[S12E16] Live Show 3
"Of Course He's Dead" is the series finale of the long-running sitcom Two and a Half Men, which ran for 12 seasons. The finale aired on CBS on February 19, 2015, an hour-long program constituting the series' 261st and 262nd half-hour episodes.[2]It had the show's largest audience since April 2013, with 13.52 million viewers.[3][4][5][6] In the episode, Alan Harper discovers that his brother Charlie, presumed to have been killed in a train accident in the ninth season premier, has a fortune in unclaimed royalties. He eventually gathers enough evidence to confirm that Charlie is still alive and planning a grand act of revenge. Former cast members Angus T. Jones, April Bowlby and Jennifer Taylor make cameo appearances.
[S12E16] Live Show 3
Alan Harper (Jon Cryer) receives a letter stating his presumed dead brother Charlie has $2.5 million in unclaimed royalties. He needs Charlie's death certificate to claim the money, but cannot find one and realizes his only proof is Rose's (Melanie Lynskey) word. Evidence that Charlie may be alive mounts after an unknown party claims the money, and Alan and his mother Evelyn (Holland Taylor) receive threatening messages. Meanwhile, Charlie's estranged daughter Jenny (Amber Tamblyn) receives a check for $100,000 along with an apology note, and a package addressed to Charlie arrives at the house. Several women from Charlie's past are shown receiving checks and personalized apology letters.
An unknown captive escapes Rose's basement, so Rose returns to the beach house to inform Alan and Walden Schmidt (Ashton Kutcher) that Charlie is alive. While in Paris, Rose caught Charlie in bed with a hooker, a mime and a goat. She tried to avenge his infidelity by pushing him into the path of an oncoming train, but the goat took the fall instead. Rose imprisoned Charlie in her dungeon until he escaped. Evelyn and Rose go into hiding, while Walden and Alan go to a police station and talk to Lieutenant Wagner (Arnold Schwarzenegger). Returning to the house, they find life-size cardboard cutouts of themselves wearing nooses with targets on the chests. Frightened, Alan calls his ex-wife Judith (Marin Hinkle) and several past girlfriends to tell them how much they each meant to him. Walden also calls two of his ex-girlfriends to apologize for how he behaved with each. All the women feign emotion while being generally dismissive.
Alan's son Jake (Angus T. Jones) shows up at the house, having left the Army and married a Japanese woman. He mentions having received a $250,000 check and a note reading, "I'm alive" before gambling with the money in Las Vegas, yielding $2.5 million in winnings. After Jake leaves, Wagner calls Alan and Walden to tell them he has captured Charlie, but the man is actually Christian Slater dressed in attire similar to Charlie's. Alan, Walden and Berta (Conchata Ferrell), believing Wagner, celebrate. A helicopter carrying a grand piano like Charlie's approaches the house, and the three ponder whether Wagner caught the right man, but quickly brush it off. Charlie, shown only from the back, walks up to the front door and rings the bell. Before anyone answers, he is killed when the helicopter drops the piano on him. The camera then pulls back to reveal the series' set and Chuck Lorre, sitting in the director's chair. He says "Winning!", breaking the fourth wall, just before a second grand piano falls on him.
Lorre said that everybody "had a blast making it", and that the finale was "an attempt to acknowledge everything that we've been through and everything that people have come to expect from the show". He said that no expense was spared for the finale as they didn't need to worry about the budget as they were ending the show anyway and so producers just "went for it".[16] In order to prevent plot details and secrets from being leaked, guest actors were only given the pages they were involved in and certain lines were redacted.[16] Before 2011, the idea of how the show might end was envisioned as a teary sendoff of Jake to college.[15]
Lorre subsequently revealed in his vanity card that Sheen had been offered a cameo where he would walk up to the door of the beach house, give a rant about the dangers of drug use and his own invincibility, at which point his character would be killed by a falling piano. Sheen declined and the scene was filmed with a stand-in, shot from behind, and without dialogue.[21] When discussing the infamous last scene, Lorre said that deciding to put himself in the final shot "felt like comedically the right thing to do. It's like 'Nobody gets out of here alive' may be the theme of this series. The proposition that anybody wins in something like this is ridiculous. That would have felt uncomfortable to me. So the second piano felt like the right thing to do".[15][22]
Chuck Lorre's signature vanity card, shown at the end of the episode:[21].mw-parser-output .templatequoteoverflow:hidden;margin:1em 0;padding:0 40px.mw-parser-output .templatequote .templatequoteciteline-height:1.5em;text-align:left;padding-left:1.6em;margin-top:0
