Heard a very good concert at the DSO. The newish conductor (Jader Bignamini) conducts with no score on his podium, preferring instead to make eye contact with his orchestra members. We heard Rachmaninoff's Piano Concert No 2 (used so brilliantly in BRIEF ENCOUNTERS) with the pianist George Li, and a piece by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor and a Brahms Symphony. Lovely morning.
And then went to MOCAD (Museum of Contemporary Art) and saw a terrific exhibit by Judy Bowman, who began her work after raising ten children.
Trying to settle into a book, Almost finished PARADISE NEWS by David Lodge, which I initially liked but now feel is bogged down by quirkiness. Listening to a Laurie King Mary Russell book on audio.
A friend said she finished every book she started and I think I am at about 20%. Probably most readers take more care with what they start. I am very promiscuous, grabbing any book off the library shelf that seems promising. But I guess there is no harm in it.
Our book group is reading THE PROPHETS by Robert Jones. Marygrove College in Detroit is bringing the author in as part of their series on contemporary fiction.
PERRY MASON seems better than the first season. Trying the NIGHT AGENT (Netflix) but the reviews were right when they criticized it's by the numbers plotting (plucky woman, brave man). Looking forward to SUCCESSION tonight, which is never by the numbers. Also watching FAUDA. So odd that it's a 30 minute show.
What about you?
25 comments:
I always enjoyed A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC. When Kitty and I were house managers for a professional theater in Massachusetts, they did a three-week run of the musical starring Jo Sullivan. Good memories.
Remnants of the storm that hit hit Mississippi were suppposed to descend on us yesterday but did not. We took the opportunity to go beaching for the first time in a long while. It was Jolly's first time at the beach. The puppy is now three-months-old and was excited to discover all that beautiful sand to dig in; she was a bit more apprehensive about the water. It was an absolute joy to watch her enthusiasm as she played and met other dogs. The sun was warm, the water beautiful, and the people super-friendly. Even though no dolphins were spotted, it was a perfect morning. Afterwards, we went out to McGuire's Irish Pub, where they serve too much food, for an anniversary lunch.
Jack's first soccer game of the season had him as goalie for half the game. He had a number of saves and his team romped at 13-0. He scored the tenth goal of the game and came close with three others. Now if he can only play that well for the rest of the season...
I did a bit of reading. Two BURGLAR books by Lawrence Block (THE MAN WHO THOUGHT HE WAS BOGART and IN THE LIBRARY), James Patterson & Brian Sitts' take on THE SHADOW (bringing the costumed pulp hero to the future via cryogenics -- the entire book an awesome misstep **sigh**), A STREAK OF LIGHT (an interesting 1970s mystery by Richard Lockridge -- my FFB), Tate Brombad's HOUSE OF SLAUGHTER, VOL. 1 (a graphic novel tie-in series to James Tynion's SOMETHING IS KILLING THE CHILDREN; have to rate this one "meh"); FLUNG OUT IN SPACE (a biographical graphic novel by Grace Ellis & Hannah Templar about Patricia Highsmith's early years writing STRANGERS ON A TRAIN and the A PRICE OF SALT (CAROL) -- fascinating, especially considering what a truly awful person Highsmith was), PULLING THE WINGS OFF ANGELS by Tom Holt writing as "K. A. Parker" (an interesting fantasy whose title is taken literally), and three books by Max Allan Collins -- FANCY ANDERS GOES TO WAR and FANCT ANDERS FOR THE BOYS (WWII mysteries about a plucky young detective) and THE MENACE (a mystery-horror mashup based on a an unproduced script by Mickey Spillane). I've read through 220 of the 300 years of Irish genre fiction in John Connolly's anthology SHADOW VOICES, and should finish that this week.
Everyone is doing well and enjoying their jobs. Mark had an interesting story about a machete man who showed up at the zoo.
Have a wonderful week, Patti. Stay safe.
Glad you've been able to enjoy some viewing and some outings, Patti. And I agree; it's been too cold and wet lately. I'm looking forward to a warm stretch!
California has has a rough year indeed.
Whenever I read Jerry's posts, I miss having never had a pet. Or miss having so many family members with pet-related pursuits.
