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2:56:15 – Frank in New Jersey, plus the Other Side. Topics include: Umbrella, new pope, Switch 2 pre-order, Moog Messenger, Flea Devil updates, ghost kitchens, Mister Agave utensils, The Prisoner Puzzle with Patrick McGoohan, Pope Leo XIV, new laptop, Behind the Rocks, Zope, wannabe polymath, creativity, Pixies, Laphroaig Cairdeas on the rocks, Andor, Darth Vader, Ardnahoe Distillery, […]
2:56:15 – Frank in New Jersey, plus the Other Side. Topics include: Umbrella, new pope, Switch 2 pre-order, Moog Messenger, Flea Devil updates, ghost kitchens, Mister Agave utensils, The Prisoner Puzzle with Patrick McGoohan, Pope Leo XIV, new laptop, Behind the Rocks, Zope, wannabe polymath, creativity, Pixies, Laphroaig Cairdeas on the rocks, Andor, Darth Vader, Ardnahoe Distillery, […]
Mike and Chris slip into the shadows with Identity Crisis, Columbo's espionage-laced foray into cloak-and-dagger territory. Directed by none other than Patrick McGoohan—who also stars as a smug, sartorially superior spy—this episode finds the Lieutenant matching wits with a killer who's as cool as he is cold-blooded. The guys dive into the episode's slick style, surreal touches, and McGoohan's unmistakable fingerprints all over the production. Is this Columbo at its most cerebral—or just a secret agent detour too far? Join the investigation and find out.
It's 1957 and this Stanley Baker vehicle tells the story of gravel haulage on the mean streets of Buckinghamshire. An absolute galaxy of supporting cast, including Patrick McGoohan, Sean Connery, Herbert Lom, Peggy Cummins, William Hartnell, Sid James, Jill Ireland, Gordon Jackson and David McCallum.
Welcome to another episode of the Sci-Fi Talk Podcast. In this episode, titled "The Prisoner Retrospective Plus," host Tony Tellado and guest Rick Davy'of the Unmutual site, dive into the enduring impact of the classic television series, The Prisoner. As Tony shares, this 1967 show, starring Patrick McGoohan, left a significant mark on his understanding of individuality and freedom. Rick Davy, who curates the Unmutual website dedicated to The Prisoner, discusses how the show's themes are still relevant today, exploring topics like the rights of the individual, societal pressures, and the political environment. Together, they explore the fascinating dynamics of the series' characters, episodes, and allegorical significance, unpacking its lasting influence on TV and society. Join us as we delve into the mysterious world of The Village and Number Six's perpetual struggle for autonomy and truth. Visit The Unmutual site Start Your Free One Year Trial At Sci-Fi Talk Plus
HEY FOLKS ITS EPISODE 353 OF MANCAVE MOVIE REVIEW WHERE WE WILL BE TALKING ABOUT THIS GREAT AND FANTASTIC FILM STARS ROCK HUDSON, PATRICK MCGOOHAN, JAMES BROWN AND ERNEST BORGNINE. SO KICK BACK WITH SOME BOURBON OR VODKA WHILE THE MCMR CREW TELL YOU WHY YOU NEVER TRUST A RUSSIAN THAT LOOKS LIKE ERNEST BORGNINE.
País Estados Unidos Dirección Don Siegel Guion Richard Tuggle. Novela: J. Campbell Bruce Reparto Clint Eastwood, Patrick McGoohan, Roberts Blossom, Jack Thibeau, Fred Ward Música Jerry Fielding Fotografía Bruce Surtees Sinopsis San Francisco, enero de 1960. Frank Lee Morris (Eastwood), un preso muy inteligente que se ha fugado de varias prisiones, es trasladado a Alcatraz, cárcel de máxima seguridad situada en una isla rocosa en medio de la Bahía de San Francisco. A pesar de que nadie ha conseguido nunca evadirse de allí, Frank y otros reclusos empiezan a preparar minuciosamente un plan de fuga.
