I’ve never written many “gay” posts before. I’m not sure why. I guess it’s easier to write about politics or computers or something similarly heady. Maybe it’s also because in ways it’s so much more personal. That said, I just (re)-rented a “gay movie” on Netflix that I thought was really top-notch, and it got me in a writing mood.
Gay Cinema is a funny thing, at least I’ve always thought it was. Ten years ago I first moved out to New York City. It was 1997, not all that terribly long ago in my book, but in some ways totally different. There were only one or two token gay characters on any television show; come to think of it, I only remember one on Melrose Place. Nothing remotely resembling Will & Grace existed. There were two types of movies: obscure films with limited release that delivered depressing drama about AIDS (Philadelphia, Longtime Companion, And the Band Played On, etc.) or very-very obscure low budget movies that only made the film festival circuit that all too often had bad writing, bad acting, and/or bad production value. Both categories were destined to fill the obscure “Gay Cinema” corner in any video rental store.
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Ack! Spending so much time doing computer work my spirit’s bungie-cord in snapping back and my artistic side is screaming for attention. I woke this morning from a dream where an old friend (who I haven’t spoken to in about fifteen years) was singing a sad, Cheryl Crow style song about motherhood and childbirth and regrets.
No, I’m aware that’s not typical subject matter for my inner psyche, but that’s dreamland for you. (Actually, I’d just seen a rerun of the Sci Fi program Farscape and one of the main characters was newly “with child” so the theme isn’t quite so random.) I woke up remembering only a few of the words (which weren’t enough to really write down) and a fragment of the melody (which is hard to “write down” per se) and within a couple minutes it was lost.
Then I remembered another dream I’d had last night where I was composing a parody of Gilbert & Sullivan’s song “Modern Major-General” start started “I am the Very Model of a Presidential Candidate” and went on to joke about the 2008 Presidential primary season. (The only other line I can recall is “…anecdotal stories crafted for a sample audience.”) Come to think of it, I know where my subconscious dug that one up: the second episode of the NBC show Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. (lyrics, video clip)
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