The Martin Beck Mysteries

Earlier in this month I came across the obituary in the Washington Post for Swedish author Maj Sjowall, who died in April at the age of 84.  She along with her husband Per Wahloo were the authors of a series of police procedural novels featuring Swedish police homicide detective Martin Beck.  I was vaguely familiar with their names, but the story in the obit prompted me to seek out some of the books and give them a whirl, and I am glad that I did.

First off, the Sjowall/Wahloo team is credited for being the first authors to develop what is now known in the mystery field as "Nordic Noir", and they are given credit for being antecedents to the literature that eventually provided the Lisbeth Salander trio of Girl with the Dragon Tattoo novels by Stieg Larrson in the last decade.   Besides being top notch examples of the police procedural form (Ed McBain's 87th Precinct series strongly influenced the Beck series), they make, much like McBain did, some biting commentary on the national politics and society in general - Sweden in this case.  Their plan was to produce ten novels in the series, and that is exactly what they did before Wahloo died in 1975 at the age of 49.

Here are the books and the year of publication:

1. Roseanna (1965)
2. The Man Who Went Up in Smoke (1966)
3. The Man on the Balcony (1967)
4. The Laughing Policeman (1968) (Edgar Award, Best Novel, 1971)
5. The Fire Engine That Disappeared (1969)
6. Murder at the Savoy (1970)
7. The Abominable Man (1971)
8. The Locked Room (1972)
9. Cop Killer (1974)
10. The Terrorists (1975)

Over the last two weeks I was able to get ebooks from the library for both "Roseanna" and "The Laughing Policeman", and that has been enough for me to tell you that I have set a goal to read the other eight over the next year or so, they we're that good.   They detail what can often be the drudgery of police work.  In both books sometimes weeks and even months can go by where nothing happens on the case at hand.  The characters are not glamorous.  In both books that I read, Beck was constantly battling colds and illnesses, the weather is always lousy, and his marriage to a nagging wife is far from ideal, yet he trudges forward, albeit slowly at time, to solve the crime.  Note the years of publication for the books.  Despite characters constantly looking for payphones, and occasional references to the Viet Nam War and Lyndon Johnson, the books are amazingly relevant and not dated at all.   

If you are looking for a new series of mystery/detective/crime stories, I highly recommend the Martin Beck stories, but I will say that the Swedish names of both people and places does take some getting used to.  

The Grandstander is giving this series a solid Three Stars.

Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo

Sports Update?

Yep, that's a question mark in the headline because, really, we all know that there are no sports to speak of currently.  So this will really be me, more or less, cleaning out some shirt pocket notes.

There was one live event this past Sunday, and that was "The Match 2"  featuring the teams of Tiger Woods/Peyton Manning and Phil Mickelson/Tom Brady.

I watched and enjoyed it immensely and here are some of the reasons why.

• The Match raised $20 million for COVID19 relief efforts.

• It was played, for the most part, in miserable weather and these four multi-millionaire athletes soldiered on for the cause, so good for them. (Major League Baseball, take note.)
• All but Brady wore shorts.
• Manning and Brady, purportedly to be single digit handicappers, were spraying the ball over the course.  In my Tuesday round of Retiree Golf this week, I hit more fairways off the tee than Tom Brady did on Sunday (albeit I hit it a LOT shorter).  It's fun to see great athletes humbled.
• Tom Brady never used a driver.
• No caddies.  They drove their own carts, used range finders, cleaned their own clubs, and pulled their own pins.  I mean, TIGER WOODS was pulling the pins on the greens.  He probably hasn't had to do that since he was ten years old.
• Tiger Woods didn't miss a fairway all day.
• Tom Brady called Peyton Manning "Paydirt."  Great nickname.
• And of course, Brady holing out from 100+ yards in the fairway after hacking it all over the place. And splitting his pants.
• Justin Thomas as an on course commentator.
• Charles Barkley.
• And of course the constant realization that the game played by the likes of Woods and Mickelson is way, way, way different than the game played by high level amateurs like the two QB's, let alone the game played by hackers like you and me.

