SUNDAY, MARCH 9, 2014

So if you're anywhere near Maplewood NJ this Sunday at 11AM, I'll be speaking and reading some poems at The Ethical Culture Society on the corner of Parker Avenue and Prospect Street. Here's the link, and if you click on the topic ("roots") it will give you a little info on the topic and me.

The last time I did this was before my brain operation, as I remember it, and was one of the best things I've ever done in public. Unfortunately it wasn't filmed so you'll have to take my word on that. I'm a little curious as to how this post-brain-op mind of mine will do this time.

When I write these posts, and on my various book projects and poetry, I can take my time and rewrite and correct all the accidental typos etc. But spontaneously riffing on a topic with the help of a few poems I'll probably decide on as I'm waiting to be introduced, as much as the challenge of that always excited me and sometimes led to great results (sometimes not), this time, just might mean some stumbling and awkward white outs. Guess we'll see.

MORE L.A. DAYS

Poet, writer, actor and judo champion Lynn Manning and me around 1992?.

Poet/screenwriter Tommy Swerdlow (COOL RUNNINGS) leaning into actress Katy Sagal; poet/comedy writer Anne Beatts (SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE) behind them; writer Hubert Selby Jr. behind her; poet/singer/songwriter Yvonne de la Vega leaning into poet/actor Michael O'Keefe; behind them me; poet Jack Grapes and poet/director/producer/etc. Eve Brandstein and the late comic Lotus Windestock; actor Robert Downey Jr. in front of her with actor/poet etc. Michael Harris leaning over him; and actor and rocker Michael Des Barres in front of him with a French actress behind him whose name I can't remember [thanks to Susan Hayden for reminding me it's Myriam Mezieres]; and in front of her a French director whose name I can't remember! (I'm so sorry) at Club Largo after a Poetry In Motion reading c. 1990?

Australian actress Linda Kerridge and me in a Hollywood club, probably Helena's 1989.

Me and actress/singer Beverly D'Angelo in my Santa Monica home c. 1982.

Great musician the late Sandy Bull with his child in his lap; my oldest son Miles behind me (in a sweater that was my oldest brother's from when he was a little kid in the 1930s!); and the late great jazz saxophonist Buddy Arnold, in my Santa Monica home in 1983 or 4.

The late producer and woman warrior Joan Baribeault and me c. '91?

Me and John Carradine in one of his last roles, (not officially L.A. since the movie was made in upstate New York, but my first real "Hollywood" type experience), 1979.

Magician/actor Albie Selznick (in a shirt of mine); acrobat/juggler Nathan Stein (in a jacket and belt of mine); me (can you see the open switchblade in my hand?); actress Penelope Milford; and actor/writer Winston Jones, in a publicity shot for my play HOLLYWOOD MAGIC c. 1983 or 4.  

THE NOT SO BIG MELT OFF

I wrote many days back about when the weather warmed up for a few days that the big melt off had begun. But it didn't really. Today we had a few hours above freezing for the first time in days but nothing much actually melted except for on some roofs (probably also from the heat rising under them as much as some hours of direct sun) and patches here and there.

But walking up my street earlier I noticed the snow between the sidewalk and the street is still mostly above my knees and part of it above my waist and here and there up to my chest...still. It's supposed to be below freezing tomorrow (after getting down to 15 tonight) but then warm up some for the weekend. So we'll see. But so far it's still a very snowy world I live in, or rather icy as what looks like snowbanks are actually frozen solid.

Nonetheless. During those few hours above freezing, it did feel like a touch of Spring was in the air, despite the fact there's still snow and ice pretty much everywhere. Its coming.

FOR ANYONE WHO NEEDS THEIR ERIC BURDEN BOOST (I DID)

One of the coolest cats ever in rock'n'roll and here's two reasons why (the first is out of sync and has some war footage that conflicts with his mood recording and the second is live and not the best sound and his voice is a little off, but you can see some Bono moves two decades before U2):

DISAPPOINTING AS A SHOW

I missed the opening with Ellen Degeneres, but caught the rest of the Oscars show and have to say her comic bits seemed pretty lame to me (especially the pizza and selfie things) and there wasn't much excitement in the acceptance speeches except for Lupita Nyog'o's which had me teary eyed (she also seemed one of the few truly glamorous stars on the show—along with Jennifer Lawrence who right now can do no wrong in my book [and McCounaghy's wife, Leto's mother and my old friend Alfre Woodard]—despite all the expensive gowns and beauty products and surgery etc.—poor Goldie Hawn and Kim Novak [and John Travolta]) and Matthew McConaughy's speech which had me a tad bewildered as to his being his own hero only ten years from now and chasing that etc...I liked his Golden Globes speech better (Jared Leto's speech was pretty impressive, but despite it's clarity and concern and the moving acknowledgement of his mother, he seemed somehow passionless to me, like almost detached, which may just be his personality or way of coping with fear etc.).

