Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Random blogservations...

JUSTIFIED is as great as ever this season! I love the current villain: Hedley Lamar from BLAZING SADDLES.

I’m a little hurt that serious presidential candidate, Roseanne hasn’t asked me to be her running mate.

More political correctness bullshit: The Houston Astros are celebrating their 50th season by wearing their original uniforms on opening day – with one tiny alteration. For their first three years they were the Houston Colt .45’s. The front of their jerseys said Colt .45’s and right underneath was a pistol. MLB is forcing them to remove the pistol.   So instead it’s better to think the team was originally named after the malt liquor.

Proof that today’s kids are idiots -- During the Grammys this was trending on Twitter: #WhoIsPaulMcCartney?

No one who went to Clive Davis’ party at the Beverly Hilton the night Whitney Houston died (while her body was still in the hotel) should have been allowed to attend her funeral.

I miss Doug McIntyre hosting Red Eye Radio.

Congratulations to all the winners of WGA Awards Sunday night. Now they give out cool trophies. I got plaques. Can I trade ‘em?  I'll even throw in my People's Choice award. 

I love my daughter, Annie. This was her birthday gift to me – a Grace Kelly bobblehead.  Gives you a window into our family, doesn't it? 

The frenzy to cast TV pilots continue as networks scramble to cast as many actors from failed series and failed previous pilots as they can. God forbid someone new gets a chance.  John Leguizamo is not going to save the industry. 

How come Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer are Oscar nominees for THE HELP and not Ringo Starr? It’s pretty much his movie!

Hooray! Charlie Sheen is off his meds. He’s ripping Ashton Kutcher and TWO AND A HALF MEN in the press. Crazy Charlie is so much more fun than Contrite Charlie.  Time for another tour. 

Would Anne Frank have a blog today?

The U.S. and China entered into a film pact, allowing more American films to be shown in China. They’re going to love VOLUNTEERS. It will be the pinnacle of my career – to see a million Chinese citizens in Tiananmen Square all singing the Washington State Fight Song.

Hollywood Blvd. at Highland is closed due to the upcoming Oscars. Carmageddon for tourists and hookers.

Spring training has begun! Seattle Mariners’ pitching coach Carl Willis: “If you’re left-handed, you’re on field four. If you’re not sure you’re left-handed, talk to me.”   I'll be broadcasting a few M's games mid-March and then throughout the regular season. 

No GLEE SUMMER TOUR this year. It’s been cancelled. Official reason: To give the cast a well-deserved rest. Real reason: No one was buying tickets.  Maybe if they had Charlie Sheen on the bill...

Huffington Post headline: Educator's Daughter Found Naked, Eating From Trash Cans

ARE YOU THERE, CHELSEA? – just 495 episodes away from tying THE SIMPSONS.

Why does it take the Clippers winning for folks to finally recognize what a great announcer Ralph Lawler is?

About a month ago I saw this creature who used to be Warren Beatty and the thought occurred: Does any man look good after plastic surgery?

Manny Ramirez has just signed with the Oakland A's.  Look for the sequel:  SLIMEBALL coming to a theater near you.  

HOUSE completes its series run this season. But the show really ended last year when Lisa Edelstein left.

Paul McCartney was in a group called the Beatles.

#WhoAreTheBeatles?

60 comments :

Anonymous said...

Ken Levine is now channeling Larry King.

#whoislarryking

Don K. said...

Levine's got his cranky on.

Anonymous said...

Paul Newman looked good after plastic surgery. Ringo looks good. Paul McCartney looks better than if he hadn't. George Clooney looks good. Betty White looks good.
People tend to look like shit when they get older, plastic surgery or not. Especially women.

RCP said...

Would Anne Frank have a blog today?

AF: "...in spite of everything, I still believe that people are good at heart."

Comments section, at say, Huffington Post:

"Grow up, idiot!"
"Get your nose fixed."
"Stop whining, you bleeding heart."
"Thanks, Anne, for your beautiful words!"


Anonymous said...

"People tend to look like shit when they get older, plastic surgery or not. Especially women."

Totally subjective. In any case, my mom must be the exception to the rule. At 78, she is still mistaken for being in her late 50s. In fact, during a recent physical, the nurse who was escorting her down the hallway stopped short while reading Mom's form: "This has to be a mistake. It says you were born in 1933." No plastic surgery, just good Scottish genes, I guess. (It certainly wasn't clean living)

Rays profile said...

