COLD OPEN:
CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!
"Hot Stuff" - Donna Summer
cover by Zespół S.O.S. (Feb. 2020)
Kicking off my first show, the Polish band Zespół S.O.S. with their cover
of "Hot Stuff," the 1979 rock - R&B - disco hit by Donna Summer.
As you are about to see, the song applies to little old me.
I'm Michelle Ramsey
from the 1994 film
A Brilliant Disguise.
In the erotic thriller,
I am a woman with
multiple personality
disorder under the
care of a shrink who
wants to dominate
and control me.
The title of my movie
is the inspiration of my
new Shady's Place series
Save Me:
Michelle's
Brilliant
Disguises
I call it that because I am
a gorgeous chameleon who
plays a variety of characters,
all of them memorable, in
films and television series.
As I launch my show today,
I'll introduce some of my
characters and play songs
that help tell their stories.
In the 1995 Mel Brooks
gothic comedy horror film
Dracula: Dead and Loving It
starring Leslie Nielsen, I play
Lucy Westenra, daughter of
a wealthy English family.
To make a long story short,
Drac's strapped for cash,
so he puts the bite on me.
I go down for the count and turn into a creature of the night, one of
the undead. I might be cold as a coffin but... as that song suggests...
this chili pepper is still "Hot Stuff!" Watch me come on to Brian from Wings!
(above) scene from Dracula: Dead and Loving It (1995)
In the 1983 science fantasy swashbuckler film Krull,
I play the fair Princess Lyssa who plans to marry
a handsome prince from a rival kingdom.
It is hoped our alliance will help save planet Krull
from an invasion by an alien entity known as
the Beast and his army of Slayers.
Alas... before the wedding can take place, Princess Lyssa
is kidnapped by the aliens and the prince and his forces
set out to find and rescue her. Hint: it won't be easy.
Can you say "Someday my prince will come?"
CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!
I won't be a spoiler. Let's just say that I was lost and lonely,
losing hope I'd ever see my prince again. But then- "You Came!"
Here with more on the story is English pop idol Kim Wilde!
"You Came" - Kim Wilde (Sept./Oct. 1988,
"You Came" - Kim Wilde (Sept./Oct. 1988,
highest chart pos. #41 Hot 100 & Cash Box/#10 U.S. Dance,
#1 Canada Dance/#1 Denmark/#2 Finland/#3 UK, July, 1990,
1988 live performance on ZDF.kultur, Mainz, Germany)
1992
A Brit beauty, I suppose you could call me a "woman of 1000 faces."
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Indeed, I became one of the best known faces (and figures) of the 80s.
My fame spread across the pond to North America
as a result of my recurring appearances as "Natalie"...
the "it girl" in a series of MTV videos produced for
Canadian singer, songwriter and guitarist Bryan Adams.
I'm playing the first of those videos, the one that was nominated
for the 1985 MTV Video Music Awards in 5 different categories.
That's more noms than any other Bryan Adams song/video.
CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!
Watch for me to appear at the 2-0-5 mark of this vid for Brian's top 5 charting
U.S. hit and his first #1 song on the Top Rock Tracks chart, a position it held
four weeks. Here now is Bryan Adams shouting, I'm gonna-- "Run To You!"
"Run To You" - Bryan Adams (Dec. 1984/Jan. 1985,
highest chart position #4 Cash Box/#6 Hot 100,
#1 Top Rock Tracks/#4 Canada)
If you're just tuning in, I'm Michelle Ramsey, your
Hostess With the Mostest... your beauty in disguise
(with or without glasses) and we're doing 10-in-a-row
on this first edition of my new Shady's Place series
Save Me:
Michelle's
Brilliant
Disguises
I already briefly mentioned my 1994 erotic thriller A Brilliant Disguise
in which I play a beautiful but deeply disturbed woman hiding dark
secrets, one who has a shrink hovering over her, analyzing
her every word and move and trying to control her.
