tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post5264484379018530555..comments2023-11-03T06:02:02.128-07:00Comments on By Ken Levine: Times they have a-changedBy Ken Levinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comBlogger63125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-34964394076804282372018-02-02T15:26:37.972-08:002018-02-02T15:26:37.972-08:00I proclaim to everyone, except Ken:
"Lighten...I proclaim to everyone, except Ken:<br /><br />"Lighten up, Francis."Andrewnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-58996520315618318532018-02-02T14:26:33.147-08:002018-02-02T14:26:33.147-08:00Love and appreciate your willingness to have an op...Love and appreciate your willingness to have an open dialogue. For that reason alone we know you are good at heart and not those names that you listed above. These are new and tough times. We are all learning. Lena Waithe just made a great statement on sexual assault but it could easily apply to those other terms you listed as well. Here's a part of it below... Also, we have to keep in mind marginalized groups have always had to word everything just right and tip toe around others or risk being casted away. This is only a new thing for some people. The times have indeed changed.<br /><br />“I think a big thing is, we have to have a dialogue,” Waithe said. “And I think if we’re unwilling to have a dialogue we’re gonna continue to keep hitting our heads against the wall. We have to start reeducating ourselves about what consent is, what’s appropriate behavior at the workplace. We have to create codes of conduct. Those are things that we need. ‘Cause also I think there’s an element of — how do you know if you’re breaking a rule if you aren’t aware of the rules? Or how do you know what appropriate behavior is if no one’s ever communicated to you what appropriate behavior is? Even though some people may assume, Well, of course we all know what appropriate behavior is, but some people may not know.<br /><br />“It’s about really educating ourselves and not stepping in it and just [saying], Oh, I’m sorry. My bad — and sort of keep going. But it’s about really sitting with yourself and educating yourself in terms of what consent is, what it looks like, what it feels like, what it sounds like. And all of us starting to really act accordingly based on this new information that I think we have now. We all gotta start talking to each other, start educating each other.”<br /><br />via - http://deadline.com/2018/02/lena-waithe-aziz-ansari-the-frame-interview-1202277076/Myleshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07139984409445302062noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-40279834524622287102018-02-02T09:15:03.049-08:002018-02-02T09:15:03.049-08:00Thanks, Laura.
GREATLY appreciated.Thanks, Laura. <br /><br />GREATLY appreciated.By Ken Levinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-11024499238524804282018-02-02T09:01:10.612-08:002018-02-02T09:01:10.612-08:00Thank you for taking the time to respond.
I a...Thank you for taking the time to respond. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I absolutely know you are not a sexist, and I apologize if my post came off as an accusation. If I thought you were a sexist I would not have bothered to respond. I rarely respond to blog posts as it's mostly not worth the effort. I took the time because none of us is perfect and it can be easy for comments to be misconstrued (as is apparently the case here) or for a person to be unaware of how they are coming off to the masses. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I am also not suggesting that Margaret doesn't have a healthy sex drive. Most women I know have a healthy sex drive. What I am saying is that a healthly sex drive does not excuse unwanted advances. I am glad we agree on that. My apologies if I misconstrued your remarks as condoning his actions. That is how I took the original post, and I don't think it is an unfair reading. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I have very much enjoyed your writing for most of my life and have been very favorably impressed with your generosity on your blog. I frequently encourage my college freshmen daughter and aspiring writer to read it as well. