Haines His Way
Archives => Archive 2 => Topic started by: bk on June 22, 2004, 11:59:53 PM
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Well, you've read the notes, you have your trenchcoats on, you're wearing a fedora and thinking about the phantom lady or the lady from shanghai or the black angel or the fallen angel, and now you are ready to post until the noir cows come home.
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I'm going to find a photo of me in a trench coat, thigh high boots, holding a long cigarette holder - done for a feature on mystery writers. I look perfect for today's notes. The picture is centuries old - yes I'm a vampire. I'm going to find the photo right now and post it ASAp
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Well, I can't find the magazine. Perhaps tomorrow. You'll have to take my word for it for now. Very mysterioso.
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SPIES IN THE NIGHT as recorded by The Manhattan Transfer
Music by Jay Graydon, Alan Paul, & David Foster
Lyrics by Alan Paul
Shadows looking through an open window
Footsteps following wherever you go
Undercover eyes
Search to find the key to alibis
Living in a hideaway
You can't hide
You can never get away
They'll find you
Be aware of strangers in the dark
Jealous lovers quarrel in suspicion
Passions justifying their positions
Vengeance on the rise
Now they're throwing daggers from their eyes
Maybe they can find a way
Past their pride
Live and let it die away
If not they'll
Lie a lot and fight a lot
But you beware
'Cause in the air they're
Spies in the night
They go wherever you are
You're in their sight
Watch out for spies in the cold, cold, restless night
Heartache like a burning, turning fever
Someone tells his girl that he will leave her
Ooo her ravaged eyes
Kiss goodbye the years of hidden lies
Photos taken on display he denies
But the cheating heart will pay
She says you lie a lot
And fight a lot
but it's in vain
You can't explain 'cause
Spies in the night
They go wherever you are
You're in their sight
Watch out for spies in the night
Sorry, now you will pay
(spoken:)
Cheryl: Hello
Alan: The winds are calm in the channel.
Cheryl: The boat will sail at midnight.
Alan: Listen very carefully to me. I don't have much time and I'm being watched.
Cheryl: You're being watched - By who?
Alan: I have your pictures.
Cheryl: Oh. Thank you. You don't know how much this means to me.
Alan: Do you have my money?
Cheryl: Yes. Of course I do.
Alan: Meet me in an hour. Position A. Code 3XZ. I'll...
Cheryl: Hello! Hello!! Hello!!!
(sung:)
Spies in the night
They go wherever you are
You're in their sight
Watch out for spies in the night
(repeat and fade)
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A Question for Ask BK (and anyone else) Day:
BK, you said in today's notes that the DVD of "The Set Up" that you watched last night has "sporadic commentary" by Wise and Scorsese. The DVD to "What's Up, Doc?" has "scene specific" commentary that adds up to only about 10 minutes of Mrs. Brolin speaking. How do you feel about these minimal amounts of commentary on DVDs? Do you think they're cheating the fans (and those who want to know more about the movie) and should make more of an effort to fill the disc with knowledgeable information, or should the fans be grateful that these commentators say anything at all and just accept what they get? I personally felt a little (only a little) cheated by how little Babs talked about on the "What's Up, Doc?" DVD.
How do the rest of you feel? Should the audio commentary track be filled to the brim with information, or (unless it doesn't matter to you at all) does it really matter to you?
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And now, good night, all.
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Man, I really do need to get Mecca for Moderns in my CD collection! Thanks for that, George.
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Any time, Jed. If you don't know about it, I got the lyrics from their fan website at www.tmtfanclub.com. Go to the Discography link, click on an album title and there you are!
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Morning all!
I'm so sorry to hear about your disapointment, Jose! I hope something even better comes along to take it's place.
Thanks, for the good words about the root canal. I'm glad it's over. My mouth is still a little sore but otherwise it's much, much, much better.
It's hard to believe it's already been a month since I sent to NYC.
I went to bed super early (as soon as I posted last night) and slept pretty well. Had a funny dream about three o'clock that Mom came in, put her hand on my shoulder and said, "Niecea (my nick name), I’m terribly sorry but you have to get up now.” I jumped out of bed and went to Mom’s room but she was sound asleep. The house was peaceful and quiet.
I hate it when that happens! I walked around the house to assure myself that everything was alright then went back to bed.
But now I have to run to catch the bus! Which beats having to DRIVE into work like I have for the past two days.
Talk to ya'll when I get home tonight. I think I might be able to stay awake a little longer.
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My take on commentary tracks:
If they're not either informative or entertaining (ideally, they should be both), there's no reason for them.
Jerry Goldsmith does excellent commentary/score tracks on the Planet of the Apes and Hollow Man discs. Lalo Schifrin does a similar one on the deeveedee of Rush Hour. Both of these guys are old pros, and the new film score composers should listen to these tracks with a great deal of attention. But even for musically-inept folks like myself, there's a wealth of valuable information.
There are two very entertaining commentaries on the Myra Breckinridge disc, and they're entertaining for completely different reasons. Raquel Welch's track reveals her as a smart, sassy and very savvy person...which I certainly had no inkling of before I heard it. Micheal Sarne's commentary track reveals that the director is borderline paranoid and probably delusional.
William Shatner and his daughter Liz do a commentary track for Star Trek V: The Final Frontier that reveals nothing, except for long stretches of silence, and Liz prodding her father to remember things from time to time. That commentary shouldn't have been included on the disc.
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DR Jose,
I just caught up on the notes and, naturally, agree that the way things were handled is inexcusable. Do you think the higherups in the organization are aware of what went on? Now that you've slept on it, you may want to write a short note to someone higher up in the organization. Of course, you know your customers best. But this kind of unseemly behavior is unacceptable.
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To all the DR's of HHW...A message from Tomovoz...the computer phone line has become defective and needs to be replaced. He hopes to be online to post within the next 24 hrs.
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I'm a BIG fan of film noir, but one famous film noir I've managed to miss all these years is OUT OF THE PAST. I'll rectify that situation one of these days.
I'm looking forward to those film noir classics on DVD. I've always loved THE SET-UP. When I was in college and took Personal and Community Health to get my teacher's license, we had to pick a sport and do a term paper on some aspect of it I chose boxing and did my paper on boxing films. I concentrated on the fight sequences themselves and had loads of praise for the fight scene in THE SET-UP. I'm sure Scorsese studied this and other 1940s fight films for his inspiration for those galvanizing ring sequences in RAGING BULL, but the ones in CHAMPION seemed more directly like RAGING BULL to me than the one in THE SET-UP.
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Generally, I'd rather listen to an insightful critic on a commentary track than someone connected with the film unless that person has a great felicity with words. Listening to Mel Brooks on a commentary track is as close to death as a person can come without actually dying. The commentary tracks on FRANKENSTEIN or THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES or THE WIZARD OF OZ laserdisc are much more interesting because the commentator has done research and is not just talking "off the cuff."
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Last night DR Panni wrote:
Tonight is the season premiere of Nip/Tuck. An excellent show. Vanessa Redgrave will be guesting as the randy mother of series regular (and daughter) Joely Richardson. The whole first season is available on DVD.
Question. We don't get the FX network here. But CTV (a Canadian station) showed Nip/Tuck last year. And tomorrow night they are showing the first episode of Season Two (where Christian hires a nanny).
Is this the same episode that you guys saw last night?
Or are we behind?
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DR Jose, I hope today is better for you.
DR Danise, hope your teeth feel better.
Re: German pancakes
Is there something I've eaten that is similar to them? DR Panni's chant for them has made me curious.
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BK question of the day (for BK or anyone who likes Godzilla)...
What are your 3 favorite Godzilla films?
Do you have any favorite actors/actresses from Godzilla films?
Are there any other Japanese sci-fi that you enjoy?
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Avenue Q puppets of Regis & Kelly:
(this was very funny)
http://www.playbill.com/news/article/86937.html
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Speaking of GODZILLA, what was the consensus of opinion on that remake with Matthew Broderick of several years ago? A mess, right? But the DVD has terrific 5.1 sound.
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Periodically there has been some talk on here about film music underscoring and of late I've been paying particular attention to it and I'm not sure I really understand the difference between the good and the bad. So, my question of the day is...what films do you think are prime examples of good film underscoring and prime examples of the worst.
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Good Morning!
