Well, dear readers, as I look back on 2010 it was a rather astonishing and stellar year in most ways. Not in all ways, mind you, but most ways. There was so much happening this year that the year flew by, like a gazelle in pink tights. It began, as have the last nine years, with the writing of a book. That book, which I never thought I’d even WANT to write, turned out to be the book I needed to write – and was, for me, a very fitting and different tenth book. It wrote itself faster than any other book I’ve written (four-and-a-half weeks from start to finish), and it’s longer than any other book I’ve written. Once I started I literally could not stop, frequently doing over ten pages a day (unheard of for me) and sometimes doing as many as twenty. The thing just came pouring out of me. Thankfully, I had Muse Margaret to keep me on the right roads every time I would veer away from the story I was trying to tell. The detours, while certainly interesting (at least to me) were not relevant to the tale and out they went. Getting the final chapter right proved to be the most difficult part of it – that took five tries, and finally I began to understand what Muse Margaret was missing and I fixed ninety percent of it so that we were both happy. The additional ten percent came after I read the book from start to finish – then I knew the other ten percent that had to go. It wasn’t doing much rewriting, but was a matter of focus and cutting, some thirty pages in all. Having the book designed by the great Grant Geissman was an amazing experience. His eye is just so superb – he knew exactly what the cover should be once he went through my photos – same for the back cover. And his layout of the photos in the interior was masterful. I could not have been more pleased. Once the book came out, the fun really started, thanks to a wonderful publicist. She got me so many great things that for once we actually sold books and a lot of them. From the ABC segment to various and sundried radio and TV interviews to magazine and newspaper coverage, it was fantastic. I met many wonderful people at the signings and readings (the Burbank Library being a highlight), and doing JMK’s Portland event was an equally wonderful highlight. The reaction to the book was so heartening that it made me actually want to consider doing a follow up volume about the subsequent years, probably up through the formation of Kritzerland. We shall see.
Other highlights of the year were traveling to Indiana to see The Brain From Planet X and hanging out with the Pogues and Jrand, and meeting the cast and director and crew of the show and spending some time with them. And then just a couple of weeks later seeing the Olympia, Washington production that dear reader George was in – that was also grand fun, especially seeing George, dear readers Ann, TCB and I think I’m forgetting someone else, and having David Wechter come up with me. In fact, there were two other productions of the show, one in a high school up north, and one in New Jersey, which elmore said was quite good. There are several more productions happening next year, so the show is having a very nice life.
I spent a lot of time helping to develop a musical, which culminated in a really professional staged reading that I directed. We had a terrific cast and it went incredibly well. But the material was still problematic in many ways and while we had every intention of continuing the working relationship became, for me, to contentious, and it proved so for some of the other collaborators, as well. But I was very proud of everyone’s work, especially how far we’d come in over a year of working on it. I began developing new acts for Kevin Spirtas, for Linda Purl and Gregory Harrison, and for a gal singer named Laura Wolfe – all very different and each a lot of fun. I also had a great time coming to New York briefly to do the ABC interview, but to also record a couple of songs for a Skip Kennon CD – that was a treat and I hope we’ll be doing more of that during the first part of the year. And we finally began work on what we hope will be the new Guy Haines CD.
