The stars of “Showgirls” share juicy tidbits and reflect on the behind-the-scenes campy cult fave exclusively to TabloidProdigy.com. Celebrating its 15th anniversary with a glitzy Blu-ray DVD release today, the once panned box office turkey finally gets treated like the ‘Goddess’ it truly is.

CASTING: Coming off the heels of their “Basic Instinct” success, a chance to work with director Paul Verhoeven on a Joe Eszterhas screenplay seemed like a formulaic blockbuster. As it turns out, the duo, wasn’t too big to fail.

GREG TRAVIS (played Phil Newkirk, assistant to the Stardust’s entertainment director): I was auditioning, like everyone else, and Johanna Ray (casting director) called me in and Paul (Verhoeven) was there when I read. I had seen his earlier films and we were laughing about some of his other stuff like “The Fourth Man” were popular back in the ‘80s. I gave him something right for the character, for the role. I remember Craig Watson was also there for the same part. In the ‘80s, he had quite a few lead roles in movies. A lot bigger people than I was auditioned. At the time, I was known as a stand-up comedian–I opened for Cher, Tom Jones and headlined all the improvs. So I guess I had the comedic touch that he was looking for.

ALAN RACHINS (Stardust’s producer of its marquee show “Goddess”): I read the script prior to going in, and it was a Joe Eszterhas script, which had a huge cache: Paul Verhoeven, Joe Eszterhas and MGM. I liked the part. I auditioned for it, and Paul (Verhoeven) ran the camera–and that’s pretty unusual. And I felt relatively secure about it, it seemed to be a good fit.

RENA RIFFEL (Cheetah club stripper): I just got my first lead in a movie, called “Art Deco Detective,” directed by Philippe Mora–he did great movies from the ‘80s. I got the lead part and they told me I beat out Anna Nicole Smith, so I thought I was on my way.  And this was in ‘93 or ‘94. At the time I didn’t know if she was a good actress or not, she’s interesting to watch but she was a big GUESS model at the time. I don’t know, but I guess they auditioned her and uh, yah….

Because of “Art Deco Detective,” I got the audition (for “Showgirls“). I was playing a bitchy detective, and Johanna Ray (casting director)–I believe she saw the movie–called me in for Cristal at first, and that was what I was auditioning for.

I was doing the same whole vibe Gina Gershon was going for–the snotty, bitchy attitude. And they kept calling me back, and then I read for Paul Verhoeven. At the time I had just gotten a new agent, and I didn’t even know it was Paul Verhoeven I was going to meet with. I’m glad I didn’t know it was him, otherwise I would’ve been nervous. I was a big fan of his from “Basic Instinct.” I kept auditioning over and over for Cristal. They put me on hold for a while, a month. Then they told me I was going to audition for a new character (Penny/Hope).

THE SCRIPT: Eszterhas was the highest paid Hollywood writer at the time, having just earned a record $3 million for penning “Basic Instinct.” That he was so controlling over his prose, his green lighted script was as good as set in stone. He and Verhoeven reportedly spent a lot of time in Vegas strip clubs in order to research the film. For his effort, he went on to win that year’s Razzie for Worst Screenplay.

ALAN RACHINS: The script that we read, was the script that was on screen. There were no surprises.

GREG TRAVIS: I asked him (Paul Verhoeven), I said ‘now are you going to change some of these lines?’ and he said ‘well I’m contracted to shoot the script.’ He made them (the actors) stick with the script because there was some sort of legal stipulation because the writer (Joe Eszterhas) was a big deal.

JOSHUA GRANNELL, writer/director AKA drag persona Peaches Christ, host of Midnight Mass “Showgirls”  screenings: A lot of the dialogue is insane. The outrageous “it must be weird not having anyone cum on you,” that’s great. What makes “Showgirls” so extraordinary is that you have the choreography, etc. but even watching Nomi put ketchup on french-fries is funny. And then there’s the head scratcher, “Doggy Chow.” You don’t laugh, but you go: “What the fuck? They bond over eating dog food.”