Sleep did it's magic. I'm feeling much better and more level-headed this morning - of course, I'm still a little drowsy, so maybe it's just because I'm not fully awake yet. ;)
Thanks again for all of your kind words last night and this morning. They really did their own special magic too. :)
Now I just need to figure out what to do with my day. Frankly, I'm already feeling "over" the whole mess from last night, and I may just let a sleeping dog lie. However, something tells me I'll be getting some sort of follow up lately anyway - I think, I hope(?). The first sentence of the two-sentence e-mail I got last was: "I'll be using Person A and Person B." The second sentence was "What's your phone number again?" -Of course, my phone number has appeared at the bottom of all the e-mails I've sent to him in my signature line, and it was also in all my phone messages to his office. Ah, well...
Truth be told, I'd really like to read him the riot act right now. Just get all of "it" out of my system. We shall see.
In other news...
Question for Ask BK Day:
Is there any current talk show, daytime or evening, that you'd like to appear as a guest? I guess what I'm really asking is: Is there any current talk show host that you really like?
And if there is no current talkshow host you like, which former talkshow host did you like, and still like?
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POO!
Staying at home today, I am. Sickie-poo! Have been up more than I slept since about 3 a.m.
Ask BK: Do you have any idea what happened at "that" site? You're absolutely correct -- it's the ugliest thing I've seen in a long time. Interesting how most of the stock that keeps them afloat was produced by.....
As for noir, the only noir I have here is pinot noir.
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RLP - good health vibes crossing the border.
And yes, about "that" site: it's not only ugly, but virtually unreadable. That kind of a combination takes work.
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Hello all!
I've nothing really to add... or ask BK.
I'm just trying to make sure I post once a day otherwise I fall off the wagon and feel guilty :)
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oh... and "THAT" site really is awfully ugly.
Who uses frames anymore? blech blech vomit
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DR MattH, I saw the Matthew Broderick Godzilla. I didn't think it was bad, it just wasn't a Godzilla movie to me. It didn't look like Godzilla and the monsters background was totally different then the Godzilla I know.
So, I found it to be a reasonably enjoyable film, but I consider it just a monster that happens to have the same name as Godzilla.
And it did co-star that guy from Melrose Place who I have always liked as an actor.
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Well, I guess I am just out of the loop because I simply have not the foggiest clue as to what website you all have been thinking is the ugliest in the world.
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A Question for Ask BK (and anyone else) Day:
BK, you said in today's notes that the DVD of "The Set Up" that you watched last night has "sporadic commentary" by Wise and Scorsese. The DVD to "What's Up, Doc?" has "scene specific" commentary that adds up to only about 10 minutes of Mrs. Brolin speaking. How do you feel about these minimal amounts of commentary on DVDs? Do you think they're cheating the fans (and those who want to know more about the movie) and should make more of an effort to fill the disc with knowledgeable information, or should the fans be grateful that these commentators say anything at all and just accept what they get? I personally felt a little (only a little) cheated by how little Babs talked about on the "What's Up, Doc?" DVD.
I don't see the point of ten minutes of commentary. When I said sporadic in terms of The Set Up, it's one of those commentaries that has huge gaps of silence in it. Mr. Wise and Mr. Scorsese were recorded separately. I don't find many of these commentaries that interesting, but the sporadic ones are infuriating, especially if one has just watched the film straight through without it.
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Jennifer - Yes, that's the show.
RLP - Good health vibes to you.
Jose - Have to do a few errands, but I have a thought or two later about responding or not to rude behanviour.
Re the photo I mentioned late last night. It's not in the house, which means it's in a box in the garage, which means I won't find it until I move, which means - "Never Mind..." (said in the Emily Litella mode.)
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BK question of the day (for BK or anyone who likes Godzilla)...
What are your 3 favorite Godzilla films?
Do you have any favorite actors/actresses from Godzilla films?
Are there any other Japanese sci-fi that you enjoy?
I like most Japanese sci-fi - Mothra, Rodan, The H Man, all that stuff. Favorite Godzillas: Gojira, Godzilla vs. Mothra (the original and the nineties remake), and Godzilla vs. Biollante.
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Re: Nip/Tuck
Jennifer - Yes, that's the show.
Yeah!
I thought it was. But I'm surprised. We don't get MTV either and we are just starting Season Two of Newlyweds (while you just started Season Three).
Since we don't get HBO we were a a couple of months behind on Sex & The City. We are seasons behind on both the Sopranos and Six Feet Under (which in my mind makes it too confusing to follow).
I suppose those last two don't count, since we get them up-to-date on The Movie Network (which most people don't get though).
Anyway I like Nip/Tuck. I agree, I don't watch the surgeries. But I started watching it because the star (the one plays Christian) used to be on Charmed, and I LOVED him there!
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Periodically there has been some talk on here about film music underscoring and of late I've been paying particular attention to it and I'm not sure I really understand the difference between the good and the bad. So, my question of the day is...what films do you think are prime examples of good film underscoring and prime examples of the worst.
As everyone knows, I don't think much of modren film scoring. Classic good film underscoring: The Best Years of Our Lives, Vertigo, Psycho, A Patch of Blue, Planet of the Apes, The Adventures of Robin Hood, Once Upon a Time in America, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Miracle Worker, and I'll let others chime in with their choices.
Bad: I've often thought that Carmine Coppola's score to The Black Stallion stopped that film from being a total masterpiece. It's not that the music is awful, but it doesn't go with the images smoothly - it never takes the viewer where the images do. It just sits there like so much fish. Oh, if Jerry Goldsmith or Elmer had done that film.
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POO!
Ask BK: Do you have any idea what happened at "that" site? You're absolutely correct -- it's the ugliest thing I've seen in a long time. Interesting how most of the stock that keeps them afloat was produced by.....
I don't have a clew. Or, as Jerry Herman once wrote: "I don't want to know."
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Question for Ask BK Day:
Is there any current talk show, daytime or evening, that you'd like to appear as a guest? I guess what I'm really asking is: Is there any current talk show host that you really like?
And if there is no current talkshow host you like, which former talkshow host did you like, and still like?
I'd like to have been a guest on "The Rosie O'Donnell Show" and now, I'd like to be on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show." I love these two! Actually, I'd probably just want to be in the audience for their shows. I don't think I'm an interesting enough person to be a guest. I can be a boring date. ::) ;)
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I saw at Amazon today a DVD coming out next Tuesday called "Mary Martin/Ethel Merman." Directed by Jerome Robbins.
I'm assuming this is the Ford 40th Anniversary special they did in 1953 coming out on DVD. The site didn't give any more information on it. Does anyone know anything about this release?
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Talk show: I'm afraid I don't watch them. Of the ones I've seen, I'd do David Letterman.
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I used to really enjoy the Rosie O'Donnell show. I especially liked how she featured Broadway shows. They were much more elaborately done than the ones this week on Regis & Kelly for example.
I can't really say what my favorite talk show is now (is this a question for anybody). I do really enjoy The View. But I prefer their hot topics, to the segments with guests.
I think the best shows to be guests on would probably be Leno or Letterman.
Btw, Simple Life 2 on tonight. Anybody else watching this, it is VERY funny. Last week Paris and Nicole were asked to babysit this little girl. And they decided to play hide-and-go-seek on the campground right when the kid's parents came back. I mean obviously it wouldn't have been funny if anything had happened to her (and nothing could have since there were tons of camerapeople). But it was SO funny when they had to explain why the girl was missing.
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Periodically there has been some talk on here about film music underscoring and of late I've been paying particular attention to it and I'm not sure I really understand the difference between the good and the bad. So, my question of the day is...what films do you think are prime examples of good film underscoring and prime examples of the worst.
I can't think of any specific examples at the mo', but I hate it when movies are overscored. Music in every single scene, each footstep by a character emphasized by a downbeat, every comic moment accompanied by "yuk-yuk" music, every tear drop shed with Enya-like keening. Feh!
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Here's a question. Peter F's theatremania column today mentioned newer cast recordings vs original ones (and which people prefer).
So which do you prefer in general?
I'll bet most people here will say OBCs. But I actually prefer to have the newer recordings. I can relate more to the artists and productions I know. And I find by getting all the new recordings (of revivals), it really familiarizes me with shows I might not have known before.
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Depends on the show actually. I prefer the new GUYS AND DOLLS with Nathan Lane to the one with Robert Alda (though I have to have both naturally). But I prefer the original NINE to the revival. It really varies from disc to disc.
It's nice to have a choice, but for me, there are times when I call a halt to collecting. I didn't buy the Bernadette Peters GYPSY, and I won't buy the Alfred Molina FIDDLER.
