Rant #1,600: The Eyes Have It

My eye exam went well. It went so well, in fact, that the doctor said that I couldn't have even wished for better results.

Thank goodness for that.

With all the pushing, probing, and looking into my eye last Friday morning, I was hoping that it was all going to be worth it ... and since I got such great exam results, I guess that it was all worth it, for my peace of mind at least.

As a result of this, I don't have to see him again until July, or around the time that this blog will hit 1,700 entries.

I cannot believe that 1,600 entries have gone so fast, in a little less than seven years or so.

As you already know, this is the second version of the original blog, as that blog was hacked.

One day, when I am really old and gray, I will have all of those original entries right here in this blog, under the "Classic" entry that you see every day.

Please, do not go to the original blog. It was hacked, Google still doesn't care, and I just thank goodness that I can access the posts there and bring them here.

So all around, everything is good. My eyes are good, the blog is good, the snow is almost gone, which is really good, and nothing that much happened this weekend, which is also good.

Yes, I know that Paul Kantner of the Jefferson Airplane/Starship passed away. That band, early on, epitomized the true counter culture coming out of San Francisco. Later, it epitomized the dreck that rock and roll had become, and still is.

But he was there for both ends of the stick, and he was a survivor of sorts, so I will salute him here right now.

There really isn't more to say on Kantner's count. Some people found him cool, others thought he was a phony--rich beyond his dreams on one hand, a man for the people of San Francisco on the other.

You can have it both ways, and he seemed to prove that.

Otherwise, his death did not make me rush out and listen to my Jefferson Airplane stuff, or even my Jefferson Starship or KBC records.

But, he gets a mention in this 1,600th blog entry because he was a seminal figure in the 1960s counter culture, and while the Jefferson Airplane was not the first band out of San Francisco to make it big on the national scene, as so many of his obituaries said--it was the Beau Brummels, produced by one Sylvester Stewart, later to make his own ruckus as the leader of Sly and the Family Stone--they were the first to represent the emerging lifestyle in that progressive city, so when the history of San Francisco is written, there must be a chapter on the Jefferson Airplane.

Moving on from that, my wife and I found another quirky movie to watch on Saturday night.

It was an oddity from the same period where the Jefferson Airplane became big, in 1965, a small little film called "Harvey Middleman, Fireman."

It is about a poor schlemeil, who just happens to be a New York City fireman, who is married and has two kids.

All of a sudden, at the old age of 35, he has a mid-life crisis, he falls in love with a pretty blond that he rescues from a fire, and he manages to juggle his home life and his private life away from home until the two worlds collide, and he recognizes where his bread is really buttered.

So he goes home to his wife and his family, and it is happily ever after for the Middlemans.

I liked the movie, in part because again, like the film I told you about last week, it pushed the boundaries maybe as far as it could about what could and could not be shown in movies in 1965, although not as forcefully as the film with Beverly Garland that I discussed with you last week.

In this film, once again, a lot is implied, but little shown.

You could see that filmdom was really on the brink of a revolution, because just three years later, when what you could show on screen was a bit more open, this film could have done just that.

But in 1965, it wasn't time yet.

And I also liked the fact that the film had a barrel full of fine character actors in good roles, including a very young Charles Durning and Arlene Golonka, who I have always liked since she was in TV's "Mayberry R.F.D." Also, Pat Hardy, a ubiquitous presence on late 1960s TV, who was in another quirky production that I remember fondly, a short-lived show called "Occasional Wife."

I also loved the fact that the film was shot right there in New York City, and there are even scenes what were shot at the World's Fair.

This is a real period piece, a real oddity, but if you ever have a chance, I would recommend the movie. It is sort of a dark comedy, and quirky enough that I really enjoyed it.

Otherwise, it was a dull weekend, but here we are at 1,600 entries, and I will speak to you tomorrow as we go ahead to number 1,601, pushing to 1,700.

Who would have thunk it?