Blog About Town
HOME
ARCHIVES
Arts!
Entertainment!
Other!
To receive free updates about "Blog About Town," send a blank email to blogabouttown-subscribe@
yahoogroups.com
The Blogs of the Week
Saturday
bighappyfunhouse
Slats.org
Thursday, July 17, 2008
IS THIS THE NEXT NEW YORKER COVER?
Hey! Look what artist Deborah Grumet and I happened upon the other day, not very far from the Conde Nast building! Could this be the follow-up to the New Yorker's already infamous July 21 cover? It does seem inspired by that old image of Eustace K. Tilley.
Let us know what you know if you have any inside information!Labels: Barack Obama, Conde Nast, Deborah Grumet, Eustace K. Tilley, Eustace Tilley, new yorker
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
DR. HORRIBLE'S SING-ALONG BLOG, Act I
Buffy fans, rejoice! Here's the latest from Joss Whedon & Company. This first episode runs 13:48, with things picking up around the 4 minute mark!
I enjoyed it cold, but if you want a preview...here's the trailer!
Source (1:03)
Okay...okay, here's a lower resolution YouTube take of Act I.
Source (14:03)Labels: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, Joss Whedon, Neil Patrick Harris
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
WHERE WAS I? My whereabouts have been ascertained to my satisfaction. It's yet another romp for Gary, now tied with Myra in the first-place spot!
Debbie and Gary and Scott can still send in their own photos.16 Gary (Silver Medal plus three unredeemed WWI? and one unredeemed Silver Medal credits)
16 Myra (includes Attendance Award)
15 Debbie (Gold Medal and Attendance Award plus unredeemed Silver Medal and WWI? and Bronze Medal credits, plus February 2008 WWI? credit and a March 2008 redeemable point; includes two bonus points)
10 Scott (Two Gold Medals plus two unredeemed WWI? credits)
5 Ellen (includes bonus point)
4 Deborah
3 David (Bronze Medal)
2 Daniela
2 Dolph (Bronze Medal)
1 bellj
1 Myron
1 Trapezia
- Luke N. Atmaguchi (has April 2008 redeemable point)Labels: competition, game, Where Was I? standings
Monday, July 14, 2008
CARTOON CAPTION/ANTI-CAPTION COVERAGE CONTINUES!First things first: In honor of this week's New Yorker cover, I replaced the usual illustration with a rare and oddly lit Reconstruction-era portrait of Eustace K. Tilley (right). It's only fitting, don't you agree?
The Cartoon Caption Contest had some trouble revving up today, but now I can tell you that the winner of Caption Contest 149 (Mick Stevens's guy with jet pack) is"Apparently, American now charges extra for landings."
Steve Hoglund (Auburn, WA)
In Caption Contest 151 (Tom Cheney's desk scene with giant pencils and sharpener), the nominees are"Let's continue this discussion over a hot barrel of coffee."Note the somewhat complex punctuation of the third candidate. And note that my loser was
Adam Caraher (New York, NY)
"But I have to warn you, carpal tunnel here is a bitch."
Sam Cobean (Falmouth, ME)
"'How many accountants does it take to sharpen a pencil?' you ask? In this case five."
Matt Aucoin (Woodstock, VT)"Sharpened properly, these pencils are mightier than pens."
There are no Anti-Caption winners this week, but Dan Radosh did score a Q&A with current contest gatekeeper Farley Katz.
Caption Contest 153 is here, while Anti-Caption Contest 153 is here.
