Well, dear readers, birthday seventy-five was basically a quiet one save for a wonderful luncheon with Richard Sherman and daughter Vicky at an Eyetalian jernt called Fabrocini. We’d all had lunch there several months ago and it was great, so I was happy to be back there. I had fettucine with a pink sauce and some sausage, and it was amazing. It came with a little starter salad and their Eyetalian dressing was the berries, let me tell you and I have told you. Richard had spaghetti and meat balls and cleaned his plate, and daughter Vicky had fettucine Alfredo, which is her favorite. There were several other menu items that sounded enticing and that I’d like to try. We were there for two hours and at the end they brought us a piece of cake with a candle on it, so according to that I’m one year old. We had a lot of laughter at the table. Daughter Vicky told me Richard reads my books over and over again, from morning to night, every day. I find that incredibly touching. And now, I’m listening to some Ernst Toch string quartets. Prior to listening, I did watch an interesting movie that I didn’t love, entitled 5-25-77, an autobiographical film about the coming of age of writer/director Patrick Dean Johnson. Unlike Mr. Spielberg’s The Fabelmans, Mr. Johnson makes no bones that his film is about him – he uses his real name for the character, and I presume real names for everyone else. Like Spielberg, Johnson grew up making films in his back yard – sci-fi stuff and dreamed of going to Hollywood. He does visit there because his mother arranged a trip with the editor of the American Cinematographer magazine. He meets Spielberg, in fact, along with Douglas Trumball, who is his hero, and meets a lot of people working on the effects for a movie called Star Wars. Of course, the film’s title refers to the date Star Wars opened. The film is too long, and too fragmented for my taste. According to Wikipedia, the film was shot between 2004 and 2006. I guess it was either never completed or couldn’t find any takers. Additional shots and special effects were shot in 2015 all the way until 2021. That’s eighteen years. The film carries a 2022 copyright and I think it’s pretty clear it got finished BECAUSE of The Fabelmans. Mr. Johnson did come to Hollywood and did become a director, helming some not so hot movies like Baby’s Day Out, Spaced Invaders, Angus, and The Genesis Code, as well as a couple of TV things. Five features in over thirty years. And I felt the same way watching this film as I did watching The Fabelmans – that the three Kritzer books would make much better movies for a whole slew of reasons.
Yesterday was a birthday day. I had a rough night unfortunately, due, I’m pretty sure, to the onion rings I ate. They just wouldn’t digest properly. Ultimately, I think I got four hours of sleep, maybe a bit more. Once up, I answered a LOT of e-mails, had some telephonic conversations, and began “liking” all the Facebook birthday wishes, which spanned not only people just posting on the wall, but two other threads – all in all, I think I “liked” over 700 wishes.
Once home from the lunch, I spent much time doing the “liking”, had more telephonic calls, then for my evening meal I got a turkey sandwich delivered from a deli in the same little mall where Farbrocini’s is. It wasn’t too big and it was very good. I didn’t eat much else. The Darling Daughter sent a package containing cookies of her own making, chocolate-covered red licorice she does herself, and some cake in a small jar. Then I watched the motion picture and then had another long telephonic call, which is why these here notes are going up late, and that was the birthday. Here’s Richard and me at the restaurant.
Today, I’ll be up by eleven and then I’ll mosey on over to Marshall Harvey’s abode to see the first cut of episode three – always very exciting. Then we’ll futz and finesse should anything need futzing and finessing, after which we’ll choose some live action footage for the main titles. Then I’ll go to the mail place where there will hopefully be a Vitello’s check waiting for me. I’ll get something to bring home for food, I’ll come home and eat and then wathc, listen, and relax.
Tomorrow is free and ME. I hope to sleep in and then just relax. Sunday is a birthday lunch with dear reader Jeanne, then it’s back to planning the January Kritzerland show and making book notes.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, be up by eleven, see the first cut of episode three, adjust if anything needs it, choose live action footage for the main titles, hopefully pick up a Vitello’s check and if so, stop at the ATM and deposit it, get something to eat, come home, eat, and then watch, listen, and relax. 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, various things. Blu-ray, trying to watch Doctor Zhivago. Your turn. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, happy to have had a wonderful birthday luncheon and a peaceful birthday.