RIP Art Linkletter

From the "I thought that person died 20 years ago" file:

Art Linkletter dead at 97

Coupl'a Things XXXVI

1) RIP Yvonne Loriod, French pianist and wife of the late composer Oliver Messiaen who died Monday, May 17, at the age of 86, after years of poor health.

Loriod was born on 20 January 1924 near Paris. She had piano lessons from childhood, as did her sister Jeanne, four and a half years younger. Jeanne Loriod, who died in 2001, became a leading exponent of the electronic instrument the ondes martenot. Long regarded as a brilliant pianist, Yvonne giving monthly recitals as a young girl and by 14 she knew the whole of Bach’s “Well-Tempered Clavier” and all 32 Beethoven sonatas.

Yvonne was Messiaen's second wife. He had fallen in love with her when she was a teenage student of his at the Paris Conservatoire and she was his muse for five decades (they only married in 1961 after the death of Messiaen's first wife, in a sanatorium, after many years of mental illness). Loriod's playing was the inspiration for music from the gigantic cycle Vingt regards sur l'enfant-Jésus, for solo piano, to the piano parts of orchestral pieces in the Turangalila Symphony and Des canyons aux étoiles. She also specialized in modern French piano music, being a leading proponent and performer of the piano works of Pierre Boulez.

2) Happy Birthday to Overland Park, KS! On May17th, 1960 voters in the Mission Urban Township approved the motion to form a city, which was made official on May 20th. Just 50 years ago, this sprawling suburb was mostly farm and field. Now it is the second largest city in Kansas behind Wichita with over 175,000 people. When it officially incorporated as a city, it had less than 29,000. Despite the late blooming, it quickly overtook older suburbs such as Olathe, Prairie Village and Lenexa and passed by state capital Topeka and Kansas City, Kansas in population.

We would sometimes like to, but we could not live without you OPKS? Maybe we could with out many of your drivers who never seem to know how to signal or what "one way" means and some of your politicians as well. You are vital to the area and you know it. So enjoy your birthday. Are they serving cupcakes? (inside joke to KC area people.. we sometimes call OPKS and its county "Cupcake County")

Anyway...many more!

3) Move over Susan Boyle, 80 year old Janey Cutler is this year's sensation from Britain. What is with these spunky Scottish ladies and their singing? Must be the pubs and scotch.

Janey Cutler - Britain's Got Talent 2010 - Auditions Week 4 @ Yahoo! Video

Comedy at its Best

Last Saturday, the Kinsey Sicks, a self styled "Dragapella Beautyshop" quartet of drag performers, performed their show "Wake the Fuck up America" at my church, which is a story in and of itself.

Their performance did make me laugh and more often made me wince and shake my head. Let us just say the word "fuck" flowed freely and they had no shame.

Which contrasts to this gem



Now this is pure comedy. Sid Caesar and Nanette Fabray from the 1950's, probably from Caesar's own show. Pure improv, no teleprompters and 100% live. In this thankfully preserved clip, Caesar and Fabray mime a married couple arguing to the first movement of Beethoven's famous 5th symphony.

This sketch is absolutely a masterpiece of subtle humor and flawless acting; the timing and action are impeccable. I have watched this a hundred times and still find it fresh and hilarious.

Probably can't say the same about the Kinsey Sicks.

Coupl'a Things XXII

1) Best headline I have seen in years:

"Octomom Nadya Suleman: 'I screwed myself.'"

I guess that is how you get 8 babies all at once.... but still can't quite picture it in my mind...

2) Saw the fine film "Julie and Julia" last weekend. I recommend it to all. Funny, intelligent, interesting, well paced and insightful. Meryl Streep as Julia Child is amazing, she totally captures the unique voice and manners of Child without being a silly parody. The rest of the cast was excellent as well, standing up to, but of course yielding to Streep's incredible presence.

Also starring was a fabulous and rare 1950 Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon. Rare even when new; only 420 ever made.

3) Today's adventure in no wheels: Going to the grocery store. Should be interesting.

RIP Mrs Slocombe

RIP. British comedienne Mollie Sugden, best known as the immortal Mrs. Slocombe from the cult classic "Are You Being Served?", died on July 1 at the age of 86.

