Well, dear readers, if you are reading these here notes, chances are the world has not come to an end. How many times in recent years have we had these dire predictions? I think we even had one earlier this year that didn’t happen, and then, of course, all the “believers” just change the date and forget they ever said the world would end on the previous date. Now, if the world hasn’t ended by the end of this day, how will the “believers” spin it. My guess is they’ll say, “Oh, that wasn’t the real date, the real date is this other date.” In any case, I sincerely hope the world won’t end this day, as we’re announcing three new Kritzerland releases to celebrate the Christmas season and the world NOT ending. It would be most unseemly for the world to end on a Kritzerland release date, don’t you think? If only the Mayans had known it was a Kritzerland release date, they would have realized the folly of their ways. I don’t think any of us are ready quite yet for the world to end, especially before Santa arrives and especially before the Christmas Eve Do and our New Year’s Rockin’ Eve bash. We all have places to go, people to see, things to do. So, to the doom and gloom brigade we can only say it is always better to accentuate the positive and eliminate the negative. Or, as Kander and Ebb put it, And the world goes round and round and round.
I have to say that yesterday was kind of a treasure of a day. It was a very sweet day and the only slight nitpick is I am once again fighting the good fight against getting sick. Almost everyone I know is sick and when I’m in the same room then the risk is the germs travel. So, I’ve been sucking down Coldeez and popping the chewable Airborne tablets and hopefully that will work. I have no time to get sick. I got up around nine, answered e-mails and received the e-mail I was hoping to receive and that automatically brightened up the whole day and the day was young, which is more than I can say. Then I moseyed on over to Teddy and he did his customary great job on my hair, which is now short and coiffed. I’m dropping by there on Saturday to give him his Christmas present, which is a box of Jane Lanier’s caramels, which I know he will absolutely love. I’m also giving him a copy of Album Produced By – I think he’s referenced somewhere within its pages. After Teddy, I came back home and got the word that two of the three projects waiting to be approved were approved and they were the two I needed – the third will be approved right after the first of the year, and that’s when I have that one scheduled for release. I got word to everyone that we were good to announce first thing in the morning and then I got everyone all the stuff they need.
Then I drove over to Fed Ex. At first, they couldn’t even find my name in the computer, then they found me by address, and then they couldn’t find anything about the package. I was very nice but very firm and told them I’d called TWICE to make sure the package was being held for me and it was confirmed both times. I smiled and said I was not leaving without the package. They then had me call the 800 number, which I did, and I got someone on the phone and told them I was at the Fed Ex place and to talk to the lady I was dealing with. She did, and gave the lady the tracking number. Apparently, they don’t give the tracking numbers to the customers, which seems more than a little odd to me since it would make everything much easier. Once she had the number, it took her about seven minutes to locate the package and give it to me. She also said there were probably others back there, and that their office is going to do everything they can to get all of them delivered before Christmas and that includes making deliveries on both weekend days.
The screener was, of course, Les Miz. I then went and put gas in the motor car. Thanks to Dianne Feinstein’s rather vociferous taking on of the oil people, gas has dropped in price by over $1.20 in the last six weeks or so. But she’s not letting them off the hook and I really respect her for finally pursuing and sticking to the pursuing that should have been done long ago. As long as she keeps after them, I suspect the gas prices will continue to drop. Then I went to the mail place, where I picked up my 35mm print of Nudie Musical, which was being returned from the San Francisco screening. I also got a wonderful Christmas present from the East Coast Singer – she got me all manner of gift cards for restaurants she knows I frequent – so, Jerry’s Deli, Daily Grill, and Genghis Cohen. It was quite a brilliant present, actually. She’s on her way to India, which is where she and her hubby are celebrating the holidays. Go know.
Then I came home and found that the helper had been here and had decorated the front of the house with Christmas ornaments and a big red ribbon, and a plant. It looked great. She really is a treasure. Then I went and had a sandwich and onion rings, then came back home, where I got another screener, this one something called Life of Pi, which I know nothing about. I then prepped the eBlast for the new releases, which was a little more complicated than usual since it’s three releases. I’m really hoping they all sell well. I also found a beautiful copy of the first edition for Atlas Shrugged. The book has never been all that rare because the first printing was 100,000 copies. What’s hard to find is a dust jacket in primo condition and one not price-clipped. It was a very popular book and really popular books back then were read by people who had no idea they’d ever be collectible. So, primo dust jackets really bring a premium price, IF you’re lucky enough to find one. In fact, most of the ones I looked at online that were primo had had some sort of restoration done to the spine tips or tears or chips. That severely lessens the value in my opinion. One simply wants an unretouched jacket – that’s the value. But I lucked out and found a just about perfect copy at a very reasonable price – I talked the dealer down and got 20% off, too. I asked him to please assure me that the jacket had no restoration, which he did. In fact, he told me this was one of those instances where the book had two jackets, which happens infrequently but does happen. I have a copy of Inside Daisy Clover that had two jackets. It is impossible to find Daisy Clover with unfaded spine lettering – in forty years I’d never seen a copy with an unfaded spine. But this copy the top jacket’s spine was faded, but the second jacket was like new – no fade at all. So, I probably have the only copy of Daisy Clover in jacket that’s perfect. And that was the case with this Atlas Shrugged. The top jacket was a little worn, but the jacket underneath was practically new. After all that, I finally sat on my couch like so much fish.
