BRONXGIRL'S MOTHER, HENRY FONDA'S HIRSUTENESS, ETC.

[Bronxgirl48]

Palmetto bugs and an army of voracious ants have invaded our school.

 

We look twice before going into the bathroom.

 

How would you like to be in the middle of doing your business and then see a giant cockroach heading your way?

 

Or lean against a wall and have your blouse covered by tiny specks of "pepper"?

 

Then there are the screeching mating frogs.

 

Not to mention the threat of restless alligators crawling out of a canal which is just across the street.

[Bronxgirl48]

This evening at our school I was walking down a corridor heading for one of the computer rooms where several of our adult ESL students were going to be tested.  It was early; nobody had arrived yet.  I was alone.  The air inside was fetid and a bit rank.  I thought I heard skittering noises all around me, but these were replaced by a stranger, more inexplicable sound.

 

A gentle but persistant bounce.

 

My eyes darted here and there, but I couldn't initially see anything.

 

Suddenly, an object came ROLLING TOWARDS ME...

 

It was a softball, colored a disgusting mucus-green, like it had crawled up from the depths of a hideous, primeval swamp..

 

The thing then landed at my feet as though it had reached some final and fated destination. 

 

I ran the other way down the hall. 

 

When I glanced back, IT WAS GONE.

[laffite]

Barb, you really need to stop putting off writing those screenplays. You have a lot of talent. I think you be quite successful writing uh, HORROR movies. (duh)

 

The cockroaches wouldn't disturb me in the least, but that comment about alligators makes me nervous.

 

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EDIT: BTW, I meant to say earlier how nice that your mom is back at at Assistant Living and has access to TCM, as well as the rest of the advantages.

 

Just noticed the date; my mom died six years ago today .... at 94 ... peacefully.

 

laffite

Edited July 14, 2015 by laffite

[Bronxgirl48]

So sorry about your mom, lafitte.  

 

Happy Bastille Day.

 

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[molo14]

Hi there Bronxie,

 

Hugs to your mom! I'm so glad she is back at home and enjoying TCM again and all the Shirley Temple films. My favorite Temple film is Little Miss Marker, such a wonderful comedy.

 

 

Your mother, like mine, doesn't realize she's not as spry as when younger.  (at first I thought a vinca was some kind of rodent and was frightened for her, lol)

 

Man, that is the truth! She would just love to get at those flower beds and start weeding and pruning. I have considered putting a soft rubber mat down on the ground (that is what I use) and just letting her have at it, that way she couldn't fall. I'm not sure if that is a good idea or not but with my bad back once she is down there I would never get her back up so I can't do it now anyway.

 

My thoughful neighbor gave me one of those "garden kneelers" and I used it for about a year before it broke under my weight. That really depressed me so I never bothered with another one.

 

Vincas are not a big favorite but mom has a place for just about every annual you can imagine. I just do what I'm told.

 

 

Ah, watermelon on the porch...

 

  I couldn't get through a summer without it. There is nothing like cold watermelon to cool you down and rejuvenate you when doing yardwork!

 

 

I've got a patio out back overlooking a pond wherein I'm sure gators are lurking, so I never feel completely at ease.

 

Oh no, as I've urged you many times, never let your guard down. That's what they are waiting for.

 

 

Karen Black is cross-eyed but a good actress.  She's wonderful in FIVE EASY PIECES as Jack Nicholson's long-suffering girlfriend.

 

I really like her. She was a big star during the seventies. I remember going to the drive in with my family to see Airport 75 when I was a kid. Another all star disaster! Poor Karen had to fly that plane until Charton Heston could drop in from the sky. I tell ya they just don't make 'em like that anymore Bronxie!

 

 

You could really make a good marathon just revisiting some of her films from that era. Along with Five Easy Pieces, you could add Nashville, Day of the Locust and Family Plot among others.

 

I'll be seeing her again soon as I continue my journey through old 70's horror films. I'm going to check out the TV film Trilogy of Terror which I remember seeing as a kid. I think that was a real showcase for her. I just watched another TV movie from 1977 called Dead of Night. Another trilogy and in the last segment the kid from Burnt Offerings shows up and he is really scary!

 

Oh and that picture of that weird chauffeur you posted. He scared the heck out of me!!! I'm still not sure why he showed up though.

 

 

Tell your sister I can get my passport ready in 24 hours.

 

Ha! She left today and stopped by to say goodbye and maybe rub it in a bit. She is going back again in March!

