A Mark, a Yen, a Buck or a Pound

Unfortunately, all the YouTube clips from the actual film, have "embedding disabled by request"--which means this one will probably get pulled eventually too. But I thought I'd try anyway... I played this on my radio show! I LOVE THIS!!!!

From the film Cabaret (1972)--here is a song we can all relate to in these harsh economic times.

Money - Liza Minelli and Joel Grey (from "Cabaret")



For the entire movie clip in context, featuring wonderful Bob Fosse-choreography and fabulous Weimar Republic-inspired fashions--go here.

Michael Jackson inspires Blogdonia

In lieu of a proper obituary for Michael Jackson (surely you've read/viewed enough of them by now), I have collected some of the Best of Blogdonia, holding forth on the King of Pop.

Just when you think everything has already been said, someone adds something especially thoughtful; Michael Jackson's colorful life inspires still another writer or activist to go off in a different direction.

RIP, Michael.

~*~

Open Thread: Remembering Michael Jackson at Racialicious, has some excellent comments and trackbacks.

By way of Isabel the Spy, I found Would Michael Jackson have been such a sensation if he couldn't dance?:

Michael Jackson did dance, he could hold an audience's attention by just dancing and not singing. He didn't have to stoop to pseudo sexual acts for shock appeal. And he made a lot of men, black, white, brown and yellow, want to dance just like him. Perhaps his dancing more than his music was what truly made him an international star.

TigerBeatdown comments on Michael Jackson, Celebrity, Empathy, and the Culture of Silence. Read the comments, too, which include one by your humble narrator.

Ballardian weighs in on Michael Jackson's Facelift from the purely surgical standpoint:

Scarring was hypertrophic at the points where tension was greatest: that is, in the temple and the region behind the ear, but fortunately these were covered by the King of Pop’s hair. The small fine sutures which were not responsible for tension were removed at 4 days, and the strong sutures removed at the tenth day. The patient was then allowed to have a shampoo to remove the blood from his hair. All scarlines are expected to fade, and by the end of three weeks the patient was back in social circulation.

And for even more cold, hard reality, you can always count on Socialist Unity:

The sheer extent of [Jackson's] fame meant that for him anything even approaching normality was as much a fantasy as standing on stage performing and being worshipped by tens of thousands of people was for his millions of fans. Unable to deal with the distorting and cloying reality of the pressure that was placed on him to be more than human, Michael Jackson did his utmost to escape into an imaginary world of childlike innocence and fairytale. His Neverland Ranch was symptomatic of a man who’d rejected a world in which he was surrounded by the demands of fans, managers, promoters, recording executives, and a legion of sycophants, for one in which he was surrounded by children and the innocence they represent.

Stories began to emerge of his relationship with a monkey, of him sleeping in an oxygen tent, and then later of his inappropriate relations with some of the children he took to taking with him around the world, which progressed into charges being brought against him of sexual molestation.

The physical manifestations of Michael Jackson’s personal collapse were all too obvious in the plastic surgery which turned him into a living, breathing monument to self loathing and mutilation. Increasingly, whenever he appeared in public, it was like looking at a man slowly turning himself into one of the characters from his Thriller video, perhaps in a conscious attempt to hide from a world grown ever more intrusive and unsympathetic.

Ultimately, the ridicule which dogged Michael Jackson while he was alive, ridicule driven by an unforgiving media and international press, was in inverse proportion to the deluge of tributes and fawning idolatry that has dominated the coverage of his death.

From Confessions of a Cryokid, here is A letter to Prince Michael, Paris, and "Blanket" Jackson:

By now you have probably heard all the major media outlets advertising that your dad is not your biological father, and that your mom is not your biological mother. I can only imagine how hard this must be, just days after your dad tragically died.

I am so sorry that you had to find out the truth this way, it's a cruel thing to do to a child - hide the truth about your identity and let strangers reveal it maliciously to you. Parents sometimes make these decisions (to keep a secret) thinking they are protecting their children. However, usually it backfires. Unfortunately, because of who your daddy was, this backfire has been made public and the entire world is watching you. It's not fair, but make the best out of a bad situation.