News reports a few days after the event had Mickelson speculating about continuing the format of The Match with different celebrity guests.   Names like Michael Jordan, Steph Curry, Tony Romo, and Patrick Mahomes were being floated by Lefty.  To that, I say be careful what you wish for.  Keep trotting the golden goose out there, and soon The Match will be just another dunk contest, home run derby, or outdoor NHL game.  Plus, how long will it be before the "celebrities" will C and D Listers like Ryan Seachrist and whoever it is that won the last season of The Bachelor?

********

While Woods, Mickelson, Manning, and Brady were slogging it through the downpours in Florida on Sunday, MLB and the MLBPA continued their pissing contest over money when and if some form of a Major League Baseball season is to be played.  You know the story: "Billionaires vs. Millionaires" fighting over  moola while 100,000 Americans have died and tens of millions are out of work because of a global pandemic.

Rather then me go on and on about the horrible optics of this whole thing, I strongly recommend that you read Jason Mackey's lengthy piece that appeared in the Op-Ed section of Sunday's Post-Gazette:

https://www.post-gazette.com/news/insight/2020/05/24/Home-run-or-strikeout-Baseball-s-return-to-play-negotiations-could-have-long-term-effect-on-the-game/stories/202005240045?fbclid=IwAR0a6H23SNIh1nX-uYMp0PlULzgYG4YIG1oHGBVb06uQc0_rJw1_MgYhAbY

It not only outlines the issues of these specific negations, but also lists why baseball, the sport, is declining in following among younger people.  The best line in the article is quote that says of MLB and its Players that "it's almost like they're asking people to not follow their sport."

As it is, I say that it is less than 25% probable that there will be a baseball season in 2020.  Hope I'm wrong.

********

Football.  I have watched two episodes of "America's Game" on the NFL Network highlighting the 1975 and 1978 seasons of the Pittsburgh Steelers.  The show on the 1979 season awaits me on my DVR.  I don't like to be one of those guys who wallow in nostalgia, but man it sure is fun watching those shows.   Those teams were GOOD!!!

To Absent Friends - Ken Osmond

If I say the name "Ken Osmond" to you, chances are you may not know of whom I am speaking.  However, if I say the name "Eddie Haskell", then there is a strong chance that just about every American of baby boom age knows exactly  who I am talking about.

Ken Osmond

1943 - 2020

Actor and retired Los Angeles Police Officer Ken Osmond died today at the age of 76.  

A child actor since the age of nine, Osmond had over a dozen credits in various TV shows and motion pictures when, in 1957, he auditioned for what was originally to be a one shot appearance playing a character named Eddie Haskell for the show "Leave It To Beaver," and television immortality was born.  Playing older brother Wally's pal, Haskell was smarmy and odiously obsequious to adults, but the ultimate smartass when with his pals, and particularly mean to the Beav.

To gauge the magnitude of the character's impact, how many of you reading this can recall interacting some jerk that you may have come across over the years of your life in school, the workplace, church, or your neighborhood and saying "That guy is a real Eddie Haskell type."

As Eddie Haskell

"Good afternoon, Mrs. Cleaver.  You're 

looking specially lovely today."

Instead of the one shot it was originally meant to be, Osmond -as-Eddie appeared in 96 episodes of "Leave It to Beaver" from 1957-63.  After the show was done, Osmond tried to stay in show biz, but found himself being hopelessly typecast and "Eddie Haskell", and gave it up for a career as an officer in the LAPD, where he made the news in 1980 when he was shot five times during a chase in the line of duty.  This led to a disability retirement from the force in 1988.

LAPD Officer Ken Osmond

He grew the mustache so he wouldn't

 be recognized as "Eddie Haskell"

Osmond leaves us just a few weeks before what would have been his 77th birthday, but he leaves behind a character that will probably never be forgotten, and that is a pretty nice legacy to have.

RIP Ken Osmond.

To Absent Friends - Phyllis George

Phyllis George

1949 - 2020

A melancholy happy trails to Phyllis George who died four days ago at the age of 70.

She had been largely out of the picture of late, but her obituaries made me realize what a groundbreaker this former Miss America was.  Thrust into the co-anchor chair alongside Brent Musberger and Irv Cross on CBS' "NFL Today" show, she experienced, as her daughter related, everything that has been made public in today's #MeToo environment.  Women like Lesley Visser, Hannah Storm, Erin Andrews, Linda Cohn, and the raft of female talking heads that populate the sports desks at the broadcast networks, ESPN, NFL and MLB Networks all owe a debt to Phyllis George.

