Unlike her celebrity gossip-monger rival Hedda Hopper, Louella Parsons never established a televersion for herself in a fictional setting for Toobworld. (Ms. Hopper had appearances in 'I Love Lucy', 'The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour', and 'The Beverly Hillbillies' to her credit, making her eligible for the Television Crossover Hall of Fame.)
But Ms. Parsons was portrayed several times in TV movies of the 1980s:
- "Malice in Wonderland" (1985) Played by Elizabeth Taylor
- "The Hearst and Davies Affair" (1985) Played by Doris Belack
- "Marilyn: The Untold Story" (1980) Played by Priscilla Morrill
- "The Scarlett O'Hara War" (1980) Played by Jane Kean
- "Bogie" (1980) Played by Anne Bellamy
All of these would be relegated to alternate TV dimensions, so five other Toobworlds would be "richer" for this contribution. (Your pont of view may vary.)
Louella Parsons did appear as herself on several TV game shows, variety programs, and talk shows. While these are accepted as part of the TV on TV aspect of Toobworld (especially if - like 'The Ed Sullivan Show', one of her credits in this category - it gets mentioned in other TV shows), they just don't give the alternate universe aspect any "oomph". So their value to the quality of the Toobworld Dyanmic isn't counted for much.
So for Earth Prime-Time, the televersion of Louella Parsons is portrayed by Teresa Wright in the 'Cimax!' episode "The Louella Parsons Story". The reason why this should gain prominence over the other vehicles is simple - the overwhelming presence of celebrities appearing as members of the League of Themselves.
Also appearing in this episode of the anthology series listed alphabetically:
- Gracie Allen
- Eve Arden
- Jean-Pierre Aumont
- Lex Barker
- Joan Bennett
- Jack Benny
- Charles Boyer
- George Burns
- Eddie Cantor
- Dan Dailey
- Howard Duff
- Joan Fontaine
- Zsa Zsa Gabor
- Susan Hayward
- Ida Lupino
- Fred MacMurray
- Robert Mitchum
- Kim Novak
- Maureen O'Sullivan
- Merle Oberon
- Ginger Rogers
- Gilbert Roland
- Robert Stack
- Lana Turner
- Robert Wagner
- John Wayne
Some of them have appeared as themselves in other TV shows. In fact, three of them are members of the Television Crossover Hall Of Fame (Jack Benny, George Burns, and John Wayne.) All together, they make a powerful argument for this televersion of Louella Parsons to be left in the main TV Land, Earth Prime-Time.
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| Outside of the Box: Teresa Wright & Louella Parsons in a publicity picture |
BCnU!
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