 4.28.00- Check out this link for some awesome new publicity shots for TIAPH!http://www.health.org/purplehaze/purplehaze.htm
4.28.00- Some more about Skeletons in the Closet:
4.28.00- Jonathan got a new movie! From Soaps In Depth:
4.28.00- Rumors say the rumor about the 3 movie deal Jonathan has to do The Vampire Diaries is false; Jonathan and/or Richard have never heard anything about it.
4.28.00- From mediadomain.com:
4.28.00- From EpisodeII.com:
Mel chimes in today to tell me that soap star Jonathan Jackson's official website has been updated with some interesting info. Apparently Jackson is set to appear at a fan event in Studio City, Calfornia on July 22nd. IF he were to be cast in Episode II this would greatly affect filming. So its doubtful we'll see him in Episode II as any character. Star Wars Episode II begins filming in late June in Australia and will take around 65 days to finish
4.27.00- Tara is selling some of her JJ memorabilia. Click HERE to see what she has, and contact her at lucky_4me@mailandnews.com if interested.
4.26.00- More from the April newsletter:
A- Your sentiment has been echoed by many and Jonathan is genuinely touched by all the kind thoughts. Since GH has cast a new Lucky, Jonathan will not be returning, and he had looked forward to the possibility of being able to occasionally return to GH throughout coming years. In any case, his sincere wishes go to GH and the new Lucky.
4.26.00- The chat transcript is finally up at SoapCity
4.26.00- Jonathan and Richard's official website has been updated. Mentions his appearance at Real Andrews' fan event in July and updated info on how to join the Jon and Richard's fanclub.
4.25.00- DarkHorizons.com has some repeated news on Jonathan:
Endless Love: New Weekly magazine reports that a remake is in the works for the 1981 romance flick which starred Brooke Shields & Martin Hewitt in the lead roles, along with a young debut actor named Tom Cruise. Writer/Actor Lamar Damon has apparently been hired to revamp and update the script which has been retitiled "The Age of Consent". The basic storyline is expected to stay the same and follow a 17-year-old boy and a 15-year-old girl who fall so passionately in love with each other it threatens to consume them (in other words a good excuse to put a lot of gratuitous nudity & bump-and-grind action on film). Names being considered for the parts so far include the aforementioned Jonathan Jackson, Natalie Portman, Josh Harnett, Ashton Kutchner and Leelee Sobieski. Brooke Shields has apparently heard about the remake as well and has put her hand up to make a cameo.
4.24.00- From the True Rights people: The True Rights website [http://www.truerights.com] is to be majorly updated with new facts, info, and links within the next 2 to 3 weeks.
4.24.00- Empire Online has a cool little feature on the major candidates for Anakin in SWII
4.24.00- Mighty Big TV has an amusing summary of TIAPH
4.22.00- The April issue of Jonathan and Richard Lee's fanclub newsletter have started arriving in mailboxes today. Included in this issue are:
Hello again,
4.22.00- theforce.net is reporting that Jonathan is in negotiations for SW
InHollywood.com has updated their Episode 2 page listing Jonathan Jackson (General Hospital, Deep End of the Ocean) as a member of the cast and his status as "In Negotiation". What character Jonathan might play is not listed.
InHollywood receives their information from Studio System, a leading entertainment information database.
4.22.00- Fans have been trying to find out more about the music played on TIAPH. So far, we've come up with the following:
4.22.00- MXGtv.com will be airing a special interview with Jonathan by a lucky fan that won a date with him. Don't miss it: Thursday, April 27th, 11pm EST.
4.19.00- A post on media domain talks about an unconfirmed rumor about JJ's new project:
More info on the character of Damon here
4.18.00- Some chat highlights from the Yahoo/SoapCity chat with Jonathan:
They also asked what he thought about Becky and Genie not getting nominated
and he said it was really too bad because they did awesome after Lucky died...but
that he can go and represent them! It was actually funny here cause he first said, "after I died...well not me, Lucky." :)
Craziest rumors: "That i got someone
pregenant...which is kind of impossible" and the whole Star Wars hype
When asked if he had any birthday plans for his 18th birthday, he said no because he might be out of town for a summer project. Woohoo! He got a new job!
When asked if he would ever do comedy, he said yes, he'd love to, and that it would be something nice after all the drama he's done lately. (I'm thinking his next role may be intense too.)
The long hair was for SSC, and he's considering keeping it for his next role too. That plus, he just kind of likes it the way it is. He doesn't like the same thing for too long.
"If you ever decided to get a tatooo what would you
decide to get?":
He met Bono while he was in Ireland! When asked what they talked about, he said, that's between me and him. :)
And apparently, Kelly Lane is about a real girl.
4.18.00- From PCO:
JJ was on the local ABC news in LA yesterday.
The interviewer said we know him best as L&L's son Lucky. He left to do
other things and then she talked about the movie. Later they showed a clip
and talked about the character.
Interviewer-- You've played a lot of tragic characters. You're young, 17,
how do you get into character?
JJ-- Tricky question---every role requires a slightly different
preparation. For me, I relate everything with my relationship to God. So no
matter what tragic character I'm doing, I don't get lost in it and it
doesn't overtake me.
Interviewer-- You're pretty unique, clean living, deeply religious young
man. How do you do that with all the glitz and glamour and all the temptation?
JJ-- Him. That's it. I mean I love Hollywood and I love this place, because
I think there's so much that God wants to do with it, you know. I see
people and their passion for what they do and their heart just comes
through and that blesses me.
She asked him what it was like to be back on the ABC lot. (they film the
news in same place as GH. He said it was cool to come back and drive
around-- sorta where he grew up.
Interviewer-- Brought up Star Wars and asked him if he was going to be next
Skywalker.
JJ-- No, I haven't even met with them, so I don't think that's happening.
Interviewer said something about that puts the rumors to rest.
4.18.00- From PCO:
4.18.00- TIAPH was featured on the Dallas news yesterday.