Miss America 1970

Her death was due to a rare blood disorder that she had been battling for the last 35 years of her life.

The Groundbreaker

"Somebody had to be the first."

RIP Phyllis George.

To Our 2020 Graduates

We all know that the graduating classes of 2020 are being shortchanged this year by being unable to experience the recognition that traditional commencement ceremonies bring.  So allow The Grandstander to recognize seven of our second generation nieces and nephews who will be graduating as part of this Class of 2020.

• Mara Lowry, North Carolina State University
• Sophie Lowry, Durham School of the Arts High School
• Bridget Pike, University of Dayton
• Monica Pike, University of Dayton
• Gavin Richards, Boyertown High School
• Samantha Sproule, Oakland Catholic High School
• Nathan Stoner, Grove City College

In a video that was produced by Grove City College that Nate's parents shared with us, one of the GCC faculty members stated that whenever anyone sees that you were a part of the Class of 2020, those people will forever know the special efforts and hard work that it took for these graduates to earn their degrees and diplomas in this unprecedented year.

So to anyone who reads this who has any family member as a part of the graduating Class of 2020 for any institution, CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

To Absent Friends - Fred Willard

Fred Willard 

1933 - 2020

So sad to hear the news of the death of comic actor Fred Willard yesterday at the age of 86.  Right off the bat, I was surprised to see that Willard was that old, and then in researching for this post, I was amazed to see that he had amassed an astounding 313 acting credits dating back to 1966.  Scroll through his filmography on IMDB and you will be astounded at all of the shows and movies you will see in  which Willard was featured.  Talk about a terrific run!

To me, Willard will be best known for his roles in those terrific Christopher Guest movies like "Waiting For Guffman", "A Mighty Wind" and "Best in Show."  In these grim days we are now experiencing, you could do a lot worse than watching any or all of these movies to cheer you up.   In the latter movie, he played clueless broadcaster Buck Laughlin describing a dog show.  It almost seems that his lines were improvised, and it remains a classic comic character. Who can forget lines like....

• I'd hate to go out on a date with Judge Edie Franklin.
• He went after her like she was made out of ham.
• If you wear an outfit like that in my neighborhood you'd better be a hotel doorman.

And the all time classic...

• A little off topic here, but how much do you think I can bench press? Take wild guess.

The last time I saw Fred Willard was on an episode of "Modern Family" a few months back when he played his semi-recurring role of Phil Dunphy's father, Frank.  The part of Frank Dunphy was pure Fred Willard, and he had received an Emmy nomination for it in the past.  That final episode had Frank die (off camera).  In retrospect, it was a rather touching bit of foreshadowing.

RIP Fred Willard, truly one of a kind.  

Let's close with this clip of Willard as Mike LaFontaine, show biz performer and impresario from 2003's "A Mighty Wind."

To Absent Friends - Jerry Stiller

Jerry Stiller

1927 - 2020

In reading the obituaries for actor and comedian Jerry Stiller, who died this week at age 92, it surprised me that in the early days of his career, he was a serious actor.  Like Broadway and Shakespeare in the Park serious actor.  Like many people, I first knew of him as one-half of the Stiller & Meara comedy team that he formed with his wife, Anne Meara.

They were a highly successful television and nightclub act through the fifties and sixties when they voluntarily broke up the act in 1970.  Some sources say that they disbanded the act in order to not have it affect their marriage.  If that was indeed the case, it worked because they remained married for over sixty years up until Anne Meara's death in 2015.

They both went their separate show biz ways, earning nice livings.  Just last month, I was reminded of Stiller's versatility as an actor when I rewatched 1974's "The Taking of Pelham One Two Three", wherein he played a NYC Transit Authority cop alongside Walter Matthau.

By any measure, Stiller has a wonderful and varied career - 115 acting credits in IMDB dating back to 1957 - but 1993 he was tapped for a bit role in a TV sitcom for which he will no doubt be forever remembered: volatile and bombastic Frank Costanza, father of Jason Alexander's George on "Seinfeld."

