Time builds tradition

I love Christmas. It is a season when the masses move into a collective and unified emotion of nostalgia, joy and hope. Christmas is old and we embrace its great age for it is filled with tradition, and time builds tradition.

Most, if not all, of what we enjoy during the Christmas season comes from older and ancient generations. The holiday, after all, is the celebration of a glorious event that first occurred over two thousand years ago. Its best and most characteristically Christmas practices have a lengthy history dating back many generations. Think of caroling, it is a basic and strictly Christmas tradition. It’s an old tradition, so much so that many dress in period clothing to carol. We are indebted to the culture of past celebrators of Christmas for this joyous and festive practice that so many continue to enjoy today. I say we are indebted because I cannot see the modern generation creating and enjoying the tradition of caroling if we had not inherited it. It is the product of a vastly different culture.

I am not sure today’s generation would move on their own to write and compose Christmas carols, banding together to walk in the chill air from house to house singing their songs to each of their neighbors. If the this generation were to start such a tradition it would be vastly different, probably consisting of overly secular pop and rock songs to be sung at concerts through microphones and speakers.

What I love about Christmas is the way such a large portion of the population embraces the old. For this season peoples’ favorites in film and music become more classic. People suddenly have the desire to watch black-and-white, they want to hear Sinatra, Crosby and Nat King Cole.

In this modern times nostalgia we create blends of present and past. We each have our own visions for the perfect Christmas home and it generally blends classic decorations and traditions with modern convinces and trends. Homes are decorated in lights as they have been for generations but new technologies make them more ornate and glamorous. Indoors rooms once lit by electricity and bulbs are now lit by candle flame. DVDs with video of crackling fireplaces matched with Christmas carols enter homes to be played and viewed on the television. Why go through such lengths to put a fire in the living room? Because this is Christmas and that’s the way it was in the old days.

An Untouchable Originality

The creations of the generations past have an untouchable originality. They last through the years remaining and growing in importance, beauty and value. Their originality cannot be touched, disturbed or duplicated. The art or product of another generation captures and expresses the feel and character of that unique generation and time and once that time and generation passes there will be no other way of experiencing it than through those arts. I believe this is a small part of what preserves the originality of the past’s creativity.
We can know how some thing was created, have the right tools and know the right techniques but we could never have their original creativity and creation.
I am a car guy and am reminded of the feel and the way an original, never restored car has a feel, look and drive that a beat, restored or customized car can never duplicate. I do not believe those cars could ever be reproduced even it we had all the original tooling and materials. They become timepieces, remainders of an unreachable culture.
The other day I went to see an art gallery showing some very interesting photographs. They were photographs made by an art student who found some old negatives in a thrift store. They were from the sixties and were of young models posing in outdoor settings such as under trees and by a pool. They were wearing sixties fashion and stood in stiff poses trying to appear casual.
The student took these negatives scanned them onto her computer and then laid them onto each other so each photo appears to be of twins, triplets or quadruplets. The result was very striking. The photos have an innocence and playfulness to them. Looking at them, you feel you are seeing them in their own time but in reality you are seeing them as they never existed.
The gallery takes two rooms. In the first room are the photos made from the ‘60s negatives. In the second room there are two self-portraits made by the artist in an attempt to duplicate the results of the others. She took the photos using similar settings and poses but they fail in recreating the feel and character of the originals. Talking with the artist she spoke of how she thought how since she knew exactly what she wanted and how to get it that she could duplicate it but some how could not. It was the same artist, the same medium and the same process but since the originals have a piece of past their originality could not be touched.
I liked how these photos respected the originality of the negatives. Rather than trying to reproduce them the artist used them to create new art that would highlight them. Looking at the photographs, you would think they were directly from the sixties and they fit the time entirely because the artist did nothing to manipulate them or force them into her own time and culture.
When attempts are made to reproduce or falsely bring the originality of the past to the present it leaves a bad taste. Think of a modern restaurant emulating a ‘50s diner compared to an authentic ‘50s diner. Or think of a bad period film; the fakeness painted decorated feel of it. It is the thing that makes it impossible for an author or director of today to write a noir novel or make a noir film. The genre is characteristically of the past.

