Posted by Philip Crosby @ 10/04/2002 08:51 AM PST

When it comes to fast food, but two words describe the treat that towers over all others:

Double Double.

Posted by jay @ 10/04/2002 08:53 AM PST

Barbara Stanwyck film: ya gotta love "Ball of Fire," if only for the name Sugarpuss O'Shea.

My new favorite fast food is Chipotle's chicken fajita burrito.

Posted by Pam @ 10/04/2002 09:07 AM PST

"The Great Man's Lady", which I first saw on the Early Show, or Late Show, on WCBS-TV in New York back in the late 50's or early 60's. Not well known today, but it tells an epic story of a 100 year old pioneer woman in flashback over an 80 year period. It co-starred Joel McCrea and Brian Donlevy and was directed by William Wellman. It has some great tear-jerking scenes in it.

As for fast food, don't do it too often and try to avoid, but when I do tend to stick with a Wendy's burger as a first choice, or similar from McDonald's of Burger King. My wife, who doesn't eat meat out, will stick to a Fillet-O-Fish, or similar item depending on what's available.

Posted by steveg @ 10/04/2002 09:48 AM PST

How embarrassing! I really don't have a favorite Barbara Stanwick film. Multiplying this embarrassment is the fact that der Brucer is admitting the same. In fact, we're both scratching our heads to think of Barbara Stanwick films we've seen. Shame on us. Shame Shame Shame! (Three shames ought to do it.)

As for fast food, the only national fast food chain either of us cares for is Taco Bell. I love their tacos, I love their burritos. I'm not fond of their foo-foo new contraptions, like the gordito, which makes me think I'm eating something by someone named Gordon. Gordon is a lousy cook, IMO.

A few years back, I had to dash around during lunch hour to get something notarized, and only had enough time to grab a gulp, so I went into the Burger King across the street from work. Big mistake, my mouth felt like it had been slimed for the rest of the day. Blech! I could have gone into the McDonalds downstairs from the office I worked in, but we'd had an earthquake a few months earlier and all the cockroaches had fled up the building, making that thought repulsive.

Fortunately, there are a few local chains that serve much better food. The best burgers in SoCal are to be found at In-N-Out, period. And the best Mexican food, to my mind, is found at the LaSalsa chain. These places make real food, to order, not like the nationals which have everything pre-cooked, pre-wrapped, and petrified before you even step in the door. I'm also fond of the Mexican food found at Baja Fresh, but they take quite a while to prepare what they serve, and I'm not sure they can be called fast food. Pity.

Posted by S. Woody White @ 10/04/2002 09:57 AM PST

Taking a few minutes from my crazed work to post and think about something other than grants and foundations.

Barbara Stanwyck: I, like Mr. BK, love Double Indemnity. Another favorite is Stella Dallas. I like Christmas in Connecticut for silly fun and I LOVE one of the great weepies of all time (IMHO-In My Humble Opinion) Titanic. Besides Ms. Stanwyck we get the inimitable Mr. Clifton Webb and the glorious Miss Thelma Ritter. I haven't seen it for years. I'm going to have to go out and find myself a copy.

Fast food-don't eat it much anymore since I started Weight Watchers but before that I have to admit a guilty pleasure (before I moved to New York) was a late night sack of White Castle burgers. There is a White Castle in Manhattan now on 5th Avenue in the mid-30s (around 32nd Street, I think) but I've not been there. I liked Arby's when they first started MANY years ago. The beef was carved off a large side hanging in the restaurant. Then the switched to the pressed variety and I lost interest. When I did eat fast food recently, it was either Subway or McDonald's or Taco Bell. Not out of any loyalty, but because they are the easiest to find. I have friends from the West Coast who swear by In-N-Out. When I get to CA I will have to try it.

Posted by Ben @ 10/04/2002 10:41 AM PST

"Ball of Fire" (my favorite)
"Double Indemnity" (she plays the definitive tough broad, and I love it)

Fast food: It used to be Jack in the Box.
McDonalds' or Wendy's for fries, Burger King for a Whopper junior.

I really used to like A & W stands. Their Teenage Burger (or was it the Mama Burger) was good, and you could get a rootbeer float.