An ABC movie that stars a rising young actor revolves around a timely topic here in North Texas: teenage heroin use. Former GH actor, Jonathan Jackson, stars in TIAPH. He stars as a 20 year old student who seemingly has it all until he falls for a girl that introduces him to druges. There, things spiral out of control for him.
{Shows Jonathan being interviewed at the ice rink}
4.18.00- From TV Guide Online:
Daytime Emmy winner Jonathan Jackson (General Hospital's original Lucky) and
Carly Pope (Popular), two of today's most photogenic young stars, shuck
their clean-cut, well-coifed images to grunge it up as a pair of
suburbanites who self-destruct under the weight of runaway heroin habits.
But greasy hair and high drama aren't all that's on display here. Sure, the
real punch comes from the slow-burn fall of Jackson's Max Hanson from an
admirable collegiate hockey star to a jonesing junkie. But the film also
scores by using Max's drug abuse to explore the turmoil beneath his family's
placid facade and to expose how kids can fall prey to an epidemic about
which their parents have no clue. As Molly, the wild child who turns Max on
to heroin, Pope takes a role reserved for clichés and fills it with a fresh,
heartbreaking realness. You want to hate Molly, but the track that Pope sets
her on only elicits dread and sympathy.
The same can't be said for JoBeth Williams's infuriatingly icy turn as Max's
mommy dearest, a driven art snob whose social savvy distracts her from the
fact that her son is a shaking, hollow-eyed mess whenever he resurfaces
looking for money. Like Ordinary People, the family drama turns almost
poetic as Max hits bottom: His harrowing withdrawal from heroin forces Max
to take tentative steps closer to his distant mother. But director Eric
Laneuville (an Emmy winner for the acclaimed 1991-93 series I'll Fly Away)
wisely forgoes a Hollywood happy ending, leaving viewers to wonder if Max
will actually make it out of his Haze alive.
4.18.00- I finally got my SID, so here is the little blurb and other comments in it about TIAPH
Nearly a year to the day since making his final appearance on GENERAL HOSPITAL, Jonathan Jackson is returning to ABC on Monday, April 17, as the star in the telefilm Trapped In A Purple Haze. And if his performance lives up to the buzz, the three-time Emmy winnder may want to start preparing another acceptance speech. His role as an 18-year-old all-American boy who gets hooked on heroin is being talked up in some circles as "nothing short of riveting."
Jackson already has seen the finished product, and he admits that the movie is Must-See TV. "I loved it," says the actor, who flew to the film's Toronto set just days after finishing his final GH episode last April. "For a movie-of-the-week, they really just went for it. It's very real."
Picture Captions:
4.18.00- TIAPH was TV Guide's Editor's Choice:
The film is a harrowing study of addiction and how it often alienates its victims from their family and friends. "It was important to not do just another 'drug movie,'" says Emmy-winning director Eric Laneuville (I'll Fly Away), "but to show, in a realistic way, the consequences. If you sugarcoast this, it doesn't have the same impact." JoBeth Williams stands out as Jackson's domineering but ultimately powerless mother.
4.17.00- The New York Post has a good review of TIAPH
"Trapped in a Purple Haze"
HOW "Trapped in a Purple Haze," made it as a TV movie in this day of "historical" recreations of the lives of the saints (rock 'n' rollers and others usually still alive) and dumb-and-dumber woman-as-victim movies is beyond me. Why?
Because "Trapped in a Purple Haze," is really, really good.
It's good almost in the way TV movies were good in the '70's when they made things like "Brian's Song." (About a dead football player, instead of a living legend.)
If you weren't alive then, let me explain.
Once upon a time, when variety shows were king and TV movies were a new idea, networks made good movies. Then, tragically, Earth was invaded by idiots from outer space who stole the brains of TV execs.
Then these uncreative monsters declared that only Armand Assante and Jaclyn Smith (and if she was busy, Meredith Baxter or Jane Seymour) could star in TV movies.
Not that I don't consider myself a lover/connoisseur of cheese-ola, but even I can't bear to see Armand Assante's face one more time.
Then, out of nowhere comes this actual, wrenching, and at times even harrowing made-for-TV movie about heroin addiction. Not pretty and not too prettied up, either.
It stars Jonathan Jackson (Max) as a nice upper middle class kid who's a day student at the local university.
He comes from a really nice family, which includes a mother who is an artist/pain-in-the-butt, a father who is the nicest guy in the world (but not too strong), a regular little sister, and a gay older brother who, for once, is played as a normal human who just happens to be gay.
Max is a really good hockey player whose mother thinks she's got the next Picasso on her hands.
He's not a bad painter, but he's just a regular kid who's an art major but would rather be playing hockey.
On campus, Max runs into Molly (Carly Pope from "Popular") who is more of a free spirit than he's used to.
She's pretty, she's sexy and she's semi-dangerous. Actually she's very dangerous.
On their first date, she introduces him to snorting horse. He doesn't.
She clearly isn't impressed and he figures she'll never see him again.
But he's hooked - on her - and when she agrees to see him again, he does snort, mostly because he doesn't want her to think he's just a dorky jock. He vomits his brains out in front of her.
He talks to his older brother Brian about it, knowing that he'd done drugs when he was in school.
The brother neither condemns him nor encourages him, but just tells him that it's a road that can be pretty dangerous.
Then Molly introduces Max to needles and their recreation becomes habit. It's ugly to watch them tying off and vomiting and shaking, and sweating. It's also riveting.
We watch Max's decline, and at times you feel like it's your own kid.
When Molly becomes really hooked, Max goes nuts trying to get money for her. He loses his job at the video store and eventually steals from his father.
I'm not going to tell you what happens because that would ruin it.
But, even my own personal love interest (who, as I've mentioned before, refuses to watch anything that doesn't involve space aliens and karate) was watching it.
The acting is first rate and so is the writing (Mimi Schmir).
Jackson is so good as the kid that it's really tough to watch him decline. It's tough to watch but also very watchable.
In fact, watch it with a kid tonight. It's a lot more relevant than "This is your brain, this is your brain on drugs."
