A Once in a Century Life -Happy 100th Lenny

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"...everything my father did, in any aspect of his life, was always in the context of love. If he could have, he would have hugged every person on the planet — and he kind of did, through his music." 
~ Jamie Bernstein on her Father, Leonard Bernstein

 On a Sunday afternoon, November 14 1943, at Carnegie Hall, Leonard Bernstein, at just the age of 25, entered the world's spotlight. He was brought in to conduct the New York Philharmonic at the last moment and with that his magnificent ride began. He was a conductor, composer, teacher, mentor, humanitarian, political activist, and ambassador for the arts to the world. He LIVED with every pore of his being. Larger than life to be sure.

"I'll do it as Bernstein,or not at all."

His own singular complicated, exuberant, passionate, political, Peter Pan-esque existence is legendary.  He could be a "handful" as his daughter describes, but no one lived bigger or left such gifts to the world.  Legend indeed.

"A liberal is a man or a woman or a child who looks forward to a better day, a more tranquil night, and a bright, infinite future."

 It was as if he had so much to share and had to get it out or he might burst-be it for the ballet, the Broadway stage, the conductor's podium with every major symphony orchestra or the timeless and marvelous Young People's concerts.  

"This will be our reply to violence: to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly than ever before."

Most lights that shine so intensely burn out and cease. No one remembers too much about them, but Leonard Bernstein's light was so immense that it could never go out-never die. It will always shine, like a beacon of sheer joy,of promise and hope. 

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 "It is the artists of the world, the feelers and the thinkers who will ultimately save us; who can articulate, educate, defy, insist, sing and shout the big dreams."
  
Last weekend while sitting at Tanglewood, the place he adored, and where he conducted his last concert, listening to Andris Nelsons conduct the BSO perform, along with Yo-Yo Ma, a new John Williams' piece, "Highland's Ghost", composed in part to celebrate Bernstein's centennial and the "spirit" of Tanglewood, everyone in that huge crowd felt a presence.  The music Williams wrote is "...a little haunted by Lenny." No doubt.  Through his music, and his work,the light that is Bernstein haunts us all, pushing us, moving us, beckoning us to go forward...to create, to heal, to help, to sing, to love, to live! and oh what a light he left us. Happy Birthday Lenny!
  
"We're neither pure, nor wise, nor good We'll do the best we know. We'll build our house and chop our wood And make our garden grow. And make our garden grow!"
~ Leonard Bernstein's Candide

Bernstein conducting the Boston Symphony in a performance of Mahler’s “Resurrection” Symphony at Tanglewood, in 1970. 
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  Bernstein Playlist via NPR

Visit The Bernstein Experience

A Final New Year's Date with Downton

“If I could stop history in its tracks, maybe I would. But I can’t, Carson, for neither you nor I can hold back time.”  Lord Grantham

 One thing a New Year always brings is change...whether we are ready for it or not. Time will move forward and try as we might to hold on to our old styles, 45 records or landlines, culture and societal change are inevitable...no matter where you reside.  There is a sense of security about staying put, standing still, holding on to our ways of living our lives.

Change,however can be good, unless you are bidding adieu to a beloved habit.  Downton Abbey was and is a good habit, one that thanks to streaming I don't really have to completely abandon, but tonight we all have to start the process of letting Downton go. There will be no more seasons, no more intrigue, drama, romance ...the pitch perfect dialogue, perfectly staged detail on every set, the costumes and the characters along with  the unforgettably glorious wit of GrandMama will not return. 

Sunday begins the final chapter in a delicious journey with the Crawleys and their "below stairs" staff that took us from the sinking of the Titanic, through the first world war, leaving behind the Edwardian era and bringing  short hemlines, loosened mores and corsets, automobiles, electric lights, phones, the wireless ,women's right to vote and a family with its collective way of life slipping away.  We, the audience, have known that the end would come for the Downton lifestyle...most of the characters that inhabit Downton never seem to see it coming.

