dual personalities

Tag: movies

January 18, 2024

Tra-la-la, tra-la-la

by chuckofish

While we are in a celebratory mood, let us toast today’s birthday boys: A.A. Milne (1882), Oliver Hardy (1892), Cary Grant (1904), Danny Kaye (1911), and Kevin Costner (1955). Cupcakes all around!

I would like to watch The Fighting Kentuckian (1949) starring John Wayne and Oliver Hardy. It is an excellent movie!

We’ll see if that can be arranged.

We were remiss in not mentioning the passing of actor David Soul a few weeks ago. We loved him as the middle Bolt brother in Here Come the Brides and as Hutch in Starsky and Hutch back in the day.

I lost track of him after that but I did always think he was my husband’s doppleganger. Well, sort of.

Interestingly, his father was a Lutheran minister and a senior representative for Lutheran World Relief during the reconstruction of Germany after World War II .

I would like to indulge in some Starsky and Hutch binging, but it is not available as far as I can see.

So, as we experience a brief thaw before the arctic air returns, I am content to putter around at home, reading my Pilgrim’s Progress assignment, straightening up the house and driving cardboard boxes to the recycling center. I feel like my father “going to the post office” in order to get out of the house. While I’m at it, I suppose I should stock up on bread, milk and pretzel bites.

This seems right to me, because it is not crazy to think that demonic forces prowl about in [AI] technology. There may well be a way “for the technology to move forward in a manner aligned with the City of God, but thus far Big Tech (collectively) seems quite content to operate from a position of self-interest and self-gain, values prized by both the City of Man and the cosmic powers of darkness.”

On that note, it’s time to relax and read some A.A. Milne:

Tra-la-la, tra-la-la,
Tra-la-la, tra-la-la,
Rum-tum-tiddle-um-tum.
Tiddle-iddle, tiddle-iddle,
Tiddle-iddle, tiddle-iddle,
Rum-tum-tum-tiddle-um.

He had made up a little hum that very morning, as he was doing his Stoutness Exercises in front of the glass: Tra-la-la, tra-la-la, as he stretched up as high as he could go, and then Tra-la-la, tra-la–oh, help!–la, as he tried to reach his toes. After breakfast he had said it over and over to himself until he had learnt it off by heart, and now he was humming it right through, properly.

Have a good day! Watch a good movie starring one of the birthday celebrants, read some Winnie the Pooh, make some cupcakes, and find some excuse to get out of the house. Go with God.

3 Comments
January 15, 2024

The weekend jumble

by chuckofish

Our weekend in flyover country was very cold–indeed, frigid. I wore my (vintage) fur coat to church, it was so cold. We did have a few diversions.

The boy came over with the twins on Friday in between a birthday party at the Mini Fig store and a date at the Cat Cafe (no school that day)…

Kirkwood is such a happening place. A Mini Fig store and a cat cafe.

Continuing the ‘In Memoriam Glynis Johns’ theme, we watched Mary Poppins (1964) and were reminded what a great movie it is.

Disney really peaked with that one. It had a message for all the parents in the audience, especially the fathers.

Thankfully, Mr. Banks is redeemed.

Sunday morning as we drove to church in the negative-five-degree cold, I said to the OM, “I bet [our old church] is closed this morning.” But we had an (almost) full house at our new one–everyone who stayed home missed a good class on Unconditional Election. Oh well. We hunkered down in the afternoon and attempted to stay warm watching the PGA in Hawaii.

Meanwhile daughter #2 et al are busily packing up their stuff and getting ready for the big move to flyover country at the end of the month…

…as well as Ida’s first birthday this week.

And I received this text:

Of course she did.

And this is interesting. Here’s the song that started Bobby Zimmerman on the road.

You’re drifting too far from the shore
You’re drifting too far from the shore
Come to Jesus today
Let Him show you the way
You’re drifting too far from the shore

–Hank Williams
3 Comments
January 9, 2024

A spa day for the brain*

by chuckofish

This is one of those weeks where we are in the are we/aren’t we going-to-get-a-snowstorm state of unknowing. This always discombobulates us flyover residents to the point where we are rendered unable to make adult decisions. Good grief.

Luckily I am retired and do not have to worry about this. However, yesterday I did have to make a decision about whether to go to my friend’s Barbie (2023) viewing party at her house. I went, even though I did not have anything pink to wear (!)–I found an old pink Boca Grande t-shirt and some pink Snoopy socks, but this was not quite what everyone else had in mind.

