Our pal Robert J. Elisberg on folks who sob, "I want my country back." I'd like mine back, too. I'd like to go back to a time when we didn't have people saying that just because the guy they voted for as president didn't win.
Monthly Archives: September 2010
Go Read It!
Paying a lot for toner and cartridges for your printer? Then read this. It's sometimes possible to trick your printer into printing hundreds of pages after it's claiming the cartridge needs to be replaced.
Today's Video Link
You may have seen this. Back when Bill Hanna and Joe Barbera were trying to sell their new animated stone age sitcom, they whipped up this short (minute and a half) "demo" film. At the time, the show was called The Flagstones. It would later be called The Flintstones, which was a better name — two "rock" references instead of one — and one that didn't duplicate the surnames of the family in the Hi & Lois newspaper strip, thereby appeasing lawyers. Also at some point in there, it was also going to be called The Gladstones.
But let's discuss the voices in this film. Jean Vander Pyl, who'd been doing female voices on other Hanna-Barbera shows, played Wilma…and would forever after. June Foray, who had not worked for H-B before (and didn't work much for them after) did the three lines as Betty Rubble. Daws Butler — who was the voice of Huckleberry Hound, Yogi Bear, Quick Draw McGraw and all the other major H-B animated stars at the time — supplied the voice of Fred. A lot of folks say he used the same voice he'd used impersonating Jackie Gleason in those "Honeymouser" cartoons Warners had produced a few years earlier. I think it's a similar voice but that Daws consciously altered it a bit, perhaps at Bill and Joe's request, so it wasn't dead-on Gleason. (If you want to compare 'em, here's a link to what he did for Warner's.)
So is that about it? No, we haven't discussed who did the voice of Barney Rubble.
No one seems to know. A lot of sources say it was Daws…and it would be logical for them to have Daws do it since he did such a great impression of Art Carney. He did it in for "The Honeymousers" and he did a version of it, also modified so as not to be too close to the source, for Yogi Bear. But those of us who profess to be experts at this kind of thing seem to all agree it ain't Daws except maybe for the chomping sounds Barney makes at the end. Those noises were probably lifted by the sound editor from some other cartoon where Daws supplied them.
We also seem to agree it's not Doug Young or Don Messick or anyone else who was heard in H-B cartoons of the day. It's possible it isn't even a known professional voice actor. It sounds a little amateurish…like they grabbed one of the writers or animators and shoved him in front of the microphone. If you have any better idea, let me know.
Since I've gone this far, I might as well discuss what happened later with Flintstones voice casting. When the series sold, Bill and Joe decided to not use Daws or June or the mystery Barney. Daws and June were both somewhat rankled at that. Bea Benaderet was cast as Betty Rubble. Bill Thompson was cast as Fred. Hal Smith was cast as Barney. If you know the kind of roles Thompson and Smith usually played, you might think it was the other way around. Smith, who was best known as Otis the Town Drunk on The Andy Griffith Show, usually played loudmouthed big guys. Thompson, whose most famous animation voice was probably Droopy Dog (or using much the same voice, Smee in Disney's Peter Pan) usually played wimpy little guys. But H-B actually recorded the first five episodes with Thompson playing Fred and Smith playing Barney. This is not, by the way, where the Smith Barney investment firm got its name.
Then Bill and Joe decided they'd made a casting mistake. The stated reason was that Thompson was having trouble doing the "gravel" (roughness) they wanted in Fred's voice…but that wouldn't explain why Hal Smith was replaced by Mel Blanc or why Thompson's replacement, Alan Reed, didn't do a particulary gravelly voice. I think Hanna and Barbera just decided they could do better. Anyway, Reed and Blanc were brought in and they re-recorded the Fred and Barney lines that Thompson and Smith had done. You can still hear Thompson and Smith playing some small roles in the early episodes.
That may not be the entire story. The late character actor Cliff Norton used to tell people that at one point, he was going to be the voice of Fred Flintstone. If or when this happened is unknown to me. It wouldn't surprise me if there were others before they settled on Reed.
So here's the Flagstones demo, complete with crayon markings. The markings are because the only copy of this film that seems to have survived is one that a film editor marked this way. And maybe I should mention the time around 1980 when I asked Joe Barbera if they named Barney Rubble that because they were trying to imply he was a Carney Double. I can't adequately describe his reaction but it was a lot like the wolf in a Tex Avery cartoon finding Droopy where he wasn't supposed to be. Mr. B swore to me that no one else had ever mentioned that to him and I believe him. But inasmuch as I thought of that when I was ten, I can't believe no one else ever noticed.
