The New Old Library
Started off today with three fairy-tale-themed Little Einsteins episodes. "The Glass Slipper Ball" was my favorite of the lot. June wants to go to a ball in a castle in Vienna to try on the glass slipper there...but she has to get there before they close at twelve! June teaches Rocket - and the audience - how to move their bodies in time to the music of the day, Johann Strauss' "The Blue Danube Waltz." A school of Andy Warhol fish help them find their way in the Danube River. Rocket's even nice enough to make June a gown for the ball.
Headed for the Oaklyn Library around 11:30. The book on serials I took out a few weeks ago was due, and I wanted to get this week's library volunteering session in. The Storybook Hour was on when I was there. I organized the DVDs while they finished, then turned my attention to the children's books.
To my surprise, the kids' section had been almost completely reorganized. The board books now had their own shelves. Ancient non-fiction books were cleared away; the fiction picture books now spanned both sides of the fiction shelves. Biography, which formerly took up a whole back wall, now only had three shelves. The shelves that held the biographies are empty. An area that was once overflowing, dark, musty, and cluttered looked much better. I organized some books that were in the wrong places, moved one non-fiction picture book to the right shelf, and shifted some series books to the right places.
I had lots to do at home, so I went straight back to my apartment after I was done. It was so nice, I made Lemon-Blueberry Sugar Cookie Squares, an adaptation of Stir-n-Drop Sugar Cookies, one of my favorite recipes from The Betty Crocker Cooky Book. It was gorgeous all day, sunny, warm, and breezy, with absolutely no humidity. I had leftovers for lunch.
Dubbed Three Little Words while the cookies were baking. While this is another MGM Technicolor "biography" in the vein of Words and Music and 'Til the Clouds Roll By, it's refreshingly modest compared to those overstuffed spectacles. Fred Astaire and Red Skelton play 20s and 30s songwriters/screenwriters Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby, authors of "Hooray for Captain Spaulding," "Who's Sorry Now?," and "I Wanna Be Loved By You," among others. Vera Ellen and Arlene Dahl are the ladies in their lives. That's about it. The only "guest stars" are Gloria DeHaven (singing "Who's Sorry Now?" and playing her own mother, Mrs. Carter DeHaven) and Debbie Reynolds (singing "I Wanna Be Loved By You" with the voice of the song's originator Helen Kane).
This may be my favorite of the MGM "biographies." Fred Astaire would later call it one of his favorites of his movies. I know so little about the real-life Kalmar and Ruby, I have no idea what's fact or what's fiction here. I do know that I appreciate how this is really just a small, sweet story about two guys, two ladies, and their manager (Keenan Wynn) who want to make music and dance. Astaire and Vera-Ellen have two lovely duets to the pretty ballads "Nevertheless" and "Thinking of You." Red Skelton gets to have fun on the baseball diamond. Dahl is underused, though she does get the closest thing to a big chorus number, "I Love You So Much."
Work was pretty much the same as yesterday - busy during rush hour, dead otherwise. Who wants to go shopping on a gorgeous summer day with no storms threatening? I was in and out fairly quickly.
Dubbed A Day at the Races when I got back in. The Marx Brothers are laying waste to society again, this time at the race tracks. Margaret Dumont is a wealthy but paranoid woman at a failing sanitarium who insists on having Dr. Hugo Hackenbush (Groucho) examine her. The problem is, Hackenbush is a veterinarian. After they find out, Harpo, Groucho, and the sanitarium owner's boyfriend (Allan Jones) rope him into help the horse Jones bought. Will "All God's Chillun Have Rhythm" on the racetrack and in the operating room?
One of the best later-day Marx Brothers films. It's probably best-known for Groucho and Chico's "Tootsie-Frootsie Ice Cream" routine at the race track, but my favorite part is the uproarious finale. Jones and the Brothers do everything they can - and then some - to stall the race while they look for the horse!
(And a warning - there are black stereotypes in the "All God's Chillum Got Rhythm" number that PC-sensitive folks in the audience may find offensive.)
Life is a lazy river - no matter where you are. Movies, musicals, mysteries, pop culture, and lots of other great stuff.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Tuesday, August 09, 2011
Outrunning the Storms
Started this morning with the second disc of the Schoolhouse Rock set while I had breakfast. In addition to two featurettes, the most notable items on disc two were a series of cartoons written in the mid-80s to help introduce kids to those fancy new desktop computers, Scooter Computer and Mr. Chips. Alas, unlike the direct-to-DVD "I'm Gonna Send Your Vote to College" on the first disc, these three shorts aren't much fun to watch, nor have they dated well. (And one's missing. Apparently, the short that introduced the series is genuinely lost.)
Headed to the Haddon Township Library after Schoolhouse Rock ended. I needed to return the DVDs from last week and do this week's volunteering. There weren't that many DVDs when I got in. I organized the kids' DVDs...and when I came back, there was a big stack of discs waiting for me! They kept adding more all day. I also shelved picture books. I took out two more cartoon DVDs, some Little Einsteins and a new Max and Ruby, Bunny Tales.
It was sunny when I headed to the library this morning, but dark clouds loomed in the horizon. When I left around quarter of 1, they were overhead, heavy and black and humid. I raced through Newton River Park, dodging the few remaining joggers who weren't turned off by the weather. It started to spit a little as I made my way into Oaklyn. I just made it home. I'd been inside for less than 20 minutes when it started to pour and I heard thunder.
Needless to say, I spent the rest of the afternoon at home. I baked Fresh Peach Muffins. I watched the monsoon. I dubbed The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle to DVD. This was Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers' last vehicle at RKO. It's also the only time they played a real-life couple and one of two times they played a married couple. Vernon and Irene Castle were wildly popular dancers on Broadway and elsewhere in the mid and late 1910s. Vernon Castle died in a tragic accident during World War I, but Irene lived, and it was her memories and memoirs that the story is based on. She may have given Ginger a hard time about playing her, but her input into the movie makes it more honest than most musical bios.
(And I've seen pictures of the real Castles in books on the musicals of the 1910s. Ginger didn't really look like Irene...but Fred very much resembled Vernon, other than the latter was a blond.)
The storm finally subsided around 2:30, more than an hour before I headed to work. There was another storm during my shift, but while we were busy before that and during rush hour, it was once again gone by the time I went home. It also cleared out the store. I spent the last hour shelving candy.
Dubbed Look for the Silver Lining when I got in. Another musical biography, this one covers Marilyn Miller, whom I've mentioned here before when discussing 20s musicals. Miller was the sweetheart of Broadway in the late teens and 20s...but unlike the Castles' and Ruth Etting's stories, Miller got the whitewashed treatment. In real life a hoyden with the mouth of a sailor, here she's played by sweet, dainty June Haver. Ray Bolger and Gordon MacRae turn up again as Miller's mentor and doomed first husband respectively.
(On the other hand, one of the things I like about this one is how realistic the numbers are. No Busby Berkley kaleidoscopes here; the routines look like they could be performed on real stages. I especially love the bit of Sally they cribbed, with SK Sakall as Leon Errol and Haver doing a simple, lovely version of the title song.)
Started this morning with the second disc of the Schoolhouse Rock set while I had breakfast. In addition to two featurettes, the most notable items on disc two were a series of cartoons written in the mid-80s to help introduce kids to those fancy new desktop computers, Scooter Computer and Mr. Chips. Alas, unlike the direct-to-DVD "I'm Gonna Send Your Vote to College" on the first disc, these three shorts aren't much fun to watch, nor have they dated well. (And one's missing. Apparently, the short that introduced the series is genuinely lost.)
Headed to the Haddon Township Library after Schoolhouse Rock ended. I needed to return the DVDs from last week and do this week's volunteering. There weren't that many DVDs when I got in. I organized the kids' DVDs...and when I came back, there was a big stack of discs waiting for me! They kept adding more all day. I also shelved picture books. I took out two more cartoon DVDs, some Little Einsteins and a new Max and Ruby, Bunny Tales.
It was sunny when I headed to the library this morning, but dark clouds loomed in the horizon. When I left around quarter of 1, they were overhead, heavy and black and humid. I raced through Newton River Park, dodging the few remaining joggers who weren't turned off by the weather. It started to spit a little as I made my way into Oaklyn. I just made it home. I'd been inside for less than 20 minutes when it started to pour and I heard thunder.
