Spike Lee, who directed and played Mookie in Do the Right Thing (1989), recently visited the movie’s Bedford–Stuyvesant neighborhood in a video made for the twenty-fifth anniversary of the film. In the 22-minute documentary from Beats Music, Lee is joined on the streets of Brooklyn by Danny Aiello, who played Sal in the film, as well as by other stars like Rosie Perez and by other people who worked on the film.
The documentary then ends with a 25th Anniversary Block Party with guests that include Dave Chappelle, Wesley Snipes, Yasiin Bey (aka Mos Def), Erykah Badu, and Public Enemy. Check it out.
Sometimes I hate the invasiveness of new technology into our lives, but other times I figure we are pretty lucky. One of those times was when after watching Enemy (2013) I realized I could immediately seek help from the Internet in decoding what Jake Gyllenhaal saw. And recently, while watching Boyhood (2014), there was a scene with a mix CD where I thought, “I bet I’ll be able to find the track listings for the pretend CD on the Internet.” And, of course, I did.
In Boyhood, there is a scene where Mason Sr. (Ethan Hawke) gives his son Mason Jr. (Ellar Coltrane) a mix CD he made, called The Beatles’ Black Album. The father explains that it is a compilation of the post-Beatles solo work by George Harrison, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and Ringo Starr. He tells how the music fits perfectly together, illustrating what albums we might have heard had the Beatles never broken up, continuing to work together in their mature years.
We get a glimpse of the track list in the movie. And in the theater, I then spent the next several minutes missing what was happening in the film because I was wondering what was on the CD.
The CD, however, was not created just for the movie. Ethan Hawke first made The Black Album for his daughter, even writing liner notes explaining his choices and why he made the album. Fortunately for us curious folks, he reworked the notes a little bit more and released them to the world via the Internet, along with the track listings. For the touching liner notes, which are worth reading, head over to Buzzfeed. You can catch the track listings from the three CDs of The Black Album below.
Disc 1: 1. Paul McCartney & Wings, “Band on the Run”; 2. George Harrison, “My Sweet Lord”; 3. John Lennon feat. The Flux Fiddlers & the Plastic Ono Band, “Jealous Guy”; 4. Ringo Starr, “Photograph”; 5. John Lennon, “How?”; 6. Paul McCartney, “Every Night”; 7. George Harrison, “Blow Away”; 8. Paul McCartney, “Maybe I’m Amazed”; 9. John Lennon, “Woman”; 10.Paul McCartney & Wings, “Jet”; 11. John Lennon, “Stand by Me”; 12. Ringo Starr, “No No Song”; 13. Paul McCartney, “Junk”; 14. John Lennon, “Love”; 15. Paul McCartney & Linda McCartney, “The Back Seat of My Car”; 16. John Lennon, “Watching the Wheels”; 17. John Lennon, “Mind Games”; 18. Paul McCartney & Wings, “Bluebird”; 19. John Lennon, “Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)”; 20. George Harrison, “What Is Life”
Disc 2: 1. John Lennon, “God”; 2. Wings, “Listen to What the Man Said”; 3. John Lennon, “Crippled Inside”; 4. Ringo Starr, “You’re Sixteen You’re Beautiful (And You’re Mine)”; 5. Paul McCartney & Wings, “Let Me Roll It”; 6. John Lennon & The Plastic Ono Band, “Power to the People”; 7. Paul McCartney, “Another Day”; 8. George Harrison, “If Not For You (2001 Digital Remaster)”; 9. John Lennon, “(Just Like) Starting Over”; 10. Wings, “Let ‘Em In”; 11. John Lennon, “Mother”; 12. Paul McCartney & Wings, “Helen Wheels”; 13. John Lennon, “I Found Out”; 14. Paul McCartney & Linda McCartney, “Uncle Albert / Admiral Halsey”; 15. John Lennon, Yoko Ono & The Plastic Ono Band, “Instant Karma! (We All Shine On)”; 15. George Harrison, “Not Guilty (2004 Digital Remaster)”; 16. Paul McCartney & Linda McCartney, “Heart of the Country”; 17. John Lennon, “Oh Yoko!”; 18. Wings, “Mull of Kintyre”; 19. Ringo Starr, “It Don’t Come Easy”
Disc 3: 1. John Lennon, “Grow Old With Me (2010 Remaster)”; 2. Wings, “Silly Love Songs”; 3. The Beatles, “Real Love”; 4. Paul McCartney & Wings, “My Love”; 5. John Lennon, “Oh My Love”; 6. George Harrison, “Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)”; 7. Paul McCartney, “Pipes of Peace”; 8. John Lennon, “Imagine”; 9. Paul McCartney, “Here Today”; 10. George Harrison, “All Things Must Pass”; 11. Paul McCartney, “And I Love Her (Live on MTV Unplugged)”
Regarding the movie Boyhood, it is a fun experience seeing how director Richard Linklater filmed the story over twelve years so that the characters, and in particular the young man at the center of the story, age just like the actors. It is worth checking out for that reason alone. Be prepared that the movie is a little long and there is not a lot of plot. But the movie captures real life, which is pretty great for a film. So you should check it out.
As for the Black Album, the CD is a great idea, and while I might make some different choices, it is pretty cool to sit back and just enjoy the list and think “what if?”
What songs would you change on your Beatles’ “Black Album”? Leave your two cents in the comments.