Monday, Monday…
I believe there's a ton of evidence that Global Warming is real and a genuine threat to our continued existence and that there's very little evidence to the contrary. Naturally, I'd like to believe the "It's not so" crowd is right but they make it pert near impossible when they say things like, "It snowed a lot today! So much for that Global Warming bullcrap!" From the moment it was first mentioned as a theory, the premise of Global Warming was always that it would lead to new extreme temperatures in both directions. This is not a difficult concept. You have to be really, really stupid or really, really dishonest to argue that a record cold spell or blizzard disproves the existence of Global Warming.
I don't believe that a really, really hot or cold day is solid proof that Global Warming is or is not occurring. But if you're in the "reallly, really stupid" category — if you argue that a record snowfall disproves it — you ought to at least be consistent enough to say, "Hmm…today is the hottest September 27th on record in the history of Los Angeles. It's 106° at Evanier's house. Maybe there is something to this Global Warming stuff." Like, I said, I'm not claiming that proves anything. But if you're really, really stupid and not just really, really dishonest, you would apply the "logic" in the same manner.
And I note that you almost never hear anyone on the other side — the side that believes our climate is changing — say, "Hey, it was really hot in L.A. today! That proves Global Warming is occurring." They don't need to resort to that kind of junk science because they have the real kind on their side.
For the Record…
Dave Bennett says that the cute lady clutching the pillow (item before last here) is two-time Emmy-winner Julie Marie Berman who plays Lulu, the daughter of Luke Spencer on General Hospital. Okay.
Vital Tomato Soup News
The Souplantation chain, also known as Sweet Tomatoes in some areas, will have its "Classic Creamy Tomato Soup" (that's what they call it) in their repertoire the week of October 19 to October 24. Usually, they only offer it during the month of March but in October, they feature some of their most requested items for one week each. So on 10/19, a little window of opportunity will open for me to go over and gobble down a few bowls of my favorite soup…and I usually get some "to go" orders and freeze them for later consumption, though the soup isn't quite as good that way. Mark your calendars. Cancel any plans to eat elsewhere that week. Keep a spoon at the ready. This announcement will repeat. And repeat. And repeat.
Cushy Solution
Here's another one of those "This helped me so it might help you" stories. For the last few months, I'd been plagued with a series of odd headaches in the rear of my skull. It often throbbed back there and I sometimes felt a slight "clicking" sensation within, like something had come loose and was rubbing up against some other part. At times, the pain was pretty gruesome…so much so that I actually took two Advil, which is serious medication for someone like me who doesn't like "taking" anything. The Advil didn't help. My new doctor (I have a new doctor) wasn't sure what it was but felt it wasn't serious. He prescribed Celebrex…and with that same aversion to taking drugs, I took one and when it didn't work, didn't take another. I have a whole medicine chest full of prescriptions I've only taken one or two of.
It was last weekend that a thought suddenly occurred to me: I wonder if this is due to the position of my neck while sleeping. I don't know what made me think of that but the minute I did, it felt valid. I went to a nearby Bed, Bath and Beyond and bought the only size Tempur-Pedic contour neck pillow they carried, which was not that big, and placed it under my cranium that night. When I woke up the next morn, I could tell that about 60% of the problem was gone. Two more nights and all but about 10% had disappeared. I then tried a couple of different contour pillows, including a softer one which I bought at Costco and (last night), a wider Tempur-Pedic that I procured at my local Relax Your Back, which is a big chain in many states. I still have a trace of the problem but it's nothing like it used to be.
As I understand it, a contour pillow puts support where you need it under your neck and stops your spine from bending in ways that nature did not intend. However it works, it works for me…so far, at least. I'm 58 years old and don't understand why this has suddenly become an issue now but hey, at least I think I've solved it…and there's a certain joy in solving it so easily. I was imagining I might be looking at months of therapy and tests and maybe even surgery, to say nothing of the costs not covered by my insurance. Instead, I pretty much cured myself in one night with an $80 pillow.
Speaking of my sleep: I've mentioned here, though not lately, that I suffer from Sleep Apnea. For many years now — since about the time I briefly dozed off while driving on the freeway — I've slept with a thing called a CPAP machine by my bedside and a connected mask strapped to my kisser. Here's a very old article that I wrote about it.
If you use such a device, you owe it to yourself to investigate the new "auto" CPAP units which monitor your breathing throughout the night and can sense when to change the pressure. I recently got one and it too has made a colossal difference — wholly for the better — in how I sleep. To those of you who live in or around Los Angeles, I highly recommend my supplier (these folks) and the ResMed Autoset II.
And by the way: I have no idea who that lady is in the photo above. I just thought you'd rather look at a picture of her clutching a contour pillow than a picture of me clutching a contour pillow.