Quoted in the BBC, one of the writers for "Are You Being Served?" remembered her as a "marvellous character" who would never turn down chances to make people laugh.

"She would never refuse any sort of comedy situation. No matter how undignified it was, she would always go along with it. She was marvelously funny," he said.

I'll get flack for this, but her passing is a greater loss than that freak show that died earlier this week.

Her character, Mrs Slocombe, had some of the best double entendres ever:



I'll have a nip of gin for you Betty... and let your Pussy out when it howls!

Mollie Sugden 1922-2009

RIP Blossom Dearie

Blossom Dearie, a classically trained pianist who transformed herself into a jazz singer possessing one of the most unique voices in all of music died Saturday in New York City. She was 82.

Born April 29, 1926 and given the most appropriate name of Marguerite Blossom Dearie. She later dropped her first name and used the middle and last as her stage name. Dearie's voice was tiny, almost child like. Sweet. Light, babyish to a point. Think of all the bad imitations of Marilyn Monroe. But while lacking in power, she had impeccable diction, rhythm, timing and a quick humming bird vibrato.

Starting a long solo career in Paris, Blossom went on to appear regularly in cabarets in London and New York. She created her own record label in the mid 70's (when as a teen I discovered her unique talents) and wrote several original songs with lyrics by Johnny Mercer.

Her last recording was a single released in 2003 titled "It's All Right to be Afraid," dedicated to victims and survivors of September 11. Her last live appearance was in 2006 at a cabaret in Manhattan where she lived.

Her recordings are cult classics.

Here is a clip:



Here's to you, hip little cabaret doll! How do you say Auf Wiedersehn?

Jack Benny Clowns with Heifetz

Rare recording of Jascha Heifetz and Jack Benny recorded in 1940's



Imagine, humor with some wit and intelligence.

Juila Child... Spy

Somehow I suspected this....

Way before becoming famous as the French Chef, Julia Child worked for the Office of Strategic Services which was the predecessor to the CIA. She and some colleagues were assigned to solve a problem that was plaguing the U.S. Navy during World War II. Sharks would hit the underwater mines thus setting them off and warning the approaching German U-boats of the deadly trap.

"So", said Linda McCarthy Curator of the National Women's History Museum exhibit, "Clandestine Women: The Untold Stories of Women in Espionage", "Julia Child and a few of her male compatriots got together and literally cooked up a shark repellent," that was used to coat the explosives.

I bet she even told them "bon appétit"!

Picture This...

Picture this...NBC TV...1990...

Blanche: "My life is an open book..."
Sophia: "Your life's an open blouse."

Sadly, Sophia is not around to shoot zingers back at the easy target that was Blanche. Estelle Getty, the diminutive actress who spent most of her career languishing in small roles before landing (on her 3rd try) a supporting role that later turned into a starring one in 1985 as the sarcastic 80 something Sophia Petrillo on TV's "The Golden Girls," died today at 84.

Getty worked her way through stand up, vaudeville, stage and small movie and TV roles before gaining screen immortality as Sophia. The Golden Girls was one of the jewels of TV comedy, winning multiple awards. All the show's stars won at least one Emmy, a feat equaled only by the stars of "All In The Family" and "Will and Grace".

RIP Sophia.... now no one will ever know what happened to Jimmy Hoffa.

(If you were a Golden Girls fan, you would remember that Sophia let it slip she knew the fate of Hoffa)

RIP Harvey Korman

One of the funniest people to ever grace the TV screen.

"Give me something bizarre to play or put me in a dress and I'm fine." ~ Harvey Korman 1927-2008

Say Good Night Dick

Dick Martin, who created and co-hosted Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In with Dan Rowan, died May 24 of respiratory complications at 86.

Meeting in 1952 and inspired by Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin, Martin and Rowan did Vegas, nightclub and New York shows before breaking into TV. Perry Como, Ed Sullivan and "The Hollywood Palace" featured then numerous times. Martin, in a solo role, was a regular on "The Lucy Show" in the early 60's. A summer replacement for Dean Martin's show catapulted them to eternal fame.

