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Mannahatta

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Everything posted by Mannahatta

  1. I can - because I was traumatized! I don't know what the housekeeper did next as I was able to watch only the first 10 minutes of last night's show. Good Lord! The sight of Larry engaging in oral sex just about wiped out whatever is left of my libido. No, no and just no. That was not a sight I needed to see....However, when I am fully recovered I will go back to watch the rest of the episode.
  2. I had read "Answered Prayers" a few years ago. (I had wanted to read it, couldn't find it anywhere, but lo and behold, I found it in Brooklyn in a pile of books that someone had thrown out.) Anyway, I found the book to be so mean spirited that I really wondered about the writer. Was he a sociopath? Plus the writing wasn't so great. I had read In Cold Blood and was riveted by it, so I expected more - just like I did of this show. Anyway, today I read an essay in the NYTimes, written by Babe Paley's granddaughter, Belle Burden. She writes: "I can accept that details are changed when real people are fictionalized. I know it is hard to capture the ineffable magic of someone’s presence. There are no live recordings of Babe, no way for an actress to know how she moved and spoke. What I cannot accept is the theft of my grandmother’s narrative." She describes Babe as an affectionate, brilliant, funny, well-read, charismatic, and having a "steely strength". She outlines all the falsehoods in the show, and adds that no one in her family was consulted "to lend color or truth to Babe’s portrait, to her strengths and struggles, her complexities and contradictions". And this passage I found especially poignant: "My grandmother was wounded by Capote taking the things she told him, changing them, betraying her confidence and her privacy, which she guarded fiercely. Now her life has been stolen and twisted again, posthumously, by the creators of “Feud,” including the executive producer Ryan Murphy, the writer Jon Robin Baitz and the director Gus Van Sant. In the show, Babe is drawn as the ultimate victim: of her husband’s infidelity, Capote’s betrayal, her failing health. In victimhood, in her constant suffering, in the dramatic fabrications, she becomes one-dimensional, a woman defined by surfaces — a woman defined by men, reconstructing her life to suit their needs." I thought her critique was pretty brilliant. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/06/opinion/feud-swans-paley.html
  3. For anyone interested in reading more about the Vanderbilt family, "Fortune's Children: The Fall of the House of Vanderbilt" by Arthur T. Vanderbilt II, published in 1989, is a fascinating, well researched page-turner told with wit. The extent of their wealth, and some of the massive egos is mind-boggling. After that I then went on to "Consuelo and Alva Vanderbilt" by Amanda Mackenzie Stuart, published in 2005. But I found reading it to be a bit of a slog, a dry recitation of facts and some odd asides. It made me appreciate Vanderbilt's book even more.
  4. https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/the-gilded-age-back-third-season-expected-film-18571278.php In addition to making viewers happy, having a season 3 should help the local economy.
  5. I can appreciate your point. But if there's one thing I've learned from watching Dateline it's that being able to light up every room you enter is also a risk factor.
  6. I've gotten to the point where I just proceed to the last 8 minutes or so. In fact, lately I've been toying with the idea of putting them on mute....I think they did a nice job with the bones of this last house. And the tiles were more subtle than usual. Plus the sellers seemed like fun. However, I could do without all the close-ups of the inevitable baskets on the wall, the excessive amounts of pillows on the beds, the fake plants that continually pop up in the unlikeliest of places, the often cheap looking faucets, and the ever-present macrame. But who am I to complain now that I've learned to fully embrace the magic of fast-forwarding!
  7. I think the same could be said for their clothing choices.
  8. https://www.vogue.co.uk/arts-and-lifestyle/article/feud-season-2-capotes-women Frome the article: "...Variety reported that the show had found its Capote, too: Pride & Prejudice and The White Lotus’s Tom Hollander had snagged the part of the prolific novelist who became a pariah when he published a story which exposed the shocking secrets of his most powerful confidantes. Joining him? Eternal New York It-girl Chloë Sevigny as CZ Guest, a cover girl and muse to Andy Warhol and Salvador Dalí; Diane Lane as Slim Keith, the former wife of Howard Hawks who was credited with discovering Lauren Bacall; Calista Flockhart as Lee Radziwill, Jackie Kennedy’s radiant younger sister who married a Polish prince; Molly Ringwald as Johnny Carson’s second wife Joanne Carson; Treat Williams as William S Paley; Chris Chalk as renowned author James Baldwin; and Ella Beatty as Kerry O’Shea, the daughter of Capote’s lover John O’Shea." What a cast! I am looking forward to this like a kid looking forward to Christmas. Hopefully the wait won't be much longer.