Today's Video Link
Before Johnny Carson hosted The Tonight Show…before he hosted the game show he hosted before he hosted The Tonight Show…he had a prime-time variety series on CBS. The Johnny Carson Show ran Thursday nights at 10. It debuted June 30, 1955 and lasted until March 29, 1956…39 weeks but back then, that was considered a flop. In fact, it was a flop that rankled Johnny for a long time and one which he attributed to not controlling his own show and bowing to the direction of others. He vowed to not make that mistake again in his career and set his sights on getting another chance to do that kind of show, only to do it the way he wanted.
It is believed by some who knew Johnny that even after he became a big hit on The Tonight Show, he still — for the longest time — hoped to move from it back to a prime-time series. Once or twice, he even tried to negotiate a deal with NBC where he'd leave Tonight on a certain date and they'd give him a lengthy commitment for an hour in an earlier time slot. He'd start talks about this plan, then agree or decide to put if off for a while and stay in late night.
At some point — I'm guessing mid-seventies — he seems to have decided that hour-long variety shows were no longer the greatest achievement a comedian could have in television, and that it would be a step down from The Tonight Show. So he gave up whatever vengeance-infused dreams he had of a new prime-time Johnny Carson Show and stayed put at 11:30 until he could stay put no longer.
Here's a short monologue from 1955. He says in it he's been doing this show for 2-3 months so that would make this some time in September…
Go Read It!
Sunday Morning On My Mind
Several of you have written me (and one woke me up this morning with a phone call) to ask what info, if any, I have about the true health of "grand master" author Harlan Ellison. Harlan, who I've known since around 1969, is the stellar guest of honor at a convention in Madison, Wisconsin this weekend. Last week, it looked unlikely that his health would allow him to attend, as announced…but there he is in Wisconsin at this moment, doubtlessly entrancing all with his speeches and anecdotes. He really should be the guy in those "most interesting man alive" commercials.
In this newspaper article and in a few other places, he's announced that this will be his last convention appearance ever and that he is near death. Friends and fans of the man understandably want to know how to take this. When he says he's dying, does he mean, like, before the month is out? Or is he dying the way all of us are dying, that event being inevitable? I haven't spoken with Harlan much lately and when I have, it hasn't been about this kind of thing so I just plain don't know. And since I just plain don't know, I'll make it easy on myself. I'll opt for assuming it's somewhere between the two extremes of dying any day now and dying any decade now. I may still opt for this if I find out later from Harlan that bye-bye is a lot more imminent than that. It's not that I'd think he was wrong but that I can't see how it would help me or him in the slightest for me to go on deathwatch.
I wind up writing a lot of obits on this weblog because I know a lot of people and I'm interested in a lot more. The more people you care about, the more deaths occur with which you must deal. I'd like to think I've learned to deal with them…and it's mainly a matter of accepting that death is a part of life (duh) and that if you have something you need to say to somebody before they go, don't put it off too long. This applies to your favorite comic book artist as much as it does to your close relatives. I have a friend who still hates her late mother and the reason goes something like this: "She did so many rotten things to me and then the worst was that she deliberately died before we could settle them." Even if there are folks in your world who are really like that, you (emphasis on "you") need to unpack the baggage before they go on that journey.
Oddly enough, last Wednesday I had lunch with an old friend of Ellison's. They were once very close then they had a quarrel and haven't spoken in a long time. He asked me how Harlan was and he mused about giving him a call one of these days, seeing if the quarrel could be set aside. He had not heard anything about Harlan possibly checking out soon. He just had that dangling and on his mind as something that needed to be put right. I told him not to delay.
Like I said, I've known Harlan for a long time…long enough to have had moments of both friction and bonding but I can't think of anything personal we vitally need to discuss. I'll give him a call anyway when I figure he's back and rested from Madison but I won't write about it here unless he asks me to, which he probably won't. One of the things I admire about the guy is that he's darn good at speaking for himself. If you're concerned about his health…well, ask yourself if you're concerned for your sake or his. If you're concerned just for his sake, remind yourself that there's not a damn thing you can do about it…so choose optimism or pessimism, whichever is more comfy for you. If you're concerned for your sake because you need to say something or do something before he goes…well, what are you waiting for? You shouldn't put those matters off with anyone, no matter how healthy they seem to be.
Correction
If the item before last here — the one about politicians' disapproval ratings — made less sense than usual to you, it was because of a silly typo I have now fixed. Thanks to Mark Thorson, who often catches typos here and e-mails me about 'em.
Today's Video Link
A montage of moments from The Dick Van Dyke Show. Everyone who writes comedy for TV oughta see this often, just to remind themselves that it isn't just about funny dialogue. And if you don't write comedy, you can use it as a reminder of just how good Van Dyke and that cast were…
From the E-Mailbag…
Bill Mulligan writes…
During the long slide of Bush's popularity you occasionally stated the opinion that he was actually less popular than the polls suggested, due to Republicans just not wanting to pile on. Now that Obama has dropped to 45% in the Gallup polls — lower in others but let's just take Gallup for the sake of argument — what would you think are his actual numbers? Low 30s? Even less?
