King Kong (1976) - beauty and the beard

This movie had a lot of hype preceding its release in 1976, and it did well at the box office. I remember seeing it in the theater and enjoying it. The critics haven't been to kind to it though and Peter Jackson's more recent special-effects-laden version no doubt garners more praise. This one's admittedly a cheese-fest, but I think there's lot to like here. Jeff Bridges and Jessica Lange are both otstanding, although I doubt either one of them would point to this movie as a great moment in their careers. The story is similar but not the same as the classic original and best King Kong from 1933. It's given a contemporary 1970s setting, and they're looking for oil rather than planning a movie (remember, there was a gas shortage). So some evil oil dudes (led by Charles Grodin) set sail for a strange island which they think will pour forth a lot of the black gold. This absence of a movie-making plot leads to a very contrived scene when they find the unfortunately named starlet Dwan (Jessica Lange) adrift in a raft. I guess they couldn't think of a better way to get her on board the boat. After that it pretty much goes as you'd expect. Scantily clad girl meets giant ape, giant ape falls for girl. A bad ending for the big ape.

There's more to it than that however, and for me at least, the most mesmerizing aspect of the movie was Jeff Bridges' facial hair. There's a lot of it and whenever it was on screen I couldn't take my eyes off it. Jeff Bridges plays Jack Prescott, a liberal-type scientist who wants to study Kong. He also falls for the girl, giving Jessica Lange two hairy beasts to contend with.

Favorite 45s - Brandy (You're A Fine Girl) by Looking Glass (1972)

Brandy (You're A Fine Girl) by Looking Glass was a number one hit single in 1972 and was consistently played on the radio for many years. It also got a ton of play in our house as we had the 45, so it always takes me way back in time whenever I hear it. It's a super catchy tune, expertly produced and arranged, with a great lead vocal by composer and guitarist Elliot Lurie. Timeless and classic, it's one of the great hit songs from the 1970s. The b-side, One By One, written by the other singer-composer in the band, Piet Sweval, isn't half bad either. Though not a catchy tune like Brandy, it's got a nice forlorn feeling and more of a country vibe.

Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang by Kate Wilhelm (1976) - clones are creepy

1977 Pocket Book, cover art by Ed Soyka

This excellent science fiction novel (winner of both the Hugo and Nebula awards) starts out with a near future doomsday scenario. There's massive pollution leading to climate change, plague and disease, starvation and economic collapse. So this super wealthy family, some of whom are politicians and scientists who foresaw the worst, prepared for the coming collapse of civilization by creating their own little scientific compound in a valley somewhere in New England. Ultimately the plan is to start a new community with the help of cloning. At first this just means cloning livestock, since all of the animals have been dying. But they soon realize there will be a shortage of people because of infertility, so they decide to clone humans too. Which is where it gets interesting. You see, clones are kind of creepy...

1976 Harper & Row with M. C. Escher cover

The tale is told from the vantage point of several different characters across several generations (clone generations not being quite the same as regular human gens). The main conflict, besides survival, is the individual versus the group. Nonconformity was a great concern in seventies literature, with science fiction writers being particularly intrigued by the idea of pitting individual freedom against what's best  for society as a whole. The sympathy would usually (though not always) side with the individual. Kate Wilhelm does a great job of presenting a case for both sides, although ultimately it is the individual who has the wherewithal to survive. The nonconformist has the imagination to navigate a new beginning, whereas the hive-minded clones are stifled by their reliance on the group. Yea for imagination!

They Call Me Mister Tibbs (1970) - murder meets interior design, and comes up short

A decent cop movie with Sidney Poitier playing it cool. A good supporting cast with Martin Landau, Barbara McNair, Anthony Zerbe, and a hairy-headed Ed Asner. Directed well by Gordon Douglas, and music by Quincy Jones is always good. Script is unremarkable though, and the murder story could have been used in any number of cop television shows from that era. There's a good car chase, a long foot chase, and a couple of fist fights. We also see Tibbs with his family on several occasions, mainly working out a relationship with his young and unmindful son. The movie never really catches fire, and the ending kind of fizzles. The most fun for me was taking in the early 70s interior design. Browns and drab greens dominate, with a splash of orange thrown in to brighten things up. And some cool lamps.

