Art, damn it, art! watch (#38 in a series)

June 20th, 2013

The paper of record has a story about a new exhibition at the Park Avenue Armory. (Despite the name, it is an exhibition hall, “with one of the largest open exhibition floors in the world”. But it did start life as a National Guard armory.)

The new exhibit is by Paul McCarthy, described by the NYT as a “revered Los Angeles video artist and sculptor”. The exhibition, “WS”, is described as a retelling of the story of Snow White.

What fun! Take the kids, right?

…the Armory, which has developed a reputation as a family-friendly destination, made the unusual decision, with Mr. McCarthy’s agreement, to restrict visitors to those over 17. And even for adult visitors, the Armory has built a virtual phalanx of warnings: advisories about the show’s graphic content on its Web site, on placards in front of its large oak doors, and inside the building before the entry to the exhibition itself.

Whoa.

Mr. McCarthy’s creation is decidedly not Disney’s version of the fairy tale. Composed of a massive forest-and-house set, accompanied by a seven-hour video of performances shot in and around the set — it is meant to be an apotheosis of the dark and deeply human themes he has been exploring for four decades concerning the body, social repression, consumerism, sex, death, dreams and delirium, and the power of art to deepen our understanding of life.

“an apothosis of the dark and deeply human themes”?

The video narrative and related videos secluded to the side of the main exhibition include plentiful nudity, of both sexes, along with scenes of urination and men masturbating to orgasm, not to mention highly unorthodox use of processed foods. The story also includes gory violence that is no less jarring for using Hollywood techniques like fake blood and sculptural body doubles.

I have no joke here, I just like saying “highly unorthodox use of processed foods”. (Karen Finley, call your office, please.)

As the NYT notes, exhibiting something so…out there…that you don’t want to let minors in to see it is unusual by NYC art world standards: MoMA didn’t ban minors from the Marina Abramović retrospective (though they did put up warning signs), and the Brooklyn Museum recommended (but did not require) parental guidance for “Sensation”.

On the other hand, I did not attend either of those events, and the Wikipedia summaries are unhelpful in determining if processed foods were used in a highly unorthodox manner.

Posted in Art, Clippings | Comments Closed

Thus concludes our broadcast day.

June 19th, 2013

Lawrence sent me an email earlier today noting that I had a 1970s TV show theme going, and asking

…How long can you keep it up?

Posted in Admin, TV | 1 Comment »

Libertarian themes in television.

June 19th, 2013

Sounds like the title of a Community episode, doesn’t it?

But I’ve been trying to think of television shows, especially 1970s television shows, that reflect libertarian themes, and I’m having a hard time coming up with many. For my purposes, I’m defining “libertarian themes” as: self-reliance/entrepreneurship, distrust of big government, and adherence to the non-agression principle.

I don’t remember how well Little House on the Prairie followed these ideas: the books certainly are libertarian (for obvious reasons) but I just don’t remember the TV show well enough to recall how that translated. (I think I avoided the TV show because I had a perception it was a chick thing. Though I do want to see the episode where Pa and Mr. Edwards do a remake of The Wages of Fear.)

Beyond that, pickings seem slim for the 1970s. I think Gunsmoke may have incorporated those themes, but I don’t remember the show well enough to be sure.

There is one show I can think of that, to me, is a nice example of libertarian thought:

Really, what could be more libertarian than a private space program? How about a private space program that intends to make a profit by selling off discarded government property? I seem to recall that there were frequent conflicts with one officious government p—k or another, always resolved in Andy Griffith’s favor – and without much force or violence.

Any other series I may be missing? Feel free to leave comments. They don’t even have to be series from the 1970s: I’ll take anything from the birth of television all the way up until now. It does seem to me, though, that libertarian thought became more and more mainstream and was better represented on television after the 1980s.

Posted in 1970s, Politics, TV | Comments Closed

Also…

June 19th, 2013

I’m going to wait to say anything about James Gandolfini; this is still breaking news, and by tomorrow the papers should have their obits and appreciations up.

