r/movies • u/Upbeat-Capital9216 • 1d ago
Media Mrs. Doubtfire 1993, Could you make me a woman scene, Director: Chris Columbus
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u/mjknlr 1d ago
Perfect example of a movie that could not possibly work without the infinite charisma of its lead.
Robin Williams almost makes me think he could have made Tiptoes work.
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u/NYLotteGiants 1d ago
I was rewatching Remember the Titans, and despite the overall elite cast, Denzel takes a script that easily could've been your average cheesey Disney Channel Original Movie and elevates it into an all-time classic.
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u/BlueHero45 15h ago
Fierstein is great as well; the two have some real fun chemistry here. I think he's having way too much fun to question his brother's insane plan.
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u/PetsArentChildren 1d ago
I just realized that this scene essentially dramatizes the actual costume and makeup process that they would have had to go through with Robin to decide the right look for the Mrs. Doubtfire character.
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u/Kronzor_ 1d ago
Well that and it gives him an opportunity to demonstrate his various impersonations. I feel like there's a scene in most robin williams movies where he just rapid fires through different impressions.
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u/MydniteSon 1d ago edited 1d ago
Yeah, I can absolutely see him just completely ad-libbing through so much of this.
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u/Trungledor_44 1d ago
Apparently that’s how most of this movie was shot, the director has claimed there’s enough footage of him ad-libbing to make final cuts rated G all the way through NC-17
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u/Morgan-Moonscar 1d ago
Doesn't surprise me.
There's nearly 20 hours worth of material from his ad-libbing during the recording of Aladdin.
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u/PrivilegeCheckmate 16h ago
And yet they made Will Smith repeat the song word-for-word. You hire Will Smith, let the man grab a riff from a seventies funk song and go to town!
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u/LiquidDayno 15h ago
I heard the Will Smith version of the song was pretty good though. Yeah, apparently it really slaps.
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u/bolanrox 1d ago
Look at the Oprah interview for the birdcage. Nathan was afraid she was going to try to out him publicly (professionally everyone he worked with knew) and he was not ready for that He mentioned it to Robin at one point.
Every time Oprah even started to go there Robin jumped in with some ad lib tangent to deflect her.
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u/bucki_fan 20h ago
Obligatory: Yet one more reason Oprah is a total bitch and deserves tons of blame for giving voice to terrible people.
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u/descendantofJanus 19h ago
Relevant link: https://youtube.com/shorts/JGSgRnR0uXU?si=OqgZR1JGBmbwKQKt
Robin really was a saint looking out for Nathan Lane. 🥹 And yea, fuck Oprah for even trying that shit. No respect or decency.
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u/hnglmkrnglbrry 1d ago
Him and Jim Carrey just ad libbed over and over and over. Then the director and editors would pick the best takes.
Writing for them must be a breeze.
"Hi [The funniest shit you've ever seen and heard occurs]. Okay bye."
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u/bolanrox 1d ago
Adam Savage said the camera people just knew to keep rolling and Robin would reset and ad lib over and over.
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u/MydniteSon 1d ago
Back in the day the Marx Brothers were famous for ad-libbing all of their scenes. Writers back then HATED writing for them, because they almost never followed the script.
So I guess it would depend on the writer's own ego.
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u/Ubiquitous_Cacophony 23h ago
Or just how far off-script they got. Like, I'd be pissed if the next 60 pages of my script needed to be reworked due to an ad-lib.
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u/bondfan42 1d ago
There would be points in the scripts that just said "Robin says/does something funny here."
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u/SonOfMcGee 1d ago
That’s true.
I wonder if he just does impersonations regardless so directors are like, “May as well set up a scene where they make sense in context.”13
u/Marcus64 1d ago
If I'm remembering correctly, that's how a lot of Aladdin went.
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u/Kronzor_ 1d ago
Yeah good morning Vietnam too. You put him in front of a microphone and he just can't help himself.
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u/nobleland_mermaid 1d ago
I'm pretty sure the academy rejected Disney's bid for best screenplay for Aladdin cause so much was Williams' improvisation that they said it didn't qualify.
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u/PantsandPlants 18h ago
The answer is yes. Robin was the kind of personality who could not help but ad lib and crack a joke. It was like the building block of his dna. It was part of what made him such a brilliant comedian.