But don't feel alone. There are thousands (maybe millions) of kids out there just like you - conceived artificially and denied the right to EVER know who their biological parents are. You three can change this!! Stories are flying around that your dad's dermatologist is your biological father. If this is true, you deserve to know, to know him - as your father. Ask questions, demand answers! Not only can you find answers for yourself, you can help thousands of other kids and adults out there who were conceived the same way!

Your daddy will always be your daddy, nobody can take that away - and it will take time to mourn his passing. But you also have a biological father out there, and you carry half his genes. His is part of you - he even looks like you! While nothing can mask the loss of your daddy, I hope that your biological father will step up and give you guidance and love, and support through this rough time and as you grow up. You deserve that as children and as human beings.

You also deserve to know your biological mother, and I hope for your sake that she stands up and acknowledges herself to you and provides love and support. A child needs both a mom and a dad, and to have only one and lose him is tragic but to be denied the ability to know both biological parents is horrific.

If you ever come across this, in a few weeks, a few months, even a few years - please know that you're not alone and that there are many others out there pleading for these same rights...and that one day we will prevail.

Dead Air Church - St George's Greek Festival

Left: Traditional Greek dance troupe at St George's.

This weekend, the 22nd annual Greek Festival on the grounds of the St George Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Greenville. Lots of fun, amazing food, traditional entertainment and tours of the beautiful Cathedral and gift shop.

Dead Air Church unequivocally weighs in, wishing that after almost a thousand years, the Roman and Orthodox Churches would once again unite. Yes, I know they'd have to get that pesky Filioque thing straightened out, as well as just WHERE the major HQ will be (and isn't that what really got everyone all stirred up in the first place?) ...and this may indeed be a lost cause. However, I do remain forever hopeful.

The ongoing joke is that Catholics seem to want this reunification far more than Orthodox do. The bad news is that one major reason sought for unity is to consolidate additional hard-line doctrinal allies against secularism. That isn't exactly what I had in mind.

~*~

The Menu

Spanakopeta, Tiropeta, Veggie Gyro, Finikia, Kataifi, Galaktoboureko, Koulourakia, Greek coffee.

~*~

Below: Icon of St George and the dragon, patron saint of St George's; vigil prayer candles in the Cathedral vestibule; St George's Cathedral; the Festival in progress.


















~*~

Istanbul (Not Constantinople) - THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS

[via FoxyTunes / They Might Be Giants]

Artisphere!

... was this weekend in downtown Greenville. It was a veritable invasion of the artists.



Some of the performers at this year's Artisphere:

Cajun king Marc Broussard, Asheville's popular Firecracker Jazz Band, the fabulous Susan Tedeschi, teenybopper favorite Nathan Angelo, soul songbird Kellin Watson, amazing New Orleans brass-funk masters Bonerama, Spartanburg's own Shane Pruitt, Lowcountry musician Shrimp City Slim, Christian blues artist Marvin King, the voice of South Carolina soul - Wanda Johnson, Asheville improvisational foursome the Nightcrawlers, entertaining blues bands Gas House Mouse, Elliott and the Untouchables and Chicago Joe Jones (click on Joe for some great tunes!) and of course, the Carolina Ballet.

And even more...

~*~

The Dead Air Artisphere Art award goes to my favorite artist of the festival-- Geoffrey Aaron Harris. Below are his pieces Rocket Launch, Supersonic, and my new computer desktop background, the completely irresistible Shrunken Heads of Robotica!


































~*~

Left: The Dead Air Artisphere Music Award goes to Atlanta's bluesy Breeze Kings, who were just right for a relaxed Sunday afternoon by the river. (Click here for some good music!)

~*~

Below, the Reedy River on the west side of the falls. I was writing last week about the extensive development on the river, and this gives you a general idea of what it looks like. This is only a small part of Artisphere, but the prettiest part!



More great photos here!

Happy Birthday!

To the King!





Several of my readers recently expressed massive approval when exposed to even a teensy bit of Ann-Margret, so I hereby give you BOTH, yes, BOTH of them, in a clip from VIVA LAS VEGAS. You can't hardly stand it.