A Long, Long Time Ago: David Bowie - The Man Who Sold the World (1970)

U.S. Cover, my favorite.

I picked this one up in the mid-seventies, after I had listened obsessively to several other David Bowie LPs (Hunky Dory, Ziggy Stardust, Aladdin Sane, etc.). I remember being struck by how different much of it sounded from those - the vocals at times strange, the guitars heavier, and there were some songs I didn't like (!). It grew on me though and became one my favorites, standing happily alongside those other masterpieces in my Bowie collection. 

U.K. I never really cared for this ugly cover.

This was the first David Bowie album recorded with producer Tony Visconti and guitarist Mick Ronson. Bizarre lyrics with science fiction themes, soaring vocals, creepy background vocals, monster riffs and blazing guitar solos from Ronson, all add up to a superb and satisfyingly odd album. The first three songs in particular ("Width of a Circle", All the Madman", "Black Country Rock") all rock like crazy and should be counted with Bowie's best. The only song I never really cared for is "Running Gun Blues", an anti-vietnam tale about a soldier who keeps killing after he gets back from the war. I still think it sticks out like a sore thumb.

Wearing a dress, the good old days when Bowie was still bi.

Bachman-Turner Overdrive II (1973) - takin' care of you-know-what

The 8-track, a genuine 1970s artifact

I've been listening to this on my iPod while walking to work. Back in the 70s I had it on eight-track tape. A magical medium the eight-track was, plastic casing with the cover glued on - usually resulting in bubbles and folds - and of course a song or two interrupted in mid-play for the track to change. Still, it was pretty cool for a few years at least and was around for the entirety of the 1970s.

Bachman-Turner Overdrive was also around for most of the 1970s. They formed in 1973 and released two albums that year, including this one, the imaginatively titled "II". It's good straight ahead working class rock 'n roll and included their first smash singles "Let it Ride" and "Takin' Care Of Business". There are some other decent songs, notably "Welcome Home" and "Tramp", and some surprisingly nimble guitar work from Randy Bachman. Not the greatest band ever, but an enjoyable album that I remember with fondness.

Time After Time (1979) - a science fiction romantic comedy with serial killer

"IMAGINE! A scientific genius named H.G. Wells stalks a criminal genius named Jack the Ripper across time itself in the most ingenious thriller of our time." The poster pretty much says it all. Throw in some light romance and comedy and you pretty much have it. Seriously though this movie is quite fun, and exciting too. Directed by Nicholas Meyer and starring Malcolm McDowell as H.G. Wells and David Warner as Jack the Ripper. Mary Steenburgen, providing the romantic interest, plays Amy Robbins, a liberated 70s gal.

Basically, it's London in 1893, H.G. has just built a time machine, but has yet to try it out. Before he can, Jack steals it to escape the coppers, lands in 1979 San Francisco and quickly gets up to his old bad ways. H.G. realizes what has happened and tracks him down (the time machine automatically returns home to whoever has a certain key). Amy helps him in his endeavors.

Much of the fun here is Wells' befuddlement at all of the strange things 1979 has to offer. The future is certainly not the utopia he had imagined. Along the way he meets Amy and strikes up a mutual interest. McDowell is cast perfectly for this and you feel for him and his predicament.  This was one of Steenburgen's first major rolls and she's very likeable as well. Warner does a terrific job as the Ripper - he's mean and arrogant and finds that 1979 suits him just fine. A great musical score, by long-time film composer Miklos Rozsa, adds a nice ambience and enhances the action. This was Nicholas Meyer's first directorial effort and he succeeds winningly. He had previously written the excellent "Seven Percent Solution", and subsequently would direct "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan".

