Dec. 21: Taxi ride with David Mamet

 DM: So you see... the taxi...

S: Yes...

DM: The taxis here are not yellow.

S: I see that.

DM: In New York they are.

S: I know.

DM: Why is that?

S: Because yellow...

DM: ...yes...

S: ...is the first colour...

DM: That's absolu...

S: ...the eye registers.

DM:tely correct.

S: And this is why school buses are yellow too.

DM: Yes. (Pause.) Should they all be that way?

S: What? Taxis?

DM: Taxis. Buses.Uhh automobiles... should they all be yellow?

S: For safety?

DM: Yes.

S: No. I don't think so, no. It wouldn't be asethetically...

DM: Yes, this is true. "Ah," but the critic says. "But is not safety more paramount?" Do you see? And this is why the theatre is dying...

S: Because what they want...

DM: Yes, in the interest of pragmatism... in the...

S: ...and all the cars would be yellow.

DM: Because yes, we as artists need to explore.And this is true even such exploration is dangerous because that's when it's more exciting.

S: Mm.

DM: More liberating...

S: Yellow taxis.

DM: But no, the average theatre goer wants spectacle, not a challenge. He wants to...

S: And Kafka said we should only read books that wound and stab us.

DM: Yes.

S: And does the same apply to theatre?

DM: It should. You see? Look at that, the marquee. What's it showing?

S: Wartime revue.

DM: Singing and tap dancing...

S: We all need an escape...

DM: And we all need a slap in the face, sure... but...

S: You're scared you're irrelevant.

DM: Look, you must examine your life if you want it to be worth living. And the ancients said that beauty is a short reign.

S: Can't be on top forever.

DM: No. 

(Pause.)

S: But you won the Pulitzer.

DM: Yes, and now I may be an answer in Trivial Pursuit. 

S: I have a roller coaster going up my butt


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sept. 13: You don't know what you gave up

Image
 Dear Mr. Man You know, I don't hate you. If I saw you on the street, I wouldn't yell at you or cuss you out, but I don't think I'd shake your hand. But I do pity you, man. You don't know what you gave up. She's going to be a funeral director, did you know that? Yeah, she's going to be a mover and shaker, hitting the big time. She'll have a good job and she'll never be out of work because she's in an industry that will never die (you should pardon the pun.)  Sure, she had her challenges growing up, but what girl doesn't. Things made her cry. Sometimes, I'm sad to say, I was one of those things. But all I can say is the good times outweigh the bad. I hope she agrees with that. You see, Mr. Man, I have a whole lot of great memories with her. This one time, I tried to take her down to Cleveland so we could see a Major League Baseball game live. But we couldn't get into the States so instead, we went to Niagara Falls and we had a grand ol
Read more

Dec.19: The day Steve dropped my Phoenix

 The day Steve dropped my Phoenix I was sleeping He left the papers there outside my door. I laughed when I read the part about the Roughriders, they didn't make the playoffs after all By the time I make my breakfast he'll be working Trying hard to bring the news to us He just don't understand the world has moved on. it's off the wall that's all By the time I get to Jack's Pub he'll be writing a council brief or maybe 20 Q's. we might cry to think he's doing this for nothing but he does it 'cause it's all he knows how to do - apologies to Glen Campbell
Read more

Dec. 10: Brothers over 80

Image
The Irishman is surely the most tragic movie of Martin Scorsese's career. It follows the same trajectory as his other beloved films Goodfellas, Casino, and Wolf of Wall Street. In all of those movies, a criminal's life comes crashing down. In Goodfellas, Ray Liotta's Henry Hill aspires to be a gangster, only to have to betray his mob brothers in the end to avoid a lengthy prison sentence. In Casino, a wannabe enforcer is beaten to death with a baseball bat while his colleague loses his family and winds up a lonely man. In Wolf of Wall Street, a dishonest wall street stockbroker loses his trophy wife and winds up having to betray the very people he helped set up so he can stay out of jail. But in all of the above tales, everyone gets a slice of the good life, at least for a little while. They do copious amounts of drugs, have sex with all kinds of women, and earn a whole lot of money in the process. In the end, they have nothing, but at least there's a mountain in a life
Read more