HQ75
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Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself, (I am large, I contain multitudes.)
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Post by HQ75 on Jul 2, 2009 14:56:43 GMT -5
Thom Bierdz (born March 25, 1962 in Kenosha, Wisconsin). He is 47. He is an openly gay American actor best known for his portrayal of Phillip Chancellor III on the daytime drama The Young and the Restless, appearing from 1986 to 1989, returning for one "dream sequence" in 2004, and finally returning to the role in May 2009. He is painter who's most recent exhibit was May 11, 2009 The backstory on Thom Bierdz’s surprise return to “The Young and the Restless” By Greg Hernandez on May 19, 2009 7:32 am greginhollywood.com/the-backstory-on-thom-bierdzs-surprise-return-to-the-role-of-phillip-chancellor-on-the-young-and-the-restless-5274Thom Bierdz’s stunning return to The Young and the Restless last week is apparently more than a one-shot deal. Thom has spent his time painting (he’s pictured above at a charity event with Debbie Reynolds and Ruta Lee) and writing but is clearly ready to do some acting again and where better than the show where he spent three years playing Phillip Chancellor III? AfterElton.com’s weekly Gays of Our Lives column had some scoop on how Thom’s return came to be:So how did the show pull off such a major reveal without it being tipped beforehand? According to The Suds Report, Bierdz, who came out in the years after he left Y&R, contacted producers about making a return to the show. They jumped at the chance, signed the actor to a year contract and got to work on a story. Bierdz then made a top secret return to a closed Y&R set to tape the scene shown last week. Reportedly, no one in the cast knew about it until it actually aired. Kudos to the show for pulling off such a feat in the age of Internet spoilers. Wow! A one-year deal! Congrats to Thom! Just for kicks, I’ve posted below an interview he gave to a soap mag more than 20 years ago. FULL AFTERELTON INTERVIEW with THOM BIERDZ: www.afterelton.com/TV/gayslives/05-26-09#FEATURE
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HQ75
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Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself, (I am large, I contain multitudes.)
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Post by HQ75 on Jul 3, 2009 7:08:39 GMT -5
PHILLIP CHANCELLOR IIIen.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phillip_Chancellor_IIIPhillip Chancellor III is a fictional character on the CBS soap opera The Young and the Restless. He was played by American actor Thom Bierdz from 1986 to 1989, returning for a dream sequence on July 6, 2004,[2] and finally returning to the show on contract status as of May 15, 2009.[3] Character's backgroundPhillip was the illegitimate child of Jill Foster and Phillip Chancellor II. Between Jill's job at Jabot Cosmetics and her efforts to secure a future for her son by constantly getting involved with rich men, she had little time for "Little Phillip." Jill's mother Liz practically raised him herself. When Jill married John Abbott, and she could afford it, Phillip was shipped off to a Swiss boarding school. In 1986, Phillip returned from boarding school for the summer as a teenager with a low self-esteem and a drinking problem. Phillip chose to stay with Jill's nemesis, Katherine, at the Chancellor Estate. Kay persuaded Phillip to enroll at Genoa City university rather than return to boarding school. An enraged Jill fought for custody, which brought out all of the secrets surrounding Phillip's birth and Kay's revenge of taking away his Chancellor birthright. Because Phillip expressed the security and attention he got from Kay he had never had with Jill, the judge granted Kay temporary custody. Phillip was befriended by Christine Blair and Nina Webster, who were best friends. Phillip fell for Christine, but didn't think he could compete with rock star Danny Romalotti. Nina campaigned heavily for Danny, but lost when Danny decided Christine was too young to be involved with only him. During Phillip and Chris' romance, Phillip began drinking again for confidence. One evening, they had an accident while Phillip was driving drunk, but Chris told the police she was driving in order to keep him from being arrested again. The negative publicity nearly cost Chris her job as the Jabot junior model. But Phillip, who had no recollection of the accident, turned himself in after Danny told him what actually happened. One evening, while Chris was visiting Danny, Nina got Phillip drunk and seduced him. Phillip proposed to Chris and she accepted his proposal, but Nina broke the news that she was pregnant with Phillip's baby, much to both Kay and Jill's horror. They plotted to break them up, but the tests proved that the child was Phillip's, and Nina believed that he would eventually marry her. Sure enough, he did, after Nina dramatically changed her personality, with help from Chris, Danny and Rex. Phillip quit college and went to work at Chancellor Industries. Due to the pressure of being a husband and father, he once again hit the bottle. In a surprising turn of events, driving home from an office party, a drunken Phillip crashed his sports car and was killed. In 2004, Phillip briefly returned as