More than half the time, I think Christopher Hitchens is way off-base, often taking a contrarian view just because it's a contrarian view. But I think he's spot-on when he writes, as he does today, about the follies of airline security. The TSA puts us through a lot of rituals and inconveniences that are supposed to make air travel safer…but they really don't. They just make some think the problem is well in hand.
Monthly Archives: December 2009
Name That Artist!
Yesterday in this space, we asked if the comic/animation experts out there could guess the identity of the artist who drew a certain C.B. Bears coloring book. I received over 150 guesses which included Mike Sekowsky, Wallace Wood, Neal Adams, Steve Ditko, Gene Colan, John Buscema, Ernie Colón, John Romita, Dan Spiegle, Gil Kane, Tex Avery, C.C. Beck, Mike Royer, Jerry Eisenberg, Bob Singer, Alfredo Alcala, Doug Wildey, Don Martin, Russ Heath, Ric Estrada, Sergio Aragonés, Stan Lee, Mike Ploog and Dave Stevens. One person offered to bet his life's savings it was Iwao Takamoto and two separate people guessed it was me, which I guess means they didn't read the question very closely…and also have never seen the way I draw.
And, oh yeah, some got the correct answer. The correct answer is Alex Toth.
I said I'd list the first three folks who named the guy but we had a lot of folks who did send in the right answer also sent in from one to twelve other guesses. So I'm only going to credit the first three who guessed Toth and no one else. Those would be Kevin Nowlan, Douglass Abramson and Carolyn Wallace. There were about ten others who came along later and thought it was Alex.
This was done during a period when Alex was toying with the idea of moving away from his famous adventure style and trying some things in a cartoonier vein. His friend and former employer, Warren Tufts, had done that. Warren had done newspaper strips like Casey Ruggles in a somewhat realistic style but found that (a) it didn't tap into all he could do and (b) it meant a lot of work to earn very little money. So he segued over to drawing things like Pink Panther comic books and Toth had a momentary impulse to try something different.
I was editing comic books for Hanna-Barbera at the time and he asked me for a job on Yogi Bear or something of the sort. I gulped and said, unconvincingly, "Uh, okay…just as soon as I have an open assignment." Before that happened, Iraj Paran — who was in charge of graphics and merchandise art for the studio — had a sudden and urgent need to have a batch of coloring books drawn, practically overnight. Alex grabbed the job of drawing the C.B. Bears one and batted it out over a weekend. I don't think he enjoyed working on that kind of material. At least, he never mentioned anything to me ever again about drawing Yogi Bear.
Also, Paul Dushkind didn't have a guess but wondered why the bears all had five fingers on each hand when cartoon animals are supposed to have four. Answer: Alex didn't draw a lot of cartoon animals so he kept forgetting.
Correction
In the post before last, I mistyped the time Turner Classic Movies is airing You're in the Army Now on January 4. It's 12:30 PM, not 12:30 AM. Thanks to Ken Kahn for the catch.
Today's Question
Question: What's the difference between these two men?
Answer: One is an awe-inspiring leader who is beloved by millions and who has made the world a better place. The other one is George W. Bush.
Happy Birthday, Stan Lee!
Today's Video Link
In 1941, after Bud Abbott and Lou Costello made a smash in Buck Privates, every movie studio had to try and copy the formula, which was a team of wacky new servicemen in the Army, a romantic subplot and maybe some flashy musical numbers. Buck Privates was made for Universal. Over at Twentieth-Century Fox, they signed up Laurel and Hardy and filmed Great Guns. Warner Brothers, meanwhile, tried to create their own comedy team. They took Jimmy Durante, who hadn't clicked as Buster Keaton's partner years before, and paired him with newcomer Phil Silvers for You're in the Army Now. You can see the results on Turner Classic Movies on January 4 at, in most time zones, 12:30 PM.
How good is it? Not very, I'm afraid. It's always fun to watch Durante and Silvers but they have no particular chemistry and the jokes feel like the kind of stuff Bud and Lou threw away. Still, it may well be where Nat Hiken got the idea to cast Mr. Silvers in an army comedy…and it may be the reason Mr. Silvers resisted the whole idea.
