Whatever Happened To Lisa Lisa?

This week I posted Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam's classic "Lost In Emotion" to this site as the 20 years Before 2000 Jam of the week! I was a big fan of Lisa Lisa back in the day. I remember when "Head To Toe" would come on the radio while me and my siblings were doing our Saturday chores around the house. I would rock out and be jumping off the furniture while I listened to the sultry sound of Lisa Lisa's voice and the dynamic grooves of Cult Jam. This all got me wondering...Whatever Happened To Lisa Lisa?

Before we get to that, let's take a quick look at how Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam became stars in the 80's & 90's music scene. Cult Jam was brought together in the early 80's by Producers/Actors/Singers Full Force of House Party fame. The group consisted of Lisa Lisa Velez, Alex Moseley (guitar/bass) and Mike Hughes (drums/keyboard). Their debut single "I Wonder If I Take You Home" was released in 1983 to Europe without much fanfare. 

It wasn't until almost a year later that the single would see some club play in the US and the popularity grew. This lead to the full length album "Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam with Full Force" being released in 1985. The album featured the Top 40 hits "Can You Feel The Beat" and "All Cried Out". The album eventually went platinum.

The follow up album "Spanish Fly" was released in 1987 and was the peak of the group's success. This album contained the #1 chart topping hits "Lost In Emotion" and my favorite of their songs, "Head To Toe". This album also went platinum.

Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam would release 2 more albums, 1989's "Straight To The Sky" and 1991's "Straight Outta Hell's Kitchen" which would be the group's final album as they disbanded later that year. So whatever happened to Lisa Lisa after the split? Let's find out!

Like most singers, after her group broke up Lisa Lisa went solo and released her first album "LL77" in 1994. This album included the singles "When I Fell In Love" and "Skip To My Lu". She followed up that effort almost 15 years later with the release of the full length album "Life 'n Love". The notable single from that album would be "Can't Wait" which featured rapper Pitbull. 

These albums failed to reach the levels of success Lisa Lisa had with Cult Jam, but in between projects she discovered another talent...acting!

Lisa Lisa took on a recurring role as Gloria Elana Morales in the Nickelodeon show "Taina". Lisa's character was the mother of the title character. The show lasted 26 episodes over 2 seasons. The show did win an ALMA (American Latino Media Arts) Award in 2002 for "Outstanding Children's Television Programming". In 2003, Lisa Lisa appeared on an episode of "Law & Order" as Lucy Mireles in the episode "Smoke".

Last I heard Lisa Lisa had started her own footwear line and had signed with Snoop Dogg's Entertainment Company "Uncle Snoop's Army". Before COVID, she was still touring with other singers from the era and hopefully afterward we will see her hit the stage again! I would love to see her perform live!!!

If you want more info on Lisa Lisa check her out on Facebook or on her website at TheRealLisaLisa.com!

Whatever Happened to the Little Nero's Pizza Guy?

We all know the story of a certain home defense specialist, Mr. Kevin McCallister and the documentary they filmed about his life and times titled "Home Alone", but what about the unsung hero of this film? The outstanding deliverer of za who believed he was taking a bullet in order to deliver a box of delicious perfection to a small child who just wanted a freakin' cheese pizza. What happened to the heroic actor who played the Little Nero's Pizza guy?

This iconic food service character was played by D. Danny Warhol aka Dan Charles Zukoski to perfection. When watching Home Alone, you really believe he was a true pizza delivery person. He was that good! So, since I have been so taken by this performance for decades, I decided to do some digging and found out that D. Danny had roles in some other iconic films! 

He was the "Teen in Red Sweater at Party" in Poltergeist III (1988), a "Stadium Fan" in Red Heat (1988), "Train Passenger" in Backdraft (1991), a "High School Student" in Beverly Hillbillies (1993), "Engineering Crewman Running in Hallway" on Star Trek: Generations (1994) & Star Trek: First Contact (1996), a "Power Corp Member" in Double Dragon (1994), a "Vampire" in From Dusk Till Dawn (1996), "White Guy #3" in The Pest (1997) and a "Toy Factory Worker" in Monkeybone (2001)! With 64 acting credits in his career spanning 3 decades, this is just a sample of what this guy has done! That is a crazy amount of range for one actor, but who can forget his nerdy recurring performance as Irwin Consodine in the original Saved by the Bell series! 

