PYGMALION and MY FAIR LADY

From Worldometer (new  COVID-19 deaths yesterday):

        DAY   USA   WORLD   Brazil     India  South Africa

June     9    1093     4732         1185       246       82

July    22     1205     7128         1293      1120     572

Aug    12     1504     6556        1242        835     130

Sept     9     1208      6222       1136       1168       82

Oct     21     1225      6849         571        703       85

Nov    25      2304    12025        620        518     118

Dec    30      3880    14748       1224       299     465

Jan     14       4142     15512        1151         189     712              

Feb      3       4005    14265       1209       107     398

          25       2414    10578         1582        119     144

Mar     2        1989    9490         1726        110     194

          31         1115   12301          3950       458      58

April   6         906   11787           4211         631      37

May    4         853   13667          3025      3786     59 

           5         743    14567          2791       3982     46 

         11          743     13444         2275       4200     71     

         12          841     13880        2545       4126      72

Summary:  

• There seems to be a plateauing of new deaths/day.  
• India represented more than half the World new cases yesterday. 
• When will the vaccinations take effect?
• Keep a watch on Japan, for there were 6,111 new cases yesterday, and the Prime Minister has not said much during the past month on any possible cancellation.

The big deal this morning is that the CDC announced vaccinated individuals do not need to wear masks anymore, even indoors.  Well, not quite, for masks are still recommended in crowded settings like buses, planes and such, but clears the way for reopening workplaces, schools and other venues.  In fact, in the briefing today, both President Joe Biden and VP Kamala Harris appeared without masks.

From the New York Times, signs of fracturing within the Republican Party:

• Liz Cheney, who may be about to lose her House Republican leadership position, delivered a defiant speech: “I will not sit back and watch in silence while others lead our party down a path that abandons the rule of law.”
• 
  More than 100 Republicans, including former elected officials, are threatening to form a third party.
• Cheney’s stance matters because she is a pro-gun, anti-abortion, anti-regulation, deeply conservative Republican.

Of course, she did lose her leadership role, but the Wall Street Journal's Peggy Noonan said this placed the Republican Party "on the side of a lie," while Commentary's Noah Rothman argues this will hurt Republican electoral prospects.

I have a list of my favorite double-bills, two films I hope to see back-to-back, and someday will go through them in a one-week binge.  Here are a few such couples:

• Casablanca (this is the whole film, 1943, Rotten Tomatoes 99/95)  and Play it Again Sam (1972, RT 97/89)
• Ninotcha (again, this is the whole movie, 1939, RT 97/89) and Silk Stockings (1957, RT 100/68)
• Pygmalion (yes, this too is the whole film, 1938, RT 94/86) and My Fair Lady (1964, RT 95/90)

During the recent Academy Award month, TCM happened to show Pygmalion and My Fair Lady.  So I watched them, one after the other.

Irishman George Bernard Shaw wrote Pygmalion in 1912 at the age of 56, one of more than 60 of his plays.  His story came from Greek mythology where Pygmalion fell in love with one of his sculptures, which then came to life.  But it was Roman poet Ovid, who lived around the time of Jesus Christ, first writing of Pygmalion and Galatea, the name of the statue.

Shaw in 1925 was awarded a Nobel Prize.  He was irreligious and contentious, promoting eugenics, opposing vaccinations and admired Mussolini and Stalin.  Yet, he is said to be #2 in Great Britain to Shakespeare.  GBS passed away in 1950 at the age of 94.

The play itself was first presented in 1913 in Vienna, and soon thereafter New York in 1914, then London later that year, with Shaw himself directing the latter version.  A strange name, but Mrs. Pat played the British Eliza Doolittle, while Sir Herbert Tree was Henry Higgins.

The play evolved, and was in 1938 made into a film.  Wendy Hiller and Leslie Howard not only did well as Eliza and Henry, but they got nominated for Best Actress and Actor, and so did the movie.  Unlike the play, the movie had a happy ending, upsetting Shaw.

While "the rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain" and "in Hertford, Hereford and Hampshire, hurricanes hardly ever happens," were not ever in those earlier plays, the movie provided the lyrics for the Broadway musical show in 1956 by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe, starring Rex Harrison as the Professor and Julie Andrews as Eliza.  Over time, illuminaries like Robert Morley, Raymond Massey, Peter O'Toole and Rupert Everett played Professor Higgins.

The Broadway show became a film in 1964 with Rex Harrison and Audrey Hepburn.  Jack Warner, who totally ran Warner Brothers, did something rare in his life, for he made himself producer.  He chose Hepburn over Julie Andrew (who starred on Broadway), then told Audrey that her singing would be dubbed by Marnie Nixon.  

