I've been reading the book Devil in the White City by Erik Larson which chronicles the building of the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago. As well as a serial killer who worked down the street from it. It's a fascinating read. So imagine my "Huh." when I happened upon a show on PBS about this year's World Expo in Shanghai, China. (Side note: not sure why it's no longer a "fair" and now an "expo". Wikipedia, what do you think?
Wikipedia says the official organizing body, the International Exhibitions Bureau, starting using the term "expo" in the 1960s. Sounded more highfalutin, I suppose.)
I'll be honest: I missed the beginning of Shanghai World Expo. Don't know the name of the woman who hosted. But I came in while she was visiting France's Pavilion. Its theme is the five senses. You can watch French chefs prepare French food. You can stand under "scent cones" and smell France. And they even concocted a perfume (or "parfum" to be French) especially for the Expo.
Finland's pavilion looks like a giant toilet, I'm not going to lie. It's supposed to be modeled after some rocks with holes in them, I believe. But the cool thing is the surface "scales" are recycled paper and plastic. But yes, it still reminded me of a toilet. So juvenile...
Next up was an incredibly attractive German architect explaining their pavilion called "Balance City". Inside of this beautiful man's building is a giant LED covered orb that responds to sound and swings back and forth. I wonder what kind of light show I would get from the orb if I ever met that architect.
The Danes brought the actual Little Mermaid statue!
The Dutch didn't build one structure but instead created what they call "Happy Street". I will refrain from any marijuana or Red Light District joke because I'm sure they have been made already.
China's pavilion is the largest, of course. It contains 30 sub-pavilions, representing China's provinces and some cities. This expo's Eiffel Tower is a humongous, upside down red pyramid that's two football fields wide at the base. It will be a permanent structure in Shanghai. Most of the Expo's buildings will be torn down but weirdly enough, the Finnish commode may become a restaurant somewhere.
And leave it to Japan to have a robot playing the violin.
So what did I learn from Shanghai World Expo? There's a Shanghai World Expo. Also, the Shanghai pavilion has a 360 degree movie where the audience is on a moving hydraulic platform. It's nine minutes long but the wait is a few hours. And the vertigo must be incredible! Finally, according to Toyota and the Japanese pavilion, we will all be commuting in futuristic wheelchairs. While robots play violins.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
History Detectives
Tonight's mysteries were an animation cel inked by a lady communist, papers detailing the freeing of a New Orleans slave, and a dagger that possibly may have been Mussolini's (Spoiler: it's not!).
I shall back up. History Detectives is the love child of Antiques Roadshow and CSI. It features five "detectives", each of whom are either professor/authors or appraisers/something else. And people contact them because their grandparent or great uncle or someone had something that may be something. And the Detectives investigate! They come back to the owner and say, "Listen to this cool story..." or they say, "Your grandfather probably embellished his Mussolini dagger tale."
History Detectives also has little filler "Fun facts!" segments. Tonight had a spot about checking signatures for authenticity. So if you're interested in forging, here are things to be careful about:
- Check archives for sample penmanship to compare with your document.
- Take special note of t's, i's and loops.
- Look at spacing and slanting.
- See if the pen came up off the paper mid-signature. This indicates hesitancy and may be a fake.
- Also, use a microscope and infra-red light because everyone has those handy.
Now here is my very own "Fun Facts!" segment: the History Detectives website has games! I just did a sample case and I am a five-star history detective. You can also answer questions to see which History Detective you are most like. I am most like Elyse the appraiser/art historian.
So what did I learn from tonight's History Detectives? Forgery takes practice. Slaves in New Orleans had Sundays off and many freelanced to earn extra money ("Extra money" here means "money"). And I learned that it delights me to no end that the theme is Elvis Costello's "Watching the Detectives".
Have that song in your head? You're welcome.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
WETA!
Well, along with moving to a new apartment, work and doing silly things that have kept me from the TV, I am now on a business trip. For five days, I wander around the convention section of the Gaylord National with a 4"x6" badge around my neck which keeps getting into my free conference food at meal times. The Gaylord National is in the DC area in the newly named National Harbor in Maryland. Fancy digs.
Last night at the conference was a free night i.e. mercifully unplanned, non-networking evening. My colleague scored tickets to see Chess at Signature Theatre in Arlington, VA. (Fun Theatre Nerd Fact: there's also a Signature Theatre [Company] in New York!) So car rented, GPS engaged, "One Night in Bangkok" already in a loop in my head. When we arrived at a gas station (since Hertz thought an eighth of a tank was a great way to send tourists off into the night), I spotted across the street...WETA! WETA is the Washington area PBS station. It's home to the PBS News Hour as well as Washington Week...which makes a lot of sense. And it's been "the production partner of filmmaker Ken Burns for more than twenty years"! According to Wikipedia!
I almost had my picture taken in front of the Gwen Ifill poster but my friend insisted on the Ken Burns one:
And this one got some looks...mainly because friend was on his back on the sidewalk taking the photo:
What did I learn? Friends are enablers. And you can't escape PBS!
Photo credit: Skypp Cabanas using my point-and-shoot.
Last night at the conference was a free night i.e. mercifully unplanned, non-networking evening. My colleague scored tickets to see Chess at Signature Theatre in Arlington, VA. (Fun Theatre Nerd Fact: there's also a Signature Theatre [Company] in New York!) So car rented, GPS engaged, "One Night in Bangkok" already in a loop in my head. When we arrived at a gas station (since Hertz thought an eighth of a tank was a great way to send tourists off into the night), I spotted across the street...WETA! WETA is the Washington area PBS station. It's home to the PBS News Hour as well as Washington Week...which makes a lot of sense. And it's been "the production partner of filmmaker Ken Burns for more than twenty years"! According to Wikipedia!
I almost had my picture taken in front of the Gwen Ifill poster but my friend insisted on the Ken Burns one:
And this one got some looks...mainly because friend was on his back on the sidewalk taking the photo:
What did I learn? Friends are enablers. And you can't escape PBS!
Photo credit: Skypp Cabanas using my point-and-shoot.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
"Favorites"
That's what was listed in my online TV listings. So yeah, I turned over.
A John Denver special.
I really don't have much of an opinion on John Denver. My mom had one of his albums. And I remember that he once hosted The Muppet Show. That's all I got.
So what did I learn from the two minutes that I watched this "Favorite"? Sunshine always makes him high. And that sunshine was at one point on his shoulders.
A John Denver special.
I really don't have much of an opinion on John Denver. My mom had one of his albums. And I remember that he once hosted The Muppet Show. That's all I got.
So what did I learn from the two minutes that I watched this "Favorite"? Sunshine always makes him high. And that sunshine was at one point on his shoulders.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
The Botany of Desire
KOCE reran The Botany of Desire last night. I didn't rewatch it but I have notes. Notes that I was going to type up when it originally aired but then was distracted by a capella dudes known as Straight, No Chaser. So let's see how much I can decipher and write up into coherent sentences...
The Botany of Desire is based on a book by Michael Pollan. Take a quick peek at his Wikipedia page and at the top, you are greeted with this italicized comment:
This article is about the author and food activist. For the Monty Python actor with a similar name, see Michael Palin.
So really: all you need to know. Most of his books are about food and not Bicycle Repairman. However, to throw you a curve, The Botany of Desire is about plants and how they evolved with humans. The four plants represent four human desires: Apple=Sweet, Tulip=Beauty, Cannabis=Intoxication, and Potato=Control.
I will know begin an extended "What did I learn...?" segment by trying to figure out my handwriting in my notebook. So enjoy some random facts!
Apples: Johnny Appleseed brought Hard Cider to the West. Trees may not be the same as the trees that gave the seeds. Apples came from Kazakhstan. Fruit of Knowledge from The Bible most likely a pomegranate and not an apple. "The problem is that it's boring. Sweetness. If that's all you get." Someone likes their women spicy!
Tulips: A garden in the Netherlands has around 2,300 varieties. Angiosperm means plants that produce flowers (I verified this on Dictionary.com). Wild tulips came up through Central Asia. 1634-1637 was known as "Tulip Mania" in the Netherlands (Disclosure: I can't remember if that was my term or Michael Pollan's). There are places known as "Plant Brothels" where new varieties of tulips are made. I definitely can't take credit for "Plant Brothels".
Cannabis: The only known people who don't have intoxicants are the Inuits because nothing grows in the snow (I find that hard to believe. I'm sure there's some blubber wine or something that they're hiding from us). The female of the cannabis species produces the psychoactive resin. They keep them away from males so that they produce more resin. Yes, growers are keeping their lady plants hot and bothered for our psychoactive pleasure.
Potatoes: Originated in the Andes Mountains. In the wild, potatoes are poisonous if they turn green. The potato helped move people north because it did well in crappy weather and soil. The Irish planted only one kind of potato and then a ship from South America brought a fungus that killed that one variety. Potato Famine! This gives Pollan more ammunition in his anti-monoculture stance. Grow lots of varieties he says. McDonald's not helping with this: they only use Russet Burbank potatoes. Those Monocultural Monsters...
Final The Botany of Desire quotes from Michael Pollan: "Get away from monoculture." "Nature resists our control." "I'm Michael J. Fox's brother-in-law."
OK, he didn't say that last one but according to Wikipedia he's Tracy Pollan's brother. And not, in any way, related to Michael Palin.
Photo courtesy of Amazon.com
The Botany of Desire is based on a book by Michael Pollan. Take a quick peek at his Wikipedia page and at the top, you are greeted with this italicized comment:
This article is about the author and food activist. For the Monty Python actor with a similar name, see Michael Palin.
So really: all you need to know. Most of his books are about food and not Bicycle Repairman. However, to throw you a curve, The Botany of Desire is about plants and how they evolved with humans. The four plants represent four human desires: Apple=Sweet, Tulip=Beauty, Cannabis=Intoxication, and Potato=Control.
I will know begin an extended "What did I learn...?" segment by trying to figure out my handwriting in my notebook. So enjoy some random facts!
Apples: Johnny Appleseed brought Hard Cider to the West. Trees may not be the same as the trees that gave the seeds. Apples came from Kazakhstan. Fruit of Knowledge from The Bible most likely a pomegranate and not an apple. "The problem is that it's boring. Sweetness. If that's all you get." Someone likes their women spicy!
Tulips: A garden in the Netherlands has around 2,300 varieties. Angiosperm means plants that produce flowers (I verified this on Dictionary.com). Wild tulips came up through Central Asia. 1634-1637 was known as "Tulip Mania" in the Netherlands (Disclosure: I can't remember if that was my term or Michael Pollan's). There are places known as "Plant Brothels" where new varieties of tulips are made. I definitely can't take credit for "Plant Brothels".
Cannabis: The only known people who don't have intoxicants are the Inuits because nothing grows in the snow (I find that hard to believe. I'm sure there's some blubber wine or something that they're hiding from us). The female of the cannabis species produces the psychoactive resin. They keep them away from males so that they produce more resin. Yes, growers are keeping their lady plants hot and bothered for our psychoactive pleasure.