"You want a piece of me?  

"YOU WANT A PIECE OF ME?"

"Festivus", "Serenity Now", "You want a piece of me?"  and so many other bits from his 30 appearances on the show have become classics and a part of many people's everyday lexicon.   What a fabulous character!

Jerry Stiller was one month short of his 93rd birthday when he died earlier this week.

RIP Jerry Stiller.

Perfection

While thumbing through the TV remote this past Tuesday evening, I stumbled upon the MLB Network, and saw that they were showing  a telecast of Game 5 of the 1956 World Series between the Yankees and the Dodgers, the Brooklyn Dodgers.  Even those with the most rudimentary knowledge of baseball history know that this was the game where "the imperfect man pitched a perfect game."  That was the game where 27 year old Don Larsen, who would go on to have a mediocre career, pitched what is arguably the most famous pitched game in all of baseball history - a perfect game in the World Series.

The MLB Network telecast was done in a studio setting with Bob Costas hosting both Larsen and Yogi Berra while a kinescope telecast of the game - in glorious black and white! -  was shown.  At several intervals in the game, Costas would interview both Larsen and Berra to ask about what was going on in their minds as the game was being played.  It was absolutely terrific stuff.  I would guess that MLB Network originally aired this telecast sometime in the mid to late '00's.

When I found the game, it was the bottom for the fourth inning, and this is what I saw in those very few minutes it took to play out in front of me:

• Yankee Joe Collins grounding out to Jackie Robinson and being retired, 5-3.  At that moment, I realized that this was the very first time that I had ever actually seen Jackie Robinson playing in a game.
• Mickey Mantle hit a no-doubt-about-it home run to put the Yankees up 1-0.
• Yogi Berra hitting a line shot to left center that was sure to be at least  double, and probably a triple, only to be robbed on a spectacular shoestring catch by Duke Snider.

If you haven't been counting, that was four Hall of Famers on display in the space of 2/3 of an inning and less than ten minutes of real time.  I immediately set the DVR humming so I could watch the rest of this one at my leisure and savor every bit of it.

Some highlights:

• Larsen's game was almost spoiled in the top of the fifth when Sandy Amoros hit a ball into the right field stands that was foul by about two feet, but before that, Gil Hodges hit a gap shot to left center that Mantle had to run  about six miles from where he was playing in center to run down the ball and make the catch.   It was an even more spectacular catch than the one Snider made in the previous inning.  After that, the Dodgers never really threatened to get a baserunner in the game.
• In the top of the fifth, Pee Wee Reese had a line drive hit off of his glove, bounce straight in the air and back into his glove for the out, and he then threw to first to double off Billy Martin and end the inning.
• In the bottom of the sixth with one out and a man on third, Mantle hits scalding shot to first that Hodges niftily fields, steps on first to retire Mantle then goes to Campanella at the plate who goes to Robinson at third to retire the baserunner and end the inning.  The play went 3-2-5-2-5.  Mantle, Hodges, Campanella, Robinson.  Only one of those guys ISN'T in the HOF.
• The announcers for the game were Mel Allen and Vin Scully.  Not bad, huh?  Allen did the first four and half innings, Scully, who was only 28 years old at the time, did the final four and a half.  They both worked the booth alone.  No sidekick, no color commentator, and "great" doesn't even begin to describe how good they were.
• Scully never used the words "no hitter" or "perfect game."  Instead, he would end each inning by saying something like "through seven innings Larsen has now retired all 21 men to face him."
• I didn't track it, but I don't believe that Larsen ever got to a three ball count on a batter.
• The crowd didn't seem to really get into the moment until the eighth and ninth innings, and then they were roaring with each Dodger out.
• The losing pitcher for the Dodgers that day was Sal Maglie, and he had a pretty good game himself.  A complete game eight inning performance, 2 runs, 5 hits, 5 K, and 2 BB.  Good enough to win most games.  Not that day, though.
• The game took 2 hours and 6 minutes to play, and Larsen threw 97 pitches.
• When the game was over, Larsen, as he told Kostas,  knew that he had thrown a no hitter, but not a perfect game.  In fact, he wasn't even aware of the concept of a "perfect game."  No surprise because there hadn't been one thrown in MLB since 1922.  Sportswriters had to explain to him what a "perfect game" was.
• Seven Hall of Famers played in that game: Pee Wee Reese, Duke Snider, Jackie Robinson, Roy Campanella, Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, and Enos Slaughter.  Three Hall of Famers were in the dugouts that day: Whitey Ford, Don Drysdale, and Sandy Koufax.  Managers Casey Stengel and Walter Alston are also in the Hall of Fame.  That's twelve Hall of Famers involved in one game.

