Friday Movie Suggestion Night

"FRIDAY MOVIE SUGGESTION NIGHT" HAS CONCLUDED ITS RUN!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 08:00:00 +0000

(Location for "The Last Picture Show")

On December 19, 2008 "Friday Movie Suggestion Night" concluded it's run. Thank you for 40 wonderful months!

THE LAST FILM: EVA CASSIDY PERFORMANCE!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 04:18:00 +0000

After thinking it over, I have decided that the very best way to bring an end to my feature "Friday Movie Suggestion Night" is to keep it simple with a video that struck me as an incredibly sweet way to go out. This is Eva Cassidy's special rendition of "Over the Rainbow"--- for reasons that should be obvious to all of us.

Thank you for 40 great months!

Michael

CRAZY PEOPLE!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 15:12:00 +0000

Kathy: Hold me. Please hold me.

Emory Leeson: I am holding you.

Kathy: I know, but it's a woman thing. I have to say it.

Okay, we're back. Basically, I was looking for a comedy for this week's "Friday Movie Sugestion Night" feature. I must admit to feeling a bit like a guy who has been rummaging on Thanksgiving Day in his apartment for DVD movies that haven't been seen in a while, or at best--that many people have forgotten even existed in the first place--take your choice! At any rate, I came up with CRAZY PEOPLE--a story about Emory and Steve (Dudley Moore and Paul Reiser--before his run in TV's "Mad About You").

The Plot: Two advertising executives are in a big hurry to come up with a novel advertising campaign. Dudley Moore's character of Emory becomes disillusioned with the business of lying through his teeth. So he rebels and writes a series of brutally honest print ads (I liked this idea, because at one point in my own career, I designed ad layouts with hysterical by-lines) that leads his business partner Steve (Paul Reiser) to commit him to a mental hospital. While "asleep at the wheel"--so to speak--the ads are accidentally printed! A few samples: The ad for United Airlines is a hoot: "Most of our passengers get there alive." Then there are the ads promoting New York Tourism: "It's not as filthy as you think," followed by: "There were fewer murders last year." Hysterically enough, the ads become a huge hit and Emory is recruited back by the advertising agency out of the insane asylum. But wait! He refuses to leave as fate lends a hand when he falls for fellow patient Kathy Burgess (Daryl Hannah) and employs members of his group therapy unit to help him write more ads! It's hard to resist saying this, so I'll go ahead and do it: It gets insane with: "Forget France - Come to Greece. We're Nicer." Or: "Quaker Oats - How does it taste? Who knows, but at least the box is cute". (You get the idea). I refuse to spoil it by spilling the beans on the magazine ads for Paramount's movie "The Freak" or automobile maker Porsche. Trust me. It's the old "The lunatics are running the asylum" bit with a twist. And since it's a holiday, look at it this way. It's a film that you can sit on the sofa and watch while you're laughing! The Cast: Dudley Moore is Emory Leeson; Daryl Hannah is Kathy Burgess; Paul Reiser is Stephen Bachman; J.T. Walsh is Drucker and Mercedes Ruehl is Dr. Liz Baylor. Enjoy the film and...

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF?

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 05:59:00 +0000

Well, for any of you still hanging around (or to new visitors) we recently celebrated what sounds a bit muddled when I mentioned this---the fourth season and the 3rd Anniversary of a feature seen here every Thursday at 12:00 AM (Eastern Time) called "Friday Movie Suggestion Night". The feature was launched September 15, 2005 (thus, the reference to an incomplete 4th season and why I refer to THE "3rd (FULL) season"). We have had one hell of a run if you back up and take a look at approximately 170 films I've personally selected and (dare I say it?) okay, "suggested". There. Now you have the title. Let's go "pedal to the metal".

The last time Elizabeth Taylor made an appearance here on FMSN was in the film "Butterfield 8". Some background: My late buddy Andre" (See my Blog "A Character Named Andre") actually knew both Liz Taylor and Richard Burton; they were regular clients of his limo service in Geneva, Switzerland. Andre' hated Richard Burton and told me of several occasions where he had to restrain himself from pulling the sedan to a stop and literally beating Richard Burton to a pulp whenever it was apparent that he had been beating Liz (she wore very large sunglasses and Andre' was amply convinced this was to conceal bruises from numerous batterings reported in the press). But Andre' loved Liz: "Michael, class all the way", said Andre'. With the recent death of Paul Newman, I have to remind myself that the 1950's brought forward a group similar to the 1990's version of "FRIENDS", albeit, with different characters. They were of course, Liz Taylor, Natalie Wood, James Dean, Rock Hudson, Sal Mineo, Marlon Brando, Dennis Hopper and others too numerous to mention here. With the exception of Richard Burton (1925-1984) the remaining three characters of this film masterpiece are still very much alive and well. Liz has led a fascinating, intriguing and very complicated life. So much so that we often forget that she isn't just a persona who propels the sale of "White Diamonds" perfume; Liz Taylor the Actress sadly seems to have escaped us thanks to the emergence of deplorable television programs such as "TMZ" and it's incessant focus on the shock value of Hollywood's notorious and unhealthy persoalities (no names are required here). So, for tonight, I have selected Liz's Oscar-Winning performance (Nominated for 13 Academy Awards in 1967) in a very brazen and intense film that will raise the hair on your neck in horror, while simultaneously allowing a look at just how great an actress Liz Taylor is. She is a treasure. And there is no film role more demanding than hers in "WHOS'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF?"--our selection for tonight. Let me just add (Andre's shared sentiments about Richard Burton notwithstanding) that the emotional dynamic at play so transparent in the teaming of Taylor and Burton is in and of itself the subtext for their real-life turbulent love affair (through two marriages--both of which ended in divorce). Still, there is so much depth here to explore in this film.

Director Mike Nichol's debut with Edward Lehman's screenplay is an adaptation of Edward Albee's one-set play. Liz Taylor is cast as the psychologically tormented Martha, and her performance in this film is considered one of the greatest in the history of cinema. Martha's father is president of a university where Marth's husband George (Richard Burton) has tenure as a troubled middle-aged professor. The couple is encouraged to by Martha's father to invite a younger couple, Nick (George Segal) and Honey (Sandy Dennis) over for a nice visit. The Taylor and Burton characters arrive home drunk from a party they have just attended. What follows after the young couple arrives is an exasperating sparring between Burton and Taylor who deliver emotional blows that turns the claustrophobic set into a scene from hell. Segal's acting work as a reactive study and Dennis as the "fourth wheel"--left without any control in witnessing the torrent of rage Taylor's character unleashes is a must-see. As a bitter, aging woman bent on detroying a weak-willed and flawed husband in the Burton character, there is but no doubt this film should be required viewing for any serious acting student. At the beginning, there is a seemingly hilarious shock the audience experiences through the Segal and Dennis characters who, initially, are not sure what they have walked into. Taylor and Burton become virtual pit-bulls who evolve only to tear deep into each other with abusive insults that reveal two deeply complex characters, a suspenseful storyline, dark humor and a drama that manages to carry excellent cinematography and a fine musical score by Alex North. To be certain, this is a horrifying film about the dangers of the lies we tell ourselves (along with the caustic mix of alcoholism with marriage).

At the 1967 Academy Awards ceremony, this film lost out to "Born Free" and "A Man for All Seasons". WINNER: "Best Actress in a Leading Role": Elizabeth Taylor; "Best Actress in a Supporting Role": Sandy Dennis (Neither appeared to accept their awards; Anne Bancroft accepted the Oscar statue for Liz. Sandy Dennis was on-location shooting the film "Sweet November"); "Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White": Richard Sylbert and George James Hopkins; "Best Cinematography, Black-and-White": Haskell Wexler; "Best Costume Design, Black-and-White": Irene Sharaff.

The Cast: Elizabeth Taylor as Martha; Richard Burton is George; George Segal is Nick and Sandy Dennis is Honey.

I did mention "intense" with respect to our final selections of films as we slowly wrap up our 2008 season. This is a towering film not to be missed. Straight up or on the rocks?

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www.michaelmanning.tv

The Complete Website

RACHEL, RACHEL!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 07:00:00 +0000

This year on "Friday Movie Suggestion Night", I've managed (without coincidence of any making) to present movies that came to my attention after a poignant post or two were already created. Take this week, for example. We touched upon the subject of "Second Chances". Truth be told, I have held this movie at bay for some time. With Paul Newman's passing, my feeling was simply "If not now, when?"

In nearly every interview I watched over the years with Paul as a Guest, he always mentioned how proud he was to produce and direct his wife Joanne Woodward in an adaptation of Margaret Laurence's novel, "A Jest of God". The theme of this film is that we are either living our lives or merely existing. Paul relies on sparse dialogue, and I must say only Joanne could lend the tender inner loneliness of a 35 year-old school teacher who remains unmarried and desperately at a dead-end in her life better than anyone else. Confronting what psychologists today refer to as "separation and individuation" issues, Rachel's life revolves around the neurosis of her mother, whom she still lives with. Her deceased father was a small town undertaker in Connecticut. Life beckons when Nick Kaslik, a childhood friend returns for a visit, "looking for some action" and Woodward's character begins to ponder choices. Namely, to sit on the fence or move forward.

The film score is by Jerome Moross (with some help by Erik Satie and Robert Schumann). Woodward is transcendent in a role about the choices we make in our lives.