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John le Carré (1974) - mole hunting in Britain

My parents bought this book when it first came out and I remember being intrigued by the title, especially the spy part. Of course James Bond was the quintessential spy in the early '70s, especially for young boys. When I did finally get around to reading this book in the later '70s I understood that this was no James Bond caper - pretty much the opposite in fact. John le Carré created an anti-James Bond spy hero in George Smiley, who on the surface is a curmudgeonly, out-of-shape old man. As this book begins he is in forced retirement, but is persuaded to return to the fold to hunt for a Soviet mole inside the "Circus"- the British secret intelligence service and his former empoyer. Smiley is one the most perfectly realized characters I have ever had the pleasure to come across in fiction, spy genre or otherwise. le Carré is brilliant in his descriptions of Smiley's various taciturn ways, his mannerisms and lack thereof, his quiet observation and patience - mostly his steely intelligence as he closes in on his quarry. Not much for action fans here, it's a more cerebral ride, and thoroughly engaging. I won't get into plot specifics as any details are better uncovered in the reading as layers are peeled back slowly to reveal the awful truth. A truly exceptional novel and a great, great protagonist in George Smiley.

Pretty Baby (1978) - Malle, Nykvist and Shields bring Storyville to life

I remember when this first came out and all the stir centered around 12-year-old Brooke Shields playing a child prostitute named Violet. This was Shields first major movie role, after having had early success as a child model. Her acting is in fact quite excellent, outshining her costar Keith Carradine (who seems rather wooden at times), and at a level with the other adults in the film, notably Susan Sarandon who plays her mother Hattie.

The story, set in New Orleans' Storyville in 1917, just before the end of legal prostitution, centers around Violet's becoming a prostitute and her relationship with photographer Ernest J. Bellocq (played by Carradine and based on a real life character). Despite the dark subject matter, there are moments of lightness, especially in reagrds to Violet's relationships with the older prostitutes, and there are many colorful secondary characters. Louis Malle directs expertly and there many arresting scenes. Especially chilling and central to the entire movie is the scene where Violet's virginity is auctioned off to a bunch of  disgusting old men. Her subsequent deflowering is off screen and there is a shot of two little girls listening outside the room. Disturbing, creepy, and absolutely brilliant.

The best thing about this movie though, besides Brooke Shields' fine performance and Louis Malle's directing, is the exquisite cinematography of Sven Nykvist. Too much can't be said of the talent of Nykvist, who has an impressive body of work. He collaborated with Ingmar Bergman throughout the 1960s and continued that partnership in the 70s and 80s, winning an Oscar for "Fanny and Alexander" in 1982. His work for Louis Malle is no less impressive, giving New Orleans' Storyville district a distinct glow, yet with a feeling of gritty reality. It made the film a joy to watch, despite the sometimes ugly subject matter. Now I want to see all of those Bergman movies.

Silent Running (1972) - out in space, a plea for beauty

I don't remember if I saw this film when it was originally released, or years later, but I remember really enjoying it the first time I saw it. It is an outstanding directorial debut for Douglas Trumbull, who worked on both 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Andromeda Strain as a special effects wizard.  The story itself doesn't make a lot of sense from a practical standpoint. In the future there are these enclosed domes out in space (near Saturn). They're actually giant greenhouses holding the last of earth's flora. Earth is apparently just hunky dory, with no unemployment, and a temperate 75 degrees everywhere. But there's no more forests, so they sent the last plant life into space. On the surface it's an eco science-fiction story from the early 1970's, when there was much worry about pollution and its devastating effect on our planet.

Below the surface it's much more interesting. Bruce Dern plays Freeman Lowell, one of the astronauts charged with the safekeeping of the domes. Far more than the other three crew members on board, Lowell takes the forests to heart and believes the mission to be of the utmost import. He even makes some passionate speeches about beauty and nonconformity, to the deaf ears of his crew mates. When word comes down that the domes are to be nuked and the crew is to return (for "commercial" reasons), Lowell doesn't take it too well. The story gets going as Lowell starts to unravel and makes some unfortunate decisions. Ultimately he is left alone with the forest and a few robots (referred to as drones). Dern's performance is excellent of course, and the drones almost steal the show.  Huey and Dewey (as Lowell has named them) become his new crew mates and he is able to relate much better to them than he was to the human crew. Loneliness and regret starts to eat at Lowell however and Dern does a great job of being a little crazy and still sympathetic.

