"The Year of Living Dangerously" is one of my all time favorite films. Sigourney Weaver must be at least 8" taller than Gibson. Must have been a challenge to shoot on camera.
What a great adventure you had! Did you enjoy Monaco? Cairo doesn't interest me. I suppose I shouldn't judge somewhere I've never been, but it seems a cliche.
As for The Big Lie, I read years ago about a rookie correspondent in Iraq. Just like in your story, all the reporters were called to do do a story out in the "battlefield". The rookie wondered why all the other reporters were carrying gas cans.
When they got to the old battlefield, there was a disabled tank. The reporters poured gasoline on the wrecked tank and set it afire (again). They then filmed themselves in front of the burning tank as they talked about being near the front lines (lie) and hearing the sounds of war (lie).
The news is just another version of Show Business.
Anyone who's worked in news has a similar story. A buddy of mine was a sat tech embedded with one of the Iraq companies. He tells similar stories of staging scenes and never once seeing any real fighting. He also helped stage a couple of soldiers firing their rifles to cut into some story on fighting that never took place. It's all a scam.
As for Gibson and Weaver, yes she;s quite tall, or Gibson is quite short (half full, half empty). Typically, they use what are called apple boxes to boost the shorter talent. Another trick is called "cheating" the shot, by having the taller actor stand further away, and then they are positioned so that they appear to be looking at each other on camera. This is a trick used a lot in "Lord of the Rings" with the Hobbits. The fun part is being the guy holding a tennis ball on a stick, so the actors know where to look.
I probably never would have gone to Cairo, except to go to Giza. I think Trump had a good word for the place. It's dirty, crowded and full of thieves, as far as I can tell.
Rufus, I literally ran into Mel Gibson in the lobby of the Fifth Avenue Theater at the premiere of "Braveheart". I was on my way to the toilet. Mel's big black bodyguard took one look at me and realized I wasn't a threat. Mel is very short. I'd say 5' 8" tops. I'm 6' 1" and I towered over the guy. Mel was shaking hands with people and very excited for the premiere at the Seattle Film Festival.
I've always liked Gibson. A man who can go crazy e.g. in the wheelchair in "Conspiracy Theory" always gets my respect.
Yes, both Mel and Tom Cruise are surprisingly short. Of course, if all you see if the 8' tall face on screen, they all seem like giants. Bogie was another diminutive giant. "Braveheart" is one of my favorites, especially the character of Stephen. Mel's got some outstanding titles both on and off camera. He is also one of the prolific folks in Hollywood, with a brood that rivals Bing Crosby. I've always wanted to work on one of his flicks.
BTW you mentioned Monaco before. I never saw much of it. If you don't have a tux and some serious flash, there's not much to do there. We had a major party on the boat after landing, then the next morning I paid an outrageous amount for an onion roll, some cold cuts and some cream cheese, and beat a hasty retreat to Italy.
Rufus, A friend of mine in the Chicago area told me that when Mel Gibson was a kid, Mel's parents won the Illinois Lottery. They used the money to move to Australia. The rest is history.
At first I thought you wrote "serious flesh" about Monaco. I suppose serious flesh and flash are interchangeable.
I hadn't heard the lottery story before, but that would make sense. At one point, my father wanted to buy a sheep station in Australia and move the clan over there. That was back when Australia was still a free country. My how things have changed.
Rufus, I read "In a Sunburned Country" by Bill Bryson about 6 weeks ago. Bryson describes his trips around Australia. I went on an Australian jag and watched videos from Australia.
One video was from a couple who travel the outback in a camper van. They went to the most remote village in Australia.
There, they met two aborigine women who do art work for famous people. Also, a skinny old aborigine. He was wearing a Notre Dame football cap.
The modern world touches even the most remote parts of the outback.
An online acquaintance of mine once said he counted three factual errors in two paragraphs in a tiny story on his band in Minneapolis. You can't make this crap up... but apparently the MSM can.
It's not nearly as glamorous as it sounds. I was a scene carpenter doing build-out on store fronts that appear in some shots, and setting up the camera barges around the yacht scene. Never saw Moore or any other stars. I just took the money and ran. LOL
Well a Chicken Fight is just about the perfect summary, RFS. In my experience the business world has been much the same. Endless gesticulating and rationalizing, rushing from one direction to the next, only for the final result to not really represent what it was meant to. The victories that were so hard fought as a younger man didn't add up to much in the end, but my profession did contribute a helluva lot to mass consumerism. As I wind down my career, joy is found in simplifying life, a few basic pleasures, and rejecting most of what was so important for so long. Good writing must certainly be one of life's rare treasures, so thank you for these essays.
As I type this, Free Four is playing on the speaker, from Floyd's Obscured by Clouds. Funny, that.
Thank you for dropping by and leaving your thoughts. Pink Floyd always has the right song for everything, and it's even better when they come across at just the right moment, too.
I've come to the opinion that mass protests only serve to confirm and legitimize the organizations that otherwise only claim to have power. If everyone simply ignored them, they would have neither power nor legitimacy. In a sense, we create our own oppressors, and then complain that we are oppressed.
As for the media, they don't really inform anyone -- at least of anything real -- and in the end do nothing but further the illusion that anyone has real power of the individual. They serve only to manufacture the phantoms that we serve, including the crass consumerism as you observe.
I think it's time for some Tom Petty, at this point.
"The Year of Living Dangerously" is one of my all time favorite films. Sigourney Weaver must be at least 8" taller than Gibson. Must have been a challenge to shoot on camera.
