Well, dear readers, all’s well that ends well, as some wag once said. The problem with the Man Who Would Be King pressing is being completely handled by the pressing plant. They were really stellar in dealing with the bad situation. They’ve made a new stamper, tested it, and are now pressing replacement CDs for anyone who has a problem disc. We’re having everyone e-mail Kritzerland directly and then all I need do is forward those e-mails to the pressing plant and they do everything else – they were really sweet about not wanting this to cause me one iota of extra work. That’s the kind of customer support one rarely sees. And I know OUR customers are very pleased with the honesty with which we’ve treated this and with the swiftness in dealing with it. So, all’s well that ends well, as some wag said. So that made me breathe easier and I had quite a pleasantly pleasant day. We had about a ninety-minute work session in the morning, then I had some telephonic calls to make, and then I did some errands and whatnot, which included a visit to the Apple Store. My iPhone battery has not been holding its charge like it used to – fortunately I am under Apple Care until November, so they’ll swap out the battery for free. Unfortunately, they have to make an appointment at the Genius Bar to do it and I didn’t have time to come back, so I’ll do that in the next week or so. I had some lunch at Hugo’s (salad excellent, pasta papa the worst its ever been), picked up no mail, paid some Kritzerland bills, and then finally sat on my couch like so much fish because Grant decided it would be best if he finished correcting the em dashes and bad breaks and finished designing the photo pages. So, the plan is to now work this afternoon – we’ll go through the book together quickly and then we’ll futz with the photo section and I’ll write the captions while I’m there. Then he’ll send me a copy via e-mail and I will begin my final, very careful proofing to make sure we caught everything and that in fixing things nothing else got screwed up.
I have, of course, been watching Adam 12 episodes at bedtime and have now seen six of the season four shows. I just really like the show, that’s all there is to it. They used a lot of new locations, including some great Venice shots, some Hollywood shots, and then they finally did some Valley shots in the last episode I watched, including a stretch of Ventura Boulevard that is two minutes from the home environment. One episode featured a REALLY young Ed Begley, Jr. and in the same episode was a REALLY young Lindsay Wagner, who was terrific and cute as a button. Another episode was directed by Ozzie Nelson and he had a great cameo.
Last night, I watched a motion picture on Blu and Ray entitled The Princess and the Frog. Let me just come right out and say it – the film is a classic and has instantly become one of my all-time favorite Disney animated films. Everything works – the story, the characters, the dialogue, the great Randy Newman songs, the unbelievably wonderful animation, everything. They didn’t go the “new” route of tarting it up with big-name actors in the leads, and therefore we get really wonderful performances from good actors. Not only is the film funny and gorgeous and tuneful and energetic, but its constantly very touching. I had a lump in my throat and a smile on my face from frame one right through to the very end. Well, almost the very end. Because at the very end the movie has its only mis-step and it’s such a stupid one and one most likely dictated by the studio: After this perfect film has its fade out and the end credits come up, we are treated to a completely insipid and totally out of place song by something called Ne-Yo. After hearing the infectious and wonderful Randy Newman songs, this one makes you want to vomit on the ground. Mercifully, it is short and then the Newman score returns and all is well. Shame on them for pandering – but bravo to them for this wonderful return to classic animation. There’s really nothing like it. The transfer is absolutely reference quality and the colors are so beautiful it makes your teeth hurt. The sound is robust and the music sounds fantastic. This one gets my highest recommendation and, for me, is right up there with Up.
After the movie, I did some work on the computer, finished writing my questions for the Gordon Hunt Q&A event today and then it was suddenly time to write these here notes. Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because, after all, all’s well that ends well, as some wag once said.
Today, I shall get up early, try to do a short jog, then I’ll get ready and head over to LACC to set up for our noon event with Gordon Hunt. That will take two hours, and then the plan is to go to Grant’s at three for the final work on the book, which I cannot wait to do. I’m thinking that dinner at neighbor Tony Slide and Bob Gitt’s will not work out. I may try to stop by for dessert later.
Tomorrow is a really full day – a book signing at eleven (LA denizens please come visit – we’re in Mission Hills at the Paperback Book Show – at the Guest House Inn 10621 Sepulveda Blvd). Directly after that I must go to a recording session to do two songs for the long musical demo, after which I’ll probably sup with someone from the company.
Either Monday or Tuesday will be a complete day off. We’re only a week away from starting rehearsals for the staged reading of the long musical, so I want to have at least one or two days to clear my head and to start mapping out what I want to do and how I want to stage things, minimal as it may be.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, perhaps do a short jog, do the Gordon Hunt Q&A, have a book work session, eat, and perhaps have dessert down the street. Today’s topic of discussion: I do love Randy Newman – who I think is a genius. What are your favorite Randy Newman songs and film scores? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst we are thankful that all’s well that ends well, as some wag said.