Seen large the wrought iron gazebo above is awe inspiring. Imagine a building that large which serves no purpose except to enclose an area and make us aware of the space inside. Our senses are so adjusted that we find space itself beautiful when it's presented to us in the right way. The builder added swirling vine shapes to remind us how profound the simplest things in nature are.
Saturday, June 23, 2007
EDWIN SMITH, PHOTOGRAPHER
Seen large the wrought iron gazebo above is awe inspiring. Imagine a building that large which serves no purpose except to enclose an area and make us aware of the space inside. Our senses are so adjusted that we find space itself beautiful when it's presented to us in the right way. The builder added swirling vine shapes to remind us how profound the simplest things in nature are.
Friday, June 22, 2007
MY HERO, BOB CLAMPETT
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyADyEF3F2WvZmVXTRDz2YA5IgSKms6h4lJXKRh86y9raZjv3GqIGyowtGq2F8iM-DJQlBX2pYcIwpFVfXvUnKd4_HgEGpDxP46XPXjp61YHQfThpIN-t3kjIX8In_niMj2xAa/s400/1aclampett.gif)
Anyway that's the young Clampett above. That was the first of his three major "looks."
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOxZumTl3ATC06A5r-auaOgXbQwyL7akE8OgNskv8nX3hzLkUzhcI64gOSHuugszBqowdJW7hSp6RiXMb4mOE8d83q59LTBnbmKxlBTL3lMs43WeO44z6egZz3QZQH1yJFHRqW/s400/1aclampett02.jpg)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijk8ha4h249RvxB-iUHkDnEN4Q-o0RyyQDh48KeA3pRX1h3V6J6UEQsBhOsZxS9HW9vqZn8ZcRxXbP1gF1aLy6jWBDOadE2qxqejWAk48zsvYuppmUuxmMSze2FiY_IlaCMk1w/s400/1aclampettdaws.jpg)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUbCFRw_EkrFmffwliXeDayl4CC4rwvhSYzUhN2pZOYgO-Du9VvT38AAof25VeYkfMBcUnsgL2HQZPsPsfNTl4NEnsS9-zmn3Lq7bjOUtfY07BI2v-VKjmJ5aFBFWzjelV22Du/s400/1aclacec.jpg)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfhgo0HEMJff7w6V55gHuVgboutgDXjb77ctz6214jPjyNDj1LJ4w2OG8R7XBrS_R9qJvKCjbmmLlwPzDgRYbWZrxng796dtUJq66_-0i-hn7z120Y_TeLhqLNtQEs6HEV9v1o/s400/clampett+dog.jpg)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVxTJg9jlkOUW0e7g8dKmv4Hkurlovx07vJOndcSiIdaYMVLTm6tX_97k-a3elOHM46iH7icGGyKgEI4uha0D_bGMwA8EF9XS5ixzhyC3sEGnczkLqKqiLE4x8QDaVU7hAupcF/s400/clampett.bmp)
Bob was a hero for all cartoonists because he believed in funny cartoons. In his best cartoons he even went beyond funny, making cartoons that were uniquely cinematic and musical without sacrificing any of the humor. Look at "Coal Black", "Great Piggy Bank Robbery" "Kitty Kornered" and "Book Review". These are visceral films. They're musical even with the sound turned low. They're pure cinema. If you liked Eisenstein's "Odessa Steps" sequence you'll have no trouble appreciating Clampett.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghxJQ8cDQv7MnNcr_ZVCuI9R44xcsbcJ1xIVclTwO0-LKNOb8BMge3dqB_Pu8er-L6ewy1XpFJRs5sgcEb5A8qT_PSsr86uk7KMF18kFuoaH1LPaG88Iv-lgTvFQkUJ-N1K0hY/s400/1aclampettstalling.gif)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3H1iaVT-WihK1EUTFrtQpFkT6XL_ah_cgqofmHD_okMsw2ePj1VoiMRe5ShtU6qvhP1dsxPSJNrNEu342mBRVyMQ3CO3jUXOXbAmOy66I6vNI4VcYA9HnDH0hHpddSEru8nUb/s400/coalBlack45.jpg)
I know, some body's saying "What about 'What's opera Doc' ? Jones and Freleng took plenty of advantage!" No they didn't, not really. I love Jones' opera films but they were almost literal interpretations of the music they were associated with. Clampett egged Stalling on to blend musical styles in the same cartoon. Look at Coal Black where Boogie Woogie blends with Mozart. Even rhythmic dialogue voices and effects become part of the music.