Star Wars in Childhood-Revised

A revision of an earlier post.
The enjoyment and appreciation of the Star Wars films has continued strong from one generation to the next to today 30 years later when each new generation has its own unique yet similar appreciation of the movies. There are mainly two groups who have loved Star Wars those who were around at their creation and those who have always had Star Wars, since childhood.
I am in the second group and experienced secondhand with everyone else in my generation. We experienced Star Wars in childhood and it gave us something special. For children who play, imagine and pretend Star Wars provided exciting and endless possibilities. As children, the movies were new to us, and they held so much imagination within them: Wookies, Jawas, Ewoks, lightsabers, and spaceships. Our imaginations (I think especially the boys) stemmed off those ideas in play. I always wanted one of those speeders they used in Return of the Jedi.
I also think it served as a good bridge moving from cartoons to movies. They are pure fantasy and imagination like the cartoons children love but they appeared so real. (I think this is why so many value the originals with the puppets and costumes over the new trilogy filled with CGI.) Parents who love Star Wars seem to get a real kick out of sharing it with their children while there are at a young age.
I am often surprised when I meet people who have not seen or dislike Star Wars. (Most whom I have encountered who do not like it have not seen it.) I am beginning to believe that if you wait until adulthood to see the movies you are truly missing out.
Check out this video of a three-year-old who has seen A New Hope just once.

"Just One More Thing"

Following the Academy Awards thinking of the winners for the top awards such as Daniel Day-Lewis winning best actor for There Will be Blood and Javier Bardem winning best supporting actor for No Country for Old Men I have a renewed appreciation for the creation of completely captivating characters. Both actors won the awards in a large part thanks to the development of exceptional villains. This is especially true of There Will be Blood which is driven by the development of Day-Lewis’ character.

Exceptional movies are dependent on exceptional and intriguing characters. In my thoughts of great characters, I began looking through the characters of past films looking for the best, my favorites. The one that stood out most is actually from television created by Peter Falk in Columbo(he won five Emmys of 12 nominations).

For those of you who are not familiar with Columbo, you are probably familiar with the classic detective character Peter Falk helped create with Columbo (along with Humphrey Bogart as Phillip Marlow in those classic noir films). You know the sloppy, unkempt but clever detective in the ragged raincoat smoking a cigar.

The Columbo character as written in the Columbo script was originally based on the Porfiry Petrovich character in Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment. What made Columbo such a great person, a great detective was everything Falk brought into him. Columbo is shaped by the character of Falk.

The costume came from Falk’s own wardrobe. That classic Peugeot Columbo drove and took pride in—Falk picked it. That glass eye and stare is also Falk’s own.

The humor of Columbo is in his humble and hidden cleverness and wile. One of my favorite Columbo quotes comes when a villain remarks, “Listen Columbo, just for a minute how about we stop pretending that I'm brilliant and you're simple!"

Then there are his fears: his fear of water “I can't swim, I don't even like a deep tub,” his fear of heights “My ears pop in an elevator. As a matter of fact I don't even like being this tall,” and his fear of guns.

Falk as Columbo is just plain likable, relatable, persistant and real. He has his coat, his car, his dog and his wife and is comfortable in who he is and in what is familiar and broken in and he becomes a familiar and broken in friend.

Variety Shows of Early Television

Something that I regret I could not witness was the popularity and prevalence of variety shows in early television. I like whole style of the of the variety show; bringing masses of celebrities and talents to the shows and the living rooms or the viewers. Even though they were celebrities when on the variety shows they became like everyone else. They performed but it was often much more lighthearted. They had fun and enjoyed working on these shows. They would gather in sets made up like living rooms often having several of the top talents coming together for an hour of fun and entertainment.

I also like how there was indeed variety in these shows. On the shows comedians, actors and musical performers were blended making an experience unique for that episode. There were so many of these shows hosted by Ed Sullivan, Dean Martin, Johnny Cash, Danny Thomas and many more. Dean Martin may have been the king of these with the Martin and Lewis Comedy Hour, the Dean Martin Variety shoe and his celebrity roasts. Another important element of variety television was the introduction to new and arriving talent (especially in the case of the Ed Sullivan Show).

Looking at today’s television we really have nothing equal to it. The closest would be the late night shows and sketch comedy shows like Saturday Night Live.

Have a look and see what I mean:

The Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show
Phil Harris on the Dean Martin Variety Show (you might recognize him as the voice of Baloo on The Jungle Book)
Bob Dylan on the Johnny Cash Show
Louis Armstrong on the Dean Martin Variety Show
Johnathan Winters on the Dean Martin Variety Show

Simple Suspense

The films being made today are losing the art of suspense. I love old suspense movies and am disappointed they no longer make them the way they used. Today they make horror movies instead. With horror the films scare and surprise with disturbing and shocking images. In suspense the excitement is built up from situation and circumstances.

One of the most suspenseful movies I have ever seen was Wait Until Dark starring Audrey Hepburn. It has been so long since I have seen it but remember literally jumping out of my seat. It was a simple plot: a blind woman locked in her home with two crooks. There was no shocking violence, you saw everything before it happened and it still leaves you tense throughout.

We cannot discuss suspense without mentioning Alfred Hitchcock, the master of suspense. One of my favorite Hitchcock films is Rear Window. Once when watching it—I had started it alone—my roommates and a neighbor came in and the movie briefly became background to the conversations. The skill and suspense of Hitchcock gradually yet quickly took over the attention of everyone in the room. For two in the room it was the first time seeing it.