“I love the way it’s all unraveling,” Ms. Dockery (Lady Mary Crawley) said. “There is a feeling of people moving on with their lives and the sense of the aristocracy as a kind of endangered species. But Mary is trying to keep it going; she doesn’t really like change.”

Change in fact is what this entire series has been about.  Those that pushed for it (Sybil's dramatic entrance in evening pajamas-not to mention her running away with the chauffeur) and those that clung on-Carson and Lord Grantham's disbelief and upset with every new contraption and bit of progress that arrived on the doorstep.  With meticulous detail down to the spoons at the dinner table, with every morsel of dialogue parsed for accuracy the production of Downton Abbey captured a period in history that witnessed sweeping change to fashion, class, women's roles, mores and much to the chagrin of Lord Grantham and his Mama, tradition.  

We are left with great memories of scenes and characters that kept us watching, and in my case re-watching, season after season.  Season One will always be my favorite from the opening scenes as we see Lord Grantham descend his staircase with is beloved dog Isis, as   an ironed newspaper brings the news of tragedy of the Titanic to Downton and with it the beginning of the end of their world. 

  I have so many favorite scenes, Mary and Matthew at the train station as he goes back to war and then the pair dancing in the great hall, Sybil defying convention and attending a political rally, Anna telling Mr. Bates she loves him... but if I had to select one it would be with Maggie Smith of course.  After Sybil's death, this steely grand dame, who has a liner for every occasion and to whom every member of her family relies for core strength, is seen  physically stumbling  however briefly as she walks across the entry hall dressed in black with a an expression that reveals the woman , the Matriarch, the mother and the grandmother in grief.

So many questions to be answered before we depart....Will Carson and Mrs. Hughes actually marry?  Will Lady Edith finally be happy?  Will Tom return?  What about Daisy...shouldn't she open her own restaurant??  and poor Anna and Mr. Bates-haven't they been through enough-they deserve a happy ending, but...no doubt not everyone at Downton will have that happy ending.

  Then there is the appearance at the end of Season 5 of the wonderful Matthew Goode---perfect for Lady Mary?? How can she resist! but we will see...

 I agree with Mr. Fellowes decision to pull the curtain on the drawing room, much like Matthew Weiner did with Mad Men...sadly it is time. The series, again much like Mad Men shined a light on an extraordinary time, a time that saw women's lives and opportunities, along with their fashion, be un-corseted.   I will miss the Crawleys and every member of their staff but it is time for the doors to this great house to close.  I want to cherish the time I have spent at Downton.   For now, as Lady Mary would do, I will "go upstairs and remove my hat" then snuggle in to savor the last episodes at Downton Abbey. 

“You want to go at a high point,” he said. “You don’t want to go when everyone is relieved to see the back of you. It’s like a woman with a successful frock. There is a moment when you’ve worn it enough.” Julian Fellowes

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The Last Round-Mad Men Concludes

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“If you don’t like what’s being said, change the conversation.” Don Draper

 It's time.  Finish off the drink, light the last cigarette, wipe the lipstick from the collar.  Mad Men pours its final round beginning Sunday night.   Matthew Weiner's exquisitely crafted series set against arguably the most transformative decades in American  history draws to a close. No one knows what Mr. Weiner has in store for his characters... but a "change in the conversation" can be expected. 

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“Nostalgia - it’s a twinge in your heart more powerful than memory alone… It goes backwards, forwards. Takes us to a place where we ache to go again.” 

When last we left ... Burt Cooper came from the grave for a swan-song and dance finale... Don returned  to his childhood home/brothel with his children to share his past...  The agency has changed, the offices have changed, Don's marriage is over, Peggy has taken her hard earned place , Joan used the only tools she knew to gain a seat at the table.  The Mad Men gang is aging and the world they relied on and understood is slipping away.  Its time for Mad Men to close shop -as much as we will miss them a post-Watergate era Mad Men wouldn't fit. 