Beats me but I'll bet it's lower than Gallup says. I think politicians are always less popular than those polls indicate and my logic is as follows: If I'm a member of Party A, I'm for the stated agenda of Party A. I'm probably not a fan of too many of its leaders but I want the Party A philosophy to rule America. I may even think that some of the Party A candidates are incompetent boobs or crooks but I back them because to not back them would be to give a leg up to Party B and we can't have that. So when the pollsters ring me up and ask what I think of an elected official or candidate from Party A, I tell them he or she is great, wonderful, honest, trustworthy, etc. Or at least, I'm inclined to. Sometimes, one of them may piss me off enough that I'll say what I really feel, especially when there's no election imminent. It's a weapon I have to try and push my guy towards the right or left, whichever way I want him.
But for the most part, I don't think most of us like "our guys" as much as we tell pollsters. We're frustrated every time they say something stupid or it comes out that they did something of questionable ethics. We think, "Jeez! Now, I have to defend that to the friends of mine who support Party B, plus this may help Party B win." I wish we had a little more honesty among ourselves about this. If you can't admit you're embarrassed by some of the things done by the candidates you support, you either have blinders on or you're just not being honest…with others if not yourself.
So I think whenever the polls say that any president has a 45% disapproval rating, it's probably more like 55%. And we should also remember that some of that 55% will still vote for the guy. What would really interest me — and I've seen some of this but not nearly enough — is a breakdown of how many of those who "disapprove" of Obama's performance disapprove because they hate the agenda he's advancing and how many disapprove because they feel he's not advancing it firmly and quickly enough. Of those who are down on Health Care Reform, how many want to go back to what we had or let Mitch McConnell fix it? And how many disapprove because there's no Single Payer or public option? (I'd also be curious as to how many of those who disapprove of Obama's agenda even know what it is and how many just think it's what Rush Limbaugh says it is? There are people who disapprove of Obama because they think he's a Muslim Socialist just as there were folks who disapproved of Bush because they thought he arranged for the controlled demolition of the World Trade Center.)
The Less Said, The Better
Friday evening, the lovely Carolyn and I went to see a double-feature of two Jacques Tati movies I hadn't seen in a decade or three: Les Vacances de M. Hulot from 1953 and Mon Oncle from 1959. Or if you want to get all American about it, Mr. Hulot's Holiday and My Uncle. Tati wrote, directed and appeared in just about a handful of movies but they had an enormous impact on filmmakers everywhere and humorists of all kinds. Pantomimists especially credit Tati in the same breath that they mention Marcel Marceau and I suspect of the two, Tati — though not a strict mime — has had the greater influence.
It's sometimes educational to revisit movies. I recalled liking My Uncle and being a bit disappointed in Mr. Hulot's Holiday…but last night, it was the other way around. Maybe next time, they'll switch back. In both though, Tati constructs this marvelous world where the silliest sight gags seem credible and where people become funny just for the way they walk or if standing still, for their postures. He is the most interesting inhabitant of this world so it harmed My Uncle, at least for me, that so much of it is not about him. It's about this slightly-dysfunctional family that resides in this somewhat-dysfunctional modern, automated home where the gadgetry is impressive but often does not work. Neither does the father's relationship with his son, who prefers the company of his unemployed uncle…the role Tati plays. It's a fine film (it won every possible award including the Oscar for Best Foreign Film) but it's not as tightly paced as Mr. Hulot's Holiday…and I think that matters more now than it did when I first saw these pictures.
We saw them at…well, I'm not entirely sure of its current name. I've never been sure of its name but it's on Fairfax, just south of Melrose. When I went there in the sixties, it was called the Silent Movie Theater in ads and that was its most common name but on the front where the name of the theater usually would be, it said "Old Time Movies" and what little advertising there was for it just called it The Movie. I wrote about that place and its sad demise in this article.
It's changed hands at least twice since that piece was written. Today, it's the venue for a group called The Cinefamily and people sometimes refer to the building by that name or they call it The Silent Movie Theater or even The Cinefamily @ The Silent Movie Theater. One problem with the Silent Movie Theater name is that they now run talkies from time to time. By any handle, it's a quaint, friendly place to watch films with a spacious seating arrangement. They took out some seats and installed little tables here and there so you have a place to rest your popcorn box and beverage. The folks who operate it seem to really care about presenting movies that should be exhibited somewhere and not viewable only on DVD or cable. In October, they're running mostly scary films and if you're local, you'd do well to keep an eye on their calendar. Where else can you see a new 35mm print of two great Tati movies…projected on a screen and enjoyed with an appreciative audience?
Today's Video Link
Here's famed defense attorney Alan Dershowitz telling a joke. It's almost as good as the one he told about how O.J. Simpson was innocent…