beings a quarter-century ago. On its surface, Troop tells the classic Hollywood story of a ragtag group of underdogs who rise to the top—that's the ordinary part. What makes it extraordinary is the way it is an unrestrained celebration of girliness, glorious girliness, and the mighty power that sits at its sequined, unabashedly frilly center.”

Before we get into some fun facts about the movie, I wanted to share a bit of information about Shelley Long who I really feel is an under-appreciated comedic actress.  She was born on August 23, 1949 in Indian Village in Fort Wayne, Indiana.  Both of her parents were teachers.  She attended Northwestern University in IL for a time to study drama.  While in the Chicago area, she became a member of the improv group, Second City.  In 1979, she met her future husband on a blind date, his name is Bruce Tyson and he was a Securities Broker.  They married in 1981.  In 1982, she got the role of Diane Chambers on Cheers, which she played for 5 years.  When she was on Cheers, she apparently wore a wig while filming because she didn’t want the set lights, which were allegedly very hot, to damage her hair.  She won an Emmy and a Golden Globe during the years she was on the show.  In 1985, she gave birth to her daughter Juliana.  Following Cheers, she starred in several popular 80s films including:  The Money Pit, Outrageous Fortune and Hello Again.  She later starred as Carol Brady in the Brandy Bunch movie and subsequent sequels.  In November of 2004, Shelley Long attempted to take her life by overdosing on painkillers.  She and her husband of many, many years got divorced that year.  From what I read, it sounded like this was a very significant loss for her which resulted in a very deep depression.  She was taken to UCLA medical center where she got help and was later released.  Thankfully, this did not stop this incredibly talented actress from continuing to work and to show the world her talents.  One of the favorite tv shows in my household is Modern Family and some of the very best episodes and funniest episodes are the ones where she stars as Dee Dee Pritchett.  The hilarious and erratic ex-wife of Jay Pritchett.  I’m so thankful she was able to pull through this difficult time.  I bring this up because mental health is an issue that has profoundly impacted me (and my sister of course) both personally and professionally.  It just goes to show that despite what someone may be showing on the outside, that may be different than how they are truly feeling on the inside.  The end of a relationship is a significant loss and should never be minimized, no matter how young or old someone is.  

In my work as a School Counselor, I always told the faculty I worked with that if they heard about a breakup between two students, please let me know right away so that the counseling department can reach out to them. While we as adults may view adolescent relationships as superficial, when that ends, it has the potential to profoundly impact the individuals involved.  And sure, maybe those feelings will be temporary but to many people, the end of a relationship is the end of the world, whether they are 16 or 60.

But, with all seriousness aside, here are some fun facts about the movie that you may not have been aware of:

• Some of the cast members (including Long) reunited for the film’s 30th anniversary.  I’ll post a link to a reunion video in the show notes.  
• Betty Thomas, who played Velda, ended her acting career following her role in TBH.  She has gone on to be a very successful director - she was the director for the Brady Bunch movie which Long had a lead role in.  
• TBH is based off of one of the film’s producers experiences as a troop leader for her daughter’s girl scout troop.  This troop was also from Beverly Hills and one time during a camping trip it started to rain, so the group headed to the Beverly Hills Hotel. 

Apparently this producer, Ava Ostren Fries, would tell a lot of stories about her Troop at Dinner Parties.  They were a hit of course and so her husband encouraged her to write them down which would eventually turn into a screenplay.

• Despite the Producer having been a Girl Scout leader, the group did not endorse the film
• Carla Gugino who played Chica Barnfell one of the girls in the troop, originally told the director she was 14, but she was actually 16.  She finally admitted it when it was too late to change the cast.  They had to get creative while filming since she was so much taller than the other girls. 
• The Beverly Hills Hotel is only about 1 mile from the house that is used in the movie as the Neffler’s residence.
• Originally, the film was going to be produced by Disney and the role of Phyllis was going to be played by Bette Midler! The producer didn’t think she would be a good fit so they shopped the screenplay elsewhere.  
• Actress and songwriter Hillary Shepherd wrote the song “Cookie Time.”  She made a cameo in the movie within the first few minutes.  She is the woman working in the store who helps Phyllis with the purchase of a very expensive dress.  

And speaking of Cookie Time, I will leave you with a dramatic reading of the song’s lyrics as if I am performing in an Open Mic Night at a local coffee house….

Gather round you friends of mine.

We're Wilderness Girls and it's cookie time.

We work hard and we play fair,

so buy a box and do your share.

If you want the best taste that you can find, (yeah, yeah)

Chocolate chips are one of a kind. (yeah, yeah)

Our peanut butter dreams will blow your mind (yeah, yeah).

A box of them would be so nice (buy some)

Cheap at even twice the price (try some)

So come on down, come on down, it's cookie time, it's cookie time, it's cookie time, it's cookie time, it's cookie time, it's cookie time...

Our cookies always cause such a fuss,

Full of sugar and spice just like us.

We need your dough so don't you pause

We're wilderness girls and we're a real good cause.

If you want a taste that's so nice and sweet (yeah, yeah),

You won't find something better to eat (yeah, yeah).

Doesn't your mouth dig a sugar treat (yeah, yeah).

A box of them would be so nice (buy some), cheap at even twice the cost (try some). it's cookie time, it's cookie time, it's cookie time, it's cookie time, it's cookie time, it's cookie time…

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I hope you have enjoyed this look back on one of the funniest movies to come out of the 1980s, Troop Beverly Hills.  Although critics felt that this movie was predictable and poked fun of wealthy people, I think that’s what made it so great because the movie didn’t take itself too seriously.  My sister and I loved this movie and I recently re-watched the copy she bought me so many years ago. I can’t count how many times we watched that movie, if only we were able to do that again.

If you are enjoying the PCRP, please consider subscribing on whichever podcast platform you use.  Please also consider rating the show on iTunes or Apple podcasts, it helps the show out a lot! Thank you so much for tuning in and for your support.  Please tell your friends and family about this show!  Recommending this podcast to people you care about would mean a lot so please spread the word!  Please feel free to contact me, my email address is:  popcultureretrospective@gmail.com or you can tweet me, I’m @popcultureretro It may be a few weeks before my next show as I will be traveling and visiting with family a bit in the coming weeks but I hope you will join me for my next show, where we will be discussing the groundbreaking music group that was Nirvana. Until then….