Needless to say, I spent the rest of the afternoon at home. I baked Fresh Peach Muffins. I watched the monsoon. I dubbed The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle to DVD. This was Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers' last vehicle at RKO. It's also the only time they played a real-life couple and one of two times they played a married couple. Vernon and Irene Castle were wildly popular dancers on Broadway and elsewhere in the mid and late 1910s. Vernon Castle died in a tragic accident during World War I, but Irene lived, and it was her memories and memoirs that the story is based on. She may have given Ginger a hard time about playing her, but her input into the movie makes it more honest than most musical bios.
(And I've seen pictures of the real Castles in books on the musicals of the 1910s. Ginger didn't really look like Irene...but Fred very much resembled Vernon, other than the latter was a blond.)
The storm finally subsided around 2:30, more than an hour before I headed to work. There was another storm during my shift, but while we were busy before that and during rush hour, it was once again gone by the time I went home. It also cleared out the store. I spent the last hour shelving candy.
Dubbed Look for the Silver Lining when I got in. Another musical biography, this one covers Marilyn Miller, whom I've mentioned here before when discussing 20s musicals. Miller was the sweetheart of Broadway in the late teens and 20s...but unlike the Castles' and Ruth Etting's stories, Miller got the whitewashed treatment. In real life a hoyden with the mouth of a sailor, here she's played by sweet, dainty June Haver. Ray Bolger and Gordon MacRae turn up again as Miller's mentor and doomed first husband respectively.
(On the other hand, one of the things I like about this one is how realistic the numbers are. No Busby Berkley kaleidoscopes here; the routines look like they could be performed on real stages. I especially love the bit of Sally they cribbed, with SK Sakall as Leon Errol and Haver doing a simple, lovely version of the title song.)
Monday, August 08, 2011
August In New Jersey
Started today with April In Paris, the first of two Doris Day musicals I transferred to DVD. One of Day's lesser vehicles has her as a sassy chorus girl who is mistakenly sent to Paris for an arts festival by straight-laced bureaucrat Ray Bolger. She and Bolger are mismatched, but they do get one good number on the ship bound for France, "We're Gonna Ring the Bell Tonight."
Did the laundry next. It was surprisingly quiet for the lunch hour. I'm guessing the continuing heat and humidity kept people away. I didn't linger, either. I did my laundry and went home.
Had leftovers for lunch while running the Schoolhouse Rock 30th Anniversary set. In addition to Money Rock, which would have been on TV in the mid-80s, there's a few additional Grammar Rock and Multiplication Rock numbers that didn't make it to Linda's video. The touching tale of "Mr. Morton," which covers the parts of a sentence, was my favorite of the new material. The other ones I hadn't seen include "Busy Prepositions" from Grammar Rock and "The Good Eleven" and the odd science-fiction-themed "Little Twelvetoes" from Multiplication Rock.
Work was almost exactly the same as yesterday - busy for most of the night, until about an hour before closing. Other than that, there were no major problems, and I was in and out quickly.
I ran Love Me Or Leave Me, the last Day musical I was moving to DVD, when I got home. A hard-hitting biography of 20s and 30s singer Ruth Etting, Leave Me is one of my favorites of her movies. Etting was used and abused by a gangster, Marty "The Gimp" Snyder (James Cagney), who was obsessed with her. Etting was no slouch in the using department herself - she used him just as much to further her career. Cagney and Cameron Mitchell (as the pianist Etting really loves) are excellent, but Day is a revelation. If you only know her from frothy musicals like April In Paris or her later romantic comedies, you don't know the half of it. Here, she matches Cagney tooth for tooth and shows she could be as tough as any dame in Hollywood.
Oh, and American Girl just put their newest historical dolls, Marie-Grace and Cecile, on pre-order. They represent New Orleans in 1853, when a yellow fever epidemic raged in that city. Though their time period doesn't really interest me and I probably won't buy the dolls or their clothes, the dolls themselves are utterly gorgeous, especially Marie-Grace.
Meet Cecile and Marie-Grace!
Started today with April In Paris, the first of two Doris Day musicals I transferred to DVD. One of Day's lesser vehicles has her as a sassy chorus girl who is mistakenly sent to Paris for an arts festival by straight-laced bureaucrat Ray Bolger. She and Bolger are mismatched, but they do get one good number on the ship bound for France, "We're Gonna Ring the Bell Tonight."
Did the laundry next. It was surprisingly quiet for the lunch hour. I'm guessing the continuing heat and humidity kept people away. I didn't linger, either. I did my laundry and went home.
Had leftovers for lunch while running the Schoolhouse Rock 30th Anniversary set. In addition to Money Rock, which would have been on TV in the mid-80s, there's a few additional Grammar Rock and Multiplication Rock numbers that didn't make it to Linda's video. The touching tale of "Mr. Morton," which covers the parts of a sentence, was my favorite of the new material. The other ones I hadn't seen include "Busy Prepositions" from Grammar Rock and "The Good Eleven" and the odd science-fiction-themed "Little Twelvetoes" from Multiplication Rock.
Work was almost exactly the same as yesterday - busy for most of the night, until about an hour before closing. Other than that, there were no major problems, and I was in and out quickly.
I ran Love Me Or Leave Me, the last Day musical I was moving to DVD, when I got home. A hard-hitting biography of 20s and 30s singer Ruth Etting, Leave Me is one of my favorites of her movies. Etting was used and abused by a gangster, Marty "The Gimp" Snyder (James Cagney), who was obsessed with her. Etting was no slouch in the using department herself - she used him just as much to further her career. Cagney and Cameron Mitchell (as the pianist Etting really loves) are excellent, but Day is a revelation. If you only know her from frothy musicals like April In Paris or her later romantic comedies, you don't know the half of it. Here, she matches Cagney tooth for tooth and shows she could be as tough as any dame in Hollywood.
Oh, and American Girl just put their newest historical dolls, Marie-Grace and Cecile, on pre-order. They represent New Orleans in 1853, when a yellow fever epidemic raged in that city. Though their time period doesn't really interest me and I probably won't buy the dolls or their clothes, the dolls themselves are utterly gorgeous, especially Marie-Grace.
Meet Cecile and Marie-Grace!
Sunday, August 07, 2011
I Concentrate On Work
I skipped the radio shows today to work on transferring movies to DVD. Did a couple of films from the 30s this morning, starting with Born to Dance. Eleanor Powell is a young lady hoping to become a Broadway dancer who falls for a sailor on leave (James Stewart...yes, in a musical). When a stage star (Virginia Bruce) makes a play for Stewart, Powell's not crazy about the idea. How can Stewart explain it's just publicity...and will Powell get her name in lights when Bruce backs out of the show?
You can probably guess where this is going, especially if you're a fan of backstage musicals. For all the froth, Cole Porter provided a nice score; Stewart gets to introduce the standard "Easy to Love." Other stars belting Porter tunes include Buddy Ebsen as a fellow sailor, Frances Langford as his girl, and Una Merkel as Powell's best friend.
The most famous number is the finale with Powell tapping against a backdrop of a huge ship. I think two smaller numbers - "Hey, Babe, Hey" with the three main couples happily dancing together and Stewart and Powell's "Easy to Love" - are far more charming.
The Acme called while I was finishing my zucchini and carrot pancakes. I was washing dishes and didn't get to them until I was almost time to go. Could I stay until 6:30? Yeah. I wasn't crazy about it, but I'd do it. It was only an hour.
The Acme had its reasons. It was busy when I came in, and stayed busy until nearly 6. There was a call-out, and at least ten people who work in the front of the store went on vacation for part of or all week.
When I finally got home, I enjoyed the crock-pot Beef and Red Potato Stew I started this morning for dinner and ran the next movie I wanted to put on DVD, The Broadway Melody of 1940. Another Powell vehicle, this one switches things up a bit by making Powell the stage star looking for her new leading man. The producer accidentally hires George Murphy...but he really wanted his partner Fred Astaire.
Cole Porter once again provided the songs. This time, the hits included "I've Got My Eye On You," "I Concentrate On You," and one borrowed from a minor Porter stage show, "Begin the Beguine." Astaire and Murphy are certainly more at ease with the fluffy plot than Stewart was. Astaire has a nice moment when he dances "Eye On You" with Powell's compact. The best-known number is Powell and Astaire's incredible "Beguine." I also love their "Jukebox Dance."