(2:00) The Ethics of the Unabomber and the Healthcare AssassinWhat does the government say is their evidence for Luigi Mangione as the assassin of the health insurance CEO?What is his background and worldviewWas this assassination justified? Was the Unabomber justified?In Luigi's online review of Unabomber he says "we're animals like everything else on this planet, except we've forgotten the law of the jungle and bend over for our overlord" and concludes only coward and predators say 'violence never solved anything'. What does the Christian say to that?(38:42) LIVE comments about assassination (43:48) Daniel Penny and the Threat of Racial Violence BLM Calls "Vigilantes"The race war narrative and the useful idiots who believe itWhy Daniel Perry's actions are NOT criminal, but Soros DA Alvin Braggs' actions ARE CRIMINALTrial showed that the "victim" was alive when police arrived and THEY chose not to give medical aidGermany let off illegal aliens who gang raped a woman but punished people who criticized the rapists — and now they're coming after a woman who defended herself against rape(1:13:31) LIVE comments (1:17:31) Gates — International CriminalGates' deal with politicians to give him and his foundation diplomatic immunity to crimes and to taxes hits a bump in the wallIt's not just Kenya or poor nations — USA gives legal immunity as wellMore calls for Gates' arrest after his comments about using India "as a lab" to test drugs they couldn't test elsewhereGates' population control agenda (both depopulation and tracking surveillance) continues as he pushes for age verification to begin digital ID(1:44:05) The BioweaponThe amazingly low uptake of the jab by doctors & health care workers — but they're afraid to tell YOUWhen Trump understated autism on Sunday, was he referring to those who have been harmed by the shot he's so proud of? It looks like TrumpVax will be more common than autism(1:44:05) MOST DANGEROUS LIE they're telling you nowHow can we be certain there WAS NO PANDEMIC? Look at the TSA (2:11:57) Will you hold DOLLARS or MONEY?Morgan Stanley says it's time to SELL the dollar — why?Analyst - biggest financial changes since Nixon are coming in next 1 to 3 yearsBlackRock rapidly expands tokenization for money market fund (and everything else)(2:24:35) A Real "Rover" from McGoohan's "The Prisoner"It appears that governments want to make EVERY aspect of every dystopian film reality. Patrick McGoohan's "The Prisoner" could serve as the model for 15 Minute Cities — but China's new cop-bot is a harder tougher version of the mysterious sphere that guarded escape (2:33:20) Mystery Drones, AI Weather forecasting, and a Geoengineering Report that's pure "limited hangout" (2:46:22) General Patton's connection to "It's a Wonderful Life" (2:50:27) Satanic Temple Joins with the Seminaries of Satan (Public Schools)If you would like to support the show and our family please consider subscribing monthly here: SubscribeStar https://www.subscribestar.com/the-david-knight-show Or you can send a donation throughMail: David Knight POB 994 Kodak, TN 37764Zelle: @DavidKnightShow@protonmail.comCash App at: $davidknightshowBTC to: bc1qkuec29hkuye4xse9unh7nptvu3y9qmv24vanh7 Money should have intrinsic value AND transactional privacy: Go to DavidKnight.gold for great deals on physical gold/silver For 10% off Gerald Celente's prescient Trends Journal, go to TrendsJournal.com and enter the code KNIGHTBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-david-knight-show--2653468/support.
(2:00) The Ethics of the Unabomber and the Healthcare AssassinWhat does the government say is their evidence for Luigi Mangione as the assassin of the health insurance CEO?What is his background and worldviewWas this assassination justified? Was the Unabomber justified?In Luigi's online review of Unabomber he says "we're animals like everything else on this planet, except we've forgotten the law of the jungle and bend over for our overlord" and concludes only coward and predators say 'violence never solved anything'. What does the Christian say to that?(38:42) LIVE comments about assassination (43:48) Daniel Penny and the Threat of Racial Violence BLM Calls "Vigilantes"The race war narrative and the useful idiots who believe itWhy Daniel Perry's actions are NOT criminal, but Soros DA Alvin Braggs' actions ARE CRIMINALTrial showed that the "victim" was alive when police arrived and THEY chose not to give medical aidGermany let off illegal aliens who gang raped a woman but punished people who criticized the rapists — and now they're coming after a woman who defended herself against rape(1:13:31) LIVE comments (1:17:31) Gates — International CriminalGates' deal with politicians to give him and his foundation diplomatic immunity to crimes and to taxes hits a bump in the wallIt's not just Kenya or poor nations — USA gives legal immunity as wellMore calls for Gates' arrest after his comments about using India "as a lab" to test drugs they couldn't test elsewhereGates' population control agenda (both depopulation and tracking surveillance) continues as he pushes for age verification to begin digital ID(1:44:05) The BioweaponThe amazingly low uptake of the jab by doctors & health care workers — but they're afraid to tell YOUWhen Trump understated autism on Sunday, was he referring to those who have been harmed by the shot he's so proud of? It looks like TrumpVax will be more common than autism(1:44:05) MOST DANGEROUS LIE they're telling you nowHow can we be certain there WAS NO PANDEMIC? Look at the TSA (2:11:57) Will you hold DOLLARS or MONEY?Morgan Stanley says it's time to SELL the dollar — why?Analyst - biggest financial changes since Nixon are coming in next 1 to 3 yearsBlackRock rapidly expands tokenization for money market fund (and everything else)(2:24:35) A Real "Rover" from McGoohan's "The Prisoner"It appears that governments want to make EVERY aspect of every dystopian film reality. Patrick McGoohan's "The Prisoner" could serve as the model for 15 Minute Cities — but China's new cop-bot is a harder tougher version of the mysterious sphere that guarded escape (2:33:20) Mystery Drones, AI Weather forecasting, and a Geoengineering Report that's pure "limited hangout" (2:46:22) General Patton's connection to "It's a Wonderful Life" (2:50:27) Satanic Temple Joins with the Seminaries of Satan (Public Schools)If you would like to support the show and our family please consider subscribing monthly here: SubscribeStar https://www.subscribestar.com/the-david-knight-show Or you can send a donation throughMail: David Knight POB 994 Kodak, TN 37764Zelle: @DavidKnightShow@protonmail.comCash App at: $davidknightshowBTC to: bc1qkuec29hkuye4xse9unh7nptvu3y9qmv24vanh7 Money should have intrinsic value AND transactional privacy: Go to DavidKnight.gold for great deals on physical gold/silver For 10% off Gerald Celente's prescient Trends Journal, go to TrendsJournal.com and enter the code KNIGHTBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-real-david-knight-show--5282736/support.
