Funny Friday

Australia Day commemorates the arrival of the First Fleet in Sydney Cove in 1788 and the proclamation of British sovereignty over Australia, then known as New Holland. 

Although the date of Australia Day is 26 January, in NSW when Australia Day falls on a Saturday or Sunday, there is no public holiday on that day and instead the following Monday is declared a public holiday. Hence Oz Day is actually tomorrow but will be celebrated the following Monday, unlike Anzac Day, which is celebrated on the day on which it falls. 

Despite all the hoo ha in the media about Oz Day celebrations, how many of us consider it JAH, Just Another Holiday? It doesn’t have the same reverence as Anzac Day and the fact that the day has become a day of mourning and protest as Invasion Day by indigenous Australians and increasing numbers of whites adds a strong negative aspect. Or maybe being cynical is a symptom of  the times and I should just lighten up and enter into the spirit of it.  I'll have to think about that.

For Funny Friday, here are some Oz Day cartoons that look at the day and some of its related issues... 

There was a young girl from Australia

Who painted her arse like a dahlia.

The picture was fine,

And the colour divine

But the scent on the whole was a fahlia.

Les Mis - The Book

Regular readers will know that Les Miserables is my favourite stage show and that I never miss an opportunity to see a live production, whether professional or amateur. Many of the local amateur musical societies are the equal of the professional troupes. I have also seen just about every film version there is of Les Mis, including the French versions, but I will confess that I have never been able to get past the first 30 pages or so of the book, it is just too heavy going and dull. 

Here are some interesting Les Mis facts and trivia about the book, you may have more dedication in finishing it than I: 

• The book was written by French poet, novelist and dramatist Victor Hugo (1802-1885). Within France he is best known for his poetry; outside France, for his novels Les Miserables and The Hunchback of Notre Dame. 

Victor Hugo, 1876 

• Les Miserables was first published in 1862. The novel begins in 1815 and ends with the June Rebellion in 1832 in Paris. 

Title page, first edition

• The title can be translated to The Miserables, The Wretched, The Miserable Ones, The Poor Ones, The Wretched Poor, or The Victims. 

• Hugo says in the novel’s Preface: 

So long as there shall exist, by reason of law and custom, a social condemnation, which, in the face of civilization, artificially creates hells on earth, and complicates a destiny that is divine with human fatality; so long as the three problems of the age—the degradation of man by poverty, the ruin of women by starvation, and the dwarfing of childhood by physical and spiritual night—are not solved; so long as, in certain regions, social asphyxia shall be possible; in other words, and from a yet more extended point of view, so long as ignorance and misery remain on earth, books like this cannot be useless. 

• At 1,500 pages (1,900 in the French version) it is one of the longest novels written. It also has a sentence 823 words long. One quarter of the novel consists of Hugo discoursing in detail on various aspects and issues – cloistered religious orders, the Paris sewers, street urchins and the battle of Waterloo – without any character involvement or storyline development. 

• Below are the sources for some of the characters and incidents in the novel: 

• The character of Valjean is based on the life of ex-convict Eugene Francois Vidoq (1775-1857). After Vidoq abandoned crime and became a businessman, he went on to establish and become the first director of the Surete, originally the criminal investigation bureau  of the Paris police that inspired Scotland Yard and the FBI. He was also the head of the first private detective agency.  He is today regarded as the father of modern criminology and of the French police department, and the first private detective.   A compassionate man, he was kind to those in deserving and in need, relentless to those who weren't., 

Eugene Vidocq 

• In 1828 Vidocq, already pardoned, saved one of his workers in his paper factory by lifting a heavy cart on his shoulders as Valjean does.

• The novel’s kindly Bishop of Digne is based on Francois–Bienvenu de Miollis (1753-1843), the real Bishop of Digne between 1805 and 1838. 

The Bishop of Digne, Francois–Bienvenu de Miollis 

• The scene where Fantine is assaulted by a rejected customer is based on an actual incident from Victor Hugo's life. It was witnessing that incident that led to the creation of the character of Fantine. Hugo was on his way to his editor's office when he encountered a young man harassing a prostitute. When she rejected his advances, he shoved a handful of snow down her dress and shoved her to the ground. She defended herself with her fists and he immediately called the police to arrest his "assailant". Hugo was a minor celebrity at the time and spoke up on the woman's behalf when the police arrived and was able to have her set free. Hugo said he was horrified by the unfairness of the woman's situation and began to imagine that she might have children depending on her, and thus Fantine appeared in his mind. 

