WELL, this is probably a good-news-and-bad-news situation.Mike Fleming has just reported in Variety that the star of "titanic" and "the departed" has been attached to "the deep blue goodbye," the first of what could become a franchise of films based on john d. macdonald's travis mcgee series. HERE's my previous LAT piece on the project.here's fleming:"Chernin joins Appian Way's DiCaprio and … [Read more...]
Archives for September 2009
Celebrating Glenn Gould
Today would be the birthday of a musician who's nearly up there, for me, with john lennon and john coltrane. like them, he was a force of nature, complicated personally, and a man who left so much music behind i've listen to him every week -- sometimes every day -- for years. part of what first interested me about pianist glenn gould (1932-82) is that he was a classical musician who rockers, … [Read more...]
The Found Footage Festival
SO much of what's supposed to be really funny ends up being just crude, shocking and sophomoric -- sometimes all three. that's why i was so blown away a few years ago when i attended the first national tour of the Found Footage Festival, which came to Hollywood's M Bar, not only was it genuinely hilarious, it was an original turn on both indie/DIY and on the trash-can aesthetic that runs from … [Read more...]
Joe Pernice, Songwriter vs. Novelist
ANYONE who follows indie rock closely knows that songwriter joe pernice isnt kidding when he says, "coming up with melodies is a pretty easy thing for me to do. it doesnt take a lot to get me to do it." songs like "penthouse in the woods," from '90s alt-country band the scud mountain boys, and "crestfallen," by chamber pop band the pernice brothers, have a melodic perfection that sounds … [Read more...]
John Updike vs. Witches of Eastwick
FOR a not terribly good book, "the witches of eastwick" has had quite an afterlife. not only did it become a popular, if faintly cheesy, movie involving cher, and a briefly lived stage show, but it's now set to become a television series. no, not a miniseries -- but a show that could run for years and years.why? i'm still a bit confused about the whole thing. but HERE is my new piece on the book's … [Read more...]
Ken Burns vs. His Critics
AS a former (and very minor) member of the nation's conspiracy of jazz critics, i remember quite well the vitriol hurled at ken burns for his "Jazz" documentary. the UK's guardian, for instance, called the series, for its treating jazz like an art form that died with ellington, "a jam session in a mausoleum."in some cases the charges were fair, in other cases not.in any case it struck me that … [Read more...]
Robinson Jeffers and Big Sur
"NO major American poet has been treated worse by posterity than Robinson Jeffers," poet/critic dana gioia wrote in 1987, lamenting the lack of scholarly attention, an up-to-date selected poems, or a full-dress biography of this california writer who was once read voraciously and still inspires environmentalists. a few things have changed since then, but the great poet of california's central … [Read more...]
The Gimmick Book
EAGER to meet fitness guru richard simmons? what about reliving eighth grade? nostalgic for your high school prom? how 'bout driving across country powered only by dirty fry oil? my answer to all of these questions is a resounding NO, but to some authors more successful than yours truly, these stunts and others have resulted in new books, some of them big hits. HERE is my LA Times piece on a.j. … [Read more...]