At the end of the game, when Larsen struck out Dale Mitchell to finish it off and Berra ran out jump into his arms, MLB switched to a split screen to show the current day Larsen and Berra watching the moment.  Larsen said that this was the first time that he had actually seen this game on television.  Not surprising given the technology that existed back in 1956. It was also something that he said he thought about every day of his life since then.

In this Spring of No Baseball and No Sports, watching this one was really a special treat.

"Masked Prey" by John Sandford

Every spring I look forward to the publication of a new Lucas Davenport thriller by John Sandford. This year, and especially in this year of pandemic and social isolation, was no exception.  So it is with disappointment that I have to say this this 29th tale in the Davenport Saga came as a, well, disappointment. 

(By the way, as Sandford was writing this one, I'm sure he couldn't have begun to imagine the irony of the title of this book released in America in April, 2020.)

Federal Marshall Lucas is called to investigate the seeming threats that are being made by an Alt-Right website against the children of members of Congress.  We are then led into an exploration of these hate groups and the sub-culture of Second Amendment Gun Nuts that seem to be proliferating EVERYWHERE Lucas and his colleagues turn.  That's fine, in and of itself, but then Sandford has Lucas bring the case to a conclusion in what was a disappointing way, to me at least.  I can't say more than that without giving a major spoiler.  If you are a fan of the series, by all means read it, and perhaps you will disagree with me, which is okay.  Let's just say that this is one that I won't be rereading at any point in the future, but hey, even Sandy Koufax got batted around every once in awhile.

The Grandstander gives this one only Two Stars, but I would like to quote one bit of dialog from early in the book that I really liked.  After interviewing US Senator Roberta Coil, whose daughter is one of the threatened, Lucas has this exchange with her:

"...we're dealing with crazy people with guns..."

"Why do crazy people have guns?"  Coil asked.

"You'd know the answer to that better than I would, Senator," Lucas said.

To Absent Friends - Little Richard

Richard Penniman

"Little Richard"

1932 - 2020

A figure on the Mt. Rushmore of American Rock and Roll left us today when Richard Penniman, known to the world as Little Richard, died at the age of 87.  There can be no greater indication of Richard's influence on the musical culture than the tributes that have been appearing on the interwebs all day long.  Artists such as Bob Dylan, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Paul McCartney, and Ringo Starr have testified as to the influence that Little Richard had on their music and careers.  Enough said.

Little Richard had a string of hits in the mid-1950's but the hits stopped around 1957, but he never really went away, and songs such as Lucille, Long Tall Sally, and Tutti Frutti will be with us always.

Oh, about that Mt. Rushmore.  It can be debated, of course, but I don't think anyone would strenuously argue if the Mt. Rushmore of American Rock and Roll consisted of Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, Little Richard, and Jerry Lee Lewis.  Only Jerry Lee, at age 84, is still with us.

RIP Little Richard...."a wop bob alu bob a wop bam boom!"

Enjoy....

"A Royal Night Out" (2015)

Two days ago in this space, I wrote about the 2016 movie "Carrie Pilby" and its charming young star, Bel Powley.  In researching her, I learned that she had appeared in a 2015 film called "A Royal Night Out" that had an intriguing premise: On VE Day, May 8, 1945, in London, the Royal Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret begged their parents, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth to be allowed to leave the confines of Buckingham Palace to be able to celebrate the momentous occasion with "all the people."

