Replies: 45 Unseemly Comments
A little interesting aside:
My dad and I went to Best Buy on Tuesday and Lo and Behold (and Behold and Lo!) The Ghost and Mrs. Muir was already on the shelf. Oops to them I guess... My father picked it up...
As for the internet posters.. I have many opinions on the subject matter but I will only frustrate myself to post them all. I will say that I think the internet has allowed many people to forget manners, propriety and so on. For example - a huge pet peeve of mine right now is people that post rumors/gossip as fact or ALMOST fact. On one board, there is someone who works as an employee of a particular theater (not production, theater) and apparently has her ears and nose in everyones business. This person then posts just about everything she hears or thinks she hears on various boards. I have issue with this because much of what she says is information that should not be made public. Not that it's damaging info or anything, but it's just not appropriate. If she were negating a posted rumor, that MIGHT be one thing, but to just "brag" about inside info, I find this irritating.
And to people that are unsuspecting, she comes off as a reliable source because "she works there".
Let me assure you - if I were one of the producers of the show that is at this theater - I would have her you know what kicked to the curb.
there.. I've ranted!
Posted by Craig @ 03/29/2003 09:16 AM PST
This is the only theatre board I participate in and I find that while there are often polite disagreements regarding various topics our dear readers are for the most part quite polite and civil. I do read some other theatre sites and they range from quite knowledgeable to "what-the-hell-are-they-talking-about".
Off to Encore's NEW MOON. I've heard noting but good things about it. I'll report back later.
Posted by William E. Lurie @ 03/29/2003 09:23 AM PST
Hmmmmm....lots of good DVD's. I like The Andromeda Strain a lot, so I must get it...and I am toying with the idea of getting WSS, but will wait for the BK notes on said DVD.
TAS always reminded me in a way of THE SATAN BUG and picture with George Maharis and Anne Francis that scared me a LOT way back when.
I read HHW and Broadway.com and not so regularly AllThatChat. I don't look at any of the other Broadway message boards. I usually just read what I think might be of interest to me....and if a thread seems to go in a flaming direction, I bypass it. I am not impressed by anyone posting on the boards and I am a bit nonplussed by those who think the WWW is interested in their opinions....but then....theatre people are insecure and will take any criticism to heart...sometimes not even considering the source.
FAR FROM HEAVEN on Tuesday....and I shall also order Judy Garland Show volume 7 and look forward to volume 8!
Posted by Jrand52 @ 03/29/2003 09:52 AM PST
Sad news--after Max Preeo's email yesterday on CASTRECL about the doings at Sony, I contacted my "go-between" (ah, a Joseph Losey/Michel Legrand reference) at Collectables and it does indeed look like the end of the marvelous Percy Faith reissues. Silver lining--there are some reissues already in the pipeline that evidently won't be affected by this horrible news.
And I emailed BK and some other regulars here last night--I received a very disturbing newsflash from the AP and KABC in LA that Mel Gibson and his parents have been making some very inflammatory anti-Semitic Holocaust-denying statements. This sickens me no end.
Posted by JMK @ 03/29/2003 10:01 AM PST
JMK: Where did you read this? I just searched Google news and couldn't find anything quoting Mel Gibson as making anti-semitic remarks. A few weeks ago, his father and stepmother were quoted at length in some article, and they certainly did both come across as revisionists, and more than that -- revisionists of the tinfoil-hat wearing kind, if you take my meaning. But I haven't ever seen anything linking Mel Gibson himself to such statements. Do you have a link?
(I'm not a particular fan of Mel's, or his hypocritical way of adhering only to those old-time Catholic tenets which it is convenient for him to adhere to -- oh, birth control is a no-no, but fooling around outside your marriage is okay, Mel? -- but I don't think anyone should be held accountable for the ramblings of their parents. Lord, we might all be put away if that were the norm!)
Posted by Lulu @ 03/29/2003 11:23 AM PST
I don't really read any other theatre boards except for this one right here. I used to read a couple of them and subscribe to some of the lists, but the only one of those I still get is the Sondheim one - which isn't as fun or "happening" as it used to be. The only times I'll check out the boards on Broadway.com, ATC, etc., are when someone on here mentions a thread - and even then, most of the time I don't bother.