GREG TRAVIS: A lot of the actresses wanted to change their lines, but he said no. There were a lot of call backs. It’s kind of a well written script, but I don’t know who the fault of it is. It was directed too heavy. It should’ve been played lighter. People in Vegas are laughing and giggling and having a good time. You’re in Vegas for Christ’s sake. It’s like a bad horror movie when people are too dramatic for the slug across the floor.

RENA RIFFEL: I added a few lines and Paul had to okay it. Like when she (Elizabeth Berkley) said “you need more pink” in the Cheetah, we needed that line. I told Paul. He said “I like that,” and he went back. In the book it’s written in pencil. It’s a cool moment for me.
My last scene at the Crave Club, and in the whole movie the girls are bitches. I thought I’d ask him if I could turn into a bitch too, but Paul said “No, no, no, Penny’s nice.” And way in the back–I don’t think anyone noticed it–but I give Nomi (Elizabeth Berkley) a bitchy look. But I was out of focus, nobody noticed.
They made my screen presence and part in the movie a little bigger, so that was a surprise. In the script, because I got downgraded from Cristal to Penny, there were only a few scenes. But when I saw the movie it seemed like the editor paid attention to my character and story development. The dancing they wrote into the script was all that made it into the movie to the 319 song, I had a whole choreographed routine–it was very elaborate. In the script it said ‘Penny’s crawling naked on the bar.’

THE DIRECTOR: “Showgirls” was the first movie ever to have a mandatory NC-17 rating written into the director’s contract. At the time, Verhoeven didn’t even know what a lap dance was prior to visiting strip joints to research the film. And it shows.

PAUL VERHOEVEN (DVD commentary): Joe and I agreed that we would only consider making “Showgirls” if we could find a company willing to accept an NC-17 rating for a film that would cost between 30-40 million dollars. We wanted to create something that had kind of a Vegas feeling–over the top in the musical and theatrical way. It’s a complete extravaganza.

GREG TRAVIS: Everyone played it dramatic–and too much so. (The direction) was pretty heavy handed. Strippers–and dancing–and Vegas–it’s not that serious a subject matter. It’s panties and pasties, how serious does it have to be? People were playing it like it was the most heavy handed, serious drama they’ve ever been in. That’s how it came to be so funny. The subject matter is just ridiculous, it’s dancing. Maybe he wanted it that way. I know I tried to lighten it up a little bit. I wasn’t too serious in my approach. It was a tough script to crack because on one level, an actress with a certain ability could’ve made it work–but I’m not sure if anyone could. I think it worked as a fun, visually stimulating film. The look, the lighting, the costumes, the girls.

JOSHUA GRANNELL: Patrick (actor Patrick Bristow who played “Goddess” choreographer Marty) told a great story on the time when he came in to shoot the big dance rehearsal number and yelled “Thrust it! Thrust it!” Paul said to him “cut” and yelled at him “you’re not a dance instructor!” And says cut again and screams at Patrick and says “give me passion!” Patrick said “I’m going to give him so much passion,  he’s going to regret asking.” He then drops to his knees and screams and beats the floor. Paul said “perfect.” That’s when Patrick looked at other actors and they thought “oh my god, what am I doing here?” Paul directed every movie that way. It’s an over the top, relentless ride. There’s not much you can compare it to–every single moment was milked.

GREG TRAVIS: The heavy handedness of it made it so you didn’t have a lot of time for improv. I said could we try it some different ways, but (Paul) was very specific. He gave u leeway to try, but he was very specific about the way he set up cameras and block scenes. There just wasn’t a lot of time to change it up. We were going pretty fast.

RENA RIFFEL: Working with Paul was a dream come true. He was very sweet to me and supportive. I was in heaven the whole time. I felt confident with him and he made me feel good. He gave me freedom in scenes and didn’t tell me what to do or anything. I think it was my first scene, in Vegas, and every time I’d walk outside my head would tilt to my side. He said “come out, but don’t tilt your head to the side.” He was very detail oriented. I noticed in the final take it still made it in.

ALAN RACHINS: Paul seemed to be excited throughout the film, “this is what happens in the scene,” he’ll say. He’ll walk you through it to make sure you’re on the same page. He worked with the same cinematographer before, so they had an easy shorthand with each other.

