The Mind Boggles

You know, if I forget to drop by Classic Television Showbiz, all kinds of wacky things happen over there, like this:

Go there for the rest of the show with guests Christine Jorgenson and Anton LaVey! I need me some love gifts to ease this religious hammerlock I've gotten myself into.

Viagem ao Fim do Mundo

My movie of the week! "Viagem ao Fim do Mundo" aka "Voyage to the End of the World". It's got everything I need for mucho enjoyment (except subtitles) - Tropicália grooves by Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil, and lots of the other stuff I dig!

There is a naked woman in this clip, but it's okay because she's laughing, and on a beach. And it's sort of arty.

"Little Flower" frenzy

I really love this 1993 film, Household Saints.
Act 1 shows Tracey Ullman and Vincent D'onofrio being thrown together in an arranged marriage by their blue-collar immigrant parents in NY's Little Italy. The superstitions of the Old Country go hand in hand with early 1950s Catholicism and torment poor Tracey when she is stuck living with her overbearing Mother-in-Law, played by theatre legend Judith Malina.




In one grueling scene, the old lady convinces a pregnant Tracey that she has "marked" her unborn child by looking out the window at a blind man. Then, pumped up with power, the Old Lady shows Tracey how she can reverse the curse by praying to Jesus's grandmother St. Anne. Tracey pleads: "Holy St Anna, Mother of our Blessed Virgin, Please Keep me from giving birth to a chicken."

By the 1960s in Act 2, Tracey and Vincent are raising their daughter who to their dismay becomes obsessed with the secrets revealed at Fatima and later as a teen (played by Lili Taylor) becomes obsessed with becoming a nun, or better yet, a saint in the mode of St. Therese of Lisieux, "the little flower".

Once I met Tracey Ullman at a book signing and she seemed not as enthused with the latter part of the film (which focuses on Lili Taylor) and all its religious fanaticism. When I told her how much I enjoyed this flick, Tracey asked me, "Were you raised Catholic? Oh ! that's why! Catholics love that film."

I suppose you really do need to be raised in a blue-collar, tight-knit multi-generational familial setting of deeply religious types to appreciate and be moved (or horrified) by this film. As a kid, I too wished that I could see some holy vision and experience the supernatural. Religious faith was handed down like a recipe - completely accepted and never analyzed.

Now all those years later, this film is a tender reminder that no matter what life brings and how culture changes, there will always be those people who can rework a tragedy and find a tenet, or see some miracle in the madness.

The Innkeeper Negotiation Song

From AD/BC: A Rock Opera.

You can watch the whole thing here (I know how much Donna loves a religious rock opera).

SATAN HAS BEEN PARALYZED

The Devil is a blabbermouth,
distorting every fact;
but the truth is he's a loser
since Jesus broke his back...


Make way fer Captain Hook and his Christian Pirate Crew,
ya scalawags!


Gather close, ya landlubbers, and learn how to be a good little pirate on the High Seas of Faith ...

Ol' Slewfoot calls the good Cap'n a FATSO in front of the young'ns!
Let's listen in ...

Captain Hook. The former "bad seed" biker who lost a hand and a leg in a traffic accident, gave his life to the Lord, and decided the best way to spread the Gospel was to assume the guise of a bandit and encourage inflicting bodily harm on the Enemy. The man who gave us the "Christain Pirate Rap." The man who performs on-camera autopsies on "sinners" for the educational benefit of today's wayward youth ("What's this? A beer can?! Oh, gross!!"). The man for whom Jesus was made to walk the plank.
He walked the plank for you, too. And for me.
Avast, and a-men.

The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser

"I saw the ocean, and I saw a mountain and there were many people climbing up the mountain.
It was like a procession. There was a lot of fog. I couldn't see it very clearly, but at the very top was death."

The Scariest Dummy of them All

I have two friends that have interviewed him. I can't even get into the details, although secondhand. Wait for "Weird Hollywood" to come out (I have a chapter in it!) for all of the dish.

In the meantime, I bring you Chip, the Black Boy, star of Hollywood Public Access.

If you are looking for Chip the Black Boy, look no further.

Also, if you are looking for David Nkrumah Liebe Unger Hart, David Liebe Unger Hart, David Liebe Hart, David Unger Hart, or just plain David Hart, you have come to the right place.

If you need his services, David is a church musician, sign painter, artist, puppeteer and actor.

He is also looking to meet young, attractive, single women. If interested and you meet these qualifications, please call him at 213-381-0791 (serious calls only).

If he is not there, leave a brief message and what you'd like to say with your return phone number and the best time he can call you. Say it slowly and clearly and repeat it twice, and he will return your phone call as soon as he comes in.

Chip the Black Boy is the star of David Hart's television show, "The Junior Christian Bible Story Puppet Show."