First I finished The Big Gundown, a spaghetti western starring Lee Van Cleef. It’s a Sergio Leone wannabe, but where Leone really is an artist, this director, while doing a reasonable imitation, just doesn’t have the artistry of Mr. Leone. The film is okay and has some very good moments, but it’s just a third cousin to Leone’s much better films. Then I watched the screener of Les Miz. Les Miz is a show I never wanted to see – and therefor it took me a long time to see it. I missed its initial run here at the Shubert (Michelle Nicastro played Eponine and I think the Thenardier’s were Gary Beach and Kay Cole, if I remember correctly), but I finally decided to see it when it came back and played the Pantages, around 1992 or thereabouts. I think the star was Gary Morris and I liked it a lot, much better than I would have thought. I saw it twice after that, both times on Broadway, but by that time it was tired. I was wary of the film already because of the makers and the studio really overselling it and shoving it down people’s throats rather than letting them just discover it. It always amazes me that they never learn this simple lesson. So, their initial screenings were all loaded with the stars and director in attendance. Well, of course that colors everything and they know that. So, they get adulatory word of mouth, but those who’ve watched this happen before know that’s a big, red flag. The screenings became relentless (it feels like the film has been playing for weeks when it hasn’t even opened yet), just as they did with Dreamgirls and Nine (they did it right with Chicago – no shoving it down people’s throats – it just opened, got raves, and people found it). Then the reviews began appearing and most of them were not good. So, how was it? Well, it’s Les Miz – if you love Les Miz you’ll probably find something to enjoy. As a film, I feel it fails and I feel it fails because the director seems to have no sense of rhythm or pace, and the direction is all skewed angles, way too many close-ups and a lot of shaky-cam. So, the film, for me, had no energy, unlike the stage show, which was incredibly energized and dynamic and theatrical. They did not find that equivalent for the film and they really needed to. The one unabashed successful moment in the film is, as you’ve probably heard, Anne Hathaway’s performance of I Dreamed a Dream, all done in one take and it’s excellent and will probably win her the Oscar. But then, later in the film, the director tries to do that same one-take thing again and it fails because we’ve already seen that magic trick once. There’s too much CGI for my taste, and the singing, some of which, but not all of which, was done live on the set, feels very flat sounding (not pitch – just dead – close-miked with no room presence). I’m glad the filmmakers are admitting some of the vocals were sweetened later, because it’s pretty obvious that some of them were.
Hugh Jackman is a very good actor and he’s a good Jean Valjean, although the score is too high for him and he strains a lot to hit the notes. Russell Crowe is okay – not as bad as I’d heard, but he simply doesn’t have the singing ability to really make his stuff as powerful as it needs to be. Everyone else is fine, although I just don’t like Sasha Baron Cohen and I don’t much like Helena Bonham Carter either. I’d heard great things about them in this, but, again, for me, I didn’t care for them or the way their numbers were shot. Also, another downside, and maybe it’s just the DVD although I’m pretty sure it’s the theatrical mix, the orchestra is mixed so far back that there’s no oomph in the music, except where they raise the volume at the ends of numbers. I can’t judge the photography based on a DVD. So, for me, not something I need to see again, and I put it on a par with Nine, which I also thought had real problems. I do love the theater boards where the lovers of musicals do what they always do and proclaim it to be a masterpiece of a film musical and tell us they cried and cheered and how “their” screening audience did the same.
Wow, these here notes are long – it’s a good thing the world hasn’t ended. Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because I must get some semblance of beauty sleep before getting up at six in the morning to announce our final releases of 2012.
Today, I shall be up at six to announce our final titles for 2012. Then I’ll probably go back to bed. A local dealer is coming to get some CDs, and then I have to be at the editing room at noon to get the hard drive with the compressed and uncompressed new episode. Then I’ll eat something amusing, hopefully pick up some packages, come home and watch the footage of the final two season two Outside the Box episodes and take some notes on what I like, hopefully Jane Lanier will deliver ten boxes of her caramels, and then I’ll relax and watch Life of Pi.
Tomorrow and Sunday is just playing and relaxing. Monday is the Christmas Eve Do, which I’m looking forward to, Tuesday is Christmas Day and I will hopefully see the Darling Daughter although I have heard not a peep from her, and then I’m attending a Christmas partay at Cissy Wechter’s home environment. The only work I’ll be doing is having one little work session with our musical director. And that’s it.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, announce new titles, go to the editing room, eat, hopefully pick up some packages, take delivery of ten boxes of Jane Lanier’s caramels, watch footage, and then relax. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Friday – what is currently in your CD player and your DVD/video player? I’ll start – CD, lots of Kritzerland stuff. DVD, Life of Pi, and then lots o’ Blu and Rays. Your turn. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst we celebrate that the world goes round and round and round.