Heidi Twitchell(ZEigler)-actress
Just the Ten of Us, Rags to Riches, Growing Pains, I'm Telling!
Interview with Heidi Twitchell-May 18, 2014
picture taken from Ms Twitchell's linked in (hope you don't mind Heidi)
picture taken from Ms Twitchell's linked in (hope you don't mind Heidi)
It is our pleasure today to talk with Heidi Twitchell (Zeigler), who many of you may remember as Coach Lubbock's precocious youngest daughter Sherry on the ABC sitcom, "Just the Ten of Us". Ms Twitchell has been extremely patient with us, as we have been having technical difficulties with our old blog page, and for that we are extremely grateful. In 1988, Heidi was coming off of an incredible rise through the ranks of the acting world, having appeared in gazillions of commercials, receiving a plethora of young artist awards, and having worked with actors like Cloris Leachman, Jeff Goldblum, Ernie Hudson, and Robbie Benson. She was wrapping up a run in the musical-comedy-drama show "Rags to Riches", (for which she was awarded best artist under 10 for her work ) when she was cast in a 2 episode arch of "Growing Pains" as Sherry Lubbock. The scene where Mike Seaver stares into the window of the Lubbock house and sees their struggles is still one of the most lasting images I have of "Growing Pains", right next to Boner's farewell and the episode where Mike goes to the performance art show ("Why are there no Lumber Jacks in big cities?"). From then she went on to portray Sherry in the fabulous spin off show (of which a few cast members went on to make Horror movies), whose theme song is running through my head right now as I type this (Doing it the best I can...leaning on nobody but me...seeing it from where I stand, nothing comes easy...I hope that is close). I never even missed an episode when it was in syndication. She also took time do do a highly notable episode of the game show "I'm Telling" against the Astin Brothers and the Doherty's. This is an episode where Heidi was very quick to point out that the Astins won and she and her brother came in last.
Today you will find her as an educator, passionately speaking out about the importance of the arts in school. This is a subject that I am so incredibly passionate about as well, having grown up in the Laramie County School system of Cheyenne, Wyoming that provided us with an abundance of arts opportunities from city concerts to theater to orchestras to children's choirs to arts shows and on and on. I credit it with making the well rounded oddball I am today, and I am so pleased that Heidi is out there fighting the good fight for the creativity of our children. Here are some really great posts by Heidi on the subject at the Steam Academy and her profile on Edutopia. I encourage you all to read up and find a way to join the cause. In fact, this blog project is born of the same logic...that we have to connect our students to art and creative instruction. Thank you Heidi Twitchell for joining us today. Just as a warm up for our journey back to 1988, let's start with the question on everyone's (my) mind. Do you and your brother Chuck ever sit around and watch your episode of I'm Telling and talk strategy, like an old game film? :)
Heidi Twitchell: Ha ha! No... I honestly don't think we ever watched it at all? Maybe once? I really don't remember, I'm sorry.
1988 project: What do you remember most about 1988?
Heidi Twitchell: I remember driving back and forth from Burbank each day to go to work! 9 ½, and work on the set was my life. I had been working pretty much full time since age 3, so that was really the only life I knew. I remember our work week well- I could tell you all about it, but I'm not sure that's what you're looking for. With respects to anything else going on in the world outside of Hollywood, I don't recall much- my world took place behind the gates of the Warner Brothers Ranch lot. And it was certainly a world of its own.
1988: You were a TV pro by 1988, having been on "Rags to Riches", "Growing Pains", several notable TV movies, commercials, etc and you were only 9. Has TV changed much since the Reagan Era? If so, how?
HT: Has TV changed much? Yes! From the insider experience to the end product that you watch on the tube, the television industry is hardly recognizable. Those still working report an overall decline in the integrity of people and practices. You know the difference that viewers experience; we moved from 30 minute family sitcoms to a world of "reality" television.. staged reality it should be called.
My opinion? I don't think the genres on television now can be judged as greater or less than others in value- shows are designed to meet what audiences will watch- and people still watch. So, regardless of one's personal values and how they see the worth of television programming, they watch. From the production end, that means- mission accomplished.
