Saturday, February 21, 2009

Kirsty Hume

Two-Minute Warning (1976)



Average thriller with a list of stars in small parts. Takes quite a time to get going, but is occasionally effective.

Retro Puppet Master (1999)



I'm really uncertain about this movie. It was awkwardly slow, sometimes ridiculous, but then in parts had a weird atmosphere and some production value. Alltogether not really a good movie, though.

Indeterminacy 119



Mr. Romanoff is sixty years old. Mr. Nearing
is seventy years old. Mr. Romanoff’s mother
is eighty-five. On one of the mushroom field
trips, a photographer came who had been sent
by The New York Times. We took the Stony
Brook trail. We had no sooner gotten
started than the photographer busied himself taking
pictures. Soon Mr. Romanoff was not to be
seen. Mr. Nearing drew Lois Long aside and
said, “Mr. Romanoff has had an accident to
his pants. Would you find out whether one
of the ladies has a safety pin?” Lois Long
complied. A very small safety pin was
found, and Lois Long gave it to Mr.
Romanoff. He came back to the group.
The safety pin, being so small,
proved ineffective. Mr. Romanoff
nevertheless stayed with the group, and,
as the walk continued, the
split in his pants progressed until it was
complete, crotch to cuff. We
stopped for lunch at a spring.
Mr. Romanoff looked at his pants and said,
“My mother will hear about this.”

- John Cage

New stuff





Friday, February 20, 2009

A Scan a Day




Indeterminacy 136



I was twelve years old. I got out my bicycle and rode
over to KFWB. They said, “What do you want?” I said,
“I’d like to give a weekly radio program for the Boy
Scouts.” They said, “Are you an Eagle?” I said, “No,
I’m a Tenderfoot.” They said, “Did the Boy Scouts
send you?” I said, “No, I just got the idea and came
over.” They said, “Well, run along.” So I went over
to KNX. They liked the idea and arranged a time for
the first program. I then went to the Boy Scouts,
told them what had happened, and asked for their
approval and cooperation. They said it was all right
to give the program but that they would not
cooperate. In fact, they never did. Each time I
asked for the Boy Scout band, they said No.
Individual Scouts all gave their services willingly.
There were boy sopranos; trumpet, trombone, and
piano soloists; and Scouts who spoke on their
experiences building fires and tying knots. The
volume of fan mail increased each month. After two
years, the organization called up KNX, said they’d
never authorized the program, and demanded that
I be put out and they be put in. They were.
The band finally played. A few weeks
later, KNX took the program off the air.

- John Cage

Natalia Vodianova

Thursday, February 19, 2009

Indeterminacy 16



Another monk was walking
along when he came to a
lady
who was sitting by the path
weeping.

“What’s the
matter?”
he said.

She said,

sobbing,
“I have lost

my only

child.”

He hit
her over the head and
said, “There,
that’ll give you
something to cry about.”

- John Cage

A Scan a Day



Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Indeterminacy 131



We have the impression that
we’re learning nothing,
but as the years
pass we recognize more
and more mushrooms and
we find that the
names that go with them
begin to stick in our
heads.

Furthermore, we’re
still alive.

However, we must be
cautious.
Guy Nearing sometimes says
that all mushroom experts
die from mushroom poisoning.
Donald
Malcomb finds the
dangers of lion hunting
largely imaginary,
those of mushroom
hunting perfectly real.

- John Cage

A Scan a Day