BETWEEN THE COVERS : JOAN'S THE TOAST OF THE 80'S!

As Joan has been celebrating the 30th Anniversary of 'Dynasty'.. Here is an exerpt from a 2001 coffee table book issued by People magazine entitled - 'Celebrate The 80'S' .. They asked Joan to write an introduction to the book.. Here is an edited version of that intro..

"Fast cars, gorgeous clothes, luxurious holdays, the 80's were the decade of total excess, which 'Dynasty' epitomised. The credo was, if you've got it, flaunt it. 'Dynasty' had it. On the set we would use only fresh flowers, the finest caviar, Baccaret crystal, Limoges dishes, as well as real silver, linen and lace sheets. We wanted to depict a lifestyle people had not seen on TV before. Michael Douglas captured the mood of the times brilliantly in his "Greed Is Good", speech in Wall Street. I've seen that movie about nine times. It annoys me when people whinge about 'the vulgar gaudy 80's' and the hideousness of the clothes. The clothes were certainly not hideous. I have endless photograph albums of my friends and myself at parties, dinners and on the beach, where everyone looks great. It's not even a question of dressing up, it's a question of dressing well, and that doesn't happen today. The age of glamour and good grooming is gone. As a symbol of all that was rapacious and unabashed in the 80's, Alexis was hugh fun to portray. She wasn't particularly over the top at first. I wore some rather prim clothes, actually little blouses, rather like Princess Diana, before we found the Alexis look, which was big shoulders, a lot of cleavage, tight short skirts with extremely high heels, masses of jewelry, big hair and supreme confidence. At one point I said "I'm not wearing this little tweed suit with the boxy jacket and the little mink collar, thank you very much." Nolan Miller 'Dynasty's' wonderful costume designer, had worked with Lana Turner, Joan Crawford and Barbara Stanwyck. These women knew what they wanted, sartorially speaking. So he was pleased that I was so interested in what I was wearing and how the character should look.

JOAN LOOKS AT DESIGNS WITH NOLAN

I used to spend Saturdays schmoozing around Neiman Marcus and Saks, telling the sales-women, "Hold this. And this. And this. And this!" Then Monday at the studio there would be a rack of clothes that the wardrobe designer had picked up for me. Once they realized I knew what I was talking about, they went along whatever I suggested.
I had some concern that I would be attacked by somebody because Alexis was so devilish. But I used to say. "Blake has murdered two people. Alexis hasn't killed anyone, so why is she the baddie? She just does what all men do in business, which is to be vindictive, manipulative and devious." Leona Helmsley, the Queen of Mean, probably wasn't the nicest woman on the block, but she certainly created an empire. Roger Moore, a big fan of the show, often called me to ask... "Joanie, how could you do that to poor Cecil Colby?". Cecil Colby was Blake's oil tycoon rival, who had a heart attack while we were making love, in one scene. I could not stop laughing between takes, because his toupee kept falling off!

A lot of the female characters on 'Dynasty' were saying, " I'm feminine and I'm sexy, but don't mess with me in business. I can have it all, the children, the job, the power, the clothes and the hairstyles." But I always thought Krystle was a total wimp. She was so goody two shoes. I don't happen to dig people like that. And I think Linda felt Alexis was overly ballsy and vicious. When Diahann Carroll came in as Dominique Deveraux, she said... "I'm going to be the first black bitch on television." She started to dress in the higher of haute couture. But Aaron Spelling told Nolan.. "Alexis is the one who has to have the most over the top clothes!" That's when my wardrobe went haywire. My clothes had to outdo Diahann's in flashiness. Sometimes they could look ludicrous.

  The 80's were full of larger than life personalities and I am fortunate to have met many of them. Michael Jackson came on the set in about 1982 or 1983. He was so shy, he just stood in a corner for hours, watching and did not say a word. No one was more closely scrutinized in the 80's than Prince Charles and Princess Diana. I first met them in Palm Beach in 1984. Armand Hammer was hosting a charity ball. Diana was sweet, tall and willowy, with eyes the most amazing shade of blue. In 1984 I visited Ronald and Nancy Reagan at the White House, which was glamorous beyond belief.

This may surprise you but Margaret Thatcher was a physically attractive woman. A lot of politicians fancied her. She was a man's woman, but friendly enought to women. If your house was falling down, Maggie would probably say.. "Go buy yourself some bricks and mortar and get on a ladder and fix it yourself!" .. Which is the way I feel about life. You are responsible for your own desting. You do it yourself. You don't wait for other people to do it for you!

(c) 2001 ..JOAN COLLINS