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  "What you call 'love' was invented by guys like me. To sell Nylons." Don Draper

The question remains,however,with all the change swirling around him will Don Draper change?  Don may be living out his days in a society that is moving much faster than he can cope with, in a world that isn't waiting for him to get his act together-if he ever can, and that builds the anxiety, fear and pain that is so often Don Draper.  Handsome, brilliant,charming and a train wreck of a man.  A man, however, that much like the times he is living in must change or get left again.  Can Don become the man we think he really wants to be? With his life in shambles he has to start again , but does he start a new chapter or just keep falling?   

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 Whatever lies ahead for Don Draper and all of the Mad Men characters we have watched make their way and try to find their footing through the most turbulent of American periods, we have lots to look forward to--not the least of which is the extraordinary design of this series.  Mad Men's meticulous attention to every detail of the period is often the true star of this series.  

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  “Well, one day you’re there, and then all of a sudden, there’s less of you, and you wonder where that part went, if it’s living somewhere outside of you, and you keep thinking maybe you’ll get it back, and then you realize it’s just gone.” Peggy

 The sets,  the cars, the props, the music, the furniture... all folded through the finely woven scripts and carefully placed with references to the history and popular culture.  Detail and care  unsurpassed in television design and history.  Pitch perfect writing and performances have pulled this series from the start...and of course...the clothes! 

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 We can trace the evolution of the characters and dramatic change of the country through Janie Bryant's costumes-from the late 50's to the early 70's.  Housewife style, sex-kitten necklines, Jackie Kennedy hats and gloves, Dior's new look,  Mini skirts and Mod. Janie Bryant has captured and chronicled not only the period in American fashion but also the growth and change and personality of each character she dressed in perfect style.  Betty's classic elegance with a hint of bad, Don and Roger's signature suits, Pete's social climbing prep, Peggy's break-away catholic school girl plaids, Joan's asset promoting necklines...a single outfit could tell a scene, reveal a plotline and move the characters forward...or back.

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  “Advertising is based on one thing: happiness. And you know what happiness is? Happiness is the smell of a new car. It’s freedom from fear. It’s a billboard on the side of the road that screams with reassurance that whatever you’re doing, it’s okay. You are okay.” Don Draper

We will miss them all and as they disco into the future we know only one thing about the final episodes of Mad Men-the clothes will be groovy!  

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Here are some fave looks and quotes from seasons past of an unforgettable ride.  As we look back we know it is indeed "the end of an era" not only for Mad Men but for a chapter of American television.  It's time -last one out turn off the electric typewriters.  Thank you Mad Men!

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"I love the way you look at me when you’re like this. But then I watch it decay. I can only hold your attention for so long."  Betty

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 “That poor girl. She doesn’t know that loving you is the worst way to get to you.” Betty Draper

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“But that’s life. One minute you’re on top of the world, the next minute some secretary’s running you over with a lawnmower.” Joan
 

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 “Have a drink. It’ll make me look younger.” Roger
"You don’t know how to drink. Your whole generation, you drink for the wrong reasons. My generation, we drink because it’s good, because it feels better than unbuttoning your collar, because we deserve it. We drink, because it’s what men do." Roger Sterling

 “Not every little girl gets to do what they want. The world could not support that many ballerinas.” Maria

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“Why it is that whenever a man takes you to lunch around here, you’re the dessert?" Peggy

 

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 “You’re sorry you forgot to inform me what I’m supposed to think. Guess what? I think all by myself!” Betty

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“It’s your life. You don’t know how long it’s gonna be but you know it’s got a bad ending. We have to move forward. As soon as you can figure out what that is.” Don Draper

If the Shoe Fits- The Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo Dilemma

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So here's my question...if the glass slipper was such a perfect fit, why did it fall off in the first place???  If, as we have been raised to believe, there was "magic in dat shoe" then perhaps that infamous slipper was trying to tell Ms. Ella something???