4.17.00- Critics on TIAPH:
Sunday night, HBO premiered The Corner, a harrowing, heartbreaking miniseries
about a poor, middle-aged black heroin addict in the inner city. Tonight, ABC
premieres Trapped in a Purple Haze (8 p.m. ET/PT), about young, upper-class
white heroin addicts experimenting with the drug in college. I'll leave you
to draw your own conclusions.
New York Daily News
8:00 p.m. (ABC) "Trapped in a Purple Haze." Jonathan Jackson, who used to
play Lucky on "General Hospital," and Carly Pope, who's still starring on
"Popular," co-star in this telemovie about the dangers of heroin.
Unfortunately, the revelation that the networks are rewarded by the
government for stories with anti-drug messages sullies this project a bit,
fairly or not.
4.17.00- From Hollywood.com
“Trapped in a Purple Haze” (8 p.m. PDT, ABC, Monday) is a change of pace
from the made-for-TV Monday night movies we’ve been getting. This one
trades in the camp appeal of “Satan’s School for Girls” for a much grittier
realism, as a teen athlete (Jonathan Jackson, “General Hospital”) messes up
his life in a hurry with a new girlfriend (“Popular’s” Carly Pope) and her
best buddy, heroin. Don’t expect “A Tale of Two Bunnies.” This one is
unusually serious, and unusually well done.
4.17.00- GistTV's review is not so good:
Jonathan Jackson (General Hospital) and Carly Pope (Popular) star in the
ABC made-for-TV movie about heroin addiction among upper-middle-class
students. In the tradition of such Monday night made-for-TV classics as
Friends Till the End, For the Love of Nancy, and Dying to Belong, Trapped
in a Purple Haze shallowly explores the dark underbelly of the addiction
cycle: forgetting to go to hockey practice, befriending seedy strangers
from the wrong side of town, losing the coveted job at the video store,
begging for money at the mall, watching a friend overdose. Eventually, Max
Hanson's (Jackson) addiction is conveniently linked to and blamed on a
domineering mother (JoBeth Williams) and clueless father (Colm Feore) who
don't really understand their son and his dreams. Though Trapped in a
Purple Haze has a good message, it is poorly delivered. The movie is better
watched for the kitsch value (bad dialogue, bad acting, bad soundtrack)
than what was intended. ABC would have done a better job scaring teenagers
away from heroin if they ran The Basketball Diaries or Drugstore Cowboy
instead.
4.17.00- Variety's review of Purple Haze
Filmed in Toronto by the Thomas Carter Co. in association with ABC. Executive producer, Thomas Carter; producer, Christine Sacani; co-producers, Jana Fain, Gigi Coello-Bannon; director, Eric Laneuville; writer, Mimi Schmir.
Max Hanson - Jonathan Jackson
More believable than “Chasing the Dragon,” Lifetime’s ridiculous housewife turned heroin-user pic, but nowhere near as honest or as riveting as “Trainspotting,” “Trapped in a Purple Haze” is an inflated piece of melodrama disguised as a cautionary tale for rich suburban white kids. “Trapped,” at times, is less about the hazards of using smack and more about how much parents can screw up your life. Like “American Beauty,” “Trapped” explores the suburban wasteland that is created out of a parent’s incessant drive for perfection, only without the savvy or great acting.
Max Hanson (Jonathan Jackson) lives in the gilded cage of his well-to-do Chicago family home. Mom Sophie (JoBeth Williams) is a frustrated artist who desperately wants Max to pick up where she left off. He just wants to play college hockey and hang out with his friends at the video store where he works.
When he meets a mysterious and carefree beauty named Molly (Carly Pope), he becomes enthralled with her despite some startlingly rude and questionable behavior. Molly, as it turns out, represents Max’s anti-mom, a pure hedonist. But what Max never sees, despite a dramatic neon sign glowing above her head, is that Molly turns to drugs to numb the pain of her own stilted suburban childhood.
Of course, Molly eventually lures Max to the dark side, but not before he repeatedly goes to his parents, specifically mom, for help and advice. Mimi Schmir’s script, which contains more than one allusion to “Ordinary People,” dulls its own anti-drug message with this heavy-handed story about parental neglect.
Pope, looking waif-thin, does a decent job of capturing the allure and excitement of heroin chic, which director Eric Laneuville accentuates with artful shots and slo-mo sequences. His able direction reinforces the scary notion of how closely drugs are tied to today’s youth culture.
As Max, Jackson does heart-wrenchingly well, proving that his daytime Emmy Awards for his role as Lucky on the daytime soap “General Hospital” were no fluke. Williams, a consummate actress, is reduced to pursing her lips and being as wicked as possible without donning a black hat and broom. Although Schmir tries to give us insight into Sophie with a side story about her work, Williams’ performance is static, save for the last few moments of the film.
Technical credits are polished, with fine lensing by Nikos Evdemon and progressive music from Brian Tyler.
Camera, Nikos Evdemon; editor, Sabrina Plisco-Morris; music, Brian Tyler; sound, Bruce Carwardine; casting, Tina Gerussi. 2 HOURS.
4.17.00- TIAPH is E! Online's E-ticket!
This isn't your typical Don: An Alcoholic Portrait of a Teenage Boy Prostitute in a Plastic Bubble movie of the week.
ABC's new Trapped in a Purple Haze (tonight, 8 p.m. ET) surpasses the usual Afterschool Special quality of most made-for-television flicks.
The movie, about a straitlaced college student who's led into a world of drugs and crime by a wily woman, stars General Hospital Emmy winner Jonathan Jackson as Max, the hockey player turned heroin addict.
Jackson, whose name is constantly bandied about as a candidate for the Anakin Skywalker role in Star Wars: Episode II, is a standout as the sweet but rebellious teen who falls in love with troubled girl Molly (Popular star Carly Pope), a drug addict with major authority issues.
And when Max's parents, especially his pushy mom (JoBeth Williams), get wind of his recreational habits, he, too, has authority issues. He gets kicked out of the house, thrown out of school, fired from his video-store job and dismissed from the hockey team. And then he begins stealing to support his and Molly's growing habit.
