The Evil Of Disney

[poliphilo]

I'm told that Werner von Braun- the scientist who built rockets for Hitler (slave labour was involved) and later for NASA, also designed rides for Disney.

I love it. A life that links the Third Reich, the Space Race and Disneyland deserves to be novelized- deserves to be turned into the biggest of block-buster movies.

I've always hated Disney. The way his factory turned all those great children's stories into formulaic, sentimental kiddie-feed. Pah!

Note the word "hate". Not "dislike". This an affair of the passions and not so far removed from love. The animation in those early films- Snow White, Pinocchio, Dumbo- leaves me gasping with admiration.

And I have a weird, twisted regard (as you may have guessed) for Mary Poppins and its companion-piece, the under-rated Bed-knobs and Broomsticks.

That Disney magic- an evil spell cast across children's entertainment for more than half a century, so that rivals felt they had no choice but to attempt to do the same thing only worse: how glad I am- how very, very glad- that Pixar has escaped from its shadow!

Comments

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

We had a big box of very old 78s- things my mother and her brother had listened to when they were kids.

I would spend whole afternoons spinning them.

My very favourite was a Cole Porter novelty song sung (I think) by Jack Buchanan- Miss Otis Regrets- the sad story of a socialite who has to turn down an invitation to luncheon because she has just murdered her lover and- ahem- been lynched by an angry mob. Even then, I guess, I had a dark sense of humour. Recently I came across a new, and delightfully blowsy version by the late, great Kirsty McColl.

[jackiejj.livejournal.com]

"Miss Otis Regrets"--I've heard the title but never the song.

The lyrics are fascinating (I looked):

"And from under her velvet gown,
She drew a gun and shot her lover down.
Madam...
Miss Otis regrets
She's unable to lunch today.

Then the mob came and got her
And dragged her from the jail.
Madam...
They strung her upon
A willow across the way."

It does need a "blowsy version," some smoky voice.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Jack Buchanan did it as if he were the butler discretely handing over a note on a silver salver- which was delicious.

And McColl- equally deliciously- did it as though she had a half emptied bottle in her fist.

[jackiejj.livejournal.com]

My father decided to buy us a "high-fi," and he consulted Mr. Blake at the record store. There was a new fad just out--"stereo sound," but Mr. Blake advised my father that it wouldn't last.

Our neighbors bought a stereo, and they made us sit in the center of the room while they played a demonstration record that had a man walking from one speaker to the other.

We were all angry at Dad that he'd listened to old Mr. Blake and just bought a High-Fi set.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I've never really seen the point of stereo.

I don't particularly want to turn my living room into a concert hall.

Why should it matter whether the sound comes from one place or two?

Is this a very ignorant question?

[jackiejj.livejournal.com]

Why should it matter whether the sound comes from one place or two?

Is this a very ignorant question?

I don't think so...but I do like the idea of trying to, as much as possible, duplicate the real sound of a concert hall.

To me, having the music coming from various places in the room makes the music richer and more robust--less thin.

I like music loud and filling the room! I can't stand background music. It irritates me. In particular, I can't stand canned music--"Moon River" played with no expression on some saxophone.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I mainly listen to music when I'm cooking.

I've got a radio/cd player next to the cooker and a big stack of discs- most of them traditional folk.