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br />You have my sympathy for the crap I'm sure you endure in trying to separate the artist from the art with regards to Woody Allan, et al. I know it can't be fun, particularly for someone left of center who has demonstrated compassion for all in a lifetime of writing. I hope you can shrug it off and keep going - we'd be poorer without you.lauramcchttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03441870091619187267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-27186306346006525122018-02-02T00:37:30.569-08:002018-02-02T00:37:30.569-08:00I apologize to Laura if I came off too harsh. I a...I apologize to Laura if I came off too harsh. I admit to being overly sensitive on this issue. I take pride in not being homophobic, racist, sexist, etc. And it bothers me that I have to word everything so pin-point carefully to make my point without unnecessarily offending anybody. <br /><br />God, I miss the days when readers just called me Fat Head. Or when Roseanne called me an "asshat." <br /><br />This is a humor blog. And humor sometimes ruffles feathers. Also, I'm opinionated. And there are those who don't share my opinion. But if I had no opinions and my humor was so gentle it didn't offend a soul, why would anyone read me? <br /><br />Have I gotten crankier? Yes. Maybe if I was making money on this blog it would be different. But I'm not. I have no obligation to do a blog post every day. I offer this for free... in the hopes that it's entertaining, informative, honest, and at times thought-provoking (although not often). <br /><br />I appreciate Laura and those of you who defended Laura. Like I said, this just touched a nerve. By Ken Levinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-84013956984301539452018-02-01T23:56:45.248-08:002018-02-01T23:56:45.248-08:00It doesn't really feel like you heard what she...It doesn't really feel like you heard what she said because you felt attacked. She didn't call you any of things. Look for the gray area and not the wrong or right aspect of it. "Maybe ask Annie for her thoughts on this matter" as she suggested. Could shed some light and coming from a loved one you might be able to hear it. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-46304246679676851742018-02-01T16:25:55.735-08:002018-02-01T16:25:55.735-08:00Ken, I also think you're in a slightly differe...Ken, I also think you're in a slightly different position re: MASH. You wrote the show. So you, among a handful of other people, are in an actual position to say "this character was OK with this happening" or "this character would've preferred it not, but wasn't tremendously offended" or "this character took this in good fun", because your job was literally to decide how the character felt. So I take your word on it as canon, because you wrote it. I have no quibble there.<br /><br />That said, the exact phrasing you chose to use in discussing that scene in this post did sound a little too close to what Laura was describing with the issue of actual bad dudes saying "she wanted it". Your A-B list did make me wince a little bit because it reminded me of that type of statement. I don't think you meant it in that way. I don't think there's anything malicious in that scene. It doesn't play to me as a superior officer taking advantage of a power dynamic. Hot Lips would clobber anyone who did. So I wouldn't gasp at the scene because I know the characters and their history and the moment makes sense to me in context. But even with me knowing all of that, when I read that small part of the post it did make my mind go where Laura's did because of the way it was phrased. I'm not trying to nitpick you to death here because I generally agree with your overall point. But you're a writer, so I figure you probably care more than most about which part of your words landed in a particular way and evoked a particular response.DBAnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-22064174071538722352018-02-01T13:23:18.786-08:002018-02-01T13:23:18.786-08:00Laura,
Thank you for your thoughtful comments. I ...Laura,<br /><br />Thank you for your thoughtful comments. I won't dispute any of your arguments.<br /><br />But you bring up a point that is a pet peeve. Person A has an opinion Person B doesn't share. Then Person B accuses Person A (or at least suggests) of being either sexiest, raciest, homophobic, etc. based on his opinion. <br /><br />When I said Hot Lips had a very healthy sex drive -- she DID. All those times with Frank, all the visiting generals in her tent, etc. Why do you think she got the nickname Hot Lips? So for me, as someone who wrote on the show, to suggest she had a healthy drive is not close to suggesting "she really wanted it." Did I condone Henry's action? No. I simply tried to explain the reasoning. <br /><br />The danger with accusing people of being sexist, homophobic, racist, whatever is it becomes a personal attack on their character. So those accusations should not be made unless you absolutely believe them to be true; not as a way of discounting someone's opinion. <br /><br />I'm sorry to be unloading on you. I've devoted entire posts to this. I say one nice thing about a Woody Allen monologue and suddenly I condone child molestation. I criticize the announcer for the Emmys and since he's African-American I'm a racist. It's getting ridiculous. By Ken Levinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-68715824705161187312018-02-01T12:00:15.866-08:002018-02-01T12:00:15.866-08:00HI Ken,