If you've ever caught a movie on Lifetime or even just one "very special episode" of Growing Pains, you can guess the ending to this one.
But you'll also see why Mr. Jackson might just be the best choice to play the future Darth Vader.
4.16.00- TIAPH is one of Monday's best bets in The Columbus Dispatch TV Plus!
4.15.00- The UltimateTV site has the commercial for TIAPH on their site in streaming video. Go check it out if you haven't seen it yet.
4.15.00- The Miami Herald has a great article on PH
By Kate O'Hare, Tribune Media Services
In May and June of 1999, after Jonathan Jackson gained fame (and three Daytime Emmys) as Lucky on "General Hospital," and just before Carly Pope became a teen favorite in the WB series "Popular," the two young actors headed to Toronto to film a movie then called "Purple Haze."
Renamed "Trapped in a Purple Haze," the film, produced by Thomas Carter ("Don King: Only in America") and directed by Eric Laneuville ("I'll Fly Away"), premieres April 17 at 8 p.m. (Eastern) on ABC. Jackson (who turns 18 in May) plays Max Hanson, an 18-year-old, upper-middle-class college student with close friends and a love of hockey. He's also a talented painter, a path his domineering mother (JoBeth Williams) is strongly urging him to follow, even arranging for him to study art in Paris.
Feeling the pressure from his mother, and uncertain about his direction in life, Max meets a troubled young woman named Molly, played Pope, now 19. She copes with her difficult family situation by indulging in drugs, including heroin. Before long, Max has abandoned school, his friends and his family for Molly, falling ever deeper into her world of addiction, sleazy characters and petty crime.
Colm Feore ("Storm of the Century") co-stars as Max's father, Ed, who steps in to try to save his son's life.
"There's a line in the movie," says Pope, "where Max's dad says, 'He didn't make this choice because he's happy. He made it because he's unhappy.' That's really important to note. That's what goes on in a family situation, or if you're in a personal situation where you're unhappy, you seek an escape route for your problems.
"He has a mom who's very controlling. He seeks someone else to control him, which is interesting, too. He runs from one controlling relationship to another. At the base of it, it's unhappiness, but it's seeking a desperate alternative rather than a healthy alternative. So he experiments and gets trapped in the drug lifestyle. He does come from a good family; he does come from money; he does come from education - they're supposed to make you happy.
"But coming from the relationship with his mother, which is quite filled with pressure and expectations ... it wasn't his choice to have all those things. He didn't choose to live his life that way, so he was looking for something he could be in control of, and it wound up controlling him."
If Jackson were to meet Max in real life, would he have sympathy for the character? "I wouldn't say he had nothing to do with it, but I would still feel sorry for him. A lot of people make bad choices, and certain things end up hurting more than others. Making a bad decision to do drugs - some people mess around with it and come out, and some people don't."
Before shooting the film, both Jackson and Pope visited a clinic for recovering heroin addicts. "It's unbelievable," recalls Pope. "It's so haunting to see the expression on their faces just completely change when they were talking about getting their next fix.
"These are people who hadn't been using for years and years and years. It was like remembering the birth of their first child. It was unbelievable, the expression and elation and life in their faces, just remembering that feeling."
"From the research I did," says Jackson, "it's the most euphoric feeling you can get. it's people who don't really see what it's going to do to their lives, they're just living for that feeling. That's all they want. They don't even think it's going to end up ruining their lives."
In the case of Max, Jackson attributes his fall to a lack of conviction and direction. "Kids come from much worse backgrounds than this character, and they don't do any drugs. He had a lot of money, but again, it's not about money, it's about relationships. At the same time, it's a rather weak person to have those kinds of conflicts with his parents and go to heroin.
"But see, I don't think those were his reasons, really. I think his reasons were more that he didn't really have any reasons not to."
Pope signed on to the role partially because of her concerns over the increase in heroin use in her hometown of Vancouver, Canada. While the epidemic of addiction didn't touch her directly when she was in high school, she encountered people who thought they could just give it a try. " 'I can handle it. I'm not going to get addicted.' I've heard that. I can't tell you how many times I've heard people say that with, not just with heroin, but with cocaine, even cigarettes or alcohol.
"It's any drug where they think, 'Oh, it's just fun. It's one time. It's a special occasion.' Things like that. Then, next thing they know, it's a special occasion tomorrow."
What does she hope young viewers take away from "Trapped in a Purple Haze"? "I really wish that it could have been a four-part miniseries so that we could have done more with it. I really hope that people take away what they should from it, whether that be communication within the family, whether that be understanding and support, whether that be that drugs are really not a healthy or positive way to live your life."
Jackson also sees a lack of spiritual values as contributing to young people falling prey to drugs and other temptations. "That's the main reason, in my opinion, why things have gone downhill. That has to do with the 'Me Generation' of the '60s and '70s, no God to answer to with their actions. That's a huge void missing in kids' lives."
Does he think it's hard for parents who may have experimented with drugs in their youth to take the moral high ground on the subject with their children? "Well, it is and it isn't. As a parent who came out of that, if you did those things, you should be able to tell your kids what you've learned from your experiences, and how it's not worth it, and you shouldn't really do that. You don't want them to make the same mistakes you did.
"The kid could probably justify it in their head, but that's just weak."
4.15.00- The Celtic band, Gypsy Soul, will be featured on Trapped In A Purple Haze. http://www.gypsysoul.com
4.14.00- Becky Herbst talks about Jonathan and Jacob in SID
4.14.00- E! Online has a blurb about Purple Haze
4.14.00- About.com has an article on PH
Three time Emmy winner (and nominated for a fourth) Jonathan Jackson (ex-Lucky, General Hospital) and Carly Pope (Sam, Popular) portray Max and Molly. Max comes from a "picture-perfect" family, living in a quiet, suburban neighborhood. A Freshman in college, Max soon meets Molly (Carly Pope), a beautiful student who soon lures Max into her world of alcohol and drug use.