THE DANCING: The film may have taken a lot of punches, but it’s the dancing that gets the kicks
RENA RIFFEL: It was getting crazier every day. Behind the scenes it was just insane, but it was fun. And I think because everyone was so happy and having so much fun it just made every one wild. I had a lot of rehearsals for the dance numbers. Every routine I did was a three minute choreographed routine. We would have rehearsals for two hours, sometimes three. Robert Davi (who played strip club boss Al Torres) gave me a foot massage on set–my feet were so dirty. We would just keep going over and over. Glenn Plummer (actor who played James Smith) and me would practice our chair dance, and Elizabeth and I worked on our pole dance together. When I wasn’t on the set, I would rehearse like three times a week. And I got in really good shape. They worked me in good. I remember Elizabeth after filming all day, she would come to the rehearsal stage in the Valley, she would come there full of energy. I would remember her hair would be soaking wet. Her energy level just blew me away.

ELIZABETH BERKLEY (DVD commentary): The choreographer and I really worked on bringing a sense of artistry to the dance. Even when I’m stripping in the Cheetah club, it’s not just simple moves as a stripper, it’s still that same style that Nomi has. A lot of her sexuality is through her dance. Being the one that’s up there, it feels pretty hot.

THE CONFUSION: Was it a comedy or a failed drama? Fifteen years later, film scholars and cast members are still debating.

RENA RIFFEL: When I was on the set we would spend a lot of time in the make-up trailer–and a lot of talk about how the movie was going in the wrong direction from what was planned. We’re all still trying to figure out what happened, but we were all led to believe it was like “Basic Instinct”–and at the time it was a serious thriller. And seeing the movie now, I see the same “Showgirls” camp. At the time, we thought we were being vixens and didn’t see it as being so over the top. Even my first day on set, some of the actors were complaining about some of the lines they had to say. They were so flashy and the actors were trying to say them like a drama. It seemed so absurd. But now I realize that there was so much comedy in the script. That’s my theory–I think the script was a comedy script, but everyone thought it was a drama. Not everyone, Gina was playing comedy in some places. But the over all execution was a drama.

ALAN RACHINS: A number of girls who were in the dance didn’t quite understand what they signed up for. What was required of them was to hang around nude, for long periods of time because that was required for shooting. A lot of girls told me they didn’t realize that’s what they signed up for–they didn’t realize what it would be like. A number of them probably haven’t made films before–I’m talking about the chorus girls. People are walking around. Lighting. Whatever. It wasn’t what some of them thought it would be. They were regretful.

GREG TRAVIS: I was on it for three months. We were all looking at each other smiling, not sure what kind of movie it was going to be. We knew the dancing was going to be good, we were hoping for the best. Nobody really knew it was going to be good, bad or indifferent. It’s hard to tell how the performances were going to be cut together. Gina Gershon looked good, Elizabeth seemed to be doing alright.

RENA RIFFEL: I remember one time in the trailer, Gina–she was liking my dancing, she was like “I wish I could get a lap dance from Rena.” This was at the point that Gina was realizing that the movie had taken a dump, and turned into another movie. She was shaking her head and said “Oh my god.” I heard rumors from others that she said “I don’t know what the hell I’m doing.” It was really hard delivering those lines, even though I think she did such an amazing acting job. I just think she wasn’t sure where to go with it or something. But I did hear she was confused with the direction–the comedy or the drama. People were confused. No one said it was a drama or was a comedy. I know that the way I played my character, I put comedy into my thing. Personally, I was trying to be kind of funny.

ELIZABETH’s PERFORMANCE: Elizabeth Berkley was vilified for her performance. Even with a bad script and misleading direction, it was Elizabeth who bared the worst of brunt.

ALAN RACHINS: Walking on the set, Elizabeth was very sweet and just a doll and I really appreciated that. She’s that odd combination of a nice Jewish girl from Michigan, and then there was this movie, and it just didn’t go together.

JOSHUA GRANNELL: Whether u agree with the style of performance or not, talk about the commitment. That’s what Faye Dunaway did (in “Mommie Dearest”), no holds barred. That’s what Elizabeth Berkley did–look at her other movies, she’s not Nomi Malone.