In historical fact, Elizabeth and Margaret did leave the Palace that night, stood in the crowds in front of the Palace and walked the streets incognito as part of a group of sixteen people that included military personnel.  Elizabeth wore her military uniform and Margaret was only 14 at the time.  Neither was recognized and they were both back in the Palace by 1:00 AM.  (Officially, the night "never happened", and the future Queen spent the evening at an affair at the Ritz Hotel.)  That wouldn't have made much of a movie, however, so screenwriters Trevor De Silva and Kevin Hood and director Julian Jarrold takes on a "well-what-if-this-would-have-happened" journey wherein the Princesses shake their bodyguards, get separated, and spend the night trying to find each other, a journey that has them riding on public buses, takes them through Trafalgar Square fountains, a stuffy nightclub, a whorehouse (there is a great scene when a hungover Margaret recounts the evening to her parents and asks "just what is a Knocking Shop?"), dodgy parts of town, a ballroom where they dance to swing music, and other assorted adventures before they somehow manage to return to Buckingham Palace just as the sun comes up.  The future Queen learns the lessons of what everyday Londoners - she hears the King's VE Day address on a radio in a pub - think of the Monarchy and the effects of war on the many who served in it, courtesy of a young hunk of an airman named Jack. 

It was farfetched and kind of ridiculous, but it had its comic and charming moments, and it was highlighted by the young actresses who played Elizabeth and Margaret, Sarah Gadon and the aforementioned Bel Powley.

Sarah Gadon

as

"Subaltern Lieutenant Windsor"

Powley and Gadon

as 

The Princesses Margaret and Elizabeth 

"A Royal Night Out" gets Two Stars from The Grandstander.

"Carrie Pilby" (2016)

Thanks to a tip from friends Dan and Susan, we discovered the 2016 movie, "Carrie Pilby."  I had never heard of this movie, although I don't think that retired folks of a certain age - us! -  were not the target audience for this one.

It is the story of a young Englishwoman prodigy (she graduated from Harvard at age 18) living alone in New York City.  Still shaken from the death of her mother when she was twelve, Carrie is alone in NYC, and as smart as she is, she is having trouble adjusting to life.  In fact, she's pretty messed up.  She is seeing a therapist to help her cope, even though she's too smart to be doing so, she thinks.  At her father's insistence, she takes a job as a proofreader in a law firm, where she meets some "real" people.

This movie could - COULD - have been about an unlikable, over-entitled brat, but in the hands of first time director Susan Johnson and a completely engaging performance by Bel Powley as Carrie, the movie becomes a quite charming and even heartwarming coming-of-age teen RomCom.

Bel Powley is an English actress who was totally unknown to me, but I found her to be thoroughly delightful.  She is somebody for whom I will want to keep my eyes open.  Also in the cast where Nathan Lane as her therapist, Gabriel Byrne as her father, Josh Ritter as a blind date of Carrie's, and as her work girlfriend, Vanessa Bayer, and SNL vet who was a real hoot.

One really great scene is when Carrie and her good looking next door neighbor (William Moseley) take a walk through the New York streets at night.  The scene is shot in one continuous take with the two of them walking towards the camera.   Really nice.

Really fun little movie.  Three Stars from The Grandstander.

To Absent Friends - Don Shula

Don Shula

1930 - 2020

Pro Football Hall of Fame Coach Don Shula died yesterday at the age of 90.  Shula's football life and his passing are noteworthy, to me at least, for a number of reasons.

• His 328 victories as a head coach with the Baltimore Colts and Miami Dolphins are the most in NFL history.  Let me restate that, more wins as an NFL head coach than ANYONE ELSE IN HISTORY.
• HIs 1972 Dolphins are the only undefeated team in NFL history.
• Six of his teams went to the Super Bowl, winning two of them.

• Two of his sons became head coaches, David with the Cincinnati Bengals and Mike at the University of Alabama.   Neither met with the same successes as their Dad.
• He coached three Hall of Fame quarterbacks - Johnny Unitas, Bob Griese, and Dan Marino.
• In 1969, he recommended to Art and Dan Rooney of the Steelers that they hire one of his young assistants, Chuck Noll, to be their new Head Coach.  The rest, as they say, is history.

And here's one more little factoid, courtesy of pal Matthew Algeo....

George Halas coached in the NFL's first season the NFL in 1920.  Bill Belichick will be coaching in the NFL in 2020.  Don Shula coached against BOTH of them, and Shula (328), Halas (318), and Belichick (273) rank 1-2-3 in all time NFL coaching wins.

