Category: Entertainment

Eyes And Ears

Entertainment

Longtime Reader valine76 writes:

“Lately I’ve left the romantic era and have been browsing music from the baroque period, especially Vivaldi and Handel. While there, I stumbled across a composition by Ricardo Broschi  (1698-1756), brother of Carlo Broschi, aka “Farinelli,” the foremost castrato of the era.

“It’s obvious Riccardo wrote the piece to showcase his brother’s voice, and here, the vocal is sung exquisitely by soprano Simone Kermes.

“What made this special for me is that this dreamy piece is accompanied by a series of stunning still lifes by Roman Reisinger, an artist still working. Looking at his images while listening to the music, I can smell the onions, feel the brittle leaves of the drying herbs and seed pods of the money plant, I can smell the algae in a bottle of water rooting a plant – the whole series is a feast of textures that pull me into the works.

“Go full screen, sit back, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.”

I did, and I did.

Now the rest of you can do the same.  And Val:  thankee for the email and the kind words that preceded the above recommendation.  It is absolutely no exaggeration to say that having Readers like you is what makes this all so rewarding.

Faking It

Entertainment

Back when Madonna was still a thing — i.e. in the early 1980s — she was accused of miming her concerts, with one critic memorably entitling his review: “Like A Concert”.

So I saw this listing at one of the execrable ticketing websites:

For a free box of .22 boolets, name the two acts which will almost certainly feature at least one mimed song.

Retreads

Entertainment

I note with extreme displeasure that a retreaded version of The Day Of The Jackal  has been made, fortunately only on Brit TV so we won’t be subjected to it Over Here.

Why am I so dismissive?  As I wrote on this here website many years ago, I consider Forsyth’s novel to be quite possibly the greatest thriller ever written, and Zinneman’s movie adaptation likewise excellent, for the simple reason that he followed the novel’s format almost to the letter.

Would that other directors followed his example;  his, and that of the late Franco Zeffirelli (Romeo and Juliet).  But no they don’t, of course:  mostly, the novels are twisted beyond all recognition into something else, something else of far lesser value (e.g. the dreadful remake of Jackal, with Bruce Willis and Richard Gere).

I’m sorry I mentioned that;  I too have the faint taste of near-regurgitation in my mouth now.

Anyway, I think it’s time to do something more valuable with my time, like heading off to the polling booth.

Imbalance

Entertainment

Ooooh I love this one:

White children playing Monopoly should be given more money and less jail time to teach them about racial privilege

Dumb fucks.  If they really wanted to teach White kids about some inherent racial privilege, the White kids should be forced to play the game with Black kids, only with half the money.

That’s assuming such an imbalance exists, of course (it doesn’t).

Or they could just play Black Monopoly:

Anyway…

Back when I was a student in the early 1970s, we played “Poor Man’s Monopoly” which featured all the things of regular Monopoly, only you started the game with no money at all, and collected only $20 each time you passed GO.  There was considerable hilarity, such as when it was your birthday and you had to collect $10 from each player (and were pummeled after forcing one or more players into insolvency).  Of course, you couldn’t borrow money from the bank (because what bank is going to lend you money when you have none to start off with, duh).  Obviously, there was no income tax ever paid, and some of the Chance and Community Chest cards were taken out because of irrelevancy.

The winner was the first player who could actually buy any piece of property — and believe me, those ugly brown cheap-ass suckers placed right after GO became a lot more desirable.

…or in British: 

Yeah, let kids play that game instead of that artificial racial inequity bullshit, and let them see what life is truly about — for both Black and White.

The Ears Of Texas Are

Entertainment, Music

…relieved, after Judas Priest unexpectedly canceled their Houston gig a couple days back.

I saw Priest in 1986(?) in Austin, and that concert got me to wear earplugs to concerts ever thereafter.

Let me tell you:  I played in a loud rock band for ten years before that, and Judas Priest were LOUD.  My ears rang for about four days after the show.

I am frankly amazed that these old farts can still play the shows they do, ditto the Rolling Stones etc. (but not the Eagles, who are pretty much just a mime gig nowadays, apparently).

More power to them, say I, although perhaps the last thing the Priest need is more power.

All that said, I myself have often said that I would (still) love to play in a band — just not a rock band;  been there, done that, got the tinnitus.  But put me in a quiet little dinner-dance restaurant, playing old 1940s and -50s standards and ballads, preferably in a trio (piano, bass, and Drummer Knob on drums) with a torch singer like Julie London or Diana Krall… I’d be the happiest septuagenarian in history.

I still miss playing in a band.

Final Song

Entertainment

Brits were polled recently on which song they’d like to hear in their dying moments, and oy vey:

…and all I have to say is:  FFS.

  1. Having Sinatra bellowing his out-of-tune signature song would only hasten my demise by making me roar in rage and pain.  Fucking hell, imagine taking that noise with you into eternity.
  2. Ditto Whitney Houston’s braying version of that lovely Dolly Parton lament.  (I might just accept Dolly’s version, though.)
  3. I love me some Tina Turner, but not Simply The Best.
  4. Ditto Judy Garland, but not the syrupy Over The Rainbow.
  5. And being on my deathbed can hardly be called “having fun”, unless Salma Hayek has granted my dying wish.
  6. I don’t believe in angels, even when sung by Abba.
  7. Finally a song I could listen to without bellowing in rage.  Sing it to me, Satchmo.  It would be my 1b). choice.
  8. I don’t know Beautiful, so no comment.
  9. Hmmmm a Beatles song… not Hey Jude;  shuffling off the mortal coil with “Na na na nana na na” ringing in your ears would be just an unspeakable prospect.
  10. Okay, I wouldn’t mind a Queen song, just not that one.  Depending on my mood, I could do Bohemian Rhapsody (or Fat-Bottomed Girls, so I could leave with a smile on my face).

Actually, the last song I’d like to hear is September Song.  And yes, Willie’s version.  I can think of no better way to slide into oblivion — and if I could be greedy, his entire Stardust  album.