Well, dear readers, I have yet to labor on this Labor Day weekend. I have done nothing whatsoever except relax and play. For example, yesterday I relaxed and played. I managed to sleep until nine-thirty, then got up and did a few things around the home environment. I then went to the post office and shipped the few packages that needed shipping, and then I drove over to the Renaissance Hotel to check out the dealer rooms at Cinecon. There were a lot more dealers than in year’s past. Unfortunately, the rooms were basically dead – very few people there. I did see a few dealer friends, and one of them had brought his lovely daughter with him, whom I hadn’t seen since she was eight (she’s now twenty). She and I reminisced and had a great chat. I ended up buying some theatre souvenir programs, and a couple of DVDs. I then came back to the home environment after picking up some mail but no packages, and after doing some grocery shopping. And that was about it. I just ate some reasonable amounts of food stuffs and sat on my couch like so much fish, watching DVDs. Later in the evening, I took a brisk two-mile walk, which felt really good. I didn’t even write, other than fixing a couple of things that I’d written yesterday. Perhaps today I will write a page or two, if I’m so inclined.
Yesterday, I watched several things on DVD. The first thing I watched on DVD was a motion picture entitled Top Hat, starring Mr. Fred Astaire and Miss Ginger Rogers. According to the putrid “documentary”, Top Hat is considered to be the apex of their collaboration. I love those pronouncements by “scholars” who don’t know any better than anyone else. I really must stop watching these things, because they are time-wasters, and if I never see Leonard Maltin’s puss in another one of these puff-pieces, I will be a happy person. In any case, I enjoyed Top Hat quite a bit, but, for me, it is not the apex of their collaboration – for me that would be Swing Time. I get a little irritated with the plot contrivances in these films (Swing Time has the least of them), but oh those musical numbers (well, I could live without The Piccolino) – those musical numbers are simply high art and amongst the finest things ever committed to celluloid. I then watched Shall We Dance, another Astaire/Rogers film. It, too, has wonderful musical numbers, but the plot in this one is even more irritating than Top Hat. Still, it’s got Edward Everett Horton making with his famous double takes, and Eric Blore being Eric Blore. The Gershwin songs are divoon, but my favorite piece in the film is the Walking the Dog sequence. The transfer of Top Hat looks pretty swell, the transfer of Shall We Dance, less so. I then watched Smothered, a documentary about the censorship fight on the Smothers Brothers CBS variety show. It was very enjoyable, and best of all, there were quite a few clips from the show. I do hope they issue all three seasons on DVD at some point.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below whilst we sit with our collective feet up, doing no labors on the Labor Day weekend.
At some point on this very day, I do believe if we have a quorum on the forum that we’ll open up the chat room and have at it. That will be ever so much fun, won’t it? So, let’s get a quorum going somewhere between noon and three my time.
Today, I shall take another brisk two-mile walk – perhaps I’ll go down to the Studio City Farmer’s Market and see what’s happening. Otherwise, I intend to do nothing whatsoever, except watch DVDs, perhaps write a bit, and then eat some reasonable foodstuffs. Then, tomorrow I get to go to an Official Labor Day Party at neighbor Anthony Slide and Bob Gitt’s home environment. They always have an illustrious array of guests, so I know you’ll want the full report.
Perhaps I shall also dance around the home environment like Fred Astaire. Perhaps I shall put on my top hat, white tie, and tails. Perhaps I shall do The Piccolino or The Continental. Oh, how suave I shall look in my evening attire, which I will, of course, be wearing in the daytime. I think we should all dance like Fred and Ginger today.
There, I’ve just done The Continental and I feel marvy. You simply must do it. Everyone up on their feet right now. Everyone into their evening attire and gowns. As Gertie Lawrence and Fred Astaire both said – Shall we dance?
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, do nothing whatsoever except relax, dance, write, eat, and watch movies, not necessarily in that order. Today’s topic of discussion: What are your all-time favorite Fred and Ginger movies and musical numbers? And what are your all-time favorite Fred numbers sans Ginger? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we? And shall we dance? We shall.