• On 22 February 1846 Hugo witnessed the arrest of a bread thief whilst a Duchess and her child watched the scene without emotion from their coach. Hugo was already working on the novel and incorporated it into the book. 

• During the 1832 revolt, Hugo walked the streets of Paris, saw the barricades blocking his way at points, and had to take shelter from gunfire. 

• The large decaying statue of the elephant that features prominently in the movie was real and has been the subject of a previous Bytes: http://bytesdaily.blogspot.com.au/2012/04/les-mis-update-and-elephant.html?showComment=1358807767831#c1313637694985459803

It existed between 1813 and 1846 and was known as “The Elephant and the Bastille”, a statue intended by Napoleon to be cast in bronze to commemorate his military achievements. The plaster and wood model never proceeded to casting in bronze, becoming derelict, infested in vermin and the refuge of Gavroche and his young street friends. In the novel Gavroche is also a child of the Thenardiers, Eponine’s brother. The young friends he looks after are also, unbeknownst to him, his brothers as other children of the Thenardiers. 

• The character Javert is also based on Vidocq, the “good” aspects of Vidocq’s life being embodied in Valjean and the dedicated, relentless detective in Javert. Hugo in effect divided Vidocq into two characters for the novel, describing Javert in the novel as “a marble informer, Brutus in Vidocq”. Just like Vidocq, Javert has an excellent memory, great detective skills, an ability for disguise and a relentless capacity for dogged pursuit. Unlike Javert, Vidocq took pride in never having arrested anyone who stole out of need. 

• Some pics from the original book:

The Honey Hunters of Nepal

The next time you feel like your job sucks or that having to make that trip to the supermarket is a chore, spare a thought for the Honey Hunters of Nepal. 

The practice of honey hunting has been dated back to 13,000 BC and, in Nepal, is not only thousands of years old but is also a part of Nepalese culture. Nepal is home to the biggest honey bee on earth, Apis laboriosa, twice the size of normal bees and found only in the Himalayas. 

These bees live in giant hives built high in the Himalayan foothills.  Different types of honey are found at varying altitudes - spring honey, red honey and autumn honey - with red honey, made solely by these Himalayan bees and located at the highest altitudes, being the most valuable for having both intoxicating and relaxing qualities. 

Twice a year Nepalese Gurung men harvest the honey from such bees and hives. Using harnessed ladders and ropes secured at the tops of the cliffs, they harvest the honey in the same manner as Gurung men have done for thousands of years. Smoke is used to drive the bees from their hives and the men then use the ladders and ropes to suspend themselves in the air opposite the honeycombs, which are cut into pieces and dropped into baskets. The retrieved honey is sold and the income used to buy food and other necessary items. 

Notwithstanding the use of plastic coverings and scarves, the hunters still get stung.  As each new hive and honeycomb is harvested, the hunter faces a new attack by the bees.

In 1987 Eric Valli did a photostory “Hunters of Nepal”, which was later also published as a book. He also made a documentary about the Honey Hunters. 

Following are some of Valli’s photographs. No commentaries are necessary. . .

 

Quote: David Tomblin

Byter Graham told me of something that panellist John Sessions had said on a recent episode of that marvellous show with Stephen Fry called QI (which apparently stands for Quite Interesting). John Sessions is the stage name of Scottish actor and comedian John Gibb Marshall who is best known for comedy improvisation in shows such as another marvellous show called Whose Line Is It Anyway? (This show originated in 1988 as a radio show with Stephen Fry and John Session as regular panelists and Clive Anderson as host. The title is a combination of the name of a radio show, What’s My Line?, and a play Whose Life Is It Anyway? When the show went to television, Fry, who had been scared doing the show on radio, bailed out but encouraged Session to continue. Fry was often a guest on the TV show, which lasted for 10 series/136 episodes between 1988 and 1998. The British version inspired Drew Carey’s American version which ran for 8 seasons between 1998 and 2004). Back to John Sessions, as a regular panelist on the British QI, he has amazed at his effortless recall of the birth and death dates of various historical figures. 

