Well, dear readers, may we just wish a Happy Thanksgiving to all you turkeys out there in the dark. This is a day to be festive and cozy and to stuff oneself with turkey and mashed potatoes and yams and stuffing and cranberries – yes, CRANBERRIES, an official haineshisway.com “word.” It is a time to call friends you may not have spoken to in a while, a time to drop an e-mail to someone to wish them a happy holiday, a time to kick someone you don’t like in the shins really hard. In other words, it’s Thanksgiving and I, for one, am giving thanks to everyone and everything good that’s happened thus far this year. Despite the usual handful of annoyances, it’s been a fun ride this year and hopefully that will continue to the end of the year and into the New Year. And despite the difficulties that I know some of you have faced this year, the wonderful merry troupe of haineshisway.com is always here for you, to comfort, to console, and to support. And that goes for you lurkers, too, should you ever choose to come out of lurkdom. Yesterday was quite an okay day, with the exception of Carrie becoming the most expensive soundtrack reissue we’ve ever done. Very little profit to be made, but the perfectionist in me simply doesn’t know how to do things by half or take the easy way out, as the writers of Bukowsical have recently learned (insert smiley face here). But the result on Carrie is fantastic and we did it the right way and I have an idea that I may end up doing next week that could help a little, although not immediately. We got a bunch of stuff shipped this afternoon, and then I moseyed on over to see Jason Graae do his run-through of his new Jerry Herman show at his mom’s retirement home. These wonderful old folks were so appreciative of Jason and they just love him there (he’s done several shows for them). I met several of them and they were just delightful, especially eighty-six years young Andrea from Maui, whose birthday it was (in fact, there were six birthdays to celebrate there). The show is still finding itself and afterwards Jason asked for my thoughts and I gave them, mostly having to do with some changes in the running order, which he seemed to agree with and like. Others at the table also had minor things, but Jason doing Jerry is great, and his The Grand Tour songs were wonderful, as was his put-together of It Only Takes A Moment and Loving You. I may go up to Palm Springs to see him on Saturday night if I feel I can deal with the two-hour drive back and forth. We all went to nearby Mo’s after and I finally had the thing I’ve been wanting to try there for the last three months – something called a footlong grilled cheese sandwich. I had it on sourdough – it’s not really a foot long and the sourdough is very thin – I added bacon and it was so yummilicious that I will now have it many times. After that, I went to the mail place and picked up no mail and two packages – the two I’m really waiting for from overseas haven’t arrived, but I’m ever hopeful for tomorrow or Saturday. After that, I finally came home and sat on my couch like so much fish.
Last night, I watched a motion picture on DVD entitled Summer and Smoke, starring Miss Geraldine Page and Mr. Laurence Harvey, adapted from the play by Tennessee Williams (it was his follow up play to Streetcar). The film was directed by Peter Glenville, of whom I’m a fan. It’s a ripe piece of Southern fried cheese, but enjoyable. And it’s got Pamela Tiffin in an early role and we love our Pamela Tiffin. Best of all, it’s got one of Elmer Bernstein’s greatest scores, with one of the great main themes ever written for the movies. I had a 45 of the Peter Nero version (and still do) and I think I must have played that 45 about 3,000 times – I was addicted to it – I had a 45 on my back. I also had the soundtrack album on LP and that also got hundreds of plays. I was thrilled when it finally came out on CD from RCA Spain, although whoever does those albums knows nothing about mastering, as they could all sound 100% better. The transfer is decent – widescreen, nice color and looks okay upscaled on the old Blu and Ray player.
After that, I began playing the new four CD Maurice Jarre box set from France – it’s kind of a greatest hits of Maurice kind of thing, with only a track or two from each movie, which is frustrating, but some of his music I really like, and some I tolerate. The sound ranges from wretched (I have never heard a worse-sounding version of Lawrence of Arabia than is on this CD) to excellent.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because it’s time for me and all you turkeys out there in the dark to get our collective beauty sleeps.
Today, of course, I will try to sleep late and just enjoy the holiday, before I toddle off to Barry Pearl and his ever-lovin’ Cindy’s home environment for what I’m sure will be a lovelier than lovely Thanksgiving feast and I’m giving thanks to them for having me – otherwise I’d be eating a turkey sandwich from Jerry’s Deli.
Tomorrow we have the first of our three Gardenia rehearsals, and I’m really looking forward to seeing Lanny Meyers and our stellar cast. These are all the separate rehearsals and it should be lots o’ fun.
Saturday I’m thinking about making the drive to Palm Springs to see Jason do his show for real. We’re thinking about recording it, so I want to see how it plays and whether we think it would be best to do it live or as a studio album. We shall see. Sunday, I’ll be having lunch with dear reader Jeanne, after which I have a lot of stuff to do, and hopefully I’ll get some relaxing time in, too.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, sleep in, maybe do a jog so I can eat a LOT of food, relax, and then have a Thanksgiving dinner at Casa Pearl and Dellinger. Today’s topic of discussion: Your best Thanksgiving meal and memory. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst we wish the happiest of Thanksgivings to all you turkeys out there in the dark.