THE STANDINGS
Here is the current New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest breakdown by state. You can find it all mapped out here.27 CaliforniaMap Introduction
22 New York (19 from the Big Apple)
12 New Jersey
7 Virginia (three from NOVA, two from Richmond, one from Charlottesville, one from Roanoke)
6 Massachusetts
6 Pennsylvania
5 Connecticut (two from New Haven, three not)
5 Illinois (four from Chicago—two captions by Lawrence Wood, two drawings by Leo Cullum)
5 Texas (three from Houston)
4 Georgia (includes two-time winner Carl Gables)
4 Maryland (none named Mary)
4 North Carolina
3 Arizona (two from Tucson)
3 Minnesota (Minneapolis 2, St. Paul 1)
3 Ohio
2 Alaska
2 District of Columbia
2 Florida
2 Michigan
2 Mississippi
2 Missouri
2 New Hampshire
2 Oregon (both named Eric, both from Portland)
2 Rhode Island
2 Utah
2 Vermont
2 Washington
1 Alabama
1 Arkansas
1 Delaware
1 Iowa
1 Kentucky
1 Nevada
1 New Mexico
1 Oklahoma
1 Wisconsin
Thanks to Andriy Bidochko for Map Builder.
Portrait of Eustace K. Tilley by David Marc FischerLabels: Adam Caraher, anti-caption, caption contest, Dan Radosh, Eustace K. Tilley, Eustace Tilley, Farley Katz, Matt Aucoin, Mick Stevens, new yorker, Sam Cobean, Steve Hoglund, Tom Cheney
Sunday, July 13, 2008
BASEBALL SLIP AND SLIDE
I've been to Shea once this season, for a Mets-Rangers rainout that made our rear loge seats among the best in the house, as they were well sheltered from the drenching downpour.
Nobody threw any pitches, but one team was a winner of sorts. An hour or so after the scheduled starting time and not long before the official postponement, Rangers ran out onto the field and gave us diehards (or is it "dryhards"?) a good show. The crowd shouted "Let's Go Rangers!" No one from the home team ran out, unless you count the groundskeepers who seemed to call the Rangers back into the dugout.
Source (1:11)Labels: Mets, Shea Stadium, Texas Rangers
Saturday, July 12, 2008
DAMN YANKEES AT ENCORES!The Encores! production of Damn Yankees won me over on Wednesday night, though I can understand the mixed reviews that have been coming in. The company's take on the baseball-fan-meets-Faust fantasy could certainly use some more zing (surprising, considering that the director is John Rando) and, perhaps, a little less fealty regarding Bob Fosse's original choreography. The first act in particular came across as too deliberate and episodic, but the proceedings gained vitality in a second act rally and ultimately proved very satisfactory. The production runs through July 27, so perhaps it will catch the attention of the All-Star crowd that will be in town around July 15.
The most pleasant surprise for me was the performance of Sean Hayes (Will and Grace's Jack) in the role of the devilish Mr. Applegate. He brought wit, vitality, and genuine laughs to the role and showed that he could command the audience's attention during his big second-act number "Those Were the Good Old Days."
This production may be most significant as Hayes's New York theater debut, but many will also remember it for the presence of charismatic Cheyenne Jackson as the supernaturally youthful baseball player Joe. Last year's summer Encores! production of Gypsy featured a mini-flock of female strippers, but this summer it's time for beefcake in the form of Jackson. When he disrobed in one already notorious scene, the, um, appreciative comments in the Rear Mezzanine made the City Center seem like another kind of strip joint.
The multi-talented Jane Krakowski—a favorite of Blog About Town—played the temptress Lola well, but she might not have been well-served by the decision to emulate Bob Fosse's original choreography for Gwen Verdon's Lola. I haven't yet been won over by the steps for Verdon in "Whatever Lola Wants," and Krakowski didn't persuade me either (although lots of attendees seemed to be charmed). I wonder what the scene would have been like had it been customized more for Krakowski—and I also wonder whether the goings on would have benefited from more reworking of the book. It might've been very funny, for example, to see something made of the recent gossip about A-Rod and Madonna.
What worked very well for me was Krakowski's dance with the ensemble in the second act's nightclub number "Two Lost Souls." I found more second-act magic in "Near to You," the poignant duet between Jackson's Joe and strong-voiced Randy Graff's Meg. Somewhere in there was a wonderful segue between scenes and a "Limbo" set that reminded me of the design in the giddy animated series God, The Devil and Bob. Veanne Cox was strong as the comical character Sister, and Megan Lawrence skillfully evoked some Megan Mullally vibes in her scenes with Hayes. The dancer John Selya did very good work with his Fosse moves. Kudos also for the lighting and color design.
