No way "You Must Live Me" beats "That Thing You Do" in a fair fight. There's no movie unless your thirsty to hear the latter twenty times in ninety minutes. I'm just saying this because you brought up Evita and I have a long memory.
Evita _is_ quite try-hard in places. I quite enjoy the suggestion that Julie Covington decided she didn’t want to follow up with the show in the west end (following the album) because she found Eva Perón such an unpleasant character.
One is told that a celebrated American actress declined to do a revival of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? because she had no desire to be Martha eight times a week.
And here’s MY flashback - inspired by the above - a memory of reading, increasingly amazed, of John Barth’s “Lost in the Funhouse” — a proofreader would need a patience and a check sheet.
Isn't it odd how we all handle the past perfect that way (if we've got any sense), but no one talks about it? Are we ashamed of the past perfect? Are we unwilling to admit that using it effectively involves this kind of sleight of hand?
1) As a '40s Film Noir and other films, I could *hear* a Max Steiner score as I read this.
2) Do you know if Bette Davis actually say, "Am I'm going up those stairs, or is Max Steiner going up those stairs, but both of us are NOT going up those stairs," during the filming of Dark Victory? The 'sawing away at his strings' apparently irritated her. (I love it, apocryphal or not!)
3) Hearing Julie Covington in the role first has soured me on any other Evita.
The version of Bette’s remark as I recall first encountering it was “Who’s going up those stairs to die? Me or Max Steiner?” However it emerged from her (and let’s presume that it emerged in some fashion or other), it’s a classic.
My goodness, all my life I've heard "down-at-the-heels" rather than "down-at-heel." Now I'm wondering about the history and variants and so on. And, as usual, am wondering if I'm doing it all wrong.
OK I got curious. The OED prefers "down at heel," Merriam-Webster "down-at-the-heels," it seems. Each lists the other as a variant, plus a few others as less common. I'm astonished to see how far back it goes! The OED's earliest instance is 17th century.
I just popped back into the essay to load a couple of ngram charts showing our various and varying uses of the phrase(s). I'm always fascinated by this stuff!
After reading the history of "at sixes and sevens", I am rather charmed by the lyrical possibilities of "I'm dressed to the nines though my life's at sixes and sevens". Meet you at eight.
Despite my knowing the phrases “dressed to the nines” and “down at heel,” my mind always translated those lyrics to “dressed up to the night” and “doubted here,” and I never investigated further.
No way "You Must Live Me" beats "That Thing You Do" in a fair fight. There's no movie unless your thirsty to hear the latter twenty times in ninety minutes. I'm just saying this because you brought up Evita and I have a long memory.
And I love be Madonna!
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/Philippe_de_Champaigne_Still-Life_with_a_Skull.JPG
Evita _is_ quite try-hard in places. I quite enjoy the suggestion that Julie Covington decided she didn’t want to follow up with the show in the west end (following the album) because she found Eva Perón such an unpleasant character.
As is Chess.
One is told that a celebrated American actress declined to do a revival of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? because she had no desire to be Martha eight times a week.
Admirably played by Madonna in the movie—typecast?
So glad to get your approval of my strategy! Especially helpful in writing to a word count. (Flash flashbacks.)
I think Kate Bush also heard "down that hill", which inspired her to write "running up that hill."
Whereas “down that hill” was whither Jill and I did tumble.
Ooh, sly! We’re left with a fine example, Lefty left still hungry … but with a well-positioned tip (social obligations met) and no damn crackers.
And here’s MY flashback - inspired by the above - a memory of reading, increasingly amazed, of John Barth’s “Lost in the Funhouse” — a proofreader would need a patience and a check sheet.
Isn't it odd how we all handle the past perfect that way (if we've got any sense), but no one talks about it? Are we ashamed of the past perfect? Are we unwilling to admit that using it effectively involves this kind of sleight of hand?
I think that we all figure out, naturally, how to use it and we all must figure out, naturally, how to stop using it.
But if writers could figure stuff out, we'd be out of work!
I am ashamed of my past pluperfect.
1) As a '40s Film Noir and other films, I could *hear* a Max Steiner score as I read this.
2) Do you know if Bette Davis actually say, "Am I'm going up those stairs, or is Max Steiner going up those stairs, but both of us are NOT going up those stairs," during the filming of Dark Victory? The 'sawing away at his strings' apparently irritated her. (I love it, apocryphal or not!)
3) Hearing Julie Covington in the role first has soured me on any other Evita.
The version of Bette’s remark as I recall first encountering it was “Who’s going up those stairs to die? Me or Max Steiner?” However it emerged from her (and let’s presume that it emerged in some fashion or other), it’s a classic.
That sounds more like Bette: short and to the point! Either way, I love it.
My goodness, all my life I've heard "down-at-the-heels" rather than "down-at-heel." Now I'm wondering about the history and variants and so on. And, as usual, am wondering if I'm doing it all wrong.
OK I got curious. The OED prefers "down at heel," Merriam-Webster "down-at-the-heels," it seems. Each lists the other as a variant, plus a few others as less common. I'm astonished to see how far back it goes! The OED's earliest instance is 17th century.
I would naturally, I think, say, down at the heels, which to me sounds most like what the phrase means.
Speaker of UK English here, like Tim Rice, and I only know ‘down-at-heel’ - I hadn’t come across ‘down-at-the-heels’ before you mentioned it here.
I just popped back into the essay to load a couple of ngram charts showing our various and varying uses of the phrase(s). I'm always fascinated by this stuff!
Oooooh thank you! Clearly, I am also interested. The visuals are fascinating.
The OED! Such jealous heels.
The OED doesn't say what kind of heels. Probably stilettos, don't you think?
Oh, my back!
After reading the history of "at sixes and sevens", I am rather charmed by the lyrical possibilities of "I'm dressed to the nines though my life's at sixes and sevens". Meet you at eight.
With top hat and twelves.
Can you beat nines up threes?
Beat me, daddy, eight to the bar.
Despite my knowing the phrases “dressed to the nines” and “down at heel,” my mind always translated those lyrics to “dressed up to the night” and “doubted here,” and I never investigated further.
So now I know more! Thanks.
Thank you for your advice on not wearing out the past perfect - perfect. Oh, but Patti LuPone; it was all down-the hill from there.
The awkward had had explained