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Might I just ask where in tarnation IS everyone? Especially Mahler.
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Welcome twelve GUESTS. I guess we now know where in tarnation everyone is. C'mon, you know you have questions you're dying to ask, even the two of you who will disappear the minute I post this. C'mon now, ask away, you GUESTS.
Now, as I was finishing the writing of the paragraph above, it just suddenly disappeared and I had to write it again. Why? WHY? There is no way my finger could have slipped and hit "backspace" OR "delete".
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Welcome twelve GUESTS. I guess we now know where in tarnation everyone is. C'mon, you know you have questions you're dying to ask, even the two of you who will disappear the minute I post this. C'mon now, ask away, you GUESTS.
Now, as I was finishing the writing of the paragraph above, it just suddenly disappeared and I had to write it again. Why? WHY? There is no way my finger could have slipped and hit "backspace" OR "delete".
Hitting the "Esc." (Escape) button (either on purpose or by accident) resets the message box. I've done that far too many times to mention...so I won't. :-\
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Here's a question. Peter F's theatremania column today mentioned newer cast recordings vs original ones (and which people prefer).
So which do you prefer in general?
On the average, I probably prefer the original cast recordings, such as Little Shop of Horrors, especially when I know the original cast recording so well. But for a show like Wonderful Town, I don't have the Rosalind Russell original on CD and I've never heard my album of it. I have at least three other recordings in addition to the Donna Murphy, so I know and love the score, but don't have a preference.
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I WANNA KNOW WHAT THE UGLY SITE IS!!!
Okay, that's out of my system :)
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The escape button is so far from where my fingers were that it couldn't have been that.
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I don't know if Robbins directed the Martin/Merman for the Ford special. It's only 20 minutes long (I have it on LP), so if that's what it is I hope they have a lot of extras. It may be a tape of the one-night benefit they did on Broadway around the time of DOLLY. This isn't even listed on the list of upcoming Broadway CDs/DVD/Books that I check.
IMPORTANT: If you were one of the DRs who pledged $10 towards the entrance fee submitting KRITZER TIME to the Pulitzer Prize committee, now is the time. I am taking care of the application now and need the fee money. Send me a message and I'll let you know where to send the money. Since more than five people expressed an interest, I will only take money from the first five since the total fee is $50.
For ask BK and Ask DR Day:
Last week Tonya Pinkins was on Michael Reidel's show and when he asked her about all the perks she is getting she claimed that actors could get more money and perks while negotiating ther contracts if they wanted but that they were too afraid to ask, feeling that there are so many out-of-work actors they would be replaced if they asked for more than the producers offered. How true do you think this is?
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Ohhhh...THAT site. Yes, it is rather ugly, I must say.
Thanks to those who were so kind as to clue in the clueless me :)
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MattH, OUT OF THE PAST is the quintessential Film Noir...don't do it "some day", do it "now." Mitchum was never better, Douglas was doing terrific work even then, Jane Greer is like the sexiest thing in the world. And the guy...who's name I can't remember... playing Douglas' henchman is wonderful...
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I'm back! I missed all of you while I was away. Though it took me forever, I've read each and every post and column that went up since I left last Thursday. Sorry to have missed the 50,000 celebration on Thursday and the big breakfast orgy yesterday.
Vibes to Dear Reader Jose and any other Dear Reader who could make good use of them.
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Welcome back, Jay!
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Say, hey! Jay!
Now...everyone....in our best Jerry Lewis "Hey, Lady!" voices, let's say:
MAHLER!
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Thank you, Dear Reader Panni.
I was away for an extended cultural weekend in San Francisco. Over the course of four days, I saw Beach Blanket Babylon (in its 30th anniversary year), heard the San Francisco Symphony in an astounding performance of Mahler's 2nd Symphony, and attended the San Francisco Opera for Janacek's The Cunning Little Vixen (with Dawn Upshaw) and Busoni's Doktor Faust (with Rodney Gilfry.)
I went to SFMOMA for a somewhat interesting exhibit on Pop Art and the Legion of Honor for an enormous and outstanding exhibit (pulled together by the Victoria and Albert Museum) on Art Deco. I also took a walking tour that surveyed the Victorian homes that surround Alamo Square.
Needless to say, I dined quite well, too, at some of the City's fine culinary emporia.
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Avenue Q puppets of Regis & Kelly:
(this was very funny)
http://www.playbill.com/news/article/86937.html
Good old Regis. He used to do his schtick in Los Angeles, before he went national. My mother, bless her, loved the time someone had brought in a beautifully decorated sheet cake for his show. Regis, of course, enthusiastically lifted up the back end of the cake so that the camera could get a better shot. The cake obliged by sliding off of the table onto the floor.
The guy is a television natural.
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Thanks, Dear Reader RLP. You see, I was typing about Mr. Mahler just as you were exhorting us to invoke his name.
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...The second sentence was "What's your phone number again?" -Of course, my phone number has appeared at the bottom of all the e-mails I've sent to him in my signature line, and it was also in all my phone messages to his office. Ah, well...
Just chalk this one up to the way too many people read their messages and e-mails. Thinking takes practice, and so few people have the time for that these days.
*le sigh*
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From an article about major playwrights who are working in films...
An interesting quote from Tony Kushner who is writing a film for Paramount about Eugene O'Neill: "I'm aware that every word and sentence that I write will be seen more as a suggestion, because film is a director's medium. So they're going to take what you give them and, if they like it, they'll do it. If not, they'll ask you to rewrite it. if you can't rewrite it, or they don't think you can, they'll get someone else to."
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For ask BK and Ask DR Day:
Last week Tonya Pinkins was on Michael Reidel's show and when he asked her about all the perks she is getting she claimed that actors could get more money and perks while negotiating ther contracts if they wanted but that they were too afraid to ask, feeling that there are so many out-of-work actors they would be replaced if they asked for more than the producers offered. How true do you think this is?
I think there's some truth in it. But I also think these 'perks' get out of hand and producers at some point are going to revolt, because it costs them thousands upon thousands of dollars each week dealing with limos and this and that and the other. It's one thing if it's a STAR, someone who really has the ability to bring people into the theater - it's another thing when it's someone without much of a name being offered outrageous perks - I just don't get it, frankly.
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And from my hero, Tom Stoppard: "Laughter is the sound of comprehension."
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Re: Japanese Monster Movies. I have to admit, I haven't watched any since I became an adult. Probably my loss. But any time I need a bad dubbing fix, I just tune in Iron Chef.
Re: Talk Shows. For a soft interview, Ellen DeGeneris is the best around right now. She's sweet, she's funny, she lets the guest be himself, or herself, and it's a friendly show. For a hard interview, Greta van Susteren (on FoxNews) is at the top. She gets her facts about a subject, and then gets the information she's after from the interviewee. None of that pompous self-aggrandizing, the way that other talk-show personality behaves on his FoxNews show.
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Speaking of Greta von Susteren...
ASK BK DAY!
Which people do you think have had the very worst plastic surgery work done?
Which people do you think have had very good work done?
And who really really really (that's three reallys) could stand to have SOMETHING done? Please!
(My choices: Cher for worst, Greta for best, and Marvin Hamlish for needy. He's got to get rid of those jowls; he's looking like a basset hound these days.)
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Page Three Dance (because it was nominated for the AFI Best 110 Songs but didn't make the final cut)
[move=left,scroll,6,transparent,100%][size=20]THE TIME WARP![/size][/move]
(And, because we should always do it again!)
[move=left,scroll,6,transparent,100%][size=20]THE TIME WARP![/size][/move]
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Which people do you think have had the very worst plastic surgery work done?
It has to be Michael Jackson, bar none.
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Re: Cast Recordings. This depends a lot on when the OCR was recorded. Before CDs became the medium of choice, producers were constrained by how much space there was on an LP. There was a lot of editing that had to be done, and often much was left on the floor, if it was recorded at all.
So, I happen to like having both the original cast for preserving the original production, and the revival for usually including most, if not all, of the score.
I agree that, on occasion, the revival can improve on the performances of the original. Nathan Lane is magnificent on the revival Guys and Dolls. I think Gregg Edelman outshines George Gaynes in Wonderful Town. But usually, the revival recordings are best at preservation. (The revival of The King and I with Donna Murphy is an outstanding example of this, IMO, giving us more of the underscoring, which hadn't been heard before on disc.)
Shows that were recorded originally within the last fifteen years or so don't really gain that much from the re-recording treatment. Into the Woods only gained in giving us the new lyrics used in the revival, not in it's production or performances. I'll probably buy the Assassins revival disc, when it is released, but I can't imagine playing it more often than the original.
