Lusting after “Vincent”
By Liz Everly
Yesterday was not just any Monday. I was in a Twitter conversation with Tiffany Reisz (yes THAT one) and Sarah Wendell (YEP) about the TV show “Beauty and the Beast”—which left us all swooning. Turns out we all loved the show. Do you remember it?
It was about “the adventures and romance of a sensitive and cultured lion-man and a crusading assistant district attorney in Manhattan, New York City,” according to IMDB. And it’s that lion-man that had us all breathless over our Twitter feeds. To this day, when I hear the name “Vincent,” my hearts speed up, just a wee little bit…
What is it about that sensitive, yet beasty man that had us all swooning? Was it his love of poetry? His devotion to Catherine? His soul and gut-wrenching agony of never being able to show his face in public? Or was it his mighty roar? The tenderness beneath the roar? All of that reaches into my guts and still makes me yearn, my friends.
And it says something about what we want in a romance, doesn’t it? I mean, as Tiffany said it was, indeed, the most romantic show on television. It wove in art, literature, and love into the plot beautiful ways. The only thing today remotely akin to it is “Once Upon A time,” which I watch with my daughters. It has romance, as well. But its focus is way different.
If you’ve never seen the show you can catch some episodes on TV.com.
Turns out that there is a soundtrack with Ron Perlman as “Vincent” reading poetry. And Sarah pointed me to a youtube reading, which if you have memories of this show might leave you blushing and breathless with the rest of us:
The TV show ran from 1987 to 1990. It starred Linda Hamilton and Ron Perlman, airing every Friday night and I rarely missed an episode. I loved the romance and the longing in the show. I was also intrigued by the underneath the city aspect to it. Vincent and his community live in the bowels of the city and I still think about the lovely space he called home underneath and in the midst of the grit and grime. I remember beautiful hardcover books, blankets and quilts, and overstuffed chairs, which all added to the allure of Vincent.
Then there was the writing. Consider the opening lines that ran at the beginning of each show:
Vincent: This is where the wealthy and the powerful rule. It is her world, a world apart from mine. Her name is Catherine. From the moment I saw her, she captured my heart with her beauty, her warmth, and her courage. I knew then, as I know now, she would change my life forever.
Catherine: He comes from secret place, far below the city streets, hiding his face from strangers, safe from hate and harm. He brought me there to save my life; and now wherever I go, he is with me in spirit. For we have a bond stronger than friendship or love…and although we cannot be together, we will never, ever be apart.
Clutching my heart!
Thoughts?
While you’re thinking, I’m going to give a shout out to the ladies who inspired this post Tiffany Reisz, author of many books, including THE SIREN, which I read and loved.
Lady Smut’s Madeline Iva interviewed Tiffany here.
The other sparkling conversationalist of the day was Sarah Wendell, of Smart Bitches, Trashy Books. If you don’t know that blog…where’ve you been? Check it out now. I’m sure our chat is still floating around on Twitter, if you’d like to read it. Before you go, I’m giving away a copy of LIKE HONEY to one lucky commenter today. So, if you’d like to read about a sexy-spy-turned beekeeper in Scotland who meets a young widow and so on and so forth, comment away! And don’t forget to subscribe to Lady Smut. You never know who will show up here!
