Author: edbaruch

Ron Howard is D. Kliban. D. Kliban is a very funny artist who does mostly one frame comics and comics about cats. I suspected Cheryl Howard did some of these because there are lots of variations in the comics. The themes tend to follow Ron’s career and some are Woody Allen’esque, some are hippies from San Francisco and of course cats. Cheryl did virtually all the cat cartoons which were very very popular.

What tipped me off? There is a song by Robert Ellis Orrall called, “Call the Uh-Oh Squad” This came from a very funny cartoon which was in The New Yorker but then in Kliban compilations. Here’s the song…

This is a great song!!! I enjoyed now as much as I used to!!

The cartoon had two panels.

The first depicted a horrible car accident, with a bystander saying, “Better call the Uh-oh Squad”.

The second showed several official types standing around the crushed cars, with badges saying “Uh-oh Squad”, wringing their hands with worried faces, saying “uh-oh, uh-oh, uh-oh”.

As I recall the first panel showed one guy saying, “This man has swallowed his nose. I’m a sheet metal worker. Better call the Uh-Oh Squad.” In the second panel they arrive, and everyone is saying ‘Uh-Oh” except for one little boy off to the side who is saying, “Oh wow!”

I need to find this cartoon.

I would have to believe Ron is D. Kliban and also Robert Ellis Orrall. These cartoons are a wealth of information on Ron for example.

There are a series of films by director Tom Six, Dutch Horror Films called the Human Centipede. I don’t want to put up any photos of the film because they are disturbing but the premise is the same. Ron speaks fluent Dutch.

Here’s a picture of Tom Six

There are some signs on the fingers that this is Ron.

Here’s the only photo I can find of D. Kliban…

The above photo shows the same fabric in a house coat that Cheryl Howard was wearing in a photo as Donna Summers. I made fun of that fabric and here it is…great minds think alike.

Here’s the fabric on Donna Summers and the close is also pink. I joked about it saying they used it when she was done with it to cover the toasters which I’ve seen the fabric used for. Look at me!!! Talking about fabric like I’m some fashion designer!!!

 

 

Firstly, Elton John in the film is actually not The Pinball Wizard… Tommy aka Roger Daltry aka Ron Howard is…Elton sings about Tommy. If you watch the video you’ll notice that Elton at a couple parts in the song points at Tommy, at the minute and a half mark, “always has a replay”, it’s a deep and meaningful accusatory pointing as if Tommy has done something wrong. This works on a really deep level especially if you’ve seen “The Twilight Zone” with Billy Mumy who does the same pointing at someone he doesn’t like. See the photo above.

Ok, so I had another point… through most of this I left out the mainstay of the video…The Who!! They appear throughout the video; all accomplished musicians. I went through the comments under the video of Pinball Wizard which reflected most of what I’ve said including references to the video being the greatest video and or piece of music with the spectacular showmanship in it and adding Elton John to an already great song. Someone also shouts out that even in this video The Who have to destroy their instruments, which they do!! All part of a great band and a great video.

Hopefully this will be the end of it: Tremendous energy in the theater it was shot in with the place crammed with fans singing and swaying to the music but what I wanted to point out again was the tremendous attention to detail this film has. At about 2:20 Elton John is seen leaning against his pinball in the background while The members of The Who are seen together in the foreground. Elton is singing and not moving much except for one giant shoe which is slowly waving from left to right. It’s a minor detail in the shot but it lends to the whole, “Captain Fantastic” image of Elton and the tremendous visuals in this video. It adds to the upstaging of The Who by Elton but that’s simply the scene and the visual and it works. Just another brilliant fine detail in this film which could be endlessly studied from a hundred different directions. I think if you understood this film not just from top to bottom but from side to side and beyond you’d have a tremendous grounding in music and film making. Hopefully this it cause it’s time to move on!!!

 

Non-sequitor

Felix Unger: “Love has made me strong!”

Oscar Madison: “Strength has made him stronger!!”

from an episode of the TV series the Odd Couple that was written by Ron Howard

 

I hadn’t realized that I was in real time for the signing of my photo and the area around the photo continued to be signed through the day. Long legged beauty Bryce Howard sat on the floor to sign while her daughter whose name goes to this blog stood on a chair and signed in a bold signature, hers the largest of all signatures, to the right of the photo toward the top. I even signed it, directly underneath with my full name and “Ed” in quotes. An honored extended family signed in the top right corner maintaining distance as a show of respect and deference to the man in the photo.

By the end of the day the area for signatures was mostly full with some spaces left purposefully empty for signatures of people unavailable.  Two pillars were brought in with large vases and flowers to adorn the photo and the exhibit.

Rare tours of “Ron’s Hidden Museum” were done by Mr. Ron Howard himself who took pleasure in showing off and explaining the various items and exhibits. One of the highlights of the tour was the Hamilton/Burr exhibit which has been described in best detail in this blog as featured in a “Got Milk” commercial. The ad ran continuously while people came, enjoyed the exhibit, and drank tall glasses of milk!! (ok, so it was actually glasses of wine but milk would have worked here as well!).