Soundtracks of film musicals, based on the original scores, are a whole different beastie, as film is a whole different medium. But that's worth dealing with at some other time.
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In L.A., I was told, Jason Alexander and Martin Short "ad-libbed" lines about Kobe Bryant when they were supposed to be performing The Producers.
At the Ahmanson, Thoroughly Modern Millie doesn't even have an elevator, let alone Sutton Foster, Gavin Creel, Marc Kudisch or Harriet Harris.
At lunch with BK we spoke of how the play that he's working on is its L.A. premiere, and also BK spoke of the less-than-ideal L.A. premiere of Chess.
Which leads me to the Ask BK (and other Angelinos) question: Do you feel that L.A. misses out on some great theatre and why?
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Good Afternoon!
Well, after moping around the apartment this morning - well, I was just moping around on my couch in front of the TV - I finally got off my butt-cheeks, and got some work done. I paid my bills - and found that I had more money left than I thought I would after all the subtractions were done. :D I ran an errand - well, I went out and paid one of my bills in person. I then went through all the various tote bags and shopping bags of "stuff" that I've had sitting in my living room since I got back from DC. I now have just one tote bag of "stuff". I shredded a bunch of papers, and I set aside a paper bag of recyclable papers. Oh, and I vacuumed the kitchen - the workman, Martin, came back and put some more "mud" onto the ceiling as he promised he would. He'll be back tomorrow to sand and paint, and then I can have my kitchen back! Yippee! *Next up is to go through the cupboards and the various paper bags sitting on the floor and sort and purge any expired and/or no longer usable items. -I already know I have three(!?!?!) bags of whole wheat flour - and since whole wheat flour has a relatively short shelf life, I'm pretty sure they'll be heading straight to the garbage. Then let the baking begin!!
Whew!
All in all, my own ugly business from last night has come and gone. Whatever happens next in that process will happen when it happens, and I'll just be ready to brush them off accordingly. Thanks again to everyone here on HHW for all the happy thoughts and good vibes!
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As for Talk Shows-
I, too, would love to be on Ellen Degeneres's show. And I'd even settle for being the special audience member from the Riff-Raff Room!
I would have loved to be on Rosie O'Donnell too! As either a guest or an audience member - so much "take home loot"!
I would like to be in the audience of Oprah's "Favorite Things" show. Now that's true take home loot!
And since I grew up on him, I would have liked to be on Johnny Carson. I always appreciated the fact that he had classical musicians on regularly, as well as Broadway and jazz performers. -And I still remember when Liberace performed all of "Rhapsody in Blue" with no commercial interruptions! -Of course, that was when the show was running 90 minutes. And I also remember when Randy Graff performed "I Dreamed A Dream" with a synthed string section... But when my friend, Elinore O'Connell, performed it on the show (she was in the L.A. cast), they brought in a small orchestra for her. -And Elinore's whole story of that night is kind of hilarious - all she really remembers is when she went out and when she left - all the interim was a blur. However, she was very honored to be called over to the couch. She was just supposed to sing the song and that was to be it, but Mr. Carson motioned for her to come sit down and he interviewed her for a few minutes. Quite a special night.
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Don't forget, DR Jose, that there's a new ep of Good Eats showing at 10 tonight, this one all about oysters and the "Shell Game," (http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/show_ea/episode/0,1976,FOOD_9956_33134,00.html) followed by a rerun of the show about lobster, "Claws."
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Speaking of Greta von Susteren...
ASK BK DAY!
Which people do you think have had the very worst plastic surgery work done?
Which people do you think have had very good work done?
And who really really really (that's three reallys) could stand to have SOMETHING done? Please!
(My choices: Cher for worst, Greta for best, and Marvin Hamlish for needy. He's got to get rid of those jowls; he's looking like a basset hound these days.)
Bad: Carol Burnett, Mary Tyler Moore, Cher, Melanie Griffith, and most recently, Meg Ryan. There are more, of course, lots more.
Good: Steve Martin, Robin Williams - but good is relative and they both look embalmed to me.
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Oh, and I dropped by my little DVD store to see if they had the rest of the Warners noirs (they didn't). I didn't seen anything new at all, but as I was about to leave I just glanced at their bargain bins (all DVDs ten bucks) and found three DVDs that haven't quite hit stores yet - Goodbye, Columbus, The Tin Star (GREAT movie western with Henry Fonda and Tony Perkins, directed by Anthony Mann, and best of all, joy of joys, the new SE of The Manchurian Candidate.
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And now I'm off, once again, to Mr. Grant Geissman's house to do some interesting things.
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As for OCRs...
Well, it truly is a generational thing. I was not around for the birth of the "classic musicals". My only connection to them is through the OCRs of them and/or through the various revivals, road shows and local productions. There is something truly special to getting something, an OCR, at the time of it's original release. For me, this would include shows such as SWEENEY TODD, SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE, RENT, even THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. It's just that sense of contemporariness - is that even a word?
From an aesthetic viewpoint - which can't help be subjective too - the sound of old OCRs vs. new OCRs is just a matter of technology. Unfortunately, there are both old and new ones that don't represent the show at it's best. Bad sound. Bad takes. Bad edits.
On a related note: I like the new WONDERFUL TOWN recording, but I do agree it does lack some vim and verve and vigor and pep. However, I find that most of Nonesuch's "cast recordings" are like that. Even the ones in their acclaimed Gershwin series. There just seems to be a sense of reverence about them, and even though that reverence may insure that every note is played and heard, it doesn't necessarily make for the most enjoyable listening experience. BOUNCE suffers from the same syndrome, imho. -But BOUNCE does have other issues... ah, well...
OK - Well, I'm starting to babble.. Time for me to get off by butt-cheeks again and do something...
Laters.
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Don't forget, DR Jose, that there's a new ep of Good Eats showing at 10 tonight, this one all about oysters and the "Shell Game," (http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/show_ea/episode/0,1976,FOOD_9956_33134,00.html) followed by a rerun of the show about lobster, "Claws."
Hmm... I seem to recall viewing an episode of "Good Eats" concerning oysters. And wasn't there already an episode entitled "Shell Game"? Or I could just be thinking of the one about clams... I'll find out tonight.
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OH, and while I was checking out Peter Filichia's column, I also checked out some of the pics from the recent Broadway Bares... YUMMY! :D
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Oh, oh, oh... Silly me... Of course the four "contemporary" shows I listed have yet to have a major Broadway revival... So, instead I proffer: LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS, GYPSY (the revivals with Tyne Daly, Bernadette Peters - and even Bette Midler, albeit on the small screen), INTO THE WOODS, and the upcoming ASSASSINS.
OK, now I'm going...
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A couple who are great friends of mine are ending their relationship after a little more than 15 years, and one of them is coming to sleep here for the next couple of days, so if I'm on a little less than usual, well, I'm here doing damage control.
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Which leads me to the Ask BK (and other Angelinos) question: Do you feel that L.A. misses out on some great theatre and why?
Yeah, I know I said I was going, but if I may chime in here...
The simple answer to this question is: Hollywood.
Broadway actors, writers and directors headed West to make their big fortune. And they still do. I don't think any aspiring young actor - or old actor - heads to LA to make it in the theatre. That's a not a bad thing, that's not a good thing. It's just the way it is.
I'd continue to expound, but I really do want to get out of the apartment for a while - especially since we have some storms coming in later.
Ciao for niao.
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Periodically there has been some talk on here about film music underscoring and of late I've been paying particular attention to it and I'm not sure I really understand the difference between the good and the bad. So, my question of the day is...what films do you think are prime examples of good film underscoring and prime examples of the worst.
Well, a lot of this is based on personal taste...but here's my take on it.
Good scoring...watch Planet of the Apes, and listen carefully to Jerry Goldsmith's score. While it doesn't intrude on the viewer's experience, his atonal score accentuates the idea that there's something wrong here.
Or, take a gander and a listen to Psycho. The action in the score is actually much more frenetic that what you're seeing on the screen (which is also true of Elmer Bernstein's score for The Magnificent Seven, now that I think about it), which gives the on-screen action more impact.
Bad scoring...two examples here. Maurice Jarre's score for Witness is totally inappropriate to the subject matter of the film, which deals with the Amish. Instead of hymns, or Coplandesque Americana, you're offered cheesy high-tech synthesizers to represent the low-tech Amish community. Boneheaded choice. (On the Jarre by Jarre CD, there is an orchestral suite adapted from this score...it's infinitely better. Too bad it ain't in the movie.) A similar rotten choice is the roller-disco score to the movie Ladyhawke, which is a sword-and-sorcery flick.