ADDENDUM Almost forgot to mention that the Rear Mezzanine at City Center remains one of the most problematic sections in all New York City venues. The rake and seat placement is so poor that those in the section run the risk of spending performances swaying this way and that, in search of decent viewing angles. This creates a kind of domino effect, as anyone behind one of the swayers is likely to end up swaying too, to compensate. And so on and so forth. Compounding the problem is City Center's reluctance to open up the seats on the level(s) above the rear mezzanine to give budget-conscious fans more of an option. I happened to luck out with a good angle this time around, but one of our party relocated rather than sit behind a swayer. Something should be done!
Here's Gwen Verdon in Damn Yankees.
Source (7:47)Labels: ackson, Bob Fosse, CheyennBobby Troup, Damn Yankees, Encores, Faust, Gwen Verdon, Jane Krakowski, John Rando, Megan Lawrence, Megan Mullally, Randy Graff, Sean Hayes, Veanne Cox
Friday, July 11, 2008
UNSOLICITED ADVICE
If you get a stylus—or anything else—stuck in the stylus sleeve/slot/holder of a Palm Pilot or a similar device, try going to an eyeglass shop, a jeweler, a microsurgeon, or anyone else with tiny precision tools.
The eyeglass shop might even remove the stylus for free.
You can find discussions of this kind of troubleshooting situation here and here.Labels: Palm Pilot, unsolicited advice, Z22
Thursday, July 10, 2008
WHERE WAS I? As usual, it's somewhere in New York City. Anyone can play; just leave your guesses in the comments using a distinct moniker so we can tell you apart from the other players. And specificity counts. Enjoy!
Photo: David Marc FischerLabels: competition, game, Where Was I?
Wednesday, July 09, 2008
JEFF KOONS ON THE ROOF!
BAT presents a short photo-essay inspired by the current special exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where admission is always pay-what-you-wish. Enjoy!
Photos: David Marc FischerLabels: gallery, Jeff Koons, Metropolitan Museum of Art
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
WHERE WAS I? My whereabouts have been ascertained to my satisfaction. And I've posted three bonus photos. Gary emerged the victor in a duel with Debbie! They are now tied in the second place position!
And Debbie and Gary can still send in their own photos. Scott too.16 Myra (includes Attendance Award)
15 Debbie (Gold Medal and Attendance Award plus unredeemed Silver Medal and WWI? and Bronze Medal credits, plus February 2008 WWI? credit and a March 2008 redeemable point; includes two bonus points)
15 Gary (Silver Medal plus three unredeemed WWI? and one unredeemed Silver Medal credits)
10 Scott (Two Gold Medals plus two unredeemed WWI? credits)
5 Ellen (includes bonus point)
4 Deborah
3 David (Bronze Medal)
2 Daniela
2 Dolph (Bronze Medal)
1 bellj
1 Myron
1 Trapezia
- Luke N. Atmaguchi (has April 2008 redeemable point)Labels: competition, game, Where Was I? standings
Monday, July 07, 2008
CARTOON CAPTION/ANTI-CAPTION COVERAGE CONTINUES!The Cartoon Caption Contest is at a standstill, but you can still check out Blog About Town's map of winners, which is currently the 30th most visited Map Builder map, with over 72,200 hits—and some of them aren't even mine!