In his autobiography, Silvers told how he made a deal with CBS to do a situation comedy and Hiken was signed to create it. Hiken's first idea was to make him a sergeant and Silvers rejected it, thinking it would all be "Abbott and Costello nonsense," with soldiers bumping into each other and losing their pants. Obviously, he had at least in the back of his mind that it would turn out like You're in the Army Now. Anyway, Hiken then spent the next few months suggesting other ideas for a series and neither he nor Phil liked any of them. Finally one day, Silvers said, approximately, "Hey, let's go back to that army idea." And that's how M/Sgt. Ernie T. Bilko was born.
Below is the trailer for You're in the Army Now and it's obviously from a reissue. How do we know this? Well, it says so on the trailer but even if it didn't, they mention Mr. Silvers being in Top Banana, which didn't even come along until 1951, ten years after this movie was made. On the other hand, they don't mention Sgt. Bilko, which went on in 1955 so that helps us narrow down the dates of the re-release.
And speaking of Top Banana, which we've done a lot of here in previous posts, the movie version of it follows You're in the Army Now on TCM that morning. It's a sloppily-produced version of the Broadway hit but Phil Silvers gives an irresistible performance. You might want to set your VCR or TiVo. As flawed as it is, it's still better than this movie…
Who's Who in Whoville
I should have linked to this a few days ago…but the TV Academy's oral history project has put up a page of interviews relating to the animated version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas. They've done multi-hour interviews with hundreds of important folks in teevee history and on this page, you can view excerpts relating to that wonderful holiday special.
Recommended Reading
The New York Times editorializes against the revamping of the estate tax. I agree. This is really turning into a case where Republicans are trying to slash taxes for the super-rich at the direct expense of those making a lot less.
iPhone Report
So, I've now had an iPhone for a day shy of four weeks. Click here for the first message I posted about it and click here to read the second. This is the third and I remain happy with my purchase, especially since I went to my nearby Apple store and bought a good solid case to put it in and a good screen protector.
I first bought those things at a Best Buy and wound up tossing what I'd purchased. The case didn't work with the screen protector and the screen protector didn't protect the screen. I applied the protector sheet as per the instructions and wound up with more air bubbles than you'd find in ten episodes of Sea Hunt. But the ones I then got at an Apple store, though a bit more expensive, fit just fine. So that problem's solved. I still haven't gotten a new car mount…and won't 'til my car returns from spending the holidays at the body shop. (A little accident a few months ago, not my fault.)
What don't I like about the thing? I don't like how fast its battery depletes. I guess I was spoiled by my old Blackberry, which only had to be charged about as often as Halley's Comet went whizzing past. A full charge on the iPhone lasts about as long as it takes me to find the cord to recharge it. That wouldn't be so bad if you could open 'er up and switch out the battery but you can't. The thing's sealed tighter than Joan Rivers' face. I have a little extra plug-in battery thing but it ain't the same.
Still having a tad of trouble with the keyboard where my large hands make me feel like King Kong trying to play Clair de Lune on a toy piano…but I'm getting better.
Apps? I'm having fun with Shazam, which works as follows: When you hear a record playing on the radio or on a store's Muzak-like system or anywhere it's reasonably clear, you hold your iPhone up to it, take an audio sampling…and then Shazam scours its database, tells you what song it is and what CD it's on and gives you the option of ordering it. It's handy to carry Google around with you and I've used Open Table to make (and later, move) restaurant reservations. I like playing with Rimshot, which makes the sound effect of a rimshot and a few others. I've used Facebook to update my Facebook page and Twitterific to Twitter. They've all come in handy. I do miss (though not a lot) the dedicated TiVo programming application I had on my Blackberry.
So still glad I got the thing. And I probably will be until some new, better device comes out week after next.
Name That Artist!
This will only be of interest to folks obsessed with comic books and animation art. The rest of you can skip on to the next item.
In 1978, Hanna-Barbera had a short-lived cartoon show called The C.B. Bears. In connection with it, a coloring book was done. He didn't work on the cover but all of the interiors were done by one rather famous (in this field) artist. His name appeared nowhere on the book and as far as I know, I'm the only person alive who knows he drew this…and only because he told me and showed me some of the pages he was working on. You can see a few more interior pages below and over at this site which likes to scan pages out of old coloring books.
