BS: Fund the Movie Hollywood Afraid to Make

Subject: RE: BS: Fund the Movie Hollywood Afraid to Make
From: flattop
Date: 12 Apr 04 - 08:22 PM

You're right, Peter. I typed it wrong, then copied it in the same message and then into a second trying to save keystrokes. Please forgive me.

Bizarre effusions sounds lovely. Thanks. Reminds me of the opening to a book on Lord Northcliff(sp?) where he called up one of his newspapers and said, "I hear that they say I'm crazy. Send down your best reporter to get the story."

Subject: RE: BS: Fund the Movie Hollywood Afraid to Make
From: flattop
Date: 12 Apr 04 - 08:39 PM

From what I read, Ted, Stanislavski waited impatiently in Moscow, pressuring Chekhov to finish his plays, even when Chekov was ill and dying. If I remember correctly, Chekov's complaints seemed to be more about Stanislavski's sets than his methods.

Subject: RE: BS: Fund the Movie Hollywood Afraid to Make
From: M.Ted
Date: 13 Apr 04 - 03:12 PM

Chekhov was dying of tuberculosis for most of the time that his works were being performed by the Moscow Art Theater--not withstanding the scenery, his biggest complaint was that Stanislavski focused on the tragic elements in his plays, and he thought of them as comic satires!

Subject: RE: BS: Fund the Movie Hollywood Afraid to Make
From: flattop
Date: 13 Apr 04 - 06:41 PM

How do you feel about his plays? I'm voting with Stanislavski on this one - more tragic than funny. Chekhov may have written them but he didn't know what he'd written if he thought they were hilarious.

Subject: RE: BS: Fund the Movie Hollywood Afraid to Make
From: GUEST,Fred Miller
Date: 13 Apr 04 - 08:47 PM

The clerks generally file them in tragi-comedy. The acute observation is kind of funny in itself, the way a dead-on impersonation is, even if what's observed is awful and sad.

Subject: RE: BS: Fund the Movie Hollywood Afraid to Make
From: M.Ted
Date: 14 Apr 04 - 01:01 AM

Chekhov thought that if he showed people how depressing their lives were, they would change them. That is funny, in itself. I think that a lot of the humor may have been lost in translation--