Well, dear readers, it’s Friday and I, for one, am looking forward to a relaxingly relaxing weekend. The weekend is a dish best served cold. Dishes served cold was the running gag around these here parts yesterday, and it was all most amusing. So, liking to beat a dead horse, I thought I’d make it a runner throughout today’s notes. Of course, the notes are a dish best served cold. Where was I? Oh, yes, it’s Friday. Speaking of Friday, yesterday was Thursday. Thursday (yesterday) was a dish best served cold. For example, I got up and the next thing I knew it was already noon and I hadn’t done much of anything. I don’t even remember why or how the time had passed so quickly. I then did a few errands and I kept meaning to write, but things just kept popping up that precluded me from doing so. In any case, writing is a dish best served cold. By the end of the day I think I managed to write two paragraphs, about a half-a-page. I then met up with Miss Adriana Patti (and her new very attractive haircut), as she wanted to see the motion pictures at the American Cinematheque. We supped beforehand at the Pig ‘n’ Whistle, which is directly next-door. I’d heard nothing good about the jernt, but it was close and convenient, so in we went. Well, imagine my surprise to have a quite yummilicious meal there. The service was dreadful, let me start by saying that. But, my chicken Caesar salad was absolutely terrific (even though our waitress had told me it was huge, it wasn’t even the size of a half-Caesar at Stanley’s or the Cheesecake Factory – in fact, it was downright puny as salads go. But, boy was it good. I also had a side of macaroni and cheese and it, too, was really excellent. Adriana had spaghetti and meatballs and she said she liked hers very much. We then toddled over to the Egyptian to see our double bill or Experiment In Terror and Mister Cory, two films of Blake Edwards. The gentleman who introduced the films was a clod of epic proportions – one of these yokels who thinks he’s funny but isn’t and doesn’t know he isn’t. His first four “jokes” were greeted with total silence – you’d think that might have given him a clew, but, nooooo, the clod just kept on trying to be funny. He informed us that we were going to see a newly-restored print of Experiment In Terror. Since the clod is supposed to be a film person, he should know that prints aren’t restored. What we did see was a newly-struck print that didn’t look all that new, and wasn’t especially well-printed, but it was fun to see it on the big screen. But, a note about screens today. By the 1960s, movie theaters basically showed films in two ratios – 1:85 (or some slight variation thereof), and scope (2:35). When showing 1:85, the screen was taller and not as wide as scope. When going to scope, the top screen masking would come down and the side masking would open, thereby giving the screen an entirely new shape. That is not what happens anymore. The height of the 1:85 screen remains constant and the side masking opens to make the screen wider, but it’s just not the same as it used to be and, for me, it totally subverts the movie-going experience.
Experiment In Terror is still a taught little thriller, with some genuinely creepy moments and a brilliant and eerie score by Henry Mancini. The acting is all very good. Miss Stefanie Powers was in attendance and she told some stories about the making of the film. Then the clod ate up most of the time asking inane questions. Then he took questions from the audience. He began by saying he wanted to call on people who didn’t normally always ask the questions. He then proceeded to only call on people in the first three rows, all of whom were the people who normally ask questions. There were several of us in the back raising our hands and he didn’t even glance our way, even when I got quite vocal about it. What a clod. If I see him (which I tried to do after the screening), I will give him a large piece of my mind. He was one of the most annoying twits its been my displeasure to have to endure. The print of Mister Cory apparently fell through at the last moment and they got a replacement print from a collector – a 16mm pan-and-scan of a Cinemascope film. Needless to say, I wasn’t going to stay and watch that travesty.
And one final word about what they did to one of the most beautiful theaters anywhere, the Egyptian – the theater where Ben-Hur played, and King of Kings, and Mutiny On The Bounty, and Molly Brown, and Funny Girl and many, many others. The outside is magnificently restored to its original grandeur. The inside is completely redone and its awful – industrial-looking, with stadium seating and a screen that is nowhere near the size of the gigantic screen that once was there.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below – the Unseemly Button is a dish best served cold.
This morning, I’ll be working a bit with Miss Yvette Lawrence – just giving my advice about her act. After that, I’ll be heading over to LACC to see part one of the student-directed one acts. When that’s done, I shall sup, then return for part two of the student-directed one acts. I’m looking forward to all of that. I also hope to get at least a page or two written. I’m going into a section that’s already been written, and so I’ll then just be rewriting those five pages to make the tone of them match the new stuff I’ve been doing. After that, I should be all caught up to where I left off back in August of last year. It’s really quite different now, and I think it’s much better than it was. I’ll be interested to see what my muse Margaret thinks – as soon as I’m to page fifty, she’ll read it.
Now wait just a darned minute. You’d better put on your pointy party hats and colored tights and pantaloons again, you’d better break out the cheese slices and the ham chunks again, you’d better dance the Hora and the Pony again, because today we’ve got another two birthdays to celebrate. First, occasional dear reader and lurker Iris, who sometimes helps out with Kritzerland stuff. So, let’s give a big haineshisway.com birthday cheer to Iris who sometimes helps out with Kritzerland stuff. On the count of three: One, two, three – A BIG HAINESHISWAY.COM BIRTHDAY CHEER TO IRIS WHO SOMETIMES HELPS OUT WITH KRITZERLAND STUFF!!! Our second birthday belongs to our long-time beloved dear reader Ben. So, let’s give a big haineshisway.com birthday cheer to our long-time beloved dear reader Ben. On the count of three: One, two, three – A BIG HAINESHISWAY.COM BIRTHDAY CHEER TO OUR LONG-TIME BELOVED DEAR READER BEN!!!
I think we all know that birthdays are a dish best served cold.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, jog (one of these days), work with Miss Yvette Lawrence, see one-acts and sup. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Friday – what is currently in your CD player, and your DVD/video player? I’ll start – CD, The Creature Wasn’t Nice soundtrack, and a Malcolm Arnold compilation. DVD, bedroom player – an anime TV program entitled Gunslinger Girl. Den player – Ginger and Fred. Your turn. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we? And remember, posting is a dish best served cold.