It's rather an unusual assignment for this gentleman…and no, it isn't Jack Kirby. Anyone want to guess who it is? I'll post the answer in twenty-four hours and credit the first three people who get it, assuming three people get it.
Recommended Reading
Adam Thirwell reviews a new book on Charles Dickens and discusses why he was the way he was.
Today's Video Link
The entire staff of newsfromme.com (i.e., me) is a huge fan of bandleader Spike Jones. Comedy in music has been too often done by folks who weren't good enough musicians to play it straight. Mr. Jones was…and one of the many reasons his records worked so well was that they're musically-sound. A member of his troupe, Earl Bennett, once told me that Spike had such a good ear that he could listen to a shot from a starter's pistol and say, "That's an F Sharp. I need an F Flat for this number."
You'll see Earl in our video clip today. I knew him a little from the days when he worked as a film editor at Hanna-Barbera. And you'll also see Eddie Brandt in the video. Eddie was a writer for Spike and later for Hanna-Barbera before he opened up a book/memorabilia store I used to frequent out in North Hollywood. I'm glad someone had the sense to interview these guys about Spike and capture some of their great anecdotes.
You can hear more of them and see video of Spike's work on television in a new DVD set, The Best of Spike Jones. I can't get enough of this stuff and you probably can't either, even if you don't know it yet. But in addition to being a great musician, Spike Jones was genuinely funny and he was surrounded by funny people. Here's an Amazon link so you can order, but first watch this little preview…
Recommended Reading
Glenn Greenwald reports on a pattern he's discovered: American military forces bomb some enemy turf and triumphantly report that a senior Al Qaeda leader (or other known terrorist) was probably killed. And later, it turns out that the report was false. He says this happens all the time and lists enough examples that…well, if it doesn't happen all the time, it sure seems to happen a lot of the time.
Bear Necessities
In the works is a (mostly) live-action Yogi Bear movie. Yogi and Boo Boo are to be CGI-animated a la similar features with Alvin and the Chipmunks, Garfield, Rocky & Bullwinkle and Scooby Doo. Everything else, we're told, will be actual human beings.
I don't believe in reviewing a movie you haven't seen, let alone (as with this one) a film that hasn't even been made yet. So let's acknowledge that the Yogi pic could turn out to be a wonderful surprise. Let's also acknowledge that if it isn't, it won't spoil whatever affection some of us have for Yogi Bear…or at least, it shouldn't.
For several months earlier this year, all the top cartoon voice actors in town were auditioning to supply the voice of Yogi…and the ones with whom I've spoken weren't certain to what extent the producers wanted a close carbon of Yogi's original voice, as concocted and performed by the late, loved Daws Butler. Daws left us in 1988 and then on Yogi shows that were later produced, his sound was usually replicated by one of his honor students, Greg Burson. Greg's facsimile was about as perfect a job of voice-matching as you could ever hope to find. Alas, Greg died in July of last year. Since Daws left us, a few other folks have played Yogi with varying degrees of fidelity.
Every single one of the voice actors I know who auditioned for the feature also said something to me like, "I did it but it was a waste of time. They're going to pick a star." I said I wasn't sure. The Rocky & Bullwinkle film didn't. The Scooby Doo films, with no star name voicing Scooby, have been pretty successful. But as it turns out, they've gone the star route. At last report, Dan Aykroyd was in talks to voice the smarter-than-average bear and rumor has it that they want Justin Timberlake to play Boo Boo. Perhaps either or both have been signed by now.
Many in the cartoon voice biz rail about this kind of casting. They'll tell you that superb vocal work is done every day by seasoned voiceover professionals…pros who aren't cast solely because they're known for their work in some other venue. Absolutely true. Then again, there are probably plenty of unknowns out there who could give fine performances in the starring roles of any live-action movie and they aren't usually hired, either. I think it's a mistake — this trend of ignoring professional cartoon voice actors when it comes time to cast professional cartoon voices — but I understand why they make it.
Stars can kickstart a movie with the public. A studio exec once explained it to me as the "innocent 'til proven guilty" principle. If you have a new comedy coming out and you have Steve Martin in the lead, potential filmgoers will presume it's a funny movie until they hear otherwise. If you have an unknown in that role, it's the other way around: The movie starts off having to prove it's funny. So star names can be valuable in marketing; in inducing chains and overseas distributors to book a film. Studios love early bookings because they minimize financial risk. Also, if you've made a gobbler, star names can get audiences into the theater that first weekend before the bad reviews and buzz start keeping them away.