Although these are all fantastic roles in solid movies, nothing will ever touch the greatness that Warhol achieved with his acting chops as the Pizza Delivery Guy in Home Alone. He is a large part of one of the highest grossing comedies of all-time and no one can take that from him. According to his IMDB web page, Warhol has not acted in a film since the 2004 short film "Forever is a Long, Long time" where he played a bowling alley patron. Will we ever see the legendary D. Danny Warhol act again? I have heard rumors that he has been working at a pizza place in the Chicago area a a manager. 

I have also heard he works at a home improvement store, but I'm just going to keep checking the background characters in the next few big budget blockbusters I watch hoping to see him pop up! Okay enough of this gooey sh... Show of emotion! Who's hungry for a lovely cheese pizza delivered fresh from Little Nero's Pizza? Don't forget to tip!

Photos Courtesy: IMDB

Whatever Happened to Johnny Arcade?

In 1990 I was introduced to the show Video Power! I remember the show aired early in the mornings on weekdays on either WWOR or WPIX. The show was originally split into 2 segments. The first would be 15 minutes of pure video game bliss as the show's host Johnny Arcade would give us tips, hints & cheats on our favorite games for all of our favorite systems. Johnny would also do sneak peaks of upcoming games and reviews of current ones. 

He would do this all from the comfort of his AMAZING hangout/room. This place was total nirvana for any young video game fan at the time. If you would have asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up during these years, I would have said "Johnny Arcade"! The guy got paid to play video games! It was amazing. He was a role model to us all.

The second part of the show was a cartoon called "The Power Team". It featured the Acclaim video game heroes Kuros from Wizards & Warriors, Max Force from NARC, Tyrone from Arch Rivals, Bigfoot and Kwirk. They fought the bad guys Mr. Big and Malkil in order to save the world.

Occasionally Johnny Arcade would be seen in cartoon form in order to assist the Power Team in their exploits to defeat the forces of evil. The cartoon lasted for 33 episodes during season 1 of Video Power.

Then during season 2 of Video Power the cartoon was dropped in favor of a game show segment! The game started off with 4 contestants picked from the audience as they played a video game in order to get the high score within the 2:02 time limit. The top 2 scorers would move on to the Quiz round. Players were asked video game related questions and had to identify games based on the music. Each right answer gained them points. Finally it was on to the final head to head game play challenge. Whoever had the highest score after playing the game earned 50 points. 

The player with the most points at the end earned the right to go to the prize round where they would grab prizes like games, accessories and consoles. They were only given 41 seconds to make it through the course and velcro as many prizes to their vests and helmets as they could handle. 

Whatever they had, they won and Johnny Arcade would help identify each prize on camera. After season 2 ended in 1992 Video Power was not renewed for another year. So what happened to the Video Game icon Johnny Arcade?

Johnny Arcade was played by actor Stivi Paskoski. After his starring role on Video Power, Paskoski went on to act in shows like Franny's Turn (1992), Homicide: Life on the Street (1993) and the movie PCU (1994). Then after taking almost 10 years off, he returned to the screen in Third Watch (2003) and has had a steady acting career since then. Highlights include his role as Charles Bell in Law & Order and Lead SVR Agent in Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Who would have thought that Johnny Arcade would become a member of the Marvel Cinematic Universe?

Whatever Happened to Fruit Islands Cereal?

In 1987 Ralston introduced the world to King Ayumayuma and his delicious cereal called Fruit Islands. I'm going to be honest with you, if it weren't for the beautifully animated commercials with the catchy music I probably would have never even tried Fruit Islands Cereal. They seemed like a rip-off of Fruity Pebbles cereal which was and still is a great cereal. Thankfully for me, I did get suckered in by this well crafted advertising campaign and pestered my Mom to buy us some Fruit Islands Cereal!

 

The gimmick that separated this fruity flavored favorite was that each piece of cereal or island had real bits of apple baked into it! If my memory recalls, this gave the cereal a unique texture. There were several flavors of Islands you could eat in each bowl including Cherry, Orange & Lemon. I do remember really liking the taste and getting more boxes after we gave it an initial trial run. I remember they had some pretty good premiums packed into those boxes. From boxes of Nerds to fruit scented pens to...