The only non-musical in this set is also the only movie I'm dubbing that is currently not on DVD in any form, even the Warner Archives. Life Begins for Andy Hardy sends everyone's favorite late 30s-early 40s teen (Mickey Rooney) to work outside of his small town for the first time. Alas, Andy learns some hard lessons when he's taken in by a manipulating young woman, briefly becomes penniless, and loses a good friend. Good thing he has his pal Betsy Booth's (Judy Garland) shoulder to cry on.
I'm finishing the night with the start of another disc. Doris Day is the star of this set. On Moonlight Bay is a charming nostalgic musical set in a small town in the pre-World-War-I midwest. Day is a tomboy growing to womanhood without losing her tough spirit; Gordon MacRae is the idealistic college student she pursues. Charming and fun if you're a fan of historic musicals like this or Meet Me In St. Louis. Leon Ames, who was also the father in St. Louis, is Day's dad; Rosemary DeCamp is her mother.
I skipped the radio shows today to work on transferring movies to DVD. Did a couple of films from the 30s this morning, starting with Born to Dance. Eleanor Powell is a young lady hoping to become a Broadway dancer who falls for a sailor on leave (James Stewart...yes, in a musical). When a stage star (Virginia Bruce) makes a play for Stewart, Powell's not crazy about the idea. How can Stewart explain it's just publicity...and will Powell get her name in lights when Bruce backs out of the show?
You can probably guess where this is going, especially if you're a fan of backstage musicals. For all the froth, Cole Porter provided a nice score; Stewart gets to introduce the standard "Easy to Love." Other stars belting Porter tunes include Buddy Ebsen as a fellow sailor, Frances Langford as his girl, and Una Merkel as Powell's best friend.
The most famous number is the finale with Powell tapping against a backdrop of a huge ship. I think two smaller numbers - "Hey, Babe, Hey" with the three main couples happily dancing together and Stewart and Powell's "Easy to Love" - are far more charming.
The Acme called while I was finishing my zucchini and carrot pancakes. I was washing dishes and didn't get to them until I was almost time to go. Could I stay until 6:30? Yeah. I wasn't crazy about it, but I'd do it. It was only an hour.
The Acme had its reasons. It was busy when I came in, and stayed busy until nearly 6. There was a call-out, and at least ten people who work in the front of the store went on vacation for part of or all week.
When I finally got home, I enjoyed the crock-pot Beef and Red Potato Stew I started this morning for dinner and ran the next movie I wanted to put on DVD, The Broadway Melody of 1940. Another Powell vehicle, this one switches things up a bit by making Powell the stage star looking for her new leading man. The producer accidentally hires George Murphy...but he really wanted his partner Fred Astaire.
Cole Porter once again provided the songs. This time, the hits included "I've Got My Eye On You," "I Concentrate On You," and one borrowed from a minor Porter stage show, "Begin the Beguine." Astaire and Murphy are certainly more at ease with the fluffy plot than Stewart was. Astaire has a nice moment when he dances "Eye On You" with Powell's compact. The best-known number is Powell and Astaire's incredible "Beguine." I also love their "Jukebox Dance."
The only non-musical in this set is also the only movie I'm dubbing that is currently not on DVD in any form, even the Warner Archives. Life Begins for Andy Hardy sends everyone's favorite late 30s-early 40s teen (Mickey Rooney) to work outside of his small town for the first time. Alas, Andy learns some hard lessons when he's taken in by a manipulating young woman, briefly becomes penniless, and loses a good friend. Good thing he has his pal Betsy Booth's (Judy Garland) shoulder to cry on.
I'm finishing the night with the start of another disc. Doris Day is the star of this set. On Moonlight Bay is a charming nostalgic musical set in a small town in the pre-World-War-I midwest. Day is a tomboy growing to womanhood without losing her tough spirit; Gordon MacRae is the idealistic college student she pursues. Charming and fun if you're a fan of historic musicals like this or Meet Me In St. Louis. Leon Ames, who was also the father in St. Louis, is Day's dad; Rosemary DeCamp is her mother.
Saturday, August 06, 2011
Going On the Town
Started out a warm and humid but breezy morning with cereal, blueberries, and the American Top 40. The Top 40 went way back today to early August 1970. Protest songs, country-esque tunes, hard rock and bubblegum pop ruled the airwaves - Edwin Starr's "War," Melaine's "Lay Down," The Jackson 5's "The Love You Save," "Ride, Captain Ride" by the Blues Image, and one of my favorite Crosby, Stills, and Nash songs, "Teach Your Children."
That week's big hits were sweet ballads in the midst of a world in upheaval - Bread's "Make It With You" and the Carpenters' lovely "Close to You."
Did the same thing I did last week this morning - rode around Oaklyn, Collingswood, and Audubon and looked for yard sales. I hit six - a lot more than usual for this time of year - but didn't have much luck. Found some home-made vintage fashion doll clothes for the Sailor Soldiers (and had a nice chat with the fellow who sold them to me about crocheting) in Oaklyn and a favorite childhood film on video, Troop Beverly Hills, in Audubon.
I stopped at the farm market while in Collingswood. They were packed to the rafters today. No wonder. There was tons going on. I passed a food-preparation demonstration and watched a Peach Pie Baking contest. Plums are gone and blueberries are on their last week, but there's plenty of everything else. I picked up peaches, a zucchini, two small lavender eggplants, my final pint of blueberries for the year, red potatoes, a tomato, a cute little cantaloupe, and the first green seedless grapes of the season.
I debated riding up to Haddonfield for their annual sidewalk sale, but by quarter of noon, I was just too darn tired. Since I was in the area, I did make a quick stop at the Staples in the Audubon Crossings Shopping Center behind the Acme. I've been meaning to get there to see if they have any sales on packs of recordable DVDs, but I haven't had the time. I was in luck. They were having a big half-price sale on Memorex DVD packs. I picked up a spool of 50 for $17 with tax, far less than the $30.99 it normally costs.
Went over to Sonic for lunch. It was a nice day, windy if warmer and more humid than earlier this week. I ordered a Chicken Sandwich, Tater Tots (they were out of onion rings), and unsweetened iced tea. For once, both were quite tasty. The sandwich was so hot, it was a few minutes before I could dig into it.
Spent the rest of the day at home. The Acme called 15 minutes after I arrived. Could I come in from 3:30 to 7:30? For once, I said "no" without a tinge of regret. I've had lots of hours recently, have plenty this week, and won't be getting another day off until next Saturday. They can live without me for a day.
I crocheted while running the remaining two Thin Man movies. After the Thin Man takes Nick and Nora back to San Fransisco for a mystery involving Nora's upper-crust family. A very young James Stewart is the male ingenue here; Dorothy McNulty (later Blondie's Penny Singleton) is a singer caught in a blackmail scheme. Billy Benedict of The Bowery Boys movies has a brief cameo as a friend of Nick's early on.
Another Thin Man returns the Charleses to the East Coast. This time, a family friend calls Nick, Nora, and their new son Nick Jr. to Long Island when he thinks his life may be in danger. Among the familiar faces here are C. Aubrey Smith as the man who believes he may be on borrowed time and Sheldon Leonard as a hood who has been having dreams of Smith's death.
After that disc was finished, I switched to a trio of Gene Kelly's best 40s musicals while organizing my new DVDs and making chicken and summer vegetable stir-fry for dinner. The Pirate pairs him with Judy Garland in their second of three movies together. He's a roving performer in the Carribean in the 1850s who poses as a notorious pirate to win Garland. His "Be a Clown" numbers, with Garland and the Nicholas Brothers, are the stand-outs.
Take Me Out to the Ball Game and On the Town team him with Frank Sinatra and comic Jules Munshin. The first is set in the late 1800s and features Sinatra and Kelly as a pair of vaudevillians who play baseball during the off-season. The two are bamboozled when smart, athletic (and unusually dry) Esther Williams buys their team and groupie Betty Garrett makes a play for Sinatra.
On the Town keeps Munshin, Kelly, Garrett, and Sinatra and adds Ann Miller (as Munshin's love interest), Vera Ellen (as Kelly's), and Alice Pearce (as Garrett's perpetually-cold-infested roommate) to the tale of three sailors on leave in the Big Apple who chase landmarks and lasses...and happily find both in the course of 24 hours. Though this adaptation of the hit 1944 Broadway musical eliminated a lot of the score on its trip west, my favorite number is from the original. Betty Garrett does her darndest to get the naive Sinatra out of her cab and into her apartment in "Come Up to My Place." The two are an absolute riot - I don't think Sinatra ever had this much fun in his later career.
