James Stabile Informational Newsletter

 January 2005

Entertainment...

I watched one of my favorite All in the Family episodes a few weeks ago on TVLand. It was a two-parter. Archie was beginning to feel neglected by Edith. Edith had a job or volunteered at a retirement home. One night Archie met a woman, he went to her apartment and they kissed. I don’t believe anything else happened, so get your mind out of the gutter. Edith found out about the kiss and was devastated. To make a long story short, they worked things out and got back together. The episode was so sad. I felt so sad for Edith. Many of the All in the Family episodes are sad to me. They are sad because the characters seem to be at odds with each other. Their communication skills and relationships were never fully functional. I guess this was the first dysfunctional TV family. This particular episode, like many of the episodes, had a positive message. In this episode, Edith discovered that Archie was not the person that she could always depend on, he was not her strength. Edith found that she herself was the person that she could depend on, she was her own strength. 

All in the Family was a commentary on a dysfunctional family's relationships in the 1970's. There was a lot of criticizing, finger pointing and hurt feelings. The characters could not express their true feelings in a comfortable manner. The show dealt with current (for the time 1970’s) real life situations, cutting edge situations, if you will. The most
important point to make here is the fact that there was always something to be learned from the plot of each episode. In the end, we found the message and the message was simple and easy to understand.

************************************************  

One comment about the famous holiday movie Miracle on 34th Street, I've always loved that movie. Like many of the Christmas movies, it reminds us of a simpler time. It takes us from the hectic and sometimes difficult time we live to a more gentler and kinder time. The movie was advertised in the TV section of the paper to be aired at 2:00 p.m. on Thanksgiving. On Thanksgiving I anxiously waited for 2:00 and the start of the movie. As luck would have it the movie did not air. I did not see the movie advertised again during the Christmas season, at least not at a convenient time for me until the Sunday before Christmas Eve. In that Sunday's TV section the movie was listed to be aired continuously on Christmas Eve. I thought that I would miss it because Christmas Eve was the day I was to travel to Pennsylvania. On such a busy and family day, I certainly would not have the time to see the movie. As it turned out, I didn't travel Christmas Eve, it wasn't going to be a family day, so I thought that I would certainly be able to catch the movie sometime Christmas Eve. I watched the movie around 10:00 a.m. on Christmas Eve. I went about my chores, and kept the TV set on AMC for most of the day. I caught bits and pieces of the movie all day and most of the night. In fact when I started watching another station, I would periodically turn back to AMC for a look at Miracle. By Christmas Eve night I was so tired of that movie. Just goes to show you, be careful about what you wish for, you never know what is going to happen.

On Christmas Day White Christmas aired, another of my favorites, but it aired only once that day. Christmas night It's a Wonderful Life aired. I passed on that one, I had watched the entire movie sometime earlier in the season. I might add that it was the first time in history that I had watched the entire movie. I seldom watch any TV show to it's conclusion. Most of the time the TV is background for me while I do other things. At night , it usually is background for my sleeping. Those were the only seasonal TV shows that I saw this year. No Rudolph, Santa Clause is Comin' to Town, etc. I hope they never abandon the practice of airing those priceless and precious holiday movies at Christmas time. We all need a "little Christmas", the way it use to be.

The History Channel provided some good documentary type presentations concerning the birth of Christ. I caught bits and pieces of some of those movies. The most important and dramatic realization that I discovered form those shows was the fact that the Bible and historians, present conflicting and often times puzzling accounts of the things that we take for granted. Sometimes I feel that our religious beliefs are based on conflicting information. This conflicting information is sometimes puzzling because the powers that be, the church hierarchy, has their preordained ideas on such matters and force us to believe them hook line and sinker. I think the important point is, God exists, the rest depends on our faith.

It's January. It's time to put those Christmas movies, etc. back in storage for next year. The network's mid-year replacements will be out this month. Looks like some interesting new TV shows will be airing. That's true, but nothing will ever take the place of the kind of shows on AMC, TVLand, A&E, Sci-Fi etc. Vintage TV will never be outdated and will survive the test of time. 

************************************************  

It's Christmas vacation for me. That can mean only one thing...afternoon matinees at the cinema. Today, 12.28.04, I saw Closer with Jude Law and Julia Roberts. Both were great in the movie. The movie was a bit strange. It was by no means a "date" movie. The movie was a little confusing to me. I went to the bathroom after 45 minutes of the movie, when I came back I thought that I had walked into the wrong theater. I think I figured it out, but momentarily I was puzzled. I didn't know what was going on with the movie. It was a psychosexual movie about two couples and the pain they caused each other. It was a sad movie, but one that made you think and feel. Jude Law's character was pitiful. He seemed to be a weak, spineless jellyfish of a man. Julia Roberts was a stronger person. During the movie I kept wondering if Julia Roberts was pregnant in the movie. I think she was, but if so it would have been early in her pregnancy. She just had twins in December, a little early. In the movie she wore baggy pants, she looked a little thick in the midsection. She didn't have any wardrobe malfunctions, I think that's what they call it now, in the movie. The movie was raunchier with the language and sex scenes.  Anyway, I enjoyed the movie. I don't think that everyone would feel the same way about it. I think it was a "chick's" (I don't mean to be sexist) movie. There were about 16 people in the theater, 14 women and one other man and me. The women at the show were in pairs, except for one, alone. I think it is the kind of movie that women would go to together. In any case, it dealt with relationships and I enjoyed it.

Yesterday, 12.27.04 I saw The Aviator with Leonardo Dicaprio and a host of other stars. I enjoyed that one too, but for different reasons. It was totally different from Closer. It was a biographical and an historical movie. It dealt with the life of Howard Hughes and the American culture at the time. Leonardo Dicaprio did an outstanding job as Howard Hughes. From the little that I had known about Howard Hughes, Dicaprio seemed to embody the person of Howard Hughes. It was like reading a biography of the man. I learned a lot about Howard Hughes and a lot about American history. I particularly enjoyed the scenes from the 1920's, 1930's and 1940's. I enjoyed seeing the "movie stars" and the galas, parties and to do's during that time. It was good reliving a moment in the lives of the great stars - Katherine Hepburn, Ava Gardner, Jean Harlow and Errol Flynn. The actors that played these legends were magnificent. The movie was truly a chapter taken from American history.

January 2005 Newsletter 
Discussion of the Month    Entertainment    Health, Fitness and Lifestyle    Politics    Religion and Spiritualism    Technology and Business