#26 — A Streetcar Named Desire (Elia Kazan, 1951) Elaine Stritch was talking about Marlon Brando once, and Elaine Stritch never minced words. In discussing Brando’s time in class with Stella Adler, studying the fiercely emergent acting strategy formulated by Constantin … Continue reading Top Fifty Films of the 50s — Number Twenty-Six
“Everyone laughs except Bix, who’s at his computer, and you feel like a funny guy for maybe half a second, until it occurs to you that they probably only laughed because they could see you trying to be funny, and they’re afraid you’ll jump out the window onto East Seventh Street if you fail, even at something so small.” –Jennifer Egan, A Visit from the Goon Squad, 2010 “YOUR NAME IS BEVERLY GABLE, AND YOU ARE RETURNING HOME AFTER AN EVENING OF BABY-SITTING. FOR THREE AND ONE-HALF HOURS YOU WATCHED THE FLICKERING IMAGES PLAYING ON A TELEVISION SET, OBLIVIOUS TO … Continue reading Great Moments in Literature
5. Heart, Dog & Butterfly Dog & Butterfly was the second Heart album released in 1978. Sort of. The band that famously features the Wilson sisters, lead singer Ann and lead guitarist Nancy, released their debut album on Mushroom Records … Continue reading College Countdown, The First CMJ Album Chart, 5
This is the kind of good kid I was in preparation for the review below. Knowing that we’d be covering Other People’s Money on our radio program, The Reel Thing, I went to one of the upper floors of the UW-SP library and checked out a copy of Jerry Sterner’s play to read in advance of seeing the film. Part of the reason, then, this is a slightly longer review than the norm for our weekly show is I had all this deep background knowledge to share. The nineteen-eighties will be forever typified as the time when greed came to … Continue reading From the Archive: Other People’s Money
I’m going to break a rule. It’s one of my own rules, so I guess it’s okay if I decide to break it. The song shared today is in print and presumably available at your favorite local, independently-owned record store. In fact, there’s a whole mess of Dave Alvin albums that can be purchased, including the recently-released collaboration with his brother that’s drawn laudatory reviews. So I’ll begin by urging you to contact the proprietor of that favorite store and discuss making a purchase. Not necessarily today, though. It’s a holiday. Let them have a break. “4th of July” is … Continue reading One for Friday: Dave Alvin, “4th of July”
“My ideal picture of citizenship will always be an argument, not a sing-along.” “Voice” is a word that’s used commonly to describe writers, at least good ones. It’s usually meant to describe something that’s found strictly on the page: point … Continue reading My Writers: Sarah Vowell
#27 — Diabolique (Henri-Georges Clouzot, 1953) Well before “spoiler” became a word that loomed almost larger than any other for moviegoers, Diabolique was a film that urged viewers to keep its secrets hidden from those who hadn’t yet bought a … Continue reading Top Fifty Films of the 50s — Number Twenty-Seven
These posts are about the songs that can accurately claim to crossed the key line of chart success, becoming Top 40 hits on Billboard, but just barely. Every song featured in this series peaked at number 40. Unquestionably the most successful group of the highly successful Motown record label, the Supremes had thirty-three Top 40 singles in the U.S., with more than a third of them reaching the very top of the Billboard chart. That included an amazing run of five straight #1 singles in 1964 and 1965, beginning with “Where Did Our Love Go” and ending with “Back in … Continue reading Top 40 Smash Taps: “I’m Going to Let My Heart Do the Walking”
I read a lot of comic books as a kid. This series of posts is about the comics I read, and, occasionally, the comics that I should have read. While there were underground comix for a long time, I started … Continue reading My Misspent Youth: American Flagg by Howard Chaykin
6. Jethro Tull, Bursting Out Look. It’s Jethro Tull, the band that brought flute solos into rock ‘n’ roll. It’s a double live album, because it’s the nineteen-seventies and double live albums were the standard filler on the discography of … Continue reading College Countdown, The First CMJ Album Chart, 6
Coffee for Two 