And of course, this one is best known today as the first musical to shoot on location. It does add to the experience to see the real sights as the guys do, and not just back-lot recreations. (Though there are those, too.)
Started out a warm and humid but breezy morning with cereal, blueberries, and the American Top 40. The Top 40 went way back today to early August 1970. Protest songs, country-esque tunes, hard rock and bubblegum pop ruled the airwaves - Edwin Starr's "War," Melaine's "Lay Down," The Jackson 5's "The Love You Save," "Ride, Captain Ride" by the Blues Image, and one of my favorite Crosby, Stills, and Nash songs, "Teach Your Children."
That week's big hits were sweet ballads in the midst of a world in upheaval - Bread's "Make It With You" and the Carpenters' lovely "Close to You."
Did the same thing I did last week this morning - rode around Oaklyn, Collingswood, and Audubon and looked for yard sales. I hit six - a lot more than usual for this time of year - but didn't have much luck. Found some home-made vintage fashion doll clothes for the Sailor Soldiers (and had a nice chat with the fellow who sold them to me about crocheting) in Oaklyn and a favorite childhood film on video, Troop Beverly Hills, in Audubon.
I stopped at the farm market while in Collingswood. They were packed to the rafters today. No wonder. There was tons going on. I passed a food-preparation demonstration and watched a Peach Pie Baking contest. Plums are gone and blueberries are on their last week, but there's plenty of everything else. I picked up peaches, a zucchini, two small lavender eggplants, my final pint of blueberries for the year, red potatoes, a tomato, a cute little cantaloupe, and the first green seedless grapes of the season.
I debated riding up to Haddonfield for their annual sidewalk sale, but by quarter of noon, I was just too darn tired. Since I was in the area, I did make a quick stop at the Staples in the Audubon Crossings Shopping Center behind the Acme. I've been meaning to get there to see if they have any sales on packs of recordable DVDs, but I haven't had the time. I was in luck. They were having a big half-price sale on Memorex DVD packs. I picked up a spool of 50 for $17 with tax, far less than the $30.99 it normally costs.
Went over to Sonic for lunch. It was a nice day, windy if warmer and more humid than earlier this week. I ordered a Chicken Sandwich, Tater Tots (they were out of onion rings), and unsweetened iced tea. For once, both were quite tasty. The sandwich was so hot, it was a few minutes before I could dig into it.
Spent the rest of the day at home. The Acme called 15 minutes after I arrived. Could I come in from 3:30 to 7:30? For once, I said "no" without a tinge of regret. I've had lots of hours recently, have plenty this week, and won't be getting another day off until next Saturday. They can live without me for a day.
I crocheted while running the remaining two Thin Man movies. After the Thin Man takes Nick and Nora back to San Fransisco for a mystery involving Nora's upper-crust family. A very young James Stewart is the male ingenue here; Dorothy McNulty (later Blondie's Penny Singleton) is a singer caught in a blackmail scheme. Billy Benedict of The Bowery Boys movies has a brief cameo as a friend of Nick's early on.
Another Thin Man returns the Charleses to the East Coast. This time, a family friend calls Nick, Nora, and their new son Nick Jr. to Long Island when he thinks his life may be in danger. Among the familiar faces here are C. Aubrey Smith as the man who believes he may be on borrowed time and Sheldon Leonard as a hood who has been having dreams of Smith's death.
After that disc was finished, I switched to a trio of Gene Kelly's best 40s musicals while organizing my new DVDs and making chicken and summer vegetable stir-fry for dinner. The Pirate pairs him with Judy Garland in their second of three movies together. He's a roving performer in the Carribean in the 1850s who poses as a notorious pirate to win Garland. His "Be a Clown" numbers, with Garland and the Nicholas Brothers, are the stand-outs.
Take Me Out to the Ball Game and On the Town team him with Frank Sinatra and comic Jules Munshin. The first is set in the late 1800s and features Sinatra and Kelly as a pair of vaudevillians who play baseball during the off-season. The two are bamboozled when smart, athletic (and unusually dry) Esther Williams buys their team and groupie Betty Garrett makes a play for Sinatra.
On the Town keeps Munshin, Kelly, Garrett, and Sinatra and adds Ann Miller (as Munshin's love interest), Vera Ellen (as Kelly's), and Alice Pearce (as Garrett's perpetually-cold-infested roommate) to the tale of three sailors on leave in the Big Apple who chase landmarks and lasses...and happily find both in the course of 24 hours. Though this adaptation of the hit 1944 Broadway musical eliminated a lot of the score on its trip west, my favorite number is from the original. Betty Garrett does her darndest to get the naive Sinatra out of her cab and into her apartment in "Come Up to My Place." The two are an absolute riot - I don't think Sinatra ever had this much fun in his later career.
And of course, this one is best known today as the first musical to shoot on location. It does add to the experience to see the real sights as the guys do, and not just back-lot recreations. (Though there are those, too.)
Friday, August 05, 2011
"Thanks for the Memories..."
Started off a gorgeous summer morning with the last two Mickey Mouse Clubhouse cartoons and the bonus Little Einsteins episode over a tomato and Colby cheese omelet for breakfast. I ended up really liking the very cute Einsteins. Little Einsteins is an offshoot of the Baby Einsteins series for infants. This is a variation on the interactivity format, this time with emphasis on the arts. Annie, a darling little singer, June, a smart dancer, Quincy, a goofy musician, and Leo, the orchestra leader, travel around in their Red Rocket, going on mildly scary "missions" against a backdrop of a painter's works, with a classical composer's music in the background. European castles provided the background for the kids' Halloween show, while Edvard Grieg's music was the score. The kids have to collect candy from four famous castles for their Halloween party...but who are those ghosts after them? Adorable. I've seen DVDs for this show at Haddon Township and Collingswood; I may have to look into them.
Went for a walk after Little Einsteins. This is as lovely as it gets in early August in southern New Jersey, sunny, breezy, and in the mid-80s, with no humidity in sight. Since it was only around 10, I had the playground behind the Oaklyn Public School to myself this time. I was able to slide and run around and play oversized tic-tac-toe to my heart's content. Stopped at Doria's Deli for a special treat of Diet Wild Cherry Pepsi and a chat with Mrs. Doria. She loved the weather so much, she rode here on a bike, too.
Spent the rest of the morning at my apartment. Finished the Bob Hope disc with The Big Broadcast of 1938. Hope made his feature film debut as one of the many cast members in Paramount's equivalent of MGM's Broadway Melody movies and the Gold Diggers series at Warners. The location is rather novel, compared to the usual backstage movies - two cruise ships racing each other. Hope is an announcer with a trio of ex-wives. Shirley Ross is the ex he was happiest with. Dorothy Lamour is a passenger in love with the inventor of the radio waves-backed contraption that could help the SS Gigantic to win the race. That is, if the bad-luck curse attached to father-daughter pair Martha Raye and WC Fields doesn't rub off on the ship!
Hope and Ross steal the show with the classic "Thanks for the Memory" number. The two reminisce about old times in a way that seems far more natural than anything else in the movie...or in most musicals, for that matter. They were such a hit together, they were teamed again later that year in a movie called Thanks for the Memory and performed another popular duet, "Two Sleepy People."
Martha Raye comes off best of the remaining all-star cast with her awesome acrobatic dance number with a bunch of rowdy sailors that shows off both her dancing ability and some nice legs. WC Fields' stand-out moments are on the golf course as he runs a group of unfortunate cabbies ragged. Dorothy Lamour has little to do, especially compared to her later Road romps with Hope.
After I finalized the Hope disc, I went straight into the next one. My next DVD is devoted to the first three movies in The Thin Man series. Ran the original film as I organized the video and DVD shelves and made Chocolate Chip Bars. The first Thin Man film is the only one based after the original Dashiel Hammett book. Nick and Nora Charles (and their wire terrier Asta) are a wealthy, debonair pair of society gadabouts who mainly devote their lives to drinking and being witty. When an inventor friend of Nick's disappears under mysterious circumstances, Nick finds himself being involved in the case whether he wants to be or not...and Nora insisting on joining him for the ride.
I forgot how much fun this one is. My favorite part comes right after Nick is shot by a gangster who is trying to find out what he knows. He uses his Christmas present from Nora - a pistol - to shoot the balls off the Christmas tree while she reads the paper.
"You were shot three times in the tabloids," she reports to Nick.