To be honest, I'm not nearly as troub...HI Ken,<br /><br />To be honest, I'm not nearly as troubled by the scene between Henry and Margaret (we'll leave the whole "hot lips" thing out for the moment) as by your defense. I get where you are coming from, believe me. My husband, father and most of my male relatives served in the military and I am acutely aware of the changing mores. This is why I view the scene as amusing in context, along with the absence of any hint of malice. And In general MASH was ahead of the curve on racial and sexual issues. For one thing they got rid of the whole "Spearchucker" legacy quickly ( I was a child when the episodes originally aired and didn't even know this was a racial pejorative until I asked my mother about it) I believe you are one of the good guys, which is why I'm bothering to respond. <br /><br />The problem comes when you say it's okay for Henry to kiss his highest ranking female officer without her consent in front of the whole camp because the woman in question "has a healthy sex drive". This is just wrong on it's face, and dangerously close to the "She really wanted it" excuse powerful men have been giving for literally ever. I'm sure Harvey Weinstein tells himself the same thing. <br /><br />I have seen every episode of MASH multiply times and there is nothing in the text to suggest anything but at best a cordial working relationship. At times they were actively hostile, and Henry is at least a decade older. As a thought experiment, think how you would feel if it were your daughter that was grabbed and kissed suggestively in front of the whole company. Again, I get that it's war and that things were different in the 70's which is why I'm focusing on your comments today. Maybe ask Annie for her thoughts on the matter. lauramcchttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03441870091619187267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-47243487803866129242018-02-01T08:52:22.537-08:002018-02-01T08:52:22.537-08:00@Dr Loser: Just to clarify, I love Casablanca. It ...@Dr Loser: Just to clarify, I love Casablanca. It is my favorite movie, and I don't have any issues with it. I was simply mentioning it as a hypothetical. Nowadays, I think many young people would be trained to look down on the movie by imposing modern (oversensitive) standards.<br /><br />@MikeN: I loved Slowpoke Rodriguez. I also loved the minor characters among the mice. <br /><br />I honestly wonder how anyone can really find Speedy or Slowpoke offensive. It seems very contrived and thin-skinned. I especially have a hard time with white liberals presuming people of other ethnic groups are obligated to be offended at something. It comes across as condescending, and (ironically) racist. Andrewnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-36658962479104291662018-02-01T07:33:25.493-08:002018-02-01T07:33:25.493-08:00On the subject of whether or not Bond works today,...On the subject of whether or not Bond works today, I'd like to suggest folks try reading Casino Royale. I did, not long ago, and frankly Bond came across as an idiot. My idea is that the movie treatment fixed a whole lot of problems with that character, and are remarkably better overall than the book was. All that said, I don't think the movies would have played as well if they had come out any earlier than the 60s, when spy fever was at its peak. So I would argue that the successful run of the movies owes more to time and place than anything else. Casablanca remains one of my favorite movies; but if they tried to update it I don't think I'd be able to stand Elsa, which in turn would sour me against Rick for falling for her.McAlvienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-35862799251446572592018-02-01T04:22:01.813-08:002018-02-01T04:22:01.813-08:00Lucy was always terrified Ricky was going to hit h...Lucy was always terrified Ricky was going to hit her. Donna Hokehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03201351435662258382noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-81900654842196305782018-01-31T23:13:39.007-08:002018-01-31T23:13:39.007-08:00Andrew, ridiculous that they have excised Speedy G...Andrew, ridiculous that they have excised Speedy Gonzalez. What did you think of Slowpoke Rodriguez, who was singing songs about wanting marijuana?MikeNnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-60593715352382662062018-01-31T22:53:09.866-08:002018-01-31T22:53:09.866-08:00I think the problem with 'hitting on' is t...I think the problem with 'hitting on' is the same for anything else one likes and wants: do you ASK or do you GRAB?