It can get boring out in space, alone, with regret, and some robots.

The special effects are excellent all around, with great models, exceeding most anything else from that era. The interiors were shot aboard the decommissioned aircraft carrier "Valley Forge", the same name given to the spaceship, with lots of cool lights and buttons. The drones were manned by multiple-amputee actors and to me are the most outstanding aspect of this film. The soundtrack is also very good, composed by Peter Schickele (of P.D.Q. Bach fame), there's a song sung by Joan Baez, which does seem a bit corny, but I like Joan so that's fine by me.

Interior shot of the "Valley Forge"

Favorite Album Covers: Muddy Waters by Phil Hays (1978)

Another gem from 1978, Muddy Waters' "I'm Ready", produced by Johnny Winter with a killer band including pianist Pinetop Perkins, guitarist Jimmy Rogers and harpist Big Walter Horton. A mix of blues standards and new original material, this was the middle record of three that Winter produced and my personal favorite. I admit that one reason I always liked this so much, besides the music, was the great portrait of Muddy Waters gracing the album cover. Painted by the late Phil Hays, it's about as congenial a portrait as I can imagine and a perfect invitation to the music within. Check out more of this illustrator's work here.

Kate Bush - "The Kick Inside" : strange phenomena from 1978

U.S. cover, the one I had.

The first LP by Kate Bush came out in 1978, one of the most extraordinary years in recorded popular music. Dozens of brilliant long players were released that year and it might be easy to overlook this  excellent debut. Bush was only 19 when this was recorded and it only made a small splash in the U.S. It was much bigger in her native England where her first single "Wuthering Heights" went to the top of the charts. Ostensibly a singer songwriter, she sounded nothing like the North American singer songwriters, certainly not like Joni Mitchell , Carole King or Carly Simon.

U.K. cover.

Kate Bush has a way of combining childlike wonder with an overt sensuality, especially evident in several songs here, "Moving", "Strange Phenomena" and "Oh To Be In Love" come to mind as being especially alluring. The first time I heard this it was like discovering a previously unknown forbidden world.

Japanese import.

As good as this recording was it only hinted at the genius that would emerge in subsequent releases. She'd get better each time as her songwriting became sharper and stranger, and the production and arrangements more wild, peaking with the incredible '80s albums "The Dreaming" and "Hounds of Love".

Of the three album covers pictured I definitely prefer the U.S. cover, maybe because it was the one I owned, but I think it's a great photograph. I find the U.K. cover too busy, and Kate is too small. The Japanese cover is okay but kind of boring. Her album covers would get better along the way.

Sharp Practice by John Farris (1974) - a southern gothic psychopathic maniac suspense thriller

1988 printing, uncredited artwork, small wonder

John Farris is the author of many horror novels, the most famous being When Michael Calls (1967) and The Fury (1976), both of which were made into movies. Sharp Practice starts out in England where there is a ripper-like psycho about killing young women with large knives. The main characters are erudite upper crust academics who may or may not be targeted by said psycho. There are many twists and turns in this very entertaining suspense thriller, and as the action moves from Oxford to a college in Tennessee things seem calm for awhile...

Farris is expert at having a seemingly placid scene suddenly erupt into shocking violence. He also writes well drawn three-dimensional characters, whose actions are always in keeping with their character. The plot gets pretty thick but never confusing. It's a fast read, overall a recommendable thriller from the 70s, especially for fans of John Farris.

A note on the cover art: I haven't been able to find a good shot of the 1974 edition of this book. No doubt it is better than the one above. In the 1980s they started overusing that embossed foil stamping, especially rampant in horror fiction, and the artwork became secondary.

