Well, dear readers, I am sitting here like so much fish, full from my snack, listening to some newer recordings of Howard Hanson music – I think these are on Naxos. They’re not bad and, of course, the music is amazing. You know how I’m a stickler for these lame pages on Facebook constantly posting photos and misidentifying the dates, so I go in and correct. Sometimes LA, sometimes NY. This time it was a photo from 1952, and the year was correct, so I merely went in and posted the month, which was end of April, even though several of the movies has opened in early March. And you know how I like to talk about what was playing, even though I didn’t live in NY and I was only four at the time and while I do have a memory of seeing Singin’ in the Rain in 1952 at one of our neighborhood theaters, I obviously wasn’t going to the theater nor was I a man about town. But in NY in March and April you could, on Broadway see some fun shows, things like the final eight weeks of Ethel Merman in Call Me Madam, a newcomer named Audrey Hepburn starring in Gigi, the original cast of Guys and Dolls, Julie Harris in I Am a Camera, playing Miss Sally Bowles, Helen Hayes and Brandon De Wilde in Mrs. McThing, a revival of Pal Joey, the original company of Paint Your Wagon, Henry Fonda in Point of No Return, Martha Wright and George Britton in the long-running South Pacific, the comedy smash, Stalag 17, Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn in The Fourposter, Gertrude Lawrence in The King and I, Barbara Bel Geddes, Donald Cook, and Barry Nelson in Otto Preminger’s production of The Moon is Blue (which he’d soon turn into a movie), Phil Silvers in Top Banana, Bert Lahr and Dolores Gray in Two on the Aisle, and Rex Harrison and Lilli Palmer in Venus Observed. Oh, and a revival of Clifford Odets’ Golden Boy, directed by Clifford Odets who, according to critics, did his play no favors, but then who told him he was a director. But I was agog when I saw the cast list, agog I tell you – get a load of this lineup in big and small roles: John Garfield, Lee J. Cobb, Jack Klugman (misspelled in the review as Klubman), Joseph Wiseman (playing a mobster – the critic lambasted his performance and said it seemed like Wiseman was playing Dracula rather than a mobster – Arthur O’Connell, Jack Warden, Gerald S. O’Laughlin – many of these actors were just starting their careers, but what a cast. Time machine anyone? As to Singin’ in the Rain, if I had to guess WHERE I saw it, I’d guess the Lido Theater, which was the closest to our house. It played there for a whopping four weeks in June and July, summertime. I’d guess we went on a Friday or Saturday night. But I vividly remember the main title and them in the raincoats singing the title song. Funny what sticks with you when you’re four and a half.
Otherwise, yesterday was just another day of whatever it is I have – some parts of the day being better than others. I did get nine hours of sleep, got up, answered e-mails quickly, and then moseyed on over to the mail place and got everything shipped that recently sold – thankfully I had packaging for all of it, and between the four items I’d calculated the postage perfectly, so I didn’t lose a cent on the postage. I came right home afterwards and ordered a turkey sandwich – wasn’t that good today and they actually charged extra for lettuce and a piece of cheese, so no more from that deli ever. After that, I dozed off for an hour or so, then caught up on a few things. Then I settled down to watch the new 4K restoration of Hammer’s The Curse of Frankenstein, which I know I saw at the Picfair Theater on August 10, 1957. It scared the HELL out of me, that unmasking scene. I jumped right out of my seat. Anyway, I had Amazon credit, so I’d pre-ordered the clearly worded 4K UHD AND Blu-ray. Wouldn’t that lead anyone to believe they were getting both the 4K and a Blu-ray? Well, you are, but the Blu-ray is only special features, not the feature itself. Turns out there’s a separate Blu-ray release that has three Blu-rays, so I’m returning what I got and have already ordered this other thing, which will be here Saturday. Annoying.
Then I ordered matzo ball soup and kishka from Uncle Bernie’s deli rather than the one from the night before. Wilst waiting for it, I began watching the first episode of Maigret, the early 1960s British version with Rupert Davies – Simenon was very fond of his portrayal and so far, so am I. I dozed off about fifteen minutes in and woke up at ten after eight. Say what? So, DoorDash once again didn’t ring the doorbell when they delivered – merely texted, which I obviously didn’t hear – the doorbell is impossible not to hear. I got the food and brought it in and looked at the text – it had been delivered an HOUR earlier. Unbelievable. Thankfully, the soup was somehow still warm enough, so I ate that, and it was really great, like Jerry’s used to be. The kishka and gravy were both cold so I nuked them in the microwave. And the kishka was solid, unlike that night before, which was terrible. Solid kishka, baby, that’s what I’M talkin’ about. Now when I need a kishka fix, I know where to go. Uncle Bernie’s has never been a favorite except they do okay breakfasts and have nice turkey sandwiches and very good chicken salad. Well, I may have to reassess. I’ve had the pastrami twice and really didn’t like it, but I may just give it another whirl.
At that point, I was just not in the mood to watch anything else, so after I ate the soup and kishka (very filling), I just did stuff on the computer and began listening to music and here we are.
Today, I’ll be up when I’m up, I’ll do whatever needs doing, I’ll pray I feel a bit better, I’ll eat something fun and fancy free, I may have a Zoom with my set designer, and I may see what’s what at the mail place and I have to return this Curse of Frankenstein. After that, I’ll just keep resting, taking pills, and then I can watch, listen, and relax.
Tomorrow and the weekend is all relaxing and hoping I feel better, Monday I’m seeing my neurologist so he can see what’s what – that’s at noon and shouldn’t last too long. Then next week is finalizing casting and getting ready to begin rehearsals of the play I’m directing. Yikes!
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, be up when I’m up, do whatever needs doing, pray I feel a bit better, eat, maybe Zoom, maybe go to the mail place, then watch, listen, and relax. Today’s topic of discussion: What is the very first movie you remember seeing in a movie theater? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, where I shall perhaps dream of solid kishka.