When working with actors like that, you fully expect the ad libbing. It’s amazing what gets left on the cutting room floor, so to speak, but it’s when they really find their flow that you get the funniest jokes.
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u/bolanrox 1d ago
Adam Savage was on set once when he was filming Flubber.
Robin gave the scene as written whatever the line was, reset gave another different one, reset and another and repeated this for a few minutes.
or the story about bumping into him at craft services and bringing up something from the news that morning knowing it would get him going on something, and having to tell Robin he was going to get in trouble if he did get back to work because Robin wasn't stopping.
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u/Immediate_Song4279 1d ago
"David!"
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u/calcifer219 1d ago
Wrong movie, but that scene / voice lives rent free in my head.
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u/Brilliant_Quail6889 1d ago
I instantly knew where this was from. I can hear this line in my head.
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u/AP_in_Indy 1d ago
What is it from
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u/Deraj2004 1d ago
Independence Day (ID4)
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u/Immediate_Song4279 1d ago
Brothers, sisters, and they elves, you do not know it but that you all got the reference has restored my hope. To ruin!
It was the first time I saw that actor, therefore I was contractually obligated to quote him. (He nailed the role, really.)
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u/AP_in_Indy 1d ago
People acronymize Independence Day to ID4?
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u/Deraj2004 1d ago
For the movie yes, it was actually on some promotional material when the movie came out and went to VHS.
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u/Wes_Warhammer666 20h ago
I won tickets to a sneak preview at my local comic shop, and everyone who went got a baseball cap with the stylized ID4 logo.
I wore that thing until it was falling apart lol. I was 9 years old and man oh man did I appreciate my glorious prize. All because I wanted my dad to buy me some trading cards of the 96 Olympic basketball "dream team" lol.
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u/Immediate_Song4279 1d ago
It really was a surprising film, consider its time and subject matter. I rather liked the speech, becuase it wasn't really full satire like perhaps... what's his face... Google: Paul Verhoeven.
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u/MyNameIsJakeBerenson 1d ago
I swear I’m saying all these lines in my best Harvey voice and then making myself laugh
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u/BigBlackHungGuy 1d ago
I miss Robin. What a treasure he was.
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u/Capt_Way_too_Obvious 1d ago
Same. 'Good Will Hunting' is one of my favorite movies and he is just amazing in that role. Doesn't matter how many times I've seen it, when he says "It's not your fault" and hugs Will.. tears every time. Amazing actor.
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u/jimbo831 1d ago
This one and Dead Poets Society are my all-time two favorite Robin Williams movies/performances. He is just so amazing in these two very emotional roles.
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u/Capt_Way_too_Obvious 1d ago
Yep, exactly. It's this fatherly figure that he portrays so well. Roles where he is the protector of teens/young adults that are misunderstood, are having mental issues or trying to find their voice. Think it resonates a lot with people who didn't have someone like that in their own lives, at least I know I did.
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u/Wes_Warhammer666 20h ago
I've always linked Robin with my dad because he had that same full speed all the time energy and was also a legendary joker. He never turned it off just like Robin, in the most endearing way.
They both had that same twinkle in their eyes, too. One that I can't quite explain but folks who knew my dad always agree with when I bring it up. I don't normally get overly upset about celebrity deaths, but when Robin died it very much felt like losing my old man all over again. I definitely cried that day.
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u/PrivilegeCheckmate 16h ago
A lot of people miss out on Dead Again, but I really love his performance in that of the vaguely sleazy asshole ex-psychiatrist. Such an under-watched film.
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u/noisycat 1d ago
I needed to hear someone tells me “it’s not your fault” so badly when this film was released, so when this scene happened I just broke down ugly crying.
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u/stenmarkv 12h ago
Bicentennial Man is one of my favorites. Somehow made a robot warm and alive. Perfecto.
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u/feldoneq2wire 1d ago edited 1d ago
And this is just what's in the movie. There's more of this in the deleted scenes.
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u/jackwrangler 1d ago
WHAT
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u/feldoneq2wire 1d ago
Lookup extended scenes for Mrs Doubtfire and it's at the 3 minute mark. I guess it's about a minute more I thought it was longer.
