As tragic as yesterday’s postal shooting up near Santa Barbara is, a Seinfeld episode detailing it has already been done, just like it has for every other personal quirk and social occurrence over its run.

Season 4, episode 18, titled The Old Man
Originally aired: February 18, 1993
Writer: Bruce Kirschbaum; Story: Larry Charles

George Costanza: Let me ask you something... What do you do for a living, Newman?
Newman: I'm a United States postal worker.
George Costanza: Aren't those the guys that always go crazy and come back with a gun and shoot everybody?
Newman: Sometimes.
Jerry: Why is that?
Newman: Because the mail never stops. It just keeps coming and coming and coming. There's never a letup. It's relentless. Every day it piles up more and more, but the more you get out, the more it keeps coming. And then the bar code reader breaks. And then it's Publisher's Clearinghouse day.
Jerry: All right, all right.

Okay, lets go over what happened while you little boys and girls slept this night:


Russian President Putin brags about Russia’s missiles capable of penetrating any missile defense system -
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060131/ap_on_re_eu/russia_putin_missiles_4


Iran says that UN Big Five's decision to refer the country's nuclear file to the Security Council would be the end of diplomacy -
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060131/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iran_nuclear


Al-Qaida's No. 2 leader Ayman al-Zawahri threatened a new attack against the United States — "God willing, on your own land." -
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060131/ap_on_re_mi_ea/zawahri_tape


Another Postal worker goes Postal. Seven dead this time out -
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060131/ap_on_re_us/post_office_shooting


Coretta Scott King, widow of civil rights leader Martin Luther King, died -
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060131/ts_nm/king_dc

The great film editor Stu Linder died (see yesterday's post).

And we have yet to find out the Oscar nominations for the 78th Awards and hear what our President has to say in the State of the Union address.


Wow, to say the least.

For an illustration of Linder’s editing subtlety and nuance, one just has to see his work on Liberty Heights, which I highly, highly recommend to anyone interested in film, be it editing, music, cinematography, writing/directing, and everything else in between.

The following is from Daily Variety's web site.

Stu Linder - Film Editor

By VARIETY STAFF

Film editor Stu Linder died of a heart attack Jan. 12, in Ridgefield, Conn., while on location working on "Man of the Year" for Barry Levinson. He was 74.

Linder began his 25-year collaboration with Levinson on "Diner" in 1981. Their films together include "Rain Man," "The Natural," "Tin Men," "Good Morning Vietnam," "Avalon," "Bugsy," "Disclosure" and "Wag The Dog."

In 1967, Linder shared the editing Oscar for John Frankenheimer's "Grand Prix" and in 1989 received the American Cinema Editors feature award, an Oscar nom and and a BAFTA nomination for "Rain Man."

His other editing credits include "The Fortune," "First Family," "My Bodyguard," "Six Weeks," "Code Name: Emerald" and "Quiz Show."

Linder began his career at Paramount Studios in 1955. Among his assistant credits are "The Misfits," "Seconds," "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance," "Carnal Knowledge," "Catch 22" and "Day of the Dolphin."

Linder was born in Geneva, Ill. and grew up in Hermosa Beach, Calif. An Army veteran of the Korean War, he served as an illustrator for the Foreign Language School at Fort Ord.

He is survived by his wife, Cathy Fitzpatrick Linder, a former HBO exec; a son and a brother. Donations may be made to the California Special Olympics.

Last week I caught the last day of the Gene Autry Western Heritage Museum’s Sergio Leone and the West exhibit.

The highlights were the walls and walls of various posters, both of the Leone films and other Westerns, and how the clips that played over and over on a few screens still had the visitors completely mesmerized.

There were also a few listening stations that piped Ennio Morricone’s themes and various cues through headphones, accompanied by loose placards with the titles of the pieces and a few quotes. The following was so remarkable, I went outside to the front desk, grabbed some brochure to write on, came back, whipped out my trusty black Extra Fine Pint Sharpie that travels with me everywhere, and wrote down the following, word for word. It would be far, far better if the reader has seen The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. Countless times.

There are some moments in Sergio’s films that have already become historic moments in the story of cinema. In “Ecstasy of Gold” – when Tuco arrives at the cemetery to find the grave where the gold is hidden – those three minutes and twenty seconds are a cinematographic moment of enormous expressivity - but also great editing techniques, great camera moves, and a great way to think out a scene. Also, I must say the music played its part…”
Ennio Morricone

I will not describe the scene, but will mention when I first saw just that. Many years ago, screenwriter Bo Goldman was the speaker of the Film Academy’s annual Marvin Borowsky Lecture on Screenwriting. I do not remember much, alas, but he showed a few clips to highlight what he was talking about. One of the clips was the exact scene that Ennio mentioned above. It was those three minutes and twenty seconds, nothing more, nothing less. Not knowing about the film at all at that point, and watching the clip in its full visual and aural glory on the Academy’s screen was one of my greatest film-watching experiences.

I remember it every time I am able to see the film in a theatre, and was glad to run across Signore Morricone’s quote of his trivial (in jest, of course) contribution the film.



Orignal trailer can be found here (33MB Quicktime file).

While walking into the kitchen as another commercial break began during a 10.30PM Seinfeld rerun on KCPO 13 earlier tonight, I thought I heard something and ran back to the TV. (I am not the first not the last to say this, but some of those Seinfeld episodes are just fucking GENIUS).

At first I thought it was an SNL-type commercial parody, but, no, there it was – a pretty, short-cropped brunette in her mid-30, talking, proudly, about how she has not had an outbreak of vaginal herpes in over six months. I watched, semi-stunned, for about 10-15 seconds before I finished my trip to the kitchen, only to hear the usual voice-over relating all the possible side-effects to the V-something named drug.

Seinfeld is about the only non-PBS TV I watch these days, so maybe these commercials are a common sight. I do not know. Just, somehow, it seemed a tad too much, even in the age of SuperBowl broadcasts full of Viagra ads (which we have all gotten used to).

A quote from Ang Lee’s acceptance speech at the Director’s Guild Awards Saturday night:

From The Hollywood Reporter’s January 30 Edition:
He praised his competitors, saying he wished they could all go home winners: "We're winners because we're blessed. We're filmmakers. We make movies together, we celebrate together. What a life!"

And still shoot film, damn it!



Kodak Chairman/CEO Antonio Perez: "This introduction is the latest step in the company’s broad brand transformation effort, which reflects the multi-industry, digital imaging leader Kodak has become."