His name is Dr. Martin, but he looks a heck of a lot like
Arnie Becker from LA Law and Henry Spencer from Psych.
The man who falls for me hard is Andy, a guy who looks
a heck of a lot like Ray Luca from Crime Story and
Andy Flynn from The Closer and Major Crimes.
CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!
When Michelle catches Andy's eye, his life is turned upside down
and their relationship becomes a formula for passion, pleasure, and pain.
As rockin' Rod Stewart explains, it's a case of industrial strength- "Infatuation!"
"Infatuation" - Rod Stewart
(July/Aug. 1984, highest chart pos. #6 Hot 100/#8 Cash Box/#27 UK)
In Save Me, another erotic thriller released that
same year, 1994, it's a strikingly similar scenario.
I play Ellie, another beautiful but deeply troubled woman...
... another femme fatale with a controlling shrink...
and an insatiable hunger for male attention.
This time, the man I roll around with, the poor sap who succumbs to my
seductive charm, the sucker that I bewitch, bother and bewilder, is Jim...
... a guy who looks a heck of a lot like Michael Kuzak from LA Law.
I've got Jim (and Jim's) in the palm of my hand, tangled
in my web, thinking with a body part other than his brain.
So smitten is Michael, so blinded by my beauty and feminine
allure, that he forgets all about his wife and kid...
(and Susan Dey back at the law office).
From the moment Jim lays eyes on me, he's spellbound, hooked, obsessed.
He risks losing everything... including his job... to take
extended lunch breaks and have steamy "nooners" with me.
CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!
"Chain Of Fools" - Aretha Franklin cover by Josephine
@ Andrei Cerbu's Romanian Band Camp "The Ramp"
(September 2025)
My sex appeal gets me in
trouble again when I star
in the 1997 drama thriller
Man Of Her Dreams aka
The Fiancé. I play the lead
role of Faith (No) Moore...
a cute working woman,
wife and mother who
makes the deadly
mistake of cheating
on her husband and
being dumb enough
to confess her crime
of passion to him.
(Folks, don't try
this at home.
at home.)
At first, the handsome stranger I bedded down with
appears to be kind and sensitive... a true Renaissance man.
I'm not a very good judge of character, though, because the dude
turns out to be a Stone Age clod, a bad hombre, an obsessive,
homicidal psychopath... and those are his good qualities!
Yep, it's the story of my life. I make a very bad
mistake and get mixed-up with a madman.
CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!
When I try to break it off and focus on saving my marriage, he refuses
to let go. He stalks me and terrorizes my family and friends.
One taste of my forbidden fruit and he's gotta have Faith
and wants Moore Moore Moore. I can hear him now
crying-- "Never Gonna Give You Up!"
"Never Gonna Give You Up" - Rick Astley Pop-Punk cover by
German band Kontrollverlust {translation: "loss of control"}
(January 2023)
To top it off, in my next film, the psycho
thriller The Seed Of Evil: Misbegotten...
...released in the U.S. in 1998 and reminiscent of Rosemary's Baby,
I play Caitlan Bourke... a beautiful, married preggo woman
stalked by (you guessed it) a psychopathic killer.
Here's the kicker. My
husband and I wanted
children, but couldn't
have any, due to his
faulty plumbing.
We opted for
artificial insem-
ination by an
"anonymous"
sperm donor. As
fate (the writers)
would have it,
the killer is the
man who puts a
tiger in my tank
and, like it or nuts,
is the biological
baby daddy.
The ruthless brute finds out who I am and where I live, goes ape
and kidnaps me, believing he can start a new life playing house
with me and raising our baby. I should have known better. With
a name like Billy Crapshoot... the guy's a sketchy character...
bad news... not exactly what you would call "daddy material."
Awww..... so romantic!