Saw you were mentioned in Mark Evanier's blog today. Wish I had been a fly on the wall for that one to hear the stories you exchanged ... but since it was at lunch, you probably would have left because of the flies.

jbryant said...

Wait -- were they out of Natalie Wood bobbleheads?

If it's any consolation, another trending question on Grammy night was "Who the F___ is Bon Iver?" (which some transcribed as "Bonnie Bear"). I think it was mostly young hip-hop fans who were shocked that some balding white guy beat out Nicki Ninaj, J. Cole and Skrillex for Best New Artist. Some thought it was too bad that Kanye West wasn't there to run up on stage and pull an "I'mma let you finish," not realizing that Bon Iver is a featured guest artist on Kanye's last album.

Anonymous said...

I'm not sure I get the Ringo joke about The Help. And yes, I know who Ringo is, and I've seen The Help.

Mike said...

What's the obsession with Chelsea?

Harold X said...

Ah, but have you seen the Beatles' second movie?

BigTed said...

Speaking of TV pilot casting and "House"... Rena Sofer guest-starred on "House" last night. Does this mean she won't be cast in all the pilots, for the first time ever?

D. McEwan said...

"How come Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer are Oscar nominees for THE HELP and not Ringo Starr? It’s pretty much his movie!"

Who's Ringo Starr? (KIDDING!. I've met him. And Help IS his movie. He was the best part of A Hard Day's Night also. He may not have added much to their genius, but his comic charisma sure helped their movies.)

"Hooray! Charlie Sheen is off his meds. He’s ripping Ashton Kutcher and TWO AND A HALF MEN in the press.

Oh, today he apologised to Kutcher. I guess he was just off his prescribed meds (and on his unprescribed meds) for just a day or two. My advice to Charlie: "Shut up. Just don't talk at all, ever. You can not be trusted with a mouth."

"Does any man look good after plastic surgery?"

No human looks good after plastic surgery.

"Anonymous said...
I'm not sure I get the Ringo joke about The Help. And yes, I know who Ringo is, and I've seen The Help."


But not seen, or it seems, heard of, The Beatles movie Help! No wonder you're anonymous. If I were that ignorant, I'd want to be anonymous also. It's right down there with asking who Sir Paul McCartney is.

[They've taken all the fun out of Word Verification.]

RCP, very funny Anne Frank's Huff Po comments piece.

Dr. Leo Marvin said...

Ken Levine is now channeling Larry King.

Hank Kingsley.

Frank said...

Good to know that Roseanne has thrown her asshat into the political ring.

Anonymous said...

Curse you, Ken Levine, for posting that stripper video the other day. I viewed it and ever since that stupid song has been running around in my head and I can't get rid of it.

MichaelG

Blair Ivey said...

When I was a kid I thought the Colt .45's were named after the malt liquor. This probably had a lot do with the heavy TV buy the brand was engaged in at the time.

Overheard from two kids: "Who's Paul McCartney?" "He was with Wings." *Sigh*. At least they knew something about him.

Liggie said...

Different generation, different perspective. Today's high schoolers were born after Kurt Cobain's death, which was the touchstone music passing for we Gen Xers that John Lennon's was for the boomers. To them, the Beatles are probably as relevant as the big bands were to us.

WV "iternte dolur": a bad wifi connection, and how much it costs.

Barbara C. said...

My kids are 9, 6, 3, and 20 months. This past summer we took the two oldest to see Sir Paul at Wrigley Field. My oldest has been a Beatles fan since she was two and could ask to watch "Anfology"; that was her second time seeing Paul. My six-year-old prefers Paul solo over Paul with the Beatles. The three-year-old can pick out Paul easily, and even the baby would say "Beatles" when she saw our Yellow Submarine ornament on the Christmas tree.

We take music appreciation seriously in our house. Our kids will never be those stupid kids (even if they do have questionable musical taste in other ways).

Johnny Walker said...

I'd be willing to bet that the #whoispaulmccartney hash tag was comprised of jokes aimed at a tiny number of people who seriously asked.

RCP said...

D. McEwan said...

"RCP, very funny Anne Frank's Huff Po comments piece."

Thank you. You just made my day.

Anonymous said...

D. McEwan:

"No human looks good after plastic surgery."


