Wonder Wheel - Coney Island - New York - June 2010
Certain holidays make me nostalgic, especially ones that have childhood memories. Halloween is one of them. I have no desire to go back to my trick-or-treating days though I lament the number of times I've been around the annual cycle to visit it since my childhood.
Sometimes I celebrate every trip around the yearly ferris wheel. This is my 13th time around it in California. I quit trick-or-treating at age 12. I've been in this state longer than I enjoyed the candy years. Thinking about previous Halloween's and the times enjoyed on them, I start to wonder what has magic any more. Christmas lost it about 10 years ago, about the same time as New Years. I enjoy July 4th mostly because it is my brother's birthday, but that firework of a holiday is losing its shimmering brightness. Even my birthdays are feeling dull.
I am not depressed about these diminished dates. I think it may be due to having lived through 41 of them, they have lost their magic. This may be the only time I lament not having kids is that I may have felt the wonder of these days through and with them.
I am learning to celebrate other days. These days have no date attached to them. I celebrate the days I get a massage, get to photograph, get to help out the charity I support, get to make love, get to eat a great dinner with someone(s) special, and get to sleep in late without worries. Holidays have a faded memory of value. I reflect on them more than celebrate or feel excited about them. Maybe it is time to let go of those dates lacking a purpose instead to celebrate and enjoy those that come and go and are forgotten.
Actor James MacArthur died yesterday. He was best known for his role as Danny Williams on the original Hawaii 5-0. I have two strong memories related to Mr. MacArthur. The first is the divisiveness Hawaii 5-0 caused in my childhood home and the second is a family member's fracas with the late actor.
MacArthur's Danno never had the dark brooding sexiness of Jack Lord's Steve McGarret. His character was McGarret's right hand man. The original Danno (I will write about the newest iteration of the show another time) was quiet, reflective and tough as hell. He did not flash emotions and seemed almost creepy at times. While most women were infatuated with McGarret, my mom had the hots for Danno (along with Robert F. Kennedy and Leonard Bernstein, both of whom she met.)
My mom, brother and I watched the show religiously every week. Being a psychiatric nurse, she would use her analytic mind and try to get into the science and logic of the show. We would discuss motives, characters, and what was realistic and what was fake. I enjoyed those evenings and still get excited when I hear the timpani drum roll that kicks off (arguably) the best tv theme song ever. Even though this show was shared time with mom, it caused a lot of tension in our home.
Intro to Hawaii 5-0
It was not my mom's crush on Danno that bothered my dad. He had his crushes as well and both knew that was normal. My dad refuses to watch dramatic television, especially shows with violence. He always has been that way. He grew up a Quaker in eastern Pennsylvania and has a strong pacifist nature in him. He hates seeing murder being used as entertainment. At the time, Hawaii 5-0 showed more murders than any other television show. It greatly bothered him that mom would encourage us to watch the show. He believed these shows lead to more violence by teaching violence.
Neither my brother, nor I, have become murderers... yet. We watched Steve, Danno, Chin Ho, and Kono kill off lots of baddies. I think it was by discussing the show we were able to analyze the darkness and morality of the issues as well as acknowledge that it was fiction. I don't know if my dad understands or appreciates the enlightened way we watched the show. My mom taught us more about the dark side of human nature while keeping us safe than any other authoritative figure in our lives. I thank my dad though for trying to keep us safe and our minds clear of this dangerous knowledge. He was trying to raise us to be conscientious men.
Even though my mom, brother and I spent many hours with Steve and Danno, it is my dad, and his brother Carl, that makes us connected to the late Mr. MacArthur. It all happened in the 1950's in a bar in western New Jersey.
My dad was home on break from college. He and my uncle Carl, just graduated from high school, snuck out and went to a bar to meet a few friends. The rest of the story varies a bit, depending if it is my dad or my uncle telling it and I will share only the common bits.
While drinking with the group, they noticed another group hanging out in the bar. That group included James MacArthur. According to both sources, certain members in both groups were trying to stir up some drama by telling Carl that MacArthur was insulting his (mom, girlfriend or car - depending who is telling the story). MacArthur's friends were doing the same with him.
At one point, the two met up and all the friends formed a circle. My dad had his brother's back if needed, but knew Carl could handle it on his own. MacArthur and my uncle got in close and started talking in heated terms. At one point, when tensions were getting really high and the first swing was imenant, one asked the other something like, "Is it true you said...?" The other responded, "No, I didn't say that." They both started asking more clarifying questions and soon discovered they had been set up to fight. After the discovery, they both went to the bar and got drunk together.
So, I want to raise a glass and salute James MacArthur for being a rich part of my family's life in two very different ways. I am glad my uncle didn't kick your ass. I am thankful you went onto a successful acting career. Your blue eyes will be missed, especially by mom.
Below are three parts to the episode string when officer Chin was killed. You even get to see Steve cry.
On this date in 1553> Michael Servetus, who discovered the pulmonary circulation of blood, is burned for heresy in Switzerland. History Channel "This Day in History" update.
It is scary how people are still so afraid of science and what we are learning from it. I am not proclaiming against any one faith. I wish though we could be a bit more open minded. I guess that is what separates the "elitists" from the others, openness to being wrong and learning more.
I guess for many ignorance is bliss and dogma is absolute.
I am working on a post inspired by a great essay written by photographer Robert Adams about how difficult photographers find it to write about their own art. It is a very enlightening essay.
With that said, why devalue the image above with words? They just get in the way.
Back in May I posted my first video, Piernas Bonitas. My best results came from putting on a private Youtube account and keeping as private since it has nudity (which is a bit youtube no-no). I never had a complaint.
I recently discovered vimeo.com. They have many fine short movies with artistic nudity. Set up was easy and I could set creative commons options. Below is the same movie, but now available at Vimeo. I am going to remove my youtube version tonight.
Rick has an incredible eye for detail. He notices everything. After seeing his work, I can see why. Every molecule in the photo has to have a purpose for being there. The amount of pre and post production work needed to create one good food image is huge. The use of color, texture, design, composition, and flavor must blend into an outstanding image.
For this assignment I had to photograph a raw tomato or a group of them. After that I had to photograph a prepared dish with tomatoes. I learned a few things from this. It is hard to make food look good. It is hard to find a perfect background and set of dishes. Rick has thousands of plates and utensils in every color, shape, size and pattern in a warehouse of props. It is really amazing. I had only a few plates and napkins to work with. The plate for the image below is from my picnic basket.
Prepped - 102210
I learned that food stars have stand ins. I used some of the lower quality ingredients to make a mock up and test lighting, composition, presentation and concept. After getting that set up, I brought in the star or hero food and was ready to get that done in as few shots as possible. It is important to get them done fast so the food looks fresh.
Piernas bonitas
I noticed lots of flaws in both sets of photos. I photographed the whole tomatoes on the aqua hood of my truck (the same hood that Andrea graced). I thought I had cleaned the hood, but every bit of lint and dust is highly visible. For the prepared food photos, I had issues of wrinkled napkins, bread crumbs, fingerprints in the cheese balls, and other challenges.
I loved doing this assignment, but learned a lesson. I am not a food photographer. I do not have the attention to detail to make this work become art. Rick will have no competition from me. I enjoyed the creativity of using strobes, reflectors and props to get everything just right. I want to explore using similar techniques, but having male and female models as the subject.
I enjoyed sharing a moment that Brett Weston also experienced. After Edward Weston photographed the famous pepper from Pepper Number 30, Brett ate it. I enjoyed eating my subject as well.