FRUIT ISLANDS PLAYING CARDS!!!! I can't find anything on these cards anywhere on line, so I created the above picture based on what I remember them looking like. They were mini cards and very small, but each card featured King Ayumayuma on the back and they were fun to play with. Did anyone else have these or am I going crazy?

Despite Ralston's best efforts the cereal did not last long and the final push I can recall was Fruit Islands contest to help the King and his BFF Hee-Hee find there way home to the Fruit Islands. They gave away some great prizes, but it must not have stirred up enough additional revenue for Ralston to keep the cereal on shelves. So what ever happened to King Ayumayuma and Hee-Hee? This will forever be one of the greatest cereal based mysteries of our life times. If you see him around tell him I'm looking for him and we miss him!

For more info visit the Fruit Islands page at Mr. Breakfast.com

Whatever Happened to The Guys Next Door?

The Guys Next Door was a sketch comedy show that ran on NBC Saturday mornings from 1990-1991. The cast included Patrick J. Dancy, Bobby Leslie, Damon Sharpe, Chris Wolf and Eddie Garcia. The Guys were an actual band that was signed to SBK/EMI Records. Their song "I've Been Waiting For You" made it onto the Billboard Hot 100 list and they released 1 self titled studio album. The NBC program lasted only 13 episodes, but was nominated for a Young Artist Award for "Best Youth Variety or Game Show". They ultimately ended up losing to The All New Mickey Mouse Club, which is one more reason to dislike Justin Timberlake. I always felt it was NBCs attempt to cash in on the New Kids on the Block craze that was sweeping the United States around this time. Take a look at this episode and decide for yourself.

Even though the series was short lived, it did have a pretty big fan following (including my 2 sisters) and they did have some catchy tunes! But, these manufactured boy band pop groups usually have a pretty quick shelf life and The Guys Next Door were no exception.

 But what happened to The Guys Next Door after NBC evicted them from their Saturday morning lineup and the record label kicked them to the curb? I did some digging and this is what I could find!

Eddie Garcia

Eddie had been acting for a few years before becoming a Guy Next Door and appeared in the films Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo (1984) and Lambada (1990). After The Guys Next Door series ended in 1991 Garcia continued to act in various television and movie roles. Most notably in Boogie Nights (1997), Bringing Down The House (2003) and Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010)! He also took his dance talents on the road and danced for Michael & Janet Jackson and choreographed routines for the Dirty Dancing TV series and Jennifer Lopez: Live In Concert!

Patrick J. Dancy

Like Garcia, Dancy continued to act in television for a few decades after leaving The Guys Next Door in 1991. He appeared in a recurring role on the hit sitcom Family Matters as Ted and appeared as a guest star on the shows Living Single, In The House, The Pretender and NYPD Blue. His last acting gig was in 2004 on the TV series She Spies. In 1993 he was nominated for a Young Artist Award for "Best Young Actor Recurring In A Television Series". He lost to Aeryk Egan & Bumper Robinson. They tied for the award.

Chris Wolf

Wolf had been an actor for several years before becoming a part of The Guys Next Door and some might argue that it was his best work. He acted in the films Police Academy 6: City Under Siege (1989) and Tango & Cash (1989). After The Guys Next Door his most high profile role may have been his turn as the Swamp Creature on the television show Big Bad Beetleborgs! 

Bobby Leslie

After the cancellation of their TV show, Bobby Leslie has never acted again and I really can't find much info on what he has been up to since! The Guys have reunited a few times recently, but Bobby has been nowhere to be found.

Damon Sharpe

Probably the most famous of all The Guys Next Door alumni, Sharpe has created an amazing producing and songwriting career for himself. Over the years he has worked with such A-list talent as Ariana Grande, Jennifer Lopez, Pitbull and Nelly just to name a few. He did act on few television shows after Guys. You may have seen him as a Male Student in the Buffy The Vampire Slayer episode "I Robot...You Jane". But his biggest on screen contribution was probably his role as a vocal coach on the hit television series The X Factor.

So there it is, a brief update on where the Guys went after they left next door. It was a short period of time where their star shone bright, but damn it was a hell of a ride. They even had their own board game for cryin' out loud! If that doesn't count as AWESOME, I don't know what does?