Really? Don't tell Jennifer Aniston or David Schwimmer. Both got their honkers reduced. Sean Connery got eye work. Clooney too. Most of them seem to be getting work when they want. So much so that they don't even have time to come here and post extended rants about Charlie Sheen, or compulsively inform us that they met this or that celebrity when nobody cares.
Hey... Maybe you should get some work done.

xjill said...

Neal McDonough - been a huge fan since Boomtown!

#youshouldwatchboomtownifyouhaventpeople

normadesmond said...

can't wait to see what warren looks like.
i usually enjoy how bizarre the earlobes look.

He who reads faithfully said...

As a Clipper fan (all the way back to when Larry Brown was the coach), and recognition for Ralph Lawler is long overdue.

D. McEwan said...

"Anonymous said...
D. McEwan:
Hey... Maybe you should get some work done."


Have you ever seen what I look like? If not, how would you know? In any event, I have never had, and will never have, any "work done," unless you count my heart-valve replacement, and my hernia repair, neither of which were cosmetic.

Plastic surgery is for narcissists with too much money. I vastly prefer to age naturally, with dignity, not ravage my face to try and look younger than I am. What are you, some plastic surgeon trying to drum up work? Cosmetic surgeons should be required by law to have LARGE recent photos of Helen Gurley Brown and Burt Reynolds in their waiting rooms, so people can see the horrors they are courting.

(In her/his review of the movie of The Fellowship of the Ring Libby Gelman-Waxner, aka Paul Rudnick, said that Sir Christopher Lee as Saruman: "looks like Cher would look if she'd allowed herself to age naturally." God, how I laughed at that.)

At least I know how to type my own name, Mr. Anonymous, and at least when I insult someone, they know who is insulting them. You, sir or madam, are a sniveling coward.

"RCP said...
D. McEwan said...
'RCP, very funny Anne Frank's Huff Po comments piece.'
Thank you. You just made my day."


You're most welcome. The Anne Frank gags made me laugh, and as a former Huff Po blogger myself, I know the Huff Po commenters all too well.

My all time favorite Anne Frank gag was that when Pia Zadora played Anne Frank onstage at Burt Reynolds's Theater in Florida about 25 years ago, when the Nazis arrived at the end of act II, the entire audience shouted: "THEY'RE IN THE ATTIC!" (Not my gag, sadly, but a great one.)

D. McEwan said...

"Anonymous said...
D. McEwan:
They don't even have time to come here and post extended rants about Charlie Sheen.


My "extended rant" about Charlie Sheen is precisely 46 words. You've "ranted" considerably more words than that here in defense of plastic surgery. And I shall rant more than that about you.

Oh, I get it now. You're not a plastic surgeon; you're someone, who has had plastic surgery yourself, and whenever you look at your ravaged, unnatural face in the mirror, like a tinmpani stretched over a skull, you have to keep tellng yourself: "I look great," and to ignore when your friends' eyes look anywhere but at your face while they try to say: "Wow! You look great!" convincingly, and fail. My honesty threatens your shaky self-image. Okay, I get you.

You must be the same anonymous coward who wrote: "People tend to look like shit when they get older, plastic surgery or not. Especially women." casually insulting every senior citizen in the world, but showing your maleness by making the insult extra-insulting for women.

My paternal grandmother was not, as an old lady, the ravishing beauty she'd been 100 years ago, when she was the most-beautiful woman in Salt Lake City and an ornament to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, but she did not look like "shit," or I would not have her photo on my wall, so that I see that loving dear face I loved so intensely every day.

My maternal grandmother got considerably better looking as she aged. Obviously, she was already old before I met her, and the face I loved was that of a sweet, strong woman, and a joy always to see. When, in my teens, I first saw photos of her as a young woman, I was shocked. As a girl and a 20 year old woman, she was so horsefaced it was shocking. How she landed my hunky grandpa I'll never know, but clearly he saw her soul under her horsey face. He couldn't have known how beautifully that face would age. And as she was professionally a Christian Scientist Practitioner, she never had any kind of surgery whatsoever, cosmetic or nesessary. Her refusal ever to have any medical treatment eventually killed her.

Anyone else that would like to defend their grandmothers from this anonymous slimeball, please feel free to pile on. He insulted YOUR grandmothers also.

Pat Reeder said...

I'm so old, I remember when ignorant young squirts were asking if Paul McCartney was in a band before Wings. Then they didn't know what Wings was. Now, they don't know who Paul McCartney is. I suspect they are also confused about which is their ass and which is their elbow.