Dorian Price, Alexis Hejna, Chae Tate and Mark Radulich review movies currently on streaming services and in theaters: Dick Tracy/The Phantom/The Shadow Movie Review! First up is Dick Tracy (1990). Then we move on to The Phantom (1996). Finally we review The Shadow (1994).Dick Tracy is a 1990 American action crime film based on the 1930s comic strip created by Chester Gould. Warren Beatty produced, directed and starred in the film, whose supporting cast includes Al Pacino, Madonna, Glenne Headly and Charlie Korsmo, with appearances by Dustin Hoffman, James Keane, Charles Durning, William Forsythe, Seymour Cassel, Mandy Patinkin, Catherine O'Hara, Ed O'Ross, James Caan, James Tolkan, R. G. Armstrong and Dick Van Dyke. Dick Tracy depicts the detective's romantic relationships with Breathless Mahoney and Tess Trueheart, as well as his conflicts with crime boss Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice and his henchmen. Tracy also begins fostering a young street urchin named Kid.The Phantom is a 1996 superhero film directed by Simon Wincer. Based on Lee Falk's comic strip The Phantom by King Features, the film stars Billy Zane as a seemingly immortal crimefighter and his battle against all forms of evil. The Phantom also stars Treat Williams, Kristy Swanson, Catherine Zeta-Jones, James Remar and Patrick McGoohan.The Phantom was released on June 7, 1996, and received mixed reviews from film critics. Despite financial failure in its theatrical release, the film has enjoyed success on VHS, DVD and Blu-ray, and has developed a cult following.The Shadow is a 1994 American superhero film from Universal Pictures, produced by Martin Bregman, Willi Bear, and Michael Scott Bregman, and directed by Russell Mulcahy. It stars Alec Baldwin, supported by John Lone, Penelope Ann Miller, Peter Boyle, Ian McKellen, Jonathan Winters, and Tim Curry. The film is based on the pulp fiction character of the same name created in 1931 by Walter B. Gibson.The film was released to theaters on July 1, 1994, received mixed reviews, and was a commercial failure.Disclaimer: The following may contain offensive language, adult humor, and/or content that some viewers may find offensive – The views and opinions expressed by any one speaker does not explicitly or necessarily reflect or represent those of Mark Radulich or W2M Network.Mark Radulich and his wacky podcast on all the things:https://linktr.ee/markkind76alsohttps://www.teepublic.com/user/radulich-in-broadcasting-networkFB Messenger: Mark Radulich LCSWTiktok: @markradulichtwitter: @MarkRadulichInstagram: markkind76RIBN Album Playlist: https://suno.com/playlist/91d704c9-d1ea-45a0-9ffe-5069497bad59
WARREN CUMMINGS joins me to talk about PORTMEIRION and THE PRISONER. First broadcast on FAB RADIO INTERNATIONAL at 19:00 on October 20th 2024. A couple of months ago, I was lucky enough to be treated to a couple of days staying at the hotel Portmeirion which, I'm sure I need not tell you nearly sixty years ago was once used as the primary location for The Village in that short-lived but somehow hugely significant and iconic sixties television series THE PRISONER featuring Patrick McGoohan. Now, because I'm totally predictable in being an archive TV fan, since we returned home after escaping, we, rather naturally, got to watching the entire series once more, perhaps this time with that slightly smug “been there!” response that some of us can choose to watch television with. Anyway, having run through the series, the episodes – especially that final pairing of ONCE UPON A TIME and FALL OUT - were much on my mind, and so when WARREN CUMMINGS joined me for another of these television-related chats that we like to have on VISION ON SOUND, it was perhaps inevitable that we would talk about THE PRISONER and several matters arising in what I hope you will find an enjoyable next hour. PLEASE NOTE - For Copyright reasons, musical content sometimes has to be removed for the podcast edition. All the spoken word content remains (mostly) as it was in the broadcast version. Hopefully this won't spoil your enjoyment of the show.