Favorite album covers: Lou Reed by Tom Adams (1972)

Lou Reed's first solo album is not so bad. Not as great as some of the albums to follow, but not as bad as some either. Some pretty good songs, Wild Child and Lisa Says are especially fun. Worth checking out if you are a Lou fan. What I especially like about this release is the outstanding album cover art by Tom Adams, an illustrator who's most notable achievement is the great series of Agatha Christie book covers he did in the '60s and '70s. The name made of flowers with the hummingbirds I always loved and the little bird up front is quite touching, then there's a Faberge egg and a wave coming down the street. I assume all of these elements illustrate lyrics from the album in some way, but in any case it all looks really cool.

The Candidate (1972)

Robert Redford stars as Bill McKay, an idealistic young lawyer who is talked into running for the U.S. senate. As the campaign wears on he slowly becomes a politician, having to compromise his integrity in order to win. Not a surprising tale but told very well. The über handsome Redford plays the part note-perfect and despite his slide into the quagmire of politics I'd still vote for Bill McKay at the end of the movie. There are many humorous moments, but they are wryly done and not overly obvious. Peter Boyle plays the campaign manager and is outstanding as always. Directed by Michael Ritchie (Bad News Bears, Semi-Tough).

I saw a bunch of Robert Redford movies in the 1970s. He was a huge star and seemed to be in a new movie every few months. In fact he made 12 movies during that decade and 3 of them were in 1972. I probably saw this one several years later, the subject matter not being enticing to a 12 year old. The other two from '72, "The Hot Rock" and "Jeremiah Johnson" (can't wait to watch that one again) would have been more my speed and I do remember seeing both of those in the theater when they came out.

As far as political films go this one has aged well and I think it's one of the better ones out there. It is quite cynical and you can't help but think that nearly 40 years later politics has not changed at all (and has probably gotten a lot worse).

At Earth's Core (1976)

The poster is better than the movie.

I missed this one when it came out in 1976 and I don't remember hearing about it. It's super cheesy with hilarious special effects and pretty bad acting. This was long before the omnipresent use of cgi of course, so you have to give them credit for going all out with the monster costumes. Based on an Edgar Rice Burroughs story and directed by Kevin Connor, it stars Doug McClure and Peter Cushing as scientists who accidentally drill through the earth's crust in their Iron Mole and end up in an enormous cavern filled with bizarre prehistoric creatures. The Mole was pretty cool and looked kind of steampunkish.

The Iron Mole getting ready to launch.

The sets are actually pretty nice and there are some totally awesome giant mushrooms. The scientists soon get captured by pig-snouted minions who are telepathically controlled by evil reptile-birds. They have enslaved humans and McClure and Cushing will eventually have to fight them to free the slaves and themselves. There are plenty of action scenes as McClure must battle many strange underground beasts as well as jealous slaves. And there's lots of fire too as they are after all "At the Earth's Core". And last but not least there is a very attractive slave princess played by Caroline Munro, who is easily the best thing about this movie (besides the mushrooms).

Awesome mushrooms.

Doug McClure shows off his biceps to Caroline Munro.

The Blue Hammer by Ross Macdonald (1976) - a steady pulse

This was the last Lew Archer novel by Ross Macdonald. Published in 1976 it takes place in California with a little jaunt over to Arizona. Private detective Archer is hired to recover a stolen painting and return it to its rightful owners. Sounds simple enough but the case soon turns deadly. What follows is a  complicated and rather confusing crime drama which will involve four murders, fratricide, thievery, blackmail, a cult (in a very minor role to be sure), kidnapping, stolen identities and generally bad behavior by many individuals. Lew has a tough time trying to piece it all together and to complicate things further he falls for a dame.