Potatoes: Originated in the Andes Mountains. In the wild, potatoes are poisonous if they turn green. The potato helped move people north because it did well in crappy weather and soil. The Irish planted only one kind of potato and then a ship from South America brought a fungus that killed that one variety. Potato Famine! This gives Pollan more ammunition in his anti-monoculture stance. Grow lots of varieties he says. McDonald's not helping with this: they only use Russet Burbank potatoes. Those Monocultural Monsters...
Final The Botany of Desire quotes from Michael Pollan: "Get away from monoculture." "Nature resists our control." "I'm Michael J. Fox's brother-in-law."
OK, he didn't say that last one but according to Wikipedia he's Tracy Pollan's brother. And not, in any way, related to Michael Palin.
Photo courtesy of Amazon.com
Sunday, July 4, 2010
French In Action
It's Sunday morning--I'm sorry, I meant Dimanche matin--and French In Action is on. Turns out I've come across it before but it was always when Le Vieux Professeur was rattling off rapid-fire French to the camera. Now I took French in high school and college (I actually "lettered" in French I and II in high school. And they gave me an actual letter patch like you would sew on a varsity jacket. To which I thought, "Oh. That's what that means." For French II, I got a pin...to pin on the letter, I assume. I wasn't sporty so the whole "letter jacket" concept was all Greek to me. And I spoke French. Ha! Comedy is the universal language...) Anyway, back to Le Vieux Professeur. I could only pick out a few words here and there as I admired his hair (I kept thinking of Bugs Bunny as "Leopold!" the conductor). I then immediately felt that I was a poser to own that letter and pin so I switched the channel. Today, however, I sat and watched.
French In Action is described on the KLCS website as:
"A 52-part telecourse introduces the French language and culture to viewers by way of a romantic comedy, filmed in France."
A romantic comedy! That explains a lot...or not really. Today's episode was Mireille and Robert on a date. And Le Vieux Professeur--that is how he is listed in the credits--was explaining the difference between "entendre" and "attendre". He cupped his hand to his ear for "entendre" (to hear) and sat back and crossed his arms for "attendre" (to wait). Even though I already knew those verbs, I thought, "Hey, I'll be able to follow along." It goes back to Mireille and Robert speaking with the waiter. And during that exchange, it cuts to some little girl and her mother sitting on a sofa. And then it goes back to the date. And then back to Leopold putting a cap on a pen. He then puts on a smaller cap that doesn't fit onto the pen. I don't know what the hell is going on. And to make matters worse, a few seconds later, it cuts to a guy in makeup and a bowler cap laughing at someone with the words "se moquer" underneath. "To make fun of" is what it says. Like, "Ha ha, Mandy, French In Action is mocking you."
Well, two can play that game: Hey, Mireille, I know this is 1987 but France had bras back then. Do you "entend" me?
French In Action is described on the KLCS website as:
"A 52-part telecourse introduces the French language and culture to viewers by way of a romantic comedy, filmed in France."
A romantic comedy! That explains a lot...or not really. Today's episode was Mireille and Robert on a date. And Le Vieux Professeur--that is how he is listed in the credits--was explaining the difference between "entendre" and "attendre". He cupped his hand to his ear for "entendre" (to hear) and sat back and crossed his arms for "attendre" (to wait). Even though I already knew those verbs, I thought, "Hey, I'll be able to follow along." It goes back to Mireille and Robert speaking with the waiter. And during that exchange, it cuts to some little girl and her mother sitting on a sofa. And then it goes back to the date. And then back to Leopold putting a cap on a pen. He then puts on a smaller cap that doesn't fit onto the pen. I don't know what the hell is going on. And to make matters worse, a few seconds later, it cuts to a guy in makeup and a bowler cap laughing at someone with the words "se moquer" underneath. "To make fun of" is what it says. Like, "Ha ha, Mandy, French In Action is mocking you."
Well, two can play that game: Hey, Mireille, I know this is 1987 but France had bras back then. Do you "entend" me?
What did I learn from French In Action? Robert quit university. Mireille teased him about it. Mireille teases her bangs. Some little girl wants to eat lots of "bonbons" but what does that have to do with Mireille and Robert? I have aucune idée.
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Straight No Chaser: Live in New York
PBS, bless your heart. Where do you find these random bunch-of-guys-singing acts? I have never, ever heard of these dudes but here they are with their own PBS pledge special. And it's still on. I was actually going to write about the documentary Botany of Desire that was on a few days ago but I can't stop watching these ten guys dressed like Reservoir Dogs singing "Africa" by Toto. (They did songs like "Stand By Me" that make sense but they also did "Wonderwall" by Oasis. Now you know why I'm still watching.)
They have a website. You can check for gig dates. You can listen to some of the songs off their new album With a Twist. You know what the first song listed is? "Tainted Love"! First, "Wonderwall" and now "Tainted Love". I think I might like them. And according to the track listing of their album, they do "Under the Bridge". Now a capella, to me, is inherently upbeat. You know, all a capella singers look so, for lack of a better word, chipper. So "Under the Bridge": a song about shooting up heroin under an overpass. I just can't imagine--
Sorry for the interruption but they are now doing their theme song: "We're gonna give it to you straight! No chaser!"
--that song being done...chipper. But, alas, I didn't get to see them perform that one--
Another interruption: the PBS Pledge announcer guy just said, "...and the very special version of Wonderwall." I love it!
--so I'll never know if taking smack puts a spring in your step.
What did I learn (or still learning) from Straight No Chaser: Live in New York? Straight No Chaser will be at the Wiltern in December. More importantly, there's a singing group called Straight No Chaser. And PBS loves guys singing.
They have a website. You can check for gig dates. You can listen to some of the songs off their new album With a Twist. You know what the first song listed is? "Tainted Love"! First, "Wonderwall" and now "Tainted Love". I think I might like them. And according to the track listing of their album, they do "Under the Bridge". Now a capella, to me, is inherently upbeat. You know, all a capella singers look so, for lack of a better word, chipper. So "Under the Bridge": a song about shooting up heroin under an overpass. I just can't imagine--
Sorry for the interruption but they are now doing their theme song: "We're gonna give it to you straight! No chaser!"
--that song being done...chipper. But, alas, I didn't get to see them perform that one--
Another interruption: the PBS Pledge announcer guy just said, "...and the very special version of Wonderwall." I love it!
--so I'll never know if taking smack puts a spring in your step.
What did I learn (or still learning) from Straight No Chaser: Live in New York? Straight No Chaser will be at the Wiltern in December. More importantly, there's a singing group called Straight No Chaser. And PBS loves guys singing.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom with Dr. Christiane Northrup AND Elaine Paige: Celebrating a Life on Stage
Tonight I watched two PBS Pledge specials back to back. I know! You would think it was Christmas. Both featured two highly revered ladies with decades of experience in their areas. One sings and the other talks about menopause. Can you guess who said/sang what?
- Don't Cry For Me, Argentina.
- Menstrual blood has stem cells in it.
- Most people don't get enough iodine since converting to sea salt.
- I Dreamed a Dream.
- Think of your body as a tree.
- Think of your body as an organic garden.
- I Know Him So Well.
- I Don't Know How To Love Him.
- The umbilical cord can pulsate up to 30 minutes after birth if not clamped right away.
- Memory.
(RE: Memory. In high school, I was a full-time Broadway musical geek. And yet I fell asleep during Cats. Just sayin'. Also, tonight when the intro to Memory started, most of the audience clapped. After that died down, Elaine Paige sang "Midnight..." and a few more clapped. Personally, I think those people should be evicted from the theatre. Because really? One of the most famous songs ever and you don't know it until the lyrics start? Tsk tsk.)
So what else did I learn from the Diva and the OB/GYN? That Elaine Paige can continue performing well past menopause if she follows her inner body wisdom and cuts down to under 15 grams of sugar a day.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Masterpiece Mystery: Miss Marple "The Mirror Crack'd From Side to Side"
I did not mean to intentionally skip the three Foyle's War episodes of Masterpiece Mystery. I just got busy with life. And by life I mean work, errands and the Lost series finale.
So Miss Marple. With her and Hercule Poirot and all the other classic sleuths, I cannot help but think of the brilliant movie Murder By Death. (This and What's Up, Doc? are two of my all-time favorite comedies. They will both forever make me laugh.) If you love Agatha Christie, check it out. Bonus! Truman Capote as Lionel Twain.
OK. Back to Miss Marple. I don't see how anyone cannot enjoy a good old-fashioned Agatha Christie mystery. They are just so "That's curious", "Something struck me as odd" and "Inspector, you are over looking the obvious!" And of course, I always try to work out the mystery along with Miss Marple. I'm usually wrong. Probably because I don't have the advantage of constantly coming across murders wherever I go like the Miss. There was a great exchange in The Mirror Crack'd... when the Inspector tells Miss Marple that it was quite the coincidence that the woman who helped her with her ankle is now dead. And all Miss Marple says is "Yep." (Paraphrase.)
Perhaps once I watch more of the Marple, I'll be able to catch on better. Although, I was overdoing it last night: I was convinced that the movie star's much younger husband was actually her adopted son. Why? I don't listen to Miss Marple when she says "Don't overlook the obvious." Well, in my defense, she had the script and I didn't.
Quick recap of Mirror Crack'd: Movie star Marina Gregg buys Marple's pal estate. Neighbor dies at garden party at estate. And then it goes from there. (Want to know who did it? Spoiler below!)
Miss Marple is played by Julia McKenzie...from Cranford! Weird that I saw her as Marple last year and did not make the connection when Cranford rolled around. But when I watched Mirror Crack'd, I thought, "The lady with Bessie the cow!" That's yet another thing I love so much about the Masterpiece Theatre shows: you see a lot of the same actors and since they are not famous in America, you feel like they are your own personal discovery. (Although Mirror Crack'd did have Joanna Lumley as Marple's nosy friend Dolly and Lindsay Duncan as the murderer...sorry, I meant to say the movie star, Marina Gregg. I would say that between AbFab and HBO's Rome, respectively, they are fairly known in the US.) But is Hugh Bonneville a household name? In my household, yes. He might be recognized from Notting Hill but he was also in Lost in Austen, the Mansfield Park movie and here he plays the Inspector with a bum arm. Which is never explained. Maybe he shows up again to explain it! *hopeful clap clap*
To further express my Masterpiece Actor Nerdom, I should confess that I always go to IMDB and look up the cast. So that I can say to myself, "I knew I recognized the girl who played the photographer! She was on Foyle's War two weeks ago!"
What did I learn from Miss Marple: The Mirror Crack'd From Side to Side? I see these actors more than my relatives.
So Miss Marple. With her and Hercule Poirot and all the other classic sleuths, I cannot help but think of the brilliant movie Murder By Death. (This and What's Up, Doc? are two of my all-time favorite comedies. They will both forever make me laugh.) If you love Agatha Christie, check it out. Bonus! Truman Capote as Lionel Twain.
OK. Back to Miss Marple. I don't see how anyone cannot enjoy a good old-fashioned Agatha Christie mystery. They are just so "That's curious", "Something struck me as odd" and "Inspector, you are over looking the obvious!" And of course, I always try to work out the mystery along with Miss Marple. I'm usually wrong. Probably because I don't have the advantage of constantly coming across murders wherever I go like the Miss. There was a great exchange in The Mirror Crack'd... when the Inspector tells Miss Marple that it was quite the coincidence that the woman who helped her with her ankle is now dead. And all Miss Marple says is "Yep." (Paraphrase.)