I will admit to being quite the gossip lover at one time, and I still enjoy a particularly juicy bit every now and then. But my tastes started changing when I started working with many of the people being gossiped about, and discovered it just wasn't worth all the time and energy to speculate about things that: 1)were out of my control, 2) had no effect on me whatsoever, and 3)were none of my business in the first place. And since I'm generally a quite and private person myself, I've been subject to speculation since people will tend to think I'm hiding something, when in reality, I'm just being myself, taking care of myself.
-Also, knowing how thorough and anal retentive I can get, if I did start reading any other boards, I would have to make sure to read every post, AND respond to every post. And then where would I be?
I'll also be waiting to see what BK and others think of the new WSS DVD set. I have the original DVD release, and I like it. I've never been one for all the extras, buy who knows... *I did finally order the DVD of the "new" Cinema Paradiso yesterday! Break out the Kleenex!
Posted by Jose C. Simbulan @ 03/29/2003 12:12 PM PST
Oh, all those gossips about
YOU, Jose!!! :- )
Never "heard" that "anal
retentive" expression so much
before; is that something "in"
to say nowadays?
I stick to HHW, the BEST site
on the internet, anal retentive
or not......and in all categories!
Posted by François @ 03/29/2003 12:24 PM PST
When I first found the Internet, lo these many years ago, I did much more reading and posting. I now read and post here because it's a nice place to come to on the Internet. I also go to Playbill On-Line (but that's not a posting board, it's a news board). I find so many of the other boards unpleasant and full of unnecessary vitrol. I rarely read them anymore. I went to the rec.alt.musictheatre board (or whatever it's called) when it was mentioned here some months ago, but as has been mentioned by BK and others, it is dominated by a very unpleasant man and the board is full of stuff I don't want to read about.
Regarding the Mel Gibson info, from what I have heard, it's his father and mother who are making the revisionist statements. There was a long article in the New York Times Sunday Magazine a couple of weeks ago, mostly dealing with Mr. Gibson and his new movie about the last 12 hours in the life of Jesus, filmed entirely in Aramaic and Latin with no subtitles. A section of the interview dealt with Mr. Gibson's parents (mostly his father) and their world view. Gibson's publicist was quick to say that Gibson's parents are speaking for themselves, not for Mel. Although Mr. Gibson was quoted as saying that he hopes his movie will re-focus the blame for the death of Christ "squarely where it belongs". Hmmm, wonder what he means by that???
Posted by Ben @ 03/29/2003 12:58 PM PST
The death of Christ is a pretty
OLD story and i don't think
anyone should "hold the
blame for it" NOW......
Boy, I'm gonna have to brush
up my Aramaic and Latin!......
Posted by François @ 03/29/2003 01:19 PM PST
I don't read or post on any other sites. I know not where they are and am not really interested. "The Real A" was the only column I read before this (ignoring my reading of the in-between stage elsewhere of course).I have never been to a "chat site" either.
Posted by Tom from Oz @ 03/29/2003 01:45 PM PST
Re: Mel Gibson. The article I received via email was attributed to the AP and KABC (as per my initial post). While it did quote Mr. Gibson's parents (both of them, not favoring his father), it also stated that Mr. Gibson's personal Catholic beliefs rejected Vatican II's 1962 decision renouncing the long-held Catholic belief that the Jews were responsible for Jesus' death. The article also stated that that was the intent behind Mr. Gibson's new movie--i.e., to attribute the guilt for Jesus' death to the Jews. The original email sent to me was simply a reprint of the article, so I'm sorry I don't have a direct link to offer.
Posted by JMK @ 03/29/2003 02:03 PM PST
bk, I read on one of the DVD sites I go to that the WEST SIDE STORY transfer in the new release is identical to the original release; it's just the extras that are different. I'll be looking forward to your report on this.
I have posted at other theater forums before, but I found myself outweighed by VERY young and inexperienced theatergoers who think RENT is an old show. In other words, for someone who saw the original production of MY FAIR LADY (albeit with Sally Ann Howes rather than Julie), I stuck out like a sore thumb and didn't stay around for long. I find many more kindred spirits here. Manners on most forums have ceased to exist. It's very refreshing to come here and experience posters who have respect for one another.