<br />The first is legit - with the chance of being said: "Yes" or "No" -, the second equals stealing.<br /><br />This, in regard to sexual favors, applies indifferently to both someone you are or you are not engaged to.<br /><br />Things get a little more complicated if the asker (even if he or she is just an asker and not a grabber) is in a position of power, like a boss at work. His or her request could be intimidating and could lead to a positive answer out of fear, on the part of the requested, of retaliation, e.g. firing.<br />Still, that intimidation is only potential. Unless your boss does in fact fire you or move you to a lower position or diminish your wage, after you said: "No" to his or her hitting on, you have no right to accuse him or her.<br /><br />That is, if no one of the involved is married. In which case things get a tad more complicated.<br />But not much. The essential is ASKING vs. GRABBING.Filippohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06348307887535378338noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-22467118930309909482018-01-31T21:33:50.693-08:002018-01-31T21:33:50.693-08:00I remember Vampira un local L A TV introducing hon...I remember Vampira un local L A TV introducing honor movies at the time his "My Hero" was filmed.<br />https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPG06xdaoPw&index=6&list=PLeagipoZmyfkl9IDodMWlJE3vSkjZaz9LRon Rettignoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-56335484922150468612018-01-31T20:39:06.070-08:002018-01-31T20:39:06.070-08:00I come back to a point that's been made repeat...I come back to a point that's been made repeatedly here... comedy is funny when you get laughs, and not funny when you don't. If a younger generation isn't laughing at an older show because they are distracted by something they find bothersome, then *to them* it's not funny. Trying to convince them they are "wrong" for not finding it funny is as pointless as trying to argue humor from any other angle.<br /><br />The difference between funny and offensive is often generational, and sometimes even case-by-case. It's been generally agreed in the U.S. since the 1960s that blackface entertainment is not okay, and poisons whatever else might be funny in a scene. Yet in the 80s you had the movie Soul Man, in the 90s Darrell Hammond's impression of Jesse Jackson on SNL, and in the 00's Jon Hamm in a blackface skit on 30 Rock. While you might disagree on whether any of those things was particularly funny, I don't recall them being extraordinarily controversial boycott fodder at the time.<br /><br />Being overattentive to sensitivity can kill comedy, but not being reflexively anti-PC can extend the life of comedy. Robert Smigel tells a story about shooting the Triumph remote where he made fun of people lining up to watch the first Star Wars prequel. At one point, Smigel sent out a guy dressed as Spock to walk past the crowd silently holding a sign that said "Fags." At a staff screening, everyone thought it was hilarious, except for the youngest interns, who looked uncomfortable. When Smigel talked to them, they told him they thought using that slur was pointless and mean-spirited, even if the joke wasn't overtly anti-gay. At the last minute before air, he decided to substitute another take where Spock gives everyone the finger. Smigel says he's glad he listened to the interns, because now the original version makes even him uncomfortable.Andy Rosenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-20589202899477346982018-01-31T19:19:28.198-08:002018-01-31T19:19:28.198-08:00Doug McIntyre, PRIVATE LIVES is a bad example. Bot...Doug McIntyre, PRIVATE LIVES is a bad example. Both main characters are assholes, by design.DBAnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-64542774024945046952018-01-31T18:47:48.258-08:002018-01-31T18:47:48.258-08:00And you'd better never watch Bob Cummings'...And you'd better never watch Bob Cummings' sitcoms "My Hero" or "Love That Bob'.Ron Rettignoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-18395202415925902682018-01-31T18:36:59.321-08:002018-01-31T18:36:59.321-08:00Hi Ken-