Perhaps once I watch more of the Marple, I'll be able to catch on better. Although, I was overdoing it last night: I was convinced that the movie star's much younger husband was actually her adopted son. Why? I don't listen to Miss Marple when she says "Don't overlook the obvious." Well, in my defense, she had the script and I didn't.
Quick recap of Mirror Crack'd: Movie star Marina Gregg buys Marple's pal estate. Neighbor dies at garden party at estate. And then it goes from there. (Want to know who did it? Spoiler below!)
Miss Marple is played by Julia McKenzie...from Cranford! Weird that I saw her as Marple last year and did not make the connection when Cranford rolled around. But when I watched Mirror Crack'd, I thought, "The lady with Bessie the cow!" That's yet another thing I love so much about the Masterpiece Theatre shows: you see a lot of the same actors and since they are not famous in America, you feel like they are your own personal discovery. (Although Mirror Crack'd did have Joanna Lumley as Marple's nosy friend Dolly and Lindsay Duncan as the murderer...sorry, I meant to say the movie star, Marina Gregg. I would say that between AbFab and HBO's Rome, respectively, they are fairly known in the US.) But is Hugh Bonneville a household name? In my household, yes. He might be recognized from Notting Hill but he was also in Lost in Austen, the Mansfield Park movie and here he plays the Inspector with a bum arm. Which is never explained. Maybe he shows up again to explain it! *hopeful clap clap*
To further express my Masterpiece Actor Nerdom, I should confess that I always go to IMDB and look up the cast. So that I can say to myself, "I knew I recognized the girl who played the photographer! She was on Foyle's War two weeks ago!"
What did I learn from Miss Marple: The Mirror Crack'd From Side to Side? I see these actors more than my relatives.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
American Experience: Into the Deep: America, Whaling and the World
Whaling. Would I have ever watched this had I not been reading Moby Dick? That's easy to answer: no. I would have read the description, passed judgment and then seriously considered Dancing With the Stars. But because of The Whale, I actively reminded myself and made sure my snacks were in place for the 8 pm start time. (A quick moment to explain why Moby Dick since I'm obviously not in tenth grade: NPR's Monkey See blog started the "I Will If You Will" Book Club Dare. First book was Twilight. If you read my other blog, it goes without saying that I did not read along with that one. So Moby Dick is a natural second choice, right? Palate cleanse, I call it.) OK, ready, set, whale.
I took a lot of notes. And was amazed by how much I've retained so far from Moby Dick. It's a bit of work to get through some chapters. But as Into the Deep explained whaling techniques tonight, I impressed myself with the faint ennui of "yawn, I know this already". Wake me when you have some relevatory spermaceti facts. (Explanation! Spermaceti is the coveted substance inside the sperm whale's head. According to the show, it is "clear as vodka" but when air hits it, it looks like semen. Hence the name.)
All the spermaceti talk, history of whaling, and other details are hung upon the story of the Essex whaling ship that sunk in 1820 as a result of a sperm whale ramming into the side of it. The survivors took to lifeboats and made a really bad decision. "Hey, let's not go to the near island because there may be cannibals. Instead, let's go three times as far back to South America, get off course, and then resort to cannibalism to stay alive!"
Herman Melville was inspired (or obsessed, more like) by the Essex tragedy to write his whale adventure that he was convinced was his masterpiece. The general public? Not as convinced. According to the show, America was all about the West and whaling was "out".
Celebrity Voice Over Alert! Willem Defoe narrates and Robert Sean Leonard reads the Moby Dick passages. He even makes a brief appearance where he looks at the camera and says (and I say simultaneously because I know it's coming), "Call me, Ishmael." I then grabbed the remote to mute because I'm only on Chapter LXXI.
But prior to spoilers, what did I learn from Into the Deep?
There was a Golden Age of Whaling. About 1820 to the Civil War. After that whaling declined and, towards the end of WWI, whale ships made more money as props in silent movies than in whaling.
After a whale is harpooned, one of three things can happen: whale smashes boat, whale dives down deep, whale takes off. Whale taking off was known as "Nantucket Sleigh Ride" because the boats are dragged by the fleeing whale.
Another fun whale phrase is "Chimneys Afire!" AKA multiple-stabbed whale spouting blood out of its blowhole. Clever.
Oh, and the fact that the "sperm" in sperm whale actually refers to sperm. I guess I was giving it the benefit of the doubt...
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Great Performances: Hamlet
Spoiler Warning!
No, not the fact that almost all the characters die at the end. The spoiler is this: Claudius, played by Patrick Stewart, when threatened with the poisoned rapier by Hamlet to drink the poisoned wine, shrugs. Yes, shrugs! As in, "Might as well." It's a moment that I ran back two or three times to make sure I wasn't hallucinating. And you know what? I loved it! Yes, I laughed. And although it was pretty jarring in such a tragic scene, I loved it. Why? Because that one little shrug said everything. "Well, Hamlet is pretty much dead, my wife is dead, and I've been exposed as a murderer, so..." One would expect a long dramatic pause coupled with "forgive me" eyes that would take up a few minutes of screen time. Oh no. Stewart said, "Let's just cut to the chase." Shrug. Drink. Done.
And you want to know how much the shrug captivated me? I mentioned that first and not the fact that David Tennant played Hamlet. Or the fact that Tennant wears jeans, no shoes and a red, t-shirt with a six-packed torso printed on it. Or the fact that he's quite good. And in jeans.
This Hamlet is not quite the filmed stage version that I expected, although the same Royal Shakespeare Company director and cast return to reprise their roles. Instead, they use real locations as well as footage from surveillance cameras at times to coincide with the modern take. But that doesn't mean the performances are taken down to minute, eye-twitch film levels. There's still passion a-poppin'! Weeping, clutching, yelling, jumping in graves, crazy talk. All that tragic Shakespearey goodness.
Just want to take a moment to give a shout out to Horatio. I love that character and could go on and on about how Horatio and Hamlet are the true love story. No, I'm not suggesting that Horatio and Hamlet were lovers. I just believe that their friendship and trust was the through line of the play and the only one unbroken. Blah, blah, blah, nothing new, I'll stop. Just give Horatio the props he deserves.
What did I learn from this Hamlet? *shrugs*
No, not the fact that almost all the characters die at the end. The spoiler is this: Claudius, played by Patrick Stewart, when threatened with the poisoned rapier by Hamlet to drink the poisoned wine, shrugs. Yes, shrugs! As in, "Might as well." It's a moment that I ran back two or three times to make sure I wasn't hallucinating. And you know what? I loved it! Yes, I laughed. And although it was pretty jarring in such a tragic scene, I loved it. Why? Because that one little shrug said everything. "Well, Hamlet is pretty much dead, my wife is dead, and I've been exposed as a murderer, so..." One would expect a long dramatic pause coupled with "forgive me" eyes that would take up a few minutes of screen time. Oh no. Stewart said, "Let's just cut to the chase." Shrug. Drink. Done.
And you want to know how much the shrug captivated me? I mentioned that first and not the fact that David Tennant played Hamlet. Or the fact that Tennant wears jeans, no shoes and a red, t-shirt with a six-packed torso printed on it. Or the fact that he's quite good. And in jeans.
This Hamlet is not quite the filmed stage version that I expected, although the same Royal Shakespeare Company director and cast return to reprise their roles. Instead, they use real locations as well as footage from surveillance cameras at times to coincide with the modern take. But that doesn't mean the performances are taken down to minute, eye-twitch film levels. There's still passion a-poppin'! Weeping, clutching, yelling, jumping in graves, crazy talk. All that tragic Shakespearey goodness.
Just want to take a moment to give a shout out to Horatio. I love that character and could go on and on about how Horatio and Hamlet are the true love story. No, I'm not suggesting that Horatio and Hamlet were lovers. I just believe that their friendship and trust was the through line of the play and the only one unbroken. Blah, blah, blah, nothing new, I'll stop. Just give Horatio the props he deserves.
What did I learn from this Hamlet? *shrugs*
Monday, April 19, 2010
Big Bird PBS Ad
A little girl answers her door to find Big Bird standing there. Big Bird takes her hand. He leads the girl to the tearing down of the Berlin Wall, on a safari, marching through a Suffrage demonstration, to a ballet, through the markets in India and then to the Moon.
Am I the only cynic who thought, "Big Bird just abducted that child!"? (He did bring her home after their adventures but...sigh. It just shows that my innocence is lost...)
Oh, and there's the other PBS Ad where the mom is reading to her child and Jim Lehrer, some animated character, the This Old House guy (I think) and others are in the room, making comments.
I, of course, thought, "That child is going to have nightmares."
What did I learn from those ads? Time to reclaim my sense of wonder. Or to check for Jim Lehrer under my bed each night...
Sunday, April 11, 2010
The Buddha
At one point in The Buddha, an interviewee recites a quote about reincarnation: "like going through junior high over and over again." So that's how Buddhism gets around the "no Hell" thing. Make everyone re-live their awkward phases for lifetime after lifetime. Makes me shudder.
I was looking forward to this two hour film by David Grubin because I don't really know much at all about Buddha except for what Deepak Chopra would tweet. (Confession: I hated to do it but I de-followed him on Twitter because he over-tweeted. Five tweets in a row? No, Deepak, I only tolerate five tweets a day from each Twit.)
The Buddha tells the story of Prince Siddhartha and his enlightenment into the Buddha with some history and commentary and cartoons and Richard Gere voice-overs along the way. His mom the Queen had a dream that he would either be a bigtime ruler or the Buddha. The King was partial to the former so he sheltered the heck out of Siddhartha. Food, entertainment, chicks, you name it. Long story short: Siddhartha ventures out of the kingdom four times and sees first a sick man, then an old man, then a dead man, and then on the fourth trip he sees a spiritual seeker. He learns that he can get sick, he will grow old and he will die. So he wants to know how to escape that pain. Longer story shorter: he seeks, he fasts, he sits under the bodhi tree, he's tested by some crazy-armed lord of temptation god and then he becomes the Buddha. I'm sure I left some stuff out.
I find all of this fascinating but I'll admit that I watched it late at night and I briefly fell asleep. And weirdly, I woke up to Buddha saying, "Remember me as the one who woke up." Huh. And there was more nuggets of wisdom prior to my catnap so...
What did I learn from The Buddha?
Favorite quote about Balance: "The string is too tight, it snaps and the music dies. The string is too slack, it makes no sound and the music dies. There is a middle way." (Buddhism according to Goldilocks!)
Siddhartha called his newborn son, Fetter. He called his son "ball and chain"! And then he took off to seek. This was before he learned the whole 'balance' thing, I guess.
"No knowledge won without sacrifice." And "in order to gain anything, you must first lose everything." To me that means, "give up that ignorance, folks."
Four Noble Truths: 1. There is suffering (dissatisfaction) in the world. 2. Our minds cause suffering. 3. You can be free of suffering by understanding the cause. 4. Follow the Eightfold Path. (They didn't go into the Eightfold Path but I have them in my notes somewhere from a Deepak PBS Pledge Drive special. Not from his tweets.)