Posted by Matt H. @ 03/29/2003 02:03 PM PST
Here's a direct link to an article on Mel Gibson, his movie and his parents.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/03/14/1047583700508.html
I don't know if it's the same one you saw. Strange stuff.
Posted by Sigerson Holmes @ 03/29/2003 02:11 PM PST
Yes, MattH, that is what makes us different to the rest.
Now, where in tarnation IS everyone, daddy-o? We simply must have more posts than this, man - ooh, ooh, oohbuleeoo.
Posted by bk @ 03/29/2003 02:12 PM PST
Pardon my saying but........ I
think Mel Gibson is anal
retentive and that it runs in the
family.......
Posted by François @ 03/29/2003 02:22 PM PST
And you can punctuate it!
Posted by Velma @ 03/29/2003 02:24 PM PST
Been watching the Cliff Richard box set recommended by td in his Scarlet Street review. I enjoyed The Young Ones very much. Just got started on Summer Holiday when someone called and offered me a ticket to the Diavolo Dance Co. I have never seen them....so...as Our Gang says:
Where we goin'?
I don't know, but we're on our way!
Posted by Jrand52 @ 03/29/2003 02:26 PM PST
Did a little Google...found this:
http://www.etherzone.com/2003/bren032603.shtml
Offer it to you as it seems to avoid vagueness and get right to the point of both what Mel believes and what he means by who truly killed Christ.
Posted by Ron Pulliam @ 03/29/2003 02:50 PM PST
Also...for anyone who failed to find any hits on Mel Gibson and Jews, go to Google....my goodness golly gee...more hits than you can read and then some.
His father and mother are nutcases...and Mel, like every child, is a part of who his parents are. But many of you, I believe, will agree that we differ greatly from our parents and that we tend to take what we perceive the best of them and integrate that into our lives. Each generation differs somewhat...and the older a generation gets, the less flexible -- and a tad dotty -- it becomes.
I think it safe to say Mel Gibson loves his parents, but wishes they had not been interviewed.
As for his new film "The Passion" -- recall the furor surrounding "The Last Temptation of Christ" before it was made, after it was finished and during its brief run in theaters -- boycotted angrily by folks who refused to see it. This film brought out irrational hatred/bigotry in people you'd have thought would have a smidgeon of logic...or at least the courtesy of seeing the film before branding it and everyone involved with it as heretics and devils.
We live in a dangerously loony world, my friends, and the USA is a hotbed of loons.
Posted by Ron Pulliam @ 03/29/2003 03:06 PM PST
If I "crucified" Christ....
someone should have told
me, but I never met the man,
your honor....
As we say in French, le ridicule
ne tue pas......
Mel has the right to use his
money the way he wants....
and we have the right to go
and see his movie or not!
Posted by François @ 03/29/2003 03:11 PM PST
As Ken Mandelbaum would say (re Cliff Richard Box Set) and td would confirm - you heard it here first.
Now, where in tarnation IS everyone, daddy-o.
Posted by bk @ 03/29/2003 03:21 PM PST
RP: I didn't say I couldn't find anything on Google about Mel Gibson and Jews. I said I couldn't find any quotes from him that indicated he is a Holocaust denier. As for his father Hutton Gibson -- hoo yeah. Daddy Gibson is definitely playing hockey with a warped puck. And BTW, Mel's mother died in 1990 -- it is Mel's father and his father's (relatively) new wife who are the conspiracy theorists.
Maybe Mel is, too...it's true that the Catholic church he attends is old-school; masses in Latin, no Vatican II stuff for them. Or maybe he isn't. I just think it should be made clear that Mel Gibson himself has not, to my knowledge, made any revisionist statements. I'm not a big fan of the man (either the work or some of his personal choices), but I think it's imperative that we judge Mel based on his OWN behavior and statements, not his father's.
Posted by Lulu @ 03/29/2003 03:29 PM PST
Now, I know that everyone --
and I mean EVERYONE! -- is
going to be thrilled to pieces to
learn that daylight savings
time starts TONIGHT here in
France,
hence, I get to work one hour
less! -- 11 hours instead of
12!! --
Told you everyone would be
thrilled!.......
To quote BK ;
where in starvation, darnation,
oh shoot!... is everybody????