1988: Follow up, do you feel like "Glee" owes you some thank you letters for building off of what “Rags to Riches” started?
HT: Glee doesn't owe Rags to Riches anything- just like ideas we come up with in our communities and in the world of business, ideas build upon ideas, and greater things continue to evolve from good ideas.
1988: A more serious question. 1988 was the year that saw the death of Judith Barsi and her mother at the hands of her father. The motivation was her dad's addiction to her acting salary as she had just wrapped “Land Before Time” and “All Dogs go to Heaven”, It was also the year that Corey Feldman and Tiffany emancipated themselves from their parents for similar reasons. Do you remember how you felt about these developments at the time, being a child actress yourself, and do you think this atmosphere has changed in the last 27 years?
HT: I remember Judith's death well. It impacted me- Judith and I only worked once together, (1988 project find: a Barbie commercial starring Judith and Heidi) but I remember seeing her and her mom at auditions all of the time. I was too young to really pay much attention to the scandals with kid actors and their thieving parents and my parents did a pretty good job of keeping me age-appropriately sheltered. I do recall that my dad, a very honest & talented financial planner, was frustrated because he was very closely audited one year and a judge forced him to invest my money in a way that ultimately was less advantageous to me-- I believe it was 1988 actually and I imagine the close-looking was a result of what was in the news about Corey, Tiffany and Judith. Unfortunately in this case, my dad truly had my best interest in mind and that particular judge didn't know his eye from his elbow with respects to good investing
1988: What were the biggest lessons you learned on the sets of either Rags to Riches or Just the Ten of Us?
HT: I grew up working in an adult world. My coworkers and friends were adults. We had a job to do, and there was no room for whining! I learned to cooperate and work together with all different kinds of people. I learned the importance of cast or crew, and so upon reflection, I suppose this could have been the foundation of the deep regard I have for the vital importance of respecting people- all people, for who they were and for what they brought to the table. The show couldn't go on without any single member; true collaboration. Off set, the lessons were just as important. There were fans. For the greater part of my childhood, they were everywhere I went. They held me in a regard that was hard for me to swallow at times- I didn't understand what the big fuss was. I was just.. well, I was just me! But all of these people I would run into in public seemed to get so happy just to meet me. The lesson? I have the ability to make people happy! Regardless of how, one person can make a difference, however big or small, in the lives of many, many people. I still seek to do this, but now, as an adult, I just do so in very different ways.
1988: Was there anything about your life in 1988 that inspired you to go into teaching and become such a passionate advocate for arts education?
HT: I owe who I am today to many things, not the least of which is my experience acting. I know that when children are given opportunities to express, refine and develop their art(s), they are given the opportunity to live- to develop and experience what is innate in them- what is every person's greatest power- their creativity. And I know through my experiences teaching and from the extensive research that backs my observations and experience, that when the arts are absent in the lives of children and adults alike, creativity is suppressed- it can even die. Our creativity is what drives innovation, change, progress, and life. The arts define our culture, who we are- they being joy and purpose- they are modes of expression that cannot be replaced. Through art, not only does learning become a successful adventure, it becomes a beloved way of life. Art is language. Art is life. I can't say enough about it. So while it was my teaching that inspired my arts advocacy, I'm sure that my early acting experiences played a part in validating the perspectives and string opinions that I've developed & adopted with respects to the importance of the visual and performing arts in education, community, business, and in life.
1988: If you could change anything about life in 88, would you and what would it be?
HT: What would I change about life in 1988? I don't think I'd change much... life was pretty good for me in '88, historically speaking. However, 1988 was the year that Osama Bin Laden formed Al Qaeda... so were there a way, changing that would have definitely been a top choice for changes made in 1988.