"That's not true," Nick quips. "They didn't get anywhere near my tabloids."
The Thin Man ended with almost no time to spare. I went straight to work. Work was busy all day long, with crazy lines until almost 8PM. There's quite a bit going on right now. First of all, it's still the beginning of the month. Second, many college students will be going back to school this week or next week. Third, quite a few people are going on vacation. Fourth, anyone who isn't going on vacation seems to be taking advantage of the nice weather to hold barbecues and family reunions.
Did some very quick grocery shopping after work ended. Mainly needed to restock baking items and snacks. It took me almost five minutes to find the new Emerald On the Go bagged trail-mix snacks I had a coupon for. I assumed they'd be in the aisle with the nuts, but they turned out to be shelved with granola bars.
I'm not thrilled with my schedule next week. On one hand, I only have two days, Thursday and Friday, that are as long or as late as yesterday. On the other hand, after tomorrow, I don't have another day off until next Saturday! At least five or six people who work on the front end alone went on vacation this week. Now I'm glad I waited until September to take my second week.
Started off a gorgeous summer morning with the last two Mickey Mouse Clubhouse cartoons and the bonus Little Einsteins episode over a tomato and Colby cheese omelet for breakfast. I ended up really liking the very cute Einsteins. Little Einsteins is an offshoot of the Baby Einsteins series for infants. This is a variation on the interactivity format, this time with emphasis on the arts. Annie, a darling little singer, June, a smart dancer, Quincy, a goofy musician, and Leo, the orchestra leader, travel around in their Red Rocket, going on mildly scary "missions" against a backdrop of a painter's works, with a classical composer's music in the background. European castles provided the background for the kids' Halloween show, while Edvard Grieg's music was the score. The kids have to collect candy from four famous castles for their Halloween party...but who are those ghosts after them? Adorable. I've seen DVDs for this show at Haddon Township and Collingswood; I may have to look into them.
Went for a walk after Little Einsteins. This is as lovely as it gets in early August in southern New Jersey, sunny, breezy, and in the mid-80s, with no humidity in sight. Since it was only around 10, I had the playground behind the Oaklyn Public School to myself this time. I was able to slide and run around and play oversized tic-tac-toe to my heart's content. Stopped at Doria's Deli for a special treat of Diet Wild Cherry Pepsi and a chat with Mrs. Doria. She loved the weather so much, she rode here on a bike, too.
Spent the rest of the morning at my apartment. Finished the Bob Hope disc with The Big Broadcast of 1938. Hope made his feature film debut as one of the many cast members in Paramount's equivalent of MGM's Broadway Melody movies and the Gold Diggers series at Warners. The location is rather novel, compared to the usual backstage movies - two cruise ships racing each other. Hope is an announcer with a trio of ex-wives. Shirley Ross is the ex he was happiest with. Dorothy Lamour is a passenger in love with the inventor of the radio waves-backed contraption that could help the SS Gigantic to win the race. That is, if the bad-luck curse attached to father-daughter pair Martha Raye and WC Fields doesn't rub off on the ship!
Hope and Ross steal the show with the classic "Thanks for the Memory" number. The two reminisce about old times in a way that seems far more natural than anything else in the movie...or in most musicals, for that matter. They were such a hit together, they were teamed again later that year in a movie called Thanks for the Memory and performed another popular duet, "Two Sleepy People."
Martha Raye comes off best of the remaining all-star cast with her awesome acrobatic dance number with a bunch of rowdy sailors that shows off both her dancing ability and some nice legs. WC Fields' stand-out moments are on the golf course as he runs a group of unfortunate cabbies ragged. Dorothy Lamour has little to do, especially compared to her later Road romps with Hope.
After I finalized the Hope disc, I went straight into the next one. My next DVD is devoted to the first three movies in The Thin Man series. Ran the original film as I organized the video and DVD shelves and made Chocolate Chip Bars. The first Thin Man film is the only one based after the original Dashiel Hammett book. Nick and Nora Charles (and their wire terrier Asta) are a wealthy, debonair pair of society gadabouts who mainly devote their lives to drinking and being witty. When an inventor friend of Nick's disappears under mysterious circumstances, Nick finds himself being involved in the case whether he wants to be or not...and Nora insisting on joining him for the ride.
I forgot how much fun this one is. My favorite part comes right after Nick is shot by a gangster who is trying to find out what he knows. He uses his Christmas present from Nora - a pistol - to shoot the balls off the Christmas tree while she reads the paper.
"You were shot three times in the tabloids," she reports to Nick.
"That's not true," Nick quips. "They didn't get anywhere near my tabloids."
The Thin Man ended with almost no time to spare. I went straight to work. Work was busy all day long, with crazy lines until almost 8PM. There's quite a bit going on right now. First of all, it's still the beginning of the month. Second, many college students will be going back to school this week or next week. Third, quite a few people are going on vacation. Fourth, anyone who isn't going on vacation seems to be taking advantage of the nice weather to hold barbecues and family reunions.
Did some very quick grocery shopping after work ended. Mainly needed to restock baking items and snacks. It took me almost five minutes to find the new Emerald On the Go bagged trail-mix snacks I had a coupon for. I assumed they'd be in the aisle with the nuts, but they turned out to be shelved with granola bars.
I'm not thrilled with my schedule next week. On one hand, I only have two days, Thursday and Friday, that are as long or as late as yesterday. On the other hand, after tomorrow, I don't have another day off until next Saturday! At least five or six people who work on the front end alone went on vacation this week. Now I'm glad I waited until September to take my second week.
Thursday, August 04, 2011
Library Balance
Started off the morning with listening to one of my newest records as I had oatmeal with natural peanut butter, blueberries, and honey for breakfast. The Official Album of Disneyland/Walt Disney World showcases the music from some of the most popular attractions in Disney theme parks...in 1980. This means that while there are some oft-heard classics like The Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Carribean on there, there's also music from long-defunct attractions like the Disneyland-only America Sings.
My first stop of a busy day was yoga class. We worked on hip openers...and opening up our hearts to let go of fear. That's still hard for me to do. I try to let go, but something always tells me that I can't do it. It's not right. It may hurt. It's too hard.
I went to the Collingswood Library after yoga, then straight to the Haddon Township Library after I was finished there. Neither was especially busy. It started out cloudy and cool this morning, but by the time I was at the libraries, the sun was out, and it was a bit warmer (though not nearly as bad as the past few weeks.) I mainly organized DVDs. Did take out three cartoon discs at Haddon Township - a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Halloween-themed disc Mickey's Treat (I know it's early, but I may not find this in October), Flower Power from Adventures In Care-a-Lot, and that 30th anniversary Schoolhouse Rock set I mentioned a few days ago.
Had lunch at Crystal Lake Diner on the hillside under the Haddon Township Library. My Roast Beef Hoagie was so big, I ended up having half of it for dinner at work tonight! I figured soup and cole slaw was enough, so I nixed the French fries that came with the meal. The Amish-style chicken soup was particularly good, creamy and filled with huge egg noodles.
Stopped at Leo's Yum-Yums on my way home to treat myself to a water ice. Mrs. Doria, one of the proprietors of Doria's Deli next-door, was chatting with her teenage granddaughter Alexis. We had water ice together, and Mrs. Doria gave me a bag of yarn she wanted to get rid of.
Spent the rest of the afternoon at home. I first recorded the Bob Hope comedy The Paleface and did some things online. Jane Russell joins Hope in this western variation on the coward-meets-smart-lady-in-historical-setting theme. In this case, Russell is Calamity Jane, who is promised a pardon in exchange for following a wagon train to a town where rustlers are selling dynamite to Indians. She needs to get the dynamite...but she'll be able to keep her cover better with the wagons if she's married. When the agent who was supposed to join her is killed, she hitches up with "Painless" Peter Potter (Hope), a dentist heading further west on the wagon train. An encounter with Indians leaves Potter thinking he's a hero. How can Jane explain that she did the shooting...and that she may like him as more than a cover?
A major warning here - the Native Americans in this film are portrayed comically and not in the best light, especially in the finale. If you can't get around this, this is not the Bob Hope comedy for you. Political incorrectness aside, I get a kick out of this one. Russell is a hoot in her busty gowns, and she pairs surprisingly well with a strutting Hope. Hope also introduces the Oscar-winning song "Buttons and Bows" as the two are traveling on the wagon train.