I reminded him for the hundredth time that I am married, and begged him
to forget the fact that I am carrying his child. I told him he could have a
woman like me and a family if he would put down the gun, walk away
from his life as a career criminal and get a real job. "Work? I can't go
for that, no can do," was his cynical reply, "I'm too busy thinking
about my baby... and I ain't got time for nothin' else!"
"Too Busy Thinking About My Baby" - Marvin Gaye
cover by Steps (Live Dec. 2000 perf. in Motown Mania)
So, do you notice common threads running through my movies?
CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!
I specialize in playing damsels in distress, irresistible heartbreakers,
femme fatales and a maidenly English rose who hides dark secrets.
"Truly Madly Deeply" - Savage Garden (Aussie pop duo's
1997 int'l hit single) cover by Nashville trio IMY2
(September 2025)
Such a teasing temptress am I, such a desirable dish, that
"just one look is all it took," for me to get under
a man's skin and get my hooks in him.
From that moment on, I'm all he can think about. He's daydreaming,
tossing and turning all night, fantasizing, wringing his hands,
gnashing his teeth, pulling out his hair, walking into walls
and getting sacked from his job for going
A.W.O.L. to spend time with me.
CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!
Inevitably, the unfortunate men who allow themselves to fall under my spell
are spoiled forever and they end up dumping their wives and girlfriends.
"Apt." - Rosé (NZ/So. Korean singer) & Bruno Mars (US singer/songwriter)
late 2024 int'l hit single - cover by Spanish rock band Broken Peach
(March 2025)
I hope you enjoyed Part 1 of my new series.
I'll be back soon to introduce more of the characters I play and
to spin songs that help tell their stories on the next edition of
Save Me:
Michelle's
Brilliant
Disguises
... another Shady's place exclusive!
CLICK TO START THE VIDEO NOW!
To play us off, here's the beautiful, zesty and talented lead singer
Carla Tsimopoulos backed by another gifted thrush, Akasha Starr
and the rest of the vocalists and musicians that make up Australia's
premier cover band, Sing It Live, performing their brand new,
sizzling hot version of the Donna Summer biggie "Hot Stuff."
Now this is your Hostess With the Mostest... your beauty
in disguise... Michelle Ramsey... reminding you to
be good, or at least be careful. See you next time!
"Hot Stuff - Donna Summer cover by Sing It Live
feat. Carla Tsimopoulos (Sept. 2025)
Shady's Place Hall of Fame
Lysette Anthony
Nice - a nod to Psych! Awesome show.
ReplyDeleteFrom Mel Brooks to Krull. No typecasting there.
Hi, Alex!
DeleteThanks for coming over quickly to claim the Early Bird title again, good buddy!
Good point about my featured star Lysette Anthony. Early in her career, Lysette played more wholesome roles, the damsel in distress, but her appearances as "Natalie," in the Bryan Adams videos of the mid 1980s began to suggest that she was more fun playing high maintenance characters. Soon, she was playing full-blown femme fatales, trouble with a capital "T" - most notably in Save Me and Dracula: Dead and Loving It.
Thanks again for hustling over for the start of Shadyween 2025 and have a great month, good buddy Alex!
I think then, that female vampires have more victims because they can lure men easily with their irresistible charm. Are you getting ready for Halloween, my friend?
ReplyDeleteHi, Lux!
DeleteI'm delighted to see you, dear friend! Thanks for scurrying over to Shady's Place as I present Part 1 of my annual Shadyween series.
I agree. Female vampires have obvious advantages that allow them to rack-up more victims, especially those of the opposite sex. English actress Lysette Anthony has more charms than you can shake a stick at, and it was a great job of casting to give her the role of Lucy in Dracula: Dead and Loving It. I don't know how Brian from Wings was able to resist her advances. I couldn't. :)
I'm as ready for H-ween as I am ever gonna be. Thanks for asking. I'll be back with one more spooky post at the end of the month, so stay tuned. I see that you have a new post of your own running, and I will be over to read it shortly. Have a splendid October, dear friend Lux!
