Paramount Pictures "Stage M" & Elmer Bernstein Too

In a piece I wrote on December 7, 2024, I mentioned a 'famous' film studio's music recording stage: Paramount Pictures' Stage M.  Many scores were recorded there, including those for: Sunset Boulevard; Psycho; Breakfast at Tiffany's; Out of Africa; The Hunt for Red October; Goodwill Hunting; Road to Perdition; The Bourne Identity; 2 Fast 2 Furious; The Island; Nacho Libre; and WALL-E. Music for Paramount television shows was recorded there, too, including episode background cues for now-classic programmes such as Mission: Impossible and Star Trek.

Recordings were not limited to instrumental parts. "White Christmas", "Mona Lisa", "Que Sera, Sera", and "Moon River" are some famous motion picture songs laid down at Stage M, by artists such as Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole, and Doris Day.

That storied recording studio is now gone, having been closed in 2006, but through all the men and women who followed the batons of music men such as Victor Young, Bernard Herrmann, Henry Mancini, John Barry, and Jerry Goldsmith, its acoustical memories live on.

___

The late great film composer Elmer Bernstein recorded his classic score for The Ten Commandments at "M". (He replaced Victor Young when the veteran composer fell ill.) The film itself doesn't deserve, but needs, this brilliant work.

Happy Easter!

Elmer Bernstein conducts a cue for The Ten Commandments (1956).

Photos reproduced with permission by The Bernstein Family Trust

Flatscreen Tonight: Annie Hall (1977)

What a wonderful film.

I saw Annie Hall when it was first released. While I was young at the time, just sixteen, for the most part I got the flick's main theme... even if I didn't know at the time who Marshall McLuhan was. (His moment got a big laugh from the audience that night). Tonight's viewing reminded me why this film turned out to be my favourite of 1977. For me, Annie Hall is one of Woody Allen's best pictures.

Picturing: To the Polls! (University-Rosedale)

While grabbing my Tim Hortons coffee this morning I was reminded that advance polls opened today for three important byelections here in Canada. As a citizen of this beautiful and free country, I have a job to do... besides taking the above advance picture.

My riding of "University-Rosedale" is a Liberal fortress. Danielle Martin is new — replacing Chrystia Freeland — but she is expected to win. From Tony Ianno to Chrystia Freeland to....

Monday, April 13th will be a big day.

Picturing: On the Ferry from England to France

Looking down the stern into English Channel waters churning.

Picturing: Eastern Arm — Port of Dover

Returning from France: late afternoon sun as we enter the Port of Dover.

Artemis II and a Book About the Great Apollo 8

Genesis: The Story of Apollo 8

― The First Manned Flight to Another World ―

by

Robert Zimmerman

Dell Publishing

1998

With the Artemis II mission scheduled to start today, I thought it would be a good time to take a look back at Apollo 8, a mission I remember well. To this then seven-year-old, watching the Saturn V rocket light up for the first time was exciting.

There is one important difference between the Artemis II and Apollo 8 flights: Today's launch will, hopefully, lead to a free-return trajectory; a swing about our moon then back to Earth. In December of 1968, the Apollo 8 spacecraft entered lunar orbit, and after 10 rings around the moon, its service module engine lit up to bring the command module's astronauts, Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William Anders, back home.

Genesis: The Story of Apollo 8 is an absorbing read. Author Robert Zimmerman goes into great detail about the politics, engineering, and humanity of a daring lunar mission... one paving the way for the manned lunar landings, starting with Apollo 11.

Perhaps there will be a book written one day with the straightforward title: "Back Around the Moon - The Story of the Artemis II Moon Flight"

If there are no delays, Artemis II should lift off at 6:24pm (EDT) today.

Today's astronauts are: NASA's Reid Wiseman (Commander), Victor Glover (Pilot), Christina Koch (Mission Specialist), and the CSA’s Jeremy Hansen (Mission Specialist).

Godspeed to them all!

Blog Post: I Was a Fool!

Okay! I can no longer keep up this charade. Posing as a Liberal all these years has been painful, and has taxed my constitution to unbearable heights — elbows up! I'm really a Conservative, one who hoped could change meatheaded, granola-crunching, cappuccino-sucking Liberals.

Cognitive-freedom, at last!

Book: Midway (Sanford) ― Film Tie-In Novelization

Midway

by

Donald S. Sanford

A Bantam Book

June 1976

Midway (1976) was much anticipated by this military brat. I picked up that film's tie-in novelization at CFB Borden's PX (Post Exchange) as soon as it hit the stands, which was before the flick was released. I never ran out to see it: my guess is reading the book didn't prompt me to then see Midway the movie when that side of the story hit the big screen — at Borden's "Terra Theatre". Interesting note: a buddy of mine decided not to buy the book when he realized it wasn't a historical recounting of The Battle of Midway, but a novelization, with "the movie's dialogue" and such.

 Midway was an easy enough read. I still have not seen Midway.

Behind the Arriflex IIB 35mm Motion Picture Camera

Shooting a Dick Tracy lookalike.