RIP Don Shula.

Critical Commentary - "Hollywood"

The latest blockbusting, binge-worthy series from Netflix is "Hollywood" which began streaming last week.  The creative force behind this series is Emmy Award winning  producer/director/writer Ryan Murphy, who gave us "Feud", the terrifically stylish and trashy limited series about Bette Davis and Joan Crawford a few years back.  That was enough to peak my curiosity about "Hollywood."  Yes it was stylish, yes, it was trashy, and yes it was quite entertaining, and I watched all seven episodes over a period of three days.

It tells the stories of young people - four actors, a director, and a screenwriter - trying to make it in Hollywood in the period immediately after World War II.  It also gives what can be called, and this is a huge understatement, an alternate history of how Hollywood has dealt with such issues as race and gay lifestyles over the years.  No doubt the frankness with which some of these issues are dealt will turn many people off of this series.  Some will also choose to make a political issue over it, so to those people I say, just don't watch it.  C'est le vie.

The main characters - the kids trying to make it - were pretty much unknown to me.  They are David Corenswet, Darren Criss, Laura Harrier, Jake Picking, Samara Weaving, and Jeremy Pope.  

Harrier, Corenswet, Criss, Pope, Weaving

The young stars of "Hollywood"

All were attractive, engaging, and quite good in their roles.  In other key supporting roles, however, were a bunch of older actors such as Patti LuPone, Holland Taylor, Dylan McDermott, Rob Reiner, Mira Sorvino, and Queen Latifah.  At least two of them, LuPone and Taylor, deserve Emmy consideration for their work in this one, I believe.

Also playing a huge role in this one was Jim Parsons, best known as Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory.  Parsons obviously wanted to break from his Sheldon character by 180 degrees, and he succeeded in doing so.  Playing a gay and sleazy Hollywood  agent and fixer, Parsons was the guy that everyone hated, including  us in the viewing audience.  He played the part so broadly and flamboyantly that it verged on caricature, and it was hard to take him seriously, until, that is, the last half of the seventh and final episode.  His scene at that point with Rock Hudson, whom he had demeaned and exploited throughout the series, was very good and had a lot of depth.  Enough to make you say, this guy is a pretty good actor.

The series includes portrayals of real Hollywood people, Rock Hudson being the most critical one to this story, but others include Anna May Wong, Hattie McDaniel, Tallulah Bankhead, Vivian Leigh, George Cukor, and Noel Coward.

"Hollywood" is a trashy soap opera about, well, Hollywood, but it was stylish and beautiful to look at and had its fun, scenery chewing moments.   It gets Two and One-half Stars from The Grandstander.

And On The 45th Day, There Was Golf

Today, May 1, marks the 45th day of Social Isolation for Marilyn and me, and it also marked the day where the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has begun to open up parts of its economy, including golf courses.

So it was that Dan Bonk and I headed out to Coraopolis this morning and took on the world renowned Scally's Par 3 Course, a perfect place to play your first round of any season to shake off the rust of a long, and even longer one this year, winter.  To be honest, I am still not sure that opening up venues such as this is a good idea, but, having said that, I cannot begin to tell you how good it felt to be out in the fresh, albeit cool and damp, air this morning.   It truly was a huge mental lift to be engaging in such an activity.

We were the first two golfers of the newly reopened 

season to check in at Scally's this morning.

I won't bore you with details of the golf, other than to say that  while I didn't play all that well, I played much better than I thought I would.  I will also make one observation of "socially distant" golfing.  As you may or may not know, you are not allowed to touch to remove pins on the greens, and that a styrofoam insert is in the cup, about a quarter inch below the lip, that allows you to "sink" your putt, but also retrieve your ball without reaching into the cup.  While you may miss the satisfying rattle of your ball going into the hole,   it really isn't a problem at all, and frankly, I hope that the "no hands on the pins" dictum stays on forever.  It will, I believe, speed up the pace of play when everyday hackers - like me - aren't futzing around with the flagsticks as if they are Justin Thomas or Brooks Koepka playing for hundreds of thousands of dollars every week.