Buddhism is about being ordinary and doing human things. Everyone can be a Buddha.
Pay attention. Balance. Compassion. Be smart about desires. Change must come from within. Everything is connected. Everyday life is already miraculous. The Buddha is available on BluRay and DVD.
And check out the Buddha Mahjong game! Here!
I was looking forward to this two hour film by David Grubin because I don't really know much at all about Buddha except for what Deepak Chopra would tweet. (Confession: I hated to do it but I de-followed him on Twitter because he over-tweeted. Five tweets in a row? No, Deepak, I only tolerate five tweets a day from each Twit.)
The Buddha tells the story of Prince Siddhartha and his enlightenment into the Buddha with some history and commentary and cartoons and Richard Gere voice-overs along the way. His mom the Queen had a dream that he would either be a bigtime ruler or the Buddha. The King was partial to the former so he sheltered the heck out of Siddhartha. Food, entertainment, chicks, you name it. Long story short: Siddhartha ventures out of the kingdom four times and sees first a sick man, then an old man, then a dead man, and then on the fourth trip he sees a spiritual seeker. He learns that he can get sick, he will grow old and he will die. So he wants to know how to escape that pain. Longer story shorter: he seeks, he fasts, he sits under the bodhi tree, he's tested by some crazy-armed lord of temptation god and then he becomes the Buddha. I'm sure I left some stuff out.
I find all of this fascinating but I'll admit that I watched it late at night and I briefly fell asleep. And weirdly, I woke up to Buddha saying, "Remember me as the one who woke up." Huh. And there was more nuggets of wisdom prior to my catnap so...
What did I learn from The Buddha?
Favorite quote about Balance: "The string is too tight, it snaps and the music dies. The string is too slack, it makes no sound and the music dies. There is a middle way." (Buddhism according to Goldilocks!)
Siddhartha called his newborn son, Fetter. He called his son "ball and chain"! And then he took off to seek. This was before he learned the whole 'balance' thing, I guess.
"No knowledge won without sacrifice." And "in order to gain anything, you must first lose everything." To me that means, "give up that ignorance, folks."
Four Noble Truths: 1. There is suffering (dissatisfaction) in the world. 2. Our minds cause suffering. 3. You can be free of suffering by understanding the cause. 4. Follow the Eightfold Path. (They didn't go into the Eightfold Path but I have them in my notes somewhere from a Deepak PBS Pledge Drive special. Not from his tweets.)
Buddhism is about being ordinary and doing human things. Everyone can be a Buddha.
Pay attention. Balance. Compassion. Be smart about desires. Change must come from within. Everything is connected. Everyday life is already miraculous. The Buddha is available on BluRay and DVD.
And check out the Buddha Mahjong game! Here!
Friday, April 2, 2010
Masterpiece Classic: Sharpe's Challenge
I'm new to Sharpe's world. So new in fact that I thought this was the first Sharpe movie. IMDB laughed and said, "Silly child, this is the 15th Sharpe movie." For those of you who thought Sean Bean sat around between Patriot Games and Lord of the Rings, you are sadly mistaken. And when I say you, I mean me. He-of-the-Awesome-Name was starring in fourteen Sharpes. (And I love that they are all named "Sharpe's something". Like Sharpe's Rifle and Sharpe's Battle. And at sixteen movies with next week's Sharpe's Peril, they're going to start running out of manly, adventurey words. Can't wait for Sharpe's Holiday!)
So Sharpe's Challenge can really only be described correctly using the word "swashbuckling". There are sword fights and damsels in distress and cannons and rifles and drinking and femme fatales and traitors and other stuff my dad loves. (Mental note: ask Dad if he's read the novels by Bernard Cornwell and if not, birthday gift done.) Challenge opens with the traitorous Dodd slaughtering the entire British army unit in an Indian camp. Dodd left no one alive...or did he? Yep, Sharpe was there and witnessed the whole thing. While playing dead. Dodd is played by Toby Stephens aka Maggie Smith's son. I have only seen Stephens play bad guys like the Bond villain in Die Another Day. And because of his skill at being smarmy and ambitious and evil, he creeps me out. But I'm sure he's lovely in person.
Years after that massacre, Sharpe is back in India to find a friend who will soon become his Irish sidekick, Harper. Then the two have to rescue General Burroughs' daughter who was kidnapped by...wait for it...Dodd! Dodd "gifted" her to the evil Raja. Dodd is in cahoots with the Raja's Regent played by Padma Laksmi. Yes, all you Top Chef fans: Padma is playing a conniving ex-concubine. There's a great scene where Dodd's men cut off a British lieutenent's head and I immediately thought, "Utensils down! Hands up!" I'm a Top Chef nerd.
Meanwhile, Sharpe is having to contend with the British troops that aren't stepping up fast enough to attack the Raja. Specifically, General Simmerson. Simmerson is the character that hates Sharpe for some past reason or perhaps no reason at all. Sharpe interrupts Simmerson while he's getting his hair cut. Simmerson says, "What fresh madness is this?" (I'm stealing that line.) And Sharpe says he's going to rescue the daughter. Simmerson says, "I don't mind if you do die..." Sharpe: "If that's permission..." Simmerson: "Go and die." Not quite "good luck".
As this was set in British-occupied India, Challenge did a good job of balancing Brits and Indians being both good guys and bad guys. Although both main good Indians, the cavalry leader and the Raja's sister, said something along the line of "I'm helping you but I really don't want you here". But the cavalry guy apologizes to Sharpe after the final battle and he's dying. Perhaps he expired before saying, "But really consider leaving our country please."
One negative of Challenge: the British officer Bickerstaff who was so over the top and Dickensian in his villainy that I thought he was going to break out into "Master of the House".
What did I learn from Sharpe's Challenge? How to use "parlay" and "brigands" in a sentence. Evil conspirators' romances never last. In the middle of battle, respond to your inferiors by saying, "Damnit man. I will not have my story interrupted."
So Sharpe's Challenge can really only be described correctly using the word "swashbuckling". There are sword fights and damsels in distress and cannons and rifles and drinking and femme fatales and traitors and other stuff my dad loves. (Mental note: ask Dad if he's read the novels by Bernard Cornwell and if not, birthday gift done.) Challenge opens with the traitorous Dodd slaughtering the entire British army unit in an Indian camp. Dodd left no one alive...or did he? Yep, Sharpe was there and witnessed the whole thing. While playing dead. Dodd is played by Toby Stephens aka Maggie Smith's son. I have only seen Stephens play bad guys like the Bond villain in Die Another Day. And because of his skill at being smarmy and ambitious and evil, he creeps me out. But I'm sure he's lovely in person.
Years after that massacre, Sharpe is back in India to find a friend who will soon become his Irish sidekick, Harper. Then the two have to rescue General Burroughs' daughter who was kidnapped by...wait for it...Dodd! Dodd "gifted" her to the evil Raja. Dodd is in cahoots with the Raja's Regent played by Padma Laksmi. Yes, all you Top Chef fans: Padma is playing a conniving ex-concubine. There's a great scene where Dodd's men cut off a British lieutenent's head and I immediately thought, "Utensils down! Hands up!" I'm a Top Chef nerd.
Meanwhile, Sharpe is having to contend with the British troops that aren't stepping up fast enough to attack the Raja. Specifically, General Simmerson. Simmerson is the character that hates Sharpe for some past reason or perhaps no reason at all. Sharpe interrupts Simmerson while he's getting his hair cut. Simmerson says, "What fresh madness is this?" (I'm stealing that line.) And Sharpe says he's going to rescue the daughter. Simmerson says, "I don't mind if you do die..." Sharpe: "If that's permission..." Simmerson: "Go and die." Not quite "good luck".
As this was set in British-occupied India, Challenge did a good job of balancing Brits and Indians being both good guys and bad guys. Although both main good Indians, the cavalry leader and the Raja's sister, said something along the line of "I'm helping you but I really don't want you here". But the cavalry guy apologizes to Sharpe after the final battle and he's dying. Perhaps he expired before saying, "But really consider leaving our country please."
One negative of Challenge: the British officer Bickerstaff who was so over the top and Dickensian in his villainy that I thought he was going to break out into "Master of the House".
What did I learn from Sharpe's Challenge? How to use "parlay" and "brigands" in a sentence. Evil conspirators' romances never last. In the middle of battle, respond to your inferiors by saying, "Damnit man. I will not have my story interrupted."
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Special Ireland-themed Travel Marathon
I do realize that St. Patrick's Day is over and everyone is moving on to the Spring Equinox (right?) but I felt I should jot down my thoughts on the "Hey let's show all the travel episodes about Ireland" marathon on Create. Don't know the Create channel? It's PBS's Food Network/HGTV/DIY/Travel Channel mash-up. Otherwise known as my drug of choice. Who doesn't love a little Ming Tsai in the middle of the day? I can quit anytime I want to...
Back to the Ireland marathon. All the big boys are here: Rick Steves, Rudy Maxa, Burt Wolf. Burt started everything off with visiting the Guinness brewery. Apparently you fill the glass up to the "Guinness" and then let it sit. You're welcome. Then he featured the Book of Kells which is the four gospels in Latin with beautiful ornate calligraphy and artwork. It is so cherished and delicate that the museum only turns the page once a month. Wait. Burt Wolf didn't tell me that part. Rudy Maxa did. You see, he also did Dublin. And went to the Guinness brewery. But instead of telling us to let the pint sit, they showed us how to do the shamrock in the foam. So it's different, OK?
One of the shows had some poor actors reenacting something somewhere. It made me uncomfortable.
Rick didn't go to Dublin. He went to Waterford and Kerry. Did you know that it takes at least eight years of training to be a Waterford crystal glass cutter? You can thank Rick for that tidbit.
Rick also pimped out his family for this episode. He explained that on this trip his kids are getting a bigger allowance but they are responsible for their internet and "they must keep a journal". Yeah, he said, "must". I wonder if those journals contained the words "forced", "journal" and "not worth the extra money".
I tease Rick but he really knows his stuff. And how can you not love a travel show with outtakes at the end? Not all of them have them but this one did. One outtake shows Rick tripping over peat and making a Gerry Ford reference. And it was filmed in 2002. God bless him.
And on an unrelated note: I so love the American Airlines ad theme, "Ooooo. Oo Oo. Oo Oo."
What did I learn from the Ireland travel show marathon? Ireland was never conquered by the Roman Empire. Ireland in the Dark Ages was known as the Age of Saints and Scholars. Ireland has a field hockey kind of sport called hurling. Yeah, I actually learned real stuff. Erin go bragh, y'all.
Back to the Ireland marathon. All the big boys are here: Rick Steves, Rudy Maxa, Burt Wolf. Burt started everything off with visiting the Guinness brewery. Apparently you fill the glass up to the "Guinness" and then let it sit. You're welcome. Then he featured the Book of Kells which is the four gospels in Latin with beautiful ornate calligraphy and artwork. It is so cherished and delicate that the museum only turns the page once a month. Wait. Burt Wolf didn't tell me that part. Rudy Maxa did. You see, he also did Dublin. And went to the Guinness brewery. But instead of telling us to let the pint sit, they showed us how to do the shamrock in the foam. So it's different, OK?
