Sordid Lives

Sordid Lives
Directed by	Del Shores
Written by	Del Shores
Starring	Bonnie Bedelia Delta Burke Leslie Jordan Beau Bridges Olivia Newton-John
Music by	George S. Clinton
Distributed by	Regent Releasing
Release date	May 25, 2000 (2000-05-25)
Country	United States
Language	English
Box office	$1,010,000

Sordid Lives is a 2000 independent film, written and directed by Del Shores. The movie is based on Shores' play of the same name and includes elements of his life, according to the director's DVD commentary. The film was followed by the 2008 television series Sordid Lives: The Series.

The original stage play premiered in Los Angeles on May 11, 1996 and ultimately won 14 Drama-Logue Awards. The film met with mixed reviews from mainstream audiences but became a cult classic with LGBT fans, particularly in the South. The movie tells the story of a Texas family coming together in the aftermath of the matriarch's death. To keep the stories going, Viacom's new station Logo produced twelve episodes of Sordid Lives: The Series. The television version begins at a point before that covered in the film, with Rue McClanahan as the mother, Peggy Ingram. Much of the film cast returned, including Leslie Jordan and Olivia Newton-John. Delta Burke was replaced with Caroline Rhea, while the part of Ty Williamson, formerly played by Kirk Geiger, was now portrayed by Jason Dottley. Kirk Geiger reprised his role as Ty Williamson in the Sordid Lives sequel, A Very Sordid Wedding, in 2017, along with Bonnie Bedelia, Caroline Rhea, Dale Dickey, Leslie Jordan, Ann Walker, Emerson Collins, Whoopie Goldberg and Katherine Bailess.

The television series began airing in July 2008. It ended after one season.

Synopsis

A colorful family from a small Texas town must come to grips with the accidental death of the elderly family matriarch during a clandestine meeting in a seedy motel room with her much younger, married neighbor. The woman's family must deal with their own demons while preparing for what could be an embarrassing funeral.

Cast and characters

Actor	Character	Notes
Olivia Newton-John TBASequel	Bitsy Mae Harling	A local singer with "a reputation" who is a close friend of Peggy's.
Kirk GeigerFilm/Sequel Jason DottleySeries	Ty Williamson	The son of Latrelle, Ty is a closeted 20-something gay man who left behind the small Southern Baptist town in Texas and moved to West Hollywood to become an actor.
Sarah Hunley	Juanita Bartlett	Wardell's short-term memory friend and regular patron (a/k/a 'the town drunk') of Bubba's Bar.
Newell Alexander	Wardell 'Bubba' Owens	G.W.'s friend and the object of Brother Boy's affection.
Beau BridgesFilm David SteenSeries/Sequel	G.W. Nethercott	Noleta's unfaithful husband, who feels responsible for Peggy's death.
Earl H. BullockFilm David CowgillSeries/Sequel	Odell Owens	Bubba's brother who is scarred for life by a pig-bloating incident.
Beth Grant Dale DickeySequel	Sissy Hickey	Peggy's much younger sister, and aunt to Brother Boy, LaVonda and Latrelle. Sissy just wants to stop smoking.
Delta BurkeFilm Caroline RheaSeries/Sequel	Noleta Nethercott	Sissy's next-door neighbor, the distraught wife of G.W. Nethercott and best friend to LaVonda.
Leslie Jordan	Earl 'Brother Boy' Ingram	A fan of the women of country music, Brother Boy has been institutionalized for 23 years by his parents for being a cross-dressing homosexual.
Mitch Carter	Bumper	The security guard at the mental institution that taunts Brother Boy.
Bonnie Bedelia	Latrelle Williamson	Ty's mother, who is primarily concerned with keeping up appearances. Latrelle wants to persuade her sister LaVonda and Aunt Sissy not to bury her mother, Peggy in a mink stole in Texas during the summer. She is Peggy's elder daughter.
Sharron Alexis	Sara Kaufman	Ty's deranged ex-girlfriend who is obsessed that they are meant to be together.
Ann Walker	LaVonda DuPree	Peggy's younger daughter, a free spirit who is also Noleta's best friend.
Mary-Margaret Lewis	Ethel	Brother Boy's confidant and best friend at the mental institution.
Rosemary Alexander	Dr. Eve Bolinger	"Doctor Evil" wants to de-homosexualize Brother Boy so she can write a book, appear on the Oprah television show and quit her psychiatrist job at the mental institution.
Gloria LeRoyFilm Rue McClanahanSeries	Peggy Ingram	The recently deceased sister of Sissy Hickey and mother of Latrelle, LaVonda and Earl "Brother Boy".