ELIZABETH BERKLEY (interview with E!): When “Showgirls” first came out, obviously it was a rough, rough time. I will not lie to you about that. It was painful and hard and it was a challenging time professionally and personally. Honestly, in the heat of the controversy it was absolutely hell on Earth, but the fact is–it was absolutely amazing.

ALAN RACHINS: Elizabeth got some rough reviews, and I didn’t know how much that should’ve been shared with Elizabeth, Paul and the editor. Things can be redone–adjusted. Rather than it being a shared responsibility, the reviews came down hard on Elizabeth. I had a tough time with that because  I could see their point at some level, but I liked her and was rooting for her, so it was hard to take that in.

DENNIS HASKINS, former “Saved by the Bell” co-star (interview with E!): She felt like the whole world abandoned her.

ELIZABETH BERKLEY (interview with “Newsday” in 1999): After “Showgirls” I was left with this name and fame that millions of actresses work years for. I had to get past the hurt and get on with it.

JOSHUA GRANNELL: If other people played those parts, it would still be legendary. But if anyone played Elizabeth’s part, it wouldn’t be the same. Cristal Connors is incredible, but the movie might have been forgettable if another actress played Nomi Malone.  I think in some ways, watching Gina Gershon vamp her way was such a drag queen performance. Such a deliciously wicked performance. Elizabeth playing such an insane interpretation of a stripper is just fun. I put on my fliers “it’s the best movie ever made.” How many movies came out the year “Showgirls” came out? I bet none of them are screened regularly or shown on TV.

THE AFTERMATH: Tying only with “Battlefield Earth” as an all-time worst film, “Showgirls” went on to win seven Razzie awards (from a whopping 13 nominations), including Worst Film of the Decade. And Worst Director winner Verhoeven was the first nominee to show up to claim an award, and was said to have received a standing ovation. During the film’s screening, actor Kyle MacLachlan was rumored to have been so embarrassed that he walked out, but has said he “suffered through the whole two hours.” Box office numbers fell short of expectations, in part to an NC-17 rating. Critics panned the film, some slamming it as pornography or misogynist.

ALAN RACHINS: When I walked into the screening, I thought I was walking into a huge hit at that point. I was a little confused when the curtain came up, from various elements. And then came the reviews. which were…ouch. I thought this would’ve helped me more because this was a different character than I’ve done. But I can’t say I’ve got anything (roles) from it. It seems to have been its own thing, but that’s the way it’s worked out so far.

RENA RIFFEL: For me, it really helped my career because, basically, it’s the only thing I’ve ever done. I went on to doing “Striptease” right afterwards. I was on the set of “Striptease” in Florida right when “Showgirls” came out. I saw it with the cast of “Striptease” and no one liked it. They were disgusted. Especially Demi Moore. Demi came over to me and said “you are the only good thing in the movie,” and said “we don’t want ‘Striptease’ to be any thing like that.”  A lot of people never worked again, or had a really hard time. I started working a lot after that. I’ve done a lot of things–network TV, recurring roles. And a lot of independent film. But I was talking to one of the fellow “Showgirls” actors–Dewey Weber–at first Hollywood was so mad about “Showgirls.” Casting directors would call me in just to tell me how much they hated “Showgirls,” and this was on Warner Bros. studios! It was rough. A lot of people were really bitchy toward me. Probably a smaller percentage compared to the things going well. But I did feel a backlash.

GREG TRAVIS: I’m grateful, even though it was bad. I still get residual checks because it gets TV exposure all over the world. People recognize me more for this than anything else.  It did get me through some doors, but female casting directors didn’t care for it because of the nudity. A lot of the female casting directors didn’t even see it because of the reviews. I feel like my performance held up, there’s nothing about it that I feel ashamed of or would do differently. As an actor, that’s all I can do.

ALAN RACHINS: I think sex is a really interesting area to explore on screen, and it’s still highly controversial and mixed. In odd ways, people wanted “Showgirls” to be sexier, but they felt bludgeoned. And at the same time, if it does turn people on, they become prurient. Sex seems like fine line.

THAT RAPE SCENE: In the last 20 minutes of Showgirls, seemingly out of nowhere, comes a brutal rape. Critics, fans, actors–the one thing everyone agrees on: the rape scene is difficult to watch.

