Monday, May 30, 2022

The Last of May Notebook drawings 2022






 

Thursday, May 26, 2022

Ray Liotta 1954-2022




 

Tuesday, May 24, 2022

New Notebook Drawings May 2022




 

Friday, May 20, 2022

Vangelis 1943-2022



 

Wednesday, May 18, 2022

Urvashi Vaid 1958-2022 A towering figure in the gay rights movement


 

Saturday, May 14, 2022

Fred Ward 1942-2022


 

Friday, May 13, 2022

Witness For The Prosecution 1957

 








Or Witness For The Prostitution, which I told my mom as a ten year old I wanted to see very badly. I was of course greeted with howls of laughter from her and my family and didn’t know why they were bending over from laughing so hard. Anyway I actually did get to see the film as a ten year old probably alone during a matinee showing at our neighborhood Loews, and even at this early age I loved it. I think I was prepared for it from watching the Alfred Hitchcock show every Sunday night, and at this age I equated mysteries, suspense and surprise endings with him. I had no idea who Agatha Christie was or for that matter who Billy Wilder was, but I knew I had to see this one.  


Set in a pop up like set of Old Bailey in nice black and white cinematogaphy and based on the short story by Agatha Christie and the hit international play that concerns a hot off the press shocking murder of a matronly well off lonely widow and the arrest and trial of the hapless Leonard Volpe for the crime. Played by Tyrone Power in his last movie role before keeling over from a heart attack on the set of Solomon and Sheba he’s not half bad even though he makes no attempt at a British accent and I thought he was an ex patriot living   in London. He is going to trial at Old Bailey and will be defended by Sir Wilfrid Robarts an ailing barrister played to the hilt with piss and vinegar by the great Charles Laughton in a marvelous performance.


The film is opened up a little bit with a flashback here and a flashback there but is basically a one set courtroom drama loaded with colorful oversized performances that makes the film without much ado “cinematic” and is not only engrossing but highly entertaining. The movie is helped immensely by the rest of the cast especially by the great Marlene Dietrich in her mid fifty’s but still glamorous, beautiful and leggy. The director Billy Wilder plays upon her history and film lore including a flashback to her meeting of Ty Power her future husband who is an RAF pilot in occupied Berlin where Dietrich is a chanteuse with an accordion no less and is performing in a ruin of a nightclub called Die Blaue Laterne which in English is The Blue Lantern and is a sly homage to her famous pre-movie star film “The Blue Angel.”      



Dietrich is spellbinding in all her scenes playing Ty’s mysterious wife and we are kept guessing as to her motives and actions. I don’t know how much Wilder kept of the short story or the play but the sassy screenplay he co wrote with Larry Marcus and Harry Kurnitz is pungent, witty and full of surprises as any good mystery should be. There is also an adorable supporting performance from Laughton’s real life wife the great Elsa Lanchester as his much put upon nurse who watches over him like a stalking wolf. Also in the cast is the great Una O’Connor who plays the murder victim’s loyal and outspoken housemaid who has a few brilliant moments especially in the scene where she testifies in court. The movie was a hit with critics and audiences who were asked at the end of the film not to tell friends what happens, especially in the last moments of the film which shocked and jolted movie audiences. It’s here that I shut my mouth and stop writing allowing anyone who has never seen the film to savor all the jolts and surprises for themselves.  

Tuesday, May 10, 2022

New notebook drawings May 2022






 

Wednesday, May 04, 2022

Loud Coffee Press

 Has just published their latest on line issue using my art for the front and back covers. You can view the issue at this link. 


https://www.loudcoffeepress.com/issue-10





Tuesday, May 03, 2022

New Piece April-May 2022 Mixed


 

Monday, May 02, 2022

Mr. Mercedes

 



Mr. Mercedes 2017-2019

 

Smart well written and wonderfully acted three part series about some really bad psychos and a serial killer to end all serial killers. Located in a small Ohio town the main man of the series is a retired police detective Bill Hodges played by the great Brendan Gleeson who although retired is randy to find “Mr. Mercedes” the nickname for the killer.  He is surrounded by quiet and noisy neighbors including the wonderful Holland Taylor who has a big crush on him, that is not returned. Gleeson cranky and annoyed most of the time somewhat comes out of retirement in order to try to resolve the crime that was committed by as I said a psycho killer right before Gleeson’s retirement from the force, and I won’t give away any details of his crime. We see the psycho’s deed right away and he is played to the hilt by a very good Harry Treadaway who lives in a  crummy house with his mother who is played by the great Kelly Lynch. Both are off the wall in more ways than one, and their relationship is dour and depressing, very much on the down low if you get my drift.

The show is based on a series of  books by Stephen King and if that throws you off, then skip this one. I thought it was terrific, all three seasons of it, but its sometimes horrific and shocking in parts. Much of the series is of course taken up with Gleeson trying to catch Treadaway with the help of some young friends including the brilliant young African American actor Jharrell Jerome who already has an Emmy for his role in “When They See Us” and plays a very smart computer nerd also in the loop is  Breeda Wool and Justine Lupe two young actresses who are new to me and are terrific.  Gleeson’s relationships are complicated, there is an estranged daughter (when isn’t there an estranged child in the mix) along with a couple of love interests played by Mary Louis Parker and Nancy Travis both good as expected.  In the third season a new plot is introduced about a reclusive author (think J.D. Salinger) played by Bruce Dern who is murdered for his unpublished manuscripts. Hey there’s loot in literature.  The show is violent and some times shocking but never dull especially when Kate Mulgrew as a demented psycho painter is around. The small town feel is good and there is a boatload of young and older actors in supporting roles  who come from famous acting families including the Burtons, the Cusak’s the Ferrer’s, the Hepburns, and the Hustons, don’t know if this was a casting wink wink or just a crazy coincidence. This one is good to go.   

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