How Aretha Franklin Really Felt About Making The Blues Brothers

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John Landis' 1980 philharmonic drama "The Blues Brothers," which made 1 of my /Film colleagues a lifelong instrumentality of nan action genre, is based connected characters created for "Saturday Night Live" and is simply a miniature blues hallway of fame unto itself. There are cameos from philharmonic legends for illustration James Brown, Ray Charles, Cab Calloway, John Lee Hooker, and, of course, nan inimitable Aretha Franklin. The makers of "The Blues Brothers" came up pinch nan flimsiest imaginable excuses to get these musicians to perform, and nan assemblage doesn't mind nan contrivance. Any excuse will do if it gets Aretha Franklin to singing "Think." 

In nan discourse of nan movie, Franklin plays Mrs. Murphy, nan co-owner of a psyche nutrient diner and woman of Matt "Guitar" Murphy (himself), nan ex-guitarist for nan Blues Brothers' band. The Blues Brothers (Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi) person arrived astatine nan Murphys' diner to enlistee Matt for their set successful nan hopes of playing a reunion show and earning capable money to prevention nan orphanage wherever they were raised. Mrs. Murphy implores that Matt not rejoin nan band, and she sings "Think," asking him to, well, deliberation astir it. It's a standout philharmonic series successful a movie afloat of standout philharmonic sequences. 

Franklin loved making nan movie. She was nary alien to cameras, having first performed connected "The Tonight Show Starring Jack Parr" each nan measurement backmost successful 1962. 1984 notwithstanding, Franklin didn't fto a twelvemonth of her profession elapse without turning up connected a talk show, a assortment program, an awards show, aliases a philharmonic special. "The Blues Brothers," however, was 1 of only 4 instances wherein Franklin played a domiciled different than herself. In Mark Bego's curriculum vitae "Aretha Franklin: The Queen of Soul," nan fable was quoted arsenic enjoying herself rather a spot connected nan group of "The Blues Brothers," objecting only to 1 thing.

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It should beryllium noted that "The Blues Brothers" was a beautiful large hit, making complete $115 cardinal connected a $27.5 cardinal budget. The crippled for nan movie is incredibly bladed and nan taciturn title characters aren't compelling protagonists (in a screenwriterly way) — acclaimed movie critic Pauline Kael infamously disliked nan movie – but 1 cannot contradict nan film's comedic power nor responsibility its changeless philharmonic cameos. If Aretha Franklin is going to singing "Think" successful a movie, it's going to thief moreover nan worst of movies. Indeed, 1 of Kael's cardinal criticisms is that head John Landis only asked Aretha Franklin to execute 1 philharmonic number, and not several. 

About nan film, Franklin was quoted arsenic saying: 

"'The Blues Brothers' I enjoyed making tremendously. [...] It was my debut film. The only point I really didn't for illustration astir it was nan hours. I had to get up astatine 7 o'clock successful nan greeting to get fresh to beryllium connected nan set. But erstwhile you get there, and erstwhile you started rolling, past everything fell into place. I had a batch of nosy pinch Belushi, and Dan Aykroyd — awesome guys — large consciousness of humor, and very, very master and astute. So I had a bully time. It makes everything truthful overmuch easier [when] you're having nosy and you're enjoying what you're doing." 

It seems that Franklin had it light. For those who person worked connected movie sets, waking up astatine 7 o'clock seems for illustration a luxury. Many actors and unit members regularly person to get connected group earlier dawn to get everything group up, aliases to get constitution applied.

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Aretha Franklin was besides apt having a bully clip — moreover if Pauline Kael hated this — because she only had nan 1 philharmonic number; Franklin apt wasn't coming for each azygous time of nan film's shoot. A small spot of net investigation reveals that "The Blues Brothers" was changeable betwixt July and October of 1979. Franklin liked her acquisition truthful much, however, that she said she wanted to do more. In her words: 

"I confess that I would for illustration to do different film. [...] Maybe thing for illustration nan Bessie Smith story. I genuinely empathize pinch Bessie Smith, and would emotion to play her life. She was a singer, a awesome singer. I'm a singer. People person said I'm great, and I tin immoderate mighty adjacent to simulating Bessie's size, too!"

Bessie Smith was, of course, a jazz fable from nan 1910s, 1920s, and 1930s. She was 1 of nan astir celebrated jazz singers of her era, and tragically died aft a 1937 car clang astatine nan property of 45. Franklin would person made a good Bessie Smith successful a biopic. Queen Latifah yet played nan domiciled successful 1 of nan champion TV movies of each time.

Franklin ne'er sewage to play Bessie Smith, and really didn't do overmuch proper, scripted acting aft "The Blues Brothers." Prior to nan movie, she played a characteristic named Inez Jackson successful an section of nan sitcom "Room 222." She didn't enactment again until playing nan sound of a machine successful nan animated movie "The Brave Little Toaster to nan Rescue." She past returned to nan domiciled of Mrs. Murphy for the (useless) late-stage sequel "The Blues Brothers 2000." Franklin passed successful 2018, and nan world mislaid a legend. But we'll ever person her music.