Just like every other boy band of the early 90s they left us too soon, but at least they left us with some freakin hot jams!!! Thank you Guys Next Door and may God bless you wherever you are!

For more investigative reporting on some of your favorite icons from the 80s & 90s, check out the posts below!

Whatever Happened to Billy Ocean? Whatever Happened to Chip & Pepper?

Whatever happened to Billy Ocean?

This past week while looking for something to watch on Netflix I spotted the 1988 Corey Haim/Corey Feldman classic "License to Drive"! I made some comment to my wife about possibly watching this movie tonight and she replied "I have never seen that before". WHAT! That "possibly watching" turned into a "DEFINATELY WATCHING" License to Drive!

If you haven't seen the movie yet, I won't spoil too much for you, but in a nutshell Corey Haim's character fails his driving test, tells his friend Corey Feldman he passed, they take the family car out and craziness ensues! At the end Haim gets the girl played by a young Heather Graham and they drive away to the sweet & soulful sounds of Billy Ocean.

Billy Ocean? I hadn't thought about him in a long time, but as luck would have it I was recently sorting through a box of old toys, cards, etc. and I uncovered this "Greatest Hits" tape of his that I had bought at Goodwill for $0.50 over a year ago.

If you're anything like me, right now you're asking yourself "Whatever happened to Billy Ocean?". Why doesn't Billy Ocean get the same respect as other R&B singers from the 80s? He was a hit maker on par with Lionel Richie, Terence Trent D'Arby and Keith Sweat at the time. So, what has he been up to since the early 90s? I mean this guy had multiple #1 hits won Grammy Awards and performed the theme song from the film The Jewel of the Nile! He was on top of the world and then nothing.

I did some digging and it turns out Billy Ocean has been quite busy since we last heard him on the airwaves. In 2002 the University of Westminster awarded him an honorary doctorate of music. In 2010 he was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Music of Black Origins Awards. Then in 2011 Ocean became a Companion of the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts and in his spare time he released the albums "Because I Love You" (2009) & "Here You Are" (2013). Finally, he just wrapped his 2017 Spring Tour last month! In honor of rediscovering Billy here is my favorite song of his, "Caribbean Queen (No More Love On The Run)". Have fun trying to get that out of your head! What is your favorite Billy Ocean song?

Whatever Happened to Chip & Pepper?

A while back I wrote a post about the 1991 Saturday Morning NBComic. Featured in it was an ad featuring all the hot new cartoons that would be on NBC that fall. Yo Yogi, Pro Stars, Space Cats, Captain N and Chip and Pepper's Cartoon Madness!

Wait? What? Chip and Pepper? I totally forgot about those guys! If you didn't know, these radical identical twin dudes from Winnipeg hosted their own Saturday Morning television show titled "Chip and Pepper's Cartoon Madness"! In it the two brothers play the part of cartoon bulldogs who escape into the real world through a hole in their cartoon.

While on Earth their main goal is to spread fun and show cartoons to the kids of the world all while fighting the nasty Bubbleina! Sounds crazy? Well it was! Just watch the samples below to get a taste of what "Chip and Pepper's Cartoon Madness" was all about!

Sadly the show only lasted one season from 1991-1992. But in that time Chip and Pepper parlayed their TV celebrity status into a popular clothing line that featured everything from shirts to jackets to jeans. Since 1985 Chip had been designing t-shirts and selling them out of the back of his Jeep.

 According to his website the "Chip & Pepper" and "Chip Foster" clothing lines are currently sold in over 500 stores worldwide and has made the brand  a resource to some of Hollywood's biggest celebs! If you are interested you can buy a pair of Chip Foster Jeans off the official website by clicking HERE. Warning the average price is around $200!

Aside from a few appearances on the Style Network and E!, I could not find anymore acting appearances by the duo. In my search I did uncover this nice interview with the twins on the website Vintage Inspired Passionista.

So in closing, I am a little disappointed that Chip and Pepper did not continue their reign as the coolest dudes/dogs on television, but I find a little comfort in knowing that if I win the lottery I can afford to buy a pair of their jeans in 2017. Also, it looks like they can throw a pretty kick ass party!