Even as a kid, I never had any use for morons who thought the world began the day they were born. I was a silent movie fan when I was 12, a teenage WWII buff, and mixed big band and Gershwin records in with classical, Bowie and Jerry Jeff Walker. Our old 5-LP turntable changer was the very first iPod on "shuffle." Our whole family was that way: my niece's first musical obsession at age 3 was Buddy Holly, and this Saturday, I'm treating her and husband to a concert by Max Raabe and the Palast Orchester, the German 1920s band. Her favorite singers now are Michael Buble and Bing Crosby.

To quote the Credibility Gap, another group long before the time of today's hipster doofuses, "Ignorance of your culture is not considered cool."

BTW, the idea of the Astros not being allowed to put pistols on their uniforms here in Texas is truly idiotic. I'll bet half the fans in the stands have concealed carry permits.

Naz said...

"People tend to look like shit when they get older, plastic surgery or not. Especially women."

Anonymous' comment is warped. How dare you!

benson said...

I'm guessing fans (if there are any) of the Washington Wizards have an understanding smile on their faces.

benson said...

Also, Ken, a Friday question.

Your lunch buddy linked to this today. Anything you care to share about "W*A*L*T*E*R"?

http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/116745#ixzz1n4Isn0Ux

Anonymous said...

Naz:

"Anonymous' comment is warped. How dare you!"

Jeez, I had no idea I'd be insulting the necrophiliacs. Forgive my shorthand regarding my remark about old people generally looking like shit. What I meant was older people tend to look like gargoylian versions of their youthful versions, rendering thm unfuckable in the eyes of the viewing public in general, and casting directors/show runners in particular.
I'm not moved by McEwan's rant about the ethics of plastic surgery, since I suspect, in his case, plastic surgery for him, would by like putting a new grill on an old Edsel. I mean really, what would be the point? No matter what you do, it's still a fucking Edsel!
I suspect the only answer for McEwan would have to be pounding his skull into a paste, then pressurizing his head into a patented George Clooney blow mold for the following 12 months, and hoping for the best.
Nobody here has tried to argue that Clooney looks weird, or Newman, Aniston, Jolie, and hell, the list goes on and on. They do it so they can keep getting roles that enable them to make more money than most of you will ever make in your lifetime, and if you all had the chance to do so, and all that was standing in your way of having Clooney's lifestyle was a brow lift, or nose job, most of you would be pounding on your local plastic sugeon's door, begging for an appointment. You'd pay the money, and offer a blowjob if that would expedite matters.
So let's keep this debate on track, and I don't want to hear from the people who are ugly to begin with. Your reality is askew from the getgo. This is about people who are somewhat good looking to begin with, fine tuning that look, or great looking people who are getting older, who have some work done to add another 10 years to their paycheck.
And let's all remember that just because a few actors plastic surgeons fucked up, doesn't mean a lot of others surgeons didn't do a wonderful job. Or would you like to make a case that Clooney now looks like a freak?
You can't, so be quiet.

Anonymous said...

One more thng...

To all you grandmotherfuckers, who keep saying "my grandmother is 90 years old, and she still gets carded at Barney's Beanery," I just want to say, your grandma, while she may be a great old gal, cannot open a movie.
For those who disagree, I'd like to see you mortgage your house, so you can finance a sexy new indie film. A real sexual potboiler, about a woman trying to "find herself" via assorted sexal trysts. Starring Betty White.
And don't one of you grandmotherfuckers mention "Harold and Maude." That's an exception that proves the rule.

jbryant said...

I'm probably naive about these things, but after a little Googling, I don't feel like I've seen any proof that Clooney has had plastic surgery. Lots of quotes from some Ophrah interview in which it sounds like he's making a joke about having his eyes done. Lots of 'before and after' photos that look inconclusive at best (one actually used a broad smiling photo as the 'before' and a deadpan as the 'after' -- um, yeah, crow's feet and smile lines tend to be minimized when the face is in repose). And of course lighting can accentuate or minimize flaws, and we never know these days what's been PhotoShopped and what hasn't.

I know a lot of people have the default notion that ALL celebs have had work done (and that they're all gay and do drugs and worship Satan), but some people do age better than others.

cadavra said...

By coincidence, I was at the Paley Center last night for a centennial celebration of Spike Jones. One of the panelists was his widow, singer Helen Grayco. I expected a little, white-haired lady to be helped to her chair, but instead this gorgeous blonde energetically bounded onto the stage. She looks 50. She is actually 88. If I hadn't seen her with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it. So, yeah, there's great plastic surgery. (By contrast, drummer Joe Syracusa looks every day of his 90 years, though he's still lively and fun.)

