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April 11, 2018:

CANDY AND PIE AND CAKE, OH MY

Bruce Kimmel Photograph bk's notes

Well, dear readers, I have watched two count them two motion pictures last evening, so it’s a little late and therefore I must jump right into these notes, even though what I would really like to do is jump into the motor car and go get quite a lot of candy or pie or cake or all three. I did have a few snacks of no consequence so I am a bit hungry, but we’ll see if I’m feeling like being a very bad boy after I’m done writing these here notes in a hurry.

Yesterday was quite a wacky day – there were times I didn’t really know what was going on and I got no work done at all due to a confluence of events that just kept happening.  I only got five hours of sleep, got up much earlier than planned, answered e-mails, printed out a few orders, got ready, had to pay a brief visit to The Federal to drop something off, then went and had a meeting with Doug Haverty and a nice lady.  We were bought lunch (I had a very good chicken Caesar wrap, as did he), and then we talked about many things with the nice lady and a very important decision was made, and while it was not an easy decision it’s one that I feel had to be made. I can’t say anything for a while, however, but you dear readers will be the first to know.

After that, I picked up some packages – well, one package because the other package that was due was so wrecked they didn’t even bring it in the mail place – it’s being returned to Amazon.  The package that was delivered had the remnants of the problem, however, so I know exactly what it was – some Amazon driver left the packages sitting in some kind of greasy, heavy oil and thank goodness the package that made it through hadn’t been totally engulfed by it, although I had to open it with tissues as I wasn’t going to actually touch that gunk.  When I got home I called Amazon and made them credit me the money back instantly, which they did.  Then I placed a small book order – no cost, as we did have the little issue with the first batch, which, by the way, no one has figured out, which is interesting to me. Then our very own Nick Redman and his ever-lovin’ Julie came by – I got a whole slew of Twilight Time titles and he got the new book and all the recent CD releases.

I really want candy, pie, and cake right now. After all that, I had several other telephonic conversations about all manner of things, found out we’re shipping Pieces of Eight and the Cole Porter thing on Thursday, and then I went to Ralph’s for the evening snacks – just tiny stuff of not much caloric content – and then I finally sat on my couch like so much fish.

Last night, I watched two count them two motion pictures on Blu and Ray.  The first motion picture was entitled The Seven-Ups, starring Roy Scheider, and produced by the guy who produced The French Connection.  I’d seen it once before and wrote about it (back in 2006) – the problem with the film, and it has a few, is the director, who was also the producer but who’d never directed before.  So the film is lacking an inspired director like William Friedkin or Peter Yates, who really knew how to do these things.  He gets the job done, but at times it seems like one is watching one of those 70s Euro crime dubbed affairs – the post-production looping on this film is pretty awful.  But Scheider is great and so is Tony Lo Bianco, and there’s a nifty fifteen-minute car chase (naturally).  The one thing we can absolutely rave about is the transfer, which replicates the look of the film perfectly – gritty 1970s New York.

I then watched the second motion picture on Blu and Ray, which was entitled Manhattan Murder Mystery, starring Woody Allen and Diane Keaton, a reunion for them.  I’d only seen the beginning of the film years ago – it was Woody’s shaky-cam period and I just got irritated and shut it off.  So it was basically a new viewing for me.  And I have to say, I laughed a lot.  Allen and Keaton were a brilliant team and some of the one-liners are just classic Allen and their banter is frequently hilarious.  It occasionally even reaches the heights of his early comic films.  It’s not perfect – it goes on ten minutes too long and becomes repetitious, and there’s just something about Alan Alda in Allen films that really irks me – not sure why. But I must say, Angelica Houston is kind of delightful.  The transfer is from Sony, so it’s perfect, with excellent color and sharpness.

Then I desired candy, cake, and pie but could do nothing because I had to write these here notes.

Today, I’ll hopefully arise after a good night’s beauty sleep, I’ll work at the piano, begin choosing songs for the Kritzerland show – we’re now fully cast save for one female and the possibility of a really fun guest star.  I’ll eat, I’ll hopefully pick up some packages, and then I’ll do more work at the piano and on the computer, after which I’ll try to watch two more motion pictures – quite a few really exceptional titles in the last three Twilight Time batches, I must say.

Tomorrow I have a meeting with Kay Cole, then it’s more of the same, and then I’m seeing a dress rehearsal of South Pacific – I know several of the cast so I’m sure it will be fun – three hours, but fun.  I’ll get out there a couple of hours early and find somewhere fun to eat.  Friday I’m not sure what’s happening – there’s something and I hope someone will remind me, then the weekend is unknown to me.

Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, work at the piano, choose songs, eat, hopefully pick up packages, and then relax.  Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Ask BK Day, the day in which you get to ask me or any dear reader any old question you like and we get to give any old answer we like.  So, let’s have loads of lovely questions and loads of lovely answers, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, as I think seriously about jumping in the motor car and getting some candy and pie and cake, oh my.

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