There wasn't enough time to start a movie after Paleface ended. I ran Mickey's Treat instead while getting ready for work. The first cartoon on the set was the title episode. Yes, it was a Halloween-themed show. Mickey and the gang head out in costume to the Trick-or-Treat tower for Pete's Halloween Party. Cute episode - I especially liked Goofy's method of getting through the huge candy corn that blocked his path.
Went to work after the cartoon was over. Work was generally busier than last night, but otherwise not really a problem other than my last customers, who kicked up a fuss when the non-food part of their food stamp bill came up to more than they could afford. Otherwise, I was in and out.
Started off the morning with listening to one of my newest records as I had oatmeal with natural peanut butter, blueberries, and honey for breakfast. The Official Album of Disneyland/Walt Disney World showcases the music from some of the most popular attractions in Disney theme parks...in 1980. This means that while there are some oft-heard classics like The Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Carribean on there, there's also music from long-defunct attractions like the Disneyland-only America Sings.
My first stop of a busy day was yoga class. We worked on hip openers...and opening up our hearts to let go of fear. That's still hard for me to do. I try to let go, but something always tells me that I can't do it. It's not right. It may hurt. It's too hard.
I went to the Collingswood Library after yoga, then straight to the Haddon Township Library after I was finished there. Neither was especially busy. It started out cloudy and cool this morning, but by the time I was at the libraries, the sun was out, and it was a bit warmer (though not nearly as bad as the past few weeks.) I mainly organized DVDs. Did take out three cartoon discs at Haddon Township - a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Halloween-themed disc Mickey's Treat (I know it's early, but I may not find this in October), Flower Power from Adventures In Care-a-Lot, and that 30th anniversary Schoolhouse Rock set I mentioned a few days ago.
Had lunch at Crystal Lake Diner on the hillside under the Haddon Township Library. My Roast Beef Hoagie was so big, I ended up having half of it for dinner at work tonight! I figured soup and cole slaw was enough, so I nixed the French fries that came with the meal. The Amish-style chicken soup was particularly good, creamy and filled with huge egg noodles.
Stopped at Leo's Yum-Yums on my way home to treat myself to a water ice. Mrs. Doria, one of the proprietors of Doria's Deli next-door, was chatting with her teenage granddaughter Alexis. We had water ice together, and Mrs. Doria gave me a bag of yarn she wanted to get rid of.
Spent the rest of the afternoon at home. I first recorded the Bob Hope comedy The Paleface and did some things online. Jane Russell joins Hope in this western variation on the coward-meets-smart-lady-in-historical-setting theme. In this case, Russell is Calamity Jane, who is promised a pardon in exchange for following a wagon train to a town where rustlers are selling dynamite to Indians. She needs to get the dynamite...but she'll be able to keep her cover better with the wagons if she's married. When the agent who was supposed to join her is killed, she hitches up with "Painless" Peter Potter (Hope), a dentist heading further west on the wagon train. An encounter with Indians leaves Potter thinking he's a hero. How can Jane explain that she did the shooting...and that she may like him as more than a cover?
A major warning here - the Native Americans in this film are portrayed comically and not in the best light, especially in the finale. If you can't get around this, this is not the Bob Hope comedy for you. Political incorrectness aside, I get a kick out of this one. Russell is a hoot in her busty gowns, and she pairs surprisingly well with a strutting Hope. Hope also introduces the Oscar-winning song "Buttons and Bows" as the two are traveling on the wagon train.
There wasn't enough time to start a movie after Paleface ended. I ran Mickey's Treat instead while getting ready for work. The first cartoon on the set was the title episode. Yes, it was a Halloween-themed show. Mickey and the gang head out in costume to the Trick-or-Treat tower for Pete's Halloween Party. Cute episode - I especially liked Goofy's method of getting through the huge candy corn that blocked his path.
Went to work after the cartoon was over. Work was generally busier than last night, but otherwise not really a problem other than my last customers, who kicked up a fuss when the non-food part of their food stamp bill came up to more than they could afford. Otherwise, I was in and out.
Wednesday, August 03, 2011
It's a Wonderful World
I'm so happy I got a lot done today. First of all, Dad did come over this time to help get the old TV downstairs. We both finally decided that it wasn't worth the drive to Best Buy for a $10 gift card when salvagers and recycling trucks drive around all the time, picking up old furniture and electronics.
Taking the TV out went so well, after Dad left, I brought my old upright computer, tube monitor, and the printer that was replaced with a wireless version last Christmas to the curb as well. I also had a package waiting for me on the porch. It was the copy of the original 1974 LP version of Mickey's Christmas Carol I won on eBay. I've seen this mentioned in a few places and have always wanted to hear it.
My next stop was the Oaklyn Library. Since Storybook Hour was in full swing when I arrived, I concentrated on the DVDs and the young adult series. I never did get to the kids' books.
I was delighted to see that someone did, indeed, pick up the electronics as I walked down the street. Every last bit of it was gone. I noticed my old computer and TV in the back of a truck that picks up local salvage. Good. Maybe they can make it into something that runs faster or find someone who can use it.
It was sunny when Dad and I took the TV out, humid but cooler than it has been. Dad said it probably wouldn't rain today. Mother Nature said differently. The clouds were starting to build up, and they continued to build as I organized things in the back room and worked on finishing last night's DVD and starting the next one.
The 1957 musical Silk Stockings was the last movie to go on the disc I started yesterday. This movie was the last for director Rouben Mamoulien, who made two favorites of mine, Summer Holiday and Love Me Tonight, and one of the last musicals for Fred Astaire. In this remake of the 1939 comedy Ninotchka, Astaire is a Hollywood producer who convinces a Russian classical composer to stay in Paris and write the score for his newest movie. But it's the late 50s, and Russia is still under Communist rule, which frowns on such things. The Russian government first sends three commisars to bring him home, and when THEY want to stay in Paris, too, they send a very straight-laced young military woman. Will she fall for the charms of Paris...and the movie producer...as well?
Not the best MGM musical in the world, but the second paring of Astaire and Cyd Charisse (after Band Wagon) does have some fine numbers. "All of You" is the standard, and as appropriate, gets one of the movie's best duets.
Bob Hope had less luck with Joan Fontaine in Casanova's Big Night. One of Bob Hope's later 50s vehicles, Casanova is somewhat reminiscent of another Hope swashbuckler comedy I have, The Princess and the Pirate. Here, Hope is Peppo the Tailor's Assistant who finds himself pushed into playing the great Italian lover Casanova when the real Casanova sneaks out without paying his creditors. Hope must get a petticoat from the daughter of a duke to prove she's faithful to her betrothed. Fontaine and Casanova's valet go along to make sure Hope isn't any more cowardly than usual.
Highly recommended if you're a fan of Hope, Fontaine, or comic swashbucklers. There's some really fun gags here, including Bob "Orson Welles" Hope's attempt at a happy ending and him and Fontaine cross-dressing to get the petticoat back to the right person.
It started raining lightly as I went to work, and apparently continued showering on-and-off for the rest of the night. The weather didn't deter the crowds. We were steady right up until about a half-hour before I left. There were no major problems, and I was in and out quickly.
I'm so happy I got a lot done today. First of all, Dad did come over this time to help get the old TV downstairs. We both finally decided that it wasn't worth the drive to Best Buy for a $10 gift card when salvagers and recycling trucks drive around all the time, picking up old furniture and electronics.
Taking the TV out went so well, after Dad left, I brought my old upright computer, tube monitor, and the printer that was replaced with a wireless version last Christmas to the curb as well. I also had a package waiting for me on the porch. It was the copy of the original 1974 LP version of Mickey's Christmas Carol I won on eBay. I've seen this mentioned in a few places and have always wanted to hear it.
My next stop was the Oaklyn Library. Since Storybook Hour was in full swing when I arrived, I concentrated on the DVDs and the young adult series. I never did get to the kids' books.
I was delighted to see that someone did, indeed, pick up the electronics as I walked down the street. Every last bit of it was gone. I noticed my old computer and TV in the back of a truck that picks up local salvage. Good. Maybe they can make it into something that runs faster or find someone who can use it.
It was sunny when Dad and I took the TV out, humid but cooler than it has been. Dad said it probably wouldn't rain today. Mother Nature said differently. The clouds were starting to build up, and they continued to build as I organized things in the back room and worked on finishing last night's DVD and starting the next one.