I am too old and out of touch to recognize and understand most of this post. Not too old to appreciate all the photos! Jerre
ReplyDeleteHi, Jerre!
DeleteI'm pleased to have you reporting in this month, good buddy! To get a better look at lovely Lysette Anthony than you did in "Run To You," you should watch the official Bryan Adams video for "Summer Of '69." "Natalie," as she is called in the series, is adorable but, for a girlfriend, she's got a roving eye. I've always liked Lysette, and that's why I was inspired to create this 2-part series in her honor.
For me, there are many musical highlights in this post, including the mesmerizing, hip-swaying performance by English popper Kim Wilde, the fabulous Aretha cover by Romanian singer Josephine, another superb cover by the Nashville trio IMY2 and the cover by the Spanish group Broken Peach. For me, the highlight of the entire post is the showender, the Donna Summer cover by the Aussie band Sing It Live featuring on lead a wonderful young woman I consider to be the singing discovery of the century. Her name is Carla Tsimopoulos.
Thanks again for joining the fun, good buddy Jerre. I'll be back around the 29th with my second post of the H-ween season!
Getting kinda racy in places this time, Shady! I had to cover Pat's eyes a few times. That is one of my favorite Bryan Adams songs. Love the guitar right past the 2 minute mark.
ReplyDeleteHi, Kelly & Pat!
DeleteThanks for coming early on day one, dear friend, as I unveil Part 1 of the two-part series Save Me: Michelle's Brilliant Disguises, the first of a two post tribute to British actress Lysette Anthony, and the first of two unrelated posts for the Halloween month of October.
Yessum, that is a great and dramatic guitar interlude just after the two-minute mark of "Run To You," setting the stage for Lysette to appear for the first time as Natalie, the "it girl" object of desire in Bryan's mid 1980s music video series. Following her debut in that 1984 video, Lysette returned in the vids for Brian's hit songs "Heaven," "Somebody" and "Summer Of '69." Lysette's steamiest role was in Save Me, as that risque movie poster suggests.
Thanks again for coming by and have a safe and happy October, dear friend Kelly!
Hi Shady! Happy October 1st!
ReplyDeleteI love vampires but like the male vamps a bit more for obvious reasons. I need to find some vampire romance to read for this month. 🤣
We're all set up for Halloween once again this year. My daughter did most of the decorating. I hope you get lots of trick or treaters. I never get any.
Run To You by Bryan Adams has always been such a good song. I love him. And Rod Stewart. Now you're playing music I recognize.
I hope all is well with you.
Hi, Mary & Falcor! Happy Shadyween to both of you!
DeleteThanks for popping in as I begin this year's Halloween salivation with Pt. 1 of Michelle's Brilliant Disguises, a tribute to the many faces of English actress Lysette Anthony as evidenced by her appearances in movies, TV series and MTV videos. Included in her list of credits is a guest starring role in an episode of Murder In Suburbia, a British TV series that revolves around a pair of female detectives who solve homicide cases. One of those lady coppers is "Louisa" from Doc Martin. Mrs. Shady and I watched and enjoyed every episode of Murder in Suburbia. The last picture in the post shows how Lysette looked in her 2004 appearance on the show.
I'm glad you liked the tunes and music videos by rockers Bryan Adams and Rod Stewart.
Yessum, I am eager to see pics of your Halloween decorations this year. Hope I do when I return to blogland at the end of the month. Thanks again and have a safe and happy October, dear friend Mary!