One of the shows had some poor actors reenacting something somewhere. It made me uncomfortable.
Rick didn't go to Dublin. He went to Waterford and Kerry. Did you know that it takes at least eight years of training to be a Waterford crystal glass cutter? You can thank Rick for that tidbit.
Rick also pimped out his family for this episode. He explained that on this trip his kids are getting a bigger allowance but they are responsible for their internet and "they must keep a journal". Yeah, he said, "must". I wonder if those journals contained the words "forced", "journal" and "not worth the extra money".
I tease Rick but he really knows his stuff. And how can you not love a travel show with outtakes at the end? Not all of them have them but this one did. One outtake shows Rick tripping over peat and making a Gerry Ford reference. And it was filmed in 2002. God bless him.
And on an unrelated note: I so love the American Airlines ad theme, "Ooooo. Oo Oo. Oo Oo."
What did I learn from the Ireland travel show marathon? Ireland was never conquered by the Roman Empire. Ireland in the Dark Ages was known as the Age of Saints and Scholars. Ireland has a field hockey kind of sport called hurling. Yeah, I actually learned real stuff. Erin go bragh, y'all.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Masterpiece Classic: The 39 Steps
Mustard Scene.
Rupert Penry-Jones and the Suffragette Lady rub mustard on each other. They are both scraped up and in pain so to alleviate the discomfort, they rub mustard on each other. Not all over. But mustard...on each other. He first puts some on her bare shoulder and there is a lot of longing looks and sexy wincing. And then she says, "Let me do your back." To which I replied, "Hell yeah, sister!"
OK. That's out of the way: The 39 Steps.
Penry-Jones plays Richard Hannay, a dashing man. He apparently worked at a mining company in Africa and now he's back in London and he's bored. But lucky him, his neighbor busts in his apartment saying that there are men outside that want to kill him and take his notebook. So what does one naturally do in this situation? Make that man some eggs! Yes, Penry-Jones (in a tux, I might add) makes breakfast for this guy. Oh and then the guy's killed by some Germans. And the police think Hannay did it.
Penry-Jones is now on the run with the notebook. He has a conversation with a ventriloquist dummy on a train. He does a North by Northwest tribute in a grassy field. Then he meets the Suffragette, Victoria. Turns out Hannay is a wee bit misogynistic. Cracks about women voting and petticoats getting dirty, etc. This causes lovely 1930s movie-type banter between the two. (Quick comment: I missed what year this was supposed to be set so I was looking for clues. OK, English guy in Africa. Imperialism. Hmmm...oh! Archduke Ferdinand assassinated! Thank you.)
Now Penry-Jones is on the run again but now with Suffragette in tow. They smear mustard on each other and discuss the code in the notebook. They must get to Captain Kell. Kell is played by Alex Jennings who I saw on stage in London. Whenever I see him in something I feel like I discovered him. Like his part as Prince Charles in The Queen would not have happened without me. (My other discoveries include Chiwetel Ejiofer, Bill Nighy and David Tennent.)
Penry-Jones finally finds Captain Kell, only to discover that the Suffragette works for Kell. And that the Suffragette's Uncle George was the double-crosser! It's now about an hour and ten into this and no mention at all of...finally: the 39 steps. It comes up in a great scene where Hannay and the Suffragette work out all the clues in a matter of seconds. He says the guy-who-wouldn't-eat-his-breakfast dipped his finger in milk. She says, "Invisible ink!" They're good.
Uncle George is arrested. The main German bad guy is arrested. Hannay and Suffragette kiss. And then she's shot! She falls in the water and he dives in after her. She's gone. And in his grief he joins the military? Yes, four months later he is at a station about to ship off to war. And then he sees the Suffragette across the crowded station. "She'll see you after the war," he's told. He smiles. Most likely dreaming of mustard.
What did I learn from The 39 Steps? Mustard helps with pain relief. Mustard makes it OK to touch a woman you are not married to. Mustard will now make me think of Rupert Penry-Jones.
Rupert Penry-Jones and the Suffragette Lady rub mustard on each other. They are both scraped up and in pain so to alleviate the discomfort, they rub mustard on each other. Not all over. But mustard...on each other. He first puts some on her bare shoulder and there is a lot of longing looks and sexy wincing. And then she says, "Let me do your back." To which I replied, "Hell yeah, sister!"
OK. That's out of the way: The 39 Steps.
Penry-Jones plays Richard Hannay, a dashing man. He apparently worked at a mining company in Africa and now he's back in London and he's bored. But lucky him, his neighbor busts in his apartment saying that there are men outside that want to kill him and take his notebook. So what does one naturally do in this situation? Make that man some eggs! Yes, Penry-Jones (in a tux, I might add) makes breakfast for this guy. Oh and then the guy's killed by some Germans. And the police think Hannay did it.
Penry-Jones is now on the run with the notebook. He has a conversation with a ventriloquist dummy on a train. He does a North by Northwest tribute in a grassy field. Then he meets the Suffragette, Victoria. Turns out Hannay is a wee bit misogynistic. Cracks about women voting and petticoats getting dirty, etc. This causes lovely 1930s movie-type banter between the two. (Quick comment: I missed what year this was supposed to be set so I was looking for clues. OK, English guy in Africa. Imperialism. Hmmm...oh! Archduke Ferdinand assassinated! Thank you.)
Now Penry-Jones is on the run again but now with Suffragette in tow. They smear mustard on each other and discuss the code in the notebook. They must get to Captain Kell. Kell is played by Alex Jennings who I saw on stage in London. Whenever I see him in something I feel like I discovered him. Like his part as Prince Charles in The Queen would not have happened without me. (My other discoveries include Chiwetel Ejiofer, Bill Nighy and David Tennent.)
Penry-Jones finally finds Captain Kell, only to discover that the Suffragette works for Kell. And that the Suffragette's Uncle George was the double-crosser! It's now about an hour and ten into this and no mention at all of...finally: the 39 steps. It comes up in a great scene where Hannay and the Suffragette work out all the clues in a matter of seconds. He says the guy-who-wouldn't-eat-his-breakfast dipped his finger in milk. She says, "Invisible ink!" They're good.
Uncle George is arrested. The main German bad guy is arrested. Hannay and Suffragette kiss. And then she's shot! She falls in the water and he dives in after her. She's gone. And in his grief he joins the military? Yes, four months later he is at a station about to ship off to war. And then he sees the Suffragette across the crowded station. "She'll see you after the war," he's told. He smiles. Most likely dreaming of mustard.
What did I learn from The 39 Steps? Mustard helps with pain relief. Mustard makes it OK to touch a woman you are not married to. Mustard will now make me think of Rupert Penry-Jones.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Masterpiece Classic: Persuasion
I took the Facebook quiz "Which Austen heroine are you?" and my result was Anne Elliot. Having never read the book (and I am determined to read them all!), I was anxious to check out Persuasion. Turns out Facebook thinks I'm a constantly put-upon, snobby-relatived, soon-to-be old maid. But I'll take it if it means Facebook thinks I should one day have an overly-dramatic, searching-lipped kiss with Rupert Penry-Jones.
Speaking of Penry-Jones, let's take a moment to get inside some of my thoughts while I watched Persuasion:
"Hey, it's that guy from MI-5 who's going to be on The 39 Steps!"
"Hey, it's the Borg Queen from Star Trek!"
"Hey, it's Brutus from Rome!"
"Hey, it's Giles from Buffy!"
"Hey, did Anne Elliot just look at me?"
Yes, after my double-take, I realized that indeed Sally Hawkins does look at the camera a few times. And I have to say the looks worked for me. They said, "Yep, this is my life." Except for the last look with the smile. That one said, "I got me some Wentworth."
Just like Northanger Abbey, this is another 90 minute Cliff Notes-like Jane Austen. And I was disappointed by the lack of balls and fancy parties. There was one but it was offscreen because Anne stayed home from it in order to watch over her nephew. You see, Anne is one of those "I'll do it. No, really. I want to do it" women. Her snooty father told her that Captain Wentworth (Penry-Jones) wasn't good enough for the family so she said, "OK. I'll turn him down." So now she's written off as too old and will most likely never marry. Now she's just Dependable Ole Anne.
But then Captain Wentworth comes back into her life. And an hour and twenty minutes later, Anne is running all over Bath looking for him. After a few, "You just missed him!" and "He went looking for you!" she finds him in what has to be my favorite shot: Anne, out of breath but giddy with just Wentworth's shoulder in frame. Then the heavy handed kiss. My least favorite shot.
Oh, and one more for the Austen Drinking Game: take a swig whenever the heroine makes the assumption that her true love is marrying or has married someone else only to be corrected with a "you are mistaken I was speaking of (fill in blank)."
What did I learn from Persuasion? When life treats you unfairly, do a take to the camera...even if one isn't there. And if there's a ball, tell your sister to watch her own kid. Go!
Speaking of Penry-Jones, let's take a moment to get inside some of my thoughts while I watched Persuasion:
"Hey, it's that guy from MI-5 who's going to be on The 39 Steps!"
"Hey, it's the Borg Queen from Star Trek!"
"Hey, it's Brutus from Rome!"
"Hey, it's Giles from Buffy!"
"Hey, did Anne Elliot just look at me?"
Yes, after my double-take, I realized that indeed Sally Hawkins does look at the camera a few times. And I have to say the looks worked for me. They said, "Yep, this is my life." Except for the last look with the smile. That one said, "I got me some Wentworth."
Just like Northanger Abbey, this is another 90 minute Cliff Notes-like Jane Austen. And I was disappointed by the lack of balls and fancy parties. There was one but it was offscreen because Anne stayed home from it in order to watch over her nephew. You see, Anne is one of those "I'll do it. No, really. I want to do it" women. Her snooty father told her that Captain Wentworth (Penry-Jones) wasn't good enough for the family so she said, "OK. I'll turn him down." So now she's written off as too old and will most likely never marry. Now she's just Dependable Ole Anne.
But then Captain Wentworth comes back into her life. And an hour and twenty minutes later, Anne is running all over Bath looking for him. After a few, "You just missed him!" and "He went looking for you!" she finds him in what has to be my favorite shot: Anne, out of breath but giddy with just Wentworth's shoulder in frame. Then the heavy handed kiss. My least favorite shot.
Oh, and one more for the Austen Drinking Game: take a swig whenever the heroine makes the assumption that her true love is marrying or has married someone else only to be corrected with a "you are mistaken I was speaking of (fill in blank)."
What did I learn from Persuasion? When life treats you unfairly, do a take to the camera...even if one isn't there. And if there's a ball, tell your sister to watch her own kid. Go!
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Masterpiece Classic: Northanger Abbey
I assure you that this blog isn't just "Obsessed with Masterpiece Theatre" but the Olympics have diverted my attention a wee bit. A lot bit. Now if only Jane Austen would snowboard the halfpipe...
That's right! More Austen on Classic. This time it's an encore presentation of Northanger Abbey... condensed, I'm assuming. My experience tells me that Austen doesn't quite fit into 90 minutes.