The Cast: Joanne Woodward is Rachel Cameron; James Olson is Nick Kazlik; Kate Harrington is Mrs. Cameron, Estelle Parsons is Calla Mackie; Donald Moffitt is Niall Cameron and Terry Kiser is the preacher. Produced and Directed by Paul Newman and based on "A Jest of God" by Author Margaret Laurence; Screenplay by Stewart Stern. Academy Award Nominations for 1969: "Best Actress in a Leading Role": Joanne Woodward; "Best Actress in a Supporting Role", Estelle Parsons, "Best Picture": Paul Newman; "Best Screenplay: Stewart Stern; WINNER, Golden Globes Awards: "Best Motion Picture Actress--Drama": Joanne Woodward; Best Motion Picture Director: Paul Newman.

A different film.

A new direction for the rest of 2008.

Unpredictable.

Intense.

Provocative.

ENJOY!
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www.michaelmanning.tv

The Full Website

GOOD WILL HUNTING!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 07:00:00 +0000

After agonizing over whether or not to post a film that signaled the end of Summer, I opted to hold off on conceding to the Official season we are in and refocus instead on a film that people either loved or hated. I happened to love it. So, I chose GOOD WILL HUNTING for our belated "Friday Movie Suggestion Night" selection.

In 1997, I was midway through completing my college degree when I first caught this film one weekend (penned by actors Matt Damon and Ben Affleck). The story revolves around Will Hunting (Damon) who posseses a genius level ability for solving mathematical theorems. His job as an MIT janitor belies a deeply troubled life as an abused foster child who consequently grows up sabotaging professional and emotional opportunities that come into his life as an adult. His bare bones existence in a poverty-ridden neighborhood in Boston begins to change after he solves a math challenge that he notices posted on a classroom blackboard. The math problem is left to a graduate class to ponder for an entire semester. The math Professor Lambeau (Stellan Skarsgard) catches him solving the problem, but mistakens him for a vagrant and runs him off. After he has discovered the astonishing truth, Lambeau tracks down Hunting and manages (with great effort) to have him released to his custody from a criminal court following a violent altercation. Will accepts the challenge to study mathematics and begin regular therapy as a condition of avoiding hard time in jail, but is in denial that he needs therapy. After numerous psychologists come and go without helping Hunting, Lambeau reaches out to psychologist Sean Maguire (Robin Williams) and this doctor-patient relationship ranks among the richest character development scripts ever written for the silver screen, with plenty of tension. Robin Williams gives the performance of his career as a grieving widower who loses his wife-the love of his life--to illness, but encourages Will to try to establish a relationship with a woman whom he meets in a bar named Skylar (Minnie Driver).

Many revelations are uncovered by Maguire and Hunting in the course of their therapy sessions that allows the audience a spyglass view on the subject of risking emotional pain in the course of choosing love. The choices we make in life becomes the focus of the film which takes a surprising turn. Okay...enough already!

The Cast: Robin Williams as Dr. Sean Maguire; Matt Damon as Will Hunting; Ben Affleck as Chuckie Sulivan; Stellan Skarsgard is Professor Gerald Lambeau; Minnie Driver is Skylar; Casey Affleck is Morgan O'Mally and Cole Hauser is Billy McBride. Directed by Gus Van Sant; Written by Matt Damon & Ben Affleck. Oscar Winner: Robin Williams as Best Supporting Actor; Best Screenplay for Matt Damon and Ben Affleck.

DEAD POET SOCIETY!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 07:00:00 +0000

Robin Williams returns for another appearance on "Friday Movie Suggestion Night" for a nice way to close out the waning days of Summer, 2008. William's genius for me is the sheer scope of his remarkable acting ability in both Comedy and Drama. Moreover his genuine warmth is beloved by millions. If there exists an Actor with a sharper God-given wit for either genre', he or she remains sadly undiscovered. In this regard, Robin Williams is, in fact a gift to all of us who love film. In this role, he is at once a devoted, mischievous professor at a New England prep school in 1959. The school is run by stiff necked administrators. However, Director Peter Weir cleverly combines a respect for the school's history and tradition while fearlessly creating in William's character of Keating a vulnerable person. Still, he's not afraid to enlist unorthodox methods to bring the boys in his class out of solemnly accepting whatever is blindly thrown to them without thinking for themselves. It is here where he dares students--seven boys in all--to "Carpe diem, seize the day!" They form the "Dead Poets Society". This is a secret club whose members read their own and others' verse in a spooky, dark cave (I ask you. Could a cave be described any other way?). Of course, going against the grain of the school administrators established Metropolitan Club Members of Tomorrow creates a lot of tension. But there is a message about life here. And that message is the need for each of us to create something truly extraordinary with our own lives. Tom Schulman's screenplay in 1989 was observed upon by many at the time as addressing the compliance of '80s kids. However, the film avoids becoming preachy and takes us on a wonderful journey of dreams that all too many have abandoned. Keating is the catalyst who encourages us to pick them up and dust them off again for another run at life!

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The tremendous supporting cast here includes Robert Sean Leonard as the victim of a domineering father who wants him to be a doctor. We have Ethan Hawke as his roommate, a second son who suffers from parental neglect and a lack of self-worth. Gale Hansen is a rebellious poet who endures a beating from the headmaster but refuses to trade his principles for expedience (a breath of fresh air!). Josh Charles is a curious kiddo who uses poetry and courage to win the girl of his dreams.

If the horizon seem limitless, you can thank Cinematographer John Seale.

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The Cast: Robin Williams is John Keating; Robert Sean Leonard is Neil Perry; Ethan Hawke plays Todd Anderson; Josh Charles is Knox Overstreet; Gale Hansen is Charlie Dalton; Dylan Kussman is Richard Cameron; Allelon Ruggiero is Steven Meeks; and James Waterston is Gerard Pitts. 1990 Academy Awards Oscar WINNER "Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen": Tom Schulman; NOMINATED "Oscar Best Actor in a Leading Role": Robin Williams; "Best Director": Peter Weir; "Best Picture": Steven Haft, Paul Junger Witt and Tony Thomas.

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I feel you'll enjoy this one! We'll close out Sunday with one final memory that is very important to me from these Past 3 years (and 4 seasons) of "Friday Movie Suggestion Night", -----"the little BLOG feature that could!"

My Complete Website is: www.michaelmanning.tv

(feel free to have a look around!)

SAY ANYTHING!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 07:00:00 +0000

Lloyd Dobler: "I don't want to sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career. I don't want to sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought, or processed. You know, as a career, I don't want to do that".

Our Summer Series continues with the Cameron Crowe film "SAY ANYTHING". As you may (or may not) know Crowe also wrote "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" (his debut), "The Wild Life", "Singles", "Jerry MaGuire", (featured here in 2006) "Almost Famous" (featured here in 2007), the obtuse (and strange) "Vanilla Sky" and of course, "Elizabethtown".

Ione Skye, who plays Diane Court just turned 37 last week. This film is somewhat relevant to this BLOG because I have a history of having a hard time letting go of Summer. So, while it is still Officially Summer, my thinking was 'Why not feature a film worthy of realistic dialogue?'. All of which brings us to John Cusak in his break-out role of Lloyd Dobler, a graduating high school senior who has a serious infatuation with Diane Court. Court is the attractive if not alienated class valedictorian. In the genre' of "escape films"--(films for those of us with too much reality in our lives to see a serious drama every week) Skye's character is well played as brainy, but not a nerd, beautiful, but not popular -- and she's scared about her future. Cusack takes the cake for the anti-hero whose strongest ambition is kick-boxing. The group of confidants surrounding him include Cusack's real-life sister Joan (uncredited as Lloyd's sister, Constance), Lili Taylor and Amy Brooks. The dialogue is fresh, funny and for now--about the lightest fare you'll see here on FMSN. Directed and Written by Cameron Crowe, we have a hell of a good cast including: John Mahoney as Diane's Dad, Bebe Neuwirth as Mrs. Evans, Eric Stoltz as Vahlere, Chynna Phillips as Mimi, Pamela Adlon as Rebecca, Loren Dean as Joe and Glenn Walker Harris, Jr. as Jason Dobler. Yes, we'll get into more intense waters later. But for now, break out some Bailey's Irish Cream on ice, sit back and enjoy life with your cell phone set on "Silent".

BUTTER ON YOUR POPCORN?

www.michaelmanning.tv

THE WHO: LIVE AT ROYAL ALBERT HALL, 2000!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 07:00:00 +0000

Surviving band members: Roger Daltry and Pete Townshend

Two years after The Rolling Stones organized themselves as a band, along came The Who in 1964. The lineup of guitarist Pete Townshend, vocalist Roger Daltrey, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon led to one of the most influential rock bands of all time. Their Top 10 singles include: "I Can't Explain" in 1965 (covered nicely in the 2005 live reunion CD by The Rasperries), "I Can See for Miles" (1967), 1969's epic rock opera "Tommy"--a Top 5 album in the U.S. (with the hit "See Me, Feel Me") along with "Live at Leeds" (widely regarded as one of the best "live" CD recordings), the CD "Who's Next?" (with the hit "Won't Get Fooled Again") in 1971, "My Generation", "Magic Bus", another epic rock opera: "Quadrophenia" in 1973 and "Who Are You?" in 1978 among others. The band gained notoriety for ending concert performances by smashing their equipment on-stage, to which my guitar teacher merely shrugs and says, "Hey, it's Rock and Roll!" Following the death of drummer Keith Moon in 1978, The Who soldiered on before officially disbanding in 1983. They re-grouped during their 25th Anniversary in 1989, and later with tours of "Quadrophenia" in 1996 and 1997. Bassist John Entwistle's died in 2002.