I guess this kind of breaks the 1970s television theme, but, you know, you do what you gotta do.

Posted in Clippings, Obits, TV | Comments Closed

Obit watch: June 19, 2013.

June 19th, 2013

The A/V club and other reliable sources are reporting the death of legendary musician Slim Whitman.

(Yes, this does count as 1970s television: quoth the A/V Club, “That changed in 1979, with a saturation TV ad campaign promoting a greatest-hits collection by an artist who, the commercials swore, had sold more records than Elvis and The Beatles. The commercial simultaneously revived the 55-year-old Whitman’s domestic career and turned him into a pop-culture punchline.”)

Posted in 1970s, Clippings, Music, TV | Comments Closed

The things you find on YouTube.

June 19th, 2013

Two clips. First, the opening from Movin’ On, the trucker series starring Claude Akins and Frank Converse, with Merle Haggard doing the theme music.

I have fond memories of this series, but the usual (“nostalgia is a moron”) caution applies. Fortunately, you don’t have to spend a lot of money to confirm or refute my thesis: you can watch all of the first season on Hulu for free. (It does not look like the pilot is included.)

Second, a series that I don’t have fond memories of, but which I recall my brother loving when he was a child. It isn’t on Hulu, but people have been uploading episodes to YouTube.

I know, I know: how can you go wrong with a man and a monkey? I guess there’s something about the plots that rubbed me the wrong way, as opposed to what I recall as the relative realism of Movin’ On. On the other hand, I do have to give the series credit: it did with one man (and a monkey) what it took The A-Team four men to do.

(My brother was also a big fan of The A-Team. I never got into it, but I do believe it was a better show than B.J. and the Bear.)

Posted in 1970s, TV | Comments Closed

More trivia.

June 19th, 2013

Despite persistent rumors, encouraged by some Islamic publications and websites, Cousteau did not convert to Islam, and when he died he was buried in a Roman Catholic Christian funeral.

Jacques Cousteau. Islam. Oooooookay. Never heard that one, but whatever gets you through the night.

(It looks like there’s a lot of Jacques Cousteau on DVD. And I didn’t realize Rod Serling did the narration, but I don’t think I’ve seen it since I was a child. I hope it holds up better than some of those other TV shows from that time.)

(This was prompted by two things. The second one was a conversation with my brother about the Coney Island Applebee’s incident, during which he revealed that his oldest boy is a big fan of Tanked. Now, I admit I didn’t have good taste in television as a child (neither did my brother, but we’ll get to that later), but we’ve gone from Jacques Cousteau exploring the ocean to people building elaborate fish tanks. It makes me kind of sad.)

Posted in 1970s, Geek, TV | Comments Closed

I’ll just leave this here for Lawrence.

June 19th, 2013

As I am going out for a bit to run some errands.

Jim Rockford falls for LACoSD Lt. Shawna Williams, but when she is injured in an explosion and Johnny Gage arrives at the scene will Jim be able to keep the lady he loves or will she return to her past love?

Yes, not just fan fiction, but fan fiction that’s a cross-over between two of my favorite shows of the 1970s.

No, I haven’t read it. Do I look stupid?

Wait. You weren’t supposed to answer that last question.

Posted in 1970s, TV | Comments Closed

Speaking of Rockford…

June 19th, 2013

…does anybody remember that The Rockford Files had a spin-off? You might could even make an argument that it had two spin-offs, though I don’t think I could defend that.

I believe Lawrence remembers Richie Brockelman, Private Eye, as he seems to cringe every time it comes up in conversation. Not that it comes up that often in conversation, as there were only five actual episodes (not counting the pilot) and two crossovers on The Rockford Files.

I actually have fond memories of the show, but those memories are colored by nostalgia: I haven’t seen an episode since they originally aired, and, as we all know, nostalgia is a moron. Here’s an opening and closing from one of the episodes (I believe this is “Escape From Caine Abel”).