This time the heroine is Catherine Moreland who reads and is enthralled by gothic novels by the likes of Ann Radcliffe (who I am now claiming as one of my ancestors. Just because). Catherine joins some wealthy family friends, the Allens, to Bath. She meets Henry Tilney at a ball (Austen ball: Take a drink!) and of course, is intrigued. She makes friends with Isabella Thorpe who's brother is mates with her brother at school. Isabella is played by a pre-Oscar nomination, and even pre-Doctor Who Sally Sparrow, Carey Mulligan. The viewer is immediately suspicious of Isabella when she meets Catherine and says something like, "Oh, I've heard a lot about you. We are going to be very good friends, I'm sure." Ulterior motive!!!
Isabella takes her to the Pump Room which I've seen on various travel shows about Bath. According to Rick Steves and Samanth Brown, the Pump Room serves water from the baths that people thought would cure all ills. And according to Rick's and Samantha's faces, it's quite minerally.
Where does Northanger Abbey come in? Well, it happens to be the home of Henry Tilney and family. General Tilney, the dad, invites Catherine to stay there with them after John Thorpe (Izzy's bro) tells him that Catherine is as good as the heir to the Allen fortune. Hello again, Ulterior Motive. Yes, John is wooing Catherine in a bullying way to get at her "fortune" just as Isabella got herself engaged to Catherine's brother for the same reason. But that fortune thing is quite a leap if you ask me. She's the Allen's guest for a holiday. I've vacationed with friends before. Doesn't mean I'm bumped up to number one in their will.
So Catherine goes to Northanger Abbey to hang out with nice Henry and his equally nice sister, Eleanor. (They have a brother, Captain Tilney, who apparently inherited the asshole gene from the General. He stayed back in Bath to de-flower Isabella. She sits up in bed and says, "So we are engaged?" He says something along the lines of "Get dressed." He's a charmer.) Since Catherine is so gothic novel happy, she thinks the General had something to do with his wife's death. Henry gets angry with her and tells her she reads too much and it has made her imagination go wild. Poor Henry would never let Catherine see any movies today. Keep her away from CSI.
While Henry is away, the General kicks Catherine out. Not because she thought the cold bastard murdered his wife but because she really isn't rich. And just to live up to his jerkness, he makes her take public transportation!
Henry goes to Catherine and begs his forgiveness for his father's actions and basically says, "I'm disowned. Will you marry me?" And she's like, "Yes!" And there's a scene of their wedding and General Tilney lurking is the churchyard from afar...
What did I learn from Northanger Abbey? Make assumptions and act on them. Reading Lord Byron will make you think everyone was murdered. And in that same vein, not all assholes are murderers.
That's right! More Austen on Classic. This time it's an encore presentation of Northanger Abbey... condensed, I'm assuming. My experience tells me that Austen doesn't quite fit into 90 minutes.
This time the heroine is Catherine Moreland who reads and is enthralled by gothic novels by the likes of Ann Radcliffe (who I am now claiming as one of my ancestors. Just because). Catherine joins some wealthy family friends, the Allens, to Bath. She meets Henry Tilney at a ball (Austen ball: Take a drink!) and of course, is intrigued. She makes friends with Isabella Thorpe who's brother is mates with her brother at school. Isabella is played by a pre-Oscar nomination, and even pre-Doctor Who Sally Sparrow, Carey Mulligan. The viewer is immediately suspicious of Isabella when she meets Catherine and says something like, "Oh, I've heard a lot about you. We are going to be very good friends, I'm sure." Ulterior motive!!!
Isabella takes her to the Pump Room which I've seen on various travel shows about Bath. According to Rick Steves and Samanth Brown, the Pump Room serves water from the baths that people thought would cure all ills. And according to Rick's and Samantha's faces, it's quite minerally.
Where does Northanger Abbey come in? Well, it happens to be the home of Henry Tilney and family. General Tilney, the dad, invites Catherine to stay there with them after John Thorpe (Izzy's bro) tells him that Catherine is as good as the heir to the Allen fortune. Hello again, Ulterior Motive. Yes, John is wooing Catherine in a bullying way to get at her "fortune" just as Isabella got herself engaged to Catherine's brother for the same reason. But that fortune thing is quite a leap if you ask me. She's the Allen's guest for a holiday. I've vacationed with friends before. Doesn't mean I'm bumped up to number one in their will.
So Catherine goes to Northanger Abbey to hang out with nice Henry and his equally nice sister, Eleanor. (They have a brother, Captain Tilney, who apparently inherited the asshole gene from the General. He stayed back in Bath to de-flower Isabella. She sits up in bed and says, "So we are engaged?" He says something along the lines of "Get dressed." He's a charmer.) Since Catherine is so gothic novel happy, she thinks the General had something to do with his wife's death. Henry gets angry with her and tells her she reads too much and it has made her imagination go wild. Poor Henry would never let Catherine see any movies today. Keep her away from CSI.
While Henry is away, the General kicks Catherine out. Not because she thought the cold bastard murdered his wife but because she really isn't rich. And just to live up to his jerkness, he makes her take public transportation!
Henry goes to Catherine and begs his forgiveness for his father's actions and basically says, "I'm disowned. Will you marry me?" And she's like, "Yes!" And there's a scene of their wedding and General Tilney lurking is the churchyard from afar...
What did I learn from Northanger Abbey? Make assumptions and act on them. Reading Lord Byron will make you think everyone was murdered. And in that same vein, not all assholes are murderers.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Masterpiece Classic: Emma, Part Three
Is it wrong that I now want a sequel? Preferably called "Knightley"?
The final installment of Emma this past Sunday had the "Badly done, Emma" scene. This is where Emma and Frank Churchill are being obnoxious at a picnic and Emma zings Miss Bates. Basically, saying she's boring and tedious. To Emma's credit, she realizes that it was an assy thing to say but doesn't apologize right away. Knightley catches up with her later to say "badly done." (I realize it doesn't seem harsh in print. But that's Austen for "Bitch, keep that snobby shit to yourself.") The funny thing about that conversation is Emma says to Knightley (paraphrasing), "Come on, man, you have to admit she's ridiculous." To which he replies, "Yeah, but don't say it. She's poor. If she were rich then have at it. But she's not. So shut it." Kind of makes me love Knightley more. He's kind but not a saint. There's some edge there.
Let's take a moment to give mad props to Tamsin Greig who played Miss Bates. The first time I saw her was on the britcom Black Books. Wouldn't think she would be a believable blithering old maid. And according to imdb, she will be Mrs. Frank in the Diary of Anne Frank coming up on...Masterpiece Classic. I'll be watching the hell out of that.
Back to the conclusion of Emma. Emma has her "Wait. I love Josh!" moment. (Had to throw in a Clueless reference.) Then Knightley comes to profess his love but she thinks he loves Harriet Smith. So they have a brief "Don't speak!" "As you wish" conversation. (Quick! Name those movie references.) Finally, they kiss. Scene dissolves. Next scene: Emma runs in crying to Knightley, "I love you but I can't marry you! I can't leave father all alone." Damn you, Gambon! But Knightley, being Knightley, said, "I've been thinking about that. I'll live with you guys." And then mentions walking back to his place for his "constitution" i.e. he's keeping his Man Cave. He also says he'll live with them for as long as necessary. As in, 'til Gambon is out of the way and in the ground.
Quick wrap up: Emma and Knightley. Harriet went back to Robert Martin. Frank Churchill was secretly engaged to Jane Fairfax the whole time and his aunt finally died so they were free to marry. And Michael Gambon fretted about Emma going away on her honeymoon.
What did I learn from Emma Part Three? Only insult your equals. And men just have to wait for a death and then they can do as they please.
The final installment of Emma this past Sunday had the "Badly done, Emma" scene. This is where Emma and Frank Churchill are being obnoxious at a picnic and Emma zings Miss Bates. Basically, saying she's boring and tedious. To Emma's credit, she realizes that it was an assy thing to say but doesn't apologize right away. Knightley catches up with her later to say "badly done." (I realize it doesn't seem harsh in print. But that's Austen for "Bitch, keep that snobby shit to yourself.") The funny thing about that conversation is Emma says to Knightley (paraphrasing), "Come on, man, you have to admit she's ridiculous." To which he replies, "Yeah, but don't say it. She's poor. If she were rich then have at it. But she's not. So shut it." Kind of makes me love Knightley more. He's kind but not a saint. There's some edge there.
Let's take a moment to give mad props to Tamsin Greig who played Miss Bates. The first time I saw her was on the britcom Black Books. Wouldn't think she would be a believable blithering old maid. And according to imdb, she will be Mrs. Frank in the Diary of Anne Frank coming up on...Masterpiece Classic. I'll be watching the hell out of that.
Back to the conclusion of Emma. Emma has her "Wait. I love Josh!" moment. (Had to throw in a Clueless reference.) Then Knightley comes to profess his love but she thinks he loves Harriet Smith. So they have a brief "Don't speak!" "As you wish" conversation. (Quick! Name those movie references.) Finally, they kiss. Scene dissolves. Next scene: Emma runs in crying to Knightley, "I love you but I can't marry you! I can't leave father all alone." Damn you, Gambon! But Knightley, being Knightley, said, "I've been thinking about that. I'll live with you guys." And then mentions walking back to his place for his "constitution" i.e. he's keeping his Man Cave. He also says he'll live with them for as long as necessary. As in, 'til Gambon is out of the way and in the ground.
Quick wrap up: Emma and Knightley. Harriet went back to Robert Martin. Frank Churchill was secretly engaged to Jane Fairfax the whole time and his aunt finally died so they were free to marry. And Michael Gambon fretted about Emma going away on her honeymoon.
What did I learn from Emma Part Three? Only insult your equals. And men just have to wait for a death and then they can do as they please.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Masterpiece Classic: Emma, Part Two
Part Two features an Austeny Ball!
You know it's Jane Austen when some female character says, "Oh, you must have a ball! I won't hear otherwise." Cut to: carriages pulling up and ladies being escorted out. And then, dancing. But not Freestyle. Very polite and structured line dancing. Men on one side. Women on the other. And at some point, the two lines will form a Bridge of Arms and the main couple will skip through it. And I eat it up.
So Part Two's Ball was basically due to Frank Churchill saying, "Yeah, this place is great but not enough dancing." And Emma says, "Yeah." Paraphrasing, of course. But then Frank leaves because his aunt is ill. He tells Emma goodbye and leaves her wondering if he loves her. And more importantly, she wonders if she loves him. No! (Sorry that was my Knightley love coming out.) Frank does come back and they plan the ball. But Mrs. Elton behaves like it's for her. Yeah, you read that right: Mrs. Elton. Didn't take vicar long to get over Emma.
Mrs. Elton is played by a particular favorite bitch of mine: Christina Cole. I'm sure she's actually really nice but she plays a great bitch. Last saw her in Lost in Austen which told the story of a modern woman who steps into Pride and Prejudice through a door in her loo. Cole played Bingley's sister. You know, the bitch? And Cole was also in a movie that I have no business of having seen more than once but, alas, I have: What a Girl Wants. Amanda Bynes goes to London to see her father, Colin Firth. Cole is his soon-to-be step daughter. A bitch. And according to IMDB, she's in a slasher flick with Stan Shunpike from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and Mickey from Doctor Who. From the trailer it looks like she becomes a cannibal. And I will bet ten dollars that she's called a bitch at some point in the movie.