Not gone to the
movies?.....Mel's film is NOT
out YET !!!!!!
Posted by François @ 03/29/2003 05:27 PM PST
I have the hour you just lost Francois. Do you want me to email it. Daylight Savings just finished here.
Posted by Tom Guest @ 03/29/2003 05:54 PM PST
Oh, no, SAVE it for our next
autumn.... your spring!.........
Posted by François @ 03/29/2003 06:24 PM PST
Sacrebleu !
Mais où est passé tout le
monde?? This is sabotage !!!
We must keep our sang-froid
and make no faux pas for we
have our amour-propre...
The most popular site of the
internet is complétement
deserted tonight !! This is très
choquant, ooh la la !
But its chers readers still are
full of galanterie and
savoir-vivre and savoir-faire,
without mentioning joie de
vivre and raison d'être...
C'est la vie ! Chacun à son
goùt, noblesse oblige !
RSVP
Posted by François @ 03/29/2003 06:56 PM PST
Je suis ici!
Posted by Jose C. Simbulan @ 03/29/2003 07:05 PM PST
Jose.....that has to be the
shortest post you've placed on
HHW!!
Are you turning POST retentive
too???? ;- )
Did you jog today?
Welcome back where you
belong.... or beshort or
bemedium... hey, what i am
talking about???
Posted by François @ 03/29/2003 07:12 PM PST
A very nice and positive review
of Encore! 's NEW MOON by
Ken Mandelbaum on
Broadway.com.....
New Yorkers are so darn
lucky....
Posted by François @ 03/29/2003 07:27 PM PST
No jog today. No Pilates. But I did get a good walk in earlier tonight on the way to dinner. -Of course, I had a BIG ole margarita once I got there (peach!). I am feeling a little guilty, but I also had first band rehearsal for Hair this morning. Went extremely well. The only hitch was finding parking up around school. Not only was it the big mini-marathon day here in town (the main route goes through the campus), but it was also the big audition day for the music department. But all my guys made it in all right, and we had a very good first rehearsal.
OH! And I also was a little sleep deprived since my upstairs neighbor decided to "party" last night. The music was so loud that she didn't hear either one of her phones ringing - both me and my roommate called numerous times - and she didn't hear my roommate knocking on her door either. And by the time that Fleetwood Mac started blasting at 3:00am - and "Tusk!" no less - I was actually about to call the police. And I did. I think they just drove by, but the music did eventually stop... at 4:00am. But I made it up on time, and I proceed to blast my Cheryl Studer coloratura album! "Ah, non credea mirarti.." -Her dog loved it! Felt good.
-And my "revenge" was that she had to work a double shift at the restaurant today. Ah-hah!
Well, back to more TLC. Not too bad rooms tonight - and What Not To Wear is fun tonight too.
Posted by Jose C. Simbulan @ 03/29/2003 07:41 PM PST
Cliff Richard....such fun DVD's...and choreography by Mr Herbert Ross!
Each movie has at least 16 songs, and most of them are listenable!
I am intrigued that treasures such as these keep turning up. I know nothing....just when I think I do...I read something else here on HHW!
MattH, ain't it the truth....the history of Broadway for some people on those boards begins with RENT! I actually wandered into a Yahoo Broadway chatroom once in my early days on the net and it was all about RENT and the actors and the replacements and you can imagine the lull when I mentioned a show produced before the 1980's.
Oh well. Diavolos was very entertaining. I think they are LA based if you haven't seen them out there. Most of the female dancers have extensive dance training, but most of the male dancers started in sports, gymnastics, or something else and drifted into dance. Lots of fun....but a small audience.
I did mention to my friends, however, that we should be proud that when it comes to culture, we're the first hogs to the trough. 8-D
Posted by Jrand52 @ 03/29/2003 08:00 PM PST
Oh...and the leading lady in Summer Holiday is none other than Broadway's original Liesl von Trapp, Lauri Peters!
Posted by Jrand52 @ 03/29/2003 08:01 PM PST
Je suis ici, aussi!
