Well, dear readers, here we are on a brand spanking new Monday, and I fear the next two to three days will be absolutely nutty at work, as we must get the next two shows to the network by Wednesday afternoon, notes addressed on the other two shows they got last week, and voice-overs done as well. Plus, I have to go out tomorrow afternoon and shoot some pickups for the show we’re currently in the midst of. The point being that you, dear readers, will have to keep this here joint jumpin’, although I will post as much as I can.
The brand new radio show is up and running – it’s Donald and I talking all about the new CD, Jeepers Creepers, and we talk about a few other things as well, so you’ll want to listen straight through to the end.
Over the weekend I watched a few DVDs. First, I watched Mr. Michael Ritchie’s film, An Almost Perfect Affair. It’s an odd little film, has some quirky humor, but really, it just doesn’t add up to much and it just sort of peters out. That said, I adore Miss Monica Vitti and Raf Vallone so they are worth the cost of the DVD. Plus, there are some very amusing cameos (the entire film was shot at the Cannes Film Festival). The male lead, Keith Carradine, is serviceable but nothing more. Lovely score by Georges Delerue. Very nice enhanced transfer which shows off the beautiful camerawork of Henri Decae.
I then watched Mr. Paddy Chayefsky’s The Hospital, starring Mr. George C. Scott and a host of good actors in support. I remember adoring the film when it came out, but while some of it is still very good, a lot of it hasn’t aged well. Still, the writing is trenchant and the acting superb. The transfer is a bit of a botch, despite being enhanced for widescreen TVs. Many shots are simply mis-framed, some too high up, some too low – there are several scenes at the beginning where the tops of heads are literally cut in half. Someone wasn’t paying attention.
I then watched Mr. John Schlesinger’s Sunday Bloody Sunday, starring Miss Glenda Jackson and Mr. Peter Finch, along with Mr. Murray Head. It, too, seems very forced today, whereas it was quite something in its day. Shoddy transfer – non-enhanced and on the brown side.
What am I, Ebert and Roeper all of a sudden? Why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because I’ve got a busy few days coming up, don’t you know?
Don’t forget, tonight is our Unseemly Live Chat at six o’clock Pacific Mean Daylight Savings Time. Be there or be round.
I traded in some DVDs over the weekend and got some interesting stuff – including a lovely boxed set of the five put-together The Man From UNCLE movies that were released in the UK. It’s a Region 2 DVD – I checked out the transfers and they look nice. I also picked up a noir called The Chase, starring Mr. Robert Cummings, adapted from the book The Black Path of Fear by Mr. Cornell Woolrich. Unfortunately, it’s one of those public domain DVDs from Alpha and the quality is wretched. Avoid at all costs, even at seven bucks. I also got two very peculiar CDs – one of Pat Suzuki’s VIK and RCA recordings and one of Miss Yvonne DeCarlo singing, which is surprisingly good – with orchestrations and musical direction by none other than Mr. John Williams (circa late 50s).
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must hie myself to the Oaks of Sherman where I shall work all the livelong day and then go shoot pickups in an optometrist’s office. Today’s topic of discussion: What are your favorite and most obscure albums, whether record or CD. Let us in on your guiltiest pleasures and your oddest oddball items. I’ll start – I still have an LP entitled The Best of Marcel Marceau – you put on the record and there’s nothing on it, just silence. Also, my Derek and Clive Live album, one of the funniest albums ever made (Derek and Clive are really Peter Cook and Dudley Moore). I also have the Japanese CD of A Chorus Line (in Japanese) – it’s very outré. Also, Betty Hutton’s Saints and Sinners LP, conducted by film composer Jerry Fielding. Your turn. Let’s have loads of lovely posts and you must keep the joint jumpin’. See you at chat.