I watched the Toronto Maple Leafs get their butts kicked tonight by the Philadelphia Flyers (by a score of 4 to 1).
Don Cherry does his "Coach's Corner" thing between the first and second periods on the CBC's Hockey Night in Canada broadcasts. The issue of fighting in ice hockey came up with side-kick Ron MacLean pointing out that many people feel that when players duke it out on the ice they should be automatically ejected from the game. My short and long answer to that is "yes". Cherry, of course, tried to explain his way around the argument -- which for him is a "no" answer to the proposal -- and capped off by stating that fighting will always be a part of the game. Hey, I do not argue with that. But fighting players should be told to leave the game after they settle down. "Get out of here, now!" That easy. But hard for some, Cherry included, to understand. A very simple concept it is and one even the average hockey player can grasp.
There was a match up between the loser Leafs and the Montreal Canadiens a few nights ago. I did not see the show but I heard the next day -- including from a non fan friend of mine -- that the Leafs were always trying to start, and did, a scrap. To make things worse, the Toronto coach said something about being proud that his boys are being more physical. My answer to that? Fine the Toronto Maple Leafs hockey club a few tens of thousands of dollars and administer this prize with a public statement that a conscious attempt to mar the NHL with fisticuffs will not be tolerated.
You see, the above is direct, succinct, and easy to understand; even for the average Leafs coach.
One of the 'Mouseketeers' has died. I came along a little late to enjoy, Annette, Tommy, Doreen, and the rest when they were in first run, but CKVR or CBLT replayed The Mickey Mouse Club in the early to mid 1970s at noon hour. This is when I was contaminated by that theme song, which the gang sang in the utmost earnestness making it even more sticky. Walt Disney sure knew how to market an empire.
Cheryl Holdridge died at the age of 64. Like most my age, I remember her more for her intermittent role in Leave it to Beaver. Now there is a show for the ages.
http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/tv/2009/01/10/7978736-sun.html
Former studio executive Ned Tanen died on Monday (January 5th). He was staff at two big studios, Paramount and Universal. My favourite Tanen story is recounted in Dale Pollock's outstanding, albeit, unauthorized, 1983 biography on filmmaker George Lucas: Way back in 1973 Universal test screened American Graffiti to a youthful -- therefor target -- audience in Westwood (if memory serves me), California to see if what Lucas was taking forever to edit would make any waves in the marketplace. This day turned out to be a legendary event in the legend of test screenings. The audience went wild for American Graffiti, so much so that Lucas would gage any film premiere of his own movies against how high the bar was set by this one. However, there was one dude in the audience who not only went against the prevailing opinion of the few hundred souls, but outright hated it. Hated it. (Double dangling.) Dude Tanen: Important executive who was supposed to be won over but was not; just the lesser audience members were. But they did not count. At the end of the screening was Tanen screaming his displeasure. Several other important movie people were there, including Francis Ford Coppola, and they were stunned by the young exec's hate-on for Graffiti.
Tanen admitted years later that he had always been a manic depressive sort. More movie executives could use this cynical view... but American Graffiti went on to clean up in its eventual release, earning back many, many times its cost. Called "profitability" in the movie business.
When I first saw the news on-line that Jett Travolta had died, it was one of those cases where my eyes see the item but my brain does not. Later it sunk in when I actually read the news. It goes without saying that losing a child is something you would not wish on your enemies, and John Travolta strikes me as one of those level headed super-nice guys who happens to work in the movies. Besides, he has been with his love (Kelly Preston) for years... throughout actual "Eras" or "Kingdoms", in Hollywood terms.
I did my round of the British tabloids on-line and came across this breaking news from two days ago...
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/tv/article2092775.eceSo he's the new Doctor Who; the title character. The excitement is too much for some to handle. As a joke the BBC should fabricate a fictitious actor and release 'him' to the media. That would be pretty funny: The geeks could post comments on their favourite message boards (the ones they spend their entire days on) to the effect, "Best Doctor Who... ever!"
The CBC is premiering their new series Being Erica tomorrow evening (Monday, January 5th) at 9 pm. I read somewhere recently that this is just a retread of at least two previous shows that were quickly cancelled. That does not surprise me.
My only question is why does the CBC have such a narrow view of how to promote a show? The ads I have seen on the mother network for Being Erica seem to be identical to ones placed a year ago when they were pushing Sophie: That is a shot of the lead actress goofing off before the camera. Is the CBC so cursed with a paucity of ideas that they see no other avenue?
