Did you notice that "Black Friday" and "Cyber Monday" are now an amorphous mass of several days before and after Thanksgiving? I love commerce as much as the next guy, but constant bombardment by apparently desperate retailers kind of ruins the party, don't you think? Especially when the "blow out" deals are just normal sales discounts. Ah, well. We are here at Giving Tuesday - please make a donation to your favorite organization. Let's help people and feed our souls.
I. Martin Scorsese
HBO Max has a number of Martin Scorsese's early works, and I tell you, his talent is obvious from the get-go. I watched two last night: "Italianamerican" and "It's Not Just You, Murray!"
In "Italianamerican," Scorsese interviews his parents (although it's his mother who does most of the responding). The movie was made in 1974. His parents were second-generation Americans. His family is charming, and recognizable. I grew up outside Philadelphia where a number of my friends were Italian Americans, and I sure recognized their parents in this movie.
I was drawn in by the stories, and by hearing from people who lived the lives of immigrant families in New York. And the story of Scorsese's great uncle needing an interpreter to meet with authorities to become a citizen - oh my God! He was in the US for 30 years and knew no English. Well, not much English, anyway. Just enough of the right words.
"It's Not Just You, Murray"is a 16 minute short about a self-described successful man who is self-deluded. This movie was a film school project, and it came out in 1964. It is funny as hell and really well done, and that's all I will say about it.
HBO Max is "screening" a number of Scorsese films. The more I see of his work, the more I love Scorsese, and I've always loved Scorsese.
II. "The Automat"
Also on HBO Max is a documentary called "The Automat." As mentioned above, I grew up outside Philadelphia, home of "Horn and Hardart," the creators of the Automat. An Automat is a cafeteria-style restaurant where on one or more of the walls are arrays of glass windowed doors, behind each is a food item, such as a sandwich, a plate of meatloaf, deserts, veggies, etc. You put a nickel or a dime in the slot, open the door, and you get the food. They were prevalent in Philadelphia and New York City.
I am old enough to have gone to the automats in Philly and New York a few times, and let me tell you, being a kid and having a few nickels and getting to decide exactly what you want to eat is paradise. For me, it was pies. Lots of pies.
This documentary is well done. There are a number of famous people discussing their experiences at automats, and learning more about how important they were back in the last century is eye-opening.
Enjoy!