These are the front and back covers of the second edition of CATCH MY BREATH, which came out in 1995. The first edition came out in 1978 after being finalized in 1974 and the pages printed by the publisher, the late Jim Haining. But the building that housed the press burned down before the pages could be bound, so it all had to be redone. By the time it was all handset again and bound, the entire run had already been pre-sold, so it was never even available to anyone but those who'd already preordered it.

Jim swore he'd do another edition with a bigger run and finally did in '95. That one had an afterword by Jane DeLynn and a back cover photo taken by Susan Tenant outside the first house I lived in (rented) in Santa Monica, after I'd just turned 40 and moved with my kids (and second wife, not their mother)  to "L.A." I used the photo for a headshot in what was then the first years of a TV and film acting "career" which wasn't going that well at the time. Perhaps my partly menacing look had something to do with that.

CAN'T STOP WITH THE MEME THING

NEW FAVORITE QUOTE

"I am endorsing any Democrat that survives the primary. I don't care who they are. Kamala, Bernie, Warren, Beto, Nina, Biden, even the worst of them all, Gillibrand. Hell, nominate Al Franken for all I care. I don't fucking give a shit anymore. All I want to see, is for the left to STFU about the primary once it's fucking done and close ranks to boot out the GOP. SUPREME COURT. ENVIRONMENT. HUMAN RIGHTS are at stake. These. Are. Bigger. Issues. Than. Your. Identity. Stop splitting hairs about whose socialism is better and become the powerful voting block you are. Why are you letting Roger Stone and his Nazi Hoardes rule this country on Putin's Dime? So the Democrats are half as bad as the GOP. Ok. Still not full bad. Not as downright dangerous. Once you have taken out the Nazis, then come for the Neoliberals. Geezus get your priorities straight and stop being so easy to divide and conquer."   —a friend (who put it better than I could)

STILL A FAVORITE QUOTE (FROM ONE OF MY FAVORITE U.S. SENATORS)

CAN YOU EVER FORGIVE ME? and SORRY TO BOTHER YOU

There should be an award for movies that defy the odds in even just getting made. CAN YOU EVER FORGIVE ME? and SORRY TO BOTHER YOU (two titles my post-op aging rapidly brain sometimes confuses from their seemingly similarly apologetic tone) are two movies that deserve kudos for just making it to any screen.

CAN YOU EVER FORGIVE ME because it's a story about an aggravatingly ill-mannered middle-aged lesbian writer of obscure books who forges literary letters by more famous authors to sell. Imagine being at the meeting trying to finance that film and get it directed (perfectly) by a woman (Marielle Heller)!

And SORRY TO BOTHER YOU because it's a film from a black perspective we haven't seen before (Marxist fabulism? "Black" sci-fi Jonathan Swift class analysis of contemporary corporate criminal practices? etc.) written and directed by a "black" man (Boots Riley) who owns his economic theme(s).

SORRY TO BOTHER YOU is the most original movie of 2018, and for that alone should be among the nominations for Best Picture, but it also stars Lakeith Stanfield (who deserved a past nomination for his role in GET OUT) who easily could and should have been nominated for his amazing performance in SORRY TO BOTHER YOU that nailed the satire, comedy, reality, and so subtly nuanced aspects of a very broad themed flick. (And Tessa Thompson and Armie Hammer make this movie worth watching as well).

CAN YOU EVER FORGIVE ME? has won a nomination and some awards for Melissa McCarthy's performance and Richard E. Grant's (Best Supporting Actor nod, as they say) but Dolly Wells deserves one too (though she also has been getting some attention and mentions). But SORRY TO BOTHER YOU deserves a lot more attention than it's received,

If you haven't seen either of these films, do.

OSCAR NOMINATIONS MINI-RANT

The Oscar nominations are always full of disappointments as well as reasons to celebrate. Spike Lee finally getting a Best Director nomination is one of the latter. As I pointed out in my review of BLACKKKLANSMAN Lee made some choices on this film that made it his most commercially viable movie so far, and it worked with the Academy.

BLACK PANTHER getting a well deserved Best Picture nomination is another reason to celebrate, but the lack of a Best Director or any acting nominations for it is a disappointment.  Another disappointment, from my perspective, is Lady Gaga getting a Best Actress nom. Were some of her scenes in A STAR IS BORN Oscar worthy in terms of her acting? Yes. Were some other scenes of hers cringe worthy and nowhere near Oscar quality? Also yes.

And the whole point of the Academy raising the number of Best Picture nominations to a possible ten from the traditional five was to allow for widely popular movies to be added to the usual more arty (whether faux or real) contenders. The film that fits that slot most obviously in 2018 is CRAZY RICH ASIANS which should have been nominated not only for Best Picture but for all the acting categories and definitely for Director. And the Academy had two more slots open before they even got to ten so that one makes no sense.

I could go on, but it's all pretty incidental in light of what's going on in our country and the world right now. I just wanted to add my two cents to the reactions to the nominations, and omissions, for what is the major event in the industry I spent so much time in.

CARLA LEWIS