Can a shoe change your life?  Well, it can certainly change your day, or a night, and in Cinderella's case she could argue that a single shoe took down the evil relatives and handed her a key to the proverbial castle.  But was it really the shoe...not sure even a fab pair of Manolo's could have that kind of power.  For over 325 years the story of a sooty orphaned girl in rags, who was all goodness and beauty, and who was "rescued" by a handsome prince and a Fairy Godmother with a penchant for pumpkins, has been a staple of every little girl's bedtime dreams. The ingredients to this tale are simple...

You need a Wicked Stepmother 

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Two Ugly Evil Step-Sisters

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A Fairy Godmother

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A Handsome Prince

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...and of course THAT Magic Slipper

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The cynic in me knows that the new Cinderella film is all about Disney and selling millions of little girls everything from plastic slippers to blue nylon ballgowns and Cinderella pillowcases.  I get that!  I worry that in fact Disney is selling those little girls more than that, raising a new generation of girls on fantasy and fairy tale...can't be good right?  Girls need to know they make their own magic by believing in themselves not their Fairy Godmother.  Yet, I admit to having the  Cinderella Complex ingrained in me-somewhere deep down always believing, no matter how much of an educated Feminist I became ,that "one day my prince will come".  I have fought it, cast aspersions on all things "Happily Ever After" , wore my Independent Woman T shirt with pride, but when all is said and done I will come clean and  admit that the romantic in me wins-every single time. I love the story, always have since watching a grainy black and white rerun of Julie Andrews dance across my portable TV screen.  I sang along with Gus Gus and waved an imaginary Bibbidi Bobbodi Boo wand around the house,  and  yes I cannot wait to see Kenneth Branagh's gorgeous live-action retelling of Cinderella's journey.

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But here's the thing for me about Cinderella...I will make the argument that she really does not get rescued at all, but rather is a fighter in her own right who stands up to those that try to keep her in a corner in her own little chair.  Cinderella I believe impacts all around her, including a Prince who is lost and needs her grace to find his way.  Sure, she has a fairy Godmother, and wouldn't we all love one of those! but in the end it is Cinderella who casts the real spell and changes her destiny.  She does believe in  herself and though she has some help along the way it is Cinderella who finds her own way to her own Happily Ever After.  I choose to believe she went on to run the Kingdom in partnership with her Prince!

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So, I will go watch to see this new Cinderella with its perfect cast,  amazing costumes, and exquisite sets...but... I'll be back by midnight!

Julie Andrews on the set of Cinderella, 1957 via
Watch the very first Cinderella Flick from 1899

Stay Jon Stay!

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Change is good...so they say, and we all need to cross a new street every once in awhile...but this week's news that Jon Stewart will exit his chair at The Daily Show after 17 years is a change I'm not ready to accept.  I am a news junkie-always have been, but as the world spins wild and broadcast news, whatever that might mean these days, became more and more about makeup and blow drys and perfect faces rather than telling the story I switched off.

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My respect for journalism has not waned, though my respect for news broadcasting has.  After Sept 11 as the word grew so dark and so serious we all needed to lighten our world... we needed to be informed, but not assaulted, and we needed truth without packaged alarmist presentations.  Growing up in post Watergate America may have shaped my respect and passion for news, but how that news reaches us has changed so dramatically and there is little trust left.  Jon Stewart,  in a Mad Magazine/ Weekend Update  irreverence  said you know what, this world is just too crazy not to laugh at it...and so by laughing he revealed what real journalism should always present ...the truth.

I don't need to hear/see "breaking news" every four and a half seconds and I don't need overdrive or over load or over hype.  News is about telling a story, and telling the truth...and sometimes the truth can  best be found in brilliant satire. That is what Jon Stewart delivers night after night and why his retiring from Comedy Central's The Daily Show hurts so much. Politics, war, crises at every turn...nothing makes too much sense ...unless of course you can laugh at it.   Now more than ever Jon we need you!  I cannot imagine going through the next election cycle without you....Stay Jon, Stay!