ALAN RACHINS: It was more hardcore than I expected, I just thought it was out of keeping than the tone the movie had established. It was hard to recover from it–not just the character, but the members of the audience.

JOSHUA GRANNELL: It’s like intermission (at the Midnight Mass)–people take a cigarette or go to the bathroom. It’s so out of context with the rest of the movie. It’s inherently misogynist and the delivery is over the top. In that one scene, it really feels like the movie and the filmmaker got mean spirited. It’s unfortunate because the tone takes people out of it, and I’ve seen it happen with audiences over and over again. It’s almost like you didn’t need to go through with that. I’ve heard of places (other midnight showings) where they cut it out of the movie.

GREG TRAVIS: Paul likes the ultra violence and I think he went a little too ultra violent. It didn’t need as much screen time as it did to get the point across. It was the big twist at the end where she comes back to beat up the bad guy. It was a part of her character art. I’ve been a part of a lot of screening and that’s the part they squirm at.

ALAN RACHINS: That scene was shot in Malibu, over two nights from 6 p.m. to 8 a.m. That was a jolt to your senses–being up all night. It was very cold, the girls were in skimpy dresses. They kept their parkas on until the last minute when it was time to shoot because it was really cold. The hardest thing was staying up all night.

CULT AFTERLIFE: Initially a box office turkey in 1995, Showgirls went on to a highly profitable home video afterlife–earning a spot as one of MGM’s top 20 all-time best sellers. A cheeky “V.I.P. Edition” DVD box set was released in 2004, featuring  shot glasses, a deck of playing cards, a drinking game tied to scenes in the movie, a nude poster of Elizabeth Berkley coupled with suction cup pasties in a “pin the tale on the donkey” inspired game and other trashy goodness. The movie was released again in 2007 without the physical extras, and now, it’s gets the Blu-ray treatment. But the journey to cult fave didn’t happen immediately.

ALAN RACHINS: I didn’t see it with an audience with a camp sensibility, so I don’t know what it’s like, but the fact that it got a second life is a wonderful. We may have gone down, but it is a success.

RENA RIFFEL: I started realizing this around ‘99–Christian Mclaughlin from “Married With Children,” now a friend of mine. He said: “Oh my god, you’re Rena Riffel,” he knew me from “Showgirls.” He told me then he would show it all the time at his house and friends would come over. I think in ‘03-‘04 is when it started getting bigger and shown as a midnight movie. But now it’s full on. I think it’s just such a fun movie and campy and crazy and fun to watch. Peaches Christ (Joshua Grannell)–he had me come out to one of his midnight movies called Midnight Mass and puts on a live “Goddess” show and it’s all drag queens and he jumps out of a volcano.

Consider Joshua Grannell the pioneer of the cult Showgirls movement. For 13 years, as drag personality Peaches Christ, he has hosted midnight screenings of the movie through his San Francisco bred Midnight Mass cult film screening series. This summer, the Midnight Mass moves to the legendary Castro theater to celebrate the 15th anniversary of “Showgirls” at 8 p.m. on Saturday, August 7. Visit PeachesChrist.com for more.

JOSHUA GRANNELL: My Midnight Mass show was first launched in 1998 and it was just a fusion of the drag character I created Peaches Christ and my love for cult movies. The only movie that I screened every year for 13 years was “Showgirls.” In 1998 it wasn’t that old–and we were creating something special. VH1 wasn’t capitalizing, and the box (DVD) set didn’t come out. We were the first group that turned it into a cult movie tradition in San Francisco–and then we took it on the road. There were a few of us that saw it for what it was right away. For most cult films, it takes a while.

We offered free lap dances with large popcorn, we re-created scenes from the movie. I haven’t done the rape scene, though. I’ve done the pool fucking scene–on stage with the pool–I do the “Goddess” number, if Peaches Christ didn’t explode from a volcano, the audience might demand refunds. I have friends who see it in other places, but the truest way is to see it is at Midnight Mass. I’m getting crack addict drag queens from the street to do the lap dances. Every year we get people who clearly don’t get it, but as I bring out the girls, they start hiding their popcorn under the seats. The horror on their faces is almost as much fun as jumping out the volcano.

