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March 6, 2006:

BRAGGADOCIO

Bruce Kimmel Photograph bk's notes

Well, dear readers, all records were toppled last night. Yes, you heard it here, dear readers, all records were toppled as our Oscar Bash was the most popular Oscar party on all the Internet. If you missed any of the merriment and mirth and laughter and legs, just check out the over 1150 postings. With that number of postings, I do feel confident that soon we will be the most popular site on all the Internet. What fun we had. We laughed and laughed and just when we thought we could laugh no more, we laughed again. We were excruciatingly arch, too, which is always a plus. As to the show itself, I thought it was one of the worst Oscar shows in history. I didn’t know who half the actors were, and those clip montages were deadly and pointless, not necessarily in that order. Jon Stewart was mildly amusing in a smarmy sort of way – like most of today’s comics, he’s smug and full of himself and always looks like he thinks he’s just ever so clever. Jack Benny didn’t need to act like that, nor did George Burns or Johnny Carson or David Letterman or any other good comedian. The low point for me were the Best Song win by that pimp song, surely the nadir of the Academy Awards since they began. Otherwise, I didn’t really care who won or lost. In any case, the jernt was jumping, what with more than 8,000 hits and thirty people online for most of the evening (lurkers included). We set an all-time posting record and an all-time “views” record, over 4500 views by readers of the posts. But enough braggadocio, which is, of course, a ten-dollar word. Speaking of braggadocio, I saw Sweeney Todd yesterday at the East West Players. They are known for their productions of Sondheim shows. I’ve only seen one of them prior to Sweeney – Pacific Overtures, which I thought was an okay production. First off, let me say that any theater company that can mount Sweeney Todd and not embarrass themselves deserves praise. Everyone gave it their all, the show moved right along (it included Judge Turpin’s flogging song, which shouldn’t be put back in the show, if you ask me – they took it out for a reason and it just slows everything down, no matter how interesting the song is. The Sweeney had an excellent voice, but simply wasn’t commanding enough. The Mrs. Lovett was just strange – not enough personality, and she kept screwing up the lyrics in odd ways. The Anthony and Johanna were fine, and the Judge Turpin was creepy and fine, too. The seven piece band did what they could, but this is one score that needs its orchestra. The director did okay – nothing inspired, but nothing terrible either. It was fun to see the show onstage again – I’ve only seen it twice before, once on Broadway with Len Cariou and Angela Lansbury, and once in LA with Lansbury and George Hearn.

What am I, Ken Mandelbaum all of a sudden? Why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because I’m on the verge of having more braggadocio, and I think that to have more braggadocio would be most unseemly, although given our record-breaking day yesterday, certainly warranted. Why shouldn’t we be proud of our accomplishments and speak up about them?

Today I must get organized. Things are a little too messy for me in the home environment. Too many papers, too many DVDs laying about like so much fish – must file things away and have order. I have to ship some things today, plus I must write today, plus I must come up with something for Tuesday’s musical theater workshop (MTW – suggestions appreciated), I must pick up some overdue packages, and I must watch a DVD or two tonight.

Today I shall be a very good boy, food-wise – I always eat too much on Oscar Bash evenings and last night was no exception. Oh, I didn’t pig out or anything, but just kept nibbling on cookies and bagels after the show. I also managed to watch a motion picture on DVD entitled The House On Telegraph Hill, a rather turgid film noir melodrama. It’s not really a noir, but it’s noirishly photographed (by Lucien Ballard) and directed (by Robert Wise). I’m not a huge fan of the film’s leading lady (Valentina Cortese), at least not at this stage of her career, so I could never really get into the film. It’s beautifully directed, though, and the transfer is lusciously luscious.

Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, ship, eat, write, organize, and also drive about in my motor car going here, there, and everywhere, not necessarily in that order. Today’s topic of discussion: What are your all-time favorite film bio-pics? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, and I think we can all have a little braggadocio, don’t you?

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