I used to really love Arthur Treacher's Fish and Chips and still miss them.

My favorite has to be Lazy Lou's Fish and Chips. I've been going there for the last 40 years.

Posted by Kerry @ 10/04/2002 10:48 AM PST

I don't know from Barbara Stanwyck movies.

I don't do much fast food, either. Not that I don't like it -- I'm watching my weight. I do like Einstein Bagels (cranberry, dry) and black coffee. Also, Baja Fresh and Fazoli's.

Posted by Laura @ 10/04/2002 10:55 AM PST

I like the B.S. film from the early 60s where she plays a butch madame at a whorehouse. I think it was "Walk On the Wild Side".

I rarely go to regular fast food chains. I will never go to McDonald's because I don't like their choice of condiments and refuse to wait while they reluctantly make a sandwich with what I prefer. About a year ago I decided to go and try their hot ham and cheese. I did not know that it came with hot lettuce and hot tomato as well! Wendy's used to be good when it was just a choice of single, double or triple burger with your choice of toppings, but now they have all their special sandwiches like everybody else. When I lived on the West Coast in the 80s I used to like Jack-In-The-Box except that everytime they weuld introduce and heavily advertise a new item it would be off the menu in a month or two.

I do like fast food pizza, but not at a chain restaurant. The best pizza comes from individual stands.

Posted by William E. Lurie @ 10/04/2002 11:08 AM PST

By the way, the headline in the New York Post over Bruce Paltrow's obituary today read

Gwyneth Paltrow's director dad dies

As if he didn't have a distinguished career of his own.

Once a tcky tabloid always a tacky tabloid!

Posted by William E. Lurie @ 10/04/2002 11:38 AM PST

My Joe and I used to swear by Wendy's, back when they all had a salad bar. And we were vindicated when Consumer Reports rated them Number One.

Back when I was courting Martha--I mean Joseph (Edward Albee reference there), I said I'd take him out to eat and he got me into the most marvelous (and expensive!) Italian restaurant around--during a blizzard, so we had the entire waiting staff to ourselves. And they soaked my wallet.

So then he offered to take me out to eat--at "Le Chateau Blanc". Well, not being a Nyorker myself at that point, I was not familiar with White Castle. Actually, we still stop in there for old times' sake and order a dozen of those miniburgers apiece. It's not bad, really. And it is the oldest fast-food burger chain in the country.

--------------------------

But for a really good burger, we go to The All American Burger in Masapequa, Long Island: "Chain of One", as they call it. I think it is the one referenced in Born on the 4th of July, that Tom Cruise's friend is starting, in Masapequa. (Which is also the home of the Baldwin brothers.)

Posted by William F. Orr @ 10/04/2002 11:46 AM PST

McDonald's USED to have good fries. Now, they're barely edible (fried in the vegetable oil they're now using).

I used to love Mickey D's quarter pounders -- but they seem to have shrunk significantly while still calling them quarter pounders. The buns are WAY smaller.

Now I'm fond of their "Big 'n Tasty" burgers. I'm sure they'll do something to those to make them taste different, eventually.

"White Castle" was always an enormous guilty pleasure when I lived in Indiana. On the East Coast, Krystal was similar (some say "the same", but I think not).

I used to love KFC, but I don't know if I changed, or they just don't know how to do it right out here in California (Oakland).

The news about Bruce Paltrow is very sad. He died in a Rome hospital. He not only had pneumomia, but had also been diagnosed with a recurrence of throat cancer. He was in Rome to celebrate Gwyneth's 30th birthday with her.

Posted by Ron Pulliam @ 10/04/2002 12:29 PM PST

Alas to my knowledge I have only yet seen one Barbra Stanwyck flick, Doubly Indemnity. So I cannot really say that it is my favorite, but I quite enjoyed it all the same.
Fast food favorites -
Chicken Quesadila from Taco Bell
Meatball sub from Subway
Cheese sticks from Burger King..although they stopped serving them at my usual Burger King, which I thought was quite unseemly

Posted by Ann @ 10/04/2002 12:47 PM PST

Oh, almost forgot the Salmon and Chips from Ivars Fish bar in Seattle...no better fish and chips in the world. Clam chowder isn't bad either

Posted by Ann @ 10/04/2002 12:49 PM PST

I have found with Subway that it depends on the one you go to. I have been to some with very good sandwiches and others where it was inedible. One problem I have with almost all fast food restaurants is that I don't speak Spanish and many of the clerks barely speak English. This is a conversation I heard in a Subway once:

Clerk: White or Wheat?