Most importantly, we began Kritzerland at the Gardenia. I’d been thinking about this idea for a couple of years, and the timing seemed right and after a discussion with Tom Rolla at the Gardenia, who embraced the idea, we decided to go ahead and do the first Wednesday of every month – a show based on one of the albums I’d produced. The first show was a real learning experience. It went very well, but there were things about it I didn’t like and wasn’t pleased with. We did better with the second show, but I still had a few things I wasn’t happy with, and anyone who knows me knows I will not stop until I’m truly happy. With the third show we hit our stride, and the Christmas show we got it all absolutely right. The casts were, for the most part, really terrific. Some people became regulars, but only Alet Taylor has done them all and will continue to do them all – that was my promise to her. With the Christmas show, I decided we’d have one guest star to do one song for every show – we had Bruce Vilanch in that show and Millicent Martin is doing the next one. The first show sold out, the second show wasn’t quite as full, nor the third (although they were full), but the Christmas show had more people than I’ve ever seen in that club. And so, the hope is that we’ve caught on. I’ve got a lot more shows and there are a lot of people I’m looking forward to working with as well as having certain people come back. One interesting part of it has been me becoming the host – I did it for the first show because I thought the songs would be weird without giving them context. I had so much fun writing the contextual commentary and delivering it and people seemed so pleased by it, that we made it part of each show. I honed the presentation and the smoothness of the segues from show to show, and by the December show I’d figured it all out and it worked splendidly.
We’ll look at the Kritzerland part of the year, along with other things that happened in tomorrow’s notes.
Yesterday was a most pleasant day. I got up, solved a mystery involving the sound of running water, got coifed by Teddy at eleven, came home and did some work on the computer, picked up a package and no mail, ate some lunch at the Studio Café, picked up more packages that arrived after I’d been to the mail place, answered e-mails, and did a few errands and whatnot. Then I sat on my couch like so much fish.
Last night, I watched a motion picture on Blu and Ray entitled Mr. Hulot’s Holiday. I actually have a memory of seeing this film when it played originally, way back in the early 1950s – I don’t know if it was the original release or a reissue a few years’ later. I do know I saw it at the Lido Theater (that theater graces the cover of Benjamin Kritzer). I’ve seen it only once since then, and I don’t think I watched all of it. So, it was fun to see it all these years later. Jacques Tati was unique – there was no one quite like him, either as a performer or as a director. Hulot was a wonderful character – and just watching Tati walk, with his precarious balance, always looking like he’s about to fall over, is reason enough to watch the film. But it’s filled with surrealistic and strange visual gags that are genuinely hilarious – not all of them are hilarious – some are just surrealistic and strange, but Tati’s visual humor was a clear influence on Blake Edwards’ style of visual comedy. The way Tati choreographs and frames his visual gags is high art – in fact brilliant. The good news is that this region B Blu-Ray looks fantastic – a gorgeous transfer. Over the years, Tati fiddled with the film, swapping out shots, shortening, and tinkering. His final version is what is presented in the pristine transfer. Also presented, in a much less pristine transfer, is the original version, which is nice to have since it contains about eight minutes that were excised from the film over the years.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because the year in review is starting to feel like a year in these here notes.
Today, I have to buckle down Winsocki and write liner notes and polish them and get them sent off. Then I’m doing a little field trip for my new book, then I’m having lunch with dear reader Jeanne, then I’m hopefully picking up some packages and mail, and then I’m relaxing.
Tomorrow, I hope to be done with the liner notes so that I can relax and then prepare for our Annual Rockin’ New Year’s Eve bash right here at haineshisway.com. We’ve been doing these for years and they’re always the most fun partays on all the Internet and, for that or any other matter, anywhere. We don’t get drunk, we don’t have to drive, we just celebrate all the livelong night until our balls drop at midnight. And yes, we celebrate both coasts’ balls dropping, baby – we do not discriminate.
Let’s all put on our pointy party hats and our colored tights and pantaloons, let’s break out the cheese slices and the ham chunks, let’s dance the Hora or the frug, for today is the birthday of dear reader Dakota Celt. So, let’s give a big haineshisway.com birthday cheer to dear reader Dakota Celt. On the count of three: One, two, three – A BIG HAINESHISWAY.COM BIRTHDAY CHEER TO DEAR READER DAKOTA CELT!!!
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, write liner notes, I must do a field trip, I must lunch with dear reader Jeanne, I must hopefully pick up some packages, and I must relax and watch a motion picture or three. Today’s topic of discussion: What were your favorite performances of the year – whether stage, screen, or television. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, as we continue our year in review in tomorrow’s notes.