And by another coincidence, I was with your lunch partner, Mark Evanier.

RCP said...

Anonymous said...

"They do it so they can keep getting roles that enable them to make more money than most of you will ever make in your lifetime, and if you all had the chance to do so...most of you would be pounding on your local plastic sugeon's door, begging for an appointment..."

You know what's crazy, Anonymous? I actually sit down to watch films with actors like Spencer Tracy and Ruth Gordon, who - gasp! - aren't 25! In fact, I'll take 10 seconds of Maggie Smith over 2 hours of this month's 22-year-old flavor any day (same applies to men). I'm much more attracted by story and talent than in simple sex appeal. Does that mean I don't appreciate looks? Not at all, believe me. I'm just drawn in by something more - I'm freakish that way. Guess I'm also a freak in that I won't disfigure myself for lots o' money. I'll do other things, but not that (kidding).

As for older people (especially women) looking like shit, I assume you never saw a photo of Georgia O'Keeffe, who was beautiful into her 90s. Had a million wrinkles, but her face was worthy of Mount Rushmore. My father's mother, who was a Frenchwoman born in the late 19th Century, didn't have much schooling, never wore an ounce of makeup in her life, and still killed and prepared her own chickens and rabbits for dinner - was ravishing. It's called beauty that radiates from within, and if it doesn't sell many tickets, so be it.

Try expanding your horizons - you'll meet more interesting people.

VP81955 said...

When I was a kid I thought the Colt .45's were named after the malt liquor. This probably had a lot do with the heavy TV buy the brand was engaged in at the time.

Back in the day, when malt liquor was actually marketed to white people.

wvs: "ungui pintle" -- isn't he in the lower reaches of the M's farm system? Utility infielder, I believe.

Douglas McEwan said...

As long as you remain anonymous, Anonymous, your ranting and scattershot insults at everyone over 35 mean zilch. You remain a loudmouthed coward.

Your hilarious insults about my looks might, I suppose, sting if you had any idea what I actually look like. I'm 61, and do not look as ggood as I did proir to 50. So what? Having work done to make me into a plastic surgery freak would only make me look grotesque and narcissistic, whereas my natural aging face has the dignity of earned experience. Not everyone on earth wants to be 25 forever.

And as for pounding my head into pulp. Try it, asshole. You have my name, and you're still hiding behind your anonymity, like the slimy yellowbelly you are. In any event, your threatening me with violence: 1. Shows that my remarks about you hit the bull'seye. 2. Instantly cedes me the moral high ground. So thanks.

As for your insistence that every woman over 40 who hasn't' had narcissistic vandalism done to their faces should be made to wear bags over their heads, which is what you lengthy rant boils down to, well, you may notice that your amazingly deep superficiality has won you no friends here.

D. McEwan said...

"RCP said...
Anonymous ... Try expanding your horizons - you'll meet more interesting people."


What a terrible fate to wish on interesting people. He may meet them, but only for as long as it takes for them to flee from him.

Kirk said...

Does anyone know if Charlie Sheen has had plastic surgery? If so, he may have left a comment.

Thomas said...

Of course the old crankies are amazed that a single person alive does not know who Paul McCartney is.

In 45 years, I suppose I will be cranky when a single person does not know who Adele is. (Or whomever happens to be most influential from the current pop plop.)

D. McEwan said...

"Thomas said...
Of course the old crankies are amazed that a single person alive does not know who Paul McCartney is."


Because it is amazing - and appalling. I was born 5 years after World War II, but by age 10 I certainly knew who Guy Lombardo was, and Cole Porter, and George & Ira Gershwin, and Jerome Kern, and Victor Herbert, and Richard Rogers, and Irving Berlin, and Kalmar & Ruby, and Cab Calloway. Hell, I even knew who Kay Kyser was, and his later obscurity was well-deserved. I may have been listening to Elvis and Frankie Avelon and all the rest of the 1950s boppers, but I knew who the hell they were, because I didn't belong to a generation so naracissistic that they had zero interest in anyone or anything from before they were born.