1988: The Lightning fun round: It is 1988, you are listening to music while preparing to take on the Astins. The song you don't mind hearing over and over and over is
a. George Michael’s “Faith”
b. Whitney Houston “I get so Emotional”
c. Beach Boys “Kokomo”
d. Debbie Gibson “Foolish Beat”
e. Bobby McFerrin “Don’t Worry Be Happy”
f. Guns N Roses “Sweet Child of Mine”
g. None of the above, I preferred to listen to _______________________
HT: '80's music. Best music ever. I guess we tend to love the music from our childhood, regardless of from which era that may be. I can't pick just one of those songs you listed! I love 'em all, still!! Even now, the Best of the 80's station on my Pandora tops my list for favorite listening.
1988: It is 1988, you want to catch a movie, or sneak into one. What are you most likely to watch out of the top 10 movies that year?
a. Who Framed Roger Rabbit
b. Rain Man
c. Cocktail
d. Big
e. Twins
f. Crocodile Dundee II
g. Naked Gun
h. Beetlejuice
i.Coming to America
j. None of the above, I preferred to watch___________________________ >
HT: Rain Man, Big, Beetlejuice & Coming to America! Narrowed to two, Big and Beetlejuice... Ok, Beetlejuice wins.
1988: It is 1988, you have actual downtime. You were most likely to read
a. Tom Clancy’s “Cardinal of the Kremlin”
b. Stephen Hawking’s “A Brief History of Time”
c. Stephen King’s “The Tommy Knockers”
d. Tom Wolfe’s “Bonfire of the Vanities”
e. None of the above, I was reading __________________________________
HT: None of the Above! I was reading C.S. Lewis, Judy Blume, Shel Silverstein, Beverly Cleary, Roald Dahl- and scripts! Lots of scripts!
1988: It is 1988, you manage to catch some other TV when you are not on TV. Would it most likely be?
a. Roseanne
b. The Cosby Show
c. Cheers
d. The Wonder Years
e. None of the above I was watching _________________________________________
HT: I watched all of those shows! And I think each of them was my favorite at one point or another. Add Different Strokes, The Facts of Life, Kids Incorporated and Punky Brewster!
1988 Bonus: If we get an interview with Sean Astin or Shannen Doherty, and we got some deeply pastel furniture would you be up for a rematch?
HT: ....an “I'm Telling” rematch? Ha! People would be stoked to watch Shannon and the Astins. ...and they'd be like, who the crap is that other chick? But it certainly would be fun. Chuckie and I would lose all over again.
1988: Lastly, what have you been up to? What are you currently working on?
HT: I have a husband who I love more than life itself, and four crazy kids who fit the same description... usually....make that, sometimes. I started teaching in 2001 and I'm extremely passionate about education. I left the classroom in 2011 and I have since been developing and have been involved in projects which serve, unite and strengthen community, education, business, and artists of all kinds. I also work as the development director at a nonprofit learning enrichment center.
1988: It has been such an amazing experience to research your life and career and to find someone who is so passionate about education, fighting the good fight….not to mention, we share a deep love of 80’s tunes, Punky power, and Judy Blume! Thank you for agreeing to this interview and I hope our readers will read up on your educational work and find a way to contribute to the cause. I will now go and organize the rematch with Sean Astin.
Today you will find her as an educator, passionately speaking out about the importance of the arts in school. This is a subject that I am so incredibly passionate about as well, having grown up in the Laramie County School system of Cheyenne, Wyoming that provided us with an abundance of arts opportunities from city concerts to theater to orchestras to children's choirs to arts shows and on and on. I credit it with making the well rounded oddball I am today, and I am so pleased that Heidi is out there fighting the good fight for the creativity of our children. Here are some really great posts by Heidi on the subject at the Steam Academy and her profile on Edutopia. I encourage you all to read up and find a way to join the cause. In fact, this blog project is born of the same logic...that we have to connect our students to art and creative instruction. Thank you Heidi Twitchell for joining us today. Just as a warm up for our journey back to 1988, let's start with the question on everyone's (my) mind. Do you and your brother Chuck ever sit around and watch your episode of I'm Telling and talk strategy, like an old game film? :)
Heidi Twitchell: Ha ha! No... I honestly don't think we ever watched it at all? Maybe once? I really don't remember, I'm sorry.
1988 project: What do you remember most about 1988?
