Well, dear readers, we were completely dold out this evening and we were also sold out. To be dold out and sold out is, well, unique. They had to add chairs even. So, I think this will have been our most successful weekend in terms of money brought in, presuming we have a big house tomorrow, which I believe we will. But here’s the weird thing – end of act one, the four weird people in front of me and the Shermans bailed. End of act two, two or three more bailed. I would actually understand that if it was an off night, but it was a pretty good show all around and our leading man was quite superb, so not sure what that was about and don’t really care. I took Richard backstage to meet everyone – he and Elizabeth loved the show. It was quite late by the time I got out of there, so now I’m rushing to write these here notes, in fact I’m rushin’ to finish them whilst listening to a Russian symphony. It will be interesting to see whether the symphony or the notes finishes first. Of course, if I’m trying to finish the notes, perhaps I should be listening to a Finnish symphony.
Prior to all of the above, I’d gotten eight hours of sleep. Once up, it was the usual things done in the usual ways, and then I moseyed on over to the mail place where I picked up some but not all the packages that were there, since a couple hadn’t been scanned in and they were busy because a ton of idiots were returning multiple Amazon items. Then I went to Jerry’s Deli – hadn’t been in over a week – and had a Cobb salad with 1000-Island dressing and a bagel for my meal o’ the day.
Then I came home, listened to music, had some telephonic calls, then sat on my couch like so much fish.
Yesterday, I finished watching the new Warner Archive Blu and Ray of Days of Wine and Roses, directed by Blake Edwards and starring Jack Lemmon and Lee Remick. It began life as a live TV drama on Playhouse 90, directed by John Frankenheimer and starring Cliff Robertson and Piper Laurie, with a score by Alex North. Charles Bickford also starred, and he was the only one kept for the film version. I’ve never seen the Playhouse 90 version. Lemmon wanted Blake Edwards because he felt he’d bring some lightness to the material to offset the dark of most of it. Edwards did a fine job of it – some idiot critic on some DVD site you’ve never heard of but that someone felt compelled to quote from on Wikipedia, said bad things about the film, inane things, but you know he’s an idiot when he calls Henry Mancini’s main theme “comically lush” – well, no, it’s one of Mancini’s greatest is what it is – the critic, on the other hand, is comically lush. Mancini’s score is magnificent, Lemmon is terrific, but Lee Remick is stunningly beautiful and completely heartbreaking. No happy endings in this film. There’s a commentary track, but Edwards has no idea how to do it and if anyone with a brain had been in charge they would have had someone there to lead a conversation, because, as Mr. Edwards admits, he gets caught up in watching the movie, which he hasn’t seen since it came out. The transfer is tops.
After that, I shaved and showered, and then it was time to mosey on over to the theater. Once there, I re-blocked Barry Pearl’s entrance because he’d pulled his back a bit the night before when he almost dropped Kay Cole carrying her in. But in the end, he did carry her in because he knew it wasn’t as strong the other way.
Today, I think I have to be up by ten or ten-thirty and to the theater by noon to read some actors – I think that’s the plan but am waiting for confirmation. Then we’ll play our matinee, which will be followed by a talkback. I missed the first talkback, so this will be fun. Then I’m hoping we’re not reading anyone between shows, because I’ll need to go get some soup from the Chinese jernt on the corner. Then I have to see the show upstairs, and then we’re reading more people, which actually infuriates me and I have made it so clear that I needed two weeks off and I have literally not had a single day completely to myself. So, tonight is IT until after the New Year.
Tomorrow, I will do nothing at all, other than perhaps have a lunch. Same for Tuesday, and then Tuesday evening is our Annual New Year’s Rockin’ Eve Bash right here at haineshisway.com, the best place to be to watch various and sundried balls drop with the best people. And then it will be 2020, a new decade, and I begin in earnest the new book.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, be up by ten or ten-thirty, to the theater by noon (unless I don’t have that right), see our matinee, do a talkback, get some soup, see the show upstairs, read some actors, and then get the HELL home. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s free-for-all day, the day in which you dear readers get to make with the topics and we all get to post about them. So, let’s have loads of lovely topics and loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, as we begin our final countdown to 2020.