  9. There's a great commercial for Discover's cash back debit card with Jennifer Coolidge. She's so so disappointed to learn from her waiter (who's patiently sitting at her diner booth trying to get her to hand over her card) that it's not just her - everybody gets cash back - even Debbie John: "All those years that I couldn't find my bike and it was in her garage." The acting, the lines, the setting and the camera angles are perfection. It's hysterical. I usually fast forward most commercials (especially the ones where people are so gosh darn happy about their medications), but this one I had to rewind and watch twice. (Well, this one and the Temptations ad with the disdainful cat in the limo who's out clubbing.)
  10. My DVR didn't record the latest one! So I just finished watching S4:E11 (according to my guide). Well, I didn't actually watch it as much as fast forward to the finish line. The house was unsellable for $405,00, was renovated for $100,00, listed for $550,000, and received an offer of $580,000. They did a nice enough job but I was baffled by their decision to remove the doors off the bedroom closet. That's an even worse idea than open shelving in the kitchen. I would love for HGTV to have a show highlighting designs that tackle the practical issues of storage, privacy, accessibility, ease of cleaning, and ways to lower the cost of heating and cooling. It would be a very reality based show with ceiling fans, window screens, TVs, shades, curtains, and maybe even the latest in security systems. There would be no white furniture. I think I would enjoy such a show.
  11. Wow. Those first 2 properties had me wondering how was it even legal to sell them as residential homes. And why would anyone buy them? I looked up real estate in Christiansburg, VA, and for just a little bit more that couple could have bought a 3 bedroom townhouse in great condition with more square footage. So I'm guessing they were more interested in being quirky than raising a family in a safe environment. Plus the only curb appeal those brick yurtas had were that they might make passersby laugh. The 2nd homeowner was amusing and I get that she loved the trees. But she had to be bat-shit crazy for thinking that collection of ramshackle structures has potential. And the 3rd couple were complaining about things they could have at least started to repair. Anyway, don't these homeowners know by now that the winning home is always the one that needs the least amount of work? But I'm enjoying this show - mainly due to Retta. She's hilarious. Of course, I think I would enjoy it even more if there was another designer waiting in the wings.
  12. I barely got through the first episode and had to fast forward through the second. Way too much time letting that idiot Lentz babble on. He repulsed me from the beginning with that sermon where he claimed that the NYPD had marveled that his home hadn't been shot up. On the face of it that was nonsense. Why would a cop think it amazing that 100% of a given area wasn't affected by an alleged shoot-out. So that was a lie right there. Plus I also doubt that a shoot-out occurred. It was just an excuse to make it seem like 1) he's so cool and street-wise, and 1) he's so pure and rightious bullets can't touch him and his family. Ugh. Who falls for that crap? Well wonder no more as there were also way too many talking heads of people who want someone charismatic to spoon feed them the meaning of life while also entertaining them and making them feel so so special. What could possibly go wrong there? I would rather read an article about this church or watch a Frontline style documentary with a just the facts approach. This documentary annoyed me.
  13. Aside from the kitchen (and Michel's suit), I was very disappointed by the big reveal. The dining and living rooms looked so dark that they seemed smaller. That didn't make any sense to me since the owners had said they had whitewashed the brick of the fireplace because they wanted the family room to look lighter. So it would seem that light and airy was the overall look they wanted. The family room turned out bright but also looked very impersonal. I actually preferred the room before. Plus, I'm over shiplap as fireplace trim or any othe trim. It's just going to become another feature that will date a home. I also didn't like the minimal amount of art on the walls. However, the home owners and everybody else seemed happy - so maybe you just had to be there. Speaking of features that will date a home - when I moved to my current home a little over 20 years ago, I watched HGTV religiously for ideas. And I never got one idea that I could use. Good thing because when I started to watch it again a few years ago they were disparaging all the ideas they had been promoting. 10, 15 years from now what will they be saying about today's trends?