We Boomers are often slandered by the generations we made the mistake of siring (Not me, though. Me gay.) as "The Most-Narcissistic Generation Ever," but that title rightly belongs to today's young people, who feel the need to Tweet what they had for breakfast, and every time they go to the bathroom must be included in a Facebook status update, and God Forbid they should learn of anything that existed before they did. Black & White movies? Ew. Music with melodies? Yuck. Singers who sing rather than loudly, monotonously chant obscenitites? Gross.

Speaking of the great Cab Calloway, PBS is running an American Masters show on Cab's life and career next week (Here in LA, it's on next Monday on KOCE. Check your local listings) and I for one can't wait. Turned out some of my grandparents' generation made great music.

Anonymous said...

Look here, McEwan, I've had just about enough of your retardian histrionics. I was simply reminding you of the facts. Pounding your.pin head into a paste is a well known plastic surgery procedure, so sorry if you considered my suggestion that you proceed with the surgery as some kind of threat. The fact is, I was just trying to help you.
Really, McEwan, wouldn't you like to have a conversation with someone, face-to-face, during which they were not distracted by your pointy head? Wouldn't you, for once, like to converse with someone during which they didn't think to themselves, "gee, I have a lot of vinyl records in my garage, wonder what I could get for them on eBay? The reason I say this to myself is because this guys head reminds me of a large phonograph needle."
So, you see, McEwan, you're lashing out at a total stranger who is trying to help you. And that is a sad story, McEwan. A sad story indeed.

Anonymous said...

RCP:

"You know what's crazy, Anonymous? I actually sit down to watch films with actors like Spencer Tracy and Ruth Gordon, who - gasp! - aren't 25! In fact, I'll take 10 seconds of Maggie Smith over 2 hours of this month's 22-year-old flavor any day (same applies to men)."

Do you know what that tells me, RCP? That tells me you be one crazy grandmotherfucker. However, apparently there are a lot of you here, so let's stop fussin' and GET THIS PARTY STARTED!!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LW-ADgjRdCU&feature=youtube_gdata_player

D. McEwan said...

"Anonymous said...
Really, McEwan, wouldn't you like to have a conversation with someone, face-to-face, during which they were not distracted by your pointy head? Wouldn't you, for once, like to converse with someone during which they didn't think to themselves, 'gee, I have a lot of vinyl records in my garage, wonder what I could get for them on eBay? The reason I say this to myself is because this guys head reminds me of a large phonograph needle.'


Anonymous, you still-craven coward, since you're still anonymous, just because people a relooking for the exits whenever you open your mouth doesn't mean it happens to everyone. Gore Vidal wasn't bored chatting with me the three different times we worked together on radio. Neither was Groucho Marx or Barry Humphries or Joseph Heller. Have your Mommy tell you who those people are. I've had lunch more than once with a guy named Ken Levine, so I guess he was fascinated to stare at my pointy head.

Your unrelenting agism leaves me realizing that you are still a child. What are you? 15? Go back upstairs to bed, the grown-ups are trying to talk, and no dessert for you for a week. But congratulations for knowing what a phonograph needle is, since they stopped using them before you were born.

VP81955 said...

Speaking of the great Cab Calloway, PBS is running an American Masters show on Cab's life and career next week (Here in LA, it's on next Monday on KOCE. Check your local listings) and I for one can't wait. Turned out some of my grandparents' generation made great music.

You can hear a lot of Cab (and Louis, Bing, the Boswell Sisters and more) on "The Big Broadcast," which comes from WFUV-FM in New York (90.7 FM, http://www.wfuv.org), and can be heard every Sunday night from 5 to 9 (Pacific). It's been on for nearly 40 years, and recently celebrated its 2,000th broadcast. The host, Rich Conaty, quips that it's designed "for the old, and the old at heart," but its appeal transcends generations; one of its fans is none other than Marshall Crenshaw of '80s rock fame ("Cynical Girl").

Such cross-generational popularity for old music and classic movies (I see all sorts of blogs on the Golden Age of Hollywood that are run by teens, many of whom have shown incredible knowledge of the topic) is heartwarming to me. And just as the flame is kept for Calloway, Armstrong, Crosby and the Bozzies, so is it being kept for '50s stars such as Elvis, Chuck, Buddy, Don and Phil and '60s stalwarts such as the Beatles, Stones, Miracles and DC5.

RCP said...

D. McEwan said...

"What a terrible fate to wish on interesting people. He may meet them, but only for as long as it takes for them to flee from him."