Do you think you could do the slap fight ...Hi Ken-<br /><br />Do you think you could do the slap fight between Sam and Diane on a sitcom today?<br /><br />https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1kbn-LOpesDarrennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-89018842534548896272018-01-31T18:30:10.113-08:002018-01-31T18:30:10.113-08:00In the fourth season of "Taxi," there wa...In the fourth season of "Taxi," there was an episode called "Louie Goes Too Far," in which Elaine contacts the National Organization of Women after Louie spies on her through a hole in the wall as she changes clothes in the women's room at the garage. <br /><br />The episode was written by Danny Kallis and originally aired on ABC Dec. 17, 1981.Kevin FitzMauricenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-92219450021679923552018-01-31T17:07:31.636-08:002018-01-31T17:07:31.636-08:00I was raised in a small, conservative religious cu...I was raised in a small, conservative religious cult (which is why I want to remain anonymous - I still have have relatives there), and we were constantly warned about how consuming any entertainment that deviated in ANY way from our beliefs was poisonous. Everything had to be examined and reexamined , and if anything was even slightly less than completely morally pure it had to be excised. One of the benefits of leaving, despite all I lost, was the ability to enjoy things without totally approving or disapproving of them. An ability that only lasted a short time, since as I began exploring liberal morality, I found the same level of scrutiny, only coming from the opposite direction. Nothing is neutral, everything is on a moral continuum from "problematic" to,well, "slightly less problematic". The immoral must be identified and purged in order for society to advance.<br /> I'm not sure how to finish this thought. The older I get, the more I realize that defining and practicing our version of morality is all humans really do with their lives, and that standards are constantly changing and will always be changing. I doubt I'll find any more peace outside the place I left than I did inside it.<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-19888553341173532612018-01-31T16:40:36.761-08:002018-01-31T16:40:36.761-08:001. THE FIRST SCENE IN "PHILADELPHIA STORY&q...1. THE FIRST SCENE IN "PHILADELPHIA STORY"<br />https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukZDbYWVybs<br /><br />2. FUN READ<br />JAMES KIRKWOOD- Diary of a Mad Playwright: Perilous Adventures on the Road with Mary Martin and Carol Channing (Applause Books) Paperback Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-81751108336273448132018-01-31T16:27:16.480-08:002018-01-31T16:27:16.480-08:00Ricky spanking Lucy always bugged me regardless of...Ricky spanking Lucy always bugged me regardless of the era. I'm surprised that Lucille Ball allowed that since she had the say to extricate it from any script.<br /><br />Terrence Mosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09365112876091271689noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-11914493398223776172018-01-31T15:58:09.314-08:002018-01-31T15:58:09.314-08:00And right on cue with this blog post, Formula 1 ha...And right on cue with this blog post, Formula 1 has chosen to remove the "grid girls" from its races beginning this year. They were models who marked the spots of the drivers on the starting grid with flags and signs, and interacted with fans on behalf of F1 and sponsors. http://www.bbc.com/sport/formula1/42890261Liggienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-3311592605176911002018-01-31T15:10:16.651-08:002018-01-31T15:10:16.651-08:00Perhaps related to the consent issue is the old mo...Perhaps related to the consent issue is the old movie / TV convention of the Available Woman; a pretty girl who's not a hooker but readily available for implied no-strings sex with pretty much any male. She's the date from somebody's little black book; the "chorus girl"; the pickup from the bar or wherever; the secretary who sits on laps. If she has an interior life, it's of no interest to the guy or to the audience. Even in "The Apartment", with Shirley MacLaine as a tragic Other Woman, there are other Other Women who are treated (and treat themselves) as harmless comedy. <br /><br />Marilyn Monroe's nameless "The Girl" in "The Seven Year Itch" is perhaps the platonic ideal. Yes, she has a job and taste for potato chips and all. But all her attributes combine to make her the ultimate Available Woman; one who'd pop into bed with Tom Ewell as casually as going to a movie with him. She isn't even offended by a clumsy pass at the piano; she merely remarks it happens to her all the time. She exists so Tom Ewell can be tempted and then panicked by theoretical fallout. DBensonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01144515471557731622noreply@blogger.com