This concert, filmed in November, 2000 as part of the bands' United Kingdom Tour finds them in fine form. It is a high energy salute to the end of Summer, 2008. Supporting musicians include: John Bundrick, keyboards and Ringo Starr's son Zak Starkey on drums. The film is directed by Dick Carruthers and marks the final show of the tour. Guests include: Paul Weller, Bryan Adams and Noel Gallagher, Kelly Jones and Eddie Vedder. Do keep in mind that Summer for me doesn't end until October 1st. There you have it.

ENJOY!

www.michaelmanning.tv

THE BANGER SISTERS!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 07:00:00 +0000

Summer demands a "feel-good escape" in addition to the fact that I have always had a thing for Goldie Hawn. The tag line bears repeating: "Some friendships last forever... like it or not". Yes, we are quite late in posting this film with my laptop in the repair shop. I am renting a computer to post this much in the same way that the late Orson Welles once said, "As a filmmaker, I pay myself out of my directing jobs. I subsidize my work--in other words, I'm crazy. But the fact is that the films you've seen tonight might not have been made otherwise. Or if otherwise, perhaps they might have been better, but they certainly wouldn't have been mine". HERE, HERE! Nevertheless, as I stated earlier "The Show Must Go On"! The Plot:

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Goldie Hawn and Susan Sarandon are former groupies now entering their 50's. Lavinia "Vinnie" (Sarandon) is a very uptight Phoenix housewife with a lawyer husband, two daughters who are spoiled rotten, and a calendar full of politically correct events to attend. Suzette (Hawn) remained true to their past as one-half of the notorious rocker-lovin' "Banger Sisters" who gets fired from her job on the Sunset Strip as a bartender. So, she decides this would be a good time to look up "Vinnie" decades after the "Flower Power" movement ended (and according to TV Psychiatrist Drew Pinsky, M.D. we are now paying for with the likes of Paris Hilton and Tom Cruise). But I digress...This film is fun! Suzette, for all her character flaws helps Vinnie recover a life she buried for stability and materialism; the two had hilarious after photos of every guy they knew as back stage groupies from Roger Daltry to Jim Morrison (thus the name of the movie) long before having this much fun could kill you and "anything goes" ruled. Actor Geoffrey Rush adds some interesting twists as a stifled and conflicted guy whose career aspirations aren't working. This becomes serious and exactly how this will resolve is largely placed into Suzette's hands--a girl who is hard not to love, but has spent very little time doing anything for herself over the years.

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Hawn and Sarandon bring the story along about the initial effects of Suzette's "liberating" everyone with real life sensibilities. Sarandon's real life daughter Eva Amurri steals a scene that always cracks me up when she fails her driving test---probably because I failed mine at 16. Yes, a major crisis we can all relate to, but this is side-splitting! So, all-in-all, this is a fun ride with two funny, lewd, good-time ex-groupies. Bob Doleman wrote and directed a fun, sexy and funny film that is just perfect for Summer and leaves you feeling Good with a sense of Hope.

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Cast: Goldie Hawn....Suzette; Susan Sarandon....Lavinia Kingsley; Geoffrey Rush....Harry Plummer. Eva Amurri....Ginger Kingsley; Erika Christensen....Hannah Kingsley; Robin Thomas....Raymond Kingsley. NOMINATED in 2003 for a Golden Globe Award for Goldie Hawn, "Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy". WINNER: Eva Amurri, for "Best New Young Artist Award: Best Performance in a Feature Film - Supporting Young Actress".

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IT'S STILL SUMMER...

ENJOY IT!

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www.michaelmanning.tv

SHINE A LIGHT! THE ROLLING STONES LIVE AT THE BEACON IN NEW YORK CITY, 2006!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 07:00:00 +0000

Academy Award-winning filmmaker Martin Scorsese teams up with "The Worlds Greatest Rock N' Roll Band" to bring us the new DVD and Blu-Ray Disc release of July 29, 2008 in "SHINE A LIGHT"! I have screened this three times for you (a joy!). What we have here is an evolution of rocks bad boys to sheer survivors 46 years after their 1962 founding---basically as Brian Jones' band---during a brief break from touring in the fall of 2006 with a concert at Gotham’s Beacon Theater in New York City.

If you are expecting Scorsese's ambitious “The Last Waltz” (previously featured here on FMSN) then set those expectations aside. The focus here is really on the Stones' always great performance and the durability of the boys from a then 63 year-old Jagger who takes "front and center" form running from one end of the stage to another amid screaming 20-something babes (and probably some bikers in the audience who are grandfathers by now). Who knows? You get a set list here of more than 20 numbers performed pretty much the same way they have been for more than 40 years. But somehow, it's always a fresh show! There are cut-aways of drummer Charlie Watts, guitarists Ronnie Wood and Keith Richards with long-time bassist Daryl Jones and keyboardist Chuck Leavell who adds fine electric piano fills. But Jagger is the star.

There is some fun (and funny) interview footage from earlier decades. Key among them is a 1970's clip of former talk show host Dick Cavett asking Jagger if he could imagine doing what he does at 60. Jagger immediately replies, “Easily.” The drug busts of Mick and Keith are sort of tossed away and perhaps sadly, there is no mention of the late Brian Jones who started the band and eventually lost control of it before he was asked to leave and subsequently passed away.

Duets include blues man Buddy Guy, and singers Jack White III and Christina Aguilera (who was truly a nice surprise here for me).

The movie is dedicated to Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun, who took a bad fall at the recorded concert and died soon after from his injuries. Filmed with what amounts to a budget consisting of a blank check, we have Oscar-winning Cinematographer Robert Richardson ("JFK", "The Aviator") supervising a first-class camera team for 102 minutes of the best Rock N' Roll played open and loud. So, grab a DVD copy and enjoy!

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[My Complete Website is www.michaelmanning.tv]

RUNNING!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 07:00:00 +0000

Before my left knee and left shoulder surgery, (preceding a 2004 right shoulder repair) I would rise at 5:00 AM in Texas and stretch for 15 minutes outside before jogging 5 miles. Jim Fixx was still alive and his book "Running" inspired me and three friends of mine (also fellow runners) who stopped by my apartment and picked me up on those Saturday mornings to run 10K's. Looking back, we had to be out of our minds! One of the 10K's was actually called "The Hotter Than Hell 10K" and of course we traveled to Northwest Texas to run that nasty course over bridges, on gravel roads, long stretches of blacktop, a quarter-mile over white clay (which gave us all severe sunburns), and those hills that today make me just shake my head at the memory. Yeah, we did all of that as a team and I have to laugh about one thing here. One of the guys with us was rather eccentric--good hearted--just a little crazy. Each of us would bring along something for the rest of us; one guy would bring Gatorade (usually me), another would bring banana's and the eccentric guy always brought along a tall glass bottle of wheat germ to share before the race. At the conclusion of "The Jingle Bell Run" (held of course in December--as I said, we were out of our minds)--my eccentric friend re-grouped with us near the Finish Line and said with total honesty: "Did you feel that wheat germ kick in around that last turn?" One of my friends was sympathetic towards him and managed to nod a 'Yes' without busting out laughing. I was too wiped out to even answer such nonsense at the time. I mean, really! So let's get to this movie. Why is it my pick for "Friday Movie Suggestion Night"?

Well, with the Olympics on television, I have to smile at my timing--no pun intended. Believe me! This is a great opportunity to go back to 1979 and see a younger Michael Douglas as an actor coming into his own. His character in this film is struggling with his passion--running. However, something always seems to get in his way. He's a family man. But this time, to quote motivationalist Anthony Robbins--Douglas as Michael Andropolis "will not be denied". He is focused, committed, and obsessed with The Boston Marathon, with the Olympics and taking a shot at something larger than himself. While Douglas summed up this film by stating, "No one came", we (of course we all know who "We" are at "Friday Movie Suggestion Night") have never been influenced by the commercial success or failure of any film that "we" carefully select. The relationship with Andropolis and his love (Susan Anspach, who curiously made her own running themed film) amid this commitment to a life goal is realistic and applicable to each of us with a dream--whatever that dream may be. Andropolis is clearly under-employed (let's see a raise of hands if anyone can relate to this one!) and alienated from his children.

Beyond chasing a dream and being devoted to what that entails, this is an intensely personal drama about survival and determination while struggling with doubts and finding a balance in life. It also shows the potential of Michael Douglas a full seven-years before his turn in the film "Wall Street". Where his character begins and ultimately winds up in this film will rattle you. It's also part of our continuing "Summer Series" on FMSN. The Cast: Michael Douglas is Michael Andropolis with Susan Anspach as Janet; Lesleh Donaldson plays Andrea Andropolis; Lawrence Dane is Coach Walker; Eugene Levy is Ritchie Rosenberg; Chuck Shamata is Howard and the late broadcasting legend Jim McKay is himself. Directed and Written by Steven Hilliard Stern.

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ENJOY!
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Visit My Complete Website at: www.michaelmanning.tv

THE REIVERS!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 07:00:00 +0000

Our "Summer Movie Series" for "Friday Movie Suggestion Night" continues with a rare outing by Steve McQueen that followed on the heels of the highly acclaimed cop thriller, "Bullitt" and "The Thomas Crown Affair". A light-hearted comedy, "THE REIVERS" is a film with a message of redemption and forgiveness.

