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Showing posts from October, 2008

Sailing on Lake Garda (photo)

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Sailing on Lake Garda , originally uploaded by John Cuddihy .

The Eternal Idol, Dancing Sculpture (video)

Here it is! Exquisite, graceful, and sensuous sculpture and music inform this extraordinary ballet performance from the Michael Smuin Ballet. I remember seeing this on the ARTS channel (Classic Arts Showcase) years ago...based on Rodin's sculpture, "The Eternal Idol", a ballet sequence set to the larghetto movement of Chopin's 2nd Piano Concerto by Michael Smuin. Beautiful and sensual. Dancers: Marjorie Grundvig and Lee Bell. YouTube video by eogmi24.

Dancing Sailors About to Get Bashed

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Dancing Sailors About to Get Bashed Originally uploaded by Positively Puzzled 1936 Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers film Follow the Fleet In this scene, Astaire's character is teaching fellow sailors how to dance. Half are selected to lead. Those selected to follow oblige only after mild chagrin. Superior officers arrive to witness what looks like a gay dance party and then proceed to beat up the dancing sailors. Wah-wah-wah. This movie is just about as old as John McCain. Another weird part of the movie for me was a song in which the exceptionally dark biblical phrase "Get thee behind me, Satan" precedes a dilemma about giving in to sexual desires for an obvious cad. I've never heard of this song. It's Irving Berlin, so I suspect I'm just out of touch, but it really was weirdly incongruous. That said, it's a charming movie. The dance numbers in the latter half of the film are particularly good. One of Fred's pulsating syncopated tap routines, on th

Ten movies I watched in September

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RV (2005) Click (2006) Honeydripper (2007) Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971) The 40 Year Old Virgin (2005) Bye Bye Birdie (1963) October Sky (1999) No Country for Old Men (2007) National Treasure (2004) Matilda (1996) more stills