I suspect you're right in your theory that Anonymous has had work done - and now resides beneath an opera house somewhere. "I'm not hiding, I just couldn't pass up the cheap rent!"

RCP said...

Anonymous said...

"Do you know what that tells me, RCP? That tells me you be one crazy grandmotherfucker. However, apparently there are a lot of you here, so let's stop fussin' and GET THIS PARTY STARTED!!!!!"

Wrong again, Anonymous. The court psychiatrist determined at my trial that I was as sane as anyone walking down the street. But your idea for a party is not a bad one.

D. McEwan said...

"RCP said...
I suspect you're right in your theory that Anonymous has had work done - and now resides beneath an opera house somewhere. 'I'm not hiding, I just couldn't pass up the cheap rent!'"


You went and made me laugh again, but what a terrible calumny on poor old Erik the Opera Ghost. Okay, he had a terrible time trying to change a lightbulb in his chandelier, but he was such a lover of fine music, except in the Andrew Lloyd Webber version.

How ironic that, in a story set in the world of opera, with operatic music central to the plot, and so far filmed 8 or 9 times, the best version still remains the silent one.

Mike Barer said...

Charlie Sheen is right, the Kutcher concept is absurd.

Anonymous said...

McEwan:

"Anonymous, you still-craven coward, since you're still anonymous, just because people a relooking for the exits whenever you open your mouth doesn't mean it happens to everyone. Gore Vidal wasn't bored chatting with me the three different times we worked together on radio. Neither was Groucho Marx or Barry Humphries or Joseph Heller. Have your Mommy tell you who those people are. I've had lunch more than once with a guy named Ken Levine, so I guess he was fascinated to stare at my pointy head."

Hey, old man! You dropped a name! Oops! You dropped another one! And another one! Jesus, I think you have a hole in your pocket, grampa! And there's another one! Hey, is this Norman Mailer one yours too? It was in the gutter, there. Holy... Here's a George Takai! That's probably yours too. Probably forgot ya had it.
Sorry, McEwan, but it seems you never learned a primary lesson.for those living in Los Angeles:
Proximity to greatness does not rub off, nor does it raise your stock in the eyes of others, outside of those who stand around outsIde of Grauman's trying to get a picture of their cousin Reemer standing next to Spiderman.
So, avoid embarrassment by keeping your desperate anecdotes to yourself outside the state of Arkansas.

Anonymous said...

RCP:

"I suspect you're right in your theory that Anonymous has had work done - and now resides beneath an opera house somewhere. "I'm not hiding, I just couldn't pass up the cheap rent!"

Perhaps, but I think it's safe to say that my alleged lot in life still carries more dignity than yours:
Sitting alone in a section 8 apartment, masterbating with the ashes of Lillian Gish.
Sometimes eBay is a tool for evil.

Fan of Ken said...

Jane Fonda looks fantastic after a couple of face and neck lifts. And she got the boob job for Ted when they first married.

I love "Justified," but I think they've jumped the shark this season. The Neil McDonough character doesn't feel organic at all. There's too much violence for violence's sake and the villians are too one dimensional.

Who's gonna get the Dodgers, Ken?

RCP said...

Anonymous said...

"Perhaps, but I think it's safe to say that my alleged lot in life still carries more dignity than yours:
Sitting alone in a section 8 apartment, masterbating with the ashes of Lillian Gish.
Sometimes eBay is a tool for evil."

Head down, Anonymous, it's Quiet Time.

RCP said...

D. McEwan said...

"...the best version still remains the silent one."

This is the version I'd like to see in a theater, accompanied by an actual organist.

D. McEwan said...

"Anonymous said...
Hey, old man! You dropped a name! Oops! You dropped another one! And another one! Jesus, I think you have a hole in your pocket, grampa! And there's another one! Hey, is this Norman Mailer one yours too? It was in the gutter, there. Holy... Here's a George Takai! That's probably yours too. Probably forgot ya had it.
Sorry, McEwan, but it seems you never learned a primary lesson.for those living in Los Angeles Proximity to greatness does not rub off, nor does it raise your stock in the eyes of others"


Still with the agism, which invalidates every word you type. The facts that I am older, more-experienced, and wiser than you are good things, and that Life Experience is good, will genuinely never sink in past your botched facial work to where your brain ought to be.

Never met Norman Mailer. That one's yours. George Takai, no, I've just run into him at the Music Center once in a while and had a small chat or a wave.

