Cats and Jammers Studio

Just can't get enough of this time travel: Sherman, turn the way-back machine to 1920.

 

Just when I thought there was absolutely no reason to watch television anymore, along comes the best thing since, well, the other best reason to watch television--the Sopranos. And the new best thing? BOARDWALK EMPIRE. If you haven't heard already, this new series on HBO, is set in Atlantic City in 1920--at the beginning of Prohibition and what would become the roaring twenties. Leading the show is the charcter of Nucky Thompson (based on real-life boss Nucky Johnson, see below), City Treasurer and the boss of everything that goes on in and around life on the Boardwalk. 

I have to admit I was already pretty eager to watch this show after catching the preliminary hype. What's not to anticipate with glee when you see names like Martin Scorcese and Steve Buscemi and Terrence Winter? Still, I wondered, will it really be so good? Nothing will ever come close to the Sopranos....

Well, I have just found appointment TV again. Last night I caught the first episode, directed by Scorcese, and it was everything I had hoped for, plus much, much more: the dialogue was rich in the way that classic Sopranos dialogue used to be (touched with the hand of authenticity and believability of character, gilded with surprising black humor in the perfect places); the attention to visual details was near perfect; the scenes were shot with the sense of true cinema, complete with near brain-scan close-ups and vivid costumes and makeup;  the period music sent you back in time; and the actors were absolutely perfectly cast. If I have to make one complaint, I would say that I caught a touch of mis-matched dialogue/film synching, that distracted me somewhat early on, but I got over it.

Prior to seeing the first, I had read that it would take seeing a number of episodes to buy into Steve Bsucemi as the infamous Nucky Thompson. Not so. Within minutes I was sold on his portrayal, and even though the name of James Gandolfini as the lead was bantered around in the pre-show hype, I cannot imagine anyone better in this part than Buscemi.

Michael Pitt practically has steam escaping from his pores, as he plays the part of Jimmy Darmody, Princeton drop-out who comes home from his service as a dough boy in WWI to embrace his darker side (discovered, or, perhaps, uncovered "over there") as Nucky's right hand man. Let's just say he simmers with the need to satisfy those urges.

Especially suited for the role of Margaret Shroeder, a battered Irish immigrant wife, is Kelly Macdonald. Her face looks as though it were plucked right out of the historical photo blog I read daily, SHORPY  (blogged about it here) . Never have I seen a face so evocative of the 1920s. Her performance and face feel so authentic, that I think she actually rode some sort of time machine to get from 1920 to 2010, just for this part.

I could go on and on about the other actors in their roles--Shea Whigham as Nucky's sheriff brother; Michael Stuhlbarg as Arnold Rothstein; Vincent Piazza as Lucky Luciano; Stephen Graham as Al Capone, and Michael Shannon as Fed Agent Van Alden (who seems particularly sinister)--  all perfectly matched to the parts they are playing. Furthermore, the performances are incredibly enriched by the attention to set, costume, and make-up detail, which I hope will continue to  play as much as a part of the series as the action and story itself. Personally, it is in that kind of attention to the small things that make for superb filming. My guess is that Martin Scorses was the driving force behind those kinds of period-specific touches; Goodfellas and Casino are both movies that demonstrate just how much details can elevate a film to a category that marks it as "superb," as opposed to just "very good."

 

What makes this series even better, is that the character of Nucky Thompson is based on a real person, Nucky Johnson, who actually did run the Boardwalk show, so to speak, and make Atlantic City what it was between 1911 and 1941. For more information I intend to read the book by Nelson Johnson. I would love to have gotten the first edition before the cover became HBOed, but I'll settle for the TV tie in if I have to.

In the meantime, hop over to this blog, Press of Atlantic City, and watch this wonderful documentary about the real Nucky. Totally fascinating.

