Black Lanterns Wail: RIP Andy Griffith

Andy Griffith. June 1, 1926 – July 3, 2012

It may be hard to tell, but I grew up in the South. Texas to be precise, I know, strange isn’t it, but that is beyond the point. I was raised to understand believe only a few things:

  1. Gravy goes under the Chicken Fried Steak
  2. You deep fry chicken. Pressure Cooking is for the weak and lazy.
  3. Home Fries are not French Fries, but both are good.
  4. When you order a Coke, you then have to say what kind, i.e. Dr Pepper, Sprite etc…
  5. When in doubt Andy knows best.

Yesterday was a sad day, we lost our true Sheriff.

Andy Griffith was an institution, a member of the old guard that never seemed to preach to you. You knew what was right because it was something Andy did. He was a good Pa, and good Nephew and a good Friend.

But before he was Andy Taylor, he was a master story teller…

On Football:

On Shakespeare:

On Agriculture:

On Religion:

On American History:

When I was heading in to middle school, my dad sat my sisters and I down and made us watch two movies. He informed us that one was a comedy and the other a drama, and that both starred Andy Griffith. Prior to making the Andy Griffith show, he did not have an extensive career. He wasn’t a slouch, mind you, just a a really fast rise to fame.

The two movies in question were No Time For Sergeants, and A Face in the Crowd. Both are now considered classic movies with A Face in the Crowd being entered in the National Film Record n 2008.

I can tell ya, that I did not think much of A Face in the Crowd when I first saw it, but now I do enjoy it for what it is. No Time For Sergeants, I loved from the start.

As we get older, we start to see the pillars of our youth crumble to the ground. One such pillar fell yesterday, but I will always remember the whistling…

It’s time for me to pass this on to you folks

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Black Lanterns Wail: RIP Nora Ephron

Nora Ephron. May 19, 1941 – June 26, 2012

This might come as a shock, but I am a big fan of stupid RomComs.

This isn’t an idle thing either, I tend to watch a lot of movies: in theaters, on DVD or on cable, and while they tend to mostly be SciFi and Fantasy, I also spend a few hours each Wednesday to watch RomComs. I understand that that is a little weird, concidering that there are a lot of “better” genres out there and that I don’t get paid to watch movie, so I have no obligation to watch, what are essentially, movies out side my interest zones.

But, think back on the last thirty years and name the best comedies you’ve seen? Just a sort list, five to ten…

I’ll put good money down that When Harry Met Sally… is on that list. If that were all she had written, she would still get a show case at next years Oscars, and possibly still get a Black Lantern article, but that was not all she wrote.

My Blue Heaven is quite probably the last great Steve Martin Character Comedy, it may be the last thing he was actually funny in and is hands down the best non-franchise Rick Moranis movie ever (come back Rick we all really miss you…).

Sleepless in Seattle, while not my cup of tea, is certainly one of the defining Chick Flicks of the 90’s.

Recently, I was able to introduce my favorite RomCom to RedSarah. You’ve Got Mail, is a remake of Shop Around the Corner, and could only be remade in the age of emails and the ubiquitous AOL call sign, but is wonderful in its secondary characters.

F-O-X

I know that I am rambling on a bit, and Nora’s efforts of late have been less than stellar, but I still feel the loss of the person who wrote the movie I was watching when I learned about my first nephew, that sorta thing sticks with a cinephile.

You will be missed, Nora. There should have been more.

 

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Black Lanterns Wail: RIP Ray Bradbury

Ray Bradbury. August 22, 1920 – June 5, 2012

When I write as well as Ray Bradbury, I’ll have something to say…

I’m being ironic. Don’t interrupt a man in the midst of being ironic, it’s not polite.

While our art cannot, as we wish it could, save us from wars, privation, envy, greed, old age, or death, it can revitalize us amidst it all.

We must move into the universe. Mankind must save itself. We must escape the danger of war and politics. We must become astronauts and go out into the universe and discover the God in ourselves.

Recreate the world in your own image and make it better for your having been here.

People ask me to predict the future, when all I want to do is prevent it. Better yet, build it. Predicting the future is much too easy, anyway. You look at the people around you, the street you stand on, the visible air you breathe, and predict more of the same. To hell with more. I want better.

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Black Lanterns Wail: RIP Jonathan Frid

Jonathan Frid. December 2, 1924 – April 13, 2012

I got into the Dark Shadows late in the 90’s, after the revival was already canceled. I was aware of it from an early age, but did not have the resources to see it until after high school, it did not play often on TV where I could view it.

I have since seen, most, of the Barnabas story. It was good, if a bit dated since the 70’s.

I have this cozy house here and I get three pensions from the States. I’ve done nicely.

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1st Boy&Horse: You are Nuts Mini Film Festival

Wow, it has been a while since I posted a real log here, and today I have a bit of a goof.

I got a little behind, even in watching the new films of this year, and with today starting the Summer Season with The Avengers open in the US, I had to come up with a way to see a lot of movies in a really short time.

My solution?

Mini Film Festival!

Starting tonight and running through Sunday, I will see 16 Films released this year (17 if you count last night’s attendance at Jeff, Who Lives at Home, which I will).

Here’s the schedule (please check out the trailers and take a look at the imdb pages):

Thursday
1 Jeff, Who Lives at Home (trailer) (imdb) 4:50 pm

Friday
2 Safe (trailer) (imdb) 7:30 pm
3 The Five Year Engagement (trailer) (imdb) 9:20 pm
4 Casa de mi Padre (trailer) (imdb) 11:50 pm

Saturday
5 Nazis at the Center of the Earth (vod) (trailer) (imdb) 7:00 am
6 The Giant Mechanical Man (vod) (trailer) (imdb) 8:30 am
7 The Avengers (3d) (trailer) (imdb) 12:50 am
8 Delicacy (trailer) (imdb) 5:20 pm
9 Damsels in Distress (trailer) (imdb) 7:30 pm
10 The Sound of My Voice (trailer) (imdb) 9:40 pm

Sunday
11 God Bless America (SxSW fav. now on vod) (trailer) (imdb) 7:15 AM
12 The Pirates! Band of Misfits (trailer) (imdb) 9:40 am
13 Salmon fishing in the Yemen (trailer) (imdb) 12:40 pm
14 The Wicker Tree (vod) (trailer) (imdb) 3:25 pm
15 Outcast (vod) (trailer) (imdb) 5:05 pm
16 Beneath the Darkness (vod) (trailer) (imdb) 6:45 pm
17 Better Off Dead… (Special showing w/ Diane Franklin!) (trailer) (imdb) (drafthouse) 10:00 pm

I still might add a couple of movies on Monday, but it’ll depend on how I feel after work.

The vod movies will be live tweeted, if there is something that pops into my head. I suspect Nazis at the Center of the Earth is going to get brutalized, as I really like Iron Sky.

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Check back here for updates.

Special Thanks to @RedSarah12 for pointing out that this is crazy and for giving this craziness a name, follow her on twitter.
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Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)

I saw this at SxSW, it is a must when it comes out in June. I’m going to see it again and make everyone I can do likewise. This is not an easy movie to discribe, but I will have a full review up in the next few weeks, it’s better than you think…

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