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August 13, 2014:

YOU KNOW HOW TO WHISTLE, DON’T YOU?

Bruce Kimmel Photograph bk's notes

Well, dear readers, I don’t usually write anything about people’s deaths here because I find it presumptuous and don’t really see the point – unless I had a really personal experience with someone. So, here’s my Lauren Bacall bit – the long version is in my book, but here’s the short version: We were doing the Brent Barrett Alan Jay Lerner album, and Brent called one day to tell me that he’d gotten Lauren Bacall to sing a duet with him. I was thrilled, naturally. My only brush with meeting her prior to that is when I’d run into Tony Walton one night. I was coming out of Joe Allen and he and guests were coming out of Orso’s next door. I hugged him and his lovely Gen and then happened to glance over at his other guest, who was trying to hail a cab – I did a double take – Lauren Bacall. She smiled and waved at me. The next morning I had a message on the voice mail of where I was staying – it said, “Bruce Kimmel, this is Lauren Bacall. Call me.” Click. Like I had her number. I called Tony and he gave it to me and it turned out she wanted to talk about doing a solo album. I said I’d be happy to.

Then she asked to meet me just prior to the Brent recording session. So, we set up a dinner at some Chinese joint she loved near Lincoln Center – we were to meet there and Brent would join us after he finished in his show. By that time, everyone and their mother had chimed in on what a terror Miss Bacall was and how she’d eat me alive. I, however, believed none of it – I’d had the same warnings about Miss Stritch and Miss Loudon and had adored and loved working with both, especially Miss Loudon. It did seem a little scary meeting her alone, but, off I went to the restaurant. I got there first, but she was right behind me, striding in with incredible energy. Everyone knew her and was happy to see her. She introduced herself (like I didn’t know who she was) and we were seated. She said, “Just let me order – you’ll love everything.” She did. And we began to gab and it was like I’d known her forever. She was warm, funny, willing to talk about everything, and even before Brent showed up I was head over heels in love.

At the session, she was a doll. No ego, no problems, and when I felt that a certain part of the song wasn’t working as well as it could, I just went in and talked to her about it, she listened, and then made a little adjustment and it was perfect – no diva, no temper, just a fantastic experience. We spoke several times over the next couple of years, but I could not get Varese Sarabande to say yes to doing a solo album, which I really wanted to do badly (they also said no to Ann Miller and Lesley Ann Warren – which is why I finally left because I’d had it with their stupidity) – I so wish we’d have been able to do it. I’ve had wonderful, funny recurring dreams about her ever since that session. I will not describe them, but I loved every time they’d happen. Rest in peace, Miss Bacall. You were a treasure.

lauren613

Yesterday was a day in which a few things happened.  I got up after eight hours of sleep.  That happened.  Then I did my morning ablutions, after which I went to have an early lunch, which consisted of sausage, eggs and toast.  I have had a little obsession with this breakfast for the past two weeks – that obsession is now over.  After that, I came home and then Juliana Hansen came by.  Rather than run the act, we talked through it, made a tiny addition, and then just caught up and talked a bit about next year’s ALS benefit, which we’re just starting to think about.  After she left, I went and picked up one lonely package, then came back home.  I then had a couple of long telephonic conversations, and then I did a mile-and-a-half jog in the very late afternoon.  Once home, I had to do some work on the computer and after that I finally sat on my couch like so much fish.

Last night I watched a motion picture on Blu and Ray entitled Fedora, a late Billy Wilder film starring William Holden.  Being a huge Wilder fan, was there at the first show in LA – at that point there really hadn’t been any press or reviews on the film, it kind of just escaped without fanfare.  I kind of enjoyed a lot of it, but knew it wasn’t one of his best films – it had a very curious structure and I was certainly ahead of the game the entire film.  But I found it wonderfully directed and I enjoyed the score by Miklos Rozsa, and I’m pretty much a fan of whatever William Holden was in.  Wilder’s original casting ideas were Marlene Dietrich and Faye Dunaway – it would have been a whole different film with them, but Deitrich hated the Tom Tryon novella and hated the script even more.  Eventually he cast Marthe Keller after Sydney Pollack showed him Bobby Deerfield.  He cast her as both mother and daughter, but she’d had a terrible auto accident and her face could not take the heavy makeup, and so he cast Hildegard Knef.  After viewing a rough cut, he found that both actresses were too hard to understand, so he had them both dubbed by a German actress speaking English.  For the French dub, Keller did both voices and for the German dub, Knef did both voices.  The film couldn’t find a distributor until United Artists finally stepped in.  The critics, save for some with auteur leanings, were not kind to the film.  It didn’t help that Wilder was coming off three huge flops – Kiss Me Stupid, The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes and his remake of The Front Page.

One of the things I didn’t like about it was Miss Knef and the fact it was so obvious both were dubbed.  I only saw it once after that, on laserdisc probably and I liked it about the same.  But watching it last night made me feel more positive about it.  First of all, it’s a new 2K transfer off the camera negative – this film’s theatrical prints were just about the worst I have ever seen – horribly grainy, blurry and bad – the year before it was the same situation with another German-funded film, A Little Night Music, which also had horrid-looking release prints.  While the contrast is a little milky, it’s the best the film has ever looked and that’s very helpful.  I liked Knef better and the whole thing just seems to have worn well, now that it’s away from the stigma of being an “old-fashioned” film in the then current market.  This is a French Blu-ray so one actually can hear Keller’s voice on that dub.  It does have forced French subtitles, which is really stupid.

After that, I listened to a new master, took a shower and relaxed.

Today, I have a lunch meeting, some telephonic call meetings, hopefully I’ll pick up some packages, then I’ll come home and relax.

Tomorrow, I have a morning meeting regarding Holiday in Spain (Scent of Mystery), for which I’ll be doing a commentary track, and then an early afternoon meeting about another project.  Friday, Juliana comes and we’ll run the act start to finish.  Stuff to do on the weekend and a couple of shows to see.

Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, have a lunch meeting, have some telephonic call meetings, hopefully pick up some packages and relax.  Today’s topic of discussion: What are your favorite performances of Miss Bacall?  Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, where I shall dream of Miss Bacall saying, “You know how to whistle, don’t you?  You just put your lips together and – blow.”

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