Looking back, Steve took quite a risk with this film. He plays a ranch hand who is basically a troublemaker with a heart who concocts a plan to "borrow" a brand new 1905 Winton Flyer automobile owned by his boss, a Mississippi grandfather and patriarch of a wealthy family. The plan is to drive off to Memphis and visit his girlfriend Corrie (played by Sharon Farrell), then return the car before the grandfather (who is out of town) realizes anything is out of the ordinary. Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book by William Faulkner (published posthumously in 1962), McQueen underplays the role of Boon Hogganbeck with humor and grace. The road trip takes an unexpected turn when the grandfather's chauffeur, Ned (played by Rupert Crouse) becomes a stowaway. Burgess Meridith's narration in the voice of 11 year-old Lucius Priest (played by Mitch Vogel) recounts the trip 60 years-later as an old man. Mayhem erupts when the career of Boon's sweetheart is unveiled to the unsuspecting Lucius, and Ned trades the car for a racehorse used to gamble for prize money to release a relative from slavery. Will Geer plays the grandfather. Faulkner succeeds in what would become his final book written through the eyes of a child becoming aware of vices and virtues in what winds up to be a charming film.

One footnote: The car used in this film had as much of a starring role as Steve! Custom fabricated for Steve's film company, Solar Productions by Calabasas, California-based Von Dutch, Steve admired the authenticity of the original 18-horsepower Winton Motor Carriage. "When he showed it to us, we all gasped. The thing was just beautiful--bright yellow, gleaming with polished brass--a perfect replica of a genuine 1905 Flyer, but with a modern power-plant under the hood", said Steve. "We needed some kick on those Southern goat trails to ram into mudholes, slam over ditches and drive flat-out on rutted roads", he said. After filming wrapped, Steve bought the car. It was sold in 1984 at The Steve McQueen Estate Auction and restored in 2000 before passing through a number of owners. In the Fall of 2006, The Petersen Automotive Museum obtained the car for its "Cars of the Stars " collection.

The Cast: Directed by Mark Rydell; Steve McQueen is Boon Hogganbeck; plays Corrie; Sharon Farrell Ruth White is Miss Reba; Michael Constantine is Mr. Binford; Clifton James is Butch Lovemaiden; Will Geer is Boss; Rupert Crosse is Ned; Diane Ladd is Phoebe and Mitch Vogel is Lucius. Written by: Harriet Frank Jr. and Irving Ravetch.

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ENJOY!
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My Complete Website is www.michaelmanning.tv

THE BLACK STALLION!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 07:00:00 +0000

From the moment he first saw the stallion, he knew it would either destroy him, or carry him where no one had ever been before...

On July 30th, 2000 I lost my Cousin, just seven months after losing my Dad during Christmas week. Her passion in life was raising Arabian horses. This "Friday Movie Suggestion Night" feature is dedicated to my Cousin's memory with Love. I miss her dearly. In my apartment on a corner table sits three Breyer horse figurines next to a large framed photo of my Cousin. When Martin Landau was asked about fellow actor and personal friend Steve McQueen (the two were selected from 2,000 into Lee Strasberg's Actors Studio), his comment would have fit my late Cousin well. Martin said. "He was complicated. But that complication makes for a very interesting person". My Cousin was this way in my eyes. I choose to honor her for the love that was in her heart for my family. But her God-given gift was caring for animals throughout her entire life.

At the age of 3, my Cousin was sitting with her Mom on a park bench. It was a Spring day when a sparrow landed on her shoulder. This simple event set the stage for a life-long love and kinship she shared with animals. As a young tot, I can remember her dog, a beautiful Collie/Chow mix with red fur whom she named "Dancer" because my cousin had always dreamed of becoming a ballerina. Instead, she raised three Arabian horses and nursed wounded animals back to life and placed them with good homes. She was a beautiful woman and highly educated with a Masters Degree in Russian. A high school English teacher, she could be a tough cookie. Once (and I laugh about this) she was grading papers at home after dinner, and she wrote atop the page of a student's paper in red ink: "Maybe if you stopped picking your nose in class so much and picked your brain instead, you might do better!" She was truly a saddle bred gal who would pick me up at my parents' house in her bright Red Triumph two-seater convertible sports car and drive us to her stables where I rode her horse. Yes, she was a free spirit. She drove her cars hard and fast. Her last sports car was a light orange 1980 MGB--the last year of the car's production. I can remember being 9 years old and we sped down a very long hill with the convertible top down and she yelled: "Feel the wind in your hair!" An extremely well read person who adored the Classics in literature, she took only The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times newspapers. She disliked injustice in society and tried always to do her part to correct it. Above all, she loved me, and although terminally ill, she was determined to be in the audience attending my June 11, 1999 college Cap and Gown Ceremony from the same University she once attended. Afterwards, she hugged me and told me that she was heading home early because she was in a lot of pain. I embrace the good memories of my dear Cousin. Now a short bit on the movie...

This movie is about a boy and a horse shipwrecked on an island and how they learn to survive by helping each other. The boy saves the horse and with the help of Mickey Rooney, gives it a new purpose in life. Both the photography and story are family friendly and very beautiful. So to you, dear Cousin, I post this with a strong heart, just as you taught me to have.

THE CAST: Kelly Reno, Mickey Rooney, Teri Garr, Clarence Muse, Hoyt Axton DIRECTED BY: Carroll Ballard; WRITTEN BY: William D. Wittliff, Melissa Mathison, and Jeanne Rosenberg CINEMATOGRAPHY BY: Caleb Deschanel MUSIC BY: Carmine Coppola, son of PRODUCER: Francis Ford Coppola. This 1979 film received two nominations for the Academy Awards in 1980. Mickey Rooney was nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role; Robert Dalva was nominated for Best Film Editing; Alan Splet was awarded with a Special Achievement Award for sound editing. Based on the classic children's novel by Walter Farley, in 2002, The Black Stallion was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Our "Summer Series" of films continues proudly, and I hope you will love this touching film!

My Complete Website is: www.michaelmanning.tv

BRIAN WILSON LIVE IN CONCERT AT THE ROXY, LOS ANGELES!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 07:00:00 +0000

We continue the high energy Summer theme of "Friday Movie Suggestion Night" with an incredible Rock & Roll concert film (and a sneak preview above via You Tube) about the man who is the genius behind "America's Band", the legendary Beach Boys' Brian Wilson! In 1961, Brian with brothers Carl, and Dennis teamed up with cousin Mike Love and Al Jardine in their suburban Hawthorne, California to create, ultimately 36 Number 1 Top 40 hits (the most of any U.S. rock band), 56 Billboard "Hot 100" hits including 4 Number 1 singles and the honor of being listed by Rolling Stone magazine as among the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Driven mercilessly by an emotionally and physically abusive father in Murry Wilson, a violent confrontation inside a recording studio in 1964 led to his ouster from the band. Later that year, the pressure of relentless touring and torturous emotional scarring within the Wilson family left a tremendous toll. By the start of 1965, Brian Wilson left the road as the group's leader, bassist and keyboardist. He was replaced by Bruce Johnson.

Throughout the early 1960's The Beach Boys fashioned hits about bikini-clad girls, surfing and the hot rod car cruising culture of California's "Endless Summer" with extremely tight harmonies that were later redeployed on more mature themes culminating in the band's 1967 seminal answer to The Beatles "Sergeant Pepper" album with their own "Pet Sounds". Ex-Beatle Paul McCartney stated that Wilson's "God Only Knows" was the most incredible song he had ever heard. In the studio, the band gradually brought in accomplished session musicians such as drummer Hal Blaine and bassist Karol Kayne. A sampling of hits include: "Surfer Girl", "Do It Again", "Barbara Ann", "409", "California Girls", Surfin' USA", "Help Me Rhonda", "I Get Around", and "The Little Girl I Once Knew". The band toured worldwide while Brian Wilson stayed back home in California writing and becoming one of the most highly regarded recording engineers in the world. In fact, "Good Vibrations" (featured in this concert) required no less than six miles of recording tape and endless takes before Wilson was satisfied. Mental and physical health issues witnessed decades of self-imposed exile and deterioration that nearly cost Brian his life on several occasions. Still, the band replete with its own internal conflicts soldiered on through the 1970's bigger than ever in the United Kingdom, while their popularity waned in the United States. Blondie Chaplin and Ricky Fataar had joined the band's tour in 1972.

By 1974, the band enjoyed a comeback with double albums "Endless Summer" and "Spirit of America". They joined the band Chicago singing background vocals on "Wishing You Were Here" and on Elton John's "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me". In 1983, Dennis Wilson tragically drowned after a history of heavy alcohol and drug abuse. Still, the band continued on. David Lee Roth had his own hit with the release of Brian's "California Girls" in 1987. In 1988, The Beach Boys were inducted into The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and that same year, Tom Cruise's film "Cocktail" featured an unexpected Beach Boys hit "Kokomo". Then Brian himself surprised everyone by recovering from drug dependency sufficiently enough to record a self-titled CD that met with critical acclaim (a suggested cut is "Let It Shine" removed from Brian's life after he had become overly possessive. ). But the remaining band members fought to have Brian's controversial therapist Dr. Eugene LandyLandy was successfully removed from Brian's affairs. Tragedy struck again in 1998 when Carl Wilson, a heavy cigarette smoker died of lung cancer.

