one thing today

  A small but obviously dedicated group of realists has forged artistry, anger and some horrible truths into "On the Waterfront," as violent and indelible a film record of man's inhumanity to man as has come to light this year. And, while the explosive indictment of the vultures and the meek prey of the docksides, which was unveiled at the Astor yesterday, occasionally is only surface dramatization and an oversimplification of the personalities and evils of our waterfront, it is, nevertheless, an uncommonly powerful, exciting and imaginative use of the screen by gifted professionals. Although journalism and television already have made the brutal feudalism of the wharves a part of current history, "On the Waterfront" adds a graphic dimension to these sordid pages. Credit for this achievement cannot be relegated to a specific few. Scenarist Budd Schulberg, who, since 1949, has lived with the story stemming from Malcolm Johnson's crusading newspaper articles; ...

Life is and: the accidental and the immutable, the elusive and the graspable, the bizarre and the predictable, the actual and the potential, all the multiplying realities, entangled, overlapping, colliding, conjoined - plus the multiplying illusions. This time this time this time this ... Is an intelligent human being likely to be much more than a large scale manufacturer of misunderstanding?                                                   -Philip Roth, The Counterlife

  I wish I could tell my dad I changed my mind about John Wayne. He was his favorite actor and I told him he was horrible. In Stagecoach he's as beautiful as Claire Trevor/Stella Dallas, the proverbial hooker with the heart of gold who takes care of the newborn baby and has a great updo and tailored plaid dress and gives Wayne a rifle when he most needs it. The music is great, Monument Valley is great ... those things - I have to look up what they're called - those mountains with flat tops ***   - they're beautiful, too. I saw them in person when my friends and I drove from Flagstaff to Telluride for the film festival. We did it a few times - the last - in 1995. I love Andy Devines raspy, screechy voice. And all the fab closeups of fab faces. What a great movie. Watch it. You'll see. * ** Buttes are isolated, steep-sided, flat-topped towers of rock formed by the erosion of mesas or plateaus . They are taller than they are wide. They're protected by a hard top layer...

Maybe it was the time of day, the light, my mood ... but so many people in the park yesterday looked cool and wonderful and so very much their very only stylin' selves.  

JOHN sits in an empty movie theater. MARY walks into the room holding a large box of popcorn. She sits directly behind him. He turns around to look at her and then turns back around. The movie hasn't started.  A voice announces "Please pardon the delay.  The movie will begin as soon as we address a projector malfunction." JOHN God damnit.  MARY Excuse me. JOHN Yes.  MARY Please don't curse.  JOHN Please don't what ?  MARY You cursed. I can't abide cursing.  JOHN Girlie, please.  MARY Can I help it if I take offense to bad words? JOHN Yeah, you can.  MARY No I can't.  JOHN Why don't go sit somewhere else?  MARY I like it here. JOHN Oh yeah?  MARY Yeah. The last time I looked it's still a free country. JOHN It's a movie theater, darlin'. With empty seats galore. MARY Please don't call me darlin'. I don't know you.  JOHN How bout we keep it that way. MAR...