Look for the Silver Lining

It certainly wasn't hard too look for silver linings on such a gorgeous day. I rode to the gym under a bright blue sky, with fresh breezes against my back. Did a good 25-minute stationary bike session, then worked on the leg weight machines. It was relatively quiet in there this time, so there was no waiting.

Went to the Acme after the gym to pick up my paycheck and do this week's grocery shopping. It wasn't that big of an order. Most of what I needed was restocking fresh fruit, including grapefruit, tangelos (cheaper than big fat oranges and less for me to eat), bananas, and pears. I had to ask one of the people shelving meat where the ground chicken was, but it was worth it. I got one fresh from the box! Also picked up yogurt, cereal (Mom's Best Shredded Wheat on sale), buttermilk, peanut butter, and shredded Parmesan cheese.

There was a small box waiting for me in the mailbox in the front of the house when I got in. Lauren gave me hand-picked Warner Archive titles for my birthday, as she did last year. This year, I went with movies from two very different divas, the early talkie musical Sally, featuring Broadway dancer Marilyn Miller, and the swashbuckler At Sword's Point, with Maureen O'Hara as a female Musketeer.

Ran the first half of Sally as I put everything away and had leftovers for lunch. Sally is the movie version of Miller's blockbuster 1920 Broadway vehicle. The title lass is an orphan who dreams of becoming a great dancer, but hasn't had much luck catching a producer's eye. She works at one restaurant after another, but her mind is so much on dancing, she can't concentrate on her work. Her luck changes when she meets the handsome young son of a millionaire who falls for her (Alexander Gray) and Connie, a former European nobleman who has now fallen on hard times (Joe E. Brown). Connie's the one who hears about a Russian dancer failing to show up at the millionaire's big party and suggests Sally takes over the role. Could this be the break Sally's been looking for...and could it lead to something even bigger?

Sweet and a lot of fun. Miller's not the best actress and far from the best singer, but something happens when she dances. Even more than 80 years later, you can understand why she was such a success in the original Sally. Gray (whom she apparently requested for the role) is fine as her prince charming; Brown's really miscast as Connie (you'd never believe he was any kind of royalty).

The two best numbers in the film are very different but delightful grandparents to many modern musical numbers. Brown and Miller go to town in a hilarious duet of "Look for the Silver Lining." They're having a blast, knocking each other around and jumping like mad, and the fun shows onscreen.  

Sally was originally filmed in the same Two-Strip Technicolor that was used for parts of Hollywood Revue of 1929. Alas, most of the color footage has not survived, and the movie is today only seen in black and white...except for the "Wild Rose" chorus number at the mansion. The sudden jump to color almost gives the film a Wizard of Oz-like fantasy feel that's very appropriate (and for some reason, the soundtrack improves, too). The color's gorgeous, too. Suddenly, the overdone makeup everyone's been wearing looks...still overdone, but not as noticeable. Miller looks every inch the "wild rose" the lyrics talk about; when the chorus boys cheer for her, you can't help but agree.

Work was pretty much the same as yesterday. Once again, we were very short on help, especially early on. One of the older women called out again. They couldn't even get any extra help; managers had to take lines during rush hour. Thankfully, things cleared out after that, and it was so quiet by the time I left, I was able to shut down easily with no relief.

My schedule next week is pretty much the same as last week with earlier hours (except that 3-9 Tuesday again). Wednesday is my only day off.