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This site was created February 16, 1997
It was last updated June 1, 2001 

These are some online articles about Rachael that I have found. Some include interviews and articles on some of the films she has done. Enjoy!  
 

"PLANET Q&A: Rachael Leigh Cook and the Pussycats?"
Prairie Miller
Wednesday, April 11, 2001
http://www.planethollywood.com/

For Rachael Leigh Cook, playing the title character in Josie and the Pussycats meant a whole lot more than just learning her lines. Cook, best known for getting romantic with Freddie Prinze Jr. in She's All That, had to not only seem like a rock star for her latest movie, but pretty much be one for a while. Rachel told PlanetHollywood.com how she struggled through everything from learning to sing and play guitar overnight, to strutting around on stage in those six-inch high heels from hell. The dynamic young actress, who also starred recently opposite Sylvester Stallone in Get Carter, detailed the character traits that she and Josie share...

RACHAEL LEIGH COOK: [Feeling uncomfortable in a noisy chair] Ugh, this chair is bad news. Could I just say for the record that... it's the chair! For the record, it's the chair. All right, I'm not gonna move around anymore. Okay, what's on your mind?

PLANET HOLLYWOOD: Being a rock star is such a guy thing. Is that something you ever related to?

RLC: I think guys are a lot more self-conscious about admitting that they think it would be cool. But yeah, when you think 'rock star,' the first person you'd think of, would probably be a male. But maybe this movie will get people thinking differently.

PH: Did you ever have that rock star fantasy when you were growing up?

RLC: If I did, I can't remember. I'm sure I did at some point. I guess I thought it would be real cool, but at the same time I think it was more of just an extreme admiration for the people who did it. You know, wanting to be them, but not necessarily do what they did.

PH: Did you read the Josie comics as a kid?

RLC: No, but I was fan of the Archie comics, and I think they had a crossover -- like they all lived in Riverdale. They had like two page inserts, kinda saying, 'Hey, we're here too,' that kind of thing...

PH: What was it like to go record a song?

RLC: Um, I don't sing! I just don't, but I wish I could. I frequently ask not to, actually, and it was interesting going into the studio -- but it was very nerve wracking. Somebody said, 'You look like you're having so much fun.' But my hands are clenched, and I'm not moving! And I'm singing as quietly as I possibly can. It was just scary. You know, I'm just not a singer.

PH: What about handling a guitar?

RLC: The guitar stuff, I worked on that so much, but I would ruin whole takes -- I would be completely on the wrong chord. I would be like, 'Oh, this take is blown.' And really, I should have made it seem more like I was singing, and just having a good time.

But I learned from this guy named Fast Freddy, who's extremely cool. He plays guitar with Rick James and stuff and he taught me as quickly as possible. It was a really good experience, although very trying in a lot of ways because the guitar is hard, it can be very frustrating.

PH: Do you think you'll keep playing?

RLC: Eventually. When I stop associating it with work and anxiety! Yes, definitely.

PH: The band becomes these huge superstars in the movie. Is that kind of celebrity something you think about in your own life?

RLC: Well, kinda. When we were shooting the big scene at the end with the concert, there was this girl sitting in the front who had this fixation with Tara. And she'd go, 'You! I like that one!' And we could hear her over the din, it was amazing. So, it was really crazy.

And if this whole thing does take off, I think it will be really interesting because people may think we're really a band. And with the press that I've gotten from this movie, I get more people coming up to me. That's really exciting.

PH: What was it like working with Parker Posey in Josie and the Pussycats?

RLC: Oh, she's so much fun. I mean, everyone knows that Parker is the indie queen! I was amazed when she wanted to be in this movie because it's just the opposite of everything she does, and at the same time, the message of the movie is, you know, be yourself, and think for yourself. Do your own thing.

And that might be everything Parker has been working for. So while it may appear to be a big, glossy studio movie, as long as it has the message that she's been trying to put out by making independent films, it does make a lot sense. But the bottom line is yeah, I think it was really exciting that she's in the movie because I think she's cool.

PH: What about those great clothes you Pussycats got to wear?

RLC: Oh, my goodness! It was fun. But like many great clothes, they were not the most comfortable things. You'd like go in your trailer in the morning and think,'Oooh what am I going to wear today?' Because it was always something exciting that you'd never seen before. We changed clothes probably fifty times in the movie.

And inevitably, how do I put this... If beauty is pain, we looked really good! That's all I know. The clothes were visionary, just great stuff, so it was worth it, but the shoes were the worst thing you could ever imagine.

No man is worth those shoes, I'll tell you that right now! Just the height alone. Like six inches. Hey, I know I'm not that tall! Gimme a break.

PH: How much of Josie is Rachel Leigh Cook?

RLC: Pretty much so. I'd say it's like eighty-five percent me.

PH: What part of you isn't Josie?

RLC: Just minus the self-consciousness. And, you know, the neurosis. Like I get nervous, and she seems to handle that better. Unlike Josie, I don't deal well with crowds. And she's a lot more vivacious. But yeah, she's pretty much me. Josie and the Pussycats was good for me, on a lot of levels. It was a real mental health gig for me. It was great.

--Prairie Miller

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