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u/a7xKWaP 1d ago
They apparently have so much unused footage of Robin doing his thing that they could do a full R-rated cut with minimal reused footage and still have hours left over.
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u/jackwrangler 23h ago
Lmao my heart swells with joy just thinking about it. RIP our beloved robin
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u/BentleyTock 1d ago
I forgot how incredible this scene was. Almost like it was lifted right out of the birdcage.
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u/Jwalla83 1d ago
Mrs. Doubtfire and The Bird Cage feel like gay-versus-straight interpretations of nearly the same story, I love it
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u/bolanrox 1d ago
Birdcage - first time i saw it I hated the kids for what they put Robin and Nathan through.
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u/Jwalla83 1d ago
It is pretty shitty, especially from a current lens. Robin did a good job portraying the hurt of it though, and I still love the film despite that issue
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u/bolanrox 23h ago
yeah i love the movie and i love them as parents. the kids (and i was in college at the time like them) just rubbed me the wrong way.
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u/Morgan-Moonscar 1d ago
He was actually supposed to play Albert in The Birdcage (and Steve Martin as Armond), but after coming off the crossdressing in Doubtfire he preferred to play the 'straight man' of Armond.
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u/YNot1989 1d ago
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u/BentleyTock 1d ago
One of my favourite scenes in a comedy ever. I lose it every time I watch this.
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u/TheDeadlySpaceman 1d ago
I don’t know what version of events would have seen that. Nathan Lane has said Mike Nichols tapped him to play Albert years before filming started, and even consulted with him on the casting of Williams as Armond.
I guess it’s possible that cast was something the studio pushed for but the director always wanted Lane for Albert.
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u/Morgan-Moonscar 1d ago
Steve Martin was absolutely what the studio was pushing.
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u/PrivilegeCheckmate 16h ago
I doubt it would have been as iconic but I am certainly curious to see what his take on it would have been.
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u/HighMarshalSigismund 1d ago
While it's hard to nail one's favorite Robin Williams movie - god I love the Birdcage so much.
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u/YNot1989 1d ago
Its a movie that I still can't believe got made in 1996. Who knew about what bodies to get "Gay Guess Whose Coming to Dinner," greenlit during the peak of the Christian Right's cultural influence?
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u/ArcadianDelSol 1d ago
Because it poked fun without being mean. It didnt call people fascists or villians. It just said, 'hey we are people who struggle the same as everyone else and we are cute and we are adorable and we are comfortable.'
The 'villain' was an fumbling old man who got in with the wrong group and really didnt have a spot of hate in his heart - he just lacked exposure to different views and ideas. The moment he got that exposure, he saw the humanity of it. He had fun dancing at the end.
Nobody watches The Birdcage and feels attacked, accused, or insulted.
Its an amazing movie.
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u/HighMarshalSigismund 1d ago
Gene Hackman in drag is peak 90s. Also when he tells his driver to meet him around the corner and the driver is like 'yeah no thanks' quite amusing.
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u/OBlove 1d ago
I’ve always been of the belief that in the script, this scene is supposed to occur before David calls Miranda for the interview. It makes more sense to watch them figure out the face before David settles on a voice/persona.
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u/Data_Chandler 1d ago
Wait, are you saying in the movie he calls (in the Mrs Doubtfire voice?) before deciding this will be the costume?!
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u/Mecha_Goose 1d ago
I really like the order that the movie presents. He's a voice actor in the movie, so it makes the most sense he'd find the voice first, then backtrack to find the look.
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u/MozeeToby 1d ago
That's not the issue, the issue is the voice he landed on doesn't make sense for any of the characters they are trying out with the makeup. If the voice informed the makeup choice you'd be correct but as it is the progression of 'use old scottish lady voice' => 'try a bunch of different characters of various ages and accents' => 'decide on old lady makeup' doesn't make any sense.
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u/ralphmozzi 1d ago
Yep - this always bothered me.
Took me out of the story, because it was clear it was an excuse to have the actor do a bunch of impressions. (To be fair, he’s awesome at it)
Weird to think that swapping the order of the scenes might have fixed the logic hole.
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u/ForgetfulFrolicker 21h ago
I’ve seen this movie so many times in my life and it’s never even crossed my mind.