  14. And it's not just the father. It's an entire family of psychopaths! Alex and Paul are prettty obvious cases; Buster is rumored to have been involved in the death of Stephen Smith; and both Maggie and Paul seemed pretty damn chill when they called 911 about Gloria Satterfield "falling". That poor woman. She practically raised Paul and Buster and they couldn't have cared less that she was severely injured. I just hope this jury has more brains that the the ones from Casey Anthony's trial. That one always stands out to me as a particularly flagrant miscarriage of justice.
  15. I was almost ready to give up on this show but this last episode with Carol Burnett and Niecy Nash was everything. It was moving. it was funny. There were unexpected twists and turns. It was even educational. (I had no idea that 10 percent of the Confederate Army deserted.) Even Henry Louis Gates seemed wittier than usual. And what made it all these things were the two guests. They were both so warm and real. I teared up when Carol Burnett described her last visit with her father, and Niecy Nash shared her efforts to rouse her mother out of mourning. I felt new found admiration for both women. It's not just their careers but their personal qualities that gave their stories meaning. Lately a lot of the guests seem kind of emotionally closed off - which is ironic since so many are actors. But not these two! This episode definitely reminded me of why I started to watch this series to begin with.
  16. This season I've only been watching the first few minutes where the sellers show the house and the last few minutes where we see the results. (Thanks CrazyInAlabama for filling in what happens in between!) I think it was their Eng-lish-As-A-Se-cond-Lan-guage style of talking that was getting to me. Though if they ever needed to pursue a 2nd career they would be naturals as ESL teachers. Yet, even with my 10 minute viewing time these two manage to annoy. This episode they managed to replace all the dated trends of the 70s with the soon to be dated trends of the 20's. Count me in as someone who would find those loudly patterned tiles nerve wracking. Plus their color schemes can be jarring - especially in regard to fireplaces. I thought the orange brick of the fireplace clashed with the rest of the living room trim, but I guess I should be grateful they didn't paint the mantel a shiny grey. As for their staging - it always reminds me of an old Pier One showroom - which would be fine if you wanted your home to double as a store. I think another reason I'm not enjoying the show as much this season is that the prices reflect today's supercharged housing market. I much prefer the fantasy of thinking that if I were to ever leave my area I could still find a bargain in another state. Guess those days are over......
  17. The baby is pretty amazing. I can't think of any show or movie I've seen with such an expressive baby in a lead role no less. There's a short video on You Tube called "Behind The Scenes Filming With Babies | The Baby | HBO" that's quite interesting. As you would expect - it's a complicated process. That said I found this episode to be a bit disjointed. The segue from Children of the Corn to impromptu family therapy session was so abrupt that I thought it made no sense as horror, comedy or drama. But overall, I'm still enjoying this show - just because it is so different. And the acting is great.
  18. There's something especially chilling about annoyance being a motive for murder. If the pastor hadn't alerted the police -would anyone else have reported their suspicions? There was no shortage of people who were creeped out by the mother's lack of emotion. It just seems so odd that they were able to get away with the first two murders since neither was adept at acting or even coming up with a credible script. Of course it would have helped if that police force and the medical examiner's office (or was it a coroner?) had a few more cynics in their ranks. And the mother had been a nurse! Did she find her patients annoying as well?
  19. Kendall's birthday party was definitely a very expensive train wreck. I find that his character often gives me a terrible case of 2nd hand embarrassment - to the point where I have to press the pause button on a regular basis so I can take the time to fully cringe. Kendall has the respect of none of the people whose respect he craves, and he's nasty to anyone he thinks is beneath him. So kudos to Jeremy Strong's acting to make me actually feel sorry for Kendall at times. At this point I really don't care what happens to the company per se. I'm watching to see how the family dynamics play out. As for cousin Greg - I believe his role is to embody "the everyman" who, in this case, is completely out of his element. I can see why this show wouldn't be for everyone but I find the banality of the power struggles to be fascinating. And one sad clarification....There's a venue next to The Vessel called The Shed. I think that's where the party is supposed to take place. (It also happens that Warner Media Studios & Networks, which now owns HBO, has it's office in a building just a few steps away.) The Vessel was basically designed as an architectural sculpture - climbable by stairs. I say "was" because it's now closed and there are now plans to dismantle it. Sadly there were 4 separate suicides by jumping that occurred in it since its opening in 2019. So it's definitely not a party venue.
