Earlier today, we embedded the Turner Classic Movies memorial montage for 2010 and noted that it was assembled too early to include anyone who dies the last few weeks of this year. John I. Carney informs me (thank you, John) that TCM updates this montage as necessary. Apparently, the version now running occasionally between films on that channel includes Blake Edwards. TCM has always been a class act.
They're going to run a Blake Edwards fest on December 27 consisting of Breakfast at Tiffany's, Days of Wine and Roses, The Pink Panther, Victor/Victoria and Operation Petticoat. If you don't want to wait that long, they're airing, as already scheduled, A Shot in the Dark on Monday morning. That's a very funny film, probably better than any of the five they're running on 12/27. Not that they aren't all pretty good.
And now we're hearing that the bill to provide health services to 9/11 Responders has enough votes to overcome a filibuster and that an attempt will be made to get it passed before this Congress adjourns. That would be a good thing if it happens. Makes you wonder how much Jon Stewart had to do with it.
One nice by-product of the Yogi Bear movie may be that the cartoon superstar has written a book about his life, times and crimes. It's an "as told to" that was told to my friend Earl Kress and it's a fun little book that nicely captures the spirit and spunk of its furry author. It's called Life is a Pic-a-Nic: Tips and Tricks for the Smarter Than the Av-er-age Bear and you can order a copy right about here.
Looks like "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is about to go away. It's looked like that for a few days now but we've all learned never to underestimate the ability of Democrats to fumble on the one-yard line. A fast scan of right-wing websites shows a lot of anger — some outright homophobia and some genuine worry (unjustified, I'm sure) about the continued strength of our military. A lot of it just looks like fury at having lost one, regardless of the issue. They've triumphed in enough battles lately you'd think they'd shrug and say, "You can't win 'em all." But I don't see that attitude often in the world these days. Everyone in every walk of life seems so committed to the notion that you can and should win 'em all.
Many incensed folks posting messages this morning seem to think it's a vote on whether to allow gays to serve at all. Apparently, if they don't tell, they aren't there. One aspect of this I don't get is how many people who have, shall we say, "personal issues" with homosexuality think the best way to deal with it is to pretend it doesn't exist. The folks I've encountered who have a problem with Gay Rights seem to accept the notion that, you know, they're here and they're queer and they're not going away. The affront to them is that gays want to be open about it instead of pretending to be straight and hiding their relationships and true identities. I don't see why lying is ever the answer to anything. The idea that it's a solution seems to come from the same head-in-the-ground worldview of those who insist that Abstinence Education works. I don't see that it accomplishes anything other than to allow some parents to pretend their teenage kids aren't having sex. "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" let them pretend we didn't have many (or maybe any) gays in our armed forces.
I know there are some readers of this site who think allowing gays to serve openly is tantamount to going to Expedia and booking all eternity in Sodom and Gomorrah. You can view it like that if you want. I think it's better to treat it not as a loss for any side but as a victory for just being honest about what already is.
Anyone here see Jon Stewart Thursday night? An amazing half-hour. Stewart is angry about the G.O.P. filibustering the Senate end of the bill to provide medical relief for 9/11 Responders who took ill on the job. He devoted most of the show to the topic, including in-studio interviews with some 9/11 Responders.
This is an amazing issue. Despite what some of my correspondents insist, I do not believe "Republicans bad, Democrats good." I kinda believe "Republicans good for the wealthy, Democrats reasonably good for the wealthy but occasionally okay for others (though they're usually pretty lame)." Once in a while, either party can be shameless and Republicans have absolutely no defense for their actions here. None. Not even the slimiest Republican in the Senate (not to be confused with the slimiest Democrat) would appear on camera for the vote or to speak against the bill they were all going to oppose. They won't rise to explain it now; won't even make up some feeble rationale like, "Well, though we love and respect the 9/11 Responders, we felt this particular bill didn't serve their needs well." A few like John Ensign said they were for the bill but trapped by their pledge not to pass anything else until the tax bill was passed. Orrin Hatch actually told reporters he couldn't remember how he'd voted.
They aren't out explaining their position because there is no acceptable explanation. They just hope no one will notice and the Democrats won't start firing up outrage, asking "Why do Republicans in the Senate hate 9/11 Responders?" As it's turning out, Democrats aren't making an issue of it and neither is the supposedly Liberal Media. MSNBC has covered it. Shepard Smith did a segment with Chris Wallace on Fox and they both expressed some shock at the vote, though they pretty much made it sound like it was both Democrats and Republicans that had voted for the filibuster. There has been very little about it anywhere else except on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.
Do we think that if Democrats had done anything that could possibly be interpreted as disrespectful to heroes of 9/11 that Republicans would shrug and not exploit it? Not long ago, someone wanted to build a multi-cultural center a few blocks from Ground Zero and darn near every Republican (and many a weasely Dem) was out wailing that a Muslim Mosque was being built right where the World Trade Center fell and that it was all some kind of Al Qaeda Victory Dance. Fox News practically went 24/7 on the subject, crying about the victims of that day being given the finger. And now, this.
I am not letting Democrats off the hook on this. They're either spectacularly inept or they too think there are more important matters than passing this bill. Or I suppose there's one other possibility, though it seems like a longshot to me. Maybe Harry Reid and Mitch McConnell made a deal: In exchange for something else — what, I can't imagine — Reid agreed to stop Democrats from screaming about the issue and pledged there'll be another vote on the bill before adjournment so Republicans can do the right thing and not have this used against them in the future. Something like that. That would make it righter but it wouldn't make it right. Some things should just be above partisan gamesmanship.
Jon Stewart was furious on his show and it carried over to his guest segment, which was with Mike Huckabee. Despite what had preceded him, Huckabee seemed ill-prepped to make any kind of defense of Senate Republicans. He started to say that the problem with this bill is that it hadn't been "separated out" (i.e., had other, disqualifying provisions attached) but Stewart corrected him and pointed out that was not true. I'm not one for mind-reading but it looked to me like Huckabee then realized there was no explanation anyone would buy...and that he wasn't getting out of that studio with a shred of dignity if he didn't immediately agree with Jon Stewart. So he did, fervently...and good for him.
I decided not to embed the whole show here because I just linked to a couple of Comedy Central videos and they seem to slow up the site a little. But as I'm writing this, I'm getting as angry as Mr. Stewart and I really want everyone to see this so here's a link to watch the entire show online. Just in case you didn't see it or didn't TiVo.
One sees a lot of anger on TV and hears it on talk radio but very little of it is genuine, especially when it comes from hosts, correspondents and other folks who have a day-to-day or week-to-week presence. Seems to me that when most of them get riled, it's all for show and they're more concerned about Good Television than Good Causes. But Jon Stewart is really mad about this. I don't think he's just interested in making Good Television...though he did.
Operating I guess on the assumption that no one in the movie business will die in the last three weeks of this year, Turner Classic Movies put together a tribute to those who died in the first 49. Despite its prematurity, it's quite a lovely bit of film assembly. The one they air on the Academy Awards will probably not be this classy nor will it include as many of the non-biggies...
December 17, 2010
