Well, dear readers, this week has flown by, like a gazelle bathing in Epsom salts. Does anyone still bathe in Epsom salts? I, for one, have never bathed in Epsom salts. Knowing my mother as I do, I’m quite certain we had a tin of Epsom salts and I’m equally as certain that my mother bathed in Epsom salts. And they still sell the damn stuff so I guess people do still bathe in Epsom salts. Do people also bathe in Epsom peppers? Do they bathe in Epsom garlic powder? In any case, I’m glad Epsom salts has withstood the test of time. Did you ever take the test of time? I did and I got an A. What the HELL am I talking about?
Yesterday was a day in which we did not rehearse and I missed it and missed Sami and Alby and look forward to our two long days on Saturday and Sunday where we’ll get a lot of stuff done. Those are our two most important days, the only time we’ll have that many hours to rehearse. I was up at six announcing our new title, and then I fell back asleep and slept till eleven, getting just about eight hours of sleep. Once up, I printed out a nice amount of orders – I was concerned that with the Indiegogo campaign we’d have no orders at all, but I forget that we had about 370 contributors but we had a lot of people who didn’t and they were right there to buy the CD. So, that was a pleasant way to start the morning. Then around twelve-thirty, rather than going out to eat, I made about six or seven ounces of spaghetti with sautéed onions and butter – it was just the right amount (it probably was closer to five or six ounces) and it was yummilicious. Once done with that, I did some work at the piano, then at the computer, did a jog, had some telephonic calls, then sat on my couch like so much fish.
Last night I watched two motion pictures on Blu and Ray. The first motion picture was entitled A Midsummer Night’s Sex Comedy. I saw it on its opening day when it came out and it was the very first Woody Allen film that I didn’t like – at all. Up to then I was a huge Allen fan, and while Stardust Memories didn’t really work for me, I enjoyed parts of it and just considered it a work that didn’t reach the heights of his other movies. But I simply did not like A Midsummer Night’s Sex Comedy – I even thought the title was bad. I liked the cast okay, but I just could not get with the movie. I did think a few of the comic invention bits were funny, but not funny enough to endure the rest. And from there his work became very hit and miss for me and that continues right up to the present, although I dutifully see every film. Now, other than the first ten minutes, I haven’t seen the film since it came out. And while I still don’t care for it much, compared to some of his really awful movies of late I cut it some slack. I laughed a few times and found most of his stuff funny. I was also getting bored of his pastiches, this one clearly inspired by Bergman’s Smiles of a Summer Night, just as Stardust Memories had clearly been inspired by Fellini’s 8 ½. I did enjoy Jose Ferrer this time around, and Julie Hagerty was genuinely amusing. I found Mia Farrow (this was her first film with Woody) really irritating throughout, but liked Mary Steenburgen okay, and Tony Roberts did his usual best friend thing. Ultimately it’s just not funny enough or anything enough. The transfer on the Twilight Time Blu-ray is very nice and if you’re a fan of Woody you should get it.
I then went to Gelson’s and got some fruit and carrots to snack on, then came back home, had a long and heartfelt telephonic conversation, and then watched the second motion picture on Blu and Ray, which was entitled Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner. I know this film has its fans and its detractors, but when I saw it on its opening day I was totally smitten with every minute of it and saw it several times. Audiences loved it and howled with laughter and were truly moved several times in the film, as was I – reduced to tears I was back then. I’ve seen it only a couple of times since. I have always felt the film’s only less than optimal performance was Ms. Houghton – she’s fine and gets the job done, but there’s some shmacting going on and because the rest of the cast is so wonderful, she just never quite gets up to that level, even though she is fetching and occasionally charming. But it’s the other performances that make the film work so well – and yes, it still works just as well now as it did then, for whatever that tells you about the world we live in. Sidney Poitier is tops, Beah Richards and Roy Glenn, Sr. are simply wonderful as Poitier’s parents, especially Miss Richards, a really wonderful actress. Isabel Sanford is hilarious as the housekeeper, and Cecil Kellaway is terrific as the monsignor. But the film truly belongs to Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn. Miss Hepburn is luminous – funny, strong, and heartbreaking when she’s listening to Mr. Tracy’s long final speech. And Mr. Tracy was simply one of the greatest film actors ever. He doesn’t have a fake bone in his body and he deserved an Oscar for the final speech alone. Interestingly, the winner of the best actor Oscar was Rod Steiger, who also starred in a film with Sidney Poitier. The film did win for original screenplay and it deserved to – just a wonderfully written film. The transfer is wonderful – just captures that 1960s thing so well. If you’ve lived in a cave all these years, I cannot recommend this highly enough.
After that, I just did some more work on the computer, ate some carrots and fruit and that was that.
Today, I have some errands and whatnot to do, I’ll do a jog, I’ll hopefully pick up some packages, and then we have a rehearsal for the What If we’re doing at the Kritzerland anniversary show. It’s really complicated musically so I wanted everyone to have this extra shot at getting it down, and so I could do just a touch of staging. That way, there’ll be less pressure at our first rehearsal. Then we’ll probably all go out for a nice bite to eat – I’m thinking maybe the Eclectic Café would be good, but whatever everyone feels like is fine by me.
Tomorrow we have the first of our two long rehearsal days. We’ll start at eleven and finish around five or five-thirty. Then Sunday we’ll do eleven to four unless I feel we need to do ten to four – it will totally depend on Saturday’s work. Next week is Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday rehearsals, then we’re off on Thursday and Friday, and then we have two long weekend rehearsals – by that time we’ll be heavily into run-throughs.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, do errands and whatnot, do a jog, hopefully pick up some packages, have a brief rehearsal and then eat. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Friday – what is currently in your CD player and your DVD/Blu and Ray player? I’ll start – CD, who knows? Blu and Ray, next up is House of Bamboo – cannot wait to see it, actually. Your turn. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, where I shall not dream of bathing in Epsom salts.