It doesn't take long before Max is introduced to the latest "glamour drug" among high school and college students today, Heroin. In no time at all, Max is completely addicted to heroin. His friends and family do what they can to help, but to no avail. Formally a teen that excelled in school and was well on his way to a successful career, Max becomes a person nobody recognizes anymore, he alienates everyone who cares about him. A horrible tragedy is what it takes for Max to finally "clean up" and stay clean.
Trapped in a Purple Haze will show us the true and gruesome realities of heroin use. When asked about pushing the reality of entertainment, Jonathan explains, "We would lose impact if we softened the ugliness of the heroin lifestyle. The real risk would be not showing it. Kids and parents need to know the reality."
Log on and feel the Emmy chat power @
http://www.soapcity.com/starchat
4.14.00- Get your tickets to the Daytime Emmys!
4.13.00- US Weekly gave PH 1 1/2 stars.
Of course, our hero, Max (Jonathan Jackson, formerly of General Hospital), has an
all-too-common reason for turning to drugs: his manipulative mother
keeps pressuring him to paint even thought he wants to play hockey.
Naturally, he falls for his pierced classmate (Carly Pope of the WB's
Popular), who quickly has him hooked in more ways than one. As you may
have surmised, this movie is an odd mix of predictability (Max's plain
Jane gal pal has a crush on him) and red herrings (his jock older
brother is gay). Though the filmmakers graphically show the drawbacks
of dope, the average teenage boy might decide that he'd be willing to
risk it if Carly Pope were thrown in.
1 and 1/2 stars... This "just say no" show fails both as a drama and as
a cautionary tale.
4.13.00- Go vote for Jonathan in Entertainment Weekly's Anakin poll: 4.13.00- For the saps out there like myself, today is the one year anniversary of Lucky and Liz's last dance and last kiss on GH. It was a day that broke my heart. Next week will be the anniversay of Hell Week. Do you remember the feeling of watching everyone mourn for Lucky? I sure do...I was in mourning myself. How fitting is it that Jonathan's first project since GH will be airing Monday? Don't forget everyone: Trapped In a Purple Haze will be airing Monday, April 17th on ABC at 8pm!
4.13.00- The PH commercial has been spotted a few other times on ABC since Monday. Besides during French Kiss, it's also been seen during Drew Carey, 20/20, All My Children, and The Vanishing. Frances (BIXBEE) has posted on the Brigade board that she has the commericial in mpeg form, and to email her if you would like to see it. Fjmesa@hotmail.com
If Jackson were ever to return, it doesn't mean that Jacob Young would be left out. Years ao, when Wayne Northrop (ex-Roman) left Days of Our Lives, Drake Hogestyn was brought on and thought to be Roman. When Northrop returned, the show was brillantly able to not only keep both A-list actors, but to create one of their best storylines ever 4.11.00- Jonathan, along with his brother and mom, went to go see Tyler Christopher's play in Hollywood tonight. They sat in the front row, next to a very excited Brigader who was desperately trying to keep cool. :-) Description of what he looked like: "By the way his hair is somewhat long and he wore washed out jeans and a brown sort of solid jacket kind of thing and boots of some sort and a black cloth bracelet, great profile." (from the Brigade board at http://www.delphi.com/l_lbrigade)
4.11.00- From our Canadian friends up north:
"In a Canadian interview, Natalie Portman says she will be reading with potential Anakins at the end of the month. She also joked that she asked George Lucas who they were but he wouldn't tell her, in fear that she might let it leak out,LOL!
OH, and also, a Swiss actor read but was turned down becasue he was too TALL! Since Natalie is only 5' 3", Anakin can't be very tall."
4.11.00- A short SSC description from http://www.4filmmakers.com 4.11.00- Maria is selling a photo CD of Jonathan. For a description, click here. You can get more info about "The Ultimate JJ CD Photo Collection and More!" by emailing her at Goldpaw25@aol.com
Max:What's that Coke?
Molly:Something better..heroin
''Then Things got worse''
{Shows JJ bursting through a door, waking up in bed dripping in sweat-looks shirtless *g*}
''General Hospital's Jonathan Jackson''
Max:What if I'm not perfect, if I screwed up. Would that be so bad? {Gets smacked across the face by JBW}
''Popular's Carly Pope''
Molly:I love you Max, please
Max: Do you know what love is?
{Some intense looking scenes....JJ looks like he really is going through withdrawl, he's shaking CP....good stuff}
The end is a shirtless looking JJ in a ''purple haze''.
Jonathan Jackson, the former star of GH, talks about playing a heroin addict,
abstinence, and the chance to be the next Anakin Skywalker.
High Park, a sweet, idyllic middle-class area of Toronto, could easily pass
for one of those sitcom neighborhoods that was home to the Nelsons or the
Cleavers. But today all hell is breaking loose. ABC is here filming
"Trapped In A Purple Haze" - a TV movie depicting the growing use of heroin
among bourgeois teens - and the calm that usually envelops this cozy enclave
is shattered by the cries of a kid in severe drug withdrawal.
That kid, Max Hanson, is played by 17-year-old Jonathan Jackson, a rising
star who has come to specialize in playing tortured souls. As Luke and
Laura's son Lucky on the ABC soap General Hospital (a role that won him three
Daytime Emmys and currently has him up for a fourth), Jackson went to pieces
when he found out that his parents romance began with a rape. As Michelle
Pfeiffer's son in "The Deep End Of The Ocean," he was wracked with guilt over
the kidnapping of his baby brother. In his next big-screen venture, "The
Smiling Suicide Club," he plays an Irish lad who tries to kill himself. The
irony of all this is that Jackson is regarded as one of the most
well-adjusted, clean-living, deeply religious young actors in Hollywood.
"I don't go looking to play screwed-up characters," Jackson says during a
break on the PH set. "But I do look for roles that have realities and
complexities that interest me. I'm not into the teen horror flick thing.
I'm not into playing a variation of me. I'm looking for the big challenges."
