Girls, I Am Telling You, You Just Gotta Hand It To Sylvia Miles!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                   Darlings, when it comes to being a "good sport" as an actor, no one is more deserving of this accolade than Sylvia Miles.  From being upstaged by a toy poodle in "Midnight Cowboy," to noshing down on a table full of food as the Yiddish matchmaker in "Crossing Delancey," Sylvia seems game for anything.  She is also a person of great ubiquity in Manhattan, noted for turning up at every worthwhile party, if only for the free food. And who can forget the time she threw, I think it was a plateful of spaghetti, on John Simon, for some remarks ha had said about her??????  There was even a time, and this was before the birth of this blog, loves, where I felt I was being stalked by Sylvia, as at almost every movie or play I went to--around the late 90's, early 2000--she would turn up in the audience!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                     But Sylvia is endeared to me for two brilliantly wacky performances in two really wild horror films.  The first, mentioned yesterday, is Michael Winner's 1977 thriller, "The Sentinel."  In it, she played Gerde Engstrom, a deceased German lesbian ballet dancer, who had committed murder, and lived a ghostly existence in this Brooklyn Heights brownstone, with her ghostly, masturbating partner, Sandra, played by Beverly D'Angelo!!!!! Would you believe that when Michael Winner approached her, she told him she would rather play the role of the real estate agent, Miss Logan, that went to Ava Gardner????  Not that Sylvia could not handle that role, and would have made one hell of a real estate agent, but who could have played Gerda better than she???? Certainly not Ava Gardner!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Not even I, darlings, would approach this role with the proverbial ten foot pole!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Clearly, Michael Winner had good casting instincts, because she and Beverly are the two most memorable things about this film!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                       Then, there was her turn as Madame Zena, the carnival fortuneteller, in Tobe Hooper's 1981 film, "The Funhouse."  Again, like "The Sentinel", it has some disturbing elements.  Kevin Conway plays a carnival barker/ funhouse owner, apparently widowed, though we do not know how, and left to raise his severely deformed son, (Wayne Doba) who, when he grows to adulthood, is hidden by Daddy in the funhouse both to scare people, and shield him from society. Meanwhile, Daddy physically and verbally abuses him at every turn.  You have to feel sorry for the poor creature, who longs for love--There is this wrenching scene with these two, where the Monster looks like he might lose control with his father, and the father placatingly (though we know he does not mean it says) "No.....  I swear......  I do not  hate the sound of your voice!"  I forget if Daddy gets it in the end, but I wouldn't blame Sonny boy if he did offf Dad!!!!!!!!!!!!!  To show how desperate he is, he seeks out Madame Zena (Sylvia Miles) for sexual contact, and the cash strapped harridan agrees!!!!!!!!!  You have GOT to see this scene to beleive it; it is on a par with the lesbian scene in "The Sentinel," whre even Sylvai comes down on him, for ejaculating prematurely!!!!!!!!!!   This poor Monster cannot get a break anywhere!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                     But it is worth it to see Sylvia play this scene.  You gotta hand it to her for making soemthing memorable out of what could be self-debasing.  Or maybe it IS the self-debasing that is memorable!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                         In any case, Sylivia earns my award for Good Sportsmanship In Acting.
Her presence has enhanced many an otherwise pointless film. Here is hoping she continues, as long as possible!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                           And let's all meet Syl for lunch at the Second Avenue Deli!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!