Back to the ball. Knightley asks Harriet to dance when no one would. Then he and Emma dance. Internally, I was clapping and saying, "They loooooooooooove each other." Later on, they show Knightley looking wistful so the director throws in a quick scene of Emma to show that he's moony over her. Duh. He looooooooooooves her.
Oh, and only two Michael Gambon sightings. The man must have finally demanded rest.
What did I learn from Emma, Part Two? If you are romantically rejected, immediately marry someone from another town. Find a niche and stick with it. And force people to host balls.
You know it's Jane Austen when some female character says, "Oh, you must have a ball! I won't hear otherwise." Cut to: carriages pulling up and ladies being escorted out. And then, dancing. But not Freestyle. Very polite and structured line dancing. Men on one side. Women on the other. And at some point, the two lines will form a Bridge of Arms and the main couple will skip through it. And I eat it up.
So Part Two's Ball was basically due to Frank Churchill saying, "Yeah, this place is great but not enough dancing." And Emma says, "Yeah." Paraphrasing, of course. But then Frank leaves because his aunt is ill. He tells Emma goodbye and leaves her wondering if he loves her. And more importantly, she wonders if she loves him. No! (Sorry that was my Knightley love coming out.) Frank does come back and they plan the ball. But Mrs. Elton behaves like it's for her. Yeah, you read that right: Mrs. Elton. Didn't take vicar long to get over Emma.
Mrs. Elton is played by a particular favorite bitch of mine: Christina Cole. I'm sure she's actually really nice but she plays a great bitch. Last saw her in Lost in Austen which told the story of a modern woman who steps into Pride and Prejudice through a door in her loo. Cole played Bingley's sister. You know, the bitch? And Cole was also in a movie that I have no business of having seen more than once but, alas, I have: What a Girl Wants. Amanda Bynes goes to London to see her father, Colin Firth. Cole is his soon-to-be step daughter. A bitch. And according to IMDB, she's in a slasher flick with Stan Shunpike from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and Mickey from Doctor Who. From the trailer it looks like she becomes a cannibal. And I will bet ten dollars that she's called a bitch at some point in the movie.
Back to the ball. Knightley asks Harriet to dance when no one would. Then he and Emma dance. Internally, I was clapping and saying, "They loooooooooooove each other." Later on, they show Knightley looking wistful so the director throws in a quick scene of Emma to show that he's moony over her. Duh. He looooooooooooves her.
Oh, and only two Michael Gambon sightings. The man must have finally demanded rest.
What did I learn from Emma, Part Two? If you are romantically rejected, immediately marry someone from another town. Find a niche and stick with it. And force people to host balls.
Great Performances: Passing Strange
Why I cried at the end of Spike Lee's film version of the stage show Passing Strange on Great Performances:
- Stew the book writer, lyricist, and co-composer says as the narrator towards the end of the show, "Whatever you do: rock on."
- Heidi Rodewald, Stew's musical collaborator, plays bass in the band.
- The pit musicians are actually in cut outs in the stage and they interact at times with the actors.
- There are six actors, besides Stew, with four playing multiply roles with different dialects. And they all sing the hell out of the show.
- The quick peek backstage during intermission.
- The Real. And the "Right when it was getting real" devastation.
- Art, family, music, world.
- The extended curtain call and the hardcore, passionate singing and dancing.
- "Love is more than Real."
- The creators, actors and musicians so obviously love this show and being a part of it. And how that feeling and energy came through the TV. And made me cry.
What did I learn from Passing Strange? Family can be taken for granted and many realize too late. The Real may not be what you think it is. Art heals. I love theatre but I already knew that. "Yeah, it's all right."
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Masterpiece Classic: Emma, Part One
I am on Team Knightley.
I realize my self-respect just took a stumble with that statement but thought I should clear that up before launching into my comments on Masterpiece Classic's new version of Jane Austen's Emma. Yes, yes, Darcy, blah-di-blah. But I came to the realization last night during Part One that of all the Austen men, I am a Knightley gal through and through. I shall list some reasons for you:
- He's not stuck up
- He is caring and helps people
- He calls Emma out on her shit
Now on to Part One. I have not read Emma. I bought the paperback for $2 a few months back. I opened up to start reading and where page one ought to have been was page 51. Yes, someone blasphemous ripped out the first fifty pages. And someone else sold it to me. So imagine my giddiness at the prospect of seeing the full Emma. I loved the hell out of the movie Emma with Jeremy Northam as Knightley. Oh, and Gwyneth Paltrow as Emma. But obviously it was way condensed. And yeah, it took Part One to clear up the matter of who Frank Churchill was related to...or maybe I forgot. Because after all, Ewan McGregor was Frank in the movie. Distracting.
The premise of Emma is this: very rich girl loves matchmaking and makes a mess of things. She lives with her father, played by England's Hardest Working Man in Show Business, Michael Gambon. (Apparently, the phrase "turn down work" does not enter into his world at all. Perhaps he doesn't want to dip into his Dumbledore money.) She hangs out with Knightley (!) played by Jonny Lee Miller. She fixes up her governess with a widower. Then turns her sights on Harriet Smith for some matchmaking fun with Mr. Elton the vicar. And she's intrigued by Frank Churchill and Jane Fairfax and doesn't want to ever get married. Part One. In a nutshell.
As I watched, I tried to imagine what it must be like to be rich and have nothing to do. Where every new person that comes to town is high drama. And where people "call" on other people to visit...and they just talk or take "turns" around the garden. They sit and watch others paint. Part of me wants to ask someone tomorrow to take a "turn" around the former morgue that is now where I work. I'm sure that will go over well.
What did I learn from Emma Part One? I would like to take a "turn" around Knightley.
Monday, January 18, 2010
Masterpiece Classic: Return To Cranford, Part 2
Spoiler warning!
The cow causes the big railroad accident. Yep. I actually said to the television, "The train is not going to hit the cow, is it?" Poor Bessie.
Anyway, back to the beginning. Our "Previously on Return to Cranford", gave the quick low-down on events to date. Mainly, William and Peggy are engaged. And the railroad is going ahead with plans. And Mrs. Forester loves her cow like a daughter. (Actually, that may not have been in the "Previously" but there is a scene in Part 2 with her crying that Bessie had to be moved because of the railroad and now has to graze in "common"fields. Perhaps that's why Bessie decided to do herself in on the track. She was really fond of that private property grass, I guess.)
Again, I'm jumping ahead to the big action scene. Before that we get Jonathan Pryce being overly disapproving of his son William and his engagement to lower class Peggy. William wants to be an engineer and not go into politics! Jesus, what a choice. Later, William and Peggy do get to have a Victorian sex scene when Peggy spills some crumbs on her dress and William, after permission of course, de-crumbs her. The camera lingers on his hand caressing a pleat. SEXY!
Other matters in Cranford include Mrs. Jamison and her sister-in-law and some etiquette and some scandal when the sister-in-law marries Captain Brown and some shunning happens and then they all forgive and make up. Mary leaves to be a writer in London. And Miss Matty misses baby Tilly and thinks everything is her fault. She uses the profits from her tea shop (See! You had to watch the first Cranford to know what tea shop I'm talking about!) to do something for the people of Cranford: she fixes up the assembly hall and hires a magician. Exactly.
Before the big magic show, a cow wanders onto a train track.
Peggy and William are wounded. Peggy's embezzling ne'er-do-well brother that Peggy was escorting to North America to elude the constables dies. (That's convenient!) And Harry dies. False alarm! He actually is still alive. I haven't mentioned Harry, have I? He's the poor kid that Philip Glenister (Life on Mars/Ashes to Ashes) leaves all his money to in the first Cranford (see? Sorry you missed it, aren't you?) Harry is the one that trips on Bessie's tether and breaks it. Karma's a bitch, ain't it, Harry? One careless trip and then the train you're on runs into the same cow!
Everyone is happy and healed and at the magic show now. Tim Curry is the magician. He is very magiciany with a heavy accent from some heavy accented country. He puts Imelda Staunton into a box and she disappears. And then reappears as Tilly, the baby Miss Matty was missing. Well, not exactly. It was just a weird, clunky way to surprise Miss Matty that Tilly and her dad were back. Then Imelda reappears and everyone applauds. And then they all dance. Just like a Victorian Footloose!
What did I learn from Return to Cranford Part 2? Cows are suicidal. The way to a man's heart is through crumbs. And give the gift of magician.
The cow causes the big railroad accident. Yep. I actually said to the television, "The train is not going to hit the cow, is it?" Poor Bessie.
Anyway, back to the beginning. Our "Previously on Return to Cranford", gave the quick low-down on events to date. Mainly, William and Peggy are engaged. And the railroad is going ahead with plans. And Mrs. Forester loves her cow like a daughter. (Actually, that may not have been in the "Previously" but there is a scene in Part 2 with her crying that Bessie had to be moved because of the railroad and now has to graze in "common"fields. Perhaps that's why Bessie decided to do herself in on the track. She was really fond of that private property grass, I guess.)
Again, I'm jumping ahead to the big action scene. Before that we get Jonathan Pryce being overly disapproving of his son William and his engagement to lower class Peggy. William wants to be an engineer and not go into politics! Jesus, what a choice. Later, William and Peggy do get to have a Victorian sex scene when Peggy spills some crumbs on her dress and William, after permission of course, de-crumbs her. The camera lingers on his hand caressing a pleat. SEXY!
Other matters in Cranford include Mrs. Jamison and her sister-in-law and some etiquette and some scandal when the sister-in-law marries Captain Brown and some shunning happens and then they all forgive and make up. Mary leaves to be a writer in London. And Miss Matty misses baby Tilly and thinks everything is her fault. She uses the profits from her tea shop (See! You had to watch the first Cranford to know what tea shop I'm talking about!) to do something for the people of Cranford: she fixes up the assembly hall and hires a magician. Exactly.
Before the big magic show, a cow wanders onto a train track.
Peggy and William are wounded. Peggy's embezzling ne'er-do-well brother that Peggy was escorting to North America to elude the constables dies. (That's convenient!) And Harry dies. False alarm! He actually is still alive. I haven't mentioned Harry, have I? He's the poor kid that Philip Glenister (Life on Mars/Ashes to Ashes) leaves all his money to in the first Cranford (see? Sorry you missed it, aren't you?) Harry is the one that trips on Bessie's tether and breaks it. Karma's a bitch, ain't it, Harry? One careless trip and then the train you're on runs into the same cow!
Everyone is happy and healed and at the magic show now. Tim Curry is the magician. He is very magiciany with a heavy accent from some heavy accented country. He puts Imelda Staunton into a box and she disappears. And then reappears as Tilly, the baby Miss Matty was missing. Well, not exactly. It was just a weird, clunky way to surprise Miss Matty that Tilly and her dad were back. Then Imelda reappears and everyone applauds. And then they all dance. Just like a Victorian Footloose!
What did I learn from Return to Cranford Part 2? Cows are suicidal. The way to a man's heart is through crumbs. And give the gift of magician.