And PH provides that. Jackson, his skin whitened by makeup, has been
shooting a gruesome cold-turkey sequence that takes place in the bathroom of
the Hanson home. The film, which costars JoBeth Williams as Max's
domineering Mom, and Carly Pope (Popular) as a girlfriend who lures him into
drugs, does not shy away from the details of heroin addiction (vomiting,
weight loss, convulsions, even death), and in doing so, it pushes the
boundaries of what might be considered entertainment. "But we would lose the
impact if we softened the ugliness of the heroin lifestyle," says Jackson.
"The real risk would be NOT showing it. Kids and parents need to know the
reality."
Jackson, who is avidly antidrug and a proponent of sexual abstinence, never
gets near that razor's edge on which so many of his peers teeter. "I have no
interest in getting wasted with a bunch of actors on a Saturday night," he
says. "I like having a blast and remembering it the next day." US Magazine
recently graded the credibility quotient of several self-proclaimed virgins,
with Jackson scoring 10 out of 10 (alas, Enrique Iglesias, L.A. Laker A.C.
Green and tennis queen Anna Kournikova did not fare so well). He takes the
attention, and the kidding, with a major grain of salt. "These days, it's
politically correct not to express one's moral beliefs," Jackson says. "But
when you say you're going to wait until you're married to have sex, people
have a problem with it. I don't get it, but I don't care."
Raised in Vancouver, Washington, Jackson is the youngest of three kids
(brother Richard Lee, 20 is also an actor and sister Candice 22, is a law
student). He credits his stability to his parents - Ricky Lee, a physician,
and Jeanine, a homemaker - and to his strong spirituality. "A relationship
with God was always innate in my upbringing." He says, "But there was a
definite shift for me in 1997. It was spawned by a bad relationship (he
hints it was romantic but offers no specifics) where I got really hurt.
Through the pain, I came to a realization that I can't depend on other people
for my peace and happiness. I came to know who God is and who I am."
Tony Geary, who played his father on GH (Jackson quit the soap last May after
six years), recalls "I once asked Jonathan, "What the hell is wrong with you?
Why aren't you rebelling like other kids?" And he said, 'I do rebel, in my
way.' And it's true. He doesn't have to stomp his feet to make a statement.
He does it by being centered and moral." Adds JoBeth Williams: "Jonathan is
so alive, so full of incredible inner stuff! It's going to make him a very
big star." But chances are, Jackson's future will not include "Star Wars:
Episode II." In an E! Online poll, he was the top choice of fans to play the
next Anakin Skywalker, and Newsweek boldly reported that he has a lock on the
part, but Jackson says he never met with anyone associated with the film and
doubts he ever will. His agent has publicly claimed that the Newsweek hoo-ha
rubbed George Lucas the wrong way and spoiled Jackson's chances. "If that's
so, that's OK," says the actor. "It would have been fun, but there are a lot
of other really cool projects out there. My life is working out the way it's
supposed to in all ways. I'm on the right path."
4.10.00- There was a short piece on Jonathan on the Dallas news today. Footage was of a scene with Lucky and Helena, and here's what they said:
Or go watch the clip here: http://www.broadcast.com/television/wfaa/broadcast.html. You will need RealPlayer. Click on the 12pm newscast on April 10th, and fast forward to approximately 29:34.
4.10.00- Jonathan will be making an appearance at Real Andrews' fan event during GH weekend!!! July 22nd, 6pm, Studio City, California. Hopefully, yours truly will be there. :)
Heroin has become the "glamour" drug among the youth of America. Jonathan Jackson (General Hospital) plays the 20-year old "perfect" middle son, addicted to this powerful drug as his family is torn apart trying to help him.
4.9.00- Another mention of Jonathan and SW on E! Online
Dear Mike: I understand that Jonathan is still in the running to play Anakin in the Star Wars episode that is slated to begin shooting in Sydney, Australia, this summer. But he certainly has some competition--most particularly Leonardo DiCaprio, who has been talking with George Lucas about playing the Jedi knight. I understand, however, that nothing is firm in that area and that the script is far from finished.
4.8.00- Vote for Jonathan in the Soap Suds Daytime Awards 2000
4.8.00- Soap Opera Update has an article on what Jonathan is up to nowadays, and a new picture.
Saying GoodBye
Purple Haze
The actor has also completed roles in the film ‘The Smiling Suicide Club' and ‘True Rights'. In the first project, Jackson plays Toby, who gets caught in a love triangle. "True Rights" deals with a group of producers trying to get the rights to people's real life stories. Jackson plays "an obnoxious military-type guy" sought after by the producers. The actor's brother Richard Jackson stars in the project as a film director, documenting the producer's efforts.
Segueing into the world of movies was made easier for Jackson since he'd completed a few films while still playing Lucky. "As an actor, I like to approach the two mediums (soaps and films) the same way," says Jackson. "I like having to be on my toes with the fast pace of GH and working on films where you have more time to think about things."
Published reports say that Jackson was willing to return to Port Charles temporarily if the writers wanted to write out Lucky and Liz together. "I guess it wasn't in their plans. And I don't think if anyone knows (at this point) if Becky's staying or not."
Seeing His GH Family
Like Christopher, Jackson is no longer a daily fixture in the world of soaps. However, he is still recognized fondly and often by loyal fans.
Appearing in such films as "The Deep End Of The Ocean" has opened the actor up to a whole new set of admirers. "I was pretty young, 11, when I started GH," recalls Jackson. "People would approach me about the show and they felt like they knew me - and I'd never met them. That took some getting used to, especially given that I was as young as I was. I remember to talk to different people."
Jackson has interests that appeal to him behind the screen, including composing music and screenwriting with Richard. "We're writing a lot together," reveals the young artist. "We're interested in writing different things, young romantic dramas, comedies and epics - the whole range."
4.7.00- E! Online has another mention of Jonathan and SW
I hear there's a whole new shortlist of potential Anakins to carry Star Wars: Episode II--Whatever They're Going to Call It. Now the list includes Tom Hanks' son, Colin (Roswell), Brad Renfro (Apt Pupil), Jude Law (The Talented Mr. Ripley), and Paul Walker (The Skulls). And Jonathan Jackson's still in the mix.