But Bob went even further than that. He paced the films themselves as if they were music! You know the feeling you get when you watch Eisenstein's "Odessa steps" sequence? You feel like you're hearing music even though the film is silent. Bob could do that with funny cartoons! He had a feeling for film, something like the way Tito Puente had a feel for orchestral arrangements. It put his best work miles ahead of the competition!
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgIp5e8eVUAWpP_EREsE4n-jIttylCK9smoyDjELvxj6PjHcxf14ENVzna_nmCuuyczA_tvfnZ8d3H1EwL5Iqd3C2xTPfsYFVKuCbUvjezCmnCn5SGIwWgDQOZYBQCrx3QHPEy/s400/Daftee+Daffy2.jpg)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYjuvy7h2OjbJLXE39XDoiizMFfqaK26Gjk_t2RlicG7YWOwXMKtMzhQE3pGbUAQVRh-CrJeX0VxTe9s_OpEviAU5UkNknvAsXqBBz6vp7u_idBl38LA4vYyA8bzpxO5WdrITo/s400/Clampett+suicide+gags.jpg)
But let's suppose Bob was mistaken and put in too much over-the-top stuff. For Pete's Sake, don't let your distaste for that blind you to the million other innovations in the films. Don't hate Odessa Steps just because you hate to see a baby get hurt!
As a closing shot I thought I'd put up a picture (above) of Bob with Daws Butler and Stan Freberg. Poor Bob! The shutter probably got him in one of those wincing "inbetween" poses I was talking about a couple of posts ago. It's not a flattering picture and Bob was probably crest-fallen when he saw it, but it's funny that he got caught that way. I like to think that Bob laughed when he saw it, even if he had to threaten the photographer with death a minute later.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeGF_KiIA02Boj7D7pVX0edX7v0GPym5FUhQcOUKTyh7isQxXbu56_YVMBAzbntKC-nBLvN6BL8DsQDS9Vtkvl9UyGdp5813pAjzLx5znrDg_3KeOlsvCv24q5v7kLoWMetXcL/s400/clampettbeany2.jpg)
Now beautiful, beautiful sleep....!
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
KISSING DOODLES
We're all in a romantic mood from reading about the vist to Uncle Eddie ("Theory Corner for Women" a couple of days ago); what could be more appropriate than some kissing drawings?
Labels:
acting,
eddie doodles,
eddie sketch,
kiss,
kissing
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
IS THE MILLENNIAL GENERATION DIFFERENT?
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirjPzwhIpRLBa1N45o58a609wCveU0v2c_Ee6AVHVsEzVLcH0GB3pCfzhfnk50jOyrR-uLp-PuAoG6CSQBL8j3Wwf8-1FvgyhaE-fwPdSs6WhK7sB-BfJi6rlztY3IzUU1T3qh/s400/1ateen.jpg)
Young people can easily sit all day in front of the computer with only bathroom breaks. It's not uncommon for them to spend two weeks at a time at home without going outside for any significant time. You do your homework on it, you socialize on it -- everything!
Pre-Millennials like hippies and Gen-X and Y people keep hoping the programs to come will be will be easier to use. I don't think that's in the cards. It's not just a case of changing technology and software. The gruesome truth is that Millennials have no reason to make the stuff simpler. Their whole appeal on the job market is based on their ability to manipulate hard-to-use programs. If those programs were made easy then half a generation would find itself in the unemployment line.
Of course Millennials won't have it easy either. Millennials were conned into taking outrageously big college loans which begin accumulating interest six months after school stops. With interest let's say a college loan of $100,000 dollars will become $200,000 over time. That's a lot of money. And the job market is shrinking. A lot of Millennials can forget buying a house or sending their kids to decent schools. And what if the generation as a whole can't pay the loans back? Yeeesh! It's scary!
BTW, the three paintings have nothing to do with the subject at hand. I just had to do something to lighten this discussion up. Maybe I should have called this post, "Welcome to Serious Corner!"
Labels:
computers,
generation gap,
generations,
millennials,
programs
THEORY CORNER FOR WOMEN (NO MEN ALLOWED)
Imagine my excitement when the editor of Theory Corner for Women burst into my office and informed me that if I hurried I might just be able to get an interview with the world-famous cartoonist and stud muffin, Uncle Eddie, at his fabulous Theory Mansion. I didn't need to be told twice!