MONSTER PARTY HAS A BUCKET LIST, AND IT'S GETTING BIGGER! JAMES GONIS, SHAWN SHERIDAN, LARRY STROTHE, and MATT WEINHOLD, have A LOT of toys. And if we're being absolutely honest, we want A LOT MORE! But sometimes, our passion for playthings goes way beyond simply wanting! That's why we bring you this episode/mission statement entitled... I REALLY NEED THAT TOY!!! I'm sure you all can remember those days as a child when a new toy came out and you pleaded with your parents, "I NEED that!" Cut to the present day where we're bombarded with a seemingly endless onslaught of great collectibles we thought we'd never see produced. From the fantastic Ben Cooper vintage costume figures from NECA, the countless delights provided by SUPER 7, the ultra-detailed figures from MEGO, HOT TOYS, and MEZCO, and the slew of amazing customs provided by creators like DISTINCTIVE DUMMIES and BRENTZ DOLLS, there's a whole bunch of cool stuff out there that we really need. And that's only the tip of the bucket list! Joining us for this possession obsession is a man who has created many of the toys we really need! Aside from being an immensely talented writer, producer, and director, he's the co-founder of, WANDERING PLANET TOYS, responsible for the drool-worthy line of action figures from the classic 1967 Patrick McGoohan series, THE PRISONER. And, If you watch COLLECTOR'S CALL WITH LISA WELCHEL, you'll recognize him as one of their top toy experts! Please welcome our new old friend... GAVIN HIGNIGHT! LISTEN NOW AND REMEMBER, MONSTER UNDERSTANDS YOUR NEEDS!
To celebrate Tread Perilously's 477th podcast, Erik and Justin finally watch an episode of M*A*S*H -- "That's Show Biz." When a performer on a USO tour comes down with appendicitis, she is airlifted to the 4077th and immediately falls for Hawkeye. Once the rest of her colleagues make it to the M*A*S*H unit, they decided to put on an impromptu show. But they soon learn the road to their next stop was bombed and they must spend a few extra days at the camp. Will personalities clash? Will Hawkeye wave off the advances of the young singer? And will Klinger have a future in comedy? Erik explains why he chose the second lowest rated episode of M*A*S*H on IMDb for its introduction into the rotation. Justin appreciates the presence of guest star Gwen Verdon while Erik finally admits he always had a thing for Gail Edwards. Alan Alda also proves to be swoon-worthy. David Ogden Stiers' proto-Fraser is examined. Harry Morgan might turn out to be the series regular MVP. The obsession with Columbo continues. The Raygun situation makes its way into the discussion. Erik has a spooky moment with cable television. Justin reveals a preference for the accordion and Erik pitches a show for Patrick McGoohan and Peter Falk.
Welcome to the show Mr. Patrick McGoohan as Colonel Rumford, headmaster at an all-boys military academy and devotee of rules and regulations. When his reign is threatened he retaliates by killing his rival with a cannon! Now it's up to Lt. Columbo to stick around the academy and solve the crime in one of the more solid episodes of Season 4.
Today we're talking about research suggesting Çatalhöyük was way less populous than once thought, like, hundreds and not thousands of people. How many people does it take to get stuff done anyway, and what's up with all the frescoes and cow heads? Come for the Neolithic, suffer through a deep dive with Patrick McGoohan, Mayberry, and Lake Wobegone!
What do, a Scottish warrior who leads a rebellion against the English, and a legendary Norseman who seeks revenge for his fallen father, have in common? This week on THE MOVIE CONNECTION: KC Watched: "BRAVEHEART" (4:12) (Directed by, Mel Gibson. Starring, Mel Gibson, Sophia Marceau, Patrick McGoohan...) Jacob Watched: "THE NORTHMAN" (36:34) (Directed by, Robert Eggers. Starring, Alexander Skarsgård, Anya Taylor-Joy, Claes Bang...) Talking points include: Is the accent really that bad? Braveheart vs. Outlander When Hamlet was epic and filthy and more!! Send us an email to let us know how we're doing: movieconnectionpodcast@gmail.com Follow us on Instagram Rate and Review on Apple Podcasts Check out more reviews from Jacob on Letterboxd Cover art by Austin Hillebrecht, Letters by KC Schwartz
A book editor witnesses a murder during a cross-country trip, and is plunged into a Hitchcockian world of murder and intrigue. Eventually Richard Pryor shows up, and we get some unfortunate blackface. What can I say, it's the 1970s. Starring Gene Wilder, Richard Pryor, Jill Clayburgh, Patrick McGoohan, Ned Beatty, Ray Walston, Scatman Crothers, and Richard Kiel. Written by Colin Higgins. Directed by Arthur Hiller.