According to the fascinating book ELVIS AND ME (by Priscilla), it was when Priscilla Presley discovered Ann-Margret's phone number in a matchbook in Elvis' pocket, that she finally figured it out. And it was a fight to the finish, as Ann tried to edge Priscilla out, announcing to the press that she and Elvis would be married. Priscilla, already comfortably dug in with the family at Graceland, knew she had the upper hand. Our beautiful Ann lost that round, but it was a close one!

And so I present the King, and the woman who might have been Queen. Enjoy!


~*~

Elvis Presley ... Ann Margret

[via FoxyTunes / Elvis and Ann-Margaret]

Nothing changes on New Years Day

Left: One of Busby Berkeley's famous female kaleidoscopes, in 42nd Street. (1933)



Sitting here on New Years Day, relaxing with Turner Classic Movies, watching That's Dancing (1985), which I have seen before, several times.

For those of you who believe blogging (and the attendant political blog-wars) are a waste of time, rest assured, they are not. I am seeing the movie quite differently now. I thank bloggers such as Donna Darko, Blackamazon, Bint, Sylvia, Vanessa, BFP, Donna J., The Angry Black Woman, and Kevin at Slant Truth. Watching this movie, one would think white people had invented tap dancing.

Why did I not notice this before, or if I did, explained it away?

Certainly, since this a documentary (of sorts) about the history of dance in movies, one could say they are accurate in leaving out people of color other than Bill 'Bojangles' Robinson. But of course, that isn't true either. The then-called 'race movies,' popular from 1927 - 1948, showcased plenty of African-American choreography, particularly in St Louis Blues, Juke Joint and Harlem is Heaven, all of which are resolutely ignored.

I am interested in when black dancing styles were stolen for mainstream Hollywood movies. Other than an arresting clip of a tiny, very young and adorable Sammy Davis Jr. juxtaposed with a clip of precocious mimic Shirley Temple, there is no account of this process.

Similarly, Busby Berkeley's gay-nightclub sensibility and Bob Fosse's prodigious riffing on stripper-style, is also ignored. Such explanations of their origins might prove embarrassing. Instead, they are presented as white-guy choreographers who sprang fully-formed from the forehead of Zeus, even though both men were very open and honest about their influences.

As for women of color, forget it. Not even Oscar-winner Rita Moreno gets a mention; the West Side Story segment instead chooses the Jets in the garage, doing COOL. Admittedly, I love that, but AMERICA* is also an amazing, fabulous rave-up. But that was the Sharks, wasn't it? Should I wonder why the white gang gets to be in the movie but the Puerto Rican gang doesn't?


The first women of color presented in That's Dancing are the dynamic Paula Kelly and Chita Rivera, flanking beautiful Shirley MacLaine in Fosse's Sweet Charity. They are indeed worth the wait, but hey, that movie was made in 1969, forgodsake. No women of color dancers in film until 1969??? And how many of Busby Berkeley's thousands of dancers were actually women of color? (I know little about him, except his movies and his reputation for being something of a tyrant. And by the way, yall, seeing this movie again has started me on a search for a good book about him. If you know of any, recommendations welcome!)


~*~

In addition to this being the best dance number ever committed to film (no arguing the point please, this is MY blog), the stunning leads (Rita Moreno and George Chakiris) also won Academy Awards, probably for blowing everyone away with how utterly fantastic and good-looking they are.

This amazing work of art was choreographed by (gay) Jerome Robbins (changed from Rabinowitz), subject of the fascinating and entertaining book, Dance With Demons: The Life of Jerome Robbins by Greg Lawrence. Highly recommended reading for movie fangirls and boys of all ages!


*This song also contains an excellent critique of race in the USA that sounds almost contemporary... kinda scary since it was filmed back in 1961. However, you will notice the following lyrics are in the original film (see clip), but omitted (!!!) from the lyrics-link, above:


Life can be bright in America
If you can fight in America
Life is alright in America
If you're a white in America

Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim...and with lyrics like those, no wonder it was left out of That's Dancing, as well as subsequent versions of West Side Story!

Enjoy these beautiful people, and once again, have a great New Year!