 

 

Stay tuned for another ghost story.

 

Our school is apparently haunted.

 

I read that! What is with that school you work at anyway?! Maybe you shouldn't be wandering those corridors alone! Between the creatures and the ghosts you should be walking with maybe a Richard Carlson type on one side and a grandfatherly British Scientist on the other. Let me know how things go.

 

Maybe Ray Milland could help. He has experience with both ghosts and creatures.

 

 

 

Palmetto bugs and an army of voracious ants have invaded our school.

 

Then there are the screeching mating frogs.

 

See this is why I don't get down to Florida as much as I used to. 

 

As always, be careful out there!

 

 

 

[rohanaka]

Trilogy of Terror which I remember seeing as a kid.

 

Oh good gravy Madhat. I remember that one from waaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyy back when i was a kid. And may I just say.. AGGGGGHHHH!! ha. If I recall correctly, that one  was on when I had a sleepover with a couple of friends (maybe 6th grade??) and we kept running up and down the stairs of our house to hide everytime it got too scary. ha. (those were the days.. ha) 

 

Meanwhile.. Bronxie... watch out for all those crazy, creepy THINGS going on out there ha. I think you definitely need to plan that vacation to the Riviera SOON. ha. 

 

[molo14]

 

Oh good gravy Madhat. I remember that one from waaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyy back when i was a kid. And may I just say.. AGGGGGHHHH!! ha. If I recall correctly, that one  was on when I had a sleepover with a couple of friends (maybe 6th grade??) and we kept running up and down the stairs of our house to hide everytime it got too scary. ha. (those were the days.. ha)

 

Hey Ro,

 

I remember a lot of those TV films from the 70's were really scary, at least I thought so at the time, but I can't really remember which was which. I will be watching alone in the night, in the dark so I will probably end up scaring myself silly!

 

There were a lot of pretty good TV shows on back then too, all those horror anthologies. Sometimes I don't know if I'm remembering a scene for a film, a tv movie or a television show.

[MissGoddess]

Bon soir, Bronxette,

How is your mother feeling now?  Much, much better I hope.

 

Speaking of rocks, remember that creepy old "Outer Limits" episode with those talking alien life forms that attached themselves to human faces?  Nothing healing about them.

 

 

I have to find this episode!  I hope YouTube/Hulu has "The Outer Limits".  This and the one about the Bee-Girl sound fascinating.  Speaking of bees, I remember also being traumatized by "The Killer Bees" TV movie---I didn't know who Gloria Swanson was but I kept asking my parents for weeks if there was an imminent bee-invasion.  Sadly, the world is now suffering because there aren't enough bees out there.

 

I think of you often when I see all the little geckos around my back garden.  The boys of course are in ecstasy whenever they can pounce on one (I always rescue them from their clutching paws before it's too late). 

 

Meanwhile, back on the Riviera---have you seen Agnès Varda's documentary on the Cote d'Azur?  It is the most charming video I have ever seen on our favorite place.  It's on Criterion DVD but TCM aired it a few weeks ago and I was so enchanted.  It's made in the 50s, brilliant color and poetic narration.  You will die.  Maybe it's on YouTube.  Search for the director's name, Agnès Varda.

 

Molo---check out the British version of "Thriller" (not the original, Karloff series) anthology series on YouTube---there are several episodes posted there and I think the English do scary better than anyone.  More ambiance, less gore.  But I have watched a lot of the 70s made-for-TV scary movies on YouTube.  I grew up with them so it brings back memories of my own horror-show childhood, lol.  Karen Black was the scream queen back then.  That little African native in "Trilogy of Terror" goes down as one of the scariest things I have ever seen.

 

Laffitte---an eye patch?  Like Molo, I assumed you already sported one.  You are in good company (Hollywood pirates Lang, Ford, Hathaway, de Toth, etc.).

 

 

 

 

[Bronxgirl48]

Hi, guys!  I'll be back later this evening.

 

Miss G., merci!  Mom is tres bien.

 

Look what I found:  a Joanna Frank Outer Limits Bee Girl doll, lol:

 

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"Corpus Earthling":

 

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[Bronxgirl48]

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[Bronxgirl48]

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[Bronxgirl48]

Goddess, oui, I've seen DU COTE DE LA COTE, and love it!

 

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[SansFin]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VDjXXAOSx9A

[Swithin]

Reminds me of a favorite Russian-related song of my (relative) youth:

 

 

[Bronxgirl48]

Hello, masha!  That's Odessa, right?  The Russian Riviera!  I really like those sleek white modern-looking hotels, if that's what they are, near the Black Sea.

