Well, dear readers, I am back in the swing of things. Yes, you heard it here, dear readers, I, BK, am back in the swing of things. I didn’t quite take the full day off yesterday, but I moved at my own pace and enjoyed myself and did manage to relax and smell the roses or the coffee or the Diet Snapple Apple. So, I am indeed back in the swing of things and do remember that it don’t mean a thing if you ain’t got that swing – do wa do wa do wa do wa do wa (wa do wa do wa do wa do wa do, spelled backwards). Yesterday, for example, it took an hour or two to get into the swing of things and also the things of swing. For example, I got up after having a lovely eight hours of sleep (I must say, I was out like a light the minute my head hit my pillow). I answered some e-mails and then took my first jog in a week, which was not as difficult as I feared it might be. That put me firmly in the swing of things. I then did some banking and some other errands, and then picked up a week’s worth of mail from the mail place, which consisted of three count them three packages and a bank statement. One of the packages contained my brand spanking new theremin, which I can’t wait to try out. We’ll be using it in The Brain From Planet X. Then I packaged up all outstanding orders and got them shipped, so I’m completely caught up. Then I was delighted to see that How To Write A Dirty Book and Other Stories was up at amazon.com. Then former dear reader Hisaka called and we decided to sup at the California Pizza Kitchen. My dinner was sort of grody – the normally reliable roasted garlic chicken pizza. It just didn’t taste very good – too tangy and tart. But Hisaka’s fusilli with broccoli and sundried tomatoes was faboo. After that, I came home and sat on my couch like so much fish.
Last night, I managed to watch two count them two very short movies on DVD. The first very short movie on DVD was entitled Let’s Scare Jessica To Death, starring Miss Zohra Lampert. I’d always avoided this film because it sounded like one of those 80s slasher things. Well, I’d read about the DVD release and found that it was made in 1971, so I decided to take a chance on it, hoping it would be a well-made little chiller. It wasn’t. I’ll tell you, if you read the comments on the imdb you’d think this was one of the greatest horror films ever made. What you come to realize is that every single poster saw this on TV when they were children, and so it had some sort of effect on them. The film is very low budget – certainly competent, but nothing more. It’s fairly incoherent at times, and its plot is sort of The Night Of The Living Dead with a few other films thrown in. Miss Lampert, with whom I worked on Doctor’s Hospital, is an odd actress and she’s at her oddest in this film. The film is compared to The Haunting, but it’s nothing like it, and it certainly doesn’t achive the same sort of cerebral, subtle horror that that film does. It’s not bad, but it’s not good, either. The transfer is excellent. I then watched the second very short film on DVD, which was entitled Frankenstein. This is the new 2 disc Special Edition. I don’t really need to talk about the film – it’s still fun after all these years, but it’s never been one of my favorites. The new transfer is marginally better than the other DVDs have been – better contrast, cleaner, and with its complete end fade-out. Lots of extras on the second disc, which maybe I’ll get to one of these days.
What am I, Ebert and Roeper all of a sudden? Why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below to see if I am in the swing of things in the next section.
Why, yes, I do believe I am still in the swing of things in this section. So, today I’ll be going through the Brain script (I also have to Xerox the score and a couple more copies of said script) and making copious director notes and ideas, in preparation for my meeting with set and costume folks tomorrow. I may have a lunch or dinner to attend, but I won’t know until I receive a telephonic call. The rest of the week is filling up quickly. And, of course, I must continue writing. I’m still expecting a few things, mail-wise, so I’m hoping those things will arrive soon.
It’s still very hot here in Los Angeles, California, USA. I am in the throes of trying to figure out who will be engineering the Emily and Alice concert (Vinnie cannot go), so I’ve got my New York people on it and hope to have some answers this very day. I want to book everything by the end of this week. Once that’s done, then I’ll book my flight and hotel. It’s going to be a little crazy as that time approaches. In the next two weeks I have to finish mixing Susan Egan’s CD. Then I go to New York, then I come back and the day after we begin rehearsals for The Brain. And directly after our first rehearsal for The Brain is our CD release partay for Simply Sondheim. If you’re in the Los Angeles area and would like to attend, just drop me an e-mail at bruce@haineshisway.com and I’ll be happy to add you to the guest list. Several of the performers will be attending and it should be a very nice do.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, jog, write, read, make notes, do errands, and perhaps sup, all whilst being in the swing of things. Today’s topic of discussion: What are your favorite classic horror films, from the 30s through the 70s? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we?