I was never a Barbie person–I’m not sure I even had one growing up. I had the knock-off version by Ideal. We were doll people, but my mother would have thought Barbie was tacky and she was right. So the movie did not really speak to me. And believe me, it had a lot to say. Too much, really for a two hour movie. It was well done and there were clever moments and funny lines. I was not exactly bored, but it would be literal torture to have to sit through it again. Ryan Gosling as Ken was the only saving grace for me.

God did not create men and women to be in competition with each other, but to be complementary. Oddly enough, although they would not articulate it that way, the writers of this movie might agree with that idea.

And on an unrelated topic, this made me smile.

*Barbie

5 Comments
January 8, 2024

“Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.”*

by chuckofish

How was your weekend? It snowed here on Friday evening so that slowed things down quite a bit. We watched The Court Jester (1955) in honor of Glynis Johns, who died last week at age 100.

Funnily enough, we had decided to watch it before she died, but it worked out just right and we toasted her and the rest of the cast and crew.

I don’t know where this movie has been all my life, but I just love it. It has everything–a great script by the team of Norman Panama and Melvin Frank (who both co-directed) and a sparkling cast of stars and veteran character actors. It also boasts art direction by the incomparable Hal Pereira, who, if you are a discerning movie watcher, you know was the supervising art director at Paramount and as such was responsible for the “look” of a lot of great movies–such as Shane, Double Indemnity, Rear Window, Breakfast at Tiffany’s and on and on. Nominated 23 times for an Oscar, he only won once, for The Rose Tattoo (1955). Typical. [Trivia note: Hal Pereira graduated from the University of Illinois!]

I finished putting away the last of the Christmas decorations and got things in relative order before the twins came over to wreck havoc after church to celebrate their Mom’s birthday.

At church we started on a new Sunday School unit on the 5 points of Calvinism (TULIP) starting with my favorite, Total Depravity.

T – Total depravity
U – Unconditional election
L – Limited atonement
I – Irresistible grace
P – Perseverance of the saints

Everyone is taking the same class, but we are divided up into four age groups with different leaders, i.e. 20s and 30s, 40s and 50s, 60s, and 70s and up. I was directed by my friend and style icon, Linda, to go into her room–the 70s and up. I said, “I’m not quite there yet.” She was embarrassed, but I’m like, who cares. I’m alive and breathing.

We also heard a good sermon about Bartimaeus, the blind beggar (Mark 10:46-52). Bartimaeus hears that Jesus is coming and he shouts out for Jesus, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Many rebuke him and tell him to be quiet. But he cries out all the more. And Jesus stops and calls him. Bartimaeus tells him he wants to be healed and Jesus heals him. “Your faith has made you well.” He responds to being healed by following Jesus “on the way”.

The simple cry for mercy by Bartimaeus has inspired countless prayers during the last two millennia. “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner,” the so-called “Jesus Prayer,” which has a variety of forms, is spoken millions of times each day by believers throughout the world, myself included.

As sinners, we need to experience God’s forgiveness. And this comes, not through our efforts, but through God’s mercy. Because of his love for us and his faithfulness, God’s mercy is new every morning (Lamentations 3:23).

Grant us grace to see you, Lord,
mirrored in your holy Word.
May our lives and all we do
imitate and honor you
that we all like you may be
at your great epiphany
and may praise you, ever blest,
God in man made manifest.

–Christopher Wordsworth, 1807-85

*Mark 10:49

5 Comments
January 2, 2024

Overture, curtain, lights/This is it, we’ll hit the heights*

by chuckofish

Our New Year’s Eve party was a very low-key family get-together. We never even got the 45s out for a dance party. The boy and his family were pretty tired from their early morning trip home from Sarasota, but they were game and joined us for pizza and assorted dips.

We managed to do our ‘movie clip night’ and I thought you might be interested in what we all chose to share. (It’s all a plot where I am trying to whet the younguns’ desire to watch these great movies in their entirety when they are a little older.)

I opened things up with the car chase scene from Bullitt (1968).

The wee bud was, of course, enthralled and recognized the bad guy’s car as a Dodge Charger. He also knew who “McQueen” was. I told him I thought he kind of looked like him and he was pleased. (I will note that Lottie thought this car chase was not quite as good as the car chase in The Gnome-Mobile.)