But Groucho and Gore are men I've worked with on radio. Both have read work of mine and complimented it highly, and Gore, on three occasions, was happy to sit and shoot the bull with me for extended periods of time, something he does not do with anyone who bores him, and thus they represent legitimate refutations of your charge that people are eying the exits for a quick getaway like they do when trapped in a room with you, rather than look at a man with an un-"enhanced" 61 year old face. Barry Humphires has not only entertained me privately on numerous occasions, and corresponds with me, but wrote a blurb for my first book, thereby intentionally working to raise my profile with others. Joe Heller, another like Gore who did not tolerate fools or bores, didn't need to spend half an hour sitting and chattng with me alone, but chose to, so he also was a legitamite refutation of your scurrious charges.

"Anonymous said...
RCP:
'I suspect you're right in your theory that Anonymous has had work done - and now resides beneath an opera house somewhere. "I'm not hiding, I just couldn't pass up the cheap rent!"'

Perhaps, but I think it's safe to say that my alleged lot in life still carries more dignity than yours:
Sitting alone in a section 8 apartment, masterbating with the ashes of Lillian Gish.
Sometimes eBay is a tool for evil."


What you know about RCP is nil also. I know little about RCP either, except I know he has vastly more taste and intelligence than whomever you are, still hiding behind your Anonymity, in that Section 8 apartment you have revealed you occupy (Who knew they had Section 8 residences below the Paris Opera House?) I assume you're masturbating into the ashes of someone who died young, since you are so age-and-intelligence-phobic.

"RCP said...
D. McEwan said...
'...the best version still remains the silent one.'

This is the version I'd like to see in a theater, accompanied by an actual organist."


I had that experience once, back in 1971 at a revival house now long-gone in Hollywood. It was the first time I'd gotten to see the entire movie, and it was a glorious way to experience it, though that print did not have the color sequences in color. The DVD I have of it now is superior to the print I saw that night. It was also fun, when the lights came up, to learn that the man in the seat in front of mine over whose white hair I had been viewing it turned out to be Ray Bradbury. Just a great, memorable evening all around.

MattA said...

Billy Crystal did the "Who is Paul McCartney" bit 30 years ago on SNL.

Tallulah Morehead said...

Maybe Billy will do it again on The Oscars!

After all, the odds favor The Artist winning Best Picture (Though it seems certain to lose Best Sound), and the last (only) silent movie to win Best Picture was Wings, Sir Paul's other band.

RCP said...

"What you know about RCP is nil also. I know little about RCP either, except I know he has vastly more taste and intelligence than whomever you are,"

Although an amoeba would have vastly more taste and intelligence than Anonymous, thank you, Douglas (if I may be so bold. If not, let me know - I try to be careful not to overstep Internet bounds). At any rate, I've been really enjoying your comments and also "talking" with you "on the threads."

Glad you (and Ray Bradbury) were able to experience Phantom of the Opera in a real theater.

D. McEwan said...

Well Ray had seen it before. He's writen several timnes of how seeing Phantom of the Opera in its original release in 1925 when he was five years old transformed him, and warped his view for life. Another reason to be grateful to Lon Chaney. (Bradbury has often said how Lon Chaney captured his imagination and heart like no one before or since.)

Calling me Douglas is fine with me, and has been since birth. The literal translation od "Douglas" is "Blood River," referring to a river through a battlefield, running red with the blood of fallen warriors. Such a butch name.

RCP said...

D. McEwan said...

"Well Ray had seen it before. He's writen several timnes of how seeing Phantom of the Opera in its original release in 1925 when he was five years old transformed him, and warped his view for life..."

I hadn't known that fascinating fact about Bradbury. Imagine seeing Phantom of the Opera at five. I must say the kid had guts.


"Calling me Douglas is fine with me, and has been since birth. The literal translation od "Douglas" is "Blood River," referring to a river through a battlefield, running red with the blood of fallen warriors. Such a butch name."

Thanks. Douglas - a good strong name and a bit easier on the ears than the drama of "Blood River"

Never a Bob, I'm Robert or Rob. Middle name is Christian (my parents tried, poor dears).

flygirl said...

Hey Ken, I'm 61yrs old and I found the 84th Academy Awards show boring. The only movie I saw was the Bridesmaids(funny). As a black woman I'm tired of seeing Billy Crystal get away with doing black face comedy, if that was a conservative you'd never hear the end of it and enough of the Republican jokes, as if no one in the audience is a Republican.