The 1957 musical Silk Stockings was the last movie to go on the disc I started yesterday. This movie was the last for director Rouben Mamoulien, who made two favorites of mine, Summer Holiday and Love Me Tonight, and one of the last musicals for Fred Astaire. In this remake of the 1939 comedy Ninotchka, Astaire is a Hollywood producer who convinces a Russian classical composer to stay in Paris and write the score for his newest movie. But it's the late 50s, and Russia is still under Communist rule, which frowns on such things. The Russian government first sends three commisars to bring him home, and when THEY want to stay in Paris, too, they send a very straight-laced young military woman. Will she fall for the charms of Paris...and the movie producer...as well?
Not the best MGM musical in the world, but the second paring of Astaire and Cyd Charisse (after Band Wagon) does have some fine numbers. "All of You" is the standard, and as appropriate, gets one of the movie's best duets.
Bob Hope had less luck with Joan Fontaine in Casanova's Big Night. One of Bob Hope's later 50s vehicles, Casanova is somewhat reminiscent of another Hope swashbuckler comedy I have, The Princess and the Pirate. Here, Hope is Peppo the Tailor's Assistant who finds himself pushed into playing the great Italian lover Casanova when the real Casanova sneaks out without paying his creditors. Hope must get a petticoat from the daughter of a duke to prove she's faithful to her betrothed. Fontaine and Casanova's valet go along to make sure Hope isn't any more cowardly than usual.
Highly recommended if you're a fan of Hope, Fontaine, or comic swashbucklers. There's some really fun gags here, including Bob "Orson Welles" Hope's attempt at a happy ending and him and Fontaine cross-dressing to get the petticoat back to the right person.
It started raining lightly as I went to work, and apparently continued showering on-and-off for the rest of the night. The weather didn't deter the crowds. We were steady right up until about a half-hour before I left. There were no major problems, and I was in and out quickly.
"I'll See You Again..."
Funny I just dubbed that MacDonald/Eddy special today. TCM announced that their other Technicolor movie, the tragic romance Bitter Sweet, will be on DVD in the Warner Archive September 13th. Also on released in the Archive that day - a MacDonald vehicle with a somewhat similar story, Smilin' Through.
Bitter Sweet
Funny I just dubbed that MacDonald/Eddy special today. TCM announced that their other Technicolor movie, the tragic romance Bitter Sweet, will be on DVD in the Warner Archive September 13th. Also on released in the Archive that day - a MacDonald vehicle with a somewhat similar story, Smilin' Through.
Bitter Sweet
Tuesday, August 02, 2011
Baritones, Beautiful Gowns, and Smart Ladies
Started off a gorgeous day by dubbing off the first two items on one of the many tapes I made in college. I used to tape anything that I really liked, generally off of TCM and AMC (before I stopped watching the latter after their exceedingly poor treatment of Remember WENN). I did get one hour special on Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy off of PBS, and that's what I started with.
I then moved to the next movie on the tape. There's only two tapes I intend to copy as they are - the one I'm currently working on and the one with three Bob Hope movies. I got through Lovely to Look At this morning. A remake of the 1934 stage show and 1935 film Roberta, this one involves three guys from New York (Red Skelton, Howard Keel, and Gower Champion) who travel to Paris, hoping to sell a share in a failing fashion house, Roberta's, that Skelton owns. The owners of the other half of the house turn out to be the very attractive Kathryn Grayson and Marge Champion. The arrival of Keel's girlfriend Ann Miller throws a wrench in the works. So does the backer who may take Keel's original show after all, even with a big fashion show for Roberta's in the works...
Best for fans of dance or fabulous 50s fashion. Costume designer Adrian and director Vincent Minelli went to town on the dazzling finale, with women in slinky suits, glittery lounge wear, and enormous spangled ball gowns posing and posturing amid the Champions' smoky ballet. The Champions also get two wonderful duets to "I Won't Dance" and "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes." Red Skelton's largely improvised "Go and Tell Aunt Rhodie" number is still pretty cute. Ann Miller's best moment is "I'll Be Hard to Handle."
I went for a short walk down to the end of Goff Avenue, where the concrete boat launch provides splendid views of the river, Audubon Park across the way, the ramp into Oaklyn, and on clear days like today, the Ben Franklin Bridge. It was a stunning day for a walk. Warm, but not nearly as hot as it has been, windy, bright, and not humid at all.
As I was on my way back, Dad called my cell phone. I called him while Lovely to Look At was on, but he wasn't home. Nope, he was out running errands...and totally forgot we were supposed to take the TV outside today. I ran the Best Buy idea by him. He didn't sound too enthusiastic about hauling a heavy 22-inch tube TV set all the way to Cherry Hill or Deptford. I'd really rather recycle it...but if he's not up to getting it into the van, we'll just leave it on the curb.
It was finally cool enough to make Blueberry Muffins. I did that and ate lunch while watching Danger Mouse. I changed and made dinner quickly, then headed to work.
Work was a pain. The procession of annoying beginning-of-the-month customers continues. Apparently, the current trend is to buy 500 items, then use one coupon for each item in order to bring the price of the order down to nothing. This may look great, but it has its pitfalls. First of all, most of the items you get on coupons are for things that aren't very good for you, like junk food, sugary cereals, and processed items. Second, it takes forever to ring up a pile of 100 coupons for every single item. It's a great way to hold up the line and anger other shoppers, not to mention make you very unpopular with cashiers. Third, I simply don't understand what people are actually going to DO with all this stuff. Where do they keep it all? Are they going to donate it somewhere? How big is their family?
My suggestion? Use coupons only when you truly need the item. Otherwise, shop sales and buy what you need, not what a coupon dictates. Maybe you won't buy a 100 items for a dollar, but in the long run, you'll save room, your diet, and your sanity and those of others around you.
Started off a gorgeous day by dubbing off the first two items on one of the many tapes I made in college. I used to tape anything that I really liked, generally off of TCM and AMC (before I stopped watching the latter after their exceedingly poor treatment of Remember WENN). I did get one hour special on Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy off of PBS, and that's what I started with.
I then moved to the next movie on the tape. There's only two tapes I intend to copy as they are - the one I'm currently working on and the one with three Bob Hope movies. I got through Lovely to Look At this morning. A remake of the 1934 stage show and 1935 film Roberta, this one involves three guys from New York (Red Skelton, Howard Keel, and Gower Champion) who travel to Paris, hoping to sell a share in a failing fashion house, Roberta's, that Skelton owns. The owners of the other half of the house turn out to be the very attractive Kathryn Grayson and Marge Champion. The arrival of Keel's girlfriend Ann Miller throws a wrench in the works. So does the backer who may take Keel's original show after all, even with a big fashion show for Roberta's in the works...
Best for fans of dance or fabulous 50s fashion. Costume designer Adrian and director Vincent Minelli went to town on the dazzling finale, with women in slinky suits, glittery lounge wear, and enormous spangled ball gowns posing and posturing amid the Champions' smoky ballet. The Champions also get two wonderful duets to "I Won't Dance" and "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes." Red Skelton's largely improvised "Go and Tell Aunt Rhodie" number is still pretty cute. Ann Miller's best moment is "I'll Be Hard to Handle."
I went for a short walk down to the end of Goff Avenue, where the concrete boat launch provides splendid views of the river, Audubon Park across the way, the ramp into Oaklyn, and on clear days like today, the Ben Franklin Bridge. It was a stunning day for a walk. Warm, but not nearly as hot as it has been, windy, bright, and not humid at all.
As I was on my way back, Dad called my cell phone. I called him while Lovely to Look At was on, but he wasn't home. Nope, he was out running errands...and totally forgot we were supposed to take the TV outside today. I ran the Best Buy idea by him. He didn't sound too enthusiastic about hauling a heavy 22-inch tube TV set all the way to Cherry Hill or Deptford. I'd really rather recycle it...but if he's not up to getting it into the van, we'll just leave it on the curb.
It was finally cool enough to make Blueberry Muffins. I did that and ate lunch while watching Danger Mouse. I changed and made dinner quickly, then headed to work.
Work was a pain. The procession of annoying beginning-of-the-month customers continues. Apparently, the current trend is to buy 500 items, then use one coupon for each item in order to bring the price of the order down to nothing. This may look great, but it has its pitfalls. First of all, most of the items you get on coupons are for things that aren't very good for you, like junk food, sugary cereals, and processed items. Second, it takes forever to ring up a pile of 100 coupons for every single item. It's a great way to hold up the line and anger other shoppers, not to mention make you very unpopular with cashiers. Third, I simply don't understand what people are actually going to DO with all this stuff. Where do they keep it all? Are they going to donate it somewhere? How big is their family?