Customer: Do you have rye?

Clerk: Si.

Customer: I'll have rye.

Clerk: Si. White or wheat?

Customer: You said you have rye.

Clerk: Si.

Customer: I'll have rye.

Clerk: Si. White or wheat?

...through several more rounds.

Posted by William E. Lurie @ 10/04/2002 01:36 PM PST

Hmmm... Does Krispy Kreme count?

Posted by Sandra @ 10/04/2002 01:57 PM PST

Dear Reader Sandra:

Where I come from, donuts most certainly constitute a food group.

Posted by jay @ 10/04/2002 02:03 PM PST

Hainesie/Kimlet Ross Care's choral trilogy, "The Sacred Harp: 3 Transcriptions for Chorus, Harp, Viola, and Cello" was scheduled to be performed today at 12:15 p.m. at the Museum of History and Art on Main St. in downtown Ventura, Ca.

Voices from the Ventura Master Chorale were scheduled to be under the direction of Burns
Taft.

There will be two more performances of "The Sacred Harp" in December and March
at locations to be announced.

I hope Ross will post and tell us how he evaluates the first performance. And, hopefully, he'll keep us apprised of the future performances.

Posted by Ron Pulliam @ 10/04/2002 02:09 PM PST

How about her in The Big Valley? Couldn't get butcher than that?

Posted by Heath Barcley @ 10/04/2002 02:31 PM PST

I don't know from Barbara Stanwyck films. :-\ Do Barbara Streisand films work? I mean, they both have the same first name and last inital...

ANYWHO...let's get on with the fast food discussion.

I will travel MILES to get some Chik-Fil-A anything, though their sandwiches and nuggets in particular are to die for. I enjoy a good processed fish patty from McDonalds, though the very fattening Double (yes--you heard correctly--DOUBLE) Quarter Pounder with cheese makes me writhe in delight. Wendy's has the best fries around and for $.99, you can't beat Burger King's chicken tenders with B-B-Q sauce (for $.99 one can't really afford to spell out Bar-B-Que). Being a midwestern boy, I prefer Papa John's pizza to Pizza Hut (assuming there is garlic butter for the crust), but I have to admit that a Pizza Hut pan pizza with pepperoni and extra cheese has been known to make me writhe--especially if it's been chilled in the fridge overnight. Taco Bell makes my mouth very happy but my stomach hates me afterwards. Speaking of stomachaches...let's talk about White Castles. They are fabulous going down but will haunt you for days. A food definitely to be eaten on Friday night so you can have the weekend to recover. And, being a Kentucky-born connosieur of foods, KFC definitely holds a place in my cholesterol-ridden heart. Wow...I know FAR too much about fast foods.

Posted by Jason @ 10/04/2002 02:36 PM PST

How in the WORLD could I have forgotten the Arby's roast beef sandwich? OH! The writhing I could do if I had a giant roast beef sandwich in my hot little hands right now...YUM!!

Posted by Jason @ 10/04/2002 02:38 PM PST

Barbara Stanwyck is well down on my list for anything. I could never decide if i disliked Big Valley or Bonanza the most. I think Barbara was more patriarchal (sp) than Lorne Green.
Fast food. traditional Fish & Chips when I am really in the mood and hungry - Never with vinegar or ketchup. Just lots of salt. The arteries need a treat now and then!

My computer is receiving a daily virus this week. Is it just seasonal.At least I know they are not been forwarded from me or my mail address book.

Posted by Tom from OZ @ 10/04/2002 02:57 PM PST

Hmm... I'm afraid I'm going to have to pass on the Barbara Stanwyck films too, unfortunately... Unless I can count her appearance in "The Thorn Birds" on TV. -That was her, wasn't it?

As for fast food, I generally take anything that's nearby if I'm in a "fast food" mode - usually the one with the shortest drive-in line.