Only one glass of wine spilled that day and the “no personal contact” rule while in the museum was honored by all except for a few young ladies who couldn’t resist adding this place to their list. With them it was mostly show and tell as one of them nestled comfortably on some antique end table while the others expressed joy in the use of their chorda tympani nerves. This started when two or three young ladies slipped away but the crowd grew when they invited others over to see a great exhibition. It was eventually broken up when a more senior woman came over to see what was going on and joined in. A few minutes her husband was sent over and suggested this should break up. Ron was aware of this and wrote them all out of the next remake of Princess Diaries including the woman but hey…that’s show business!. (As far as I know Ron is not remaking Princess Diaries and I’m just joking with these kids and one lady!)

The girls are members of gay mostly all girls cougar club which they formed honoring older women and seeking them out wherever they may find them. A couple of gents joined who were gay and wanted to worship at the alter of older women.

Speeches were made and Ron had a gift that was accepted for me.

Ron admired one of my favorite “crystals/ minerals.” It’s a sphere of iron pyrite with multiple jagged internal caverns of  reflective surface. He saw I would often hold the sphere, gaze on it and into it and meditate with it. I offered it to him on several occasions but it still sits in my possession so in some part it represents a piece of me and defines me.

The gift to me was bought by Bryce Howard,  what a great beauty. The gift is a very large sphere of bright and shiny iron pyrite which is glorious. It is reminiscent of the one I have. I had seen it once or twice at the Howard home but did not know what it was for. The sphere was elaborately etched by Bryce who is an accomplished artist in her own right. The sphere depicts family and travails and tells a story of my involvement with the Howards including a picture of myself with Bryce, sort of like putting “Lord of the Rings” on a sphere. It is a masterwork of a beloved woman, her daughter and our family.

Thank you to all, and for this I am truly grateful.

Reminder Part 1 has more finds than the rest of this blog combined! IMHO!

By the time I decide to go looking for someone I think might be Ron I have a pretty good idea that he, or she, is. I decided to look for DeNiro as Ron Howard. I’d seen Taxi Driver in whole or part several times and DeNiro has Ron’s body habitus.

But before I move on…Shout out to Ron Howard as Roy Scheider in “Marathon Man” for it’s time one of the great fight scenes in his hotel room against a Japanese assassin.

Great fight sequence reminiscent of Paul Newman in Hitchcock’sTorn Curtain fighting off an SS officer with the German woman…it’s at 39 minutes below… I think there may be a problem with this version of the film but I’m not sure. The first time I saw the film this fight scene was removed. I saw it in a documentary on Hitchcock and one additional time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ARZ27eMXg0

Back to DeNiro…

 

…sits a picture of me. It sits honoring me. It sits in an honored space near Ron’s beloved collection/exhibit of Hamilton/Burr historical artifacts/memorabilia in The Ron Howard Museum aka Ron’s Private Museum aka Ron’s Hidden Museum.

Ron, his family and the community honor me.

Ron creates a most honored place near this prize collection holding me in the light of greatness during a time of great strife, difficulty and danger.

He honors me as a historian who carefully studied he and his family’s lives and set it to print with piercing honesty, pain, love and humor.

The photo generates different feelings for different people who see it. One insider who disliked something I did looked at my photo with a grave distain. I don’t fault her for that. It’s important that I express it here, as this distain alerted me to my photo and this honoring in this museum. Virtually all others expressed admiration and love with a sense of wonder and excitement when approaching my photo.

Close family signed the exhibit dedicated to “Ed” at the bottom of the wall housing the picture for which I am honored and grateful. The significance of signing at the bottom initially lost on me separates my photo by physical distance from the photo to impart a sense of humility to the signer and the observers. This extends even further as the signers had to crouch, deeply bend or sit at floor in order to sign. This is not lost on me as I watch my family do this.

Ron’s honored signature sits on the wall nearest to the photo toward the bottom right assuming the patriarchal mantle of director of this family and community, as such serving to honor me and expressing the closeness and bond between the two of us which developed into an ultimate partnership in this lengthy battle for the safety and security of heaven, earth and hell.

I am again truly honored and grateful to all.

e

NB: A piece of Ron’s Hidden Museum including his exhibit of Hamilton/Burr historical artifacts can be found in the, “Got Milk” commercial featuring Ron in the commercial and centers around the duel between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr.

Side Bar: The “Got Milk” commercial opens on a beautiful older car… no accident…Ron did a number of great early films that centered around cars; American Graffiti, Eat My Dust and Grand Theft Auto. I’m not a car guy but I suspect it was used in Grand Theft Auto. This would tie Ron in with the commercial. Ron, like Hitchcock, likes to ID his work in some way, this would be the way with this commercial.”

Post Script:

Was Old Melisandre played by…

…Agnes Moorehead?

Yes she was !!!!

Thanks to Agnes Moorehead for stopping by and for many many years of great entertainment! You are wonderful!!

Agnes Moorehead still acting at age 118 !!

I’m a huge fan of Pippi Longstockings and loved this reboot!!!! Thanks to everyone who did this!!!