John Sessions, QI

Stephen Fry, QI

The following anecdote comes from the QI episode mentioned by Graham, it is Sessions talking about Richard Attenborough and his directing of the film Gandhi, which won 8 Oscars including best pic and best actor: 

... he was directing the great Ben Kingsley in Gandhi, which you probably know . . . I think they were maybe a million, possibly even two million extras, er, in . . . during Gandhi's funeral, and the first assistant, the very famous, redoubtable David Tomblin, was told by Sir Dicky Attenborough to instruct the crowd as to how they may react. And he said to David Tomblin, he said [as Attenborough], "I want you to convey to them, David, that Gandhi's died, and it's an extraordinary event, darling . . . extraordinary event in the whole history of India, darling! That . . . The . . . That Gandhi is gone; their god, their national hero is gone." So David Tomblin turned to the crowd and he said, "Right, listen up! Gandhi's dead and you're all fucking sad!"

Hitchcock

Those who have seen the movie Hitchcock with Anthony Hopkins playing Sir Alfred Hitchcock may be interested in some pics of the original Hitch. That's both Hopkins and Hitch above.  Also, some background info . . . 

• He was born in England in 1899 and had a lonely childhood, made worse by his obesity. At age 5 he was sent to the local police station with a note from his father asking that he be locked up for 5 minutes as punishment for bad behaviour, harsh treatment and wrongful accusations being themes in many of his works. His father died at age 14. 

• He was rejected for military service in WW1 because of obesity, believed to be from a glandular condition. 

• His fondness for writing short stories, many of them published, gave way to an interest in photography. He commenced work with a film company, that company later to become Paramount, and in 1920 was given a full time position designing the titles for silent movies. By 1925 he was directing, his first commercial success being the 1927 pic The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog. 

• In 1926 he had married his assistant director, Alma Reville, with their only child, Patricia, being born in 1928. 

• Hitchcock is famously said to have observed in 1938 that “Actors are cattle.” During the making of the 1941 pic Mr & Mrs Smith, Carole Lombard is reported to have brought cattle onto the set and labelled them with the names of the actors. Hitchcock is reported to also have said that he was misquoted, that what he had actually said was “Actors should be treated like cattle.” 

• By the end of the 1930’s his star was soaring and he was regarded as Britain’s best director. He was signed to a 7 year contract in 1939 by David O Selznick, the Hitchcocks then moving to Hollywood. 

Multiple exposures for a 1942 Life magazine story about him

• Between 1939 and 1960 Hitchcock pioneered numerous technical devices and filming techniques that became standard fare in movies, as well as becoming known for his taut and suspenseful stories and directing. 

• Psycho (1960) is his best known film and that film, plus the following film The Birds (1963), are considered his last great films. 

• Ill health reduced his output and he died in 1980 from renal failure. 

• Hitchcock always made a signature appearance in his films. In Lifeboat, which as the name suggests concerns a group of people in a lifeboat, there was limited scope for a cameo appearance. He therefore appears in the "before" and "after" pictures in an ad for "Reduco Obesity Slayer" in the newspaper being read by William Bendix. 

In Psycho wearing a cowboy hat, he can be seen through Janet Leigh’s window as she returns to her office. 

His appearances became so popular that he began to make them earlier in his films so as not to distract the audience from the plot. 

 Sitting next to Cary Grant in To Catch a Thief 

• Hitchcock was renowned for casting blonde actresses in the leads and for having a roving eye. 

• In 1962, whilst The Birds was in post-production, he was interviewed by Francois Triffaut. This is from that interview: 

Hitchcock: "You know why I favor sophisticated blondes in my films? We're after the drawing-room type, the real ladies, who become whores once they're in the bedroom."

Triffaut: "What intrigues you is the paradox between the inner fire and the cool surface." 

Hitchcock: "Definitely. . . . Do you know why? Because sex should not be advertised. . . . Because without the element of surprise the scenes become meaningless. There's no possibility to discover sex." 

• Tippi Hedren, the lead in The Birds (and the mother of Melanie Griffith) has referred to Hitchcock as a misogynist who effectively ended her career by keeping her to an exclusive contract for two years when she rebuffed his sexual advances. In 2012, Hedren described Hitchcock as a "sad character"; a man of "unusual genius", yet "evil, and deviant, almost to the point of dangerous, because of the effect that he could have on people that were totally unsuspecting." 

By the way moment: 

Anyone who would like to have a quick look at 17 mosaics dealing with Hitchcock and his films can do so by clicking on: 

http://www.thejoyofshards.co.uk/london/hitch/

They were installed at the entrance corridors to Leytonstone tube station in 1999 to mark 100 years since his birth in Leytonstone and to commemorate his link with the area.