Behind the Mitchell Mk II 35mm Motion Picture Camera

I loved that camera. It's primarily an "effects" camera due to the fact that it is un-blimped... too noisy for audio recording. The camera, and geared head, "wheels", were owned by Film Opticals of Canada, Ltd., the company I worked for at the time as an optical compositor.

Blog Post: Toronto is Warm Today

About an hour ago I returned home from running a couple of errands. Wow... Toronto is warm right now: 17 Celsius (63 Fahrenheit)

My RCAF Hoodie was almost too warm. The projected high for the day is 19 (66).

Off to my 'reading room'!....

Picturing: Emirates A380 on Approach to Pearson

Some great views can be had when one walks under one of an airport's approach lanes. An Emirates Airbus A380 flew overhead; it's such a big flying machine that it looks as though it's floating as much as approaching.

Toronto Pearson International Airport, YYZ, is up ahead....

Website Stats: From the Last 24 Hours

Last Wednesday I got all excited and posted my websites website traffic from "now". I'm interested in statistics, especially when they pertain to a little guy like me. We do live in a big world, which this morning's data peek reminded me of.

This time, however, I'm noting web traffic here from the "Last 24 hours".

1)  Singapore: 973

2)  United States: 541

3)  Vietnam: 505

4)  India: 132

5)  Brazil: 131

6)  Mexico: 103

7)  Hong Kong: 83

8)  Bangladesh: 79

9)  Pakistan: 68

10) Venezuela: 56

Picturing: A Red Metal Bird on Finch (Toronto)

While up in the northern part of Toronto yesterday I snapped a picture of this lovely new arrival of red-enameled steel: a Finch?

I'm pretty slow sometimes. Minutes after taking this snap I remembered I was on Finch Avenue.

Hello!... Little Birdy!

* * *

Canon SX720 HS camera data:

ISO speed: 80

F-stop: f/4.0

Exposure time: 1/640

Sunday Fun: For the Love of Movies, Eh?

TVO (TV Ontario), through its extensive interviews done for its great film shows, Saturday Night at the Movies and Magic Shadows, both hosted by the late great Elwy Yost, has a lot of raw and archival material to build more programming. They have done just that.

"Canadians are funny, eh?" is the first installment of For the Love of Movies. It was first broadcast last evening on the TVO network, then uploaded to TVO's "Docs" YouTube channel.

"In this episode we explore the serious business of comedy. Canada's greatest export might be laughter – from the physical comedy of Jim Carrey, the characters of Mike Myers, or the timeless genius of Martin Short, Dan Ackroyd, John Candy, Catherine O'Hara, and Eugene Levy. Second City launched legends, and Norman Jewison's sharp, satirical touch brought challenging stories to the big screen with wit and warmth. As masters of improv, character comedy, and satire, learn how Canada's comedic talents have carried laugher across the globe."

There is no need for me to review Episode 1, but I will recommend it... highly.

Postscript: "Canadians are funny, eh?" spends a few minutes on the 1966 feature film, The Russians Are Coming!, The Russian Are Coming!. Norman Jewison, that picture's director, mentions that, for him, Russians' screenings in Moscow were the beginning of Glasnost. Immediately, and understandably, an onscreen graphic pops up explaining what that term means.... 

"Glasnost - a soviet policy of more transparency in political and social issues, introduced in the late 1980s."  Actually, it should read: "... introduced in the mid 1980s." (Who did that research?)

Looping The Ecclesiastical Hierarchy

Do I believe in God?

No.

Why would I when he doesn't believe in me?

Humour: Unfortunately

She dumped me.

"I'm leaving you for another man."

I was crushed.

"Just kidding!"

I felt much better.

"I'm leaving you for another woman."

Website Stats: From the Last Two Hours

Statistics bore many people. But while I was taking in some website traffic data minutes ago, I noticed the spread of hits; as in what countries the traffic is coming from... from the last two hours, that is. Boring, perhaps, but interesting:

1)  United States: 186

2)  Singapore: 108

3)  United Kingdom: 40

4)  India: 25

5)  Hong Kong: 24

6)  Canada: 13

7)  France: 8

8)  Vietnam: 8

9)  Romania: 7

10) Poland: 6

The hits are constant, so whatever I key-in above will be dated by the time I post it.

Question: What Movie Did I See?

After taking in a movie matinee at Toronto's "Bloor Cinema" (now the "Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema") one beautifully sunny day in April of 2000, I called my brother:

"I just saw the best f*cking movie ever made!"

"What did you see?"

Yes, what did I see?

A clue, although it would function more as trivia since it wouldn't mean a lot to the reader: I first saw it when I was a kid living in (West) Germany. The screening took place at CFB Baden-Soellingen's "Astra" theatre, a few years after the flick in question was first released. My Grade-3 schoolmates and I enjoyed our day at the movies. (From a seat behind me: "He won't shoot him.") Little did I know my rating would fly sky-high years later, and involve a modicum of essential profanity.

Athot for the Day: That Certain Contest

I think I fell on prosperity's lap.