The second example is Marc Shaiman's score for Down With Love, which just won't shut the hell up. Virtually every scene is wallpapered with this "ain't-I-clever?" lounge muzak...it's distracting and annoying. (Shaiman is actually a terrific composer...I can only assume he was told to layer it on really, really thick.)
Also, even though a movie score works well in the film, it's not necessarily a good listen on CD. Again, I'm using Psycho here. In the movie, it's marvellously effective...on CD, though, the score in its' entirity is repetitive and a bit boring. A brief suite is the best way to listen to this score.
Finally, as if this darned post weren't long enough, I'm also not particularly fond of modern film scoring. Some of the masters are still hard at work (check out Elmer Bernstein's brilliant retro-score to Far From Heaven, for example), but in general, there's just too much wall-to-wall scoring. Patton was a three-hour movie, but Jerry Goldsmith's score clocks in at under a half-hour. There's close to two hours of scoring James Horner wrote for Titanic; that's not accentuation, that's overkill. (Again, a brief suite from Titanic is far more enjoyable on CD.)
End of post. Honest.
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JOSE - **IMPORTANT LIFE LESSON**
Here's what I didn't have time to relate earlier. Many years ago, while still living in Canda, I wrote a screenplay, an adaptation of a famous book, for a major Canadian studio. The producer of the project, however, suddenly left the studio and the script languished. Fast forward a few years and we were living in LA. One morning, at 6:30 AM, I was awakened by a call from some dizzy assistant at said studio. Ms. Dizzy did not have the faintest idea of who I was and told me like a robot that this was a pro forma call to let me know that the book was being adapted by someone else and as I had been the first writer on the project they had to inform me. Bye, bye.
Well, I was MAD - and when I get mad you don't want to cross me. I wasn't mad because someone else was doing the script. Years had passed and even though I knew I had done a good job on a difficult adaptation, I frankly didn't care. I was busy with other things and it was their loss, so screw it. What made me MAD was the cavalier, offhanded, RUDE way in which I was treated.
So I sat down and wrote a scathing Fax to the head of the studio, saying what I just said, but more so. Among other things, I said that I would have expected in a situation of this type that (a) the person who called me might actually be aware of the time difference between LA and Toronto and not wake me at dawn and (b) that the person who called me at a civilized hour was the head of the studio and not a flunky.
The next morning, at a civilized hour, I received a phone call of abject apology. From the head of the studio. Along with a dozen long stemmed roses.
Moral: Do not let them treat you like sh-t or they will believe that they are entitled to do so. AND THEY ARE NOT.
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Panni:
You go, girl!
(I always wanted to say that!)
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Which leads me to the Ask BK (and other Angelinos) question: Do you feel that L.A. misses out on some great theatre and why?
In the thirty odd years I spent in the LA area, not only did I get to see some great theatre, I got to see a lot of it before it dared on to B'Way.
"Children of a Lesser God", "The Shadow Box, "Angels In America (Both Parts)" all premiered in LA as have most of the recent plays of Neil Simon. August Wilson plays do LA before NY
LA provided the U.S. Premiere's of "Evita", "Sunset Blvd",
and "Ragtime".
Shows like "Metamorhposis" played LA before debuting in NYC.
The re-envisioned "Chicago" (with Juliet Prouse and Bebe Newirth) originated in SoCal before it continued it's journey to New York. Likewise, the new Revival of "Flower Drum Song".
The "Company -The Original Cast in Concert", hosted by Angelea Lansbury and Narrated by George Hearn with on-stage appearances by Sondheim, Prince and Furth was, as the T-Shirt proudly claims, a "Never Before - Never Again" theatrical event.
We also get to originate some not-so-great theatre - such as Hal Prince's "A Dolls Life" with a stuning performance by our own Penny Orloff.
The National Tour versions of B'Way shows that open in LA usually have a rejuvinated "Original Cast" and are arguably a fresher theatrical experince than seeing the "less than perfect" replacemnt casts running in the third year on BWay.
We also get treated to regional revials of great shows with top-ranked stars "Noise Off " with Kathryn Grayson, "I Do, I Do" and "South Pacific" with Jane Powell and Howard Keel, A Man for All Seasons" with Charleton Heston, etc.
der Brucer
der Brucer
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Here in Minneapolis, it's just started to rain, and the sky is looking really threatening. And the sirens have just started to go off...looks like a rough one!
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Noel, re: your question about LA Theatre. I don't think LA theatre is the greatest. I think it's greatly weakened by a waiver system that promotes a lot of self-indulgent, ego-based vanity productions, often badly written and badly performed. One such production recently, HAMLET, starred a Chechslovakian entrepeneur, who spent 300,000 dollars plastering his face all over town with billboards advertising a production that I hear was incompetent...This according to my long-time friend, Kathleen Foley, who reviews for the LA TIMES and reviewed this production with hilarious asperity. Apparently half of the cast including Hamlet did not know their lines. The director had already left the production in frustration and futility. Besides his thick accent, Hamlet was also a victim of the Schwarzenegger floating "s" so speeches came out "What is a mans?" It was apparently, and I trust Foley's astute judgement implicitly, the nadir of waiver theatre....which is saying a lot out here. Foley is responsible for one of my favourite theatre jibes: "You could perform this play in the most barren, frozen tundra of Siberia and it would still stink on ice."
I've seen good productions at the Taper, the Ahmanson (which used to do original productions, but more and more seems to be becoming a booking house), and the Pasadena Playhouse. And we go see the roadshow companies occasionally, though not as much as we used to.
There is here, as I suspect there is in New York, too heavy a concentration on musicals and not enough on straight shows. And it is a town notorious for actors leaving productions at the last minute because they've gotten film work....Bad, bad, bad!
For more statisfying and interesting theatre, I'll head South to Costa Mesa and South Coast Rep or even further South to San Diego and the Old Globe. These are my two favourite theatres in Southern California.
Much of LA regional theatre has become a victim of what most regional theatre has become victim to. An unoriginal slate of the latest and the hottest plays.
Plays get hot and suddenly a handful of the same damned plays are being done in all the regional theatres at the same time. I liked ART, but I saw it in London and at the Huntington Hartford (or James Dolittle or whatever the Hell they're calling it these days). I don't need to see a third production of it at some regional theatre. But you'll see Theatres being inundated with productions of same plays like this. It becomes overkill, though I suppose it is a great boon to playwrights. Still and all, I'd occasionally like to see a theatre season with a few titles I recognize and a mix of old stuff with the new, unheard-of.
The Hartford or the Dolittle, whichever, also may be the best house in LA and right now it has been dormnant since Art, I think, which was several years ago.
The Geffen is also a good house and does some interesting theatre.
Most of my theatre these days I catch in a two week stint every year in London. It's exciting and varied and while it has its shows that pander to a tourist audience, you can still see resonant and smart and literate shows there. A mix of old and new. But it is not afraid to call on the great repertoire of plays we have at our disposal.
An example: One year I was over there for nine days on WGA business. I went to six shows. All shows were straight classic or venerable plays by well-known authors, all dead, all were impeccably mounted and performed, playing to capacity business, and flourishing admidst all the West End Musicals and big Hollywood movies playing in Leicester Square.
The plays were: 1) MONEY by Edward Bulwer-Lytton, a rarely done, but terribly funny play in an exquisite production at the National Theatre starring Simon Russel Beale, Roger Allam, Victoria Hamilton, Patricia Hodge, and a host of other fine British illuminaries; 2) SUMMERFOLK by Gorky, also at the National, with many of the same actors I've already mentioned. I liked this production so much that when The Lovely Wife and I were back in London the following year and it was still running, I took her to see it; 3) TIS PITY SHE'S A WHORE by John Ford at The Young Vic, starring Jude Law and a young actress Eve Best, who won all the acting awards as best newcomer that year for this play and went on to a luminous career; 4) TWILIGHT SONG by Noel Coward, in the West End, starring Vanessa & Corin Redgrave; 5) JUNO & THE PAYCOCK by Sean O'Casey at the Donmar Warehouse, starring Colm Meany; 6) A PENNY FOR A SONG by John Whiting (author of THE DEVILS OF LOUDON), in the West End, starring Julian Glover & Jeremy Clyde.