Star names can also give a project a certain helpful status. In the seventies, when the Salkinds announced that they were going to produce a live-action Superman movie, no one took it seriously. No one expected the movie to get made or if it did, to be a picture of any import. Then they signed Marlon Brando for what was basically a cameo role and they paid him a sum that seemed staggering at the time…and absurd. As a per-screen-minute fee, it was insane but it changed the whole way the industry viewed the proposed Superman movie. Suddenly, it was a film that was probably going to be produced and probably going to be big and important. In that sense, it was probably a brilliant move. It made the movie not only happen but by the time it hit theaters, everyone knew about it and considered its opening a major event.
Still, the Yogi casting is a bit mystifying. I can't see that Mr. Aykroyd brings any of that to the endeavor. I think he's one of the most talented comic actors of our time but when was the last time anyone said, "Hey, let's go see that new Dan Aykroyd movie"? Even his biggest grosser, the original Ghostbusters, wasn't really a star-driven film…and that was 23 years ago. So his name alone can't mean that much.
The voice actors who said they were expecting a star name to be signed were all expecting someone like Will Ferrell or Jack Black, who are well-known to the vast part of the moviegoing audience that's too young to have grown up on Yogi Bear. One actor said, "They'll cast someone contemporary, figuring that will make Yogi more contemporary." I don't see that Dan Aykroyd does that, either. I'm wondering if today a movie producer had the rights to do a Blues Brothers or Coneheads movie and there was no contractual or personal obligation to involve Aykroyd if they'd even want him. Some exec who looked and/or sounded a lot like his old Irwin Mainway character would be saying, "Danny? A genius but these kids today…they don't know who the hell he is."
I'm going to guess/hope he gave a killer audition as Yogi…because that's the only thing I can think of that might justify what is presumably a seven-figure salary plus points. If that's the case, great. Because I'd like to see it do well, especially if it has some resemblance to the Yogi Bear I loved as a kid. I think what we're all afraid of is that the folks behind this film don't feel about Yogi the way we did and still do. We fear they're thinking that replicating and celebrating the original Yogi isn't enough; that they still need a Dan Aykroyd to add something different to it.
I hope that's not the reason they chose who they chose. There are things about the smarter-than-average bear that made him beloved and have kept him so, long enough to warrant doing this movie. One of them was the spirit that Daws put into the character. If you don't have that, you don't have Yogi. And if you don't have Yogi, you don't have a Yogi Bear movie.
Go Read It!
The awesomely-talented Shelly Goldstein sent me this link. It's to a very bizarre article about a very bizarre man. John Antrobus tells us how Peter Sellers used to spend Christmas.
Today's Video Link
Yesterday, we linked to Jimmy Fallon's re-creation of a number from the old John Denver/Muppets Christmas special. Here's what they were aping…the original from 1979. If I'm correct, there's only one person who was playing the same role in both versions — my pal Dave Goelz performed Gonzo (a role he originated) in the '79 version and he's still Gonzo after all these years. All the other Muppeteers are second generation.
Of course, it's probable that there's one other person who was in both versions. In the original, there are twelve Muppets who sing. Three are characters performed (back then) by Jim Henson, three were Frank Oz, two were Jerry Nelson, three were Richard Hunt and one was Dave Goelz. But there are nine or ten Muppeteers on that stage working the characters.
As a viewer, one can't be precise because, for example, I think Statler and Waldorf are on the two hands of one person. Janice and Floyd may have one operator…and I think whoever's working Scooter is also manipulating Zoot, who snuck in there. I'm assuming the shots of Rowlf, who requires two performers, were shot separately…but the least they could have needed for this number was nine Muppeteers. Presuming Henson, Oz, Nelson, Hunt and Goelz are five of them, there were four or maybe five others.
Steve Whitmire, who now plays Kermit, joined the Henson organization in '78 and was one of the other credited performers on the special…so he was probably one of the four or five. It's possible there was someone else in both the 1979 and 2009 performances but unlikely; not unless they got Jerry Nelson in, which I doubt. So Goelz and Whitmire are probably the only two folks to span those thirty years. Here's the clip…