 

ro, after 15 years of living in South Florida, you'd think I'd be used to all these critters, lol.  But, well, no, ha!   I try to rationalize that most if not all of them have been here for thousands or millions of years before us (especially the gators) but it just doesn't do much for my peace of mind. 

 

Miss G., I used to love bees before seeing that Outer Limits episode -- they were always so cute and chubby; adorable for an insect, lol.  Then also, on the news we'd keep hearing reports of "foreign" bees who were "invading" America and how we had to never let our guard down because of this so-called threat.  Just more anti-bee propaganda, lol.

 

I think of you often as well whenever I see anything about Hawaii.  I'm so happy you're living where there are geckos, ha!  Much more compatible than anything you'd find back in Manrattan.  I know the boys love them, too, lol.  Sounds like you all are thriving!  I'm an Agnes Varda fan, especially after seeing CLEO FROM 5 to 7, and I love her almost subversive "take" of the French Riviera.

 

molo, I would hate for your Mom to essentially give up her beloved gardening, but the thought of the two of you in a "We've fallen and can't get up" scenario is not a pleasant one to say the least.  Not sure what the best answer is for her or you with that bad back.

 

I have three favorite Shirley Temple movies:  in order, they are HEIDI, THE LITTLE PRINCESS, and CAPTAIN JANUARY.  Haven't seen LITTLE MISS MARKER.   There's another one I want to catch because over the years I've only managed to watch bits and pieces which I've enjoyed, but can't remember the title.  It takes place in 19th-century New York and I believe Frank Morgan is also in the cast.  If I recall correctly, Shirley does some street busking and of course is thoroughly and impossibly adorable.

 

Even when Karen Black is in schlock, she gives a good performance, lol.   Is that 1977 t.v. movie DEAD OF NIGHT a remake of the 1945 British classic trilogy?

 

Talking about Richard Carlson -- he's so sweet in HOLD THAT GHOST, so protective of lovely Evelyn Ankers.  And I adore Ray Milland in THE UNINVITED.  After boldly confronting you-know-who on the staircase in that film, a haunted softball would be a piece of cake for him, lol.

 

I'm trying to come up with some good things to say about Florida.  Probably the months of December, January and February, when it really does seem like a tropical paradise even to us, but more especially to everyone up North freezing their tushies off.

[SansFin]

Hello, masha!  That's Odessa, right?  The Russian Riviera!  I really like those sleek white modern-looking hotels, if that's what they are, near the Black Sea.

 

 

It is indeed Odessa! It is Ukrainian Riviera. I believe most people find it much better vacation than French Riviera. Mediterranean is static picture. Black Sea is alive! People go to Nice to be bored. They go to Odesa to live!

 

It is also that Odesa is far less expensive. Hotels are nice but apartments are available at all times at very good rates. Prices in restaurants are very reasonable and selection of food is greater because Odesa is very cosmopolitan. One of the best Irish pubs in the world is there. I believe that a tourist would spend less in a month in Odesa than they would in a week in France.

 

The only sad note is that the clothing-optional beach is no longer the fun and beautiful thing it was forty years ago. It is best to avoid it. 

[MissGoddess]

Much more compatible than anything you'd find back in Manrattan.  I know the boys love them, too, lol.  Sounds like you all are thriving!

 

 

Well, the one thing both places do have in common is my mortal enemy: la cucaracha.  GRANDE cucarachas.  :o

 

I'll take gators any day over them!

 

I had to rescue two more geckos from King Paws today.  Lots of lizards are now wiggling around with stumpy tails, lol.

 

[molo14]

 

Molo---check out the British version of "Thriller" (not the original, Karloff series) anthology series on YouTube---there are several episodes posted there and I think the English do scary better than anyone.  More ambiance, less gore.  But I have watched a lot of the 70s made-for-TV scary movies on YouTube.  I grew up with them so it brings back memories of my own horror-show childhood, lol.  Karen Black was the scream queen back then.  That little African native in "Trilogy of Terror" goes down as one of the scariest things I have ever seen.

 

Hi MissG.,

 

I will check that out. I agree that the English do scary very well. I've found some intersting old british shows and teleplays on youtube.

