Glitter and Greed: The Lisa Frank Story

This "your favorite thing from childhood ruined" as a genre of documentary is getting so tiresome. We all have heard that the Lisa Frank corporation was terrible to work for, but there's nothing in this documentary that's very different from literally any corporate work environment. I think the producers of this documentary were hoping for it have some shock factor because Lisa Frank's imagery is so bubbly and cute that maybe the contrast of the work environment would be surprising, but the only people who would be shocked by this are people who have never worked anywhere before lol. Not to undermine what employees went through, yes it was horrible, but the documentary itself is not worth watching. You could make this same exact documentary for most any corporate job.

There was very little interesting footage and almost nothing about Lisa herself, it's more about the company and less about her as a person. Without having any sort of human element to this doc, it's very forgettable. They try to bring in some emotional element to this by having her son talk about the divorce in a way that feels very out of place and unnecessary.

The only highlight was getting to see some of the artists who were involved throughout the years. And there was a clip from Frank's wedding that was neat but nothing else. If they wanted to capitalize on the nostalgia element, they could have at least touched on that better.

I was a parent when Lisa Frank products became so popular, so I was not really emotionally invested in any of this. It's sad to know that the person who was behind all of the optimistic cheerful artwork was giving her employees such a hard time. I hate that we didn't get her side of the story.

The employees had an equally hard time with James. Their descriptions of him made him sound like a total narcissist. His interviews confirm that 100%. And his poor son seems completely brainwashed. I suppose when you have two difficult parents you just have to choose the lesser of the two evils.

The best part of the whole documentary is how they color coordinate all of the clothing and backgrounds for each person interviewed. I'm not sure how all that was arranged, but I loved it!!

And I've seen it before. He starts the interview and says he didn't really love Lisa. He didn't want kids. He wasn't ever there, at home, he was a perfectionist, he wasn't angry as he pounds the table. He disproves everything he is saying in his own interviews. He LOVED the kids, but he didn't want them and was literally in his own words a weekend dad. He treated his employees and his wife like sheet, like he didn't care about their lives or even their health, but Lisa is the horrible person? No effing way. This documentary shows who is the horrible person by his own words. And the people who are horrible can't bear to take responsibility and say "I was a bad husband, a bad manager and a bad father" because he's just too self absorbed.

This is a sad tale, series. But it's nice to see people expose themselves and you see exactly what happened by who that person is today. No one in this documentary speaks badly of Lisa Frank except her ex husband and her clearly jaded oldest son who didn't want to grow up to be his own person, he, like Obama wrote, wanted to live the dreams of his father, who had the opportunity but was never there for him. Couldn't even eat DINNER with them.

Sad.

When my kids didn't want to go to their father's house, I made them go. I never talked bad about their father in front of them, EVER. What a sheet human being James Green is. So self absorbed everything aroud him has to be green. So self obsessed even his SON has to have green all around him. It's so horrible to have people so ungrateful they can't talk to their parents. You did that James, because you are a horrible person.

This new docuseries is on prime and it talks about the rise and downfall of Lisa Frank. Now if you are like me, the 90's was the greatest! (No cap) But when it came to Lisa Frank products. Everyyy, I mean every girl had something from that line. From the stickers, to the trapper keepers, pencils and everything else in between. Just the psychedelic illustrations that would draw your attention each time you walk down the school aisle. You instantly knew it was Lisa Frank.

Now you guys know I love me a goood documentary. This one here I'm not trying to ruin anyone's childhood memory of what the Lisa Frank brand exhibited to them. But facts or facts and although Lisa Frank is in fact a real person, and not a pseudonym for something else. She was not the creator of her brand. Her ex husband James Green was the mastermind behind the logo and drawings and ultimately the one who ran the company after she had kids and stayed home to care for them. With the help of an amazing set of graphic designers, illustrators and other behind the scenes people. Lisa Frank started a business that ultimately seemed very uplifting and inspiring to those around her. Appealing to the young childhood of girls who loved everything bright, and colorful.

But with every business comes disappointments. And not everything is rainbows and unicorns. As you get farther in this docuseries you get several different accounts from everyone who worked for Lisa Frank and those who tried to rebuild her up. There is a lot of greed, defamation and legal issues. This documentary like any other was an absolute eye opener to something so nostalgic. If you want something interesting to watch. Take a look at Primes new documentary "Glitter and Greed: The Lisa Frank Story"

We don't often see many documentaries on modern day art or the exploitation of artists by corporations who steal their work. I think what hit me most is how Lisa Frank is not even an artist; She was and, arguably, still is, a con artist business woman. I believe all of those interviewed who can back the abuse by Lisa Frank. Lisa not participating except by providing a brief, generic and patronizing corporate response, truly reveals the person she is. I felt for the mature son who had to leave and basically disown her. That had to be excruciating but he did the right thing. Narcissists rarely change. To the startups who received business degrees; perhaps they could refer back to their professors for assistance. I personally feel that a business degree should be followed by a law degree because it's all about the contracts. Sadly, if your contract is not well done, it opens the door for predators like Lisa Frank, who, by the way, is talentless. Predatory practices and bullying does not take talent. Glamour dolls should rebrand and continue on with a great new line of brushes and other makeup accessories and pitch to urban outfitters. They don't need Lisa. Also, if Lisa was a good person, with a sincere business ethic, who was not struggling financially ( as she claims), she would have given the startup all the money back she borrowed, and walked away with a handshake. Lots of lessons to be learned after viewing this. One such lesson is don't kill your self for a job, EVER. Next, don't allow a corporation to use your art work under their name or be sure you are able to keep the rights to your work if they do. Finally, always speak your truth. Perhaps you lost now but your story is out there and that is a win and takes courage. I think there was some karma that came to Lisa ex husband. I'm sure he knows that and agree with him on living with no regrets. What's done is done and there is no changing the past. He has the admiration of his son and has moved on with a new lady. I loved the art work that was shared by the loyal concept artists in this doc and am saddened that Lisa put it all in her name, made millions, paid them little, only for her to turn her back on all of them. The woman at the end who created the rooms and colors and was featured on a major media outlet, she should contact that same outlet and ask if they would assist her in finding justice. Lisa was correct about one thing; "the best is yet to come", but it won't be her.