We are back and WE ARE BACK. Patrick McGoohan kills Leslie Neilsen, and Columbo has never been cooler/hornier. We watch two men fall in love all over again. We also talk about: Luke Got Married, Ashley Tells A Vomit Story (description part is at 21:20 to 27:00. Molly The Driver, Long Games, 360 Mini, Spy Stuff, Muggers Alley, Edging Us On The Content, Columbo Fights The CIA, Train Stuff, Mah Jong, MCUCM,Episode Watched: Season 5, Episode 3: Identity Crisis
Welcome to Sci-Fi Talk, where today we leap into the enigmatic world of "The Prisoner," the TV show that revolutionized spy-fi and continues to captivate audiences with its themes of individuality and freedom. Joining Tony Tellado ,are Gavin Hignight and Chris “Doc” Wyatt of Wandering Planet. We delve into the legacy of Patrick McGoohan, not just an acclaimed actor, a BAFTA award winner, who became the UK's highest-paid TV star. We explore the influence of his earlier work on "Danger Man" and how it paved the way for "The Prisoner," embarking on a deep dive into the artistic liberties that set the series apart. With excitement, we discuss the much-anticipated wave of collectible action figures celebrating "The Prisoner." We'll reveal the fascinating process behind their creation—from the meticulous attention to detail. Additionally, we'll recount Tony's personal connection to the series, the profound effect it had on his youth, and recite memorable dialogues that resonate to this day. We'll chat about obtaining rights, visits to Port Marion, and reminisce about our favorite characters, like Leo McKern, while touching on the deeper themes of this surreal show that continues to transcend generations. Stay tuned as we discuss the exclusive availability of these action figures via Kickstarter, admire Patrick McGoohan's versatility as an actor, and debate themes of individual rights and societal structures that are as relevant now as they were at the show's inception. Visit Wandering Planet Subscribe To Sci-Fi Talk Free For A Lifetime until May 1st.
Welcome by to a Quinntober Episode of Myopia! We are talking about the bespandexed and coweled Indiana Batman knock-off, The Phantom! How will The Phantom hold up? Host: Matthew Panel: Nic and Candace, and Nur(?) Directed by Simon Wincer Starring: Billy Zane, Kristy Swanson, Treat Williams, Catherine Zeta-Jones, James Remar, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Patrick McGoohan
En este episodio conversamos sobre la película del año 1995, “Braveheart” (Corazón Valiente) del director Mel Gibson, protagonizada por Mel Gibson, Sophie Marceau, Patrick McGoohan y Angus Macfadyen.
Horror Hangout | Two Bearded Film Fans Watch The 50 Best Horror Movies Ever!
Their thoughts can kill!Scanners is a 1981 Canadian science fiction horror film written and directed by David Cronenberg and starring Stephen Lack, Jennifer O'Neill, Michael Ironside, and Patrick McGoohan.In the film, "scanners" are psychics with unusual telepathic and telekinetic powers. ConSec, a purveyor of weaponry and security systems, searches out scanners to use them for its own purposes. The film's plot concerns the attempt by Darryl Revok (Ironside), a renegade scanner, to wage a war against ConSec. Another scanner, Cameron Vale (Lack), is dispatched by ConSec to stop Revok.00:00 Intro16:39 Horror News 29:34 What We've Been Watching46:09 Film Review1:55:22 Name Game2:01:42 Film Rating2:06:55 OutroPodcast - https://podlink.to/horrorhangoutPatreon - https://www.patreon.com/horrorhangoutFacebook - https://www.facebook.com/horrorhangoutpodcastTwitter - https://twitter.com/horror_hangout_TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@horrorhangoutpodcastInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/horrorhangoutpodcast/Website - http://www.hawkandcleaver.comBen - https://twitter.com/ben_erringtonAndy - https://twitter.com/AndyCTWritesNico - https://twitter.com/nicobellfictionhttps://nicobellfiction.com/Audio credit - Taj Eastonhttp://tajeaston.comSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/thehorrorhangout. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
June 13-19, 1970 This week Ken welcomes legendary bass-man, and all around punk rock royalty, Mr. Mike Watt to the show. Ken and Mike discuss San Pedro, first meeting D. Boon, moving to San Pedro in 1967 from Navy Housing, living in the projects, saying no to Alameda, George being from Brocton, strong accents, how all the Minutemen were transplants to San Pedro, D. Boon's mom, how trippy the Summer of 1970 was, Blue Oyster Cult, UHF stations, Wild Wild West, Star Trek, Mission Impossible, not having a color TV, how The Prisoner is Mike's favorite show, M*A*S*H, All in the Family, D. Boon's love of Johnny Carson because his dad was from Nebraska, WWII movies, T. Rex, local horror hosts, the origin of "D." in D. Boom, Steve McQueen, The Sand Pebbles, B-Movies, Svenghouli, Elvira, The Stooges, Vampira, local kid shows, LA's Seymour, Fright Night, opening for The Butthole Surfers, how Gibby Haynes' father was a children's TV Show host called Mr. Peppermint, the JFK assassination, Gumby, Alan Watts, Alex Cox's book about The Prisoner, Ice Station Zebra, Patrick McGoohan, The Honeymooners, Green Acres, stupid characters, My Favorite Martian, Non coms, The Phil Silvers Show, F Troop, punk rock, Ed Sullivan, Robert Mitchem, The Space Race, Mad Magazine, Star Trek The Motion Picture, subscriptions to Scientific America, the importance of learning, serious topics, drunks, Johnny Cash, variety shows, Kirk Douglas, Edward G. Robinson, Two Weeks in Another Town, Carol Kaye's Wild Wild West bass line, Mission Impossible, Hal Blaine, Earl Palmer, Director's control, Kubrick, watching YouTube, The Outer Limits, Soldier, Demon with a Glass Hand, and loving Offbeat Cinema.