As one who is a bit of a theatrical archeologist, it was great to see all these shows in first-rate productions with first-rate performers, many of which -- despite their virtues -- are rarely performed. I knew that in a year of theatre-going in LA (and probably in New York as well), I was unlikely to see any of these plays in any sort of production.
The last time I was there, a whole season of late Elizabethan-early Jacobean plays was being successfully performed by the RSC in The West End. We caught three of them of the five plays. I think they will be repeating this with a season of plays from the Spanish Golden Age (the 1500's...Lope DeVega and all that). Getting a chance to see stuff like this thrills me.
My lament with American Theatre is that it does not perserve the legacy and heritage of the English-Speaking Theatre (or the world theatre for that matter) the way the British theatre does.
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OH, and while I was checking out Peter Filichia's column, I also checked out some of the pics from the recent Broadway Bares... YUMMY! :D
DR Jose, make sure you check out the pics at Broadway.com, too. Double Yum!
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Very strange...I am logged in, and yet I don't see my name listed amongst the names of current users at the top of the page. I feel ethereal.
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I see you (and not dead people), Dan TM.
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My Ask BK Question Day question: Can you please relate (again) the Elsa Lancaster story.
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One of the best times I ever had in my theater going experience was in LA. I saw the next to last performance of The Last Session at theater whose name I have forgotten and that was on Sunset Blvd and is no longer there. An amazing show with Bob Stillman and Amy Coleman. Wonderful score by Steve Schalchin and a book by his partner Jim Brochu.
Steve Schalchin has his own blog and makes for interesting reading.
http://www.bonusround.com/diary.html (http://www.bonusround.com/diary.html)
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Glad you are feeling better Jose!
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Till BK returns, may I butt in with another Elsa Lanchester story?
Charles Laughton was entertaining a young gentleman on the living room couch, and Elsa arrived home unexpectedly. When she later spoke of the incident, Elsa said that she forgave Charles. But, she added, she got rid of the couch.
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Jose I know where you come from and if you believe in Karma......
Two stories...............
1) I was hired to played Jimmy in The Gingerbread Women. I had done the play once before. The director insisted that I should play him feyer. I told him I didn't want to do a stereotypical gay actor. Well after a week the stage manager called me, (not the director) and told me that I was let go (fired) I found out that the director took over the role and he had intended to play the part all around. Well I swallowed my pride and went to see it anyways. The reviews were merciless and the director/actor caught the brunt of the reviews especially for his uber gay portrayl of Jimmy.
2) This time as a director I tried to get the play Women Behind Bars off the ground. I was given a name of a man who was interested in producing theater. Well I should have known better. I think he had destroyed his brain cells with too much dope. Well at the fifth rehersal or so the "producer" gave me a mockup of the advert for the play. My name was no longer as director but as "production consultant". It seemed that he just changed his mind. So I quit. I felt getting my revenge by informing Samuel French that this show was going on and the rights had not been obtained yet. But then I heard the producer fired my replacement because she would rollerskate to the theater!!! Well three more directors came and went the last being the producers hairdresser. The producer decided to director, but by then actresses had started to quit and the theater finally pulled the plug.
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Time to Dance
(http://ortanca.cs.itu.edu.tr/~etaner/dance/polka.gif)
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And one for Mozart
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A question for BK (or any Dear Reader who cares to answer):
Who's life would you like to see done as a bio-pic?
(I'm voting for Paul Robeson, myself.)
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A question for BK (or any Dear Reader who cares to answer):
Who's life would you like to see done as a bio-pic?
(I'm voting for Paul Robeson, myself.)
I saw Avery Brooks do a one-man (plus a piano player) show telling and singing the life story of Paul Robeson, called (appropriately) Robeson in 1995. It was incredible. I don't know if he would be "right" for the movie, but I certainly would hope that he'd be in the running.
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I've seen some marvelous theater in LA, and some terrible theater in LA. I was happy to see both Mack and Mabel and The Baker's Wife, and The Happy Time, all of which originated on the West Coast, all of which were flawed, but all of which were interesting. I saw many wonderful shows at the old theater in the round houses we had - including one of the all-time great theatrical experiences of my life, The Most Happy Fella with Robert Weede and Art Lund. Also saw Merman in Call Me Madam. Not so much luck in waiver theater, which is a lot of junk surrounding a gem or two.
Elsa: When I was doing Forget-Me-Not Lane at the Taper, our musical accompanist was Ray Henderson, who was VERY close with Mr. Laughton, and remained Elsa's best friend until her death. Ray and I became really good friends and he introduced me to Elsa, who I adored and vice versa. I became a regular at the Lanchester Sunday brunches at her house in Malibu, located next door to Christopher Isherwood and Don Bachardy, who were always about. Isherwood gave me a book of his inscribed to me, and Elsa was always a hoot. After she saw Nudie Musical, she phoned me and said, "Bruce, I never knew you were so nasty - you'll have to come over more."
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Evening all!
RPL, Hope you get better sooner than soon!
Ok, what site are we talking about? I wanna know too!
Jose, some how, some way they will be paid back. I’m sending bad vibes their way just to make sure. We all know the power of the GOOD vibes on this board so if I were them, I would be quaking in my boots. They will rue the day they messed with a HHW alumni. ;D :o ;D
And I agree with Robin: Panni, You go, girl!
In the “I have some good news/I’m proud to say” department, guess who was asked to design the American Heart Walk T-Shirt for Hillsborough County again this year? I felt so flattered and honored. And scared. I’m not that creative. Last year was a fluke. How creative is it in the middle of a war to take a heart, stick a yellow ribbon on it and put it where the stars go in the flag?
I was wondering if anyone else picked up on this. I was listening to the Wicked sound track the other day and the part in of the song “Popular” where the verse goes, “Celebrated heads of state, especially GREAT COMMUNICATORS. Did they have brains or knowledge? Don’t make me laugh–they were popular. Please..."
Wasn’t President Reagan called “The Great Communicator”? I wonder if that was written with him in mind or just happened to come off sounding that way. Hummm....
I have a discount code to share. DeepDiscountDVD.com has a 20% discount.
Enter the coupon code DEEPDISCOUNT in the promotion code
box when you check out to receive your discount.
Coupon valid from 6/18/04-6/25/04
I’m sorry it’s so late but I didn’t think about it last night. I hope some of you can use it. :)
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Add your song for a new CD. If you were to chose two or three songs for the new CD "The Dickens You Sing: Songs from Charles Dickens. What would you chose? Oliver! (Oliver Twist),
Scrooge, A Christmas Carol, Comin' Uptown, Mr. Magoo's Christmas Carol The Stingest Man In Town, A Muppet's Christmas Carol (A Christmas Carol), Great Expectations, The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nicklby, Pickwick (The Pickwick Papers), Mr Quilp and The Old Curiosity Shop (The Old Curiosity Shop) , Drood aka The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Copperfield (David Copperfield),
There have been so many different musical versions of A Christmas Carol it can have its own CD!!!
So you see you have a lot to choose from.
Maybe someone will see this list and produce a cd from it
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Elsa: When I was doing Forget-Me-Not Lane at the Taper, our musical accompanist was Ray Henderson, who was VERY close with Mr. Laughton, and remained Elsa's best friend until her death. Ray and I became really good friends and he introduced me to Elsa, who I adored and vice versa. I became a regular at the Lanchester Sunday brunches at her house in Malibu, located next door to Christopher Isherwood and Don Bachardy, who were always about. Isherwood gave me a book of his inscribed to me, and Elsa was always a hoot. After she saw Nudie Musical, she phoned me and said, "Bruce, I never knew you were so nasty - you'll have to come over more."
There is a memoir right there. "Brunches With Elsa and Friends"
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How about, "Let's do the Twist"? Or am I misunderstanding the quesiton?
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My Dickens numbers would include
Who Will Buy? (Oliver)
If I Ruled the World (Pickwick)
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Good Evening!
Yes, DR MBarnum, I am feeling better. :)
I went up to school for about an hour, and practiced. Well, more like piddled. I did, however, finish going through the remaining scales I had yet to cover, and I spent about 30 minutes on some filligree passages. I just wasn't into it tonight. I just knew it was not going to be a productive practice session. But after five days in a row, I guess I was due for a little break. I also had dinner - food - on the brain, so...
I decided to give this new Italian carry-out place a try. The guy who runs it has two very good Italian restaurants in town, and this little spot is his latest venture. There's a small selection of Italian groceries - pasta, beans, olive oil, cookies, etc - in addition to the hot food offerings. It's a small menu concentrating on pasta and pizzas.