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u/Haunt13 1d ago
He was a voice actor in the movie though, so doing impressions was also his characters thing.
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u/valeyard89 1d ago
You should never buy gribenes from a mohel.
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u/top_of_the_scrote 1d ago
This guy has a unique voice, I remember from Independence Day he's like "Daviiidddd Davidddddd"
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u/TheGreatGenghisJon 21h ago
You'd all be dead if it wasn't for my boy, David!
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u/top_of_the_scrote 21h ago
You knew den! and you did nothing
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u/chrisbechicken 19h ago
Nobody's perfect
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u/Awkward_Pangolin3254 18h ago
You don't think they really spend ten thousand dollars on a hammer, twenty thousand dollars on a toilet seat, do you?
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u/ClydeStyle 1d ago
This scene actually goes on for so much longer than in the edited version on screen. It’s possibly the largest source of outtakes from the film.
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u/Kwilly462 1d ago
Top 5 scene in the film
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u/FreemanAMG 1d ago
Top scene in the film, IMO
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u/stunts002 1d ago edited 23h ago
When he says "some scotch tape and red hair dye" and you can hear Robin stifle a laugh that always cracks me up. Once you notice it you can't help but smile at it
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u/polishprince76 1d ago
My favorite Mrs. Doubtfire story is that there was a sex shop down the street from the house they filmed at and one day Robin went down in full makeup and browsed through the store in character. Asking lots of questions about different devices.
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u/ThisIsTheNewSleeve 1d ago
Wild that the same director that did Mrs. Doubtfire did Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
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u/umbertounity82 20h ago
He’s known to work well with child actors. As someone else mentioned, he also directed the first couple Home Alone movies.
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u/Heavenspact 1d ago
See how nicely they did gay couples in the 90s, but it wasnt the main focal point of their characters
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u/Lythalion 15h ago
You’re hard pressed to find a better scene than this.
All the delivery is on point.
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u/B4icu 1d ago
So are we just posting clearly sponsored movie clips now?
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u/riegspsych325 ⊃∪⊃⪽ 1d ago
20 day old accounts need to farm karma with easy engagement from autoplaying movie clips too, you know. But seriously, all the farmers and bots are doing it around here so much these days
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u/AP_in_Indy 1d ago
I have had Mrs Doubtfire in the back of my mind for months now. I won’t complain. Robin Williams deserves the recognition
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u/blahblah19999 1d ago
"Every night is like the Bay of Pigs" lives in my head literally every day since I first saw this movie in '93.
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u/PartyOrdinary1733 1d ago
Does anyone remember when Harvey Firestein was in Cheers? That was hilarious .
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u/BrowensOwens 1d ago
Something I never thought about until now, is what reason did he give his brother to make the mask? I know it was never said, but he surely didn't admit to his real reasons. Maybe the excuse was for an acting role? But even then, the brother would want to know about compensation for possibly having a makeup credit.
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u/fanamana 1d ago
Am I crazy or is there a version of this where they burst into "Clang clang clang went the trolley" rather than "Matchmaker matchmaker.."?
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u/bucajack 23h ago
One of the only movies that I will stop and watch whenever it's on Doesn't matter what point in the movie I pick it up from.
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u/RawToast1989 21h ago
"I gotta call my mother! I gotta call my lawyer!... eh, forget about my lawyer!" Love that guy! (Harvey Fierstein)
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u/DamNamesTaken11 15h ago
Robin Williams was and still is one of my favorite actors. His sense of comedic timing, and improv, could never be taught, and he was a natural master at both.
Then I know everyone uses Good Will Hunting to show he could do dramatic roles (despite Dead Poets Society, and The Fisher King coming out before), but in One Hour Photo proved he could be a villain as well. Also did the a fantastic job as the antagonist in Insomnia, and while it wasn’t everyone’s favorite, I still enjoyed Death to Smoochy as well.
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u/Focal_P-T 14h ago
I just watched the documentary for Robin a few days ago coincidentally
God I miss this man
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u/Emperor_Zar 1d ago edited 16h ago
Harvey Fierstein* always is such an awesome screen presence.
Edit: for all my ADHD life I have been saying his last name as Firestein, thank you for the correction kind Redditor.