an apparition in a vision to an alcoholic Kay, and warned her to stop drinking. In 2007, as part of a retcon storyline, this character was revealed to not be the real Phillip Chancellor III due to a baby switch Kay initiated when they were born; Cane Ashby is the real son of Jill and Phillip II. Following his 2009 wedding to Lily Winters, Cane recalls his telephone conversation years earlier with a man named "Langley" regarding their joint plan to con Jill and Katherine. The man bears a startling resemblance to the supposedly deceased Phillip. On June 10, 2009, it was revealed that "Langley" is indeed Phillip, and that he is still very much alive (unknown to everyone except Cane). Phillip's widow Nina began asking questions about how Cane arrived in Genoa City. She claimed that there were several suspicious holes in his story. In mid-June 2009, Nina shocks Katherine and Jill by stating that she is having Phillip's body exhumed for a DNA test. Nina explains that her motives are not only to find out if the body is actually that of Phillip Chancellor III, but to obtain some crucial information about her son. Nina informs Jill and Katherine that before being deployed in Iraq, her son had a physical and explained some symptoms he had been experiencing. The doctor asked if he had any family history of the deadly Huntington's disease. Jill informs Nina that the results from the previous exhumation of Phillip's body should still be on file at the lab. After a couple phone calls, it was revealed that the lab had no record of such a test, and the doctor who supposedly performed the autopsy had previously falsified forensic evidence and had disappeared. Nina goes back to her original plan of having Phillip's body exhumed for genetic testing. When it is discovered that Phillip's casket is empty (and, in fact, never contained a corpse at all), Nina demands that Cane submit to DNA testing to verify his status as Jill's biological son. Upon learning of Nina's demand, Cane retrieves a vial of Phillip's blood from a carousel of vials he has kept in a hidden freezer for use in DNA testing. Thus, it becomes apparent that Phillip -- not Cane -- is Jill's biological son. The results of the DNA test comes back on July 1st, which tells Jill and Nina that Cane is not a fraud. However, the lab discovered that the blood cells in the sample had broken apart meaning they were frozen. When confronted about this, Cane reveals that he is not Phillip. After a few tense moments at the Chancellor Estate, Katherine asks why Cane deceived them. He was unable to answer before the real Phillip Chancellor III revealed that it was all his idea.[4]
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HQ75
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Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself, (I am large, I contain multitudes.)
Posts: 4,200
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Post by HQ75 on Jul 6, 2009 9:53:01 GMT -5
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Post by Bonobochick on Jul 8, 2009 21:01:43 GMT -5
On TWOP today ( forums.televisionwithoutpity.com/index.php?showtopic=394850&st=58095), someone posted info on Thom Bierdz's personal history in a topic about his monotone delivery of lines, which good for him for fighting instead of giving in to adversity: If I had faced what TB has (schizophrenic brother violently beating mother and then other brother committing suicide) , I don't think I would be able to get up in the morning, much less act in a soap. I think the fact he does is a testament to his strength. I admire this guy a lot.FYI.
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Post by davedoty on Jul 8, 2009 23:31:07 GMT -5
I do admire him personally for what he's overcome, but I also agree that his delivery has left a lot to be desired. To me, he talks like he's got a mouthful of marbles. I can't pretend I've found his performance engaging because I feel sorry for him. But I'll also give him some time to get back into the role before I write him off entirely.
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Post by tihkon2 on Jul 8, 2009 23:39:29 GMT -5
The schizophrenic brother actually killed their mother and apparently had been planning to murder Thom as well. And poor Thom came home and found the brother with blood all over him.
It's quite horrible actually. I would imagine the "marble mouth" that happens to him sometimes may have originated during those times, as he did not have that in his original run on Y & R.
I don't care if he talks through a pillow while wearing a Lamp shade on his head, he gets a free pass from me as long as he's on the show. As was stated above, I don't think I'd ever recover from coming home and finding my blood covered brother just killed my mom. I hope he loosens up a bit more, but if not, Oh well, I can deal. I don't think he's doing terrible or anything.
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Post by Bonobochick on Jul 8, 2009 23:54:53 GMT -5
From his wiki ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thom_Bierdz): Shortly after Thom left Y&R to pursue movie roles, his youngest brother Troy, a paranoid schizophrenic, beat their mother to death with a baseball bat. He is currently serving a life sentence in a Wisconsin prison. In May 2002, his other brother Craig committed suicide.