My suggestion? Use coupons only when you truly need the item. Otherwise, shop sales and buy what you need, not what a coupon dictates. Maybe you won't buy a 100 items for a dollar, but in the long run, you'll save room, your diet, and your sanity and those of others around you.
Monday, August 01, 2011
"The Ruby of Peril" and the Summer Storm
Started out another hot, hazy, and humid day with laundry. I got in a little earlier than I have in the past few weeks, around quarter of 11. I must have come in between spurts. I did see a couple of people, but most of the washers and driers were available. I was in and out in about an hour.
I began the next recorded disc as I put away my laundry and ate lunch. I took a film-making class during my last semester at Richard Stockton College in the fall of 2001. Two of the big projects for that class was making a music video and making a short film. I got around my lack of resources by using footage from some of the silent and early sound movies that had been donated to the Media Center a few semesters before and doing a silent comedy-themed video to the tune of the 30s hit "Happy Days are Here Again."
Doing the short movie proved to be a bit more daunting. I didn't really know anyone I could ask to appear in a movie, and I was scared to death of directing anyone. I didn't want to make people sign papers, either. I finally spent the weekend after Thanksgiving filming my "stop-motion animation" spoof of Indiana Jones-style action stories...i.e, filming stuffed animals, moving them around with my hands, and doing their voices in the background.
Of the "stars" of "The Ruby of Peril," I still have leading man Mint the Teddy Bear, leading lady Gigi the Beanie Baby Black Poodle, and two Pokemon beanies, dumb lackey Snorlax and law officer Psyduck. I borrowed a small stuffed penguin from a roommate to be Penny, Mint's partner, and gave a cameo that was eventually unused to someone's Spike the Dog from Rugrats. Talked my then-boyfriend into loaning me a Gengar ghost Pokemon beanie to be the head bad guy. (Neither I nor my roommates had stuffed animals that looked even remotely scary.) "Little Bear," the annoying kid sidekick, was a teddy bear keychain toy. Bartok the Bat, a Burger King kids' meal toy from when they were promoting the animated movie Anastasia, was the slightly smarter lackey. Little Bear and Bartok were donated to a thrift shop when I moved to Oaklyn.
The "sets" were whatever happened to be laying around the apartment that weekend. One of my roommates had a small fish tank, which became the backdrop for the villains' "aquarium" hide-out. Mint and Penny's "office" was the desk under my bed where my school textbooks and laptop were kept. The "ruby" itself was a costume-jewelry pendant I never wore. The bar used in the opening was the counter that separated the kitchen from the dining area. The "waterfall" where Gigi was held prisoner was the sink; she was tied to the faucet with stockings, the only things resembling rope that I could dig up quickly.
I still have all of the footage I filmed for "Ruby of Peril," along with the finished versions of "Ruby of Peril" and "Happy Days are Here Again." It took me a while to do both. I couldn't figure out how to use the editing machine at first. After that, I couldn't get the sound tracks to play nice with the video tracks, which you can hear in my introduction to "Happy Days." I dubbed my voice over a scene from the Marion Davies silent comedy Show People to give my hip college audience an idea of what I was doing, but the video doesn't kick in until a full two or three minutes after my dialogue begins...and then the song is nearly a minute late after my dialogue ends.
I did do better with "Ruby of Peril." I gave up trying to match the dialogue I'd originally filmed and just re-dubbed the entire short. This did create a problem when it came time to submit our scripts for the short films. "Ruby of Peril" had no script. I'd improvised the whole thing. I had to make a script up from scratch.
(Incidentally, I think I did get good but not great grades on both projects, reflecting their rather hasty improvised nature. I do think "Peril" came out well enough for what it was, and "Happy Days" at least had a good idea, even if I couldn't edit it well enough to come together.)
The clouds were getting darker even as I copied the "Ruby of Peril" footage to disc. The storm didn't start until long after I was already at work, though. Today's the beginning of the month, and we were really busy during the 4-6 rush hour. I had some annoying customers, too. One old lady had me chase after a big container of Folgers' coffee, insisting it was on sale. It wasn't. Only one kind of Folgers coffee was on sale. Did she want it? No, she complained. It's too weak. She'd take the original...which I'd already taken off her order and put away. I had people give me a hard time about bagging, too.
Otherwise, there were no big problems. The storm later in the evening cleared out the store. By the time I left, it was really quiet.
Started out another hot, hazy, and humid day with laundry. I got in a little earlier than I have in the past few weeks, around quarter of 11. I must have come in between spurts. I did see a couple of people, but most of the washers and driers were available. I was in and out in about an hour.
I began the next recorded disc as I put away my laundry and ate lunch. I took a film-making class during my last semester at Richard Stockton College in the fall of 2001. Two of the big projects for that class was making a music video and making a short film. I got around my lack of resources by using footage from some of the silent and early sound movies that had been donated to the Media Center a few semesters before and doing a silent comedy-themed video to the tune of the 30s hit "Happy Days are Here Again."
Doing the short movie proved to be a bit more daunting. I didn't really know anyone I could ask to appear in a movie, and I was scared to death of directing anyone. I didn't want to make people sign papers, either. I finally spent the weekend after Thanksgiving filming my "stop-motion animation" spoof of Indiana Jones-style action stories...i.e, filming stuffed animals, moving them around with my hands, and doing their voices in the background.
Of the "stars" of "The Ruby of Peril," I still have leading man Mint the Teddy Bear, leading lady Gigi the Beanie Baby Black Poodle, and two Pokemon beanies, dumb lackey Snorlax and law officer Psyduck. I borrowed a small stuffed penguin from a roommate to be Penny, Mint's partner, and gave a cameo that was eventually unused to someone's Spike the Dog from Rugrats. Talked my then-boyfriend into loaning me a Gengar ghost Pokemon beanie to be the head bad guy. (Neither I nor my roommates had stuffed animals that looked even remotely scary.) "Little Bear," the annoying kid sidekick, was a teddy bear keychain toy. Bartok the Bat, a Burger King kids' meal toy from when they were promoting the animated movie Anastasia, was the slightly smarter lackey. Little Bear and Bartok were donated to a thrift shop when I moved to Oaklyn.
The "sets" were whatever happened to be laying around the apartment that weekend. One of my roommates had a small fish tank, which became the backdrop for the villains' "aquarium" hide-out. Mint and Penny's "office" was the desk under my bed where my school textbooks and laptop were kept. The "ruby" itself was a costume-jewelry pendant I never wore. The bar used in the opening was the counter that separated the kitchen from the dining area. The "waterfall" where Gigi was held prisoner was the sink; she was tied to the faucet with stockings, the only things resembling rope that I could dig up quickly.
I still have all of the footage I filmed for "Ruby of Peril," along with the finished versions of "Ruby of Peril" and "Happy Days are Here Again." It took me a while to do both. I couldn't figure out how to use the editing machine at first. After that, I couldn't get the sound tracks to play nice with the video tracks, which you can hear in my introduction to "Happy Days." I dubbed my voice over a scene from the Marion Davies silent comedy Show People to give my hip college audience an idea of what I was doing, but the video doesn't kick in until a full two or three minutes after my dialogue begins...and then the song is nearly a minute late after my dialogue ends.
I did do better with "Ruby of Peril." I gave up trying to match the dialogue I'd originally filmed and just re-dubbed the entire short. This did create a problem when it came time to submit our scripts for the short films. "Ruby of Peril" had no script. I'd improvised the whole thing. I had to make a script up from scratch.
(Incidentally, I think I did get good but not great grades on both projects, reflecting their rather hasty improvised nature. I do think "Peril" came out well enough for what it was, and "Happy Days" at least had a good idea, even if I couldn't edit it well enough to come together.)
The clouds were getting darker even as I copied the "Ruby of Peril" footage to disc. The storm didn't start until long after I was already at work, though. Today's the beginning of the month, and we were really busy during the 4-6 rush hour. I had some annoying customers, too. One old lady had me chase after a big container of Folgers' coffee, insisting it was on sale. It wasn't. Only one kind of Folgers coffee was on sale. Did she want it? No, she complained. It's too weak. She'd take the original...which I'd already taken off her order and put away. I had people give me a hard time about bagging, too.
Otherwise, there were no big problems. The storm later in the evening cleared out the store. By the time I left, it was really quiet.
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