What a great adventure you had! Did you enjoy Monaco? Cairo doesn't interest me. I suppose I shouldn't judge somewhere I've never been, but it seems a cliche.
As for The Big Lie, I read years ago about a rookie correspondent in Iraq. Just like in your story, all the reporters were called to do do a story out in the "battlefield". The rookie wondered why all the other reporters were carrying gas cans.
When they got to the old battlefield, there was a disabled tank. The reporters poured gasoline on the wrecked tank and set it afire (again). They then filmed themselves in front of the burning tank as they talked about being near the front lines (lie) and hearing the sounds of war (lie).
The news is just another version of Show Business.
I enjoyed the story very much. Thank you!
Anyone who's worked in news has a similar story. A buddy of mine was a sat tech embedded with one of the Iraq companies. He tells similar stories of staging scenes and never once seeing any real fighting. He also helped stage a couple of soldiers firing their rifles to cut into some story on fighting that never took place. It's all a scam.
As for Gibson and Weaver, yes she;s quite tall, or Gibson is quite short (half full, half empty). Typically, they use what are called apple boxes to boost the shorter talent. Another trick is called "cheating" the shot, by having the taller actor stand further away, and then they are positioned so that they appear to be looking at each other on camera. This is a trick used a lot in "Lord of the Rings" with the Hobbits. The fun part is being the guy holding a tennis ball on a stick, so the actors know where to look.
I probably never would have gone to Cairo, except to go to Giza. I think Trump had a good word for the place. It's dirty, crowded and full of thieves, as far as I can tell.
Cheers!
Rufus, I literally ran into Mel Gibson in the lobby of the Fifth Avenue Theater at the premiere of "Braveheart". I was on my way to the toilet. Mel's big black bodyguard took one look at me and realized I wasn't a threat. Mel is very short. I'd say 5' 8" tops. I'm 6' 1" and I towered over the guy. Mel was shaking hands with people and very excited for the premiere at the Seattle Film Festival.
I've always liked Gibson. A man who can go crazy e.g. in the wheelchair in "Conspiracy Theory" always gets my respect.
Yes, both Mel and Tom Cruise are surprisingly short. Of course, if all you see if the 8' tall face on screen, they all seem like giants. Bogie was another diminutive giant. "Braveheart" is one of my favorites, especially the character of Stephen. Mel's got some outstanding titles both on and off camera. He is also one of the prolific folks in Hollywood, with a brood that rivals Bing Crosby. I've always wanted to work on one of his flicks.
BTW you mentioned Monaco before. I never saw much of it. If you don't have a tux and some serious flash, there's not much to do there. We had a major party on the boat after landing, then the next morning I paid an outrageous amount for an onion roll, some cold cuts and some cream cheese, and beat a hasty retreat to Italy.
Rufus, A friend of mine in the Chicago area told me that when Mel Gibson was a kid, Mel's parents won the Illinois Lottery. They used the money to move to Australia. The rest is history.
At first I thought you wrote "serious flesh" about Monaco. I suppose serious flesh and flash are interchangeable.
It's usually the Italians doing the retreating.
I hadn't heard the lottery story before, but that would make sense. At one point, my father wanted to buy a sheep station in Australia and move the clan over there. That was back when Australia was still a free country. My how things have changed.
Rufus, I read "In a Sunburned Country" by Bill Bryson about 6 weeks ago. Bryson describes his trips around Australia. I went on an Australian jag and watched videos from Australia.
One video was from a couple who travel the outback in a camper van. They went to the most remote village in Australia.
There, they met two aborigine women who do art work for famous people. Also, a skinny old aborigine. He was wearing a Notre Dame football cap.
The modern world touches even the most remote parts of the outback.
M$M Presstitutes and their Corporate Pimps(cia).
And a healthy dose of ineptitude, sloth and greed.
An online acquaintance of mine once said he counted three factual errors in two paragraphs in a tiny story on his band in Minneapolis. You can't make this crap up... but apparently the MSM can.
You worked on the set of For Your Eyes Only!? That is a badge of honor in itself!
It's not nearly as glamorous as it sounds. I was a scene carpenter doing build-out on store fronts that appear in some shots, and setting up the camera barges around the yacht scene. Never saw Moore or any other stars. I just took the money and ran. LOL
Well a Chicken Fight is just about the perfect summary, RFS. In my experience the business world has been much the same. Endless gesticulating and rationalizing, rushing from one direction to the next, only for the final result to not really represent what it was meant to. The victories that were so hard fought as a younger man didn't add up to much in the end, but my profession did contribute a helluva lot to mass consumerism. As I wind down my career, joy is found in simplifying life, a few basic pleasures, and rejecting most of what was so important for so long. Good writing must certainly be one of life's rare treasures, so thank you for these essays.
As I type this, Free Four is playing on the speaker, from Floyd's Obscured by Clouds. Funny, that.
Thank you for dropping by and leaving your thoughts. Pink Floyd always has the right song for everything, and it's even better when they come across at just the right moment, too.
I've come to the opinion that mass protests only serve to confirm and legitimize the organizations that otherwise only claim to have power. If everyone simply ignored them, they would have neither power nor legitimacy. In a sense, we create our own oppressors, and then complain that we are oppressed.
As for the media, they don't really inform anyone -- at least of anything real -- and in the end do nothing but further the illusion that anyone has real power of the individual. They serve only to manufacture the phantoms that we serve, including the crass consumerism as you observe.
I think it's time for some Tom Petty, at this point.