the groundhog day project

Something I didn't know: a Broadway revival of The Pirates of Penzance had apparently done quite well in 1981. Universal pushed for a film version, but it wouldn't come out until 1983. In the meantime, Fox pushed out the send-up The Pirate Movie , beating the straight adaptation to the big screen. But, I really didn't want to talk about the pillaging of the theater but rather the pillaging of women, the patriarchy, and all the usual stuff I might talk about. The "noble custom" that dictates that the eldest daughter marry first, the youngest marry last, with nary a question of whether or not any of them want to marry. But, even on the other side, Frederic asks of Ruth (apparently before he's met other women, even though I'm sure he and his shipmates have raped and pillaged and plundered plenty) if she's beautiful. Almost immediately after meeting Mabel, he declares that he loves her and may want to marry her, because that is what he thinks non-pirate...

We interrupt the usual program for something new-- The Danish Girl . Saw it at a screening tonight with Q&A with the screenwriter, Lucinda Coxon, afterward. As the film has not properly come out yet, I will not actually say much--I don't expect--about its details. I was not sworn to secrecy as with a different screening a couple weeks ago (technically, I'm not sure I'm even supposed to mention what film that one was, let alone any details)-- (These screenings are benefit of living around LA, by the way, not some perk of being a movie blogger. Though, I do with that blogging every day about movies came with more perks than simply having an excuse to watch a movie every day.) --but I also don't want to SPOIL a film that is not really in theaters yet. It is a completed film, has been seen by audiences at film festivals and whatnot, though, so I also may be more specific if necessary rather than be stuck with broadstrokes. I will return to the 80s and teenagers tomo...

This entry goes out to all those researchers in the distant future trying to discover some information about the origins of The Groundhog Day Project . This is after the project has gone on to inspire the nations of the world to unite and we have world peace and Rufus and his ilk (yeah, I'm mixing my cinematic metaphor, so to speak) are trying to figure out how to worship me. I've explained before that I used Groundhog Day in nearly all of my impromptu speaking rounds when I was competing in collegiate speech and debate. I had even planned to alter the "normal" impromptu format for my final round of impromptu to, instead of taking one quotation and building examples around it, take all three quotations I was offered and apply them each to Groundhog Day . But, then life got complicated and I stopped doing impromptu a tournament or two before I thought I might. In retrospect, though I wouldn't have done too well at nationals, I probably should have done impromptu ...