I wrote a whole post on the phone waiting for Jackie at the skin doctor - if I was home I would have copied it - and I have no idea of what happened to it, but it isn't here.
Meanwhile, we are engaging in some spring cleaning and straightening in advance of hosting (at least) the cat of my friend's late sister. We're hoping that our cat Ninja and new cat Whiskers will perhaps bond, or at least tolerate, each other.
Tube notes include a small rash of recent espionage series: A SPY AMONG FRIENDS (ITV/currently MGM+), TRUE LIES (CBS), THE COMPANY YOU KEEP (ABC) and at least one episode of MISS FISHER'S MODERN MURDER MYSTERIES, the spinoff series set in the mid '60s and built around a character who is (was) the original series heroine's niece...Acorn leased or otherwise struck a deal with Sundance Channel to run it for four weeks (and a mentor to the title Fisher is a retired spy who runs the Adventuresses' Club, presumably cofounded by Phryne F). I might be moved to write them up on my blog...all are at least amusing enough, though A SPY AMONG FRIENDS (lightly fictionalized Kim Philby historical drama) is well-acted but a dimly-lit as country road in the fog...I suspect in part because it's Moody, but also because it likes to jump rather haphazardly from time period to time period, and the youth makeup and elder makeup for Damien Lewis, Guy Pearce et al. is less taxed thus. I think that would annoy the hell out of you, Patti, as it's blatant enough to annoy me.
I've grown fond of ANIMAL CONTROL, a workplace comedy on Fox, the new season of PARTY DOWN (Starz), and another series I managed to miss last year, also on Starz, MINX, about the launch of a feminist magazine from a line of skin magazines, somewhere between PLAYGIRL and MS. in 1972 in the first season, which might be followed by a second, inasmuch as Starz is repeating it in what I suspect is the run-up sweepstakes. I'll admit I've barely given SUCCESSION a chance, even given the near-universal raves, since it seems the same joke pounded away at repeatedly in the episode or three I've watched over its span.
Sorry, Jeff. Blogspot is a less annoying beast than WordPress, I gather, but only somewhat. And made more annoying, apparently, a few years back to Work Better on Cell Phones, but perhaps not so much.
Damian Lewis. Ah, well.
I started MINX and forgot all about it. That happens and I hope it is the deluge of shows and not growing dementia.
So sorry, Jeff. Not sure why it picks on you. I never use my phone for much of anything like that because I so often hit the wrong keys. Again, is is dementia?
MS (w/o period, no joke intended, at very least by me) FISHER'S MODERN MURDER MYSTERIES, that is.
I finish most books that I start, and I don't take a chance on many books. But I have a good number of books on my shelves that I am only keeping to give them the 50 page test, in case I don't like them. The trouble is, once I start a book I usually get hooked. Right now I am reading a 450 page fantasy novel from my son's shelves that I just started to see if I liked it and I did. (THE ASSASSIN'S APPRENTICE by Robin Hobb)
But I think there is absolutely nothing wrong with trying anything that strikes your fancy at the time at the library. I would think you would discover a lot of authors that way, over time.
In addition to that book I have just started THE ECHOING STRANGERS by Gladys Mitchell that I am reading in April for a group read, so I will be stretching it out over 4 weeks. And that one I have to read on the Kindle.
We are still watching the same shows except that this weekend we re-watched (after multiple previous viewings) THE MUMMY with Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz and THE FIFTH ELEMENT with Bruce Willis and Milla Jovovish ... and a lot of other good actors. We have decided to try the John Wick movies so will be trying the first one sometime soon.
Jerry, you did a huge amount of reading. I would not be so envious, but you also write a lot on your blog. I want to read more Burglar books by Block, but I also want to read more in the Matt Scudder series. Both are mostly short books (at least at the point I am in the series) but still can't read that fast.
I can't bear to watch the dog get killed in the first one so don't know if I am able to go forward with John Wick.