Heidi Twitchell: I remember driving back and forth from Burbank each day to go to work! 9 ½, and work on the set was my life. I had been working pretty much full time since age 3, so that was really the only life I knew. I remember our work week well- I could tell you all about it, but I'm not sure that's what you're looking for. With respects to anything else going on in the world outside of Hollywood, I don't recall much- my world took place behind the gates of the Warner Brothers Ranch lot. And it was certainly a world of its own.
1988: You were a TV pro by 1988, having been on "Rags to Riches", "Growing Pains", several notable TV movies, commercials, etc and you were only 9. Has TV changed much since the Reagan Era? If so, how?
HT: Has TV changed much? Yes! From the insider experience to the end product that you watch on the tube, the television industry is hardly recognizable. Those still working report an overall decline in the integrity of people and practices. You know the difference that viewers experience; we moved from 30 minute family sitcoms to a world of "reality" television.. staged reality it should be called.
My opinion? I don't think the genres on television now can be judged as greater or less than others in value- shows are designed to meet what audiences will watch- and people still watch. So, regardless of one's personal values and how they see the worth of television programming, they watch. From the production end, that means- mission accomplished.
1988: Follow up, do you feel like "Glee" owes you some thank you letters for building off of what “Rags to Riches” started?
HT: Glee doesn't owe Rags to Riches anything- just like ideas we come up with in our communities and in the world of business, ideas build upon ideas, and greater things continue to evolve from good ideas.
1988: A more serious question. 1988 was the year that saw the death of Judith Barsi and her mother at the hands of her father. The motivation was her dad's addiction to her acting salary as she had just wrapped “Land Before Time” and “All Dogs go to Heaven”, It was also the year that Corey Feldman and Tiffany emancipated themselves from their parents for similar reasons. Do you remember how you felt about these developments at the time, being a child actress yourself, and do you think this atmosphere has changed in the last 27 years?
HT: I remember Judith's death well. It impacted me- Judith and I only worked once together, (1988 project find: a Barbie commercial starring Judith and Heidi) but I remember seeing her and her mom at auditions all of the time. I was too young to really pay much attention to the scandals with kid actors and their thieving parents and my parents did a pretty good job of keeping me age-appropriately sheltered. I do recall that my dad, a very honest & talented financial planner, was frustrated because he was very closely audited one year and a judge forced him to invest my money in a way that ultimately was less advantageous to me-- I believe it was 1988 actually and I imagine the close-looking was a result of what was in the news about Corey, Tiffany and Judith. Unfortunately in this case, my dad truly had my best interest in mind and that particular judge didn't know his eye from his elbow with respects to good investing
1988: What were the biggest lessons you learned on the sets of either Rags to Riches or Just the Ten of Us?
HT: I grew up working in an adult world. My coworkers and friends were adults. We had a job to do, and there was no room for whining! I learned to cooperate and work together with all different kinds of people. I learned the importance of cast or crew, and so upon reflection, I suppose this could have been the foundation of the deep regard I have for the vital importance of respecting people- all people, for who they were and for what they brought to the table. The show couldn't go on without any single member; true collaboration. Off set, the lessons were just as important. There were fans. For the greater part of my childhood, they were everywhere I went. They held me in a regard that was hard for me to swallow at times- I didn't understand what the big fuss was. I was just.. well, I was just me! But all of these people I would run into in public seemed to get so happy just to meet me. The lesson? I have the ability to make people happy! Regardless of how, one person can make a difference, however big or small, in the lives of many, many people. I still seek to do this, but now, as an adult, I just do so in very different ways.
1988: Was there anything about your life in 1988 that inspired you to go into teaching and become such a passionate advocate for arts education?