Toronto entertainment writer Bruce Kirkland of the Toronto Sun wrote an interesting, although not news breaking, piece about the state of affairs with the 'hi-def' format, Blu-ray...
http://www.torontosun.com/entertainment/columnists/bruce_kirkland/2009/01/04/7912751-sun.htmlBlu-ray is too expensive on a hardware and software level. As Kirkland correctly points out, most people are content with their regular DVDs (which can be "upconverted" on a capable machine).
The talented and fun Canadian music group The Barenaked Ladies have done a cover of Delores Claman's classic hockey theme for TSN (The Sports Network)...http://www.thestar.com/Entertainment/article/560012Too bad the CBC gave Claman's beautiful baby up for adoption. Some might remember that the Ceeb held a contest with a 100,000 dollar prize to any Canadian citizen who could come up with a replacement tune. Well, things did not go according to plan: Thousands of demos were sent into the network but the one picked in the end -- all as part of a televised spiel -- was lame. As a matter of fact, the final five themes picked by judges were, with one exception, all weak. I am all for empowering regular folk with a contest but with all the submissions (15,000 ?) "these are the final picks?"
Something is going on there. Why does the CBC do (almost) everything wrong? And why was Bob Rock the producer of the final five and their respective recordings? You need a classical dude in there, not a rocker. My pick would have been Michael Conway Baker.
Here is filmmaker Bert I. Gordon's imdb (Internet Movie Database) listing...http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0330026/I had forgotten that he made the 1962 fantasy film The Magic Sword. It is a fun one starring good ol' Basil Rathbone and a young Gary Lockwood.
Unlike his contemporary, Jack Arnold, it does not appear that Gordon ventured into television.
Grade Z filmmaker Bert I. Gordon was one of many filmmakers who were part of my childhood years. His films Village of the Giants and Earth vs the Spider were part of director Frank Darabont’s too -- it’s obvious if you’ve seen his latest flick The Mist (the B&W version/option). While infused with a requisite modern sensibility -- a take on influential fare from a guy like Gordon -- there is a no-holds-barred “this is the kinda shit I remember as a kid” drive. The Mist is low budget (although not micro budget as in what Gordon would have worked with) film and this was a smart choice from an artistic, never mind business, standpoint. Darabont knows all too well what many studio affiliated directors do not; working with minimal resources makes you work for artistic effects; a hunting and pecking that bears fruit from being kicked in the pants throughout your rather limited shooting schedule, and not from having so much money and time that dramatic potency is often circumvented and displaced by a lack of palpable impetus.
The Mist does have its thespian moments of opportunity, but what drives The Mist is what drove the kind of flicks that Bert I. Gordon made: Balls and All.
I freely admit that I have never been a Steven King fan; have never been able to get through one of his books (I have tried) but am aware his novella was the springboard for this film. Apparently King approves of Darabont‘s take. So do I.
The basic plot? People are cooped up in a grocery store and held there by various thingies: Lotsa bug thingies of various proportions but unified voracity. It is a matter of survival for the occupants -- against the immediate threat and a growing internal sect of Christian fundamentalist weirdos. Which is scarier? This is a question pondered by the stars of the show… one which makes them toss aside the dice and use logic.
Darabont directs and makes film here with a sure hand; as a kid in a candy store. (Some red Smarties, a few green, but lots of black ones.) He loves his bug movies and he reminds viewers like me -- as if I needed to be reminded.
The only weakness, at least for me, is the ending. All I thought during that pivotal last reel moment was, “No, come on, there’s going to be an ‘African Queen’ shot here. The camera will pull back to reveal… “
I guess the characters don’t or didn’t watch enough movies.
Make no mistake, I do like downer endings. And I much prefer The Mist over the director’s grossly overrated The Shawshank Redemption.
Post Script: There are two direct don’t-have-to-reach-for connections for me in The Mist. The first was that zinger Outer Limits episode titled “The Zanti Misfits” where ant-like alien creatures threaten a town and military outpost. There is a big battle. The other example is a Lost In Space episode where the Jupiter 2 (the Robinson family’s flying saucer home) is shrouded in an alien mist. As the white fog ‘rolls’ down the main viewport, a creature’s claw hangs down from above, dangling against the perspex. Professor John Robinson (dad) ties a rope around his waist and gives the other end to son Will before venturing forth. (The other family members have been disappearing one by one until just dad and son are left.)
(My guess is Frank Darabont is more than familiar with the above.)
Did Bert I. Gordon ever direct any TV? I know that Tarantula director Jack Arnold did (Gilligan’s Island).
I watched the Toronto Maple Leafs get their butts kicked tonight by the Philadelphia Flyers (by a score of 4 to 1).