Well, in the deluge of cancellations by HBO Max after the current jerks took it (and Time Warner as a whole) over, and pulling MINX among others from their service, you might not've even had the chance to see more than a few episodes of it. And Starz is going ahead with a second season. I missed it because it was on HBO Max exclusively. If only Starz would rescue some of the other fine series Showtime and HBO have killed.
https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/minx-season-2-starz-hbo-max-1235487430/
The series is, beyond its intent, mildly amusing in how many temporal discrepancies it engages in, such as pushbutton payphones at LAX in 1972 that charge a quarter.
Well, the body count in the first three WICK movies is, iirc, one dog, aoprox. 575 humans, and not a few unfortunate plants. Might actually break out the filter masks to see it, as Alice bought a membership to the Regal that otherwise is going to waste, as they only films we've seen so far have been two Japanese animations, the adaptation of the UK writer Diana Wynne Jones' fantasy novel HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE and the somewhat earlier John Tenniel/Lewis Carroll-inspired (in part) MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO (the latter yesterday)...and those are on a sort of rerunning arthouse Studio Ghibli special showings with tickets not covered by membership (boo, Regal, though sympathies, otherwise).
I have never seen MY NEIGHBOR TOTORO. I should watch it tonight.
Todd, I thought I had asked this question but I must have gotten distracted... that happens a lot.
The question is... how much of True Lies have you watched and did you like it?
I think the high body count is why we avoided the John Wick movies up to now.
TOTORO is the most kid-slanted of the Ghibli Studio Miyazaki films I've seen, and it starts slowly and definitely begs tears in dealing with the medically-confined mother of the small girls at its core (which sadly parallels the life of Miyazaki's mother, stricken apparently with spinal tuberculosis when he was a child and bedridden for decades). But worth seeing.
I'd also say that TRUE LIES the tv series isn't as bad as many of its reviews seem to suggest, though they're not wrong that it made perhaps too-quick work of the exposure of the husband's double-life and the fast-tracking of the wife into an agency (though, of course, it's based rather closely on the US film and perhaps not too far from the French film that was based on)...it is, pretty much at heart, a Matt Nix production, and thus is reminiscent of BURN NOTICE in its weaknesses (a certain blandness at its worst, and a somewhat unbelievable concentration on one team of a supposedly large government agency, that made a bit more sense in the overall story of BURN NOTICE), and strengths (a game cast, an ability to turn from relative comic passages to relatively serious behavior rather quickly).
It is amusing that both US broadcast series are based on foreign models (THE COMPANY YOU KEEP is based on a South Korean tv series), and presumably more coincidentally feature Asian-Am female leads (the half-Filipina Ginger Gonzaga in TL, the Korean-Am Catherine Kim in COMPANY, which might well've been a grace note toward, or a requirement for adapting, the series' model).
WICK movies do tend to make the violence so ridiculously OTT that one becomes almost inured to it. They are somewhat similar to less aggressively dumb FAST AND FURIOUS movies.
Why the Korean-Chinese family in THE COMPANY YOU KEEP have the surname "Hill" has not been explained in the series, unless I missed it somehow.
Thanks, Todd. That is helpful. We did like Burn Notice although, like a lot of shows, the last seasons were not as good.
I think most TV series nowadays condense too much into the first episode or two. I like a show that eases you into the premise and spends some time introducing the cast.
Almost forgot to post. Had an eye Dr appt and my eyes being dilated I stayed off the computer. My appointments are being scheduled 10 weeks apart now which is nice. Got my last blood work. My kidneys looked better this time but my DR. still wants me to consult a specialist.
No movies again but I will be seeing John Wick 4. On Peacock I watched Cabin In the Woods. Softened it up a bit from the book but I liked the movies ending better. C+
Couldn't get into The Night Agent. Watching Perry Mason, Bill Maher, John Oliver, some CNN specials.
Finished The Big Bundle by Max Allan Collins. Probably his weakest Nate Heller book. Next up The Donut Legion by Joe Lansdale.
Was hoping you were okay. I am trying with Night Agent but it's a throwback to the way we told stories a decade ago.
I've had good reports on Disney-owned Fox broadcast anthology series ACCUSED, but haven't yet tried it yet...
Yet. Or yet, yet. More sleep required.
Best of luck, Steve.
Post a Comment