The music acts were fine but nothing spectacular and the FROZEN anthem is and was just too over the top for me (though the song writers seemed sweet and if I heard the announcer correctly were the first songwriters to win a Tony, Emmy, Grammy and Oscar), and the camera work on Pharell's "Happy" looked like it hadn't been rehearsed it was so bad.

I thought GRAVITY won way too many awards, deserving definitely for special effects but otherwise it seemed to me there were films that deserved the editing and cinematography and directing awards more than it. But happy to see some of my favorites win, and especially the writing awards reflecting the good taste of my fellow writers, and most of the acting awards.

I appreciate why McConoughy's performance in DALLAS BUYER'S CLUB won best actor (the old Hollywood tradition of a beautiful actor or actress distorting their beauty to play someone less attractive especially if fighting a fatal illness or mental disease etc.) But he's a Texan playing a Texan from a few years back (though the real character had nothing to do with Rodeos, especially riding bulls) while Chiwetel Ejiofor is an Englishman playing an African-American who lived over two hundred and fifty years ago. Both characters had to face physical challenges, but the range of human emotion was broader and deeper in Ejiofor's case. Anyway, that's my opinion, though both actors obviously did what they did very well.  

Happy that 12 YEARS A SLAVE took the top honors though, and that the audience and the presenters were much more racially mixed than any Oscar show before. Now we need to see more other "minorities" on the show other than African-American, (I think the GRAVITY director was the first Latin American to win for Best Director) including people in the business whose talent is not diminished or prevented from flowering by physical challenges (I knew several paraplegic wheelchair bound actors in Hollywood who were incredibly talented). Onward and upward.

MY FAVORITES

Best Picture: 12 YEARS A SLAVE
Best director: Steve McQueen 12 YEARS A SLAVE
Best Actor: Chiwete Ejiofor 12 YEARS A SLAVE
Best Actress: Cate Blanchett BLUE JASMINE
Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong'o 12 YEARS A SLAVE
Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto DALLAS BUYERS CLUB
Best Original Screenplay: Spike Jonze HER
Best Screenplay Adaptation: John Ridley 12 YEARS A SLAVE
Best Editing: Jay Cassidy, Crispin Struthers, Alan Baumgarten AMERICAN HUSTLE
Best Soundtrack: HER
Best Song: The Moon Song HER

(not a complete list of the Oscar categories, but the first list I've made in a long time after I lost the capacity for the lists I compulsively made all day long before my brain operation, so happy to be able to do this much)

HER

A total tour de force. I'm not crazy about Joaquin Phoenix, though many of my female friends are, but he won me over with this incredible performance. I AM crazy about Scarlett Johansson and went to see the flick for her, even though it's only her voice that's the other lead in the film. But what an amazing performance she gives with it, making her character, the voice of a computer operating system, as real and vital and nuanced and emotionally complex as any embodied film character ever. Johansson deserves some kind of special Oscar for this.

And Phoenix, acting in most scenes either totally alone or only with Johansson's voice is also remarkable. As is the always reliable Amy Adams in a co-starring role. For my taste there wasn't one missed beat in this flick, which means the writing and directing (both by Spike Jonze) were perfect. In fact, if I were giving out awards, Jonze would win at least for best screenplay.

The physical scope of the film is confined, but the subject matter opens up so wide it ultimately encompasses deep and confounding questions and challenges about the meaning and purpose of intelligence, life, love and being human. Yeah, got a little heavy there, but the film, with the help of a great soundtrack by Arcade Fire and a lovely main song (that I think is nominated for an Oscar) written by Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs—"The Moon Song"—and sung perfectly by Johansson, does not come across as heavy but rather as satisfyingly humorous and poignant.

Listen, it's definitely worth seeing, and in a year without the many great movies of this Oscar season, could have easily won several of the top awards. But unfortunately for this film, it's overshadowed by movies that have more bells and whistles or just seem to address deeper subjects, though none do, ultimately, I feel.