Bierdz had devoted most of his time to painting in recent years, although he has also written a memoir entitled "Forgiving Troy."I am sympathetic to TB's personal plight so I am not as hard on him as I normally would be with an actor who doesn't inflect his words. It doesn't help that he's opposite 3 of the strongest actresses on the show but he's better now than he was 20 years ago. That's for damn sure.
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Post by harmonium on Jul 9, 2009 2:53:30 GMT -5
I do admire him personally for what he's overcome, but I also agree that his delivery has left a lot to be desired. To me, he talks like he's got a mouthful of marbles. I can't pretend I've found his performance engaging because I feel sorry for him. But I'll also give him some time to get back into the role before I write him off entirely. True that. I'm glad I'm not the only one who found there's something weird about the way he speaks. And I hope the stylist over at Y&R image department can give him a proper haircut or hairstyle. It looks so unkempt and doesn't justify his good looks.
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Post by Bonobochick on Jul 15, 2009 1:17:18 GMT -5
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Post by tihkon2 on Jul 15, 2009 1:33:02 GMT -5
Thanks for that link B'chick. Wow. Just.....yikes. Glad he's pulled through fairly well though. He seems to have a little problem when he wants to use an "sh" sound. I wonder if that's from the medication. Anyhow...regardless, I wish him well and hope he enjoys himself on Y&R.
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HQ75
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Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself, (I am large, I contain multitudes.)
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Post by HQ75 on Jul 15, 2009 10:12:25 GMT -5
The most striking thing for me when I seem Thom speaking in real life situations versus as Philip, it's like he' has a completely different body. Not just the shape of it but the way he holds it it's like Philip is trying to make himself smaller or invisible where as Thom has a very imposing physical presence.
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Post by harmonium on Jul 15, 2009 12:32:08 GMT -5
Just for retro sake, here is how Thom Bierdz looks like when he is younger in the 80's: In 2002: Some "racy" pictures: Total dreamboat!! He still is now. But I still have an issue with his hairstyle. Hehehe. If anyone has more of his pictures esp. when he's younger, please post them up. Thanks!
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Post by Bonobochick on Aug 10, 2009 19:47:48 GMT -5
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HQ75
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Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself, (I am large, I contain multitudes.)
Posts: 4,200
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Post by HQ75 on Aug 12, 2009 18:31:24 GMT -5
Thom Bierdz interviewed about his life and his return to Y&R July 09, 2009
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Post by Bonobochick on Sept 10, 2009 2:09:44 GMT -5
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Post by Bonobochick on Oct 20, 2009 1:46:51 GMT -5
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Post by Bonobochick on Jul 1, 2010 9:13:21 GMT -5
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HQ75
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Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself, (I am large, I contain multitudes.)
Posts: 4,200
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Post by HQ75 on Jul 4, 2010 5:57:32 GMT -5
I'm kind of excited about this. I think the character could really be a good one now that they realize where they went wrong with the writing. I'm all for their being a gay character on Y&R and I think he's the perfect kind of gay character that a lot more of the audience can related to (older, traditional family, legacy, etc). No coming out or gay bashing. I'm interested to see what they do with him. I also really like Thom Bierdz as a person and wish he were allowed to bring some of his natural charm and warmth to the character of Philip.
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carld2
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Post by carld2 on Jul 4, 2010 21:32:58 GMT -5
I thought Thom was treated poorly the last time around, both in his limited storyline and in a lot of the criticism he received from the same soap press which turns a blind eye to some of the shockingly bad acting which makes up Y&R on a daily basis. I don't know if it will be any different this time around, since this show does not know how to do returns, or much of anything, frankly. I guess we'll see. I'm still amazed at how they managed to do nothing with what could have been years of story with his return from the dead.
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Post by justinate on Aug 12, 2010 12:52:49 GMT -5
Apparently Thom is bringing Philip back later this month for (highlight to read spoiler) his son's funeral. Yep, his only child and the last Chancellor heir bites the dust this August. This show sucks for killing off its legacy characters with such alarming regularity. (Not two months ago Philip's grandmother Liz, an original character from the 1970s was killed off with little fanfare.)
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Post by Bonobochick on Aug 26, 2010 17:30:24 GMT -5
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carld2
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Post by carld2 on Mar 12, 2011 0:16:17 GMT -5
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