A Little of the Old In and Out

In: Ingmar Bergman's Sarabande. There is no greater fan of Swedish auteur du cinema Ingmar Bergman than Ron Mwangaguhunga. I always think of this entire postmodern situation as akin to the penultimate scene in Ingmar Bergman's final masterpiece Fanny and Alexander. After hours of intense drama, the wicked stepfather is killed in a freakish accident, freeing the brooding stepson Alexander's conflicted psyche. Alexander exalts, running through his childhood house, believing himself free of an oppressive-alien father figure (Bergman is the greatest cinematic translator of Freud -- his domestic dramas of the 70s are the equal of anything by Ibsen or Strindberg, while Fellini was the greatest evangelist for Jung; one Scandanavian, intense, serious, ironical, melancholy, concentrated; the other pagan, wild, teeming with energies, sophisticated, a wild force of nature), and, just then, the ghost of Alexander's father slams into him, knocking him down, silent, leaving the boy mystified as the ghost walks away.

Even in death, the "stepfather" persona haunts his consciousness; this is as perfect an embodiment of The Anxiety of Influence as ... well, as Shakespeare.

Ingmar Bergman's Sarabande. his last film, his masterpiece, will be at the New York Film Festival on October 15th and 16th.

Out: Amy Poehler. The loves Amy Poehler, he really does, but he just got around to the TiVo of the Weekend Update and ... uh .. it was painful to watch. Tina Fey, a great feminist, is totally giving Amy sisterhood encouragement, but -- and I don't know if it's the chemistry or the lack of dash on Amy's part -- it doesn't work. Maybe this is something that will get better with time. The Corsair certainly hopes so. It would be nice to see two women entering the very, very male bastion of SNL's Weekend News.

In: Stern to Satellite Radio. According to Defamer:

"Howard Stern announced that he's taking his show to Sirius Satellite Radio (in January of 2006, when his current radio contract is up), where he won't have to worry about FCC fines every time he says 'anal sex' or spanks a stripper with an assortment of deli meats. Oh, yeah, he's also getting an unbelievable pile of money for attempting to carry satellite radio on his back, as Variety reports the five-year deal is worth $500 million (including the show's budget and its other expenses). No, we're pretty sure that's not a typo, since the Var article mentions the figure twice."

$500 Million for satellite radio? The Corsair is Sirius-ly interested.

In: Rupert Everett, Defending Her Madgesty. According to Ananova:

"Rupert Everett has accused Sir Elton John of being 'bossy and cranky' after he criticised Madonna for lip-synching on her Re-invention world tour.

"The British actor became close friends with Madonna when the pair teamed up in the film The Next Best Thing.

"(Everett) has stepped in to defend her after Elton attacked the singer during a rant at the Q Awards reports IMDb.com.

"Everett who appeared in Madonna's American Pie video said: 'I don't understand what he's got against her because this is the second time he's stuck into her a bit."

(Ed Note: The Corsair would like to express doubt that Sir Elton "stuck into" Madonna. Okay. Carry on)

"That seems really unfair to me. Listen, any singer who dances all the time, you don't have the breath to sing all the time.

"'If you do a heavy dance routine, at some point you're going to do a bit of lip-synch ... I bet Elton has lip-synched moments of his performance, even though he's at a piano all the time. He's very bossy these days, I think. I mean he's lovely but he's a bit bossy and he does seem a bit cranky.'"

Out: Civility. The Washington Post's Reliable Source weighs in:

"We're all doomed: Shrill, partisan politicking is laying waste to the Washington social scene, argues a piece in the upcoming W magazine, which surveys longtime socialites and 'smart set' members on just how bad it has become as the election nears. 'Whoever wins, the bitterness is such that [Mayor] Tony Williams might want to think about putting Paxil in the water,' Dick Carlson, a political appointee in the Reagan and Bush I administrations (and father of CNN's Tucker Carlson), tells the mag. 'Otherwise, the living rooms of Georgetown could turn into mosh pits. With all this campaign hyperbole and the name-calling I'm afraid it's going to make life difficult.'"

One doesn't expect Tucker Carlson's pappy to be hip, but we were hoping that if he used the term "mosh pit," he might actually know what one is. A mosh pit, like the blogosphere, is a zone of controlled aggression, a civil space, after a fashion. The Corsair believes Carlson the Elder was groping in the lexicographical dark for, say,"boxing ring," which is more apt (Averted Gaze).

"Nonpartisan social doyenne Oatsie Charles informs W scribe Susan Watters: 'As far as I'm concerned, the Washington I knew is over.' "

Oh that Oatsie, she's such a pill:

"In the W article, Christopher Hitchens -- ever the contrarian -- expresses no concern about the partisan climate. He admits to unleashing a pungent Cheneyism in a confrontation with Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) backstage at CNN. 'Frankly,' Hitch tells the magazine, 'I think much too high a value is placed upon civility.'

In: First Person. A New FashionWeekDaily thingie. Tuesday at Paris Fashion Week through the eyes of Cond� Nast Traveler style director, Mark Connolly. On the Vivienne Westwood show:

" ... after a stormy start, I loved an ultra-modern take on the frock coat?with the reveres, cuffs, pocket flaps and giant buttons printed onto, or knitted into, jersey cardigans, some of them in camel and black stripes. And when the dandy highway-women turned round, there were rock-and-roll slogans appliqu�d on the back. I want one.

"There were also aristocratic shepherdesses and 70s platforms that looked like they were recycled from old beer cans?Guinness and Holstein Pils?topped off with 18th century wigged-out hairdos and Boucher rosy cheeks. The soundtrack was Tom Jones (the Welsh singer, not the 18th century novel) singing Iggy Pop?s 'Lust For Life.' It was vintage Viv."

And:

"2:25 pm: I leave the restaurant for a 2:30 pm show. It was not a good day to be breaking in a new limo driver. Especially one who doesn?t appear to be from Paris and does not, therefore, understand the importance of fashion shows?and that he is expected to break traffic regulations to get us to them on time."

More.

Out: Hard Work in Congress. According to The Hill:

"Rep. Richard Pombo (R-Calif.), chairman of the House Resources Committee, plans to shutter his panel when Congress recesses this week, giving his staff a month of vacation before lawmakers return for a lame-duck session next month.Staffers can use their vacation at their own discretion, and some aides are expected to volunteer for two of the House?s most embattled Republicans, Reps. Rick Renzi (R-Ariz.) and Steve Pearce (R-N.M.), who are also members of the committee.

"... Republican and Democratic committee staff directors said it was highly unusual to shut down a committee during the peak election season. Democrats on the panel were shocked that the majority staff would close shop for a full month."

Your taxpayer dollars hard at work.

In: OldHag. We love us our OldHag. Blog love to Jimmy and Lizzie. Lizzie on John "Pretty Hair Like A Pony" Edwards:

" ... how cute was it that he broke the rules of mentioning 'John Kerry' TWICE, then laughed off Gwen Ifill's 20-second snafu? How cool would it be to have anyone in Washington you could call 'cute'?"

What? Tom Delay isn't a long cold drink of water?!