"Rowan and Martin's Laugh-in" was born out of the successful summer show, but the NBC network was not convinced of the show's merit. Critics loved it, and the audience voted by soon making it the # 1 show, despite being on the same time as popular "Gunsmoke" and "Lucy".

Not surprising, Lucy and Gunsmoke were getting long in the tooth. "Laugh-in" far fresh, timely, funny and controversial; a sure fire combination for success. No doubt it forever changed the face of television by championing timely satire as media for comedy. I mean really, who can forget the night Richard Nixon, a sitting President, appeared on a comedy show and said, "sock it to me??" It ran from 1968-1973, itself then getting out of step with the changing culture of the times.

Martin went on to produce TV shows, Rowan died in 1987.

Good Night Dick, I hope you are socking it to Nixon as we speak!

Whiskey and Car Keys

Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys ~ P.J. O'Rourke

I could not agree more these days. Although the original context of this quote is likely rooted in O'Rourke's usual anti-leftist, libertarian philosophy, I mean it as a criticism of the amateur cowboys running (ruining as well) this county (see post below for example) and our soon to be gone Boy-Gov here in Missouri.

Let's hope for better.

The King of the Blues: B. B. King

Memphis, Tennessee sometime late 1996. My boss at the time scheduled a regional meeting for all of us in his favorite city. The meeting was short, the parties long, as was his style.

We were cruising Beale St after some fine ribs at the Rendezvous and some fun at the Rum Boogie Cafe. We hit B.B. Kings' Place and settled in to listen to the band. A commotion at the back caught our attention. In came B.B. himself. About 72 then but still vital. He waved to us all, sat down and sang and played with the band for about 45 minutes or so and then waved a hearty bye and quickly left. Soon the waitress brought us a round of drinks we did not order. "On the house from Mr. King", she explained. We raised a toast to the "King of the Blues".

B.B. King came to Kansas City last night and I had the chance to see him perform at an 80th birthday bash for the restored Uptown Theatre, just down the street from the Palace. Opening for King was the Brody Buster Trio.

I had not heard Brody Buster before last night's opener and after set in the Uptown's bar. Buster is a 20 something local white boy that can blow a mean blues harp with the best of them (for the uninitiated a blues harp is also known as a harmonica), rivals King on the guitar and possesses a fine blues voice. He was quite impressive and I hope to hear more from him. He apparently started the harp at a young age and has quite the credentials as a blues man.

Anyway, the night was King's and he did not disappoint. Most of his favorites made an appearance including "Let the Good Times Roll", "Rock Me Baby" and of course "The Thrill Is Gone". Quite a bit of the evening (a little too much despite being entertaining) was devoted to his stories of his Mississippi home town and his devotion to the ladies (he supposedly has at least 15 children). Funny and charming, but I longed to just hear him coax some fine tunes from his beloved guitar "Lucille". At 82 and ailing (he is diabetic and must have some vision problems as he was helped on and off the stage and once quipped "I can't see you but I can sure hear you!"), he did play and entertain for almost 2 hours.

I left completely satisfied that I had again seen a legend, maybe not in his prime but sure with a lot of life left in him. As his song went "I am a blues man, and a good man".

Damn straight B.B., and thanks for the drink!

A Forgotten Genius: Tom Lehrer

"Take your cigarette from its holder,
And burn your initials in my shoulder.
Fracture my spine,
And swear that you're mine,
As we dance to the Masochism Tango."

So goes the wonderfully bizarre lyrics of the comic genius Tom Lehrer.
A Harvard educated mathematician and scientist, Lehrer is most famous for his series of hilarious satirical songs made in the early 60s. It is legend that Lehrer died an alcoholic but in fact he simply lost the zeal to perform and went back to teaching math and theatre. Coaxed out of retirement a couple times, most notably in 1965 for the TV comedy review "That Was the Week That Was", Lehrer again tired of his songs being edited, censored or poorly performed and retired again. He writes songs occasionally and still walks among us.

Many of the songs are dated for younger audiences, filled with references to nuclear war drills (like getting under our desks and covering our eyes was going to really help), Werner Von Braun and Alma Mahler, mysteries to many these days. But "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park", "The Elements" (the periodic table of the elements set to the "Major General's Song" by Gilbert and Sullivan (you all know it), and the "Vatican Rag"...