Having grown up in the 50s and 60s--a good deal of it spent in New Jersey, and also at the Jersey Shore, including Atlantic City-- I am very happy to have a vivid memory of what AC was like pre-Casinos and all the totally lacking-in-character feel it has now. The Boardwalk then still had some evidence of a bit of the old heyday, with the rolling carriages, the Steel Pier complete with diving horses, small shops, salt water taffy, Mr Peanut with his big Planters Nuts, and grand hotels over looking the ocean, along with cheap boarding hotels on the side streets. The trashy glitz buildings of today remind me of a phrase an old friend once used--"Piss Elegance." They are a sad testament to the Atlantic City of yesteryear. 

Fortunately, I have this series to time travel with. I'm hooked. And I am thrilled that HBO has already put in an order for Season 2!  How about we run the show from 1920--when it starts--to 1941--when the real Nucky goes to jail. I figure that's 21 years of great TV.

I loved Soupy. Even before I knew what edgy was, I loved it.

Yesterday the news hit that Soupy Sales passed away. He was 83. In my mind, it will always be 1964, or 1959, depending on which Soupy TV show I happen to be remembering.

Soupy first premiered on NY television in 1959. He came on at 12 noon on Saturdays on channel 7-ABC.  I loved him immediately when he did his initial "First one here gets a box of Jello" bit, followed by old film footage with a cast of thousands of people, or even an elephant stampede, all racing to get the Jello. Something abhout him just cried out, "SMART ALEC"--but in the nicest way. The bit above is most likely from the show that was on channel 5 in NY, WNEW, which debuted in 1964. Watching it I realized that Soupy was even edgier than I realized.

Here is a link to a great blog post by Dan Brockway, which excellent shots of the show actually in production. The fact that the show was shot and that Soupy was always relating to the crew, is what made the show as much fun as it was. Soupy was making himself and his crew laugh more than anyone, and we all got to be in on the joke. My favorite skits always had WHITE FANG or BLACK TOOTH. Here is a great one with White Fang.

Found this wonderful stand-up bit by Soupy as he tells the story of the famous "Green pieces of paper" scandal, in which he asked kids to raid their mothers' and father wallets and send him money. And, yes, he really did do that:

When I was watching the movie, The Conspiracy Theory, with Mel Gibson, some years back, I kept having this sense of recognition. Mel reminded me of someone during the entire film, and I had this sense of watching someone else. It took me a spell before I finally identified who the familiar face was: Soupy Sales! I'll post some pictures and you tell me  there is no resemblance!

 

Honestly, I really like Soupy More.

Do yourself a favor and go on Youtube and watch several clips. Then you'll be in on the joke, too.

RIP, Soupy. Seems like just yesterday I was laughing on weekday evenings in 7th grade....

Post Script: Perfect Ending

David Chase. Ya gotta love him. True to the entire running style of the Sopranos, there was no tight wrap-up, no climactic sense of finality. It was just a "life goes on" and "the more things change the more they stay the same" kind of ending. I feel awkward using that cliché to in any way describe the genius of the Sopranos, but it fits. It definitely fits.

For those who felt cheated by the lack of a Godfather/Baptism/ taking care of family business kind of episode I say: I think you missed the best part of what the show was all about all these years.

The show was like life--never tidied up like a novel. Except for the dark humor of the perfect crushing (literally and figuratively) of Phil Leotardo's attempt to rule the works, everything fell back into place--or at least as back into place as life can be for a mobster boss and his family. There will always be the threat of indictment and the occasional threat from another mobster, but there will also always be business to take care of, asbestos to dump, the Bada Bing, Satriale's, kids in varying stages of development and Paulie Walnuts working on his carefully tanned complexion.

So it was with perfect continuity that the show ended exactly like it did, although I do confess that it took me about 30 seconds to realize that my mouth was hanging open when the screen went blank.

Naturally the kind of ending we got also keeps hope alive that someday, someday, Mr. Chase may throw us the crumb of an occasional chapter. Unlikely, I know. But I can dream, no?

I especially love that Adriana came back in the form of a cat to haunt the crew. She was always a little feline-like anyway.

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Sundays will never be the same.....