 

Macdonald (real name Kenneth Millar, 1915-1983) is an excellent writer and he holds this twisting plot together brilliantly. Written in the first person, Archer is quite likeable, a tough guy but very human, hardboiled but compassionate. He's getting older and ruminates a lot. There is actually very little violence (the murders all take place away from Archer) and Lew spends more time trying to stop fights than start them. The cast of characters is quite colorful and all are well drawn. While it is a little hard to keep track of everybody, and their relationship to each other, Macdonald (via Archer) manages, after a few more twists, to lay it all out for you in the end.

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)

Absolutely one of my favorite movies of the 1970s. I saw this when it first came out in 1974. I thought it was terribly exciting then and I still find it quite gripping.  Directed by Joseph Sargent with the great cast of Walter Matthau, Robert Shaw, Martin Balsam and Hector Elizondo. Filled with gritty tension and smart dialogue, I think this is one the best crime dramas of all time. Robert Shaw leads a group of mustachioed men who hijack a New York City subway train and hold the passengers hostage. The facial hair is a disguise and they all go by a color for a name (Mr. Blue, Mr. Green etc. Tarantino paid homage to that in Reservoir Dogs).  Walter Matthau is on the other side as the head of security negotiating with the hijackers. You do get a little humor on that side, especially with some of the supporting actors like Lee Wallace as The Mayor. It's all serious business in the subway train however as Shaw and Elizondo are especially uncompromising and menacing. The pacing is perfect with scenes going back and forth between the bad guys and the good guys. The soundtrack, composed and conducted by David Shire, is also excellent.

 

I saw the 2009 remake of this not too long ago and it was predictably bad. Tony Scott's over-the-top directing and John Tavolta's over-the-top acting pretty much kill the story. Everything is turned up to eleven and all the subtle menace is lost. As for the cast, the rest of the bad guys were pretty unremarkable. The good guys were better, with Denzel Washington, John Turturro and James Gandolfini all quite likeable. I saw this just a few months ago and I don't remember much else. It just didn't make an impression on me. Overall another pointless remake not worth watching except to compare to the original to see how much better that one was.

I remember when we were young and things used to be so pretty: The Vibrators - Pure Mania (1977)

Pure Mania, the Lp debut of The Vibrators, is one the great British punk albums from the greatest year of classic punk albums, 1977. This one got a lot of play in our household and sits right up there with debut albums by the likes of The Clash, Wire, The Adverts and The Stranglers. Like a lot of the early punk rock, it's basically high energy rock & roll with a snotty attitude and a sneaky sense of humor. Quite memorably tuneful and a bit wild, songs like "Into the Future", "Baby Baby", "Whips and Furs" and "Sweet Sweet Heart" encourage an ongoing affection some 34 years after it's release. Great album cover too.

The World Inside by Robert Silverberg (1971) - vertical living in 2381

1971 Doubleday, artwork by James Starrett

1972 paperback edition, artwork uncredited

Robert Silverberg's The World Inside, set in 2381. I thought I had read this one before, but it was completely unfamiliar, so it was a new one for me (unless my memory has gotten really bad). The world's population stands at 75 billion and counting. Almost everyone is living in giant skyscrapers called urbmons (short for urban monads). The problem of overpopulation has been solved by vertical living, leaving a lot more room on the planet for the agriculture which is needed to feed the ever growing populace. In fact procreation is vigorously encouraged and deemed "blessworthy" by society as a whole. It's all very efficient and everybody gets along quite well in these crowded towers, except for the occasional "flippo" who is unceremoniously sent down the chute to feed the generators. Everything is recycled of course.

The author does an excellent job of describing the culture and environment, including class hierarchy and sexual mores (he spends a lot of time on sexual mores), told through several scenes which are more or less a series of linked short stories. Towards the end the focus turns to characters who are unhappy and don't fit well into the urbmon scheme, characters for whom we would naturally feel more sympathy. The book is always interesting and moves along at a quick pace. An altogether excellent work of speculative fiction from the early 1970s.

