I might have to start that old Lyric of the Day page up again...

Back in 2002/3, I had a lyric of the day page, which ran for a while....it's been up there, sleeping in the internet ocean, unlinked, for some time....

Then he started into dealing with slaves
And something inside of him died.
She had to sell everything she owned
And froze up inside.
And when finally the bottom fell out
I became withdrawn,
The only thing I knew how to do
Was to keep on keepin' on like a bird that flew,
Tangled up in blue.

So now I'm goin' back again,
I got to get to her somehow.
All the people we used to know
They're an illusion to me now.
Some are mathematicians
Some are carpenter's wives.
Don't know how it all got started,
I don't know what they're doin' with their lives.
But me, I'm still on the road
Headin' for another joint
We always did feel the same,
We just saw it from a different point of view,
Tangled up in blue.

Copyright © 1974 Ram's Horn Music (Thanks Bob)

I am still testing emailing to the blog - this is just a joke by the way

"If a man talks in a forest, when there are no women around to hear him, is he still wrong?"

Men are from Earth.
Women are from Earth.
Deal with it!

As Uncle Tony says in one of his postcards. Highly recommended. Support your local anarchist - go to Any Old Icon. They've gotta be worth a fiver of anyone's money. Oh, and buy his book, too. Why not? None of us have got pension plans...

Sorry if that link was buried in my maze of pages - old friends persist, when circumstances continue to change - no peace for the wicked.

And while I am at it - here's a scratch list of my hero links - men now, women coming soon...

It's a laugh, innit?

Just been watching "Intolerable Cruelty". I have a real soft spot for the Coen Brothers. And George Clooney goes from strength to strength for me (the hair gel in "Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?" - here, checking his teeth in reflective surfaces) for his self-mockery.

In case you are wondering, I am aware of the vanity of my last post (and I can't even remember that missing adjective accurately). Any family members know that I don't take my self seriously, and that all my stories are told against myself.

Still, a couple of years ago, one of the porters at the library said I looked like Billy Bob Thornton, and I said "Who?" He pointed to the poster for "A Simple Plan" (a movie I still haven't seen) and I said "Yeh, right..." I figured it was just the heavy eyebrows, and the big glasses held together with tape.

Later I flew to Hawaii (doesn't that sound cool?) with a brief windfall, and after the long flight, to the first change, I was walking through LA airport and a guy who had been on the same flight did the diffident approach as we headed to the carousel "Hey, I hate to bother you, but I've been dying to ask you right through the flight, are you Billy Bob Thornton?" he said - although why he thought Billy Bob would be flying in the cheap seats I have no idea - "No" I said (grateful that I at least knew who that was now, thanks to Danny the porter) "but I wish I was!"

Of course, I should maybe have just given him an autograph. Why not?

Having said that - I noticed two of the Philpott clan on the credits tonight.

I still read the credits right through. Not just for the buried gags - but because my mum used to teach actors, and I learned to wait for the minor characters to roll by - just for a quick whoop and a yell.

Now I have a couple of minor credits of my own - but I am amazed that people find them so impressive. They were just gigs to me - good ones, I am not being sarcastic - but they go back 20 years, so I was well paid for about 6 years, and then went back to poor when I paid off the taxman in 1987. C'est la vie, ya know.

Lucky to have had my moments. My 15 minutes of infamy.

The Hat Fair

Continuing my theme of finding friends and self in the library archives (similar to putting friend's names into Google), I remembered that Gerard Benson came up to me once at a street festival, and said "Did you see the article I wrote about the Hat Fair? I gave you a mention. Sorry, the sub-editor took out the adjective - I originally called you 'Toby, the magical acrobatic juggler'..."

Being just a street urchin at the time I was astounded, and flattered, and went to look it up for my scrapbook (now long lost), then forgot about it for 30 years.

Now here it is again. I wish I could write that well.

the song going through my head today

Temporary Like Achilles --- Bob

Copyright © 1966; renewed 1994 Dwarf Music

heh

"If your friend is already dead, and being eaten by vultures, I think it's okay to feed some bits of your friend to one of the vultures, to teach him to do some tricks. But ONLY if you're serious about adopting the vulture."

(excerpt from Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey (aka Jack Handy)

While looking for the source I came across Crooked Cucumber If you go there, you may find me rummaging through the bins, but it's a digression.

Here's one page of Deep Thoughts

Another one here

Still, his lawyer isn't happy about publishing on the web so watch your back.

I don't really know him, and I guess he isn't big in the UK as we don't get Saturday Night Live - so I'll leave you to Google away on your own.

"The first thing was, I learned to forgive myself. Then I told myself, 'Go ahead, do whatever you want, it's ok by me.'"

© ® ™ Jack Handey (in case he is joking)

It's good for you - good for your brain - another fine link over at Pentablog

Who Are Those Guys?