4.7.00- People Magazine reviews TIAPH
Two words: Blame Mom. That's the theme of this drama about an affluent
18-year-old who turns to drugs. Max (Jonathan Jackson, late of General
Hospital) simply wants to be a college hockey star. But his snooty, bossy
mother (Jo Beth Williams), an associate museum curator and frustrated
painter, hounds him to apply for an art fellowship in Paris. Feeling
pressured and confused, Max falls under the spell of a seductive rebel named
Molly (Popular's Carly Pope), who turns him on to heroin. As Max's life
spirals downward, his father (Colm Feore) is passive and clueless while his
mother remains rigid and self-righteous. "I can't believe this has
happened," she says. "I was a good mother, wasn't I?" She might as well
have JUST DOESN'T GET IT stamped on her forehead.
Trapped in a Purple Haze is not as bad as its title. Jackson and Pope are
effective as the addicted young lovers, but the film is too determined to lay
guilt on their elders.
Bottom Line: Hooked on oversimplification.
4.7.00- A new article on Jonathan in Soap Opera Digest
By Mara Levinsky
The wait is over! On Monday, April 17, Jonathan Jackson fans finally get the
chance to enjoy the project he filmed directly after leaving the role of
Lucky on General Hospital last spring: the ABC TV-movie Trapped in a Purple
Haze.
In the film, Jackson plays Max Hanson, whom he describes as "a hockey player
from a fairly well-off family who has his life together pretty good." That
togetherness begins to crumble when Max "falls in love with this girl who's
kind of into the drug scene, and he kind of gets taken down through that. You
see the character go downhill from there, and you see what it does to his
life."
Jackson was drawn to the project because "it wasn't a normal movie-of-the
week. It took a lot of risks with the subject matter, and I thought it would
be a really good challenge as an actor." The single most challenging aspect
of the four-week shoot, he says, was "going through the sequence of [heroin]
withdrawal. That was something that I've never had to do before." How did he
prepare? "It's kind of hard to explain," he muses. "Intellectually, I got a
lot of the information that I needed about what happens to you physically
when you go through withdrawal." As for the rest, he "just did whatever I do
to get into it. I just had to throw myself in there." To play Luke during his
star athlete days, Jackson also had to learn to ice skate. "I didn't have a
lot of time to train" for the four-week shoot, he recalls. "I skated when I
was really tiny, like when I was five, and I haven't done it since then. I
kind of took a crash course and just got the basics down, and went from
there."
Jackson shares the screen with some equally distinguished co-stars, including
veteran actress JoBeth Williams (ex-Brandy, Guiding Light) and Popular's
Carly Pope. "Carly's awesome," enthuses the actor. "She was a blast to work
with. I still keep in contact with her because Popular shoots not too far
from me. She did an awesome job in the movie." He was just as impressed with
Williams, who plays his mother in the film. "I hadn't really seen much of her
work like most people have, so I didn't have much to draw from, but she was
really cool to work with. I thought she did a really great job, and she
brought a lot of things to the character that were really cool."
The actor was thrilled with the final product. "I thought it turned out
great," he smiles. "I was really excited about it. It'll be a good movie for
families to watch together."
The rising star hasn't been idle since completing Trapped in a Purple Haze.
"I just finished filming a project in Ireland," he reports. "I think they're
probably going to change the title, but right now it's called The Smiling
Suicide Club. My character's name is Toby and he's a Northern Irish guy who's
in the psych ward because he tried to kill himself, and there's kind of a
love triangle that goes on with him in the hospital. He's been friends with a
girl and kind of likes her, and another guy comes in, and my character gets
scared that his friend, this girl he likes, is going to be taken away from
him."
He hasn't committed to his next project. "There's a few things [I'm looking
at], but nothing that we've signed on yet, so basically I'm just meeting with
people and reading scripts." Does he feel like's reached the point where he
can say no to those projects that don't really speak to him? "Each year it
gets a little closer to that," he says, "and there's more opportunity and
stuff. But definitely I want to keep climbing the ladder to where I have even
more of a choice of what I do."
Jackson admits that it's sometimes difficult to come across choice roles for
younger actors. "It's rare that I read a script that I think is really good
for people my age; that's just the way it goes," he shrugs. "The ones that do
come around that really stick out, I just try to find those and grab onto
them if I can."
Of course, we couldn't let Jackson go without wishing him a hearty
congratulations on his most recent Daytime Emmy nod. "Thanks!" he beams. "I
thought it was really cool, especially since I left the show halfway through
the year. Luckily, I still have some cool shows to send in, so I'm pretty
excited about that." Will he attend the ceremony? "I think so, yeah," he
nods. "I'll do everything I can to get there."
4.6.00- A couple of new JJ links
4.5.00- Another press release about TIAPH
Monday, April 17th at 8:00pm
Citytv will air "Trapped in a Purple Haze", a drama about a college freshman trying to cope with the turbulent relationship with his overbearing mother on Monday, April 17th at 8:00pm.
Jonathan Jackson (The Deep End of The Ocean) stars as Max Hanson, an 18-year-old with a picture-perfect family, close friends and a passion for ice hockey. Beneath the perfect facade, Max's world is about to fall apart. While his father (Colm Feore) silently stands by, Max's mother, Sophie (JoBeth Williams) relentlessly pressures her reluctant son to pursue his artistic talent while giving up his first love, ice hockey.
When Max falls for an attractive, vivacious classmate named Molly (Carly Pope), he thinks he sees his future getting brighter. Little does he know, his problems have just begun. Brash, wild and spontaneous, Molly drags Max into a crazy world of parties and drugs.
Max and Molly begin stealing to support their lifestyle and Max's academic career ends in disaster after he runs away from home. Soon, in a haze of confusion and rising danger, tragedy strikes and Max finally loses everything he cares about, including Molly.
"Trapped in a Purple Haze" airs Monday, April 17th at 8:00pm-10:00pm on Citytv.
