Happy Birthday, Superman, who turns 75 today. He was the brainchild of two kids from Cleveland, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, and perhaps the best thing to have ever come out of that city. I hardly read any books as an adolescent and teen, but I was a big fan of comics, much the same as George Costanza and Jerry Seinfeld. There is an urban myth surrounding the Man of Steel and the Seinfeld TV series. It is said that there is a reference to Superman in every episode. Fans actually spend time debunking it. Although I no longer read the comic, I do view each new film on the legend. I tried to watch the Smallville TV series, but I couldn’t deal with the modern interpretation of the Kents. Anyway - “Look, up in the sky; it’s a bird; it’s a plane - it’s Superman.” And I end this segment with the phrase that has come to annoy the politically correct: “For truth, justice, and the American way.” Thank you, sirs.
I might never have gotten around to watching You’ve Got Mail (1998) had I not found it among the vast cache of DVDs and CDs someone left in a box in the trash room on my floor. Since I intend to sell it, I had to make sure it is in good condition. It is, and it’s a sweet film to boot. Directed by the late Nora Ephron, it is the story of two Manhattanites who will obviously end up together, despite severe differences. Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan are at their most charming. It is fairly wholesome by modern standards, although the two are living with other lovers through three-quarters of the film. I don’t recall a single cuss, refreshing for a production these days, given that westerns and gladiator works are now liable to be rife with profanity. The supporting cast features many Hollywood stalwarts: indie queen Parker Posey, Steve Zahn, Dabney Coleman, the late John Randolph, Greg Kinnear, and Jean Stapleton, who I find it impossible to separate from her role as Edith Bunker on All in the Family. On a scale of five, I rate it 3.25. It is rated 6.3 at IMDb. Fans of rom-com are sure to enjoy it. It is smooth. Nora and Delia Ephron adapted it from a play, Parfumerie, by Miklos Laszlo.
It looked like a day of no sales until a woman with a heavy Russian accent approached the floating book shop as I was packing up. She overpaid for Sue Grafton's N Is For Noose. Spasibo, madam, and thanks also to old Simon, who for the third time in the past seven days left a bag of books for me at Ali Baba's gyro truck.
Vic's Third Novel (Print or Kindle): http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
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