Funny this - I just saw a hilarious trio at Glastonbury (never did catch their name) - who used a miniature drum kit (but played shithot music), and then I am walking down Queen Street in Cardiff, and come across these two guys...sorry, I didn't get anyone's name, but contact me if it's you, or you know who these guys are....

Sorry, but my karma just ran over your dogma

I am fascinated by the way phrases evolve and become part of the language.
 
Sixties button badges (the pedestrian's bumper stickers) had slogans/cliches (just like the advertisers)  and some of them were pretty witty...
 
Still, Google got all confused:
 
people have that phrase every which way....
 
While searching, I came across The Frumious Bandersnatch. Probably worth a little more exploring. They had the phrase on World's Greatest Truisms...probably a weird use of the word truism....anyway...
 
Just as Cool Quotes have at least one very uncool quote...
 
Glass Ceiling
 
The phrase it attributed to Rita Mae Brown here

Hey, I said it may only be of interest to me...

I just looked in the Retrostats (you have access on the Home page, too) and found this mix of visitors's languages (well, it impresses me) although I think it may mean 'hits' not separate visitors:

English 1462
German 295
Danish 109
French 72
Dutch 52
Hebrew 34
Unknown 19
Spanish 13
Chinese 6
Hungarian 5
Portuguese 4
Swedish 3
Japanese 3
Italian 3
Norwegian 3
Finnish 2
Malay 1
Russian 1
Czech 1
Turkish 1
Interlingue 1
Croatian 1

OK OK Flanagan and Allan were sentimental at times...

BBC Comedy Guide

The Crazy Gang was a collection of zany comedians: three double acts - Jimmy Nervo and Teddy Knox, Bud Flanagan and Chesney Allen, and Charlie Naughton and Jimmy Gold - and, perhaps the most comical of them all, 'Monsewer' Eddie Gray, a slapstick maestro and comedy juggler of the first order. The acts had enjoyed individual successes but together they were a comedy phenomenon, packing theatres and appearing in a number of films, starting in 1938 with Okay For Sound (director Marcel Varney). 'Crazy' was the right word for them: their antics combined verbal gymnastics with farce and elaborate physical comedy, and it all seemed totally unstructured - lunatic stream-of-consciousness complemented by custard pies. Off stage too they developed an infamous reputation as practical jokers, and played many pranks on one another and fellow guest stars; hoaxes that ranged from the harmless to the cruel and, on some occasions, the downright dangerous. The team remained hugely popular for many years, Flanagan in particular being adored by the British public.

They are sometimes compared to the Marx Brothers - and that may have been true about the live shows that the Marxes used to prepare material for filming. I would think the parallel is closer to Hellzapoppin'.

Before they fade away...

Well, before they fade (and I know they weren't PC, their jokes - it's a long time ago)

the only image of Eddy I could find on the web

I'll have to find some hard copy to scan. Anyway, I once met Eddy's brother in Battersea Park. I was doing a show with (probably) The Raree Show - and he took me aside afterwards (me, a self-taught juggler) and showed me more possibilities to work on than I could even imagine. Not just showing-off hard stuff, but good solid gags, safe funny moves - the stuff audiences like, not the stuff that impresses other jugglers, necessarily. He gave me the right mix of skill and crowd-pleasing to maximise the impact of my minimal talent and/or experience.

I worked on the material from that ten minutes in the park for the next year or two. Meetings With Remarkable Men has nothing on this....

Before it fades away....

...the last post on the blog (showing) was about Music Hall, and there was a link which may have escaped your attention - to an article about Vaudeville, which I thought was excellent.

In the UK, in the 1940s and 50s, The Crazy Gang were Britain's favourite comics. Of course, a lot of it is corny now, and dated humour BUT they were a group of double acts who had joined together, and there was only one solo performer in the group, but perhaps not of the group...

Monsewer Eddie Gray.

I am going to lift a quote:

COPYRIGHT 2002 The New York Observer
COPYRIGHT 2002 Gale Group

Vaudeville was the "Theatre of the Absurd" before its time. When Sir John Betjeman was poet laureate of England, he was invited by a London newspaper to have lunch with the person he would most like to meet. He wisely chose "Monsewer" Eddie Gray, who was known as "the black swan of music hall." "Monsewer" Eddie spoke Cockney and mangled French and wore a ridiculous, glued-on curled mustache. "Madame and masseurs," he would confidently announce. "How are you, all right? Enjoyin' yourself? I'll soon put a stop to that."

I guess you had to be there. He was a juggler, though they didn't mention it in that rather more general article (though there are several gems if you go visit), and it does sound as though M. Gray could have been funny doing anything - like Tommy Cooper. (OK, OK - local UK references - I have no idea whether people in other countries have even heard of these guys).

