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November 12, 2005:

WAXING NOSTALGIC

Bruce Kimmel Photograph bk's notes

Well, dear readers, it is Saturday. And, as I sit here like so much fish, the windmills of my mind were wandering back to Saturdays of yesteryear. I used to love my Saturdays when I was a wee sprig of a twig of a tad of a lad of a youth. I used to get up very early so I could watch the test pattern on our black-and-white TV. Then I’d invariably watch Heckle and Jeckle and Mighty Mouse cartoons, and then usually a B-western movie. Then I’d dress, have some breakfast and walk over to one of the neighborhood movie theaters (usually the Picfair) for the Saturday matinee show, which would usually consist of cartoons, a short subject (The Three Stooges or a serial), and a main feature, all for $.15, which then got raised to a $.25, at some point. Depending on my financial situation, I’d buy buttered popcorn or, if I couldn’t afford that, Sno-Caps, or, if I couldn’t afford that, a Charms sucker. And there I would sit in the dark from noon until about three or four, depending on the length of the feature film. The other two neighborhood theaters didn’t have “official” kiddie matinees, they just had the matinee showings of their regular double bills for the week. Those were even better, because you got cartoons, coming attractions, and two feature films. And if you loved the first of the feature films, you could just stay and see it over again, for free. Saturdays aren’t like that anymore, and it’s a damn shame, if you ask me. My goodness, I’ve been waxing nostalgic, haven’t I? Have you ever waxed nostalgic, and if so, how did nostalgic feel about being waxed. Of course, we all know that waxing is in these days, so maybe nostalgic was into being waxed. I tell you, I wane when I hear of waxing. Conversely, I never wax when I hear of waning. I seem to have lost the thread here, haven’t I? Here I was, waxing nostalgic, and I went off on a waxing tangent. Speaking of a waxing tangent, my day of rest yesterday turned out to be anything but. I ended up doing the final fixes on Mr. Kevin Spirtas’ CD, so that is now completed, and I ended up having to have several long telephonic conversations. Also, and rather annoyingly, when we played through Everybody Ought To Have A Maid the other day, to see if my parody lyric fit just right, I realized immediately that I’d left out one verse and one chorus, and because I’m a stickler for that sort of thing, I spent a couple of hours trying to do those two little sections. I think I got it, all except for four lines, which I’ll do today. Isn’t that exciting? Isn’t that just too too?

Last night I watched two count them two motion pictures on DVD. The first motion picture on DVD was entitled What Have You Done To Solange, an Eyetalian giallo. After having watched The Bird With The Crystal Plumage, I got into an Eyetalian giallo mood, so I’ll be watching a few of these from time to time over the next few weeks. I confess to having seen very few of them. They’re fairly perverse, these Eyetalian giallos, but if you see the ones made in the very early 70s, the violence, which became extremely blatant in the mid-70s, is pretty tame and usually takes place off-camera. What Have You Done To Solange is, like most of these giallos, long on style and short on everything else, but I found it immensely enjoyable nonetheless. It always helps when the transfer is as yummilicious as this one was. It also had an excellent score by Ennio Morricone. Like a lot of these Eyetalian early 70s films, there are lots of nubile young schoolgirls running around in various states of undress, before they are done in by a mysterious black-gloved killer (the giallos always have a mysterious black-gloved killer). Solange, the titular character, doesn’t appear in the film until seventy-five minutes in, and then we find out what was done to Solange. I then watched the second motion picture on DVD, which was entitled The Fallen Idol, a film of Carol Reed, starring Ralph Richardson and young Bobby Henrey. I hadn’t seen it in quite some time, but it is a wonderful film with superb performances from everyone. But, the film belongs to Richardson (one of his great performances), and young Henrey, who is terrific, albeit a little hard to understand at times. Reed’s direction is his usual top-notch job, and I really like William Alwyn’s score. It’s a region 2 DVD, and I’ve heard no news about it being released in region 1 in the foreseeable future. But, for those with multi-region players, it’s a must, and the transfer is great.

Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below before I start waxing nostalgic again, whilst this section wanes from all the waxy buildup.

Speaking of waxy buildup, it’s Saturday, and I damn well think it’s time we had us an Unseemly Trivia Contest, don’t you? So, here it is:

It wasn’t one of the great seasons on Broadway. It was littered with flop musicals and flop plays. One such flop play lasted barely more than a week. The flop play was actually a revival and had originally been done some twenty years before, when it had a brief four-month run. The play was based on a classic work of fiction, although the title of the classic work of fiction was not used for the play. The play was turned into a successful film a decade after its original short Broadway run, and a decade before the flop revival – the film used the title of the Broadway show rather than the work of fiction’s original title. The original run of the show featured an actress who would go on to win an Academy Award just a few years after the flop revival closed. The revival featured a young actress who would go on to appear in a hugely successful Broadway musical, and then, some years later, a hugely successful television series. The revival was directed by someone who was better known as a playwright. Finally, the original production had incidental music by someone who would go on to become a well-respected film composer.

Name the play, the work of fiction that the play was based on, the author of the play and the author of the work of fiction.

Name the actress from the original run of the play who would go on to win an Academy Award a few years after the flop revival of the play, and name the film for which she won the award.

Name the revival’s young actress, name the hugely successful Broadway musical that she would soon appear in, and name the hugely successful TV series she appeared in some years later.

Name the director of the revival.

Name the composer of the incidental music for the original Broadway production.

Remember, DO NOT POST YOUR ANSWERS TO THE SITE! Send them to me at bruce@haineshisway.com (and don’t worry if you get a bounced e-mail notice – I do get them). Good luck to one and all and also all and one.

Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must write, I must deliver books to the store where I’m doing my signing next week, and, most of all, I must relax and stop and smell the roses or the coffee or the tacos. What I’d really like to do is watch Heckle and Jeckle and Mighty Mouse, and then go see a Saturday matinee for $.15. Today’s topic of discussion: What did you do on Saturdays when you were growing up. Start in the morning and take us through the entire day. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, and don’t be afraid to wax nostalgic.

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