I believe I have done a great service to the world in unearthing the provenance of Mel Brooks’ immortal “Guten Tag Hop Clop” from the musical version of “The Producers.” You may have thought it was merely a ridiculous German … Continue reading →
Yesterday I went to a performance of a highly condensed (one hour long) English-langauge version of the opera “Hansel and Gretel” at Boston’s Wheelock Family Theater. I was one of the only people in the crowd without a child or … Continue reading →
Jack Cashill has recently published a book called Deconstructing Obama, in which he advances his theory that Bill Ayers ghost-wrote Obama’s well-known memoir Dreams From My Father. Cashill has been called a racist for his pains. This accusation was as … Continue reading →
Those of you who are not interested in the topic, please avert your gaze. Here’s a slideshow of Oscar fashions, for those inclined to gaze. My summary: lots of feathers (a la “Black Swan?”), some of them very unfortunate. Lots … Continue reading →
Yes, the title is sarcastic. You can miss em if you want tonight, and you probably won’t be missing a thing except a few hours of boredom watching a bunch of self-satisfied, beautiful, but anorexic people congratulate themselves on their … Continue reading →
A couple of weeks ago I had some fun with poetic voices of the past, and in the comments section “Beverly” alerted me to the fact that a recording exists of Alfred Lord Tennyson reading his poem “Charge of the … Continue reading →
I watched “Jeopardy” last night to see what all the fuss was about Watson, the computer who’s been coolly cleaning the clocks of previous mega-winners Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter. I don’t like Watson. Seems to me that, although his … Continue reading →
Did you watch the Grammys last night? I did. I happened to tune in after this old guy’s performance was over, but it apparently brought down the house: Mick Jagger is 67 years old. I would have pegged him for … Continue reading →
…except for the fact that Joel isn’t there. So say goodbye: [NOTE: I became a huge fan of “Northern Exposure,” although I was a bit late since I’d missed it the first time around. I watched all the episodes in … Continue reading →
I recently read Savage Beauty, a biography of American poet Edna St. Vincent Millay. There are several passages in the book that describe the power of Millay’s voice and its remarkable ability to transfix and even seduce (in Millay’s case, … Continue reading →
Remember that bipartisan “date night” seating for the SOTU address? I hear it cut down on the applause, although that surely wasn’t the intent. It seems that some people became confused as to what were the applause lines. Being in … Continue reading →
If you’re ever seen “West Side Story,” this might hit the spot:
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