In recent years, the first of many sad legal battles over rights to the bands extensive catalogue of hits was filed by singer Mike Love who stated in a second legal suit filed in 2005: “Once again the people around Brian, my cousin and collaborator on many hits, who I love and care about, have used him for their own financial gain without regard to his rights, or my rights, or even the rights of the estates of his deceased brothers, Carl and Dennis, and their children... Unfortunately, history repeats itself. Because of Brian’s mental issues he has always been vulnerable to manipulation. I simply want to stop the infringers and stop the deception". However, in 2006 the surviving band members reunited for a 40th Anniversary celebration of the release of the album "Pet Sounds". Brian Wilson today is happily married with two children. He has rebuilt his relationship with daughters Carnie and Wendy Wilson (of the band Wilson-Phillips) and this film is itself a celebration that Brian is a survivor.

Recorded at the famous Roxy Theater in Hollywood, California this concert drew virtually every major rock artist out to see Brian performing his hits "live" for the first time in many years. It's part of my focus on Summer, and I hope you enjoy this film! Here's the DVD set List:

1	Little Girl (Intro) - 0:59
2	The Little Girl I Once Knew - 3:24
3	This Whole World - 1:51
4	Don't Worry Baby - 3:27
5	Kiss Me Baby - 3:12
6	Do It Again - 3:25
7	California Girls - 4:06
8	I Get Around - 2:35
9	Back Home - 4:33
10	In My Room - 2:48
11	Surfer Girl - 3:02
12	The First Time - 3:55
13	This Isn't Love - 3:55
14	Add Some Music to Your Day - 4:10
15	Please Let Me Wonder - 3:29

Disc 2

1	Band Intro - 1:29
2	Brian Wilson - 0:55
3	'Til I Die - 3:57
4	Darlin' - 2:50
5	Let's Go Away for Awhile - 2:54
6	Pet Sounds - 4:27
7	God Only Knows - 3:25
8	Lay Down Burden - 3:28
9	Be My Baby - 4:11
10	Good Vibrations - 6:01
11	Caroline No - 5:00
12	All Summer Long - 3:11
13	Love and Mercy - 3:52
14	Sloop John B. - 3:34
15	Barbara Ann - 2:35
16	Wouldn't It Be Nice - 2:45
17	Help Me, Rhonda - 3:45
18	Fun Fun Fun - 3:54
19	Interview - 4:22

My Complete Website is: www.michaelmanning.tv

FRANKIE & JOHNNNY!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 07:00:00 +0000

April has come and gone-it's July...
And have we got a film for you!
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With the slap of the hands, I'm back! This time with a summertime sizzler of a film that was largely overlooked. But the good news is that we have it! Al Pacino teams up opposite the ever-amazing Michelle Pfeiffer in the 1991 film "FRANKIE & JOHNNY". There's no other way to say this. What we have in this film is "cinema magic". Now, why is that? Because this movie is alive, it's poignant and it's totally honest. Apart from being one of the best romantic movies ever assembled (the script is excellent), Pacino is transformed into "Johnny", who has just been released from prison after serving 18 months for forgery. During his incarceration, he loses his wife and child to another man. However devastated, Johnny manages to cope by developing a love for Classical Literature and Cooking (which I've conveniently Capitalized to keep your attention).

On the other side of the coin is the ever-amazing actress Michelle Pfeiffer, who is transformed into the role a hardened waitress in a Greek coffee shop whose life with men has been seared in the agony of abuse and despair. What emerges is a wonderful exploration of the fears and hesitations we all experience at starting a new life. Is is worth mentioning that this film is no fantasy world romance. This is 'real life' in overcrowded New York where two isolated people who feel completely destroyed and insignificant to the outside world find a reason to believe life is worth living. Interestingly, Michelle Pfeiffer stated to James Lipton on "Inside the Actor's Studio" (See my "50 Things About Me" list) that she savored the role because "it wasn't what people would expect of me." Prior to this film, Pfeiffer was typically cast for her looks. In this film, director Gary Marshall deliberately dresses Pfeiffer as a dowdy waitress with an attitude. Unlike Terrence McNally's 1987 off-Broadway production of "Frankie & Johnny in the Clair-de-Lune" with only two characters (starring Kathy Bates, who was turned down for this film along with Barbra Streisand) the film version is vastly different. There are additional characters and multiple environments to provide a subtext amid a harsh working class culture that is at once believable and riveting. Not to Be Missed: the scene where Pacino is alone with Pfeiffer when he states "everything I want is in this room". Powerful! Pacino has a hell of a lot of work to do if he stands a chance at winning Frankie's heart. So, he fights for her love by reading Romeo & Juliet, dancing like his life depends on it, chopping vegetables at record speed and alternately, being very patient. This is a curious relationship that leads to an unpredictable and dramatic outcome. The Cast: Al Pacino is (what else?)...Johnny; Michelle Pfeiffer is Frankie; Hector Elizondo is the greasy spoon owner, Nick; Nathan Lane is Tim; Kate Nelligan is Cora; Jane Morris is Nedda, and Greg Lewis is Tino. Directed by Garry Marshall; Written by: Terrence McNally.

A footnote on Debussy's "Clair de Lune": When I started in broadcasting for one year of overnight radio work, my relief, scheduled for 6 AM thrived on timing every traffic light to arrive just 60 seconds before broadcast time. So, one day I began a prank of programming Isao Tomita's moog synthesizer performance of Claude Debussy's "Clair de-Lune". My relief, who was a purist at heart hated this version and the thankless task of back-announcing it so much that he was given to fits of shouting at me after he went to commercials. He threw away the CD. Then two weeks later, I located a copy of Tomita's "Live at Linz, Austria" where the artist was suspended in a glass pyramid over 80,000 fans performing music from his CD "Snowflakes are Dancing" (music of Debussy). So, I began signing off my air shift with a "live" version of Tomita performing "Close Encounters of the Third Kind", which was hysterical! Eventually, we reached a truce.

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ENJOY!

My Complete Website is:www.michaelmanning.tv

LE MANS!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 07:00:00 +0000

"For us to capture on film the greatest endurance race in the world has really got us excited. I'm thrilled because we think we'll be able to do things with the camera no one has ever done before. For instance, we'd like to effectively capture the speed of 220-225 mph at [the] Mulsanne [Straight]. If we can, cinematically, give people a pleasant feeling and yet give them the sheer sense of speed at the edge of infinity, then we've created greatness".

--Steve McQueen (Motor Trend Interview, 1969)

For anyone, including me--a bona fide super fan of the legendary actor Steve McQueen--capturing the real-life drama surrounding the filming of Le Mans during the summer of 1970 as a chapter in a book, let alone a Blog post for "Friday Movie Suggestion Night" is utterly exasperating! While this film simmered within Steve's soul for years (even invading his consciousness in 1966 during filming of the epic Academy Award-winning film "The Sand Pebbles") it took a toll on the cast and crew. Le Mans is today widely acknowledged as the greatest racing film of all time. It debuted in Indianapolis the night before the famed Indy 500 race. McQueen and his Solar Productions had become seduced by the octane-fueled challenges associated with the great endurance racing events of the 12-hours of Sebring (where Steve and co-driver Peter Revson placed a respectable second with a Porsche 908 Spyder), the 24-hours of Daytona and the subject of this film--the 24-hours of Le Mans which has taken place since 1923 in the countryside of Paris. But with so little space and time to provide the entire story, I'll endeavor to touch on the basics of this film. In 2001, Steve's son, actor/director and race car driver Chad McQueen hosted the documentary "Filming at Speed: The Making of the Movie Le Mans". Joining Chad was five-time Le Mans winner Derek Bell who recalled the film thusly. "It's stood the test of time. It's something I never thought would stand up thirty-years later. It's like vintage wine: better today than it was then". For the first 3 minutes and 40 seconds of this movie, there is only Steve shifting a 1970 Porsche 911S through the Paris countryside. But the tension steams off of the screen as McQueen ponders a fatal accident that he caused the previous summer. The first 15-minutes of Le Mans is guided by frequent camera shots of a clock leading up to the races starting time that is easy to construe as a device that either Alfred Hitchcock or Orson Welles might conceivably utilize as a prop to portend a sinewy line tied to mortality. The sound of a beating heart seemingly channeled through a stethoscope accentuates that this movie and the automobiles featured would do things never before captured on film. Another tension is the ever-halting undercurrent of attraction between Michael DeLaney (McQueen's character) and the grieving widow who misses her husband, but is eager to move on with her life--if she can only talk with someone who can validate her feelings of loss. Their brief dialogue during a meal break is not to be missed--dually filmed from outside the dining area, through a window and alternately four-feet from the couple as McQueen brings to the surface a steely, if non-threatening persona of a man so completely consumed with the sport. Central to the acting technique, both characters are "fighting for" one thing: to be understood. By contrast, a European driver and his wife work together to reach an understanding that once the race has ended, it is time for him to walk away from the sport. This is a look into the soul of a race car driver. It is the ultimate racing film.

