Something has come up to postpone my out-of-town daughter’s Father’s Day visit until the following weekend ….so my browser problem will remain on hold, and without resolution, until the (offspring’s) fix is in. Meanwhile, back at the rant, I’ve finished reading the outspoken CARROLL O’CONNOR’s autobiography wherein he vents about many things. So, to fill in, let’s take up where my last post left off. After all, it’s All In The Family.
O’Connor had a very varied pre-Archie Bunker life. Like many in their early adult years, he couldn’t find his niche. “I could not shake off a feeling of foolishness—a man of 26 plodding through the days and months with no plan, no answer for anyone who might ask “What are you going to do with yourself?” The eventual answer, after many dead-end turns, turned out to be acting….and, finally, stardom (which came with an Archie Bunker mentality).
I — no doubt like most who read autobiographies — do so primarily to learn more about the author, his/her life and times. But I’ll also admit to the guilty pleasure of learning what the author thought of well-known contemporaries — in fact, such opinions may offer insights into other personalities and professions, which broaden (for better or worse) what I thought I knew about them. So, what were O’Connor’s impressions of….
JOHN WAYNE: “He perceived America as the preeminent hero-nation, virtually a land of heroes in which he himself felt heroic (and actually was, as I knew him) and infused that perception into all his roles as naturally as if it were one of the primary emotions.”
JEAN STAPLETON: “Jean’s idea of Edith Bunker was not only original and perfectly suited to the American audience, but very comical and emotionally moving. If ever anything on television changed the country, not radically, not even obviously, it was the performance of Jean and the example of Edith. Did our series effectively attack bigotry and racism? We thought so at the time –”
HARRY TRUMAN: “Nobody expected Truman to take part in a Korean civil war, if one should begin. His military chiefs had no battle plan; on the contrary, they had a plan for getting out of the way — withdrawing to Japan. I thought Truman was totally wrong — his political vision faulty, his practical leadership unintelligent, his moral justification false. For me, the issue of morality in war– whether or not it is a “just war” — turns on the question of choice. When you wage war because you have no choice you are acting justly. But when you have a reasonable choice and choose to wage war, you can’t call your war just.”
MOVIE WRITERS, “though marvelously reliable in inventing space creatures — shriveled humanoids and hugely swollen insects — are unreliable in depicting intelligent life on earth.”
AGENTS “are generally shrewd, knowing, clever people; good company, good friends. They have made my career; they make all careers; they are the most important people in the business.”
ACTORS: “I shall never forget my first professional play rehearsal at The Gaiety Theatre, Dublin, in the spring of 1951 — the immediate cordiality of my new friends the actors: they greeted me like an intimate. Now after all these years I am still unfailingly comforted, encouraged and elated in the company of actors. There is something about the work these dear neurotics do, investigating every kind of human character, that develops in them an extraordinary tolerance, forgiveness and good humor. I commend their company even to normal folk.”
….and I commend this book of Carroll’s to you.
calmkate 9:09 am on September 19, 2020 Permalink |
lol you are the master of word play … he is a better singer than he is a comedian, pink tie not hairy hippo!
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mistermuse 10:44 am on September 19, 2020 Permalink |
That isn’t one of Randy Rainbow’s better parodies, but then Trump isn’t one of our better Presidents (actually, i can’t think of a worse one, but the poor guy has had a hard life, so I feel as sorry for him as he does for those he views as losers).
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calmkate 11:27 am on September 19, 2020 Permalink
the guy is devoid of empathy and most other human emotions …
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magickmermaid 12:49 pm on September 19, 2020 Permalink |
Hilarious! 😀
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mistermuse 4:16 pm on September 19, 2020 Permalink |
Thanks, mm. It Mrs. Clinton were running for Pres again, it might have been even more Hillary-ous.
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magickmermaid 4:47 pm on September 19, 2020 Permalink
hehehe Great minds think alike. I was thinking the same. 😀
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Rosaliene Bacchus 2:54 pm on September 19, 2020 Permalink |
After yet another tough week under smoke-filled skies here in Los Angeles and “ignoramus politicus,” I thank you for making me laugh out loud with your masterful word play. Randy Rainbow’s song parodies are also a delight to watch 🙂 🙂 🙂
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mistermuse 4:12 pm on September 19, 2020 Permalink |
Thanks, Rosaliene. Randy and I appreciate that you Bacch-us. 😉
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obbverse 5:20 pm on September 19, 2020 Permalink |
Redolent of Great wordplay again, MM. Sadly todays parody becomes tomorrows all too real tragedy. So if you can, vote!
Line up, line up despite the sleet, snow or hail,
Bypass Lousy DeJoys dysfunctional USless mail,
Vote bright and early and let’s cast no doubt
Lest the Postmaster General try bailing Don out.
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mistermuse 6:09 pm on September 19, 2020 Permalink |
I can and will vote, probably by mail because my state has online vote tracking so I can make sure my vote has been received. With one or two exceptions, I haven’t noticed longer-than-usual mail delivery here.
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Elizabeth 3:56 pm on September 20, 2020 Permalink |
Bloated Cheeto. Exactly.
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mistermuse 6:21 pm on September 20, 2020 Permalink |
I call him THE CHEETO CHEATER.
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masercot 8:53 am on September 21, 2020 Permalink |
Say what you like about the interviewer, you’ve got to love those specs!
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literaryeyes 10:17 pm on September 21, 2020 Permalink |
I laughed at the mailbox thing in the video (I will build a hundred more).
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mistermuse 12:25 am on September 22, 2020 Permalink |
I fear that Trump’s Postmaster General Louis DeJoy would remove the mailboxes as fast as Randy Rainbow can build them. Unfortunately, Louis is trying to take all De Joy out of voting by mail, and it’s up to us thwart him by removing Trump from office.
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Carol A. Hand 9:29 pm on September 22, 2020 Permalink |
I didn’t think it was possible after days of such ongoing disheartening news, but you made me laugh, Mister Muse. Thank you!
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mistermuse 11:58 pm on September 22, 2020 Permalink |
Much appreciated, Carol, but the joke will be on us if Trump is re-elected. He is by far the most devious person ever to become President, and I believe it will only be by devious means (on many fronts) that he can beat Biden…..and we know he will stop at nothing to do so.
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Carol A. Hand 12:07 am on September 23, 2020 Permalink
I agree, Mister Muse. I also fear he will stop at nothing. I saw one of the vile lie-filled fliers being mailed out to registered republican voters. The USPS mail carrier delivered it to my address by mistake (not a hopeful sign of things to come) – or maybe it was delivered here on purpose because of the Biden sign in my front yard… 😎
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