This and that

by chuckofish

The weekend is upon us once more. Huzzah! It is raining now and that’s okay–the temperatures have cooled off.

If you missed Bells Are Ringing (1960) a few weeks ago, you can catch it again on TCM today at 5:45 p.m. It is not one of the great musicals of all time, but it is fun and the performance of the great Judy Holliday is worth watching. And Dean Martin is Dean Martin.

Personally, I have a soft spot in my heart for Bells Are Ringing because I remember going to go see the “Troubadours” production of it at Country Day in 1971. I was in the ninth grade and my friend and I were dropped off at the school to see it. I felt pretty grown up. It’s funny how experiences like that loom large in one’s memory. Not that my life has been all that exciting–so maybe it’s understandable.

Someone left the entire Masterpiece Theatre DVD set of I, Claudius (1976) in our giveaway basket at work, so I brought it home and I am watching it now.

Again, I remember watching it with my parents back in the day and how much they enjoyed it. It is excellent and some of the performances–Sian Phillips as Livia in particular–are pretty great.

All this nostalgic TV viewing makes me wonder what my children will look back on fondly. Back in the day, watching something like I, Claudius was such an event. You watched an episode and then you had to wait a whole week to see the next installment. Also, if you missed it for some reason, there was no DVR or VHS, so–drama! Schedules had to be re-arranged, dates turned down, priorities set.

We are spoiled now. There is no such thing as delayed gratification anymore.

Not that I’m complaining exactly. Here I go sounding like an old lady again. Mea culpa.

Anyway, this weekend I will be immersed in Ancient Roman political intrigue. How about you?