The story of Le Mans is also featured from a purely mechanical perspective in Matt Stone's wonderful book, "McQueen's Machines: The Cars and Bikes of a Hollywood Icon" with a Foreword by Chad McQueen. Viewed today, this film is respected as racings' finest hour. I hope you concur. The Cast: Steve McQueen is Michael Delaney; Sigfried Rauch is Erich Stahler; Elga Anderson is Lisa Belgetti; Fred Haltiner is Johann Ritter; Louise Edlind is Mrs. Anna Ritter; Ronald Leigh-Hunt is David Townsend; Jean-Claude Bercq is Paul Jacques Dion; Director: Lee Katzman, Writer: Michael Kleiner; Executive Producer: Robert Relyea. Original Music by Michel Legrand. Cheers to the 44 Drivers in this spectacular film!

Michael

Visit http://mcqueenonline.com/

"OVER THE RAINBOW": A PERFOMANCE BY EVA CASSIDY!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 05:24:00 +0000

It took a lot of soul-searching for me to initiate another "First" for "Friday Movie Suggestion Night"--not with a full length film, but a You Tube that is slightly longer than 5 minutes. This is Eva Cassidy's remarkable rendition of "Over the Rainbow".

The story of Eva Cassidy was included in my June 9, 2008 Blog entitled "On The Meaning of Life 1,000 Blogs Later" (my Blogaverssary). In that post, I featured a 2004 broadcast from ABC News' "Nightline". Over the past few weeks, I've tried to answer (for myself) why this young musician became so beloved by millions of people worldwide, but not in her lifetime? I asked a few of my most trusted friends to weigh in, and I listened to a variety of feedback. At the end of the day, as I'm wanton to do, I reached my own conclusion.

What did it take for American audiences to wake up to Eva's talent? It wasn't her passing, because she labored in obscurity during her lifetime, and it was not until 2002 (6 years after Eva's untimely passing at just 33) that people barely started to take notice of her talent. I have watched her music withstand the harshest critics. Furthermore, the proof--as they say--"is in the pudding". That is to say, I don't see grief. What I see is consideration. People standing at listening stations in music shops just having a listen and deciding for themselves whether to pick up a CD during a shopping trip or not. Truth be told, it took our friends "across the pond" in England to wake us up to our shameful oversight of this Washington, D.C.-based musician who was a terrific singer and guitarist. Eva had a rare knack for selecting really Great material from the genre's of Rock, Blues, Soul, and Jazz. She refused to let others box her into any category and define her--all music was her love and this girl held her ground! By most accounts she was painfully shy and could have cared less about becoming a commercial success. This fact alone is amazing! Eva's arrangements of covers had her own thumb print so indelibly annealed in a song that it is actually easy to forget that they were written by songwriters Eva admired as much as they later grew to admire her. More to the point, she infused each song with a spiritual emotionality summoned up from a deep reservoir as she does here with Judy Garland's signature piece. The singer Edith Piaf once remarked that when someone sings out from the depths of their soul, (as Eva does here) it awakens each of us to our own mortality and the need to take hold of our lives with both hands and live it! Lastly, there was more to Eva's incredible voice; there was humility. It's evident here too. So it is fitting that I don't see sadness as much as I see people "Celebrating" the fact that Eva's music is reaching many listeners worldwide, and with great pleasure. It's hard not to smile at the thought of what Eva Cassidy would make of all of this fame that today honors her parents. This past Monday evening, I decided to watch film clips of the only video tape in existence featuring a live performance of Eva at Washington's "Blues Alley". The You Tube captioned above is our "Friday Movie Suggestion Night" selection. We've never done this before; as I said, this is yet another "First". It's a sweet and touching performance for summer.

_
(enjoy)

FOR YOUR EYES ONLY!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 07:00:00 +0000

Good Morning! You are in for a special treat. Today marks the very first time that MMC (Manning Movie Classics producers of "Friday Movie Suggestion Night") has decided to bring you a James Bond movie of unparalleled "Class". And that of course is my opinion of Roger Moore as my personal favorite Bond in his fifth outing as 007. FOR YOUR EYES ONLY is one of those Summertime movies that just fits. It followed the well-received but shall we say...overproduced MOONRAKER? Yes, and as I prepare our Martini's you'll find that Cubby Broccoli does a mid-course correction here and reels in Bond closer to Ian Flemings' vision. For example, we learn that Bond was married and widowed as he shows a side of himself never before seen during a visit to the cemetery. Action fans unite! I've brought you a suitable car chase here, and I will say it...a ski chase that exceeds ON HER MAJESTY'S SECRET SERVICE! There. I've said it. Moore is forever a Class Act from our dear friends "Across the Pond" and this film shows that he is not merely a comedic 007, but he can be a serious one too. This is a well paced story that invites you (and I, of course) to escape any doldrums that might inflict upon our Summer Season! Should you need proof, the lovely and talented Carole Bouquet is here with a risk that I'd personally like to see more of in movie making on the heels of a huge success from it's predecessor. John Glen makes his Bond directorial debut and must receive Kudos for getting it right. Oh, uh...one final story worth telling.

A Cincinnati AM Radio station D.J. preceded Sheena Easton's great Theme Song performance by inviting listeners to phone in and opine whether they liked the song or not. Capeesh? Now you know why I left Cincinnati. Let's get to The Cast: Roger Moore is "Bond....James Bond"; Carole Bouquet is Melina Havelock; Topol is played by Milos Columbo; Lynn-Holly-Johnson is Bibi Dahl; Julian Glover is "Aristotle" Kristanos (Bwahaha!); Cassandra Harris is Countess Lisl von Schlaf; Jill Bennett is Jacoba Brink; Lois Maxwell is Miss Moneypenny!; Desmond Llewellyn is "Q"!; Written by: Ian Fleming; Directed by John Glen; Screenplay by Richard Maibaum and Michael G. Wilson, with original music by Bill Conti. But before I leave, we have...

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Another "first" for "Friday Movie Suggestion Night"! We'd like to recognize the talents of Uncredited "Girls at the Pool"!!! They are: Koko, Alison Worth, Viva, Chai Lee, Tula, Lalla Dean, Lizzie Warville and Evelyn Drogue (need I say it?): FOR YOUR EYES ONLY...

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And now as I stand: I recall, "Shaken, not stirred".
(Even if it "bruises" the drink!)
Cheers!

BAREFOOT IN THE PARK!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 07:00:00 +0000

Barefoot in the Park

Note: Ordinarily, I post this feature on Thursdays. However, due to a hectic week I've been very delayed. In fact, I make it a monthly habit to visit all of the Bloggers on my Blogroll. A friend once asked me , "God ! How do you find time to do that?" My answer was and is: "I do the alphabet from A thru L one day, then L thru Z the next!" Well, I made it through "L", then work assignments took over. So, you guys who are in the "L-Z" category can expect me to stop over this weekend! No need to vacuum or dust the furniture. I like to keep it real! Now onto the movie...

Among the actresses that I wish would take on projects on the big screen are Sondra Locke, and Peggy Lipton. Jane Fonda (please, no political rants here) stated last year that she was quite happy in Atlanta, Georgia where she is away from the West Hollywood scene. So, in essence she is finished with movies and one has to understand and respect the decisions of an artist who has been acting as long as Jane Fonda or Robert Redford. Three years ago in an interview I dug up, Fonda revealed that she fell head over heels in love with Redford during this movie and others (They also worked on THE CHASE and THE ELECTRIC HORSEMAN--the latter was previously featured on FMSN). Fonda was married to Roger Vadim and later Tom Hayden during this period. Here's what Jane said about Robert Redford: "There's something about Bob that's impossible not to fall in love with. I was smitten. I couldn't wait to get to work, wouldn't even get mad when he was his habitual one or two hours late. He never knew it, of course. Nothing ever happened between us except that we always had a good time together", she said.

BAREFOOT IN THE PARK is a perfect film for Summer! It was adapted by writer Neil Simon and directed by Gene Saks. The tag for this 1967 film when it debuted was: Wake up! Make love! Fall over laughing!!! So, there ya go. I took care of everything here, right? But, of course! Here's the plot: Newlyweds Paul Bratter and Corie Bratter just got married and are on "Cloud 9" after a high-spirited wedding reception at New York's Plaza Hotel. Reality begins to set in when they move into an apartment building populated by eccentrics. It has a hole in the skylight that leaks throughout the movie (to those of you, who like me, have had slum lords in the past: Welcome to the club!). Oh, I should mention that there is no heat, and the Fonda and Redford characters have to WALK up five flights to get to their door! Redford plays a stuffy conservative who takes a "the glass is half-empty" view of life. Fonda plays a sexy, fun-loving woman who regards everything as an adventure in life! The two realize they have some major differences. Before long, they go at arguing with each other, but this is comical! The brilliant Neil Simon adapted this story from the Broadway stage, and followed up a year later with Jack Lemon and Walter Matheau in THE ODD COUPLE. But wait! What about the pain in the neck Mother-In-Law? Mildred Natwick plays this role perfectly along with a middle-aged Charles Boyer who is...what else? A shameless flirt! Joy turns to anguish and the whole story becomes comic relief from the summer heat. Many call this film classic, "Neil Simon comedy at its best". However, Simon once said, "You can't go on making 'Barefoot in the Park' forever". Okay, here are the players: Robert Redford is up and coming lawyer Paul Bratter; Jane Fonda is his sexy wife Corie Bratter; Charles Boyer is (get this name--I love funny names) Victor Velasco; Mildred Natwick is Mother-In-Law Ethel Banks; Herb Edelman is Harry Pepper; Mabel Albertson is Harriet and an Uncredited Doris Roberts from the TV sit-com "Everybody Loves Raymond" is the hotel maid. At the 1968 Academy Awards, Mildred Natwick was Nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Film.

