Sid

It's been firmly established I'm a dork.  I hold no truck with the expression 'guilty pleasure',  as that's just you having different taste than me.
Sometimes when we dorks are forced to spend lots of time indoors (#GlobalPandemic) we go looking for different entertainment options.


A million years ago in the early 90's, at my first hotel gig, I occasionally worked overnights.  I did the audit the 2 nights the regular guy had off.  It was a small operation.  We had just over 100 rooms. No cash register - just a money drawer & adding machine.  When it wasn't busy, you could still be done in a couple hours but hotel desks operate 24/7 & it was a matter of entertaining yourself without falling asleep from 11p.m. to 7a.m. 
Over time we developed a little library.  Trashy magazines, novels we cared to share.  One of the day girls started bringing in mysteries.  While I like to watch a thriller, I'm not much of a detective novel reader but desperate times......
She had a copy of Dick Francis' "Hot Money".  It's now what I can refer to as a gateway drug.  She thought I might like it because of loving British films, etc.  She was soooooo right.  It wasn't what I expected at all.  It's a good starter for his work.  Not as dark as some. The huge family provides a variety of characters.  I think it would make a terrific short series.
Since then, I've read them all.  I have probably 15 of them in hardcover, one or two first editions.  Lots with the matching covers they ran with in the States.
I love them.  There's 3 or 4 I'm dying to film.  Yes, there's always a male lead but plenty of strong female characters on offer.  On the whole, while being a bit of the product of their time, they hold up & progress. The females aren't just decoration.
I think they're a great balance of mystery & entertainment. 
I do know full well that the tv adaptations are a mixed bag.  There's no denying Ian McShane's talent but he's an odd fit. & the trying to mush in bits of different characters just makes it a mess for their target audience- those who've read the books.

So I was pottering away on #HalfPriceBooks (mostly to see if any copies of #GBBO on dvd had popped up), when lo & behold I spied "The Racing Game".  Confident it was a mistake & would be the book or not available or cost a mint, I cautiously clicked.  And there, for a perfectly reasonable under $20 price, was the2 dvd series.  An honestly to goodness gem.
And if you're like me, the fun of some of these things is to pick apart what's right & what's wrong.
Haven't watched a minute of it yet but so very excited.  Sid Halley was always an obvious choice, as he's one of the only repeat characters Francis wrote & therefore more material potential.
Thanks, #HPB.  I'd rather give you my money than amazon. I appreciate the hand written note.  Hope to see you on the other side.

Now.....if anyone can point me to a copy of #DeadCert with Judi Dench in it.

#LoM10

From the first moment Philip Glenister strode on screen in all his Gene Hunt glory, grabbed Sam Tyler (John Simm) by the collar & tossed him at a filing cabinet, I was hooked.
It's rare to see an actor own a character so thoroughly, particularly on to a 2nd series (follow up Ashes to Ashes). He was so terrific that infamously when Harvey Keitel was cast in US remake, he called Phil himself to say he knew he wouldn't be as good.

Ok, face it, I was on board with all the use of  Bowie too. I first stumbled upon "LoM" via PBS in Chicago where it aired along with Masterpiece & Doctor Who. Helluva Sunday night, that.
It debuted on BBC 10 years ago today. & the creative team has been tweeting fab behind the scenes stories & set photos with #LifeOnMars10 tagged.
I was before & remain a huge Glenister fan. He's terrifically underrated & underused. Have been lucky enough to work/chat with a couple of the cast & crew via my #shorts program. Lots of them do great work.
It's an all time favorite for me. Probably #2 after, Homicide: Life on the Street.
So yeah, I'll be rewatching ep. 1 today. & our #shortfilmsunday selection with be associated with them and Mr. Bowie.
If you've not seen it, have a peek on hulu or netflix. There's only 16 eps (& then 24 of A2A). well worth your time.