We decorated early this year. I've already posted some of the halloween decorations. https://scarymarythehamsterlady.blogspot.com/2025/09/halloween-time.html
DeleteWhat a hoot, Mary! I love how you have your apartment decorated. It looks like a real haunted house. Love my buddy Falcor with batwings. When I was young, H-ween was my favorite time of the year. Like you, I couldn't wait for October to begin putting up decorations. I used to invite my cousins and friends over to my bedroom which I converted into a "spook house" with masks hanging everywhere, a body under my bed, monsters in my closet, etc. I never outgrew my love of the macabre. As a bachelor in my 20s and 30s, I had in the living room of my "pad," lifesize cardboard cut-outs of Elvira: Mistress of the Dark and Freddy Kruger, plus horror movie posters on every wall.
DeleteThank you for coming back over to give me a link to see your Halloween scene for 2025, dear friend Mary!
You're very welcome. I'm glad you liked all the decorations. Your place sounds like it was great with all the decorations. Elvira is the best!
DeleteA key thing I forgot to mention, Mary, is that I kept those creepy life-size cutouts and horror movie posters in the living room my bachelor pad all year round, not only at Halloween! :)
DeleteHello dear friend Shady! Happy October and Autumn to you! Wow, I love this fun filled post! I absolutely love Rod Stewart!
ReplyDeleteI live in a 6th floor apartment building, which is predominantly seniors and disabled tenants, so we do not get any trick or treaters! This is fine for me, as I like quiet and never need to get any treats for the children! LOL! The skyrocketing costs on just about everything these days make it harder each year. I love children, though, I just am not a fan of Halloween!
Bryan Adams is a great singer as well!
As always, I will be back several times to absorb all the wonderful things you have shared, dear friend!
I hope you are doing well, and I want to thank you so much for your posts, your friendship and for your visits and kind comments on my blog over the years.
You are an amazing person whom I truly like and respect!
Hi, Linda!
DeleteWelcome back to Shady's Place, dear friend! Thanks for being here as I begin my annual Halloween celebration with the first of two posts in the month of October.
Glad you remember and love Rod Stewart. With so many years passing by so quickly, we really can't count on many younger people to know the great and most important artists of the 20th century. I have had GenX people ask me what all the fuss was about over The Beatles. That's Genx, never mind Y and Z!
Yessum, I hear you about trick-or-treat night. Mrs. Shady and I have been living in a gated 55+ community for two years now. There has not been one knock on our door on H-ween night either year, and I don't anticipate any this year. It was very different when we lived in Florida. Kids arrived by the busload and the truckload - hundreds of them to deal with every year. Yessum, to feed those masses, our candy bill was enormous. Occasionally, a greedy teen would grab a big handful of candy and run. That's how it goes anymore.
I'm pleased that you also like Canadian singer/songwriter and musician Bryan Adams. Stick around for Part 2 of this series coming up at some undetermined date in the future, because my featured Shady's Place Hall of Famer, actress Lysette Anthony, will be appearing in more of Bryan's music videos.
Wow, dear Linda. I feel the very same about you and will always be thankful that we reconnected after drifting apart for whatever reason. You are an asset to the blogging community, every one of your posts brimming with uplifting and positive messages. We are all grateful for your contributions to our lives and to the world.
Thank you again for coming, dear friend Linda. Have a safe and happy October and I hope to see you again when I return October 29 and invite you to play Retrosonic Radio Roulette here at Shady's Place Music & Memories!
Ooooh....this is great, dear friend, my birthday is on October 27th! I will be 69! Yes!
DeleteYou're young today and you will still be young October 27, dear Linda. My advice is to stay fit, maintain a positive outlook, keep hope alive, appreciate every living thing around you and don't forget to smile and laugh every day. You'll never grow old. Happy birthday month, dear friend Linda. Take care until we meet again on or about the 29th!
DeleteHi dear friend, I think my blog posts show that I take your advice, dear friend 🧡 Thank you 😊 so much for being you.
DeleteThat's very sweet, Linda. It's the highest compliment to know that my beliefs, my musings, occasionally help make someone else's life better. It works both ways, though. Your inspirational memes and positive affirmations offer valuable life lessons and have helped me through many difficult days. Ours is a mutually rewarding friendship indeed, dear Linda!
