Now, at the age of fifty-nine (59!), which I just recently turned--
Wait. Before I continue with Pretty In Pink, I wanted to talk about the number "59." 59 is part of 1959, which is my favorite year. Now, I wasn't around in 1959, but to me, it sort of represents a kind of cultural apex; at least aesthetically. I love everything about the way "1959" looked. It was the year Dizzney's Sleeping Beauty was released, which is not only one of my favorite films; but also one of my favorite visual works of art. I won't get into all of that right now (maybe another blog) but let me find a random image from the movie to illustrate my point:
Wait. Before I continue with Pretty In Pink, I wanted to talk about the number "59." 59 is part of 1959, which is my favorite year. Now, I wasn't around in 1959, but to me, it sort of represents a kind of cultural apex; at least aesthetically. I love everything about the way "1959" looked. It was the year Dizzney's Sleeping Beauty was released, which is not only one of my favorite films; but also one of my favorite visual works of art. I won't get into all of that right now (maybe another blog) but let me find a random image from the movie to illustrate my point:
Somebody who worked on that movie once said that you could take any frame from that movie and it was worthy of being hung in a museum. And I agree! 1959 was the year that Cadillac created what has to be the cariest, car ever created. It's horrible. It's unbelievable. It's overwhelming and overstated. And it's AMAZING!
59 was the year we met this young lady:
It was the year they "solidified" the Coke bottle, whatever that means:
On December 28th of 1959, LIFE magazine issued this double edition; perhaps the apotheosis of the proclaiming of American, 20th-entury Post-War fabulosity.
But along with the elaborate and MORE IS MORE stuff like the Caddy; it was also the era of the less is MORE mind-set. So we got elegant skyscrapers like the Seagram's Building:
And classic minimalist modern functional designs from the likes of the Eames':
And amazing art that bridged Abstract Expressionism and Pop:
Now, the rampant conformity, conservatism, consumerism, homophobia and sexual repression of the era I can live without; but if I did live then, I guess I couldn't've. Unless I was a Beatnik living in The Village, Daddy-O.
Gee whiz, I can really get off track!
So what does this have to do with me being "59"?
Well, back to our original question: Should I, at 59, really be sitting down and reimagining a movie from nearly forty years ago about a teenage girl who likes the color pink and has boy problems? Imagining this girl in an alternate univerese where she falls in love with the bad boy from the picture? Imagining her recreating a Diana Ross video at the behest of her "not gay" boyfriend for the school play? Imagining a DANCE OFF at the prom where it's the Poor Kids vs. "The Richies"? Imagining Prince Charming and The Poor Boy hooking up in a grungy gay bar for an intense sexual shagging while Heaven 17's "Let Me Go" plays in the background? Or better yet, Robert Downey Jr. is in the movie and he and Blane get down in the grungy bar, thus giving us the scene that really should have been in Less Than Zero, but wasn't?
Gee whiz, I can really get off track!
So what does this have to do with me being "59"?
Well, back to our original question: Should I, at 59, really be sitting down and reimagining a movie from nearly forty years ago about a teenage girl who likes the color pink and has boy problems? Imagining this girl in an alternate univerese where she falls in love with the bad boy from the picture? Imagining her recreating a Diana Ross video at the behest of her "not gay" boyfriend for the school play? Imagining a DANCE OFF at the prom where it's the Poor Kids vs. "The Richies"? Imagining Prince Charming and The Poor Boy hooking up in a grungy gay bar for an intense sexual shagging while Heaven 17's "Let Me Go" plays in the background? Or better yet, Robert Downey Jr. is in the movie and he and Blane get down in the grungy bar, thus giving us the scene that really should have been in Less Than Zero, but wasn't?
I'm gonna say: "Well, why the freak not?" I still play with Barbie dolls. It might as well be 1959. I should not, probably, however, be going off on these tangents wherein I'm giving Paramount Plus ideas for water-cooler TV shows where we reimagine Pretty In Pink as a grungy, hard-edged soap opera, a la Euphoria or Riverdale ; an idea I already hate. I need to be writing my own stuff, because God knows Paramount isn't going to be letting go of a paycheck pour moi anytime soon; unless I successfully sue them for that time I was sexually harassed by one of their popular talkshow hosts. Wink, wink. Just kidding. Although I sometimes wonder if I'd have a case. When someone invokes the "F" word against your person, is that considered sexual?
That being said. I have three scenes in my head for this Pink ReThink, so I will write them in the next blog. Why? Because I can't not write them. And then it's all about me. ME, ME, ME! for 2025!
BUT WHAT ABOUT PROM, CHRIS? WHAT ABOUT PROM...?
That being said. I have three scenes in my head for this Pink ReThink, so I will write them in the next blog. Why? Because I can't not write them. And then it's all about me. ME, ME, ME! for 2025!
BUT WHAT ABOUT PROM, CHRIS? WHAT ABOUT PROM...?
Please see Pink ReThink Part 5: Happily Every Over
CFR 12/31/24
CFR 12/31/24