No wonder my ears have been burning! Jrand talks about me, BK talks about me. . .
and BK is absolutely correct; I rushed out and got the fabulous Cliff Richard dvd collection upon HIS recommendation right here on HainesHisWay! I was not disappointed at all! I still sit back and let these marvelous musicals carry me away. Then the mighty editor of Scarlet Street asked me to write my opinions of them, and the rest, they say, is history.
Well, those other theater boards. Well, everyone knows that I do read and post at RATM, but since it has become "The Steve and Rhonda Show," I maybe read it once a week.
All That Chat is probably the only board on which I post psuedonominously, well, Scarlet Streeters know me as "Daisy Hilton," but over at ATC, my handle is "ZedPatience." (Some astute Hainesies and Kimlets will undoubtedly understand why).
The plans for the weekend:
Went shopping today for my WIDESCREEN HDTV television set! WooHoo! Still shopping around. . .
Tomorrow, I start rehearsing and working on new material, including more of the songs from the show that I'm working on.
I'm throwing a lot of new things at my accompanist tomorrow - the Lerner & Loewe LITTLE PRINCE, "Be a Lion," "Take Care of My Heart," and loads of others. . .
I watched SWEET CHARITY last night, and it's better than I remembered it being; and for the crying out about "fosse-esque," in EACH and EVERY ONE of the dance numbers, the dancers are presented from head to toe.
This is a stunning transfer, btw.
Just got finished listening to one of the TWO COMMENTARIES on WOMEN IN LOVE - the Ken Russell conversation is brilliant! (He must have listened to BK doing a commentary). Tomorrow morning, I'll listen to Larry Kramer's.
I love this film, and it improves with age. The dvd transfer is excellent, as well.
Posted by td @ 03/29/2003 08:14 PM PST
Jrand - the choreographer on WONDERFUL LIFE is none other than Gillianne Lynne! (CATS).
Posted by td @ 03/29/2003 08:17 PM PST
I watched WOMEN IN LOVE on digital cable a month or two ago and had forgotten how beautifully done it was. When the DVD became available, I snapped it up. Sad to say, of course, it was another lazy MGM transfer ported over I suspect from their laserdisc master since it wasn't anamorphic. Still, at least I have a copy of it now.
Posted by Matt H. @ 03/29/2003 08:38 PM PST
In a reversal of fortune - URBAN COWBOY has torn up it's closing notice for the moment...
Posted by Craig @ 03/29/2003 08:56 PM PST
This is the only palce I hang out, so I have no experience with or opinion on other internet theatre boards. I'll just stay here.
Posted by Kerry @ 03/29/2003 08:56 PM PST
Regarding MGM and anamorphic, if the aspect ratio is LESS THAN 1.85:1, then MGM does not enhance. UQUUS and WOMEN IN LOVE are both 1.66:1. EXODUS is a mistake, a critical error, but a major mistake, nonetheless.
Posted by td @ 03/29/2003 09:00 PM PST
.....that should have read, EQUUS! silly me, i've been in the stables too long.
Posted by td @ 03/29/2003 09:02 PM PST
WOW! Finally caught this week's "Six Feet Under". What an amazing episode. Great writing. I'm practically destroyed. Ah, well.. a good cry... Beautiful.
Posted by Jose C. Simbulan @ 03/29/2003 10:58 PM PST
Just finished watching the World Figure Skating Championships.
Just letting you all know I'm a HUGE fan of Michelle Kwan. On any other female skater's best day, not one of them approaches Michelle for artistry and musical interpretation. NOT ONE!
: )
That said, who at ABC do I have to write to chastise them for putting a microphone in Michelle's face three (count 'em THREE) times tonight? Michelle comes off as a dumb jock or worse. She doesn't seem to have a thought that can answer a question or that doesn't involve how she felt while performing a move and doesn't have the words to adequately express feeling. She needs coaching in being interviewed. She needed it 10 years ago and she still needs it today.
And somebody please -- if you ever meet Michelle face to face -- do her an enormous favor and tell her that the "O" in "Olympics" DOES get pronounced. Every time she talks about the games, she calls them the "'Lympics." Cute for a 3-year-old. Nothing older.
Her skating was more than first-rate -- it's amazing for any skater to have that much presence, consistency and polish, not to mention the musical interpretation skills she has. Yes, many have variations of it, but not all in the same package.
Sadly, the current judging standards do not truly reflect the great distance between Michelle in first place and anyone else in second place.