Friday, January 15, 2010
Sesame Street: Roy G Biv
I don't make watching Sesame Street a habit. That hasn't happened since Kermit was a reporter and I first saw Mah-Na Mah-Na. (Fun Fact! From Wikipedia: ""Mah Nà Mah Nà" debuted as part of Umiliani's soundtrack for the Italian mondo film Svezia, inferno e paradiso (Sweden: Heaven and Hell) (1968), a pseudo-documentary about wild sexual activity and other behavior in Sweden." Started with wild Swedish sex and ended with the Muppets.) But every once in a while I will stumble across the 'Street. I linger mostly to catch sight of Alan the owner of Mr. Hooper's store. I worked with him in the past and my mom is his Facebook friend! Back in my stage management days, we did M Butterfly and Alan Muraoka was the Butterfly character. Spoiler! That character gets naked. Now who else can say they have seen someone from Sesame Street naked? But really, who would admit to that? (The title of this blog seemed so family friendly a few moments ago...)
Anyway, today on Sesame Street, Elmo was helping a seafoam green monster named Rosita to see a rainbow. They squeakily explained that "Roy G Biv" stood for the colors of the rainbow. (And I would be surprised if any kid picked up on what "i" stood for. Elmo's voice and the word "indigo" are not a good match. But I guess kids are used to it. Kind of like how my ear is trained to understand heavy English accents.) Elmo conjured up some monsters to represent each color. They then started jumping about and screaming "Rainbow!" and talking over each other. Now I see where kids learn that behavior. (And for some, it stays with them into adulthood.) Finally, the mosh pit of monsters leaves and Abby Cadabby shows up and makes it rain. Because apparently, she doesn't do magic very well. She also lost freckles on a previous snippet I saw. I don't trust her.
Rosita and Elmo go into Mr. Hooper's store to get dry. Alan and Gordon are hanging out. Which surprised me because Gordon is still alive. But he's not the one I remember. Apparently there's been a few Gordons. Kind of like Doctor Who, I guess. Well, this incarnation of Gordon is a science teacher and he shows Rosita, Elmo and Alan how to make a rainbow using science. Oh yes, I wrote down how.
You will need: a flashlight, a white piece of paper, a clear glass with water, masking tape.
Anyway, today on Sesame Street, Elmo was helping a seafoam green monster named Rosita to see a rainbow. They squeakily explained that "Roy G Biv" stood for the colors of the rainbow. (And I would be surprised if any kid picked up on what "i" stood for. Elmo's voice and the word "indigo" are not a good match. But I guess kids are used to it. Kind of like how my ear is trained to understand heavy English accents.) Elmo conjured up some monsters to represent each color. They then started jumping about and screaming "Rainbow!" and talking over each other. Now I see where kids learn that behavior. (And for some, it stays with them into adulthood.) Finally, the mosh pit of monsters leaves and Abby Cadabby shows up and makes it rain. Because apparently, she doesn't do magic very well. She also lost freckles on a previous snippet I saw. I don't trust her.
Rosita and Elmo go into Mr. Hooper's store to get dry. Alan and Gordon are hanging out. Which surprised me because Gordon is still alive. But he's not the one I remember. Apparently there's been a few Gordons. Kind of like Doctor Who, I guess. Well, this incarnation of Gordon is a science teacher and he shows Rosita, Elmo and Alan how to make a rainbow using science. Oh yes, I wrote down how.
You will need: a flashlight, a white piece of paper, a clear glass with water, masking tape.
- Put masking tape over flashlight
- Cut slit in tape so some light can shine through
- Put glass of water on a soup can or something (Oh! You need a soup can, too)
- Place sheet of paper next to soup can
- Turn off lights
- Shine flashlight through glass of water and onto sheet of paper
- Bam! Rainbow!
Rosita and Elmo are suitably impressed. But the rain stops and they leave. Just in time to see a real rainbow in the sky! Like Photoshop real.
What did I learn from Sesame Street? I made a rainbow connection.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Masterpiece Classic: Return To Cranford, Part I
This was the show I ran home to see. I spent the last three Sundays watching the encore airing of the original, Cranford. You know, to psych myself up for the Return!
But before I launch into my thoughts on the Cranfords, I should take a moment to explain something to the PBS novices out there. Is Masterpiece Classic the same as Masterpiece Theatre, you ask? Well, yes and no. Classic is one-third of Theatre. There’s Masterpiece Classic, Masterpiece Mystery and Masterpiece Contemporary that collectively are Masterpiece Theatre. And how do you know which Masterpiece you are watching? A few ways. Who’s doing the introduction? What time of year is it? Is it January on your calendar and Laura Linney is on your screen? Classic. Alan Cumming in late July? Mystery. Or perhaps David Tennant is warming your little Doctor Who-lovin’ heart with his natural Scottish accent in chilly November. Well then, you are watching Masterpiece Contemporary. Other telltale signs include if people are in bonnets and riding horses, if Miss Marple is lurking about or if it’s, well, contemporary. One sign that will not help you distinguish: whether or not there are British accents.
Now back to Cranford. Cranford is based on books by Elizabeth Gaskell which, to be honest, I had never heard of until Dame Judi Dench was nominated for an Emmy for it. (And then it stalked me: I went into Anthropologie and on the table with the Jane Austen’s was Cranford. On that same table? Candles. Next to that table? Sweaters. You are such a sassy, random lady, Anthropologie. Love you.)
So: Return To Cranford. When we left Cranford, people were happy for the most part (I say most part because several characters died throughout the five-hour series. Life is cheap in Cranford). All misunderstandings were tied up. People married, etc. So Return begins two years later. And some townsfolk are missing. No, that’s not the storyline. That’s me wondering if Return is scripted that way or if certain actors passed on the sequel. There are explanation lines like “You must be lonely with your daughter in India” and “I hardly see my sister now that she’s married to the butcher.”
The overall story is the railway. It was touched on in Cranford and now it’s reared its ugly head again. I say that because in the first series, the ladies of Cranford were in an uproar over the thought of the railroad coming through town and how “that’s not how things are done in Cranford!” Poor Eileen Atkins was so in a tizzy about it, she died. Her character, I mean. She heard about the railroad, went home, grabbed her head and then collapsed. Well, now in Return, new potential young lovers are introduced and they are all about “progress” and pro-railroad. While the elders are still, “No way!” (One elder, Lady Ludlow [Francesca Annis] denied the sale of her land to the railroad but she dies standing in her hall waiting for her son Septimus to arrive from Italy. Based on the name alone you know he’s going to sell the land.) There are still holdouts, though. But then Miss Matty (Dame Judi) sees that Cranford needs to move with the times or all the young people will leave and then Cranford will whither away. So by the end of Part One, the ladies of the town and Jonathon Pryce take a ride on the railroad and reluctantly approve. In a nutshell. There’s more to the hour and an half than that. And though I seem snarky, I’m totally there for Part Two. Why? Many reasons. The kick ass cast. Dame Judi and Imelda Staunton? Come on, man. And I love the hell out of that brit-accent-men-on-horses-embroidering-by-candlelight-smalltown-gossiping-Victorian-romantic-stuff.
So what did I learn from Return To Cranford, Part One? Old people want to keep their traditions and not change. Young people fall in love. And they want updated transportation. Don’t trust very rich, spoiled sons who just inherited a big estate. Also, when there’s a dramatic death, there’s another one at the same time across town. Who knew?
Monday, January 11, 2010
"Viewers Like Me"
Last night I rushed home from work to be sure I was in front of the TV at 9pm. Yes, in the age of recording devices I still ran home to watch a show. No, Lost starts next month. I'm talking the season premiere of Masterpiece Classic. I'll wait a moment while you read that again. Masterpiece Classic. I made it home in time to drag my dog around the block and then sit down for some Masterpiecey goodness.
Explanation due, I understand. I grew up like most people. My early PBS memories were happy ones. In my toddler phase, PBS=Sesame Street. Then in my elementary school years, PBS=Monty Python's Flying Circus and being forced by my brother to do jumping jacks to stay awake. But puberty and junior high drove a wedge between PBS and me. It became: PBS=Boring Stuff My Stepfather Watched. It was him saying, "I'm going to watch Nova" and the rest of us, thinking in our heads, "Ooooooh, la-di-dah, Nova. You're sooooooo superior to us." And then after being further entrenched in cable, PBS was the distant second cousin that you hear about from time to time but have nothing in common with. Or so I thought.
For whatever reason these last few years, I started noticing PBS again (actually I think I know: onscreen cable guides). Mainly due to one man: Rick Steves, the Travel Enabler. (He warranted his own entry in my other blog, The Grady Twins Overlook Anthology, here.) I went on one European trip and then all I wanted to due was travel or read about travel or watch travel shows. Hence, Rick. And then I added Rudy Maxa. And then, (while jonsin' for more travel crack, I guess), I stumbled upon Wayne Dyer and the PBS Pledge Drive shows. Deepak Chopra, the Real Age guy. All of these Better Yourself specials that I watched obsessively and took notes. Again, I'll wait a moment while you read that last bit over. (Yep, I admitted to this before.)
Now I'm obsessed. Which surprised me because I thought once I got rid of cable I wouldn't be watching as much TV. But when I hooked up my digital antenna, I discovered that I had eleven PBS channels (OK. One is in Spanish and one is televangelists). So nine PBS channels! And I watch them...a lot.
So I decided to chronicle the things I've seen on PBS and what I've learned. And so far I've learned that I can watch a Nova and enjoy it. My fourteen-year-old self would be so disappointed...
Explanation due, I understand. I grew up like most people. My early PBS memories were happy ones. In my toddler phase, PBS=Sesame Street. Then in my elementary school years, PBS=Monty Python's Flying Circus and being forced by my brother to do jumping jacks to stay awake. But puberty and junior high drove a wedge between PBS and me. It became: PBS=Boring Stuff My Stepfather Watched. It was him saying, "I'm going to watch Nova" and the rest of us, thinking in our heads, "Ooooooh, la-di-dah, Nova. You're sooooooo superior to us." And then after being further entrenched in cable, PBS was the distant second cousin that you hear about from time to time but have nothing in common with. Or so I thought.
For whatever reason these last few years, I started noticing PBS again (actually I think I know: onscreen cable guides). Mainly due to one man: Rick Steves, the Travel Enabler. (He warranted his own entry in my other blog, The Grady Twins Overlook Anthology, here.) I went on one European trip and then all I wanted to due was travel or read about travel or watch travel shows. Hence, Rick. And then I added Rudy Maxa. And then, (while jonsin' for more travel crack, I guess), I stumbled upon Wayne Dyer and the PBS Pledge Drive shows. Deepak Chopra, the Real Age guy. All of these Better Yourself specials that I watched obsessively and took notes. Again, I'll wait a moment while you read that last bit over. (Yep, I admitted to this before.)
Now I'm obsessed. Which surprised me because I thought once I got rid of cable I wouldn't be watching as much TV. But when I hooked up my digital antenna, I discovered that I had eleven PBS channels (OK. One is in Spanish and one is televangelists). So nine PBS channels! And I watch them...a lot.
So I decided to chronicle the things I've seen on PBS and what I've learned. And so far I've learned that I can watch a Nova and enjoy it. My fourteen-year-old self would be so disappointed...
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