"You Know What They Say"

When I was a senior in high school, I went to New York with a group of kids organized by our church. Sight seeing, restaurants, shows. the whole deal.
One of them was Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. & our Joe was David Cassidy. certainly lots of other actors have gotten more attention, but he was great. Really. I mean, he genuinely had a great voice - in those days before autotune & all that stuff
He only giggled a little bit when someone yelled a Keith Partridge joke from the audience.
Honestly he was great. We had an exchange student from Ghana with us & so got pictures of some of the cast after for her.
David was hustled to his limo but was still signing. Joyce got his autograph & he asked where she was from & she answered....
"Michigan". because that's where we'd travelled from.
I think he thought we were crazy but he was sweet to her.
I was a big Partridge Family fan. Can't believe 2 of those 'kids' are gone now.



-Posted in 2017 on FB, when David Cassidy passed

Very Nice Indeed

Originally written as a thread on twitter, via https://twitter.com/ShortFilmSunday, to honor #NNVN10 and having used "Robots" as a #shorts selection.  Only adjustments is one or two typos.


As you may know, around these parts we've got a lot of love for the indie Canadian type musics & those fine folk who create it #FoR3ver #R3LAX #CBC3 #TrueNorth #BTBAT #NNVN10 . 💖♭🍁🎹🥁🎸🎤⏺💖 I grew up in Michigan (where's that mitten emoji already!?!?!) with parents who listened to

@BuffySteMarie and

@Lightfoot365, an aunt who dug

@JoniMitchellcom & neighbor who adored #TheBand. All good things.So in 2001, after mum had been seriously ill, we decided to travel. Her dream was to hike the #EvangelineTrail & I'm an #LMMontgomery scholar from way back. We misread a schedule & booked ourselves tickets to

@folkharbour

to see Raylene Rankin & headed east for 3 weeks in August. Turned out Raylene had been the year prior. I'd missed an opportunity to see #TheRankinFamily a few years prior in Baltimore so a bit sad (& silly that I misread). But I'm been lucky to see & meet

@JimmyRankin

a few times since. & on that trip we went to

@TheRedShoePub

& a dance in Glencoe, Orangedale, etc. And at #LFHF we saw Peggy Seeger,

@aprilverch

, Chris Whiteley & several of his family & loads of others, most notably

@StephenFearing

. I'd discovered him via the liner notes of

@barenakedladies

"Gordon". The bands they listed were a 'to-do' list for me. We saw #SF perform a couple times over the weekend & met him (well, my mom had him sign a cd). So we were thrilled the following spring when he did a show at

@Schubas

in Chicago. As it was a small crowd we got to chat & get to know him a bit. Over the next couple years we & other friends saw #SF perform solo in Chicago & at #Kraftbrau in Kalamazoo & with @colinlinden and @leeharveyosmond as @therodeokings. I call

@StephenFearing

my 'gateway drug' for #musics. We had such good experiences seeing/meeting he & the other #RodeoKings and their extended family. I started traveling over to #Toronto, including an amazing #LastWaltz anniversary event at

@GlennGouldCBC

, where I discovered

@luke_doucet

,

@GreatLakeSwim

, @OhSusannaMusic and met http://trevorweeks.com. He shared photos and told me to start listening to #CBCRadio3, where I heard

@craignorriscbc

,

@amandaputz

,

@LisachristCBC

,

@LanaGay

,

@vishkhanna

,

@Tariqmusiq

& was soon part of once in a lifetime community. That would've been 2006/2007. Since then I've had so many amazing experiences, seeing tons of these bands I love in Toronto, Hamilton, Chicago, Los Angeles, Ann Arbor. via Trev, I discovered

@ElliottBROOD

who I love dearly & saw more of in LA than family

So my connection to

@danmanganmusic

& #NNVN10 & the follow up, #OhFortune, are all tied up in this world. So many memories of first meeting at

@mariposafolk

& again at

@HomeCountyFest

. A late night after last call where we all went to Trev's hotel room for PBR. I kept trying to show people a clip of Ice Cube performing #StraightOuttaCompton with @TheRoots & @danmanganmusic insisted we all watch 'double rainbow' dude. & oh the interrupting #MorrisDancers in London.

