Blue Moon

 

Blue Moon

Warning from Henry – the following is definitely for the older crowd. What do you expect from the older than dirt writer, who happens to be my person?

I’m excited! Finally a movie is playing that I want to see! It’s “Blue Moon” and showing at my favorite theater. The movie tells the story of a meeting of Lorenz Hart and Richard Rogers after the 1943 opening of “Oklahoma”. Hart, in the past, had collaborated with Rogers as his lyricist all through the 30’s. And now it seems as if he was being replaced!

Irreplaceable in my opinion – Roger and Hart were sophisticated - New York compared to Rogers and Hammerstein which were schmaltzy and small town USA. Frank Sinatra or Robert Goulet – for me Sinatra all the way. Ernest Hemingway or James Michener – I vote for Hemingway. Picasso or Kinkade do you really need to ask?

Did I actually prefer reading Hemingway to Michener in my youth, or did I sense that, that would be the hipper choice? Remember, I had delusions as a child, of living my adult life as Nora Charles, the Thin Man’s wife, cavorting all over San Francisco solving mysteries.

And yes, we thought emulating Lauren Bacall and smoking cigarettes was the epitome of glamour. I hope you don’t buy into the fable that we didn’t know the dangers of smoking back then. We positively knew this wasn’t a healthy habit – that’s exactly why we smoked!

Well, 70 years have passed and I never came close to being Nora Charles and I’m really happy to be living in Santa Clara. I haven’t smoked in 35 years and have no desire to be viewed as sophisticated. I just know what I like and I’ll fight to the finish for Rogers and Hart as opposed to Rogers and Hammerstein. Although, Mr. Rogers made the wise move to start collaborating with a stable partner. Despite his talent, Mr. Hart was an unreliable, alcoholic nightmare with whom to work. But, to continue arguing who was the better lyricist – google “Blue Moon by Frank Sinatra (Hart) and “Surrey with the Fringe on Top” (Hammerstein) by anyone. I rest my case.

Seeing “Blue Moon” didn’t work out for me today. Only one theater was showing it at 5:30. So, again, my taste is not the popular taste in Silicon Valley. I bet there are a lot of showings in San Francisco and New York though.