Well, dear readers, it is the Day of the Do even though the Do has nothing to do with the day, due to the Do taking place in the evening. Still, generically speaking, it is the damn Day of the Do and there is much to do although I have done some of the doing prior to the Day of the Do, but more about that in a moment. Right now, I am sitting here like so much fish, listening once again to Henry Mancini’s discarded score for Alfred Hitchcock’s Frenzy and I just love it. I wish there could be a version of the film with his score restored because I suspect it would be a whole different experience and one worth experiencing. I did, however, run the Main Title sequence with the Mancini music and I like it so much better than Ron Goodwin’s faux Elgar music, but Goodwin gave Hitchcock exactly what he wanted. I understand what he was going for but, for me, it just doesn’t start the film well, whereas Mancini’s music, while still giving Hitchcock what he wanted, has an underlying current of menace so when you see the title Frenzy it actually gives you some dread. Most of Mancini’s scoring is suspense cues and he was just a master at it. Goodwin’s score, which I do enjoy, is the complete opposite – it’s very bombastic and old-fashioned, even melodramatic, rather like some Hitchcock scores pre-Bernard Herrmann. And that’s the score we’ve all known since the film came out. But what a treat to finally hear what Mancini did. And it’s not just suspense music, it’s how he develops it. Speaking of Mancini, earlier I watched the first twenty minutes of High Time again. It’s all rather silly and more like a series of sketches, but back in 1960 I loved it because it felt so fresh and clever, and the sneak preview audience howled with laughter throughout. I’ve located several dates when that preview might have taken place and the most likely would have been a few months prior to its September release. Main feature if that’s the right date: Porgy and Bess. That same year, I know I saw a preview at the same theater, the Village, of Visit to a Small Planet with Jerry Lewis. In any case, I loved High Time back then and snapped up the stereophonic version of the album. I didn’t know at the time that it wasn’t the real soundtrack, but a re-recording, something Mancini would do for his major soundtracks from then until the late 1960s. I was very enamored of the main title music, a lively march. When we did our Kritzerland Mancini show, I was determined we do that music so I, being an industrious human bean, wrote a lyric to it and we premiered it that night and we’ve done it a couple of times since. It was fun to write to a tune like that. I spoke of having done it at the time, but I never shared the lyric. So, here it is. My advice is to go to the Tube of You and listen to the music whilst reading the lyric, so that it makes sense.
When all your worries and woes surround you
And grind up and ground you
Don’t sit and stare and seethe
Just take a breath and breathe
When all your troubles and cares just blind you
Then put them behind you
It’s high time that you did so don’t delay!
When your mood’s goin’ down
Pick it up, and then go and paint the town
And then when life starts cramping your style
You just say, “Sorry, I can’t be bothered –
And you simply start to smile
And then you don’t let it all defeat you
‘Cause it’s time to treat you
To all life has to give
It’s high time that you live
It’s time to wake up and start ignoring
The humdrum and boring
So grab life by the throat
High time that you’re a winner
And so, be a winner today.
When your sun doesn’t shine
You can shine and the sun might take the hint
And if the bad just turns into worse
Just say, “I’ve had it with bad”
And put the whole megillah in reverse!
And then you don’t let it all defeat you
‘Cause it’s time to treat you
To all life has to give
It’s high time that you live
It’s time to wake up and start ignoring
The humdrum and boring
So grab life by the throat
High time that you’re a winner
And so, be a winner today!
Before High Time, I watched Glass Onion, the new Knives Out movie. Now, I didn’t love Knives Out – I thought it was fun and entertaining, just not great. This one isn’t as good. It’s too long at two hours and fifteen minutes, it takes too long to get to the point, and then in the last fifteen minutes it just gets silly. The cast isn’t as strong either. Daniel Craig is okay, Edward Norton is good, but the supporting players aren’t anything special and I’m afraid that includes Kate Hudson, who seems to have really turned into her mother. Janelle Monae walks away with the film. It’s certainly slick and glossy, too slick and glossy, frankly and way too nutty with special effects in the climax. The most shocking thing about the entire endeavor is Netflix, who was in a bidding war for this and two more sequels and outbid the other bidders, paying $465 MILLION dollars. That kind of business model cannot be sustained, and I suspect that they’ve done that too many times and will eventually end up in the toilet because of it. There’s no way for them to ever make that money back. If you liked Knives Out you’ll probably find things to enjoy in Glass Onion. There are two cameos right at the top, both by deceased icons. I’ll say no more.
Yesterday was the Day Before the Do. I did get ten hours of needed sleep, got up, answered e-mails and an annoying text, then moseyed on over to the mail place and picked up two packages, both screeners. I went next door and got Subway for food, came home and ate the half sandwich I’d gotten along with half the foot-long I’d gotten. I saved the other half for the evening. I did a few things on the computer, got the flyer for the next Kritzerland show and made corrections for it, then I buckled down, Winsocki, and made the two big batches of tuna pasta salad and got that out of the way. Then I watched the movie.
After the movie, I sliced, diced, chopped, and minced, which took an hour, so that’s all done now. Then I watched some of High Time and now I’m writing these here notes, so you’re all caught up.
Today, I’ll be up when I’m up, the handyman will come and install the part we were waiting on – he’ll put that in the bathtub faucet, and all will be well. At noon o’clock I’ll begin cooking the spaghetti sauce – that takes about an hour to do and then it just simmers for five hours. I have a few areas of the house to clean, basically just putting stuff out of sight that’s been sitting on the floor for a year now. That won’t take long. I’ve already got the plates and cutlery laid out and the wine and cups, too. At five-thirty, I’ll make the pasta and have that ready for six o’clock and the early arrivals. I may not make as much pasta as I usually do because I’m thinking we won’t have as many people as we used to. I don’t know what for a fact, however. I’ll shave and shower and get prettified and then the Do will begin at six and go to ten or ten-thirty. I will, of course, have a full report for you and hopefully with photographs.
Tomorrow, I’ll be up by eleven and the Darling Daughter will arrive at noon o’clock with her BFF. I’ll feed them, then we’ll go driving around, which is what we like to do. After they leave, I’ll just watch, listen, and relax. Then we head to our Rockin’ New Year’s Eve Bash right here at haineshisway.com. I intend to not do much next week other than perhaps see episode five.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, be up when I’m up, make the spaghetti sauce, simmer, get everything ready, get me ready, and then we do the Do. Today’s topic of discussion: How are you spending Christmas Eve and Christmas Day? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, as the Day of the Do approacheth.