Daughter #1 chose the musical interlude from Rio Bravo (1959)…

…which led to the boy’s choice of another musical interlude from Hatari (1962)…

For daughter #3 we played the classic intro to Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1962)…

The bud chose the Genie-is-released scene from Aladdin (1990)…10,000 years and such a crick in the neck!

Then I chose a famous scene from The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)…

Daughter #1 chose another classic musical interlude from Pillow Talk (1959)…

And then we finished up with Lottie’s choice of a song from Frozen II…

By this time the little bud was falling sleep and we wound things up so that they could hit the road and go to bed. Daughter #1 stayed and we watched Last Holiday (2006) with Queen Latifah and L.L. Cool J. which is our New Year’s tradish.

We will definitely do this again!

*Bugs Bunny theme song

8 Comments
December 22, 2023

I wonder as I wander, out under the sky

by chuckofish

It is the end of the year, so it is the time when TCM remembers all those movie people who died in the past year:

It’s not, I think, one of their better videos, but it does the job. There were no real surprises except I did not know that Frederic Forrest had died. You remember him as Blue Duck in Lonesome Dove, don’t you? He scared us silly in that one. He also was Captain Jenko in the original 21 Jump Street (1987) tv series, which I have been watching recently. He had quite a range. There was also David McCallum, my DP’s first crush in elementary school. And we’ll all miss Tina Turner and Jim Brown and Gina Lollobrigida.

All these people knew their glory days, but like everyone else,

“Then the dust will return to the earth as it was,
And the spirit will return to God who gave it.”

–Ecclesiastes 12:7

Denny Burk discusses this here. “Our lives go by us in a flash. Our time is so short. And yet, still our hearts long for a fading glory—a glory that will be forgotten and unknown infinitely longer than it was known or acknowledged by anyone.” 

Well, on that note, I wish all our readers a Merry Christmas!

And here’s a blast from the past which I found on ye olde internet, much to my delight:

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December 20, 2023

This and that, here and there

by chuckofish

There were even bigger trucks and excavators by our house yesterday.

They are making good progress and hopefully will be movin’ on down the road by Christmas.

Today we toast Charles Ellsworth Grapewin (December 20, 1869 – February 2, 1956)–American supporting actor, best known for portraying Uncle Henry in The Wizard of Oz (1939). Charley also played Grandpa Joad in The Grapes of Wrath (1940), Jeeter Lester in Tobacco Road (1941) and my personal favorite, Gramp Maple in The Petrified Forest (1936) with Leslie Howard.

Born in Xenia, Ohio, he ran away from home to be a circus acrobat which led to work as an aerialist and trapeze artist in a traveling circus before turning to acting. He traveled all over the world with the P.T. Barnum circus. Grapewin also appeared in the original 1903 Broadway production of The Wizard of Oz, 36 years before he was featured in the famous MGM film version. From the stage he moved to silent movies at the turn of the 20th century.

He was great–always recognizable, but true to his character.

The Bible, as you know, is full of angels. They are God’s servants. They are not pretty androgynous beings with blond hair, but mighty warriors who will protect you when needed. Here is a helpful primer about angels and how Christians should view them.

I am winding up my Bible-reading plan for 2023 with the book of Revelation. Wonderful. I was just reading about the grapes of wrath. Again I say, make the Bible part of your daily routine. John Piper agrees.

And here’s a shot of Bob Dylan for your Wednesday:

You can laugh at salvation, you can play Olympic games
You think that when you rest at last you’ll go back from where you came
But you’ve picked up quite a story and you’ve changed since the womb
What happened to the real you, you’ve been captured but by whom?

He’s the property of Jesus
Resent him to the bone
You got something better
You’ve got a heart of stone

“Property of Jesus”, Bob Dylan
4 Comments
December 18, 2023

“O Daughter of Zion, shout aloud”*

by chuckofish

How was your weekend? Ours was dark and gloomy and rainy, but full of festive seasonal fun nevertheless.

We went to the Christmas concert Friday night–a packed house of Presbyterians, plus a few random Episcopalians I recognized and even a few Jewish Messiah lovers. I enjoyed it very much, but didn’t get home until 10 p.m.–way past my usual bedtime!