Get your coffee (or hard cider!) with bread and butter and join us as we chat all about By Dawn's Early Light starring Peter Falk, Patrick McGoohan, Burr DeBenning, Bruce Kirby, Bruno Kirby and more. We chat filming locations including the Charleston Harbor, how Patrick McGoohan was cast, music and much more! Other topics we discussed: -The Scarecrow starring Patrick McGoohan -The Prisoner starring Patrick McGoohan -the Dardenne brothers (filmmakers) -Western (2017 film) -and lots more! We have EXCLUSIVE content available on Patreon! Get video recordings of the podcast & monthly updates & behind the scenes. Head to https://patreon.com/trenchcoatcigar to join today! If you'd like to add to our conversation, you can email us at trenchcoatcigar@gmail.com. Follow us on Instagram at @trenchcoatcigar to see photos from today's episode. Get podcast merch on RedBubble: https://www.redbubble.com/people/trenchcoatcigar/shop?asc=u
We review Scanners (1981) on The Atomic Cinema Experiment. This is a sci fi movie podcast. Scanners is directed by David Cronenberg and stars Jennifer O'Neill, Stephen Lack, Patrick McGoohan, Michael Ironside patreon: https://www.patreon.com/mildfuzztv twitter: https://twitter.com/ScreamsMidnight discord: https://discord.gg/8fbyCehMTy TWITCH: https://www.twitch.tv/mildfuzztv Email: mftvquestions@gmail.com Audio version: https://the-ace-atomic-cinema-experime.pinecast.co
For the last episode of the year, Steve and Alejandro grab their parkas and board a Navy submarine heading to the Arctic in this 1968 American espionage thriller directed by John Sturges and starring Rock Hudson, Patrick McGoohan, Ernest Borgnine, and Jim Brown. Disclaimer: Our hosts were unable to experience this in the original CINERAMA. Theme music by Daddy Lacus Channel art by Azeem Anjum --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/rememberthatmovie/message
Welcome back for another with Jeff and Kev as head into the myseterious and compelling world of The Prisoner. Starring the incredible Patrick McGoohan, the show delves in the whimsical and psychological aspects of a former spy who resigns, but why and what does he know? The guys dive head first into this show knowing full well Number 1 is on watching! Who is Number 1? Where is Number 1? Tackle the unknown with Suns and Shadows, we don't stop till the screamin' starts! The Prisoner (BluRay) https://amzn.to/3TBraj9 The Prisoner (DVD) https://amzn.to/481SVpF The Official Prisoner Companion (Book) https://amzn.to/4apEe0Z You can find the podcast at SunsAndShadows.com or your podcast app of choice! Follow us on all platforms, we have frequent giveaways and always discussing something fun! Facebook: @sunsandshadows Twitter: @sunsandshadows Instagram: @sunsandshadowscast Letterbox'd: SunsAndShadows YouTube : @sunsandshadowscast Rumble : https://rumble.com/c/c-3121106
This week, the Doctor chats with Davros, Missy chats with Clara, and the four of us wonder if those chats are fun enough to sustain forty-five minutes of television. All while actually having quite a fun chat ourselves. It's The Witch's Familiar. Notes and links Quite a few mentions are made of the 60-minute LP of Genesis of the Daleks. This was released in 1979, more than 10 years before the first VHS release, so for much of our childhood it was the only Doctor Who story we could actually own (apart from the novelisations). Naturally, we basically know it off by heart. The convention in Sydney that Nathan talks about took place in November 2015. In fact, it was where we all met Steven B for the first time. Here's an account of the event published at the time in The Guardian. The last time Moffat wrote for both the Daleks and the Master, the Master was played by Jonathan Pryce, and it was a story that also featured sewers full of faeces. That story was The Curse of Fatal Death, which we've linked to many times before and which you should all re-watch immediately. Richard sees thematic parallels between this story and the 1961 film Judgement at Nuremberg, featuring Judy Garland, obviously, a lot of very accomplished actors and mad-uncle-of-the-podcast William Shatner. He also draws a parallel between the conversations here between the Doctor and Davros and the ones between Patrick McGoohan and Leo McKern in the final episodes of The Prisoner. Sir Ken Adam (1921–2016) was the designer