The Stanwyck Proxy

broderic on April 29, 2007

In 1941, Barabara Stanwyck played a part in four movies, Meet John Doe, The Lady Eve, Ball of Fire, and You Belong to Me. I’ve seen two of the four. In fact, The Lady Eve lead me to believe that she was the most exciting actress EVER to have graced the silver screen. They’re pretty good movies, and each one has earned praise and reknown from critics and fans alike. I wonder what the other two of her films were like. Ball of Fire is being released next month on DVD, so I am eagerly waiting its appearance.

You don’t believe me that she’s one of the most exciting actresses EVER?

Check out Anthony Lane’s Stanwyck appreciation piece in The New Yorker.

Check out The Lady Eve. She has Henry Fonda tripping over herself. It’s a movie on AFI’s list of 100 comedies and 100 passionate movies. You’ll mainly laugh at her hijinxs.

Check out Meet John Doe. She fast-talks the editor of the newspaper into pulling off the hoax of the year. And this is where the title of this post comes in. I believe that the coen brothers were looking for a Stanwyck type when they wrote The Hudsucker Proxy. It is a direct riff on many of the films she’s appeared in. The Hudsucker Proxy seems to have gotten lots from Meet John Doe. Smitty. “That gag’s got whiskers!” I loved Hudsucker Proxy, a personal favorite coen brothers movie, but love it even more knowing that Jennifer Jason Leigh seems to have been channeling Barbara Stanwyck.

She’s just groovy.

On the road

broderic on April 25, 2007

It’s getting to be nice outside. It’s time to ride my bike.

I’ve gone out the past 4 days!

The first day was just trying to get to know the feeling again. I rode about 5 1/2 miles, and it was pure hell. It didn’t help that I did it after a nap which probably sapped my energy. First day out always seem to suck.

The next few were better. Today though, I found out how out of shape I am. I have no power in my legs. I tried to sprint a few times, but couldn’t keep it up for more than a few seconds. And the hills or the small bumps in the road, it makes me thankful of that granny gear.

I’m gonna have to tune my bike soon though. It’s been a while since I have given it the care it deserves.

Green Day

broderic on April 25, 2007

Earth day was this past weekend. Here’s a link to a Nova episode about solar energy.

I’ve always wanted to build a house that would give energy back to the grid so that my energy costs would be cheap. That’s a while off. I would build it with solar powers. And perhaps some kind of battery storage. Operate more efficiently with a small carbon footprint.

Sugarpuss

broderic on April 22, 2007

I don’t actively search these things out, but they seem to show up by chance. If you’re in the NY area check out theBarbara Stanwyck retrospective. It’s a good sampling of her movies. It is missing though “Lady Eve.”

Playing Catch Up

broderic on April 20, 2007

I haven’t been posting regularly. As if you didn’t know. I’ve been too busy. Some of the things I had due are almost done and now I have found some time to breathe. Let me post something to know that BrowserMetrics the blog still has a pulse.

First off most of my friends in the side bar are also silent except for Margeaux. She’s been blogging up a storm compared to me and the others. Of course she has spent most of this month doing nothing but writing. Yet, she has time to read The Children of Hurin? Hmm.

Second, I did catch Grindhouse opening weekend, and from the looks of things, its closing weekend as well. 3 of 5 stars is my rating. First, Rodriguez makes bad films. Including Sin City. So when he set out to make a bad movie, it’s doubly the worst of it all. The problem with his film was that it was too much like USA Up All Night from the eighties. No one told us that the shit playing at the grindhouse is really the shit you watched on cable drunk. I paid money for this? Tarantino’s half is more of a problem. It was too serious in tone and completely clashed with the previous Rodriguez part. “I went to the grindhouse and a Tarantino movie started!” Plus it was talky. I wonder if you went to a grindhouse to watch talking. Yes, it was dark and disturbing at times, but in the sense it was Tarantino. At least his bad acting was overshadowed by the badness of the films.

Third school. At least the class I am taking now. It sucks. I have a new WindBlows laptop though. And a dead Dell box. Linux is just as lame. Computers should help you be productive not throw obstacles in your way. They just need to work sometimes.

That’s it for now. I don’t like writing much. But there it is.

SheezAllThaat

broderic on April 19, 2007

The wonderful Grace Kelly is the subject of the picture of the day at slate. Or rather yesterday, as I have only just got to reading the site this early morning.

Country Girl

broderic on April 14, 2007

Her role in The Country Girl won her an Oscar.

Beautiful as well.

The movies’s all right. Not spectacular, but released in 1954 it’ll pale in comparison with her other movie of that year, Rear Window. She plays a role for which she wins an Oscar, and she co-stars in a Hitchcock masterpiece. That’s a pretty good year.

By Proxy

broderic on April 11, 2007

I just voted by proxy for InitTech. I tried using their interweb thing but it wasn't swamped, so I called the toll free 800 number. Guess what? In order to vote by phone, you should have the ballot handy. I had no idea what I was voting on, so that I just voted against all the board of director items. That was the easy part. Now voting for the board of directors was tricky. They asked for the two digit number corresponding to the each director. Uh-oh. Hmm. How many directors? Who's in who? I just started entering
numbers randomly. The telephone lady didn't squawk on my selection. I guess they're correct. It would have been better if I just cast my vote for none of the above.

Deftly Quotable

broderic on April 10, 2007

Best monologue from a screwball comedy that I have seen so far. It’s a genre of film that can get into.

Not good enough… I said they’re not good enough for him.

Every Jane in the room is giving him the thermometer and he feels they’re just a waste of time. He’s returning to his book, he’s deeply immersed in it. He sees no one except – watch his head turn when that kid goes by. Won’t do you any good, dear, he’s a bookworm, but swing ’em anyway.

Oh, now how about this one. How would you like that hanging on your Christmas tree? Oh you wouldn’t? Well, what is your weakness, brother? Holy smoke, the dropped kerchief! That hasn’t been used since Lily Langtry. You’ll have to pick it up yourself, madam. It’s a shame, but he doesn’t care for the flesh. He’ll never see it.

Look at that girl over to his left. Look over to your left, bookworm. There’s a girl pining for ya. A little further. Just a little further… There! Wasn’t that worth looking for? See those nice store teeth all beaming at you. Oh, she recognizes you! She’s up, she’s down, she can’t make up her mind. She’s up again. She recognizes you! She’s coming over to speak to you. The suspense is killing me. “Why, for heaven’s sake, aren’t you Fuzzy Oathammer I went to manual training school with in Louisville? Oh you’re not? Well, you certainly look exactly like him, it’s certainly a remarkable resemblance… But if you’re not going to ask me to sit down, I suppose you’re not going to ask me to sit down… I’m very sorry, I certainly hope I haven’t caused you any embarrassment, you so and so.”

“I wonder if my tie’s on straight. I certainly upset them, don’t I? Now who else is after me?”

Ah, the lady champion wrestler, wouldn’t she make a houseful? Oh, you don’t like her either. Well, what are you going to do about her? Oh, you just can’t stand it anymore, you’re leaving. These women don’t give you a moment’s peace, do they? Well, go ahead! Go sulk in your cabin. Go soak your head and see if I care!