Both yours truly and Madame Blogmeister did our civic duty and voted by mail last month.
Then we kicked back and relaxed with the following favorite election-themed tune, courtesy of intrepid Swing Ticket candidate Louis Jordan.
It's true - every presidential election, this way too well-informed for his own good political junkie and diehard classic comedy aficionado MUST watch the hilarious Moe, Larry and Shemp in Three Dark Horses!
No matter how many times I see this Three Stooges opus in which our knucklehead heroes unwittingly work for super-corrupt griftin' grabbin' graftin' slimeball politicos, the result, invariably, is me ROFL and LMFAO.
The 1952 Columbia 2-reeler opens with the line, "what we need are delegates who are too dumb to think and will do what we tell them." Could we get exponentially more stupid and politics even sleazier in the 72 years since slap happy Jules White and the Columbia Shorts Department produced this? YES!
To decompress after a ghastly and interminable election cycle, it is now time to watch a few classic animated cartoons, starting with the 1950's Famous Studios version of Popeye the Sailor.
In Popeye For President (1956), as usual, the voice acting by Jack Mercer (credited for story on this cartoon), Jackson Beck and Mae Questel is stellar.
Ever since I first saw it on TV way back in the 1960's enjoyed the musical cartoon Olive Oyl For President (1948). Voice actress and comedienne par excellence Mae Questel delivers the song with considerable gusto.
Little did I know, Olive Oyl For President was a very creative cheater, some it re-using ideas from the Fleischer Studios cartoon (which, incidentally, we post for EVERY election), the imaginative, clever and funny Betty Boop For President (1932).
What classic cartoon can we finish an Election Day post with? This one: Bugs Bunny and Yosemite Sam in BALLOT BOX BUNNY, directed by Friz Freleng.
Here, having voted via absentee ballot, the guy responsible for 1,368 posts (!!!) at Way Too Damn Lazy To Write A Blog sits quietly in front of NYC's Russ & Daughters, anticipates the absolutely amazing food within, and remembers the blazing greatness and mindblowing musical talent of the recently passed bandleader/composer/arranger/producer/brass virtuoso Quincy Jones.
Among a list of accomplishments way too lengthy to recount here, Quincy Jones led an astounding big band (especially astonishing on the two Live In Paris albums) in the early 1960's.
Not surprisingly, brilliant, inventive and memorable arrangements by Quincy Jones, as well as rip-roaring musicianship, are the order of the day.
Quincy leads a star-studded killer big band - and the existing footage of it in concert rivals The Atomic Count Basie for hard swingin' goodness.
Quincy's superlative arrangements would be heard a few years later when Mr. Jones conducted the Count Basie Orchestra for the epic Sinatra At The Sands concert album.
Any and all interviews with Mr. Jones are worth checking out.
Ranking high on the short list of great moments in television: Quincy's appearances on Late Night With David Letterman.
Quincy Jones also appeared on Conan O'Brien's show, our favorite of the more recent (post-Johnny Carson, post-NBC David Letterman) late night TV programs.
At Way Too Damn Lazy To Write A Blog, we extended a hat tip to the maestro of maestros in the following March 2021 post, which noted
that perennial favorites Albert Einstein, Steph Curry, Michael Caine and Quincy share a March 14 birthday.
We wish readers of Way Too Damn Lazy To Write A Blog a Happy (and safe) Thanksgiving!
Noting a certain pesky robot on our kitchen table that repeatedly mentions the Birthday Roundup, reminding the gang at Way Too Damn Lazy To Write A Blog that, hoo-boy, there are some doozies among the natal anniversaries on March 14.
First and foremost, there's Albert Einstein (yes, THAT Einstein, as opposed to Harry "Parkyakarkus" Einstein and Bob "Super Dave Osborne" Einstein), the Nobel Prize-winning physicist and visionary, was born on March 14, 1879. Here he is, the genius, thinker, innovator and movie buff, with Charlie Chaplin in 1931.
Along with his meeting with Charlie Chaplin, a favorite Albert Einstein story involves him interrupting a conference by announcing, "you will have to excuse me, gentlemen. It's Time for Beany." That was Albert's favorite TV show and we surmise he was a big fan of Stan Freberg and Daws Butler, the brilliant voice artists who doubled as puppeteers and gag writers!
Chaplin and Time For Beany were not the only links between the founder of modern physics and quantum mechanics and the worlds of animation and filmmaking. Animation producer Max Fleischer, always fascinated by the sciences, made a documentary film about Einstein's Theory Of Relativity in 1923. A piece which explains the sciences to the layman very well, it makes me love Uncle Max even more than I already do!
It's difficult to think of any individual in the music field who has excelled in more genres, worn more hats successfully and tried out more new ideas in more varied settings than producer-arranger-bandleader-composer-brassman Quincy Jones.
Since MJ's "King of Pop" records are Quincy's best known work as an producer-arranger, this post will concentrate on Mr. Jones' outstanding work in jazz and r&b.
It's tough to know just where to begin or end with Mr. Jones, responsible for so much stellar music. We'll start with a couple of tracks from Genius + Soul = Jazz by Ray Charles. It's a masterpiece and features incredible arrangements by Quincy.
No doubt Sinatra heard this album and took notes! The stellar Quincy Jones arrangements enable Ray to blend the sounds of soul, r&b and jazz beautifully, as Capitol Records Frank (with Quincy, Billy May, Nelson Riddle and Gordon Jenkins arrangements) transported the crooner persona that began with Bing Crosby into a jazzier place, updating and expanding the 1930's swing era sound.
Here, Ray Charles pays tribute to Quincy Jones. They did incredible work together!
Quincy Jones played on one of my favorite records, Clifford Brown In Paris. Featuring Clifford, Art Farmer, Quincy and outstanding arrangements, this album's alternate title could be KICK ASS BRASS.
Without a doubt, the brilliance of this group inspired the arrangements and sound of Quincy's epic 1950's - 1960's big band, seen here rocking the house in Paris.
There's a Netflix documentary about the life and times of Quincy Jones - and it looks fantastic.
Should one asked this film buff if there's any actor who never played 007 but would have at the very least made an interesting, offbeat James Bond, different from all the others, it would be this insanely prolific movie and TV star, born on the same day as Quincy Jones, March 14, 1933: Michael Caine.
Among his numerous credits, Caine starred in the greatest of heist caper movies, The Italian Job (1969).
Among a gazillion movies and TV shows spanning every imaginable genre in a six-decade acting career, arguably my all-time favorite film of Michael Caine's would be the 1972 classic Sleuth, co-starring none other than Sir Larry Olivier. No spoilers allowed here - just see it!
Finishing today's post, which has celebrated a multitude of mindblowingly amazing 20th century accomplishments, we jump a few decades forward into the 21st century and pay tribute to one of our current greats. This young man, knowing his dad's rep for making impossible long-range shots began shredding the hoops as an elementary schooler way back in the 20th century, has come to define the art of 21st century roundball over the past decade. That would be the one, the only Steph Curry.
Often found in unrelentingly brutal 2020 and the first few stressful weeks of 2021 that Steph's can-do spirit and eloquent expression of the joy of playing restored my flagging faith in humanity. Curry has brought joy to sports and life in a way few All-Stars on the court, diamond or gridiron have.
Happy Birthday, Steph and lots of love to you and yours from the aficionados of hoops, good will, best practices and a positive outlook around the world. Bravos, Cheers and Mazel Tov!