I feel such a strong connection to that album. Lyrics like: "So find dodge and then get out of it It's about as country as I get So you ain't living 'til you're living it Not dead 'til you die" hit home as I left Chicago for Los Angeles. and if you know me "So I've gotten used to coffee sweats" is my motto. I absolutely cried at "Basket" at

@TheSatelliteLA

, along with the screaming & cheering. if you're Dan &

@KentonLoewen

&

@GordonGrdina

I probably brought you brownies. Along with

@thewoodensky

,

@wearewhitehorse

,

@goodlovelies

,

@therealpackad

,

@wintersleep

, &

@ElliottBROOD

I for sure dumped cookies & scones & cupcakes & loads of love in thanks for your #musics. Again, I saw more of some of them than family for about 4 years and friends like

@N2DS2W

are what sustain me to this day. Well, as I said, I've wandered a bit. We chose "Robots" as our #shorts selection on 27 October because it's the 10th anniversary of "Nice, Nice, Very Nice". #NNVN10. There's no dust on this record. While

@danmanganmusic

has grown & progressed, it's still a wonderful listen. It's a great intro to his writing, tho any of his records are worth your time. And the Mike Lewis directed video for "Robots" is terrific. Dan has worked with some excellent Canadian filmmakers over the years & his videos are a great intro to that community. I've been so very lucky. I shower them with baking because it's the smallest way to repay what I've gained. I've been a guest more times than I can mention. Have lovely records signed & little nicknacks (

@ElliottBROOD

bottle opener is cherished around here). I've loved being around this insanely creative community. So many crazy memories - taking shelter under a stage from a storm in Guelph, a late afternoon swim in Couchiching, day beers & a sneak preview of #MountainMeadown by the pool at Weekswood. I've posted flyers, hosted house shows, introduced musicians to one another & to directors, subbed in at merch tables. The lot. I love it. Every minute of it. Not because of the freebies. Because I love being surrounded by creative people. It's the reason on here we're friends with bakers and comics and writers and brewers and dancers and not just filmmakers. The communities where I can talk about art & what it means to me are the most important. I've named a lot of bands. Over the years, I've done my best to support them. Go check them out. If you DM me, I might even send you a 'gateway' tune or two, on the condition you spend money on an independent musician in return. So thank you to

@danmanganmusic

for #NNVN10 and the other music in those 10 years. Thank you to

@StephenFearing

and

@TomWilsonArt

/

@leeharveyosmond

&

@colinlinden

- my dear 'brothers'. & to

@ElliottBROOD

&

@wearewhitehorse

for being a bit of 'family' in LA. To

@BahamasMusic

,

@thewoodensky

,

@goodlovelies

,

@wintersleep

,

@OhSusannaMusic

,

@N2DS2W

,

@john_teeter

,

@kittythefool

,

@davidceliamusic

,

@daveborins

,

@mikecelia

,

@seanpinchin

,

@robyndellunto

,

@discothistle

,

@therealpackad

,

@Tariqmusiq

,

@vishkhanna

,

@amandaputz

,

@secondmeanest

,

@craignorriscbc

,

@madswilson

,

@Thompsonwilson_

,

@b0undless

,

@GrantLawrence

,

@LanaGay

,

@LisachristCBC

,

@vespista313

,

@cbcradio, and so many more for all their roles in this journey.

This was meant really to be a quick ode to

@danmanganmusic

and what #NNVN10 means to me & it's such a part of a larger picture I wanted to paint. Thanks for listening. There are some very very nice treats you can pre-order here: danmanganmusic . Again, I know I wandered a bit so thanks for your time. #FoR3ver #musics #indie #shorts #film #shortfilmsunday