I’ve got four email messages in my archive from a fellow named Hoagy.
That’s right. Hoagy, as in Hoagy Carmichael. More specifically, Hoagy Bix Carmichael, first-born of Indiana’s own legendary songwriter, radio star, movie and TV actor. Just for perspective (and for those of you not familiar with Hoagy, the Elder), the Carmichael penned song “Stardust” is one of the most recorded tunes in the entire history of singles, albums, wax cylinders, CDs, mp3s, and any other medium you’d choose to hear it on. It was one of the first 50 songs to be selected by the Library of Congress in 2004 for inclusion in its National Recording Registry.
Basically, “Stardust” is to music what any thing written by Ernest Hemingway is to literature. And — wouldn’t you know it? — Hoagy made his acting debut playing the nightclub pianist Cricket in the 1944 film version of the Hemingway short story “To Have and Have Not.”
Hoagy Bix is in town to help stage and promote the music and dance revue, “Stardust Road” A Carmichael Musical Journey,” playing at the Wells-Metz Theater through Saturday. I had him on Big Talk yesterday and my profile of him ran earlier in the day on the Limestone Post.
Hoagy Bix tells a bunch of tales of his childhood in Hollywood and what he did as an adult to keep his bearings straight as a celebrity kid. A number of his neighbors, including the likes of Christine Crawford and the Bing Crosby kids, weren’t as lucky — or perhaps smart — as he was. Listen or read to find out why.
BTW: Hoagy Bix recently had a little growth in his cheek/jaw area taken care of so he speaks with a lisp. You might have to concentrate to understand everything he says on the radio interview, but it’s worth it.
Go here for the podcast and here for the Limestone Post piece.
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My Mental Health Break
Phew! I had to look it up. It’s been forty days since I last made a non-auto post on Facebook. It’s been almost that long as well since, I suppose, I’ve made any kind of comment at all on the social medium (I can’t say exactly when my last comment was because I’m too lazy to look that up).
Yep. I’ve been staying away from FB. Intentionally. And I’ll be goddamned — I haven’t felt so relaxed since November 8, 2016.
This latest development goes a little bit hand-in-hand with a similar but not as absolute retrenchment from posting on this global communications colossus.
The way I figure it, there ain’t much to pontificate about these days if not about the whack-job that won the US presidency on a technicality that dark Tuesday nearly two years ago. And I’m sick to holy hell of pontificating about President Gag. More broadly, I’m sick to holy hell of him. Sick, too, of being bombarded with every stupid-assed thing he says and does. None of it is news anymore, folks. He could stand up behind that White House podium and call for a return to slavery and that wouldn’t be news either.
He’s the craziest son of a bitch who’s ever ascended to the leadership position of this holy land. At this point, fixating on all the sewage emanating from his face-hole is about as useful as pointing out that Charles Manson had some odd thoughts.
Obsessing over P. Gag’s latest jaw-dropping rhetorical emesis or cranky executive order or musing at length about the direction he’s taking America and the world is absolutely pointless now if you haven’t made the commitment to vote in November, if you’re not doing all you can to get your friends, family, and neighbors to vote as well.
Some 63 million people voted for this horror show two years ago. Hell anybody can make a mistake. I’ll be generous and allow that any 63 million bodies can make a mistake. The question we all have to ask ourselves is Is this a bump in the road or is this the road?\
We all know the score right now. Constantly repeating it won’t change it. We’re at a crossroads, kids, one that’ll last from now until November 3, 2020. We’ve got all the dope and info we need. If we don’t act on it during these key days and months in our country’s history, we’ll have nobody to blame but ourselves if this presidency lasts eight years.
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