For my "trial supper", I chose:
The House Salad - When I opened the styrofoam container - remember, this was a carryout place - the salad didn't look too appetizing. However, after a few bites, I realized that the mix contained some wild greens and herbs. Very tasty - they just didn't look like a "typical" salad. Oh, and the dressing was a simple mixture of very good and green(!) olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
-Oh, and the "croutons" were two nice wedges of bread studded with sesame and fennel seeds which had been buttered along with red chile flakes and minced garlic. Some of the best "garlic bread" I've ever had.
Suppli al Telefono - These are the classic mozzarella-stuff rice croquettes. Well, I guess I should say, "These were..." And they were good too. -The "telefono" comes from the look of the melted cheese after you bite into them and stretch the rest of the croquette from your mouth. The strands of cheese look like telephone wires. Well, like telephone wires in Italy, I guess. ;)
Spaghetti Carbonara - A very classic preparation of a classic dish. Pasta, eggs, cream, pancetta and freshly ground black pepper. Very simple and very satisfying. This also turned out to be the bargain of the meal too. Besides there being lots of bits of pancetta, I'm guessing it was a full pound of (al dente) pasta. I actually have leftovers! And all for $7.00! -I also liked that it was served/came in a large soup container - those cardboard type ones. It made it very easy to eat, and I didn't have to re-wrap up the leftovers.
I wanted the vanilla gelato with figs for dessert, but they were out of figs, so I passed. Next time. I guess that just means I'll have to head out later for dessert. ;)
All in all, a very good meal. They also serve breakfast, and I may give that a try sometime soon. Their "breakfast pizza" intrigues me: pancetta, mortadella or sausage with onion and a cracked egg. That's enough to make me get out of bed "early" someday in the near future.
OH! And going along with the names of his other restaurants: Mamma Zu's, and Edo's Squid - this place also had a slightly cryptic name - although it wasn't cryptic to me (and probably not to other HHW-ers):
8 1/2
(in a very Italianate decorative font, of course)
End of review.
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Well, I can't find the magazine. Perhaps tomorrow. You'll have to take my word for it for now. Very mysterioso.
First you said:
The picture is centuries old - yes I'm a vampire. I'm going to find the photo right now and post it ASAp
And now you ask us to take your word for something!
Trust a Vampire...I don't think so!
der Brucer (glad to see Panni out of the closet)
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DR Panni - Thank you for your story. Trust me, I do have some sort of rebuttal in mind. However, since I am able to do so, I want to deliver mine in person. I will not let them off with just an e-mail!
Oh, and I should also point out that since I had already done some work on this project - including the latest batch of orchestrations... which are only in my possession - the production staff is due for some "catch up" work once they start up. And I have a sneaking suspicion that I may be getting an e-mail(!) or phone call asking to use my orchestrations, so... HA! So, the karma is already in the works. ;)
Don't get me wrong, I really hope that the project doesn't fail for most of the other people involved. And it probably won't. But the road to the final project just got a little bit longer. ;)
OK - I think I need some ice cream now!
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BK, getting to see Weed and Lund in MOST HAPP FELLA must have been a treat. I envy you.
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By the way, my three favorite Japanese monster movies:
Gojira. The un-American version, of course!
Rodan. The dubbed version features the voice of George Takei, which also gives this one a Star Trek connection, so important for a geek like me.
King Kong vs. Godzilla. This should be released as a special edition deeveedee, with both the American (King Kong wins!) and the Japanese (Godzilla wins!) endings.
Momoko Kochi...what a lovely woman, and what a great actress. She was the real star of Gojira, as far as I'm concerned.
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JOSE - **IMPORTANT LIFE LESSON**
Here's what I didn't have time to relate earlier. Many years ago, while still living in Canda, I wrote a screenplay, an adaptation of a famous book, for a major Canadian studio. The producer of the project, however, suddenly left the studio and the script languished. Fast forward a few years and we were living in LA. One morning, at 6:30 AM, I was awakened by a call from some dizzy assistant at said studio. Ms. Dizzy did not have the faintest idea of who I was and told me like a robot that this was a pro forma call to let me know that the book was being adapted by someone else and as I had been the first writer on the project they had to inform me. Bye, bye.
Well, I was MAD - and when I get mad you don't want to cross me. I wasn't mad because someone else was doing the script. Years had passed and even though I knew I had done a good job on a difficult adaptation, I frankly didn't care. I was busy with other things and it was their loss, so screw it. What made me MAD was the cavalier, offhanded, RUDE way in which I was treated.
So I sat down and wrote a scathing Fax to the head of the studio, saying what I just said, but more so. Among other things, I said that I would have expected in a situation of this type that (a) the person who called me might actually be aware of the time difference between LA and Toronto and not wake me at dawn and (b) that the person who called me at a civilized hour was the head of the studio and not a flunky.
The next morning, at a civilized hour, I received a phone call of abject apology. From the head of the studio. Along with a dozen long stemmed roses.
Moral: Do not let them treat you like sh-t or they will believe that they are entitled to do so. AND THEY ARE NOT.
Gee, what is the name of the head of the studio? I have always wanted to get a dozen long stemmed roses!
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I forgot to list mine:
GODZILLA (1955) (I actually like the Raymond Burr scenes)
GODZILLA VS THE THING (1964)
MONSTER ZERO (1967)
Other favorite Japanes sci-fi:
THE H-MAN
WAR OF THE GARGANTUAS
FRANKESTEIN CONQUERS THE WORLD
THE LAST WAR
KING KONG ESCAPES
Favorite performers:
Akira Takarada
Kumi Mizuno
Momoko Kochi
Hiroshi Koizumi (Ok, I have a bit of a crush on him even thought he usually plays the stern scientist rather then the leading man!)
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Add your song for a new CD. If you were to chose two or three songs for the new CD "The Dickens You Sing: Songs from Charles Dickens. What would you chose?
I humbly submit The Christmas Bride based on The Battle of Life as the best of the American adaptations of Dickens. Is this album for real? I'd love to see the whole Alone in the Night sequence included, with all those interweaving coutermelodies, Lost for a female duet and perhaps Keep Her Well. Two other songs from the score, Turn Around and Fluttering, are performed at auditions all the time.
But I'll readily agree those Brits do Dickens very well. I've been humming several different songs from Pickwick recently ("It'll be a helluva election") and think Oliver! to be the greatest of all musicals created outside of America.
Of the BK-recorded Dickens songs, my favorite is A Place Called Home as done by Liz Callaway.
(http://www.wordzworthproductions.com/db5/00497/wordzworthproductions.com/_uimages/CBride.jpg)
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War of the Gargantuas!
I haven't seen that one in at least twenty years, but I remember seeing on WKBD's "Chiller" and "The Ghoul" and thinking it was really cool.
I need to see this one again, soon. I wonder if it's on deeveedee...!
Oh, and I thought Nick Adams simply dreamy.
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About Mothra, though...
I always thought the idea of a gigantic moth was incredibly silly. I kept visualizing Japanese citizens running for their homes, yelling in badly-dubbed English, "It's Mothra! Quick, hide all your sweaters! Someone find a gigantic mothball!!!"
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LOL Robin! If you give any of those Japanese films much thought they will seem silly! You just have to not think! Ha!
PS: I love Mothra!
I have heard that War of the Gargantuas is coming to DVD soon, but I do not know when. It is such a fun moviel...and actually that one has Russ Tamblyn...Nick Adams was in Monster Zero and Frankenstein Conquers the World...all fun movies!
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And speaking of Japanese monster films I am so totally thrilled right now! I am having lunch on Friday with Mr. Rhodes (King Kong Escapes) Reason! Brother of Rex!
He lives up near Portland. I have never met him but I have met his wife Jeri...so now we have finally arranged to have a luncheon date.
Rhodes has been one of my top 3 favorite actors since forever!
He also starred in the TV series Bus Stop and the films VOODOO ISLAND, YELLOWSTONE KELLY, A FEVER IN THE BLOOD and guest starred in just about every TV series made in the late 50s and 60s!
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Speaking of GODZILLA, what was the consensus of opinion on that remake with Matthew Broderick of several years ago? A mess, right? But the DVD has terrific 5.1 sound.
A mess, right!
One of the reasons I watch a Godzilla movie is to see the Big G stomp the dickens out of a big city. I wanna see people fleeing the city in terror...but they abandoned NYC way too quickly, so any of the buildings 'Zilla knocked over were empty!