Her long program was skated to a piece called "Aranjuez" and it was magnificent.
Ron
Posted by Ron Pulliam @ 03/29/2003 11:30 PM PST
I don't read theater (or any other) boards. Unless you count HHW. So it would be most unseemly of me to comment upon that which I know nothing (although it hasn't always stopped me before).
I have been out and about today. I walked with a friend of mine and her two children (ages 4 and 6) for a couple of hours. We walked down a steep hill and then I had to walk back (a very steep up) all the way by myself, because I had to get ready to go to the movies with my niece. My friend (Margo) was meeting her oldest daughter (age 16) at the theater where she (the oldest daughter) is performing in a community theater production of The Who's Tommy. I'm going to see it on Wednesday.
My niece and I went to see "Chicago" (second time for both of us) then a sneek peak of "What a Girl Wants" with Colin Firth and Kelly Preston. It was cute. I enjoyed it, but I won't see it again.
Tomorrow, I am working backstage (load-in, show and load-out) of a professional tour of "Fosse." I have to be at the theater at 6:00 am! It's almost midnight and I haven't gone to bed, yet! The only consolation is that we will be done with the load-out at a reasonable time, not at 2 or 3 am, as in most shows. Anyway, if there is a chat Sunday night, I'll most likely not be there. I don't think that we'll even be done by then. If the chat is on Monday (I can't even remember when it was last week and I'm too lazy at this hour to check), I'll most likely be able to partake.
Them's my weekend plans.
Posted by George @ 03/29/2003 11:43 PM PST
My, oh, my, I feel like BK. Since I got my DVD player on Monday night I have watched 14--count them--14 movies! I have only been able to do that thanks to having Friday night and Sat. afternoon off, and I just watched a couple tonight after work (hence the VERY late post). Here is a list of the ones I've watched and a brief summary of my feelings for said DVDs:
1. Norma Rae--Never had seen it, and now I know what I was missing. I thought it was great and Ms. Sally Field just reminded me of why I like her work so much.
2. Xanadu--OK, OK...it's a guilty pleasure. It made me laugh, but boy, oh, boy, do I still have it bad for Ms. Olivia Newton-John.
3. The Women--Loved it. I'm glad you guys suggested it (many, many posts ago).
4. The Rules of Attraction--There was nothing redeeming about this movie, IMHO. Nothing.
5. Anatomy of a Murder--I love Jimmy Stuart. He's fantastic.
6. Show Girls--The biggest piece of trash I've ever seen. The acting (if you can call it that) was atrocious. Elizabeth Berkley should have stuck with playing Jesse Spano on "Saved By The Bell."
7. Auntie Mame--I had forgotten how much I loved this movie. I think I'll have to buy it. Rosalind Russell was PERFECT! FAR better than Ms. Ball was in the musical film.
8. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang--What a disappointment. That's what I get for watching Mary Poppins first.
Well...the list goes on and on but I won't bore you anymore. I have two more movies for tomorrow ("The Goonies" and "Designing Woman" per your references), but I'm sure I'll knock those out early and will probably have to rent a couple to get me through the night. Any suggestions?
Audition update: Still no news. :-(
And now I'm off to bed.
Posted by Jason @ 03/30/2003 01:55 AM PST
###### Sending Plaid vibes to Dave for his audition today!!! ######
Posted by Laura @ 03/30/2003 06:20 AM PST
Jose, SIX FEET UNDER was indeed a beautiful show this past week. Probably the best of the season thus far.
I second your comments, Ron, on Michelle Kwan. There was no one in the competition in her class at all as an interpretive skater. It was a beautiful experience watching her skate.
I have a question for those of you with HDTVs and access to HBO/SHOWTIME-HD. How can the movies they show on their high def channels be deemed high definition when they're pan and scanned? I've watched THE LAST CASTLE and HIGH CRIMES on HBO-HD recently, and both of them were cropped abominations of the original Panavision frames. Is this true high def? I know complaining to HBO/SHOWTIME will do no good (I'll do it anyway), but I was just wondering if that's really high definition when 40% of the picture is missing. Thanks for any input.
Posted by Matt H. @ 03/30/2003 08:04 AM PST