You have your own comedy heroes. Or, if you're in Bulgaria, you get Norman Wisdom.
(Nothing against Norman, let it be said, one of the classic music hall pratfall artists of his day). If only he didn't sing (but that's just me) oh and the sentiment (oh just me again?) which turns up in Chaplin and may just be a working class element that eludes me (ooh eludes!)

I don't like sentiment, it's like emotions for people who don't really feel them. The nazis made sentimental movies. yer know. Anyway...

I like Buster Keaton because in his feature films he often starts out rich and stupid and naive, and through the film develops his daring, and ingenuity, and self-confidence - and ends up with a (perhaps poor) sensible and happy and empowered life.

Initiation myths, not tooth fairies (sentiment). Growing up, not winning the lottery.

And I like W.C.Fields, not because he is good to look at (Gaaaah! with finger twiddle) but because of his unremitting passive aggressive approach to the world. There is no sentiment in the other people's characters at all - they all seem to want something from him (except daughters, some times). Fields doesn't appear sentimental either, but he may be the kind of drunk who drinks because of the shattered dreams of a romantic spirit. Curious that people think of drunks as insensitive, when it is often hypersensitivity that drives them to numb the input.

(mumble) But I digress....

Amazin, isn't it? Laurel and Hardy are Dic and Doc, or Fat and Thin, or anyone you like...These films went around the world. What we on earth call universal.

That explains it...

This is very spooky - but spot on - from the CTheory site.

George Bush really IS Chance the Gardener from Being There, elected by that very cadre that carry the coffin towards the (23) mausoleum...how could I have missed it?

Ron Steigler: Mr. Gardner, uh, my editors and I have been wondering if you would consider writing a book for us, something about your um, political philosophy, what do you say?
Chance the Gardener: I can't write.
Ron Steigler: Heh, heh, of course not, who can nowadays? Listen, I have trouble writing a postcard to my children. Look uhh, we can give you a six figure advance, I've provide you with the very best ghost-writer, proof-readers...
Chance the Gardener: I can't read.
Ron Steigler: Of course you can't! No one has the time! We, we glance at things, we watch television...
Chance the Gardener: I like to watch TV.
Ron Steigler: Oh, oh, oh sure you do. No one reads!

We have some good times...

I forgot to say thanks for the haircut...

auto photo at night

A Muse and A Maze - your friends

As I doubt that many people find the page where I link to magical stuff (well, it's supposed to be a little bit secret) - I thought I would put a couple of the more amazing 'related arts' links here for your entertainment...

I recently read Ian Rowland's book on 'cold reading' and it was great (though I remain theoretical).

I love the puzzle cards he makes (Wow - ReFlexions and Flinks) (but haven't invested in one yet).

He also has a couple of 'impossible objects' or PPOs (Permanent Paranormal Objects) - a topological area that fascinates me.

And finally, why not look at his excellent and intriguing set of links , but be warned - you may be gone for some time!

Finally, I'd like to say thanks to him, for the link to Val Andrews' Book Test, which I ordered from Val - and it is truly simple and devious. To find this you will need to go to his Magicians Only page. Sorry, can't help with the password, but it really shouldn't be difficult if you have ANY magical knowledge at all. Let's face it, I don't claim much - member of the London Society of Magicians Junior Section for a few years - dropped all magic to try to concentrate on the education my mum wanted me to acquire - then dropped out of school - and used a few simple, strong tricks in my street show. Used to hang out with Jake (and pick his brains) at Davenports (when it was opposite the British Museum) and Alan Alan at his shop down the road.

But seriously though, Bob....

It cheered me up to come across the Playboy Interview with Dylan, back in – oh, 1966.

Good jokes, of course, and funny locutions. More importantly – I like his refusal to answer a question until he has examined the underlying assumptions and implications of the question.

This is way before NLP, but long after General Semantics had analysed the way language hypnotises us – although people like R.D.Laing were already challenging the boorish assumptions of ‘everyday thought’ and ‘common sense’ – and back then it was considered flippant and smart-ass and rebellious whereas I read it as trying to answer the question (and its assumptions) accurately….

But then I’m a wise-ass, too.

And there's a definitive collection of interview material here.

The sun came out...

You know I am in trouble when I start to talk about the weather.

My inner landscape, with all its strange flora and fauna, is not a jungle I want to invite people into today - in there it is gloomy and overcast...

so "Have a Nice Day!"

"Cheer up, it may never happen!"

"You use 13 muscles to smile, and 53 muscles to frown!"

And if that doesn't make you feel like strangling me, and putting me out of my misery, then I don't know what will.

I am off now, to get a job as a clown for MacDonalds....

It seems this desire to hack your hair off is catching...and (Monday morning now) it's FREEZING on the back of my neck - that's just the way the British weather is at the moment....