Brings back memories, doesn’t it? Especially with the promos for Columbo and Quincy at the end. Man, that was a golden age.

And in case you were wondering “whatever happened to Dennis Dugan”, the answer is: he’s tight with Adam Sandler.

And, what the heck. I couldn’t find a stand-alone clip of “Captain Freedom”, but here’s something I did find.

(I suppose technically “Hill Street Blues” was a 1980s show, not 1970s. But it has a very late 70s feel to it.)

(Oh, and the non-Rockford non spin-off I was referring to? You could argue that Magnum, P.I. traces lineage to Tom Selleck’s appearances as “Lance White” on the show. Not that I would argue that, but it is a defensible position.)

Posted in 1970s, TV | Comments Closed

Challenge. Accepted.

June 19th, 2013

I never did like The Dukes of Hazzard.

However, the Wikipedia page on the General Lee is interesting.

Even if it doesn’t go into specifics about what kind of gas mileage a 1968 or 1969 Dodge Charger gets. (I have seen estimates elsewhere on the Internet ranging from 9 MPG to 11-13 MPG, so perhaps that tweet isn’t too far off. But those estimates and Wikipedia are distinguished by a notable lack of sources.)

Posted in 1970s, Cars, Clippings, TV | Comments Closed

Trivia.

June 19th, 2013

(By way of TJIC.)

What I find even more interesting is that something called a “professional drifter” exists.

Posted in 1970s, Cars, TV | 1 Comment »

At the tone, leave your name and message.

June 19th, 2013

I found this at the grocery store yesterday, and it amused me even more than the NCIS car. Plus, you know, it is an actual Hot Wheels car, not some cheap knockoff.

rockford

I think this is going to wind up in my collection for now, as my brother’s youngest boy is just a little young to appreciate The Rockford Files. However, I am looking for a Hot Wheels Porsche 911, so the three of us can sit at the kitchen table with it and a copy of the June issue of Road and Track and have an intellectual discussion of why the handling on the early 911s was so vicious.

Posted in 1970s, Cars, Photography, TV | Comments Closed

Another Ranger.

June 19th, 2013

haley

Oakwood Cemetery, Austin, Texas.

Information about George Wesley Haley is hard to find online. If I dig up anything else, I’ll do an updated post.

Edited to add: here’s a second photo that I think I like just a bit better. Both of these were taken with the Nikon and 18-55 lens, but the second one used aperture priority instead of the auto setting.

haley2

Posted in Cops, Law, Photography, Texas Rangers | Comments Closed

More photography, and errata.

June 18th, 2013

jm

I like Ron Franscell’s book The Crime Buff’s Guide to Outlaw Texas quite a bit. It has been a useful source on many of our photo excursions. However, Franscell gives the GPS coordinates for Michener’s grave as 30.19949, -97.45192. If you plug that into Google Maps, it comes up somewhere near Elgin.

Michener’s grave is actually in Austin Memorial Park Cemetery at 30.3325,-97.753167, at least according to the tag on this photo and Find A Grave.

Posted in Books, Photography | Comments Closed

Consumer note. (#2 in a series)

June 18th, 2013

The Apple Lightning to SD Card Camera Reader does not work with the iPhone.

Even if the clerk at the Apple Store tells you it works great with the iPhone, and you can use it to pull photos off an SD Card and onto your iPhone for further manipulation and uploading, it still doesn’t work. Plugging it in gives you a “This accessory is not supported by iPhone.” message.

I point this out here because it seems to be a common question without an answer on the Apple forums.

Much to their credit, the Apple Store gave me a full refund (no restocking fee) on the device, even though I was outside of the return period by one day. (I bought it a little over two weeks ago, but had not taken it out of the package until yesterday because I hadn’t shot any photos until Sunday.)

Posted in Apple, Consumer | Comments Closed

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