The Andromeda Strain (1971) - alien microorganism meets minimalist design

   Classic science fiction thriller directed by Robert Wise and based on the novel by Michael Crichton (which I've not read). The first time I saw this I found it quite frightening and tension filled. I've seen it a few times since the 1970s (once every 10 years or so) and it gets a little less frightening each time. There are still some rather chilling moments though. My favorite scene is when they are scanning the satellite for the source of the contamination. I still find it wonderfully spooky, but in a nice subtle way.

   Starring Arthur Hill, David Wayne, James Olson and Kate Reid, who are all fine.  It's a slow moving film, with lots of detail concerning the underground facility. What I was particularly drawn to this most recent of viewings was the design of the facility. The sets are really nice and use a minimum of bells and whistles. In fact it's downright spare, at times reminding me of minimalist art.

Levels are color coded.

On the way to be decontaminated. Compare the minimal design to that below.

Installation by minimalist artist John McCracken

   Overall a cool looking movie with some chilling scenes, decent acting, and excellent direction and set design. I'll probably watch it again in another 10 years. Good stuff.

Fun Fusion: The Billy Cobham - George Duke Band "Live" On Tour In Europe (1976)

Billy Cobham (drums), George Duke (keyboards), John Scofield (guitar), Al Johnson (bass)
A classic of the fusion genre. Great musicians, very funky high energy stuff played with a sense of humor often lacking in the genre. John Scofield is especially brilliant on guitar but everyone plays their butts off. Great album cover artwork by Cal Schenkel who did covers for Frank Zappa. I remember being quite fond of this album and the excellent artwork way back when. It has stood the test of time quite well. George duke offers some nice thoughts on the album here.

The Three Musketeers (1973) and The Four Musketeers (1974)

I remember seeing both of these movies in the theaters upon their original release. I would have been in my early teens and I thought they were quite exciting and very funny. Re-watching them again over 35 years later I'm happy to say that my original impression hasn't changed significantly. The cast is quite good, with Michael York, Oliver Reed, Raquel Welch, Faye Dunaway, Charlton Heston (in a cameo) and Richard Chamberlain. Shot in Spain and directed by Richard Lester. Set designs and costumes are excellent.

Michael York (D'Artagnan) comforts Raquel Welch (Constance)

Originally shot as one movie, thee producers decided to break it into two movies when they saw how much film they had (resulting in a lawsuit). The first movie has more of a comic feel to it. Lots of pratfalls and silly goings-on. Can be rather tiresome, although when I was a much younger I thought it hilarious. It becomes more serious as the plot unfolds. The second movie has more weight to it and the funny business is less, making it the stronger of the two movies.

Note should also be made of the brawling swordplay, which is choreographed wonderfully. Faye Dunaway is also especially delicious as the evil Milady de Winter. Oliver Reed is at his most likeable. Altogether a superior movie version of the Dumas novel (which I confess I've never read and only have other movie versions to compare this to), I found it quite enjoyable and rewarding to watch again.

Flow My Tears, The Policeman Said by Philip K. Dick (1974)

I first discovered my favorite Science Fiction writer in 1973 or '74, just around the time this novel was first published. Dick only published a handful of novels in the '70s, after having been quite prolific in the 1960s. This is one of his most excellent books, featuring many of his trademark themes: paranoia, drugs, an unstable reality, flying cars, Jungian philosophy, etc. Jason Taverner, a very famous television personality wakes up (after have been bitten by a sponge creature) to find that no one knows who he is, that he in fact does not seem to have existed in the world he has woken up to. Nothing goes too well after that. There are several encounters with dubious individuals, including the policeman of the title. Finally, his past starts slipping back into the world after he ingests some drugs. Of course it doesn't end there. It's all quite brilliant in that Philip K. Dick way. My only criticism would be the epilogue, which I felt was not needed and diminished the impact of the last chapter. But it's just a quibble. Overall an outstanding novel.

Several excellent paperback editions were published by DAW. I'm referring to the artwork of course. My favorite is the first from 1975, but I quite enjoy them all. Art by Hans Ulrich & Ute Osterwalder (top, 1975), Larry Kresek (middle, 1976) and Oliviero Berni (bottom, 1981).