They were tense and jittery, and those of us who have seen the movie were enjoying watching them. They would nervously inch to the edge of the seat then rock back, rise to a half stand then fall back into the sofa, raise their hands to the tops of their heads then back down all the while stone silent. Even their gasps were silent. How did Hitchcock accomplish all this? With the turn of a glance, the silent click of a phone and the flick of a light switch.

Suspense films used to be simple yet effective. Today they have to be grand and extravagant to be effective.

The Time Machine Abandoned

Something that I have read and has stuck with me was the Ray Bradbury short story “The Time Machine.” This story, like most of Bradbury’s work is set in the future.

In this not too distant future children are outside talking excitedly and arguing. One is telling the unbelieving rest that he has found a time machine. The kid tells the others to follow him and he will take them to it. They follow him into a dusty old house up the stairs and into the dimly lit attic where they see an old man sitting stiffly in a wooden chair. The boy approaches the man and sits at his feet then asks for a story. The old man then begins a story about hunting the long extinct bison on the open prairies; that is followed by a story about fighting in the Civil War. The children are captivated and gather around.

I like this story because it places great value on the experiences of elders as those who lived in times we the younger generations were unable to see. The older are wiser.

I also like the value placed on storytelling. This is something that is being lost in current generations. Movies and television have made us unwilling to hear the telling of a story. We want to see it. Watching our stories we lose much of the humanness that used to be central to stories. Stories were about people and they were told by people. Today there are shown to us in pixels.

Think of how better things used to be when people tell stories, of when your parents told bedtime stories, sharing an exciting story of you day with a friend or sharing some unique experience. Tell stories, listen to others stories that is how we share our lives.

Cruising

An old time activity for passing the nights was cruising. Cruising was as simple as getting a group of friends and pilling them in a car to spend the evening together. I never fully lived in a cruising culture and yet I miss it. It seems such simple and pure fun.

I once had a teacher who spoke nostalgically of cruising. He told us they would get in that old car roll down the windows and drive. They did not need somewhere to go. That appeals to me. I feel that today everyone must be busy doing something or going somewhere in a hurry. To be driving just for joy of it.

On of my favorite movies is George Lucas’ American Graffiti; it’s a cruising movie. The film is set almost entirely at night, usually in a car and always within earshot of the car’s radio. One night after I first got my license I was driving down a large boulevard when a beautiful 1956 Chevy pulled out in front of me. I began admiring the car when I suddenly feel into the most captivating nostalgia I have ever experienced. I missed my turn and had to make the next.

The best part of cruising at night is the lighting. At night the street lights up, the streets clear and the dark hides much of the town’s flaws. Drive though an old part of town with the modern parts hidden by the night and you’ll drive into another age. Go out late enough on a large empty boulevard an you can hit all greens.

Beauty Grows Slowly

Something that must have stood the test of time to gain true and complete beauty is an old tree. I love old trees, especially big old oaks. For me the trees are often the best part of visiting places that have changed little with the passing of time. If you haven’t noticed it is usually the places that have gone through time with little change that are the most beautiful. Places like Italy, an old university, grand old buildings, the Grand Canyon, and Yosemite Valley.

In those places the changes that have occurred are slow coming and only add to the beauty of those places. Trees are a part those slow changes, slowly growing taller, fuller and more gnarly.

I love driving to an old part of town and finding the tree lined neighborhoods. They have to be old trees who have spent the years stretching out across the sky to met their branches above the center of the road.

The new parts of towns have thin spindly trees that provide little shade and little joy. I am reminded of the saying “Only God can make a tree” and want to add “and it takes time.”

It's a Wonderful Life = Christmas

We are now approaching Christmas and for me one of the greatest parts of Christmas is the James Stewart movie It’s a Wonderful Life. This wonderful movie is often what gets me in the Christmas spirit.

It is such a solid classic and a warm picture of what a past generation of Americans valued and cherished. It is driven by the message that each individual is important and interconnected with so many others. This message and the skill in delivering it caused the American Film Institute to name it the most inspiring film of all time.

There are so many marvelous scenes in the movie and it seems a different one gets me each time. The dancing at the prom is always entertaining and a joy. The following scene “Buffalo Girls” is also humorous and heart-warming setting you up for the crash of the father’s death.

This year the scene that affected me most came after George Bailey discovers he wants to live again and God gives him his life back. He searches for proof finding the petals that had fallen off his little girl’s rose in his pocket where he had hid them. “Zuzu’s petals, Zuzu’s petals.”

Do yourself a favor and watch It’s a Wonderful Life early this Christmas. It will make your enjoyment of the Christmas season fuller and longer.