It was night by the time I arrived at the house. Uncle Eddie's social secretary led me to the sprawling grounds in back, to a large outdoor hot tub. A maid was lighting up bits of paper in a nearby outdoor fireplace. When it flared up, she threw in kindling wood, then placed a few logs on top. Uncle Eddie was sitting in the in water, surrounded by candles, thoughtfully looking up at the stars.
One glance at Uncle Eddie and I almost forgot that I was a working girl. When he spoke to the maid his speech was odd, a little English or maybe mixed from foreign travel. He had a solid look, with gentle, squinty eyes, and sensuous buck teeth. His hair, almost grey, seemed impossible to keep down. After introductions were made, and Uncle Eddie graciously posed for a picture (above), the interview began.
TCFW: "Do you feel like living, Uncle Eddie?"
Uncle Eddie: "I always feel like living, as you call it. death is just death -- dying off -- disinterest in everything -- decay. And I am not decaying, I hope.
TCFW: "Are you a happy man?"
Uncle Eddie: "What does happiness mean to you? I mean, how do you equate it? For me it's all love, no matter what else you call it. Some people call it power, To me it's very simple -- love, love, love..."
TCFW: "But what kind of love? Body love, spiritual love?"
Uncle Eddie: "The whole works! No matter how it begins, it must end with the whole works -- that's how I look at it."
TCFW: "A woman needs that too...'
Uncle Eddie: "A woman needs many things -- but mostly affection, constant affection."
TCFW: "You make it sound simple."
Uncle Eddie: "I think we're talking too much about it, talking about something that needs very little speech."
The outdoor fireplace was sparking. A twig sprang out and fell on the ground between us.
Uncle Eddie: "This is the way the world will end. Not with a whimper, but with fire -- a big fire."
Monday, June 18, 2007
THE HUMAN LION
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjtcALLECcNk8pvZkUwKSNHMgCcMI7AyBD5qIuL4mirv1gsYZNpgWPc2M_YTO88nB7tRjTMIGS4ToV5Img_yyZikYDTqQnQNE1BjVLHBsTlKiqSH5Ta9i2z3jYy1vBR36m8GlR/s640/1ac.jpg)
The subject is...the human lion. Every girl wants to marry a guy who has the attributes of a lion. The guy may be short or poor or ugly, but if he's a lion then he's choice marriage material.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg6CHo4kT_FSIhUDd30_Izyq5UdhPtmtErH-dHXy2f6q6n3tLDC9a26AU2x3RyS26Xw7UpEX7_TOf2g9pc2H1QWa0HTds_8Cu55-1kSLWDEMvyoXUVMOIJKAzw0IYjVQzlfJSo/s640/1ab.jpg)
I can't define what a lion is but you know it when you see it. When I see a woman who's intelligent and noble and yet thoroughly feminine, that's close to what I mean by being lion-like. Somehow the femininity helps to bring into focus the other qualities, which either sex could possess, and overlays them with a sense of unique character and depth and appeal. When you see a feminine woman with lion-like characteristics you feel (in addition to being horny) glad to be human, in fact you feel positively proud to be human.
Of course the analogy doesn't totally hold because in the end only a guy can be a lion. Why is that? Maybe it's because a man has to struggle past more obstacles or diversions to become a lion. Maybe because the characteristics of a lion perfectly suit the male temperament. It's what all men want to be and very few are able to achieve.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs3i5GSJ2u2cG4V3SWHhodMBCkBmoSjRKSlVWkpJVQi4SMeKjzzihFRw-8I3mHh57TuXvpjeYpH83ySfi93lEfKq0kXUsaF1dyMpYsZwrRHomnE4SV3doqhhfLUOh4Ax5y3FWw/s400/1ad.jpg)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw5tgznjiTKIUcX7B2IOH-tKaFOGAUJCVuXrrE71qZE2vG25rmACJQw2crZ-Qapi9Zf29kp3VzBeAjlDlRia_yz05BEswiTLI-hVbu4e74IZmMJxc2ACFHcvkuxvmNv0dvSLVE/s400/1af.jpg)
Sunday, June 17, 2007
TONY CURTIS SMOKES
most of it.
Anybody know of any films that contain good smoking scenes?
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