Meanwhile, the winner in Anti-Caption Contest 152 (Mick Stevens's car behind Earth on a road) is"I, Earth Jr., shall now avenge the horrid death your gas-guzzling ways inflicted upon my father."My losers:
Mike"My first view--a panorama of brilliant deep blue ocean, shot with shades of green and gray and white--was of atolls and clouds. Close to the window I could see that this Pacific scene in motion was rimmed by the great curved limb of the Earth. It had a thin halo of blue held close, and beyond, black space. I held my breath, but something was missing--I felt strangely unfulfilled. Here was a tremendous visual spectacle, but viewed in silence. There was no grand musical accompaniment, no triumphant, inspired sonata or symphony. The planet was interfering with my Satellite radio."For the record, that first one of mine is "from" Charles Walker.
"C'mon, muthafucka, let's play chicken!"
"No, that's not a Mitsubishi Eclipse."
Caption Contest 152 is here, while some Anti-Caption commentary can be found here.
THE STANDINGS
Here is the current New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest breakdown by state. You can find it all mapped out here.27 CaliforniaMap Introduction
22 New York (19 from the Big Apple)
12 New Jersey
7 Virginia (three from NOVA, two from Richmond, one from Charlottesville, one from Roanoke)
6 Massachusetts
6 Pennsylvania
5 Connecticut (two from New Haven, three not)
5 Illinois (four from Chicago—two captions by Lawrence Wood, two drawings by Leo Cullum)
5 Texas (three from Houston)
4 Georgia (includes two-time winner Carl Gables)
4 Maryland (none named Mary)
4 North Carolina
3 Arizona (two from Tucson)
3 Minnesota (Minneapolis 2, St. Paul 1)
3 Ohio
2 Alaska
2 District of Columbia
2 Florida
2 Michigan
2 Mississippi
2 Missouri
2 New Hampshire
2 Oregon (both named Eric, both from Portland)
2 Rhode Island
2 Utah
2 Vermont
1 Alabama
1 Arkansas
1 Delaware
1 Iowa
1 Kentucky
1 Nevada
1 New Mexico
1 Oklahoma
1 Washington
1 Wisconsin
Thanks to Andriy Bidochko for Map Builder.
Image by David Marc Fischer using Samsung cameraphoneLabels: anti-caption, caption contest, Charles Walker, Dan Radosh, map, Map Builder, Mick Stevens, new yorker
Sunday, July 06, 2008
THE INCREDIBLE HULK
BAT saw Hulk. BAT like Hulk! Some stupid, much good. Like Iron Man!
Source (2:34)
Saturday, July 05, 2008
SWINGTIME FOR NELLIE!
BAT favorite Nellie McKay is scheduled to make her Damrosch Park swing band debut this Tuesday, July 8, 2008 at Lincoln Center's Midsummer Night Swing. The dance lessons start at 6:30, so you should be able to Lindy Hop like a pro by 7:30, when the main event kicks off. Tickets are $15 each; you might be able to hear the music from afar.
And remember: On Friday night, the Loser's Lounge does disco in Damrosch!
Here is "archival" footage of a McKay appearance on The View!
Source (6:41)Labels: Loser's Lounge, Midsummer Night Swing, Nellie McKay, View
Friday, July 04, 2008
WHERE WAS I? A second clue is on view here.
THEY'RE WITH VONNEGUT NOW
Bozo is dead.
And so is Larry Harmon.Labels: Bozo, Jesse Helms, Larry Harmon
Thursday, July 03, 2008
WHERE WAS I? As usual, it's somewhere in New York City. Anyone can play; just leave your guesses in the comments using a distinct moniker so we can tell you apart from the other players. Enjoy!
VISUAL CLUE ADDED JULY 4
BONUS PHOTOS ADDED JULY 8
Photos: David Marc FischerLabels: competition, game, Where Was I?
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
NAKADAI TRIBUTE AT FILM FORUM
Japanese actor Tatsuya Nakadai, currently the subject of a curated seven-week retrospective at the Film Forum, has more than 125 acting credits to his name. But his career isn't simply about quantity. There's also the matter of quality. As I looked up movies in the series, I was impressed by how many of them received top ratings at IMDB.
