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Monday, October 10, 2005
3:47 PM      

Space Trippin'
Serenity is a really good movie. Warren's campaign to get Denise and me to see it paid off. I wasn't so psyched to see it, based on the pilot and the few episodes I'd seen on Sci-Fi. The space/western idea didn't completely grab me. But there were elements of the dialog that were intriguing.

The theater was packed, and we settled into our seats, Warren about to see the film for the third time. I was fully engaged within the first few minutes of the film. This was no big-screen adaptation/retread of a TV series that had run out of steam and run its course. [Really, the series was murdered by Fox, but that's another story.]

The layering of the story structure, the pacing, and the character development are all first-rate. It's a well-crafted drama, that happens to be science fiction. Whedon made the right choice in toning down the western twang in the musical score, too. There is lots of suspense, and a lot of surprises.

If you're a fan of great storytelling, see this movie. It's worth seeing, even if you only like sci-fi a little bit.

... I was sitting here this morning, thinking about Serenity when the movie ‘Armageddon’ popped into my head. [Actually, it was the theme song from the movie, since I never saw the flick.] The refrain was running through my head, (...don't wanna close my eyes/ I don't wanna go to sleep,/ 'cause I'll miss you babe/ and I don't wanna miss a thang...) when I realized that it has a very similar progression and feel to the refrain from ‘Faith of the Heart,’ the theme song from ‘Enterprise.’ The light went on — hey, those are both Diane Warren songs, I thought...

A little googling landed me on her wikipedia page, which confirmed it. Interesting to see that ‘Faith of the Heart’ was used in the movie Patch Adams, too. I've always thought Russell Watson's voice on the ‘Enterprise’ theme sounded a lot like Rod Stewart, and look at that— Rod Stewart recorded the ‘Patch Adams’ version. I wonder what contractual issues led to that.

While we're on the subject of movie scores, I think a jazz-based score for a sci-fi movie would be a very intresting choice.

:::

How The City Sank
This is an interesting article on how a loss of vision has contributed to the undoing of America's great cities. The central premise:

For decades now, we have been witnessing the slow, ruthless dismantling of the nation's urban infrastructure. The crumbling levees in New Orleans are only the most conspicuous evidence of this decline: it's evident everywhere, from Amtrak's aging track system to New York's decaying public school buildings.

Rather than confront the causes of that deterioration, we are encouraged to overlook it, lost in a cloud of tourist distractions like casinos, convention centers, spruced-up historic quarters and festival marketplaces.

The inadequacy of that vision has now become glaringly obvious. And the problem cannot simply be repaired with reinforcement bars or dabs of cement. Instead, our decision makers will have to face up to what our cities have become, and why.
- NICOLAI OUROUSSOFF, NY Times Editorial 10/9/05

Thanks, Denise!

:::

With Friends Like These...
I'm going through some of the old, laughable mail I've received in the last year. It's amazing to see who considers me a friend:

Dear Friend,

Last year, when I served as President Bush's re-election campaign manager, you were an essential part of our historic effort.  Today, as chairman of the Republican National Committee, I would like to welcome you back to our team with this email. ...

The above is an excerpt from an e-mail I received from the RNC last month. It goes on to blah-blah about how they used the web and e-mail to organize an ‘unprecedented grassroots campaign.’ In other words they imitated what Howard Dean did way before them.

I just don't get how I ended up on their list. It seems they think I'm part of their team.

It's not the first correspondence I've gotten from the RNC. During the 2004 re-election campaign, I received a a letter dated ‘Wednesday Morning’ and signed by Mercer Reynolds, Finance Chairman. It begins:

Dear Fellow Republican,

Your Party needs your help.

You are among a select group of people who are receiving the enclosed official RNC-VICTORY 2004 CAMPAIGN ISSUES SURVEY. ...

Uh-huh. Right. Thanks for the entertainment, though.

Then, there's the endearing direct mail piece I received from CMP Optimize:

Confirm your eligibility by MIDNIGHT...to receive a complimentary, 12-issue subscription to Optimize — the award winning publication that helps C-Level Technology Executives maximize technology buying decisions...

C'mon! C-Level?! Why not just say ‘also-rans like you?’ Who wrote that copy? It sounds like so much corporate gobbledygook.

I also got a letter from the United Lubavitcher Yeshivoth, asking for money and wishing my family a happy and kosher Passover. I figure they looked at my last name and assumed I was Jewish. Believe me, they don't make that mistake when I walk into B&H, and they see my face.



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