I've, thankfully, kind of cut down on my fast food cravings, but Taco Bell always seemed to be very consistent from location to location. However, for Mexican food, I do prefer Baja Fresh, which can get bogged down at times. But as they say in their restaurant, they are not really a "fast food" joint.

For fried chicken, I have to go with Lee's. I just wish they had more locations. Otherwise, KFC is a good ole standby.

Burgers... Wendy's. Although for the longest time, I had never had a Wendy's hamburger, I always had the other stuff on the menu. -And you can't beat the Junior Bacon Cheeseburger for $0.99 - I get two without the bun (Atkins, ya' know... and they'll even prepare it that way; they just put everything in one of the baked potato containers).

I used to love McDonald's, but once they started making everything "fresh", all the flavors changed. I used to love getting those first burgers off the grill after a brief wait. Now everything is cooked in advance and microwaved.

And, thankfully, Richmond has a Krispy Kreme, and I still stop by the classic one in Alexandria, VA. -The one in Alexandria still makes the "discontinued" flavors - blueberry cake, blueberry filled, maple glazed, chocolate and vanilla frosted filled donuts, cinnamon twists, etc. Whenever I want to earn some brownie points - or donut points - I stop by and pick up a couple dozen! AND I get the paper hats too!!!

*And I really wish I could be at the gathering in NYC on Sunday - I really need a New York fix right now - but I'll be in my first 10-out-of-12 for the week... ugh...

Posted by Jose C. Simbulan @ 10/04/2002 03:21 PM PST

Yes Barbara Stanwyck was in the Thornbirds and she was more masculine that Richard Chamberlaine was in the film.

Posted by Ralph de Bricassart @ 10/04/2002 03:57 PM PST

It is true that Chamberlain
spelled with an e at the end is
MUCH MORE.... feminine !

Jason, don't mind me, but it's
"connaisseur" from
"connaître", to know.....

Speaking of knowing, I'm from
that group who doesn't know
from Barbara Stanwyck.......

Whatever happened to EL
POLLO LOCO fast food
restaurants ? Loved the one
on Colonial Drive in Orlando,
but, last year i was there, it
seemed they were all gone !!
Good roasted chicken !!

And Wendy's used to be my
favorie burger place: great
baked potatoes and salad
bars.

I'm sure you're all thrilled by
those confessions ! You
should !

Found -- I'm SO lucky -- a
second hand copy of BK
produced Bay Cities recording
of ANASTASIA, with darling
Judy Kaye, right here in little
old Paris !! How lucky can you
get ?, -- oh, a Kander & Ebb
reference !

And there and then I had THE
proof that, inspite of what he
claims, Bruce CAN sing ;
there's a picture of him as part
of the chorus....some 10 years
ago ! Yeap !

I envy ALL of you who gonna
get together with our IDOL in
NYC !!

Have a great time, all y'all !!

Posted by François @ 10/04/2002 04:33 PM PST

I have to agree with Jose (hi
Jose!!!) on the Krispy Kreme
doughnuts...always a good choice
:-).

Have a nice trip

Posted by Jennifer M @ 10/04/2002 06:23 PM PST

Loved the Thorn Birds comment above. Dreadful TV series. Ordinary book.

Hi Francois. I wouldn't lose sleep from "knowing from Barbara Stanwyck". I find the American expression "not knowing from" most peculiar.

Those of who can't wish we could! Have a great time at the NY event of the year everyone.

Full reports expected.

Posted by Tom from OZ @ 10/04/2002 06:25 PM PST

I'm not a burger person, so my fast food picks are all non-burger related. (sorry)

Taco Bell (even though right after eating it, I inevitably have to "make a run for the border").

Pollo Tropical (are these only in South Florida? FRESH roasted chicken, fried plantains, frozen mango drinks, etc. Very very Cuban. Very very good.)

Papa John's pizza.

Arthur Treacher's Fish and Chips. (Hey, Kerry! We still have 'em down here! C'mon down and see for yourself! Or I could airmail you some. Yum!)

As for White Castle...well, in Indy we had a little Rocky Horror riff that went thusly:

Audience: "Hey, Brad! What's white and sells hamburgers that taste like s---?!?"