I'd already seen some of the movies in the series, including the Kurosawa films Kagemusha (July 6/7), Ran (July 11/12), and Sanjuro (July 17) as well as Yojimbo and High and Low, which have already played. Thanks to a previous Film Forum series, I'd also seen the samurai movies Harakiri, Sword of Doom, and Kill! (July 15/16)—great titles, huh?
In advance of Film Forum's three-week presentation of Masaki Kobayashi's massive The Human Condition (1959-1961), so far I've seen two films in the series that were new to me. Each was fascinating—stylish and bizarre and reflective of international influences on movies during the 1960s.
Hiroshi Teshigahara's The Face of Another, adapted by Kobo Abe from one of his novels, concerns a man with a severely damaged face who obtains an experimental mask-face that makes him appear normal, under the condition that he tell his doctor all of his experiences with the mask-face. In one respect, the Twilight Zone-y story is, like Teshigahara and Abe's preceding Woman in the Dunes, one of those extended metaphor deals, pursuing questions of identity. And, if the premise wasn't completely buyable when it was made in 1966 (when fingerprinting was well-established), it's even less so in this age of face transplants and body modification. But there are also brilliant moments and surprising surrealistic touches that make the movie very worthwhile anyway. And Toru Takemitsu himself wrote the atmospheric, eerie music for this film companion to Eyes Without a Face. Here's a Japanese trailer for the film, which is available on NetFlix.
Source (3:03)
The other Nakudai film I recently enjoyed is apparently more of a rarity: Kihachi Okamoto's Age of Assassins (1967), an edgy-humorous takeoff on intrigue movies that isn't so very different from The President's Analyst. Here you've got the story of a mild-mannered criminology professor targeted by sinister survivors of the Axis. If you're interested in the writing of Haruki Murakami, try to check out this movie, which has a close affinity to The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle and other tales of Murakami. The movie also anticipates Enter the Dragon and features cool credits as well as a Masaru Sato score that reminds me of Ennio Morricone's (and possibly someone else's) film music.
Here's a trailer for Age of Assassins—but beware of spoilers!
Source (2:40)Labels: Age of Assassins, Akira Kurosawa, Face of Another, Film Forum, Haruki Murakami, Kihachi Okamoto, Kobayashi, Kobo Abe, Masaru Sato, Nakadai, President's Analyst, Takemitsu, Teshigahara
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
WHERE WAS I? My whereabouts have been ascertained to my satisfaction. Gary garners another point, inching up on Myra and Debbie!
And Debbie, Gary, and Scott can still send in their own photos!!16 Myra (includes Attendance Award)
15 Debbie (Gold Medal and Attendance Award plus unredeemed Silver Medal and WWI? and Bronze Medal credits, plus February 2008 WWI? credit and a March 2008 redeemable point; includes two bonus points)
14 Gary (Silver Medal plus three unredeemed WWI? and one unredeemed Silver Medal credits)
10 Scott (Two Gold Medals plus two unredeemed WWI? credits)
5 Ellen (includes bonus point)
4 Deborah
3 David (Bronze Medal)
2 Daniela
2 Dolph (Bronze Medal)
1 bellj
1 Myron
1 Trapezia
- Luke N. Atmaguchi (has April 2008 redeemable point)Labels: competition, contest, game, Where Was I? standings
Monday, June 30, 2008
CARTOON CAPTION/ANTI-CAPTION COVERAGE CONTINUES!"By the way, we are not allowed to show the face or image of No. 6."Congratulations to Collier, whose win advances Virginia into the fourth-place position!
Joel Collier (Roanoke, VA)
In Caption Contest 150 (Lee Lorenz's man with gun to his head in bullet-riddled room), the nominees are"Bullets don't grow on trees, Harry."My loser:
Stephen Schweiger (Montclair, NJ)
"I told you to hire a professional!"
Ela Kotkowska (New London, NH)
"Just come to bed and kill yourself in the morning."
Marcos El Malo (Los Angeles, CA)"For heaven's sake, Fred, it was only a caption contest."Opinions?