on many of the early James Bond films, from Dr. No in 1962 to Moonraker in 1979. He's particularly famous for his sets' modernist design and angled ceilings. Picks of the week Simon Simon recommends a quiet and thoughtful science fiction film After Yang (2021), in which a family has to come to terms with the death of their AI assistant Yang. Here's the review from The Guardian. Todd Todd recommends the Australian competitive reality TV show Hunted, in which 24 people are dropped in Melbourne and have to avoid being captured by various former police officers and cybersecurity experts. Here's a review from the Sydney Morning Herald. Richard Richard urges us to watch (or re-watch) the last two episodes of The Prisoner — Once Upon a Time and Fall Out, both of which star Leo McKern as Number Two. Nathan Nathan recommends the second series of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, which is available to stream on Paramount+. He makes particular mention (a) of the musical episode and (b) of our podcast Untitled Star Trek Project, which has already covered three episodes of the series. Follow us Nathan is on the-Dalek-sewer-formerly-known-as-Twitter as @nathanbottomley, Todd is @toddbeilby, Richard is @RichardLStone,and Simon is @simonmoore72. The Flight Through Entirety theme was arranged by Cameron Lam. You can follow the podcast on Twitter at @FTEpodcast. We're also on Facebook and Mastodon, and you can check out our website at flightthroughentirety.com. Please consider rating or reviewing us on Apple Podcasts, or we'll trick you into sitting in this comfortable chair over here. And more You can find Jodie into Terror, our flashcast on the entirety of the Whittaker Era of Doctor Who, at jodieintoterror.com, at @JodieIntoTerror on Twitter, on Apple Podcasts, and wherever podcasts can be found. We'll be back with a new flashcast on the second Russell T Davies era in November. Stay tuned for more details: there's only a few weeks to go now. Our James Bond commentary podcast is called Bondfinger, and you can find that at bondfinger.com, at @bondfingercast on Twitter, on Apple Podcasts, and everywhere else as well. We can also be heard on the Blakes 7 podcast Maximum Power, which has completed its coverage of the first half of the show's entire run. Stay tuned for news about the release of our coverage of Series C: the wheels are in motion. There's also our Star Trek commentary podcast, Untitled Star Trek Project, featuring Nathan and friend-of-the-podcast Joe Ford. In our most recent episode, we are horrified by all the heterosexual romance on display in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode The Price.
0:10:15 - Box Office and upcoming releases. 0:18:50 *** What's Streaming *** MAX BRAVEHEART, Dir. Mel Gibson – Mel Gibson, Sophie Marceau, Patrick McGoohan, Angus Macfadyn, James Cosmo, Brian Cox. 1995 PULP FICTION, Dir. Quentin Tarantino – John Travolta, Uma Thurman, Samuel L. Jackson, Bruce Willis, Tim Roth, Frank Whaley, Ving Rhames, Steve Buscemi, Christopher Walken, Kathy Griffin. 1994 IT, Dir. Andy Muscietti – Bill Skarsgard, Jaeden Martell, Finn Wolfhard, Sophia Lallis, Jeremy Ray Taylor, Jack Dylan Grazer. 2017 0:29:20 - Trailers: SHE CAME TO ME – Anna Hathaway, Peter Dinklage, Marisa Tomei, Feature. THE BIKERIDERS – Tom Hardy, Austin Butler, Tom Hardy, Michael Shannon, Boyd Holbrook, Norman Reedus, Feature. ONE LIFE – Anthony Hopkins, Helena Bonham Carter, Jonathan Pryce, Feature 0:39:40 - THE EQUALIZER 3, Dir. ANTOINE FUQUA ( Grayson 5.5 / Roger 6 / Chris 6.5 ) Hosted, produced and mixed by Grayson Maxwell and Roger Stillion. Music by Chad Wall. Guest appearance by Christopher Boughan. Quality Assurance by Anthony Emmett. Visit the new Youtube channel, "For the Love of Cinema" to follow and support our short video discussions. Roger wears aviators! Please give a like and subscribe if you enjoy it. Follow the show on Twitter @lovecinemapod and check out the Facebook page for updates. Rate, subscribe and leave a comment or two. Every Little bit helps. Send us an email to fortheloveofcinemapodcast@gmail.com
This week – are all door to door salesman ex-prisoners? The Lirpa-Loof, Cheesecake pop, Quorn blood, ATV's Thriller, Rumpole, Patrick McGoohan, BSB, midnight Redbubble buying frenzies, Fraud Squad, the Blue Moon, Mooncat, stretching 4:3 and the HEAT!