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A New Year's Date at Downton

2015 is here--I'm not ready!  nor am I ready to  take on ALL that I repeatedly said I would do starting this week!  I admit to declaring over and over throughout the month of  December that "I will deal with it...After the Holidays".  ...and so tomorrow is indeed "after the holidays" and deal with it all I must! No more putting it all off, no more stretch of "play time"... back to work, back to lists, back to schedules...but tonight I have one last holiday gift to unwrap.  Thank you PBS for tonight when I have a date at Downton!  I can start the New Year not at my desk all piled high with TO DOs,  but at Downton Abbey!  I may not be ready to take on what 2015 might have in store for me, but I am SO ready to dive head first into what 1924 will serve up on a silver tray for the Crawley family.

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Season 5 ,already seen in the UK, airs tonight and this season seems to hint at lots of secrets.  At the core of Downton Abbey of course from day one has been Change.   Can Lord Grantham and clan continue to stand still while the world around them moves away, far away, from the lives they have always led?  To begin Season 5...a new government, and a socially democratic one at that!   Lord Grantham, and no doubt Mr. Carson, are clinging to the wallpaper as the walls of Downton are beginning to slide.  Their world is vanishing, and quickly, with no time for them to adjust, and so hold on with all their might they will. All they can really do is find an overstuffed sofa and watch as the rapid blur of the lines between Upstairs and Downstairs takes over.  Women have their own opinions and worse yet speak their own minds, Servants look beyond their "place" and want more for their lives, social and sexual mores are set free and what could be next...no dressing for dinner??  How about the wireless...where  even the King speaks!

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Lady Mary is clearly at the center of Season 5.  Once  her fate was tied to finding the right husband-her Grandmama even went as far as considering sending to her to America, heaven fore fend...but now she has not only a stake but a role in the running of her family estate and seems to have suitors around every corner.  She really doesn't need to choose one... but will she???--at least for more than a dance or a dinner companion??

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Last season Lady Edith gave birth out of wedlock -and in Switzerland no less- and now her daughter resides up the road with a local farmer. That secret is bound to bubble over...and will her Mr. Gregson, who disappeared into pre-war Germany, resurface?  Will Edith ever find happiness??

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There will, and should be, lots of romance and more romance...and not just for Lady Mary. Isobel has a Gentleman Caller,  Rose is bound to turn a head or two, there is Mosely and Miss Baxter with her secrets-could Mr. Mosely become a "catch"?,  a secret someone from The Dowager Countess' past-a Russian! appears on the doorstep, and even Lady Cora my have her head turned by Richard E Grant.

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The burning question left over from last season...Did Bates kill Anna's attacker Mr.Green?? Will he be caught and sent back to prison?  Why can't this lovely couple just settle down and have a few peaceful moments???  I think one of the ones to keep an eye on is Daisy--she once was a simple kitchen maid but now is a cook that even Mrs Patmore approves of and I think she will be the one to leave service and challenge the role set out for her!  Go Daisy! Hemlines are rising as are women's roles and independence...they are finding their way in the word and making decisions that Lord Grantham and his Mother would never approve of... but tails at dinner will disappear and jazz and women who drink, smoke, and talk politics  will take their place. Tom Bransons new "friend" Sarah is just such a woman-one who has a mind and uses it...her opinion of the Crawleys and their "kind" won't go unsaid and the best guess is no one at Downton will be happy with her... especially Lord Grantham.

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We can expect Rose to drag shopping bags filled with the new styles, music and morals right into the drawing room...and of course a love affair for Miss Rose must be in store as she sets off to play Cinderella this spring.  Tradition is on the chopping block and the house will be divided not only between up and down but left and right ---the times they are a changing and that can only mean more than a few choice bon mots from the delicious Dowager and a great deal of fun at Downton!

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There will be new characters, old friends return, others will leave and I imagine even more want to jump free of Downton Abbey, but I...well I just want to jump in, curl up in the corner of Lord Grantham's library with Isis the dog and watch it all unfold.  Season 5 awaits, corsets may be last season but I know the grand old house will be laced up tight with romance intrigue, scandal, secrets and ... Mr. Carson and Mrs. Hughes together at last?????  That would be a lovely New Years' gift from Downton!

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