In Anti-Caption Contest 151 (Cheney's office with giant pencils and sharpener), the winner (selected by Harry Effron) is"You know the worst part about this job? I'm allergic to pencils. And they knew it, too, when they hired me. I hate this fucking company."Congrats to Deborah for snagging an honorable mention with
Tom Meltze"Your job would be to sharpen these pencils. What experience do you have sharpening pencils?"I didn't get anything for any of my submissions:"As I'm sure you know, pens are famous for being mightier than swords. But these seven pencils--when sharpened properly and wielded by a skilled practitioner--are just as powerful as pens, if not moreso. So, Mr. Grasshopper, I ask you the last and most important question of this interview: Do you have the patience, discipline, and concentration to sharpen your skills to become a true master of the Seven Deadly Pencils? I ask because, you see, you left that space blank on the application."
"Welcome to the headquarters of The Big Store! Are you enjoying 1988 as much as I am? This is going to be a great year for us, and a great year for the Mets!"
"What do you mean when you say you'd 'like to put lead in my pencil'? Which pencil?? And why not use graphite, silly???"
Caption Contest 152 is here, while Anti-Caption Contest 152 is here.
THE STANDINGS
Here is the current New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest breakdown by state. You can find it all mapped out here.27 CaliforniaMap Introduction
22 New York (19 from the Big Apple)
12 New Jersey
7 Virginia (three from NOVA, two from Richmond, one from Charlottesville, one from Roanoke)
6 Massachusetts
6 Pennsylvania
5 Connecticut (two from New Haven, three not)
5 Illinois (four from Chicago—two captions by Lawrence Wood, two drawings by Leo Cullum)
5 Texas (three from Houston)
4 Georgia (includes two-time winner Carl Gables)
4 Maryland (none named Mary)
4 North Carolina
3 Arizona (two from Tucson)
3 Minnesota (Minneapolis 2, St. Paul 1)
3 Ohio
2 Alaska
2 District of Columbia
2 Florida
2 Michigan
2 Mississippi
2 Missouri
2 New Hampshire
2 Oregon (both named Eric, both from Portland)
2 Rhode Island
2 Utah
2 Vermont
1 Alabama
1 Arkansas
1 Delaware
1 Iowa
1 Kentucky
1 Nevada
1 New Mexico
1 Oklahoma
1 Washington
1 Wisconsin
Thanks to Andriy Bidochko for Map Builder.
Image by David Marc Fischer using Samsung cameraphoneLabels: anti-caption, caption contest, Dan Radosh, Deborah Grumet, Drew Dernavich, Ela Kotkowska, Harry Effron, Joel Collier, Lee Lorenz, Marcos El Malo, new yorker, Stephen Schweiger, Tom Meltze
Sunday, June 29, 2008
ENCOUNTERS AT THE END OF THE WORLD
Werner Herzog's Antarctica documentary Encounters at the End of the World currently rates an impressive 8.8 at IMDB, with an extended run at the Film Forum. Owen Gleiberman gave it an A at Entertainment Weekly. So really, is there anything I can add to the chorus of cheers for the film, which I also enjoyed?
Well, as a longtime admirer of Ross McElwee, I was struck by how similar Herzog's film is to McElwee's films. Mind you, I'm not criticizing Herzog or suggesting that the approaches are anything close to identical. (McElwee tends to be more of a presence in his movies.) I'm just noting that both Herzog and McElwee document their fascinating journeys and the unusual people they meet in the style of a wryly humorous memoir-film with extremely serious undertones. It's an appealing formula, pulled off very well by both directors.
Here's a trailer for Herzog's Encounters.
Source (1:51)
And here's a selection from McElwee's Sherman's March. It isn't a perfect illustration of the point I'm making, but it's pretty interesting in its own right.
Source (4:28)Labels: Encounters at the End of the World, Entertainment Weekly, Film Forum, Gleiberman, IMDB, Sherman's March, Werner Herzog