Time, on the other hand, gave a positive review of the finale, saying: "Its bawdy, sentimentality-free goodbye was a funny and deeply weird hour of score-settling, fourth-wall-breaking, hugs-and-tears-denying TV". Overall they felt "the show went out not with a 'Farewell, old friend' but with a 'See you in hell!'. Was it appropriate? Classy? I just know I laughed".[27]
HollywoodLife gave a positive review, saying they "were still laughing through the entire hour finale of the sitcom". They also enjoyed the self-referential jokes at the expense of the actors and show itself.[29]
That's just him. I don't care anymore. I don't care if he lives or dies. Doesn't matter. Doesn't matter. Seriously, it doesn't even matter. To go that low and be that immature and that completely unevolved and that stupid? In my face, Really? You must feel safe, motherfucker. You must feel safe where you live. Damn![35][36]
The Masqueraders are one of the longest-lived in soul music history. According to an interview with soul collector and historian Greg Tormo, their origins date back to Dallas, Texas in 1958 -- middle-schoolers Charlie Moore (lead vocals) and Robert Tex Wrightsil (first tenor) formed the earliest incarnation of the group, then dubbed "the Stairs," with brothers Johnny and Lawrence Davis in the second and third tenor slots and "Little" Charlie Gibson singing bass. Circa 1959, the Stairs recorded at least three singles for the local South Town label -- "Brown-Eyed Handsome Man," "Caveman Love," and "Flossie Mae" -- before the Davis brothers left the group and Gibson enlisted in the U.S. Army. Moore and Wrightsil scrambled to find replacements, with Moore eventually moving to baritone to accommodate new lead vocalist Lee Wesley Jones; tenor Harold Thomas, and bass David Sanders filled out the new lineup, which toured relentlessly throughout Texas. They often appeared in small towns under the guise of national chart groups, easily emulating the style of any act they so chose -- as a result, they officially renamed themselves the Masqueraders, making their recorded debut under that name with 1963's "A Man's Temptation."
To avoid contractual snafus, Moman credited the Masqueraders as Lee Jones & the Sounds of Soul for the 1968 follow-up "This Heart Is Haunted," which he licensed to the Amy label. After "Do You Love Me Baby" failed to generate much interest, Wand dropped the Masqueraders, and Moman negotiated a new deal with Amy's parent label, Bell -- the three singles that resulted (the minor hit "I Ain't Got Nobody Else," "How Big Is Big," and "Steamroller") represent the creative zenith of the group's career, boasting a gospel-influenced deep soul sound gilded by American Studios' crack session crew. During this time, the Masqueraders also contributed backing vocals to sessions by blue-eyed soul combo the Box Tops. Their next single as headliners, 1968's "I'm Just an Average Guy," was their first true national hit -- released via Moman's AGP label, the record reached the number 24 spot on the national R&B charts. "The Grass Is Green" closed out the year, and in 1969 the Masqueraders swelled to a six-piece with the addition of vocalist Sammie Hutchins; when Lee Evans failed to show up for performances, Hutchins assumed his lead vocal spot, a position he assumed full-time when Evans ultimately left the group altogether.
Get ready for an extra dose of Xtra Factor, as Holly sees the last of her favourites face judges Simon Cowell, Dannii Minogue, Cheryl Cole and Louis Walsh. The show is jam-packed with exclusive access to the famous four, so you can find out which category they really want - and really do not want - as bootcamp fast approaches.
Holly Willoughby brings you all the behind-the-scenes news and gossip from backstage at the first of the live shows. She will be first on the scene to get the reaction from the final 12 contestants and the judges, plus the Xtra Factor celebrity panel featuring Taio Cruz.
Live from Wembley for exclusive access to the very first act to leave the show. Holly Willoughby is on hand to get their reaction, and that of the judges, the celebrity panel with Taio Cruz, and X Factor winner Alexandra Burke.
Holly Willoughby brings you all the news from another dramatic X Factor live show. She will be finding out what the final 12 thought about their performances, as well as offering up some juicy backstage gossip. There is behind-the-scenes footage of what the contestants have been up to all week in their new luxury home and how they have been preparing for the show. Plus, find out what the judges are really thinking, and hear the opinions of a celebrity panel that includes Kate Kelly.
Join Holly Willoughby as she talks exclusively to the second act to leave the competition. How do they feel about their journey being over? She also chats to the judges to find out how hard it was to make their decision, and catches up with the remaining performers to see how they are coping. Plus the celebrity panel returns, and there is a chance for viewers to voice their opinions of today's show. 041b061a72