The other day when I went to Trader Joe’s, I was anticipating a line, so I was pleased to see there was none as I approached the store. But when I got to the entrance, an employee told me to form a line as they were not letting any more people in until some of … Continue reading Odds and Ends
Television
Scandals, Scandals, Everywhere
Speaking of the unequal treatment of men and women who are involved in scandals as we were… In 1962 Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor were the talk of the scandal sheets and movie mags when they famously met on the set of Cleopatra and ditched their respective spouses to begin a torrid affair that would … Continue reading Scandals, Scandals, Everywhere
The Downton Movie
I ordered the Downton Abbey Movie Blu-ray from Amazon.com some time back. It was just released a few days ago, and the Postal Service delivered my copy on Thursday. I received the text message that it had been delivered, and within five minutes I went to retrieve it. A word about my building. I live … Continue reading The Downton Movie
Ripping the Abbey
View fullsize Highclere Castle, where Downton Abbey was partially filmed In anticipation of the recent movie of Downton Abbey, which I expect to watch when it’s available on Blu-ray, I decided to watch all six seasons (or series, as the Brits call them) of the original TV program again.As it wasn’t to be found on … Continue reading Ripping the Abbey
Please Stop!
View fullsize On Scriptnotes Episode 412: Writing About Mental Health and Addiction, John August initiated a new feature, which you can hear by following that link and listening to the whole episode (which I encourage you to do because it’s a great episode), or you can just listen to this excerpt: Here’s the excerpt from … Continue reading Please Stop!
The Case of the Green-Eyed Sister
The vast majority of the episodes of the first season of the Perry Mason show were based directly on novels of Erle Stanley Gardner. As I was watching the show I recognized several of the titles as books that I had read as a teenager, not that I recalled the plots anymore. View fullsize Then … Continue reading The Case of the Green-Eyed Sister
The Case of the Incompetent Cross-Examination
Another old black and white TV series that I’ve recently added to my Plex streaming library is the original 1957 Raymond Burr 271-episode Perry Mason show. Perry Mason The Complete Series DVD The show started airing when I was in third grade, but I’m not sure just when I began watching it. It’s all sort … Continue reading The Case of the Incompetent Cross-Examination
Do-do-do-do Do-do-do-do
I’m in the process of adding another classic television program to my Plex library, even though this one is currently available on Netflix.“Why?” I hear you ask. Well, in the case of the Blu-ray edition of The Twilight Zone: The Complete Series, there are tons of extra features that make it worthwhile, not to mention … Continue reading Do-do-do-do Do-do-do-do
Frontier Looks Amateurish
View fullsize I started to watch the Netflix series Frontier, but I was immediately disappointed at the amateurishness of the production.The first couple titles that serve to provide the viewer with some of the context for the history are in ALL CAPS, making them difficult to read to begin with, and they flash by so … Continue reading Frontier Looks Amateurish
Thank You, Gracie Allen!
View fullsize Gracie Allen While doing today's New York Times crossword puzzle, I came across this clue:13d. Shortest-serving U.S. vice president (31 days)Without hesitation I filled in the answer:TYLERThat I know that answer and can retrieve it so handily is all because of Gracie Allen. Here's why.In 1811 William Henry Harrison became famous for his … Continue reading Thank You, Gracie Allen!