Brad: "Didn't we pass a castle back down the road a few miles?"

In Indiana from the '50s through the early '80s, we had one of the GREAT fast-food restaurants of all time: Burger Chef. Burger Chef kicked McDonald's and Burger King's ptomainic little butts. Good food and also very innovative. Burger Chef was the first fast-food joint with a salad bar and a "works bar." Burger Chef came out with a new burger called the "Big Shef." McDonald's followed with the "Big Mac." Burger Chef came out with kiddie meals complete with games: the "Fun Meal." McDonald's followed with the "Happy Meal." Burger Chef came out with a chicken sandwich...McDonald's followed (seeing a pattern here?) Then one day in 1982, all of the Burger Chefs were absorbed by the Hardee's corporation -- a sad day, indeed.

I'll be the sole dissenting voice here: I don't particularly like Barbara Stanwyck in Double Indemnity. That wig they've got her in is horrible, and I think that in this film where she plays the femme fatales to end all femme fatales, she is less sexy than she is in several other pics.

I love her in Ball of Fire (yes, Sugarpuss O'Shea is one of the all-time great monikers), placing herself in front of the window because she knows the light will form a halo around her and make Gary Cooper's knees quiver. I also really like her in Remember the Night, a Christmas film co-starring Fred MacMurray. Also like her in The Strange Love of Martha Ivers, though she was bad through and through in that (usually she played characters who were tough, but redeemable). Seeing her in The Thorn Birds just made me sad.

Posted by Lulu @ 10/04/2002 06:36 PM PST

Tom,

To tell you the truth, I've never
known that expression before
coming to this site, and seeing
it so often...

I thought I would "fit in".....

IS GUY GOING TO JOIN iN
THE FUN IN NYC ?? Tennis
competitions are over now....

A special concert by Guy
Haines would be
appropriate....

Posted by François @ 10/04/2002 06:38 PM PST

All this nasty food talk. I have been doing the Atkins diet and have been successful at it. I have lost about 15lbs so far and a lot more to go. So difficult not to eat all those carbs. Potatoes, bread, rice, pasta, pizza, chocolates, fruit juices and fruits are all among my favorites. But I guess I am eating a little more healthier because of it but I really miss it. I have been llooking at all the fat and calories that one sees at Burger King and their hamburger cousins. KFC is no shakes either. But I decided that I want to get back to my fighting weight.

As for those that who have been asking about the progress of my screenplays; I have had a couple of producers express interest in both of them, but so far nothing. But the attention that the seem to be getting is encouraging.

Really wish I could be in NYC this weekend. Maybe we could do a south florida one???

Posted by Michael Shayne @ 10/04/2002 07:12 PM PST

SORRY, WRONG NUMBER, DOUBLE INDEMNITY, CHRISTMAS IN JULY, WALK ON THE WILD SIDE, the movie based on THE G-STRING MURDERS, BALL OF FIRE, THE LADY EVE, STELLA DALLAS and, believe it or not - ROUSTABOUT! (I do so love the late Ms. Stanwyck).

Taco Bell takes top honors with me.
I love the Frosties at Wendy's.
We no longer have any Arthur Treacher's here in the burgh, but I remember them well (almost a Lerner and Loewe reference).

Posted by td @ 10/04/2002 07:46 PM PST

Isn't Chick-Fils the religious restaurant that refuses to be open on Sundays even if they have to pay a penalty to the malls they are in and want them open?

And I love Krispy Kream but wonder why the ones around here close after a year when the lease is up.

Posted by William E. Lurie @ 10/04/2002 08:54 PM PST

I'm hungry from reading all these posts - hungry for fast food and hungry for Babara Stanwyck. Off to pack.

Posted by bk @ 10/04/2002 09:17 PM PST

Barbara Stanwyck movies: Double Indemnity

Fast food: Subway or Wendy's, or, when I'm near a branch, Lick's (Toronto-based burger and ice cream chain) - though their counter clerks sing annoyingly perkily about the joys of working there (no, I'm not making this up!). Best fast food anywhere is at LaSalsa, but they don't have a branch within about 2,500 miles of here.

Posted by Stephen Farrow @ 10/05/2002 01:40 AM PST