  20. My fantasy is that the Mossbachers won't press charges against Kai - not out of kindness, of course, but because they got all their jewelry back and a long-distance court case would too much of a bother. Also, the resort has no motivation to pursue the case because it would generate bad publicity for them. So Kai might just wind up only losing his job but not his freedom. I actually felt for Quinn. I didn't see him as a spoiled brat but as a kid who's a lost soul - who had all his senses awakened only to realize what an empty screen addicted life he's been living. As for Tanya - right after she says she doesn't want to have any more transactional relationships - she hands Belinda an envelope of cash. That pretty much summed her character up - a little smidgen of insight, an iota of kindness, and a whole lot of oblivious self-centeredness. I'm curious about Season 2. I read it will be in the same hotel but with different travelers. Is it going to have the same theme of privileged people carelessly running roughshod through the lives of the staff? That could be redundant - so I wonder if another theme will be used. Anyway, I appreciated the writing and was awed by the acting - so I plan to tune in for season 2.
  21. I thought for sure they would paint that hideous pink exterior. It would have been so easy considering it was a ranch. Did they say why they left it that color? I tend to fast forward through the scenes where they're talking so maybe I missed something. And that fireplace was such a travesty that I found myself fantasizing about taking a sledge hammer to it. As for the turquoise sink - it gave off cheap motel vibes.....This was such a weird episode. To quote Nina Garcia from the old Project Runway - "I question their taste level."
  22. I had to laugh that the bedroom, which was supposed to be for a teen-ager, "the really fun room", was decorated with 45s. I know LPs are coming back into vogue - but 45s? Have the twins recently been binge watching Gidget movies? Who associates 45s with today's teenagers? And as a buyer, I wouldn't appreciate the paint haphazardly splashed on the wall. Even the kid didn't seem to appreciate it, though to his credit he was diplomatic: "I'll probably paint on it some more." Lol I don't know. These two seem to be so on point with all the decorating trends that I can see the homes on this show looking very dated within 10 years. Not that it seems to matter. The housing market in that area seems to be on fire. $712,000 with no inspection makes me think the buyers out there are either all in a state of mass hysteria, and/or they're flush with cash after selling their previous homes in California (or some other hyper-inflated market). Unless the entire country gets a pay raise - I don't know how these types of prices are sustainable.
  23. I felt the same way. And after reading this article all I can do is shake my head: https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/article242690561.html and... Clearly math is not her strong suit. I'm guessing in her mind it was worthwhile to take the lump sum because now she can post on social media about all the fun times she has with her close friends in her cool house. Apparently the trust idea went out the window. But she's sure to get lots of new "friends"! As for Elevation Church, it's a Baptist church with over 20 locations, is reportedly anti-gay (the church's founding pastor, Steven Furtick called homosexuality a sin), and follows Prosperity theology. Maybe she assumes that God will pay off the rest of her mortgage? Forget about SMDH, now my head is spinning.... https://goqnotes.com/19794/concerns-raised-as-anti-gay-elevation-church-makes-inroads-at-local-schools/
  24. Yes! That was Andy Samberg. I never was into his comedy but that episode was one of my all time favorites. He seemed like a really nice guy whose main interest was to find out the background of his mother, who had been adopted. Plus his mother appreciated learning that she was the romantic result of an affair between two highly educated star crossed lovers. I think I definitely have a preference for the episodes that find recent surprises. And by recent I mean within four generations. By then you're up to 16 great-great grandparents so it can get a bit unwieldly. Speaking of surprises, one of my friends, who already has seven siblings, recently discovered through ancestry.com that he also has a much older half-brother. My first thought was that the brother was from the father. But no, turned out to be from his mother. Apparently her first born was "born out of wedlock" in the late 1940s and was adopted by a loving family. My friend spoke to his half-brother on the phone and found that they both had very similar interests. So, no anguish there. But it just goes to show that you really need to be prepared for the unexpected when you send your DNA out into the universe.
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