Well, dear readers, it is Monday, the start of a brand spanking new week. I am feeling rested and relaxed and I’m sure that will all go out the window by noon, when I’m quite certain I shall feel tired and stressed out.
And now, I shall tell you what I did yesterday, as I promised I would. I went over to the Cinerama Dome and saw the original Cinerama presentation, This is Cinerama, the first time this has been shown in its original three-panel presentation in forty years. I got to the theater early and got shown to my reserved seat. I was seated behind two of the most obnoxious people I’ve ever sat behind in a movie theater. They looked like Laurel and Hardy, these two buffoons did. The heavy one made Hardy look like an anorexic, while the Laurel one was thin and disgusting (in fact, he got up at one point to ask the usher a question and his pants were literally falling off – revealing his underwear and half his butt cheeks – I almost threw up on the spot). They spent fifteen minutes talking loudly about their various collecting habits, each in their own world and neither really talking to the other – I don’t think they looked at each other once during their entire conversation. They continued talking as the Overture began, and I very nicely leaned forward and shooshed them so loudly and vehemently and with such force that they shut up and remained quiet until intermission.
The overture was nice, and then the curtains parted to reveal a small black-and-white image. Unlike the original Cinerama presentation, there was no masking around the image, which was annoying. In any case, Lowell Thomas spoke about the history of motion pictures and then, suddenly, said the immortal, “Ladies and Gentlemen, this is Cinerama.” The curtains parted and it was suddenly like being back in the world of Benjamin Kritzer. The roller coaster ride that opens the film is still breathtaking and still makes you nauseous. The screen at the Dome is not a true Cinerama screen, as the real Cinerama screen was louvered with highly light-reflective slats, which created a dazzling image. The image on view at the Dome isn’t exactly dazzling. The panels are not rock steady which is very disorienting, but still it was great fun to see it and experience it after all these years. The screen is about four feet shorter than it should be (the image actually goes into the masking and above it onto the top curtains) and the screen is not quite as wide as it originally was (again, the image spills over onto the masking on each side). The stereo sound is astonishing for 1952 – there is a depth to it that today’s digital sound doesn’t even achieve (of course, there is a ton of hiss, but I have always liked hiss). If you’re in the LA area, you really ought to see it. After the feature was done, the curtains closed. As we were all about to get up, a voice from the screen stopped us and said a major event was going to happen – then, the curtains reopened and we had the original Cinerama trailer for How the West Was Won. I never even knew there was a trailer done in three panel Cinerama, but there it was, looking and sounding amazing. Apparently it’s coming to the Dome soon and I shall be there with bells on. If not bells, certainly I’ll be there with finger cymbals on.
I then came home and actually got some important writing done, so that was good. I ate a big Eileen and Chet Atkins meal and then watched the Beauty and the Beast documentary. Then I began to watch The Thin Man on DVD, a movie I’m ashamed to admit that I’ve somehow missed all these years. It is a total delight thus far, and I’ll have a full report when I’ve finished it.
Things were fairly quiet here at haineshisway.com over the weekend. There were many errant and truant Hainsies/Kimlets, but despite that we had a lovely time here, even though traffic was kept to the bare minimum. If you missed any of the fun, you really should use the Unseemly Archive Button to catch up. First of all, on Saturday I answered all your excellent questions. There is also the first new trivia contest we’ve had in weeks. And there were many fun and interesting little tidbits in Sunday’s notes as well, so don’t be a stick in the mud (no mean feat) – check out all that you missed.
Well, I feel winded – this section is much too long, and I’m afraid we must all click on the Unseemly Button below posthaste because I simply cannot write another word in this section.
Given the length of the first section, I shall keep this section to a bare minimum. If you are easily shocked, I shall try to keep it to a clothed minimum, for a bare minimum, for those who aren’t prepared, can be most unseemly. What the hell am I talking about?
You know what is interesting about this schedule I’m keeping? What is interesting is that I try to do everything I would normally do in the morning the night before. Such as shave, do the notes, etc. so that all I have to do in the morning is shower and leave. Isn’t that exciting? Isn’t that just too too?
Have we reached the bare or clothed minimum yet? Perhaps tomorrow I shall be fashion conscious and have a bare mid-riff, or at the very least a bare mid-bernardo.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, it is time for me to vamoose, I must drive some distance to the west valley where I shall work all the live-long day, after which I shall return to my very own residence. Today’s topic of discussion: What movie you saw as a child got you hooked on movies forever? I’ll start – simple, The High and the Mighty, which I saw in excess of thirty times as a young boy. Also, which play got you hooked on plays (has to be one you saw, not read). I’ll start – The Tenth Man by Paddy Chayefsky, the first play I ever saw, at the Huntington Hartford Theater. Your turn. And feel free to discuss any old thing and don’t keep your posts to a bare or clothed minimum.