Though upset, Andrews went on to play Mary Poppins (RT: 98/86), then in the Academy Award Ceremonies the following year, gained revenge by being named Best Actress over Hepburn.  Harrison was Best Actor.  1965 was the only time that the Oscars had three films with 12 or more nominations, the third being Becket.  My Fair Lady won for Best Picture and led with eight statues.

I began my nostalgic musings two days ago by citing that Norman Lloyd was the oldest living celebrity.  

• Well, he passed away at the age of 106 just about the time I posted that article.  
• He was an actor who worked with Charles Chaplin and was frequently directed by Alfred Hitchcock.  
• His wife of 75 years died in 2011 at the age of 88. 
• When he was 11 he attended Game 1 of the 1926 World Series at Yankee Stadium.  Ninety-one years later at 102 he went to Game 2 of the 2017 World Series in Los Angeles.  
• His career began in 1923, and his final film was Trainwreck, released in 2015 when he was a hundred years old.

My constant provider sent me the following to build on your nostalgic music library:

A PRECIOUS COLLECTION OF MUSIC OLDIES FOR MUSIC LOVERS

 

Oldies 1

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacTheOldies1/TheOldies1-2.htm

 

Oldies 2

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacTheOldies2/TheOldies2-2.htm

 

Oldies 3

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacTheOldies3/TheOldies3-2.htm

 

Country Music

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacCountryMusic/Country-2.htm

 

Soft Rock 1

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacSoftRock1/SoftRock1-2.htm

 

Soft Rock 2

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacSoftRock2/SoftRock2-2.htm

 

Best Songs of All Time 1

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacAllTimeBest/AllTimeBest-2.htm

 

Best Songs of All Time 2

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacAllTimeBest2/AllTimeBest2-2.htm

 

Best Songs of All Time 3

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacAllTimeBest3/AllTimeBest3-2.htm

 

Orchestra Music

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacHoaTau/4-2.htm

 

Romantic Saxophone

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacRomanticSaxophone/RomanticSaxophone-2.htm

 

Duets

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacDuets/Duets-2.htm

 

The Best of Classical Music

http://www.saigonocean3.com/nghenhacClassicalMusic1/ClassicalMusic1-2.htm

 

Classical Music (Piano)

http://www.saigonocean3.com/nghenhacClassicalMusic2/ClassicalMusic2-2.htm

 

Opera Music

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacOpera/Opera-2.htm

 

Disco Music

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacDisco/Disco-2.htm

 

Ballroom Dancing

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacBallroomDancing/BallroomDancing-2.htm

 

Soul Train

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacSoulTrain1/SoulTrain1-2.htm

 

Bands/Singers--

Andre Rieu

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacAndreRieu/AR-2.htm

 

Henry Mancini

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacHenryMancini/HenryMancini-2.htm

 

James Last

http://www.saigonocean3.com/nghenhacJamesLast/JamesLast-2.htm

 

Paul Mauriat*

http://www.saigonocean3.com/nghenhacPaulMauriat/PaulMauriat-2.htm

 

Richard Clayderman

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacRichardClayderman/RC-2.htm

 

The Ventures

http://www.saigonocean3.com/nghenhacTheVentures/TheVentures-2.htm

 

Barbara Streisand

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacBarbaraStreisand/BarbaraStreisand-2.htm

 

Mariah Carey

http://www.saigonocean3.com/nghenhacMariahCarey/MariahCarey-2.htm

 

Shirley Bassey

http://www.saigonocean3.com/nghenhacShirleyBassey/ShirleyBassey-2.htm

 

Whitney Houston

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacWhitneyHouston/WhitneyHouston-2.htm

 

Andy Williams

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacAndyWilliams/AW-2.htm

 

Bryan Adams

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacBryanAdams/BryanAdams-2.htm

 

Elvis Presley

http://www.saigonocean3.com/nghenhacElvisPresley/ElvisPresley-2.htm

 

Engelbert Humperdinck

http://www.saigonocean3.com/nghenhacEngelbertHumperdinck/EngelbertHumperdinck-2.htm

 

Julio Iglesias

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacJulioIglesias/JI-2.htm

 

Michael Jackson

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacMichaelJackson/MJ-2.htm

 

Neil Diamond

http://www.saigonocean3.com/nghenhacNeilDiamond/NeilDiamond-2.htm

 

Paul Anka

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacPaulAnka/PaulAnka-2.htm

 

Rod Stewart

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacRodStewart/RodStewart-2.htm

 

Simon & Garfunkel

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacSimon&Garfunkel/S&G-2.htm

 

ABBA

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacABBA/ABBA-2.htm

 

The Bee Gees

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacBeeGees/BG-2.htm

 

The Beatles

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacTheBeatles/TheBeatles-2.htm

The Sound Of Music

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacTheSoundOfMusic/TheSoundOfMusic-2.htm

Eagles

http://saigonocean3.com/nghenhacEagles/Eagles-2.htm

 

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