Citytv, a division of Chum Limited, broadcasts News, Movies, Music to Toronto, Ottawa and Southern Ontario, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, forever. In the Greater Toronto Area, watch Citytv on Channel 57, Cable 7.
4.5.00- MrShowbiz reports that Leo is out of SW for sure, and that Jonathan is still in the running.
The perpetually booked-up Leo, who was so busy he couldn't make it to this year's Oscars due to "a long-standing prior commitment" is "definitely unavailable" for the pivotal part of the teenage Jedi knight, his spokesman Ken Sunshine told USA Today Monday.
Leo had already committed to Martin Scorsese's Gangs of New York, which is filming overseas this summer — about the same time that George Lucas and co. start work on Star Wars: Episode II.
So who is playing Anakin? "Ask again later," our Magic 8-Ball says. Among the names currently tossing in the rumor mill: Deep End of the Ocean's Jonathan Jackson, The Skulls' Paul Walker, Whatever It Takes co-stars Shane West and Colin (son of Tom) Hanks, and Malcolm in the Middle's Chris Masterson.
4.4.00- The new Soaps In Depth has an article about TIAPH along with TONS of pictures.
Sarah Brown: "Her omission was a crying shame. She did phenomenal work this
year."
Jonathan Jackson: "She was mind-blowing."
4.3.00- TV Guide Online has a description up for TIAPH. People are especially interested in what it says for "Content." :)
Cast: Jonathan Jackson, Carly Pope, JoBeth Williams, Colm Feore, Amy Stewart, Robin Dunne
4.3.00- Another press release for Trapped in a Purple Haze
April 3, 2000
DAYTIME EMMY AWARD-WINNER JONATHAN JACKSON AND
CARLY POPE
("POPULAR") STAR IN "TRAPPED IN A PURPLE HAZE,"
ABOUT THE
HORROR OF HEROIN USE AMONG YOUNG ADULTS, APRIL 17
ON ABC
Multiple Daytime Emmy Award recipient
Jonathan Jackson (former Lucky of "General
Hospital") and Carly Pope ("Popular") star in
"Trapped in a Purple Haze," a powerful
new movie about the devastating effects
of heroin use among young adults, airing as an
"ABC Original," MONDAY, APRIL 17 (8:00-10:00
p.m., ET), on the ABC Television
Network.
The movie also stars JoBeth Williams
("The Big Chill") and Colm Feore ("Stephen King's
Storm of the Century").
"Trapped in a Purple Haze" is a riveting
drama about America's quiet epidemic -- heroin
use among middle and upper-class young adults --
and the deadly consequences
from its use. Mr. Jackson portrays Max
Hanson, an 18-year-old with a picture-perfect
family, close friends and a passion for ice
hockey. But trouble brews beneath the
beautiful facade. His domineering mom
(Ms. Williams) lives vicariously through her son,
and Max's father, Ed (Feore), is unable to bridge
the ever-widening gap between two
people he loves very much.
When Max meets Molly (Ms. Pope), a new
girl at college, he is drawn into a world that
leaves his family reeling. Molly encourages Max
to experiment with drugs and before
long, he is addicted to heroin. Their
descent into a hellish existence dominated by
getting their next fix shocks Max's family and
friends, but it will take a tragedy to convince
Max that his life is out of control --
and in danger.
CAST: Jonathan Jackson as Max Hanson,
JoBeth Williams as Sophie Hanson, Carly Pope as
Molly, Robin Dunne as Brian Hanson, Amy Stewart
as Kate Coppola and Colm
Feore as Ed Hanson.
Also starring are Hayden Christensen as
Orin Krieg, Mallory Margel as Chloe Hanson, Carlo
Rota as David Leboff and Evan Sabba as Jasper.
The executive producer of "Trapped in a
Purple Haze" is Thomas Carter, who won his third
Emmy last year for "Don King: Only in America."
The producers are Richard
Rothstein and Christine Sacani. The
teleplay was written by Mimi Schmir. The director
is Eric Laneuville, who received an Emmy for
direction for "I'll Fly Away." "Trapped in
a Purple Haze" is a production of The
Thomas Carter Company. (CLOSED-CAPTIONED)
(Broadcast in stereo where available)
This film carries a TV-14,S parental
guideline.
4.2.00- An MXG contest winner won a day with Jonathan!!
That's right! People REALLY do win at MXG! Almost 10,000 of you entered
our contest (wow, that's a lot of e-mails!) to meet your fave celeb and
we chose one lucky winner. Read all about the day MXG made her dream
come true.
Here she is: Meet 15-year-old Rachael Leotta from Northridge, Calif.,
the winner of MXG's Meet a Star contest. Rachael sent us the most
sincere letter about her fave actor, Jonathan Jackson and why she'd
want to interview him. She especially admired Jonathan's commitment to
his faith and his strong morals. Plus, she and her friends LOVED his
award-winning performance as Lucky on General Hospital.
Rachel hosted a slumber party for her four friends, Jennifer Plotkins,
Jenna Barocas, Carrie Barocas and Tayler Faulkner the night before the
big day. They helped Rachael come up with some killer questions for
Jonathan, not to mention help calm her excited nerves! MXG fashion gal
Erica gave all five girls fab MXG makeovers
Talk about arriving in style! Jonathan arrives in a white stretch limo,
flowers in hand to escort Rachael to the Los Angeles County Museum of
Art. After a few photos and introductions to Rachael's family and
friends, the two were off.
Jonathan and Rachael spent an hour walking through the museum and
getting to know each other. A few fans even approached Jonathan for
autographs. Rachael said Jonathan happily gave them his signature and he
didn't even seem to notice that people in the museum were staring at
them.
Finally, they sat down for a private picnic lunch at a park near the
museum where Rachael got the chance to interview Jonathan for MXGtv. He
told her all about his upcoming projects, why he chooses certain roles,
who his role models are and more. Be sure to check it out when it airs
April 24 on MXGtv.com
J2@nufnuf.com |
4.14.00- CHAT WITH JONATHAN!