HT: I owe who I am today to many things, not the least of which is my experience acting. I know that when children are given opportunities to express, refine and develop their art(s), they are given the opportunity to live- to develop and experience what is innate in them- what is every person's greatest power- their creativity. And I know through my experiences teaching and from the extensive research that backs my observations and experience, that when the arts are absent in the lives of children and adults alike, creativity is suppressed- it can even die. Our creativity is what drives innovation, change, progress, and life. The arts define our culture, who we are- they being joy and purpose- they are modes of expression that cannot be replaced. Through art, not only does learning become a successful adventure, it becomes a beloved way of life. Art is language. Art is life. I can't say enough about it. So while it was my teaching that inspired my arts advocacy, I'm sure that my early acting experiences played a part in validating the perspectives and string opinions that I've developed & adopted with respects to the importance of the visual and performing arts in education, community, business, and in life.
1988: If you could change anything about life in 88, would you and what would it be?
HT: What would I change about life in 1988? I don't think I'd change much... life was pretty good for me in '88, historically speaking. However, 1988 was the year that Osama Bin Laden formed Al Qaeda... so were there a way, changing that would have definitely been a top choice for changes made in 1988.
1988: The Lightning fun round: It is 1988, you are listening to music while preparing to take on the Astins. The song you don't mind hearing over and over and over is
a. George Michael’s “Faith”
b. Whitney Houston “I get so Emotional”
c. Beach Boys “Kokomo”
d. Debbie Gibson “Foolish Beat”
e. Bobby McFerrin “Don’t Worry Be Happy”
f. Guns N Roses “Sweet Child of Mine”
g. None of the above, I preferred to listen to _______________________
HT: '80's music. Best music ever. I guess we tend to love the music from our childhood, regardless of from which era that may be. I can't pick just one of those songs you listed! I love 'em all, still!! Even now, the Best of the 80's station on my Pandora tops my list for favorite listening.
1988: It is 1988, you want to catch a movie, or sneak into one. What are you most likely to watch out of the top 10 movies that year?
a. Who Framed Roger Rabbit
b. Rain Man
c. Cocktail
d. Big
e. Twins
f. Crocodile Dundee II
g. Naked Gun
h. Beetlejuice
i.Coming to America
j. None of the above, I preferred to watch___________________________ >
HT: Rain Man, Big, Beetlejuice & Coming to America! Narrowed to two, Big and Beetlejuice... Ok, Beetlejuice wins.
1988: It is 1988, you have actual downtime. You were most likely to read
a. Tom Clancy’s “Cardinal of the Kremlin”
b. Stephen Hawking’s “A Brief History of Time”
c. Stephen King’s “The Tommy Knockers”
d. Tom Wolfe’s “Bonfire of the Vanities”
e. None of the above, I was reading __________________________________
HT: None of the Above! I was reading C.S. Lewis, Judy Blume, Shel Silverstein, Beverly Cleary, Roald Dahl- and scripts! Lots of scripts!
1988: It is 1988, you manage to catch some other TV when you are not on TV. Would it most likely be?
a. Roseanne
b. The Cosby Show
c. Cheers
d. The Wonder Years
e. None of the above I was watching _________________________________________
HT: I watched all of those shows! And I think each of them was my favorite at one point or another. Add Different Strokes, The Facts of Life, Kids Incorporated and Punky Brewster!
1988 Bonus: If we get an interview with Sean Astin or Shannen Doherty, and we got some deeply pastel furniture would you be up for a rematch?
HT: ....an “I'm Telling” rematch? Ha! People would be stoked to watch Shannon and the Astins. ...and they'd be like, who the crap is that other chick? But it certainly would be fun. Chuckie and I would lose all over again.
1988: Lastly, what have you been up to? What are you currently working on?
HT: I have a husband who I love more than life itself, and four crazy kids who fit the same description... usually....make that, sometimes. I started teaching in 2001 and I'm extremely passionate about education. I left the classroom in 2011 and I have since been developing and have been involved in projects which serve, unite and strengthen community, education, business, and artists of all kinds. I also work as the development director at a nonprofit learning enrichment center.
1988: It has been such an amazing experience to research your life and career and to find someone who is so passionate about education, fighting the good fight….not to mention, we share a deep love of 80’s tunes, Punky power, and Judy Blume! Thank you for agreeing to this interview and I hope our readers will read up on your educational work and find a way to contribute to the cause. I will now go and organize the rematch with Sean Astin.