The great baseball player George Herman “Babe” Ruth, Jr. passed away on August 16, 1948 at the age of 53. Ruth, who was born in Baltimore on February 6, 1895, died from cancer, which had been diagnosed two years before his death.
Ruth’s Funeral
After Ruth’s death, his body lay in state at the entrance of Yankee Stadium (“The House That Ruth Built“) for two days. During that time, fans lined up to pay their last respects.
This video shows people lined up outside Yankee Stadium to Ruth one last time. It also includes scenes from Babe Ruth’s funeral, as well as some archival footage of the Sultan of Swat. Check it out.
Ruth Movies
In the month before Ruth’s death, Allied Artists released a bio-pic about the slugger, The Babe Ruth Story (1948), starring William Bendix as Ruth. Many critics have called the film, which includes scenes of Ruth healing sick children (a legend parodied by John Candy on SCTV), one of the worst movies of all time.
Regarding The Babe Ruth Story, people also note that the film could not even get little things right. For example, Bendix plays baseball as a right hander. Ruth was a lefty.
But if you watch The Babe Ruth Story with the right attitude and do not expect a realistic biography, you might have some fun. You can check out the trailer below.
Perhaps Ruth was so larger than life and so well known that it is difficult to make a good film about him. Like The Babe Ruth Story, 1992’s The Babe — with John Goodman in the title role — generally received poor reviews.
One of my favorite Babe Ruth movies was not really about Babe Ruth. Pride of the Yankees (1942) tells the story of Lou Gehrig’s career through the discovery that he had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), what became known as “Lou Gehrig’s Disease.”
In Pride of the Yankees, Gary Cooper pays Gehrig and Ruth plays himself. What I always admired about Ruth’s self-portrayal is that he took part in a scene that makes Gehrig look much better than he does.
In the scene, Ruth visits a sick kid surrounded by reporters covering his visit. Then Gehrig visits the kid in private, showing his sincere concern and promising to hit two home runs for the child during the 1928 World Series. Reportedly, the Gehrig incident never took place and is loosely based on when Ruth promised a home run during the 1926 World Series to a hospitalized boy.
The movie’s version of the story makes Ruth look bad in comparison to Gehrig. But his generosity in playing the scene in tribute to his former teammate says a lot about the The Bambino as a person. Unfortunately, that scene is not available on Youtube (although another scene featuring Ruth is available on the Turner Classic Movies website).
Baseball would not be the same had Babe Ruth not come along, and there will never be another one like him. Thanks Babe.
What is your favorite Babe Ruth story? Leave your two cents in the comments.
CineFix has put together in one video what it calls the “10 Most Effective Editing Moments of All Time.” While one might argue whether the list includes the actual top ten, it is hard to argue that these clips — from movies like Godfather (1972), Battleship Potemkin (1925), 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), and Psycho (1960) — are not at least among the best. I will not ruin which movie they chose as number one. Check it out.
What movie do you think has the most memorable editing moment? Leave your two cents in the comments.
Helen Kane had a successful career, but she may be most remembered for being the inspiration for a cartoon character.
On August 4, 1904, Helen Clare Schroeder — who became famous as Helen Kane — was born in the Bronx. Kane, who started out as a performer in vaudeville and Broadway, became famous as a singer and in films.
Despite Kane’s successful career, she’s mostly remembered today for two things. Kane introduced the world to the hit song “I Wanna Be Loved by You” in 1928 in Oscar Hammerstein’s show Good Boy. And she inspired the cartoon Betty Boop.
The Betty Boop connection resulted in a lawsuit. Kane sued Paramount Pictures and Boop-animator Max Fleischer for unfair competition and wrongful appropriation.
Fleischer had initially created the character as a dog, but by 1932 when Kane filed the lawsuit, Betty Boop was an animated human. Kane lost the lawsuit because the judge decided she could not show that she had originated the singing style herself. She may have copied the style from African-American performer Baby Esther.
Below, in movie footage from 1929, Helen Kane sings “He’s So Unusual” and “The Prep Step.” The performances of “He’s So Unusual,” written by Sherman Lewis Silver, and “The Prep Step” with Jack Oakie are from the 1929 movie Sweetie, which is currently available in its entirety on YouTube.
In 1983, Cyndi Lauper reflected Kane’s style in her own cover of “He’s So Unusual” on her album She’s So Unsual. Kane’s hit “I Wanna Be Loved by You” has also been covered, but Kane’s performance remains the definitive version that can only be imitated.
This video’s creator took Kane’s version of “I Wanna Be Loved by You” and added images of both Kane and Betty Boop.
For some pure Betty Boop, here is the 1932 cartoon, “Boop-Oop-A-Doop.”
As for Helen Kane, after the Boop lawsuit, her career went through several ups and downs. Her flapper style lost favor during the Great Depression, but she made several TV appearances in the 1950s and 1960s until she passed away on September 26, 1966 at age 62 in Queens, New York. She’s buried at the Long Island National Cemetery.
Dan Healy, Kane’s third husband who had been married to her for 27 years, was with her when she died. To hear more Helen Kane, head over to the Internet Archive. For more photos of Kane, check out 21st Century Flapper.
As for Betty Boop, her popularity has fluctuated through the years too. But she still appears in various media today and will help keep Helen Kane’s memory alive for a long time to come.
(1948), starring William Bendix as Ruth. Many critics have called the film, which includes scenes of Ruth healing sick children (a legend parodied by John Candy on 