I'm sorry, but the real Godzilla wasn't just a lame urban-renewal project. Every time he stomped on Tokyo, there were millions of fictional casualties.
The Americanized Godzilla was just a big wussburger.
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Pogue: I've told this story before, but I can never tell it enough. I went to a matinee of Happy Fella (in San Berdoo, I think, at a nice theater in the round there - this would have been 1966 or so). Well, it was one of the greatest things I'd ever seen - Mr. Weede had me in tears, and when they did My Heart is So Full of You the entire audience gave such an ovation that the show simply halted for about three minutes. Mr. Lund was fantastic, too - remember this was only ten years after Broadway. I was quite bold in those days, and went backstage and met Mr. Weede after the show. He was so sweet and warm and kind and he arranged for me to see the show again that night, the closing performance. He told me to come back after. I did, and he invited me to the little cast party. What a day and night that was, one I'll never forget. When I first recounted this story in my old One from Column A column, I heard from Mr. Weede's son, Richard, who was very touched by my memories.
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Now, where in tarnation IS everyone?
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Mr. Rhodes Reason (brother of Rex)!
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The second example is Marc Shaiman's score for Down With Love, which just won't shut the hell up. Virtually every scene is wallpapered with this "ain't-I-clever?" lounge muzak...it's distracting and annoying. (Shaiman is actually a terrific composer...I can only assume he was told to layer it on really, really thick.)
During the "Evening With" benefit that Shaiman did for his hometown theater, he talked about having to score too many romantic comedies back to back, leading to a near-total block, an inability to write ANY music. "Thank God for Celexa," he offered. I applauded, knowing where he was coming from.
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Now, where in tarnation IS everyone?
I just got back from work. And I've got to go to work ultra-early tomorrow morning, and again in the evening (my first split shift). So I don't want to hear any complaints about my wussburgering. It's all for a good cause: earning money to pay for der Brucer's dinners.
8)
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I lived in L.A. for a few years in the early 80s and discovered some good theatre, but many of the "Equity Waiver" shows I went to seemed to be featuring actors who were auditioning for tv and movie casting directors.
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Movie scores:
DR Robin and I will have to agree, hopefully, to disagree about Jarre's "Witness." It's one of the Jarre scores I feel actually complements the film rather than destroys it. "Enemy Mine" is another, but I think his best was for the Ellen Burstyn film "Resurrection."
What, you may ask, about "Lawrence...", "Dr. Zhivago" and other Lean epics? Well...let's just say there were other hands involved and I don't consider them purely "Jarre" scores.
I don't think Jerry Goldsmith has written a better score than "Basic Instinct." There are others I like parts of better, but "Basic Instinct" is, IMO, a classic in its genre -- a truly great movie score!
John Williams has written many wonderful scores, and he has detractors who piss and moan about this one or that one, including me who can't stand "Hook." BUT, I think his most glorious "modern" score was for "The Accidental Tourist" -- a monothematic beauty that shimmers, shines and totally meshes with that fine film. An extraordinary film score.
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(Hey, Lady!)
Mahler!
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Spent the evening "being a friend," and now I'm exhausted, but I had to check in and see what everyone else had been up to today. Hopefully, tomorrow will be sunnier for all concerned at my house and at HHW, too. Good night.
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OK, Dear Readers...with the exception of my toiletries, I am packed and ready to go on my week and half long excursion across this great land of ours. Well, across the great midwestern part of this land of ours. I have a car service picking me up at 9:30 and my flight to Chicago leaves LaGuardia at noon. Send your good "leave on time and have a safe flight" vibes all that you can.
Today at work I had my first training session for my new position as assistant to the Executive Assistant. That training mainly consisted of me typing up a letter from dictation. The regular E.A. had already typed it up, so it didn't matter if I accidently erased it or anything. The CEO just wanted to make sure I got used to the low murmuring growl of his voice on tape and he also wanted to know that I could type, spell and effectively make a letter. Well, I was scared to death. The CEO intimidates the hell out of me and I was really nervous because his mumbling is infamous and I was worried that I wouldn't be able to understand him, hence preventing me from getting through the letter. Not to mention he names various people (lawyers, producers, promoters) that I've never heard of, so I have to try to spell their names correctly and guess at some of their genders...
Long story short (too late, right?), I ended up typing up the letter with no problems. And I did it in thirty-five minutes. It took his regular assistant over an hour to do (it was four pages long, after all...), but me? Thirty-five minutes, baby. Everyone was shocked and pleasantly pleased and the only typos in the letter were a couple of the lawyer's names, which he double checks before they're sent out anyway. The nicest part of all of this is, once I actually start doing projects for him, I'll get an extra $10/hr. Woohoo!
Anyway, I should probably take my shower and head to bed...
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DR Pogue: Here is your exciting trivia question for the day: can you name the connection between Out of the Past and another film we discussed recently, Toast of New York?
No fair's cheating by looking at IMDb. ;)
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All the best of vibes to you Jason. Best of wishes to DRs Kerry and MusicGuy. I am sure it will be a wonderful experience.
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[move=left,scroll,6,transparent,100%]GOOD TRAVEL VIBES, JASON![/move]
[move=left,scroll,6,transparent,100%]GOOD TRAVEL VIBES, JASON![/move]
[move=left,scroll,6,transparent,100%]GOOD TRAVEL VIBES, JASON![/move]
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This is the amazing recital hall that we're performing in this weekend...I can't wait.
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And this is the building in which that recital hall is housed. This building is part of a private residence just outside of Chicago. Apparently the homeowners are not only music lovers, but they're also apparently quite wealthy...
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QUITE wealthy? Rah-thur!
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A late question for all DRs:
Does anyone out there have a good pasta salad recipe they'd like to share?
Thanks, in advance!
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BK, Mr. Weede has me in tears every time I listen to the recording. I really like that show.
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Break legs, Jason! And we want pictures!!
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JMK, don't have clue about the connection between OUT OF THE PAST & TOAST OF NEW YORK.
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AND ONE FOR GUSTAV !!!!
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Before I forget, DR Charles, Los Angeles does have a resident theater company that does classic plays, and just classic plays. It's called A Noise Within, and it's located in Glendale. They do classic plays in repetory, and every review I've come across has been quite good.
(End of message to DR CP, the rest of this is for everyone)
As for the complaint that theater in LA is disrupted by the film business, this does happen, unfortunately. It is also over-publicized. Most actors are not so likely to abandon a project they've committed time to, such as rehearsing a play, unless the time constraints make combining projects impossible. Ditching a play for a film role makes its way into the actor's reputation, regarding their dedication, and the majority of actors are not so willing to risk their reputation for a walk-on. It's something to which casting directors pay attention, and casting directors spend a great deal of their time attending plays.
Don't let anyone kid you into thinking acting in Los Angeles isn't as much a job as acting in NYC.
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My alarm clock is set, and I must get myself to bed. Tomorrow is another day, but a long one. Hopefully, I'll be able to get der Brucer to pipe down. Maybe. If I'm lucky.
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Mr. Rhodes Reason (brother of Rex)!
MBarnum, wasn't Mr. Reason the bus driver that was always flirting with the woman who ran the "Bus Stop"?
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Hahahaha....The Bad Penny is BACK!!! 8)
(http://www.gototem.com/Webgifs/ClipArt/Business1/Penny.GIF)
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Hahahaha....The Bad Penny is BACK!!! 8)
Welcome back, Jrand!
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Welcome back, Jr&!
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Did someone spend a penny? "Step up and play each machine seemed to say".
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Unfortunately, Woody, it's not run-of-the-mill actors that ditch theatre for film so much as stars. But anyone can give their two weeks notice...and do.
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Thanks PANNI & TCB!
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Sorry folks, but this wussburger is off to bed.
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Pasta salad: My famous tuna pasta salad - easy and simple, but quite tasty and addictive - ask anyone who's been to one of my Christmas soirees.
Boil one pound of macaroni noodles. Drain and put in a large serving bowl (I use a metal salad thing). Add one can of tuna (in water - with the water drained out), mincing it as you add. Add very finely minced red onion and then mix it. Put in the fridge and let it get cold (a couple of hours does the trick). Take out and add three or four large tablespoons of Best Foods mayo and mix thoroughly. Put back in the fridge for at least another two hours. Add salt and pepper to taste (I use lots of salt) and serve.
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Not one single post for over an hour, despite there being several people perusing the board. WUSSBURGERS! Skammen.