DeleteHi there friend! I meant to come over here on Wednesday because I had remembered reading in one of your comments that you were due back on October 1 but I was so busy writing my own blog it slipped my mind. Don't hate me! I think Ms. Anthony looks a little like Emily Blunt in some of those pictures. Wish I had her figure.
ReplyDeleteWe are going to see Bryan Adams in November. He is doing a show with Pat Benatar. I think that will be our last concert this year.
That was a pretty nice cover of Hot Stuff. One of the songs that was always playing back in my bar hopping twenties.
Have a wonderful rest of your month dear Shady. Happy Halloween to the Mrs. as well.
Hi, Janet!
DeleteWelcome in, dear friend, and thank you for setting aside some time to visit Shady's Place as I begin my H-ween Salivation for 2025 ! How could I hate, you, Janet? That'll never happen. I figured you were so swamped with the Challenge and operating your blog on two different platforms that your intended Wednesday visit slipped your mind. That's AOK. You have accumulated more friendship equity than anyone, so put it out of your mind.
Good eye, Janet! I went to a Google image gallery just now to refresh my memory about Emily Blunt and I do see a resemblance. Yessum, Lysette Anthony is known not only for her acting range but for her voluptuous figure. If you ever have time, watch this YouTube video interview in which she claims to have been raped and sexually abused by notorious Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTIM7xa_V1M
Great timing that you are preparing to see Bryan Adams next month at your local concert venue along with another of your longtime favorite artists Pat Benatar. Let me know how their respective shows went over with you and the rest of the audience.
Yessum, the show opener and show closer are both renditions of the Donna Summer hit "Hot Stuff." For me, the singing discovery of the 2020s, if not the century, is the zesty lead zinger who performed last - Australia's up-and-coming vocal star Carla Tsimopoulos, seen here fronting Australia's leading cover band Sing It Live. Carla is every bit as nice a person as she is beautiful and talented, and I will surely be showcasing her talents in future posts.
Thank you again for joining the fun, dear friend Janet. Be good to my buddy Benny and I'll see you when I return with my next post, Retrosonic Radio Roulette Vol. 2, on the 29th!
Hey Shady -- I'm going to admit that I didn't actually read or listen this go 'round. I just wanted to drop in to say hello! I'm actually dealing with a few hundred fake followers that randomly showed up on my Facebook page this past month, and I can only remove them one at a time! It's so frustrating.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I hope you're having a good start to fall so far! See ya next month.
Hi, Ashton!
DeleteThank you very much for dropping by, dear friend! The fact that you came over to say hello and let me know you were thinking about me is plenty enough. In fact, it's good as gold in my book.
I'm sorry that you are being bombarded with fake followers on FB. I can't imagine why that would happen, who or what's behind it or what their intention might be. I hope you get it sorted.
Yessum, I wish you a safe and pleasant autumn season. I will actually have one more H-ween related post coming up on the 29th of this month, so please swing by and listen to another batch of original songs and cool and capable covers if time permits the the mood strikes.
Thanks again, dear friend Ashton. Happy Halloween to you and Alexis!
Ah, yes, October...the month of vampires and ghouls. Fun post! Have a great month and Happy Halloween!
ReplyDeleteHi Shady! I'm probably too late to comment but I really wanted to stop by and check this cool post out. You know this is my favorite month! Lynette Anthony certainly has all the right stuff as well as the hot stuff! I'm sure the movie about artificial baby making would have many deciding that having no kids isn't so bad! Who thinks up this stuff anyway? All the songs were great because I actually knew most of them! Our tree colors aren't super good this year because of the hot, drought weather we've had. However, today there is rain and I'm home enjoying the fall atmosphere finally. It's been a little crazy here at the Pines but all's well now. So take care and I'll really try and get back sooner when you post! I need to post something for this month too. Take care Shady and BOO to you and family!
ReplyDelete