Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Very interesting ...

1 comment:

  1. Most interesting. I have great respect for Stirling Silliphant (love that name!), who died I believe several years back. He was a commanding, intelligent figure in the early and adolescent years of television, every minute of which I seemed to have watched growing up in the 1950s. But, experience is disillusioning . . . I have been watching reruns of his "Route 66," to which I was addicted when it first aired in the early '60s, and it really is less good than I remembered it (even taking into consideration that this is the usual reaction upon rediscovering old favorites). The stories were slow-moving -- MADDENINGLY slow, even for their era -- and occasionally just plain silly. The concept, however, was and still is simply magnificent: traveling around the country with cast and crew in a time when equipment was bulkier and fewer roads were high speed -- THAT was inspired. Despite my criticism I continue to watch the reruns because it is marvelous to see the scenery, clothing, manners, and infrastructure of a quieter time. Better, really, than a documentary.

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