On Saturday I went to the funeral of an old 99-year-old friend at my old church. Shirley was quite the gal–a lifelong Episcopalian, Republican and Cardinals fan who went to spring training in Florida every year. She was also a professional woman who had enjoyed quite a long and successful career. The former rector came from Florida to speak along with the former President Pro Tem of the Missouri State Senate. He told the story of how Shirley was sad when she gave up her season tickets to the Cardinals at age 97, but that she had to admit that watching the games on her daughter’s big screen tv had its benefits–namely being able to see Nolan Arenado, “the most beautiful man ever,” up close and personal.

The service was 100% Rite I, but the interim rector kept lapsing into Rite II. C’est la vie. The lay readers were good, which would have pleased Shirley. She had been one herself for decades. I always felt so validated when she gave me a thumbs up after I read. The church was almost full–which said quite a lot about 99-year-old Shirley–but the singing was weak. Shirley, I daresay, is well out of the Episcopal Church and in heaven now.

For I know that my Redeemer lives,
And He shall stand at last on the earth;
And after my skin is destroyed, this I know,
That in my flesh I shall see God,
Whom I shall see for myself,
And my eyes shall behold, and not another.

–Job 19:25-27

After Mr. Smith went to the spa for his shampoo, daughter #1 came over and helped me decorate the tree.

We also watched the 1951 A Christmas Carol–the best version in my not so humble opinion.

This scene always makes me cry: “You’ve made Fred so happy!”

The boy was in Kansas City with his family all weekend, so it was just the OM and I at church and a quiet Sunday afternoon.

Also, I did want to wish a happy birthday to my dual personality. Happy Birthday, sweet sister of mine!

I hope someone is cooking you a nice dinner and that my present arrived in time for you to open it today. I hope you watch a good movie, maybe Captain Blood (1935) or How to Steal a Million (1966). I will be toasting Fizzy Fuzz, Pompey, Pete, and Robert Preston!

Also, this meme made me LOL:

P.S. Many thanks to whoever sent the fruitcake from Texas–there was no card!

*Zechariah 9:9

5 Comments
December 6, 2023

A partridge in a pear tree

by chuckofish

It is that time of year when everything is in a state of chaos, most particularly my office. Good grief, Charlie Brown! Although you cannot tell, I am making progress. I mailed two out-of-town packages and wrote my Christmas letter!

In other news, today is the birthday of the great character actress Agnes Moorehead (1900-1974). The daughter of a Presbyterian minister, she grew up in St. Louis where as a child she was in the chorus of the MUNY Opera! At the insistence of her father she graduated from college before heading to the stage. During her long and illustrious career she was nominated for an Academy Award four times and an Emmy Award seven times, winning once for The Wild, Wild West of all things. Here she is in Orson Welles’ The Magnificent Ambersons (1942):

I remember going with my mother and sister to see her at the Fox Theatre in the early 1970s when she reprised her role in Don Juan in Hell on tour, with an all-star cast that featured Edward Mulhare, Ricardo Montalban and Paul Henreid. (I would have sworn it was Myrna Loy, but Wikipedia says it was Agnes Moorehead.) I just remember Ricardo Montalban prompting the forgetful Edward Mulhare throughout the play. Well, she was a great actress who was in a lot of good movies. She certainly was the best thing about Bewitched.

And remember this episode from season five of The Mary Tyler Moore Show? All the coworkers are fed up and frustrated with each other, and Sue Ann forces the crew into a rendition of The 12 Days of Christmas.

We’ve all been there, right? So keep your chin up, smile, and remember that Jesus is the reason for the season.

4 Comments
November 30, 2023

“How do we keep our balance?…Tradition!”*

by chuckofish

Over the last few days I have slowly but surely unpacked a lot of Christmas decorations. The mantle is done and I was deeply gratified on Tuesday night when the wee twins exclaimed, “Oh! You decorated your mantle!” They noticed and they recognized a lot of old friends. Lottie asked me which was my favorite, and I said, I don’t really have a favorite.

Some of them are as old as I am. They represent a lot of people and places and times.

I also put up the little tree in the dining room and decorated it.

So many ornaments have been given to me over the years and I remember who gave me each one.

The twins have their own little trees in their rooms. I gave them an ornament each to put on their trees the other night–gotta encourage the collecting gene!

Katie also has her own little tree and her own collection of hand-me-down small ornaments from her Mommy.

Cheers to wholesome traditions!

Mercy unto you, and peace, and love, be multiplied. (Jude 1: 2)

*Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof

4 Comments