A “SHOWGIRLS” SEQUEL?
Back in February, German director Marc Volander’s released a bizarre trailer for dubious sequel, Showgirls 2. It appeared to have little to do with its predecessor and the extent of its similarities ended with its namesake. But some “Showgirls” alums have different ideas about a follow-up.

GINA GERSHON (In an interview with Broadway.com in 2008 on a musical version of “Showgirls” ): Originally, I had an idea to do that (a sequel) and I was talking to a couple of people to write it with me. But it wouldn’t be “Showgirls” as we know it. It’d be “Showgirls” as told by me, which really–you think “Showgirls” was good? You should have seen what went on behind the scenes. So, I would mix up my own weird thought patterns with what was going on with “Showgirls.” I haven’t written it yet. I had to talk to Joe Eszterhas about it. He seemed to like it, but I haven’t gotten around to it and I’m not sure if I’m going to get around to it.

RENA RIFFEL: I read that Gina wants to do a Broadway version. That German thing–I don’t know what he’s doing. But I’m not in that. It said that I was, but I’m not. I was approached to be in it, but you saw it. It was just girls doing whatever–I don’t know what he’s doing.

GREG TRAVIS: Rena was talking to that German guy for a while, but he got weird. Rena’s got “Showgirl,” coming out. She’s a sweetheart.

RENA RIFFEL: “Showgirl” is a follow-up movie and it’s based on my life (character Penny/Hope) after “Showgirls.” I’m trying to get famous–and that’s her whole motivation. And she needs to get her formal technique–she’s dancing “like a truck” because she’s only been a stripper. So she needs to get training, so that’s her obstacle. And she struggles between being a mother and following her dreams and gets involved in some sleazy stuff. I’m talking to Greg Travis, who played Phil Newkirk, and possibly Dewey Weber, who played the Elvis driver. The only person confirmed was Peter Stickles, he was in “Short Bus” and on “The Lair.” He plays the male lead and he turns out to be pretty sleazy. At first I fall for him, but he turns out to be a jerk.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Greg Travis
Stand-up comic and actor Greg Travis played Phil Newkirk, assistant to Stardust entertainment director Zack Carey (Kyle MacLachlan), who routinely entertains the Stardust’s high rollers with strip shows at the Cheetah Club and Goddess dancers who moonlight as prostitutes.  Travis went on to work with director Paul Verhoeven again in blockbuster Starship Troopers, and played Andy Warhol in the much-hyped The Watchmen. He currently works on hilarious Web series Drama Kings, and has roles in upcoming films. He’s directing a short film starring Showgirls alum Rena Riffel. “She’s going to be a stripper–big surprise–it’s called Downsized, about an alcoholic who gets downsized by his wife,” Travis said. “And he picks up a stripper and brings her back home to his wife…..”  Visit his Web site at GregTravis.com

Alan Rachins
Alan Rachins played Tony Moss, the abrasive producer of Goddess–the Stardust’s marquee show. Rachins continued working in television, including a run as Dharma’s hippie father, Larry, in Dharma & Greg. Before Showgirls, Rachins was an Emmy-nominated regular on L.A. Law.

Rena Riffel
As the unofficial “keeper of the Showgirls flame,” Rena Riffel has been one of the few cast members to relish in its cult following and continues to support the film at midnight showings and other publicity. Playing the role of Penny/Hope, she’s the memorable Cheetah Club stripper with a heart of gold. Following Showgirls, Riffel went on to star in Demi Moore’s Striptease and Mulholland Drive.

She’s currently working on the Showgirls sequel, Showgirl, which sees her character Penny/Hope struggle between being a mother and following her dreams to become a famous dancer. “She needs to get her formal technique,” Riffel says. “She dances ‘like a truck’ because she’s only been a stripper, she needs training–so that’s her obstacle.” Shortbus and The Lair actor Peter Stickles is cast as her romantic interest. Showgirl is slated for a 2012 release. Interested in getting involved with the production? Visit the movie’s support page here. Riffel’s personal Web site is RenaRiffel.blogspot.com

More at Showgirlthemovie.com

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