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July 29, 2013:

ADO! ADO!

Bruce Kimmel Photograph bk's notes

Well, dear readers, without further ado, not that we’ve had any damn ado in the first place, but without FURTHER ado, may I just tell you about the new Kritzerland release?  This is not a case of much ado about nothing, let me just say that.  Ado! Ado! – wasn’t that a Schmidt and Jones musical starring Mary Martin and Robert Preston?  Where was I?  Oh, yes, the new Kritzerland release.  Well, if you ask me, and you do, it’s a doozy (yzood, spelled backwards).  How’s this for value for money – a two CD set at a one CD price containing five motion picture scores for films of one director made at one studio?  Well, that’s what we’ve got for you.  Our new release is Preminger at Fox, which contains the scores for Fallen Angel, Where the Sidewalk Ends, Laura, Daisy Kenyon, and Whirlpool, all of which were released under the Fox Film Noir banner on DVD, even though you can’t really call Daisy Kenyon noir, although, that said, it certainly has the look.  Four of the scores are by David Raksin and one is by Cyril J. Mockridge (Where the Sidewalk Ends) – the latter is a real discovery and Mockridge makes wonderful use of Alfred Newman’s immortal Street Scene in the score, which is conducted by Mr. Newman.  This is movie music the way I love movie music – filled with atmosphere and themes and that noir feel that Mr. Raksin was so good at.  Each score is presented as recorded save for Laura – for that, which we recently released complete and which sold out instantly, we include the twenty-seven minute The Laura Suite – Themes and Variations, which is the bulk of the score.  I have been listening to this non-stop for a week and it’s really great – excellent sound and music that can’t be beat.

KL_Preminger2Cov72

Tell your noir friends all about it – spread the word like butter on toast, spread the word like jam on an English muffin, spread the word like hummus on a cracker.  If this does well, it will be the first in a Fox Director series that will be really fun.  So, spread the word like caviar on toast, spread the word like cream cheese on a bagel, spread the word like chopped liver on a matzoh.  In other words, spread the word.

Yesterday was a day that happened.  I did get about nine hours of blessed sleep, which I really needed.  I puttered around the home environment, I did my morning ablutions and then did a three-mile jog.  After that, I just relaxed.  I watched four episodes from the new DVD of lost Jack Benny episodes.  While they weren’t the best episodes that I’ve seen from that show they were heads above any comedy made today.  That is because Mr. Benny is the real deal and my favorite comic ever.  There has never been anyone like him – ever.  The best of the four episodes I watched had Gary Cooper as the guest and it was fall of the couch like so much fish funny.  These episodes begin in 1955 and continue through the 60s and all his TV specials are included, too.

I then watched the first thirty minutes of Jacqueline Susann’s Once Is Not Enough – based on the first thirty minutes I’d say once was plenty.  But there’s something mesmerizing about such cheese and I will watch it through to the very end.  The transfer, like many of the Olive Paramount Blu-rays is tired, with semi-faded color, bad contrast and all manner of other irritants.  The one thing this film should look like is a big-budget sudser, especially with John Alonzo photography.  Mr. Alonzo would vomit on the ground if he saw this transfer.

Then I moseyed on over to The Federal to see my pal Joan Ryan’s new club act.  The new menu was in effect, but because Joan had about 118 people there (sold out crowd with more seats than they’ve ever had before) there were still some problems getting everyone served in a timely fashion, but had the menu been the old version it would have been calamity.  I had the chicken breast again and it was excellent – mashed potatoes were yummilicious, too.  Then it was show time.

I’ve known Joan since before she was “Ryan” – she was in my 1982 musical Together Again, and we’ve worked together through the years.  She’s an amazing singer, so in that regard her shows are always fun and even thrilling.  I’ve seen most incarnations of her act over the years.  The main one was directed by David Galligan.  I do remember coming in when they were revamping it a bit and giving some suggestions and little staging things.  Then Joan asked me to direct her in a brand new act.  I did and that act played about six years ago, only done the one time, which is a shame as it was a very different thing for her and I thought while it wasn’t perfect it had the potential to be fantastic if we’d kept working on it.  But she was busy and I was busy and the years went by.  Now she’s found a new director, a new musical director and so I was very interested to see where they went, as she’s been posting about the experience in glowing terms.

To accentuate the positive – she’s in glorious voice and sounded great.  She’s a terrific actress so the songs are all played very well.  I enjoyed myself because it’s hard not to with Joan.  She does several numbers that are her mainstays and those she can do in her sleep.  If I were to nitpick I’d say that for me  some of the new numbers are not working as well as they should in terms of structure and point.  Part of that has to do with the patter set ups, which were good and which tell you what you’re going to get, but then the song wouldn’t really fulfill what the patter promised in certain ways.  I’m sure they’ll continue working on it and defining it and I’m sure it will get better as they do.  These are, of course, just my thoughts and nitpicky things.  As I said, it’s not really possible to see Joan do a show and not be entertained.

I then came home, did some work on the computer and decided to write these here notes early, schedule them and then get to bed so I can get as much beauty sleep as possible.

Today, I shall be up at six to announce the new Kritzerland release, after which I shall return to bed and hopefully catch a few more hours of sleep.  I’ll jog, I’ll eat, hopefully I’ll print out a LOT of orders, hopefully I’ll pick up some packages, and then we have our first Kritzerland rehearsal.  I was going to comp vocals after that, but I think I won’t be alert enough after that long a day to do so, so I think we’ll begin that tomorrow night.

Tomorrow, I have a lot to do and then we’ll start comping vocals in the evening.  The rest of the week will be that, mixing, our second rehearsal, more mixing, our stumble-through, our sound check and then our show.

Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, announce, sleep, do a jog, hopefully print out a LOT of orders, eat, hopefully pick up some packages, rehearse, and write some liner notes.  Today’s topic of discussion: Who are your favorite comics – both standup and comic actors in films?  Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, after which I shall arise to announce without further ado, our new CD release.

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