The reason for the French movie poster? It looked better. Trust me and...

ENJOY!

GIGOT!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 07:00:00 +0000

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There is no way for me to fully prepare you for the film you are about to see. It has been largely forgotten by 21st Century audiences. So, given the brutal nature of the entertainment industry today and stories of broken lives, this is my answer to the network garbage on TMZ and the public's unending fascination over Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. This film is the other side of life and I've decided that it's time for people to start remembering what real love is, what it means to see compassion on the big screen, and how a real story is written. Furthermore, if ever there was a movie filmed to bring HOPE to a world that desperately needs it now more than ever, this is the film to watch!

On the day Jackie Gleason died, it was revealed that GIGOT was the pride of his life; it was the most favorite film he had ever acted in. This is NOT the Jackie Gleason many of you are familiar with. It IS in fact, the man beneath the surface of the last CBS "60 Minutes" interview with Jackie Gleason shortly before his death. And aside from re-runs of "The Honeymooners" and the notorious stories of Gleason as a hard-living, womanizer on Miami Beach, this film reveals the living core of the complicated Actor, Director, Dancer, Writer, Comedian and Producer who truly earned the title of "The Great One". In 1962, Jackie Gleason and co-writer John Patrick ("Teahouse of the August Moon"), A.J. Russell and Frank Tashlin had finished a script that Jackie had hoped his friend Orson Welles would direct and Paddy Chayefsky would pen. However, 20th Century Fox (and many others) virtually blacklisted Welles as an over-blown talent who would potentially delay and outstrip the budget. For his part, Chayefsky (who later wrote the film "Network") was simply not interested. In a surprise move, Actor/Dancer Gene Kelley was recruited to direct and filming commenced in Paris, France. The result was a Masterpiece of Cinema. Briefly...

Gigot is the story of a mute Frenchman leading a hand-to-mouth existence as a janitor of an apartment building in the Montmartre district of Paris in the 1920's. He is the target of emotional and physical abuse by main stream society. However, he is beloved by the local children and by animals, whom he feeds often. His dismal existence is unexpectedly transformed one evening when he returns home to find a prostitute named Collette (Katherine Kath) and her young daughter Nicole (Diane Gardner) sitting in his doorway trying to keep dry from the rain. Gigot lets them in to his apartment and befriends the pair. Collette is very suspicious of Gigot, however her young daughter warms to him immediately. Over time, Collette subjects Gigot to cruelty and rejection. The film's ending will shock you!

NOT TO BE MISSED: The scene where Gleason delivers a stunning pantomime inside a church with Nicole present in a difficult struggle to answer her question about the story of Christ. This is THE most demanding acting scene I have personally witnessed and it should be shown in Master Class level of Acting. The Cast: Jackie Gleason is Gigot; Katherine Kath is Collette; Gabrielle Dorziat is Madame Brigitte; Jean Lefebvre is Gaston; Jacques Marin is Jean; Albert Rémy is Alphonse; Yvonne Constant is Lucille Duval; Germaine Delbat is Madame Greuze; Albert Dinan is the Bistro proprietor; Diane Gardner is Nicole; Franck Villard is Pierre; Camille Guérini is the Priest; René Havard is Albert; Louis Falavigna is Monsieur Duval; Jean Michaud is Gendarme; Richard Francoeur is the Baker; Paula Dehelly is the Baker's wife and Jack Ary is Blade. I have waited for the right time to suggest this film. Two years have passed and now is the hour.

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THIS ONE IS SPECIAL!
ENJOY!

THE AFRICAN QUEEN!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 07:00:00 +0000

The film you are about to see was written and produced with a tough athletic-type prose most people would associate with an Ernest Hemingway novel. However, tough-minded director John Huston ("The Maltese Falcon" and "Key Largo") brings to life the 1935 C.S. Forester novel, THE AFRICAN QUEEN. The book was adapted by Houston, James Agee, Peter Viertel, and John Collier. As for the story itself...

Set in the colonial German Eastern Africa (Tanzania) in 1914, Humphrey Bogart is Charlie Allnut, a hard-drinking river boat Captain who makes a living ferrying supplies to villagers, including Reverend Samuel Sayer's mission and his Christian missionary sister Rose (Katherine Hepburn). After refusing to evacuate the area, despite Allnut's warnings that Germans imperial troops are coming, their worst fears are realized after the Germans arrive and level the church before beating Reverend Sayer to death. Rose Sayer then enlists Allnut to help her escape with his dilapidated steam engine boat. A man with only a modest education, Allnut (Humphrey Bogart) is mis-matched with the snooty, highly educated Rose to make up pair of personalities that would become Dr. Neil Clark Warren's worst nightmare. (Warren is the founder of e-harmony dot com).

The duo assume a mutual dislike of one another immediately and disagree on virtually everything. With this tension, made worse from their constant bickering, enduring rough waters, leeches, crocodiles, evading German soldiers, and facing yet deeper hardships fate takes an unexpected turn. The film is a combination of adventure and a quest for Sayer to avenge her brother's death by aiding the British war effort as they steam up the Ulana and square off with a German ship that dwarfs "The African Queen" named "The Louisa".

This film was the subject of Hepburns book, "The Making of the African Queen: Or How I Went to Africa With Bogart, Bacall and Huston and Almost Lost My Mind". Indeed, the filming proved to be very hard on the crew with abominable conditions. "The African Queen" earned Humphrey Bogart his only Oscar Award as Best Actor with a Nomination for Hepburn as Best Actress. The Cast: Humphrey Bogart is Charlie Allut; Katherine Hepburn is Rose Sayer; Robert Morley is Rev. Samuel Sayer; Peter Bull is the Captain of "The Louisa"; with Theodore Bickel as First Officer.

As a footnote, the film's tagline is "The greatest adventure a man ever lived...with a woman!"

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ENJOY THE MOVIE!

THE SOUND OF MUSIC!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Fri, 30 May 2008 07:00:00 +0000

There have been two occasions since I began this feature, "Friday Movie Suggestion Night" where real-life circumstances led me to subordinate "staying on schedule" to doing what was right and posting something more urgent as I've done (FMSN ordinarily appears on Thursdays). I have no idea as to whatever "following" we have in this little corner of the blog world, just as I never did when I hosted a weekend radio Music Magazine long ago. But then as now, I have attempted to combine a balance with selections that alternately fit a series of circumstances, and of course I enjoy the unpredictable. So, one never really knows what to expect here!

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This week began slowly with Memorial Day, and I suspect a bit of a shock mixed with melancholia at my decision to republish my dear friend and Guest Denny Shane on another blog feature of mine, "THE INTERVIEW". Ultimately, the arrival of my new friends The Gillespie Family from Kentucky to Arizona where their son Gunner (see my 05/12/08 Blog Post) is receiving cancer treatment and the posting of fellow Caringbridge patient Trevor Tredaway just yesterday led me to select "THE SOUND OF MUSIC" as our feature for this week. Let me just add that one of my most endearing posts, "A Character Named Andre' " that some of you may remember (see my August 3, 2005 Blog Post) fits prominently into this weeks selection, as Andre was a Non Hodgkin's Lymphoma patient and one of my best friends in life. This is merely an explanation of how my mind operates! I've always loved Julie Andrews and her career is unrivaled for the variety of roles she has played--and continues playing--(including those where real-life husband Blake Edwards cast her--each role a delight). More than a year ago she was reunited with Christopher Plummer in a legendary "live" television stage broadcast of "On Golden Pond". Now to our movie.

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Filmed and directed by Robert Wise, who worked non-stop on the films: "The Sand Pebbles" (1959), "West Side Story" (1961), "The Great Escape" (1963) and later "The Sound of Music" (1965), this is the worldwide beloved musical featuring composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II. It is based on a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse of the real-life events of Maria Von Trapp's memoir, "The Story of the Trapp Family Singers". The original Broadway production opened in 1959 and was the final musical project of Rodgers and Hammerstein. While certain liberties were undertaken for the film, Maria von Trapp is said to have loved the Broadway play, but she hated the movie. Inspired by a 1956 German film about the Trapp Family Singers, stage director Vincent Donohue thought that the play was a perfect fit for the late actress Mary Martin. Believe it or not, my late friend Andre', who owned a limousine company in Texas, came to know Mary Martin from his days as her limo driver in Switzerland and she became a dear friend of his. Mary later became a regular client of Andre' in Texas before he and I became good pals. Mary Martin, by the way, is the mother of actor Larry Hagman of television's "I Dream of Jeannie" and later "Dallas". I actually met Hagman and Patrick Duffy on a shooting location in Dallas, Texas. But I digress. You may not know this, but originally "The Sound of Music" was not slated to become either a musical or a film. Broadway producers Leland Hayward and Richard Halliday (real-life husband of Mary Martin) envisioned a non-musical play with music from The Trapp Family Singers. But ultimately all new music was added. The play was not well received by critics and this led Martin to make the comment it was nevertheless "a triumph over the critics"--something we all should remember in our own worthy life endeavors that meet resistance from morons. I like that phrase: "A Triumph Over the Critics". HA! Very defiant, isn't is? Okay, fast forward to 1965 and a number of songs from both the musical and particularly the movie went on to become standards. They include "The Sound of Music", "Edelweiss", "My Favorite Things", "Climb Ev'ry Mountain", and "Do-Re-Mi".