Soundtrack

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Performer	Length
1.	"Sordid Lives"		Olivia Newton-John	02:07
2.	"Opening"	George S. Clinton	George S. Clinton	02:12
3.	"Trash Talk"		Delta Burke / Beth Grant	00:49
4.	"Better a Painful Ending, Than an Endless Pain"	Sharyn Lane / Mark McGuinn	Bobbie Eakes / Doo Wah Riders	04:08
5.	"Blue Country"	George S. Clinton	George S. Clinton	02:28
6.	"Tallywacker Talk/Mano a Mano"		Bonnie Bedelia /George S. Clinton / Kirk Geiger / Beth Grant	02:48
7.	"Truth Talk"		Bonnie Bedelia / Beth Grant / Ann Yvonne Walker	00:54
8.	"Will the Circle Be Unbroken"	A.P. Carter	Olivia Newton-John	02:05
9.	"Ty's Theme"	George S. Clinton	George S. Clinton	01:34
10.	"Someone to Grow Young With"	Kacey Jones / Sharyn Lane	Kacey Jones	03:44
11.	"No Fault Love"	Kacey Jones / Sharyn Lane	Kacey Jones	03:11
12.	"Sh*t Talk"		Beau Bridges / Earl H. Bullock	00:13
13.	"Get off the Cross, We Need the Wood"	Kacey Jones / Sharyn Lane	J. Scott Jones	02:24
14.	"Cheatin'"		Newell Alexander	01:39
15.	"Break-Out Talk/Escape"		Newell Alexander /Rosemary Alexander /Mitch Carter /George S. Clinton / Leslie Jordan / Mary Margaret Lewis	01:39
16.	"Please Don't Be Gay"	Sharyn Lane	Sharron Alexis	02:19
17.	"Mother/Son Talk"		Bonnie Bedelia / Kirk Geiger	01:55
18.	"Coming Home"		Olivia Newton-John	02:10
19.	"In Daddy's Eyes"	George S. Clinton	George S. Clinton	04:17
20.	"Tex-Mex"	George S. Clinton	George S. Clinton	01:59
21.	"Funeral Talk"		Olivia Newton-John	01:03
22.	"Just As I Am"	William B. Bradbury / Charlotte Elliot	Olivia Newton-John	01:01
23.	"Transvestite Talk"		Bonnie Bedelia / Beau Bridges / Kirk Geiger / Beth Grant / Leslie Jordan / Olivia Newton-John /Ann Yvonne Walker	00:32
24.	"Just As I Am (Conclusion)"	William B. Bradbury / Charlotte Elliot	Olivia Newton-John	00:41
25.	"Mama Talk"		Leslie Jordan	00:05
26.	"Sordid Lives (Reprise)"		Olivia Newton-John	00:58
27.	"Trust Yourself"	Olivia Newton-John	Olivia Newton-John	05:38
Total length:				54:33

Sequel

In Fall 2014, Del Shores announced that he was working on sequel to the film titled A Very Sordid Wedding. Shores' Beard Collins Shores Productions launched an Indiegogo fundraising campaign to assemble the project and secure investor financing. The campaign ended on October 29, 2014, and filming for the sequel began in October 2015. The film premiered in Palm Springs CA on March 10, 2017.

The film picks up sixteen years after the events of the first film and deals with the impact of the advancement of same-sex marriage in the conservative, southern community. Several actors from the original Sordid Lives film are reprising their roles, including Bonnie Bedelia, Leslie Jordan, Newell Alexander, Sarah Hunley, Rosemary Alexander, Ann Walker and Kirk Geiger. Joining them from the Sordid Lives series are David Steen, David Cowgill and Caroline Rhea. Original actors Beth Grant and Olivia Newton John turned down offers to return for the sequel. While Grant's role of Sissy is being recast, Newton John's role of Bitsy Mae was written out of the script. Shores also announced that several new actors would be joining the returning performers. In Spring 2015, Whoopi Goldberg was added to the cast as Ty's mother in-law.

External links

• Official website at Regent Releasing
• Sordid Lives at IMDb
• Review at DVD Future