"So get down upon your knees,
Fiddle with your rosaries,
Bow your head with great respect,
And genuflect, genuflect, genuflect!"

...are timeless classics.

His humor is intelligent, satirical and always fun. Lehrer made only a few recordings and luckily still available. Check them out, you will not be disappointed.

TOM LEHRER RECORDINGS

La Vie en Rose

I remember it clearly albeit the exact date is lost, it was sometime in 1973.. I was 16. The commercials had billed it as a lifetime event. Curious I watched, and was mesmerized. A slim, sequined lady, old, singing unfamiliar songs of a bygone era. She did not have a strong lyrical voice like Barbra or Judy, but she had a way of communicating. Almost speech singing...remember George Burns in his last years? Words spoken more than sung.. a hint of a melody here and there.

An Evening With Marlene Dietrich. That CBS special ignited my now 33 year passion for this unique singer and actress. Finally, it is available on DVD with the German songs and several songs from the live concert in London that were not televised.

She was born Maria Magdalene Dietrich in Berlin, Germany on December 27, 1901. Marlene made her film debut in 1923. In 1929, she was given the role of "Lola" in "The Blue Angel", which was one of the first European sound films. Dietrich sang in several of her films including The Blue Angel, in which she sings "Falling In Love Again", along with "Lili Marlene" can be considered her theme song. During WWII she sang for Allied troops and was outspoken in her hatred of Hitler, despite his admiration for her.

From the 1950s to the mid-1970s Dietrich toured internationally as a successful cabaret performer. Her repertoire included songs from her films as well as popular songs of the day.

With Bert Bachrach as her arranger, her limited vocal range was enhanced to maximum dramatic effect. Spectacular gowns, tight fitting,slinky dresses, careful stage lighting and temporary mini-facelifts helped to preserve Dietrich's glamorous image well into old age. Later she began including a version of Pete Seeger's anti-war anthem Where Have All the Flowers Gone?, reigniting her anti war activities
This concert is tremendous. Even after 33 years it is amazing, moving and wonderful. Marlene shines, she is subtle, fragile beautiful.

However at 72 her timing and voice are not as strong as in many of her recordings. As I mentioned earlier, many of the songs are almost spoken. Yet, there are no performers like this anymore, and we are lesser people for it.

It was like being introduced to her magic all over again.

An Evening With Marlene Dietrich is available through Amazon.com and other DVD retailers.

Nerdcore

So you all do not think I am a snob and only go to classical music concerts (I am seeing the Royal Philharmonic tonight...) the following is my review of the show last night at Record Bar, a nightclub here in Kansas City.

I read with interest in the last Pitch that "Bacon Shoe" was playing on Friday. Bacon Shoe is a leader in the new genre of Nerd Rap or Nerdcore. Nerdcore hip hop, or geeksta rap, is a subgenre of hip hop music that is performed by nerds, and is characterized by themes and subject matter considered to be of general interest to nerds. Now, Bacon Shoe is probably a little too raunchy for most nerds, but the guys on stage "Toine" and "Lethal-D" certainly act like nerds. Actually I saw "Toine" in the crowd before their show and he looked and acted like any youngish 20 something fellow.

Toine begins his show by doing calisthenics, you know stretches, jumping jacks, leg lifts and such dressed in a hooded Nike sweatshirt. Lethal-D wears an indescribable head band and a large medallion of the Lexus automobile logo.

On the bacon is the star of the show, Mr Ruggles. Mr Ruggles is a kind of fucked-up dog-like thing. A huge monster headed fellow with perpetual underbite fangs, he stands quietly in the back and cooks bacon. Yes, he does. And when it is done, he takes it and distributes it to the crowd. Sometimes he stands and shakes his head, sometimes he gets beat up by Toine and Lethal-D. He always gets his furry head scratched and petted.

It's easily the weirdest group in town. Bacon Shoe is supremely entertaining. Lethal-D's rhymes are grotesquely and raunchily clever, Toine's improvised shout-outs and dance-floor breakdowns are hysterically half-witted, and Mr. Ruggles' bacon is greasy and hot. What more could you ask for?