Hello, everyone. I am at home, in bed, drinking Celestial Seasonings Bengal Spice tea, and eating Fishermans Friend cough drops by the fistful. I hate being sick, but it’s nice that everyone in the house is coughing and wheezing at the same time for a change, as I don’t feel guilty for just laying around and watching movies. Right now, Arlo and I are half way through our Bella Lugosi B-movie double feature. Having watched The Devil Bat (1940), we’re about to start The Invisible Ghost (1941). [The Black Cat (1934), which also stars Boris Karloff, is better, but it’s not streaming for free with Amazon Prime. If you’ve got the extra $3.99, though, I’d suggest making it a triple feature. If it’s snowing where you are, like it is here in Ypsilanti, I can’t imagine a better way to spend the day than sitting in front of a fireplace with a 7 year old, watching Bella Lugosi strangle people.] Here, if you’re not yet sold, are the trailers.
And, yes, this site is being underwritten for the duration of the polar vortex by Amazon Prime, Celestial Seasonings, and Fisherman’s Friend. [We almost got The Snuggie Store onboard, but negotiations broke down at the last minute.] It took about 15 years, but I finally sold out and went corporate. [You’ll be happy to know that the contract still allows me to post about politics, but I just have to do so with a perpetual cold, working in references to the various teas I’m drinking, cough drops I’m chewing, and movies I’m watching.]
23 Comments
GET WELL SOON. THE COLORS IN THE MOVIES WILL BE BRIGHTER ONCE THIS ILLNESS PASSES. I HOPE YOU CAN HEAR THIS.
I wish I had readers that enjoyed talking about obscure Bella Lugosi movies as much s they enjoyed trying to “own” one another in the comments section. Surely there’s one person out there who will talk with me about Maxine, the French maid in The Devil Bat who was killed before she could marry “One-Shot” McGuire. And thank you, Jcp2. At least you wished me well. That’s more than anyone else did. #SelfPitty
OK, I need to dole out my family’s “stay sick” pills now, so we can stay on the Celestial Seasonings payroll.
Linette says that taking NyQuil is like drinking the purple liquid of the heart-shaped herb in Wakanda that sends you traveling back to the ancestral plane.
Aww…being sick sucks, but being sick as a family can be kind of fun, assuming no one is seriously sick. Movies, fireplace, and tea while the snow falls is kind of idyllic! If the Celestial Seasonings runs out, here’s my go-to “I’m sick” drink: rough-chop a fist of ginger (unpeeled), stick it in a blender with water and whir it up. Simmer this with more water for about 20 minutes. Add an apple or pear if you want (smooths it out). Strain thru a coffee filter. The resulting ginger “tea” is strong and spicy–it’s GINGER after all!!–but you can add sugar or honey or fruit to your liking. It’s bracing and comforting at the same time, and does a body good. (Come summer I’ll share a kick-ass recipe for an ice-cold version with cayenne that I got from a Peace Corps pal who served in Mali.) And if you need something after Bela Lugosi movies, you can always watch “I Walked With A Zombie”. Stay sick and have fun!!
Wakanda forever!
I have been turning to Bruce Campbell movies myself. Watched “The Woods” the other day. Trying to find “Buba Ho-Tec” for tonight. Escapism is all that seems to be left in this world of misogynist hate and racism. We have another incel mass murderer the other day and the media has been practically stone silent on it. Another lonely young white man who decides that his shit hole existence is caused by woman not having sex with him–strikes out murdering 5 innocent woman at a bank. I did a brief google search. The latest msm article is 4 days old. Non or the main stream articles want to address the white terrorist motives. This is the only article I could find in my brief search that addresses some of them.
Of course the police were able to apprehend the heavily armed and armored white mass murder alive.
https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LXJ7ovDRu-c/XEyOa23cu8I/AAAAAAAAs9A/FGySaL47EmMW4WcAPPF9grNtPkbhyk5xwCLcBGAs/s1600/unnamed-24.jpg
I hope you feel better soon, even if you continue to play it like you’re still sick, for the endorsement opportunities.
I’m curious to know what it is about obscure Bella Lugosi movies that appeals to you so much.
I hope you feel better. I just checked out the Lugosi/Karloff film The Body Snatcher from the library. It’s part of a Val Lewton double feature. The other movie is either the 7th Victim or I Walked With a Zombie. I’m listening to a fantastic podcast about Lewton called the Secret History of Hollywood. Highly recommended.
Thanks, Max. I hadn’t heard of the Secret History of Hollywood podcast. I’ll check it out. If you have a chance, you might also like the You Must Remember This podcast, which had a series a few years about about Boris Karloff and Bella Lugosi. It too went pretty deep on Val Lewton. As for The Body Snatcher, I’ll save it for the next time Arlo and I are back together, watching monster movies. I’m still home sick, but he’s back at school today.
The last time I was sick, iRobert, I was focused mainly on Irwin Allen disaster movies. It changes every time. It depends on the strain of the cold I get.
And I prefer my monsters to be fictional, Wobblie, but thank you for trying.
Sadly, I have not seen enough such movies to engage in conversation about them. I too hope you feel better soon and hope you have the opportunity to stay home for the next couple of days.
But you know, if you ever want to talk about Myrna Loy and William Powell, I am soooo there!
Mark, if you ever feel too weak to get to the computer to check your blog, Jean, HW, EOS and I can come over and scream obscenities at each other in your living room.
And I’ll bring doughnuts.
Get well, Mark! If you get tired of Lugosi, here’s my old friend Brian Dewan singing his lovely song “Sick Day”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8e9E6mj66k
A good level 7 buzz with a NyQuil chaser is a great frame of mind to browse “hardware” and “supplies” for the trumpocolypse. There is no sick leave from the struggle. Use it as an opportunity to drop a few pounds, not comfort eat, then hit the gym as soon as your energy level returns.
Ah, I too have a thing for Myrna Loy and William Powell. I have a Myrna Loy ornament on my Christmas tree every year. My first love. And how could one not respect William Powell. I watch My Man Godfrey at least once a year. Brilliant. And I even force myself on occasion to watch the two of them in their non-Thin Man films. My memory sucks, but I seem to recall going off on a tangent several years about about the whereabouts of a statue that was once outside a Southern California high school, as word was that Loy had posed for it while a student. Did I mention that here? I should look.
I watched the video, Doug. Thank you. It didn’t make me feel any better, but I liked it. Was that the sound of running water in the background, or sizzling bacon? regardless, it was good. You’re a lucky man to have talented friends armed with interesting instruments. I’m envious of you.
Oh, today me and Arlo watched both Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte and Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? I’m trying my best to crowd Pokemon out of his mind. We’ll see how successful I am.
And thank you for the recipe, Elsie. I’ve been putting both ginger and turmeric in my smoothies lately but I bookmarked your recipe to try tomorrow.
While you’re sick, you might as well watch this: two more of my friends, John Keel and George Kuchar, now both gone. One hell of a movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_XwnTwgrs8
Here’s info about the statue…you are right! https://www.seeing-stars.com/Immortalized/MyrnaLoy.shtml
Now that you mention it, I remember you talking about a statue. Thanks for the reminder. I am probably going to LA in March so maybe I will have to seek it out. Gosh I love Myrna Loy and William Powell together but I also so love her in other films. I have a Christmas Eve tradition of watching The Thin Man. Everyone has a Christmas movie and imho, that one beats the heck out of Love Actually which is what many of my friends watch :)
I hope you are feeling better. I seem to have caught a cold now too. Ah well. Life.