I don't know who I will miss the most.

Tony or Carmella? Silvio or Paulie Walnuts? Satriale's or the Bada Bing? Very hard to say.....

But I will certainly miss my Sunday night appointment TV. And the best show I have ever seen. And the best Black Comedy ever made.

Who can forget:

Silvio advising one of Tony's ex-girlfriends to read Gail Sheehy's "Passages?"

Paulie Walnuts finding out about his mother, the nun.

When the guy (can't remember his name) dies sitting on the toilet, someone (I think it was Paulie Walnuts) says: "Heart disease. It's the silent killer."

Steve Buscemi, as Tony's cousin, Tony, deciding to be a massage therapist

The Ketchup eating scene in the Pine Barrens

Or one of my favorites: the scene where everyone is present and convincing Christopher to go to into rehab. That scene was one of the best laugh-out-louds! Especially since he sat on the dog shortly before that....

I want to personally thank David Chase for creating the most memorable TV on TV. Of course, it helps that I am half Italian and that he was so right on the money when it comes to Italian Amercians and the little gestures and inflections. It also helps that I also spent the first ten years of my life in New Jersey. Need I say more?

All in all, it was the little touches, almost unoticed, that made the characters: the inserts into the script referencing popular culture, cliche ridden advertisements, and contemporary life. It was the jewelry the nails, the hair, the food, the clothes.

And the deliveries. Of the script, of course. Not the pizza. What a show.

These are the scenes I WISHED for:

Melfi embraces her darker side, sicks Tony on the rapist, and then they become an item.

Silvio misses, Adriana pretends to be dead, then somehow she manages to hitch-hike back on the Palisades Parkway, end up in the FBI office, where she turns everyone in.

Carmella throws a platter of lasagna at Tony, which he then eats anyway with chianti.

The strippers at the Bada Bing hold a walk-out strike and parade up and down (on route 46?) with signs demanding better pay and benefits.

And the one I would love to see tonight:

Meadow inherits the kingdom and the title of BOSS. Cause she's tough enough to do it and smart enough, too.

I actually thought it was going to be Christopher left in the end. I never saw that one coming.

Ah well. We'll see.

EDITED TO ADD, PRE SHOW: Because my husband knows someone well, who is related to someone who actually works on the show, I heard this: 8 different endings were shot by David Chase. Not even the actors know which one will be shown.....

Oooh. It gets better all the time.

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Ugly Betty!

OK. I have to put a disclaimer here: I know squat about TV. At least about current network TV, anyway.

Oh, I LOVE the Sopranos and the Big Love. That's appointment TV. Best TV I ever had the pleasure to watch. But the good thing is that they have relatively short seasons; I can go back to life again after my obsessions close shop.

It's not that I am a snob about TV. Honestly, I don't think there is a kid alive that watched more TV than I did in the fifties and sixties. My whole sense of life and love were developed thanks to a constant supply of films from MILLION DOLLAR MOVIE (7:30, Monday through Friday, plus all day Saturday and Sunday). It's just that life just got more interesting by the time I hit 16, and I sort of lost the urge. It surfaces now and then, when I remember things I actually enjoy like Antiques Roadshow and the American Experience. But I get busy with work and kids and stuff--and I forget to watch.

Until now. I have a new obsession. And the funny thing is this: it's a sitcom, and I do not like sitcoms. They're like potato chips: you might enjoy eating a bag full of them, but afterwards you realize--it's just empty calories. That's what sitcoms are.

But not this one. I think this is great TV! It's UGLY BETTY! I LOVE THAT SHOW!!! I especially love Betty. She looks like a character I would draw in my artwork. She is funny and her timing is perfect. The clothes are rich and full of texture and color and kitsch. It's like watching a show I would draw--if I could draw a whole show. I love her house and her family. Almost Fellini--esque.

If you have not seen it, you should. Thursdays at 8.

I think they replay the show online . Check it out: http://abc.go.com/primetime/uglybetty/index.html