[molo14]

Hi Bronxie,

 

 

molo, I would hate for your Mom to essentially give up her beloved gardening, but the thought of the two of you in a "We've fallen and can't get up" scenario is not a pleasant one to say the least.  Not sure what the best answer is for her or you with that bad back.

 

 

Well I could at least get up!    Not sure what's best either though.

 

 

I have three favorite Shirley Temple movies:  in order, they are HEIDI, THE LITTLE PRINCESS, and CAPTAIN JANUARY.  Haven't seen LITTLE MISS MARKER.   There's another one I want to catch because over the years I've only managed to watch bits and pieces which I've enjoyed, but can't remember the title.  It takes place in 19th-century New York and I believe Frank Morgan is also in the cast.  If I recall correctly, Shirley does some street busking and of course is thoroughly and impossibly adorable.

 

I don't remember Captain January.  I think that is one of her big ones though. Shirley is very cute. Little Miss Marker is really not a Shirley Temple film in the usual sense. It was made at Paramount for one thing. I think it was just as she was becoming a big star.

 

It's a Damon Runyon story. More of an Adolphe Menjou film really but it has a great cast including Charles Bickford, Lynne Overman, Warren Hymer and poor Dorothy Dell whose career was really starting to take off before her tragic accident. Shirley figures prominently in it too. I think you would like it because of the actors and the Runyon characters.

 

 

Even when Karen Black is in schlock, she gives a good performance, lol.   Is that 1977 t.v. movie DEAD OF NIGHT a remake of the 1945 British classic trilogy?

 

 I agree about Karen Black. No, the '77 movie has three different stories and the last one is the best, as usual.

[laffite]

Hi MissG.,

 

I will check that out. I agree that the English do scary very well. I've found some intersting old british shows and teleplays on youtube.

 

The English do everything very well.

 

Early on they were the absolute worst. Remember the Series that TCM put on way back a few years ago? Forget the title, but it was a 6-part overview of the Silent era, absolutely fascinating. Have they ever repeated that? Is it on DVD, I wonder. The English silent film era was shown as backward. One particularly egregious example is when a stagehand had to come on (on screen and fully visible) and close a door in a scene that they didn't even bother to re-shoot. That was probably more a money thing than an oversight, though. But today's England is so near-perfect with just about everything ...

[molo14]

Hey Laffite,

 

I do remember that series. I can't remember what it was called either so I can't check to see if it is on DVD. 

 

 

[Bronxgirl48]

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[Bronxgirl48]

Masha, thank heavens for YouTube so I can "experience" the Russian Riviera in Odessa.  I project myself into those videos, eating copious amounts of caviar, borscht, and drinking a lot of ice-cold vodka, lol.

 

Miss Goddess, truth be told, I'm with you -- my mortal enemy is not the gator but the c-o-c-k-r-o-a-c-h.  Ugh, can barely type that name!    Here in Florida they even fly.  ("palmetto bugs")

 

Molo, I managed to find the 1977 Dead of Night in segments on YouTube, and will probably watch it this evening.

 

Last Thursday marked the beginning of our summer vacation; we return the first week of September.

 

It was a decidedly non-auspicous start for me, as I sat vacantly on my lovely St. Tropez-ish seafoam-colored lounge chair in the living room scarfing down Cocoa Puffs from the box and watching ERASERHEAD (I tried describing this film to my mother, but she stopped me in five seconds), all the while dreaming of al fresco dining on a Cote D'Azur patio in the South of France.

[Bronxgirl48]

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Anybody else see TWO ON A GUILLOTINE?  The rabbit was my favorite character.  It must have been Max Steiner's too, lol, because he gives him/her its own theme. (even during Cricket's nightmare, this bunny shows up and so does the cute music)  I suppose for plot purposes it was necessary (but hard for film buffs to believe) that stalwart, no-nonsense Connie Gilchrist be driven over the housekeeper's edge by Floppy Ears, culminating in Connie running screaming from Romero's mansion.  (okay, a floating skeleton didn't help...)   Director William Conrad not only throws in odes to William Castle, but Hitchcock as well --  I refer you to the scene in that nightclub/restaurant hybrid, where Dean Jones and Stevens share a very NORTH BY NORTHWEST kiss.

[SansFin]

I project myself into those videos, eating copious amounts of caviar, borscht, and drinking a lot of ice-cold vodka, lol.

 

 

Typical American! You have to feast on cheese blintzes and cherry-stuffed varenyky! Grilled sturgeon and lamb cutlets are everywhere. Mead with every meal! Let honey cakes destroy your diet!.  .