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The role of Sister Maria (Julie Andrews) involves a young girl who dreamed of becoming a nun from childhood. However, reality has a way of revealing that not all is as it would seem, and a rebellious streak finds Maria in conflict with the convent. When a widowed Naval Captain, Baronness George Von Trapp requests a governess to watch his seven rowdy children who have run off several other governesses, Maria is given a reprieve from life at the convent and finds that she has stepped into a household of children whose widower grieving father rules them with the same discipline he uses on his naval ship. Unlike the previous governesses, Maria recognizes that the seven children only need love to change their mistrusting behavior, and she uses her love of music to create bond with them. Through her love, the children learn to find joy in the smallest things --from raindrops on the window panes to life waiting to the beauty of the outdoors. Baron Von Trapp (Christopher Plummer) is a case study in a hardened man who is a pill for Maria. However, the Captain learns to open his heart to feelings he had forgotten through Maria's love of music and its power to transform the children's lives and their own. As the two gradually fall in love, their world is threatened by the 1938 Nazi takeover of Austria, and their demands that Captain von Trapp assume a position in the German Navy. A great film! ACADEMY AWARD WINNER, 1966: Best Director: Robert Wise; Best Film Editing: William Reynolds; Best Music, Scoring of Music, Adaptation or Treatment; Irwin Kostal; Best Picture: Robert Wise; Best Sound: James Corcoran and Fred Hynes; Best Actress in a Leading Role: Julie Andrews; Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Peggy Wood. Writing credits: Howard Lindsay (book) & Russel Crouse (book); Screenplay: Ernest Lehman; Maria von Trapp (book: "The Story of the Trapp Family Singers".

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The Cast: Julie Andrews is Maria; Christopher Plummer is Captain Von Trapp; Eleanor Parker is The Baroness; Peggy Wood is Mother Abbess; Charmian Carr is Liesl; Heather Menzies is Louisa; Nicholas Hammond is Friedrich; Duane Chase is Kurt; Angela Cartwright is Brigitta; Debbie Turner is Marta and Kym Karath is Gretl.

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ENJOY!

SAVE THE TIGER!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Thu, 22 May 2008 07:00:00 +0000

Can you believe that I have been waiting for "the right moment" to feature this movie for some 18 months? You may ask why this is so? I hate to put it this way, but while an absolutely excellent film that won an Academy Award, it's NOT for everyone. The opening scene involves what we likely refer to today as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD with the central character Harry Stoner (Jack Lemmon) awakening from a nightmare screaming. Filmed in 1973, this film is still relevant. Stoner tunes in his television set about the latest news about the war in Vietnam, takes a shower, makes breakfast and dresses as we all do to begin the day. A World War II Veteran, he is is obsessed by the years of his youth when President Roosevelt was in office, baseball was clean and integrity was the order of the day. This Oscar-Winning performance by Jack Lemmon is fascinating as it takes the audience through a 24-hour period in the life of the film's lead character. In this regard, if there was ever a movie to leave you with something to ponder, this is it.

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Harry Stoner owns a garment factory teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, though no one knows it; he keeps this very "close to the vest". He has all the trappings of success. His daughter is enrolled in a Swiss school; his wife thinks he's nuts; there is a gardener, a maid, a swimming pool service company and even a tree surgeon who all meticulously maintains his home. Psychologically, Stoner is treading water to avoid a breakdown. Lemmon turns in a performance here right after "The Days of Wine and Roses" wrapped. He is trying to make sense of a world that has left him feeling alienated. We see him, for example, cruising along Sunset Boulevard in his Lincoln where he picks up a 20-year-old girl who is hitch-hiking named Myra. Stoner is shocked how quickly she offers him sex-which he immediately declines. How times have changed for Stoner!

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We come to know his employees back at the garment factory including the cutter, Meyer, a holocaust survivor and mentor to Rico, the ambitious young gay protege who are ready to kill each other over some arcane issue. Stoner intervenes. That evening, a fashion show is scheduled and Harry has to "talk business" with his associate Phil Greene (Oscar Nominee Jack Gilford). A customer who just placed a large order out of town suddenly dies of a coronary before Stoner can get his signature! Stoner refuses to file for bankruptcy and he definitely doesn't want the Mafia taking over, so arson seems to be an answer he struggles with as the day wears on and he meets with a 15 year veteran of arson in an X-rated movie house to consider the details. Moving on...another client will issue a buy order on the condition that Stoner provides a hooker as part of the transaction. This leads to an amusing scene and more erratic behavior from smoking dope with Myra and trying to breathe life into his marriage to becoming an animal rights activist! I won't reveal the rest except to include you in one scene typifying my sense of "KOOKY" humor. NOT TO BE MISSED: Watch for the scene where Stoner enters a disco and tries to dance and fit in. I almost fell on the floor when he threw his back out! Lemmon's facial expression will knock you over! I remember visiting his grave in Los Angeles last year. Even his headstone is a laugh. It reads "JACK LEMMON in..." I miss the hell out of exceptional actor and I dedicate this film to all of his fans like myself.

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The Cast: Best Actor in a Leading Role Oscar Winner (1974) Jack Lemmon as Harry Stoner; Nominated as Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Jack Gilford as Phil Greene; Laurie Heineman is Myra; Norman Burton is Fred Mirrell; Patricia Smith is Janet Stoner; Thayer David is Charlie Robbins; William Hansen is Meyer; Harvey Jason plays Rico; Liv Lindeland is Ula; and Lara Parker is Margo. Nominated also for "Best Writing, Story and Screenplay Based on Factual Material or Material Not Previously Published or Produced": Steve Shagan and Directed by John G. Alvidsen.

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I've said it before, "This is one hell of a movie, kids!"
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SIT BACK & ENJOY!

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Listening to: The Rolling Stones' CD "Some Girls". It has been a long time, but like Ronnie Wood, I enjoy this effort.

ARTHUR!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Manning) — Thu, 15 May 2008 20:37:00 +0000

Good Evening! But no, not in the creepy sense that the late Alfred Hitchcock used to deliver that ostentatious greeting to us through the television. Rather, as in "I'm damn late with this post because life is what it is...

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Having cleared that up, I've been receiving requests about featuring ARTHUR on "Friday Movie Suggestion Night" for some time. So, not only do I say "Sure, why the hell not?" But I must add that I am very proud to feature the above movie poster as a departure from the bath tub photo we all know. HA! Pretty swank, huh? I have a minor societal situation to bring up since this movie deals with a forced decision the main character must make as a single guy. Girls: "Are you influenced by money in a man?" I ask this because it just seems (as a general observation) that the Maxim magazine looking woman in my part of town appear to have their compass' set for emotionally abusive guys and a leased exotic sports car. Now then, onto Naturally Attractive and Down to Earth Girls who have us at "Hello": "Just out of curiosity, what is it with this fad of dating guys who look as if they have watched one too many news reels of NASA's 1960's Mercury space program?" Now, I am no prude nor a "stick in the mud" by any means. But trying to make sense of the dating choices I see "from the outside looking in" throughout my travels makes about as much sense to me as Kevin Federline announcing that he is lending his name to a new line of condoms! Do tell. All of which takes us to our movie of the week with Dudley Moore in ARTHUR! Oh, by the way...Can you believe Bud Cort was considered for this role? Scary kids. Scary...

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Arthur Bach (Dudley Moore) is an alcoholic who is hysterically funny and an heir to a $750 million dollar fortune. He has no resume for reasons that are soon obvious, but he does have two servants, Hobson and Bitterman! Bach's father finally throws down the gauntlet: either Arthur marries boring and idiotic Susan Johnson (Jill Eikenberry--yes, yes of "L.A. Law", but that was later), or he'll be cut off and put out on the street! For the very first time in his storied life, he falls in love with a short-order waitress named Linda (Liza Minnelli). Now then, as I've alluded to above (in an admittedly jaundiced fashion), the question is: will Arthur choose the money or the girl?

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The film is so much about Moore's maniacal and uncontrollable laugh, his demands, embarrassing himself in public and the exceptional chemistry we see between he and Liza Minelli. Mention must be made of Sir John Gielgud, who is equal to Sir Lawrence Olivier (in this authors opinion and others) as among the greatest Shakespearean actors of his generation. This is drunken laughing, knock down-drag out slapstick comedy and I must say, a great escape from ANY bar scene or observation on "the human condition" and the singles scene; it is a charming Joy! Writer and Director Steve Gordon tragically died young in his early 40's after this film wrapped. Sir John Gielgud WON an Oscar as Best Supporting Actor for this film in 1982. The Oscar for Best Music, Original Song went to Burt Bacharach, Carole Bayer Sager, Christopher Cross and Peter Allen for the song "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" performed by Christopher Cross. The Cast: Dudley Moore is Arthur Bach; Liza Minnelli is Linda Marolla; Sir John Gielgud is Hobson; Geraldine Fitzgerald is the tough Grandmother, Martha Bach; Jill Eikenberry is Susan Johnson; Stephen Elliott is Susan's father Burt Johnson; Ted Ross is Bitterman; Barney Martin is Linda's father Ralph Marolla; Thomas Barbour is Arthur's father Stanford Bach; and I must add that Anne De Salvo is Gloria the hooker! :D The film was Produced by Robert Greenhut and Charles H. Joffe.

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Now...
ENJOY!