In the 1960s, an actor named Patrick McGoohan created a show that encapsulated man's struggle for ultimate freedom. -- Join our Discord server! https://bit.ly/deepcutsdiscord -- Pick up some Deep Cuts T-Shirts and other merch! https://bit.ly/deepcutsmerch -- Get the official Deep Cuts shoulder patch! http://bit.ly/deepcuts_patch -- Listen to our album, a 9 song rock opera about the rise and fall of Napster! https://open.spotify.com/album/63C5uu1tkzZ2FhfsrSSf5s?si=q4WItoNmRUeM159TxKLWew Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/deepcutspod/message
In the 1960s, an actor named Patrick McGoohan created a show that encapsulated man's struggle for ultimate freedom. -- Join our Discord server! https://bit.ly/deepcutsdiscord -- Pick up some Deep Cuts T-Shirts and other merch! https://bit.ly/deepcutsmerch -- Get the official Deep Cuts shoulder patch! http://bit.ly/deepcuts_patch -- Listen to our album, a 9 song rock opera about the rise and fall of Napster! https://open.spotify.com/album/63C5uu1tkzZ2FhfsrSSf5s?si=q4WItoNmRUeM159TxKLWew Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Brothers J and Drew take you to 1968 with Rock Hudson, Patrick McGoohan, Jim Brown, and Ernest Borgnine in the submarine adventure “Ice Station Zebra.” It's a wild ride. Housekeeping starts at 50:40 during which they discuss BUGS !!! File length 1:22:28 File Size 63.5 MB Theme by Jul Big Green via SongFinch Subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts Listen to us on Stitcher Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter Send your comments to show@notinacreepyway.com Visit the show website at Not In A Creepy Way
En Uruguay, se celebra una fiesta de música del recuerdo, La Noche de la Nostalgia. En Perdidos, celebramos Viejazo's Night, una excusa que no necesitamos para hablar de cosas clásicas. En este caso, le toca a The Prisoner, la surrealista, subversiva, y contracultural serie de fines de los sesentas que explora temas como la individualidad, el estado de vigilancia, la libertad, privacidad, y mucho más. Hablammos también de su protagonista y creador (o co-creador) Patrick McGoohan, y de algunos documentales que tratan sobre la serie. Vengan con Mael, Eze, y MaGnUs a La Aldea, y no se olviden que no somos números, somos seres humanos. Con música de Ron Grainer, e Iron Maiden. Escuchalo en tu plataforma de podcasts favorita. Próximo programa: Blue Beetle (Cine y Comics).
S2E10 - The Music Business w/ All Night Long (1962) & King Creole (1958) Independent filmmaker Floyd Webb joins us once again for a pair of classic near-noirs that show that the music business was scammy and sleazy long before Spotify, but it was maybe a little cooler when you had Walter Matthau in a smoke-filled backroom plotting how to screw the talent. First, we've got Charles Mingus on bass, Dave Brubeck on keys and Patrick McGoohan from THE PRISONER (!) on drums--and he's really playing those drums--in ALL NIGHT LONG (1962), a jazzified retelling of Shakespeare's Othello from British director Basil Dearden. This movie's got jazz cigarettes, reefer madness, awesome mid-century modern set design and some amazing musical performances from Mingus, Brubeck, Tubby Hayes and John Dankworth. Then, our ELVIS EPISODE was unexpectedly the third most popular installment of OMFYS in June, so the King is back in KING CREOLE (1958), a musical New Orleans noir from the braintrust that brought us CASABLANCA--producer Hal Wallis and director Michael Curtiz. Joining Elvis are Walter Matthau as ruthless gangster Maxie Fields, Dean Jagger as Elvis' feckless father, film noir regular Paul Stewart as Maxie's rival, Vic Morrow as a street thug, future nun Dolores Hart as the good girl, and Morticia Addams herself Carloyn Jones as the hard-luck dame who hopes Elvis can help her go straight. All this plus some of the best songs of any Elvis movie. Floyd discusses his upcoming martial arts documentary, THE SEARCH FOR COUNT DANTE, that he's been working on for way too long now + some awesome screenings in Chicago that he has coming up. Find out more about Floyd and what he's got going on at https://floydwebb.com/ https://thesearchforcountdante.com Also featuring THE STRIKE TOK REPORT with PHILENA FRANKLIN, a rundown of reactions to the SAG AFTRA and WGA strikes on TikTok. Co-hosts: Bob Calhoun & Cory Sklar Greg Franklin is on assignment. Philena Franklin is on strike but will return for our public domain Halloween ep. ALL NIGHT LONG (1962) is currently streaming on Criterion Channel as part of their excellent British Noir series and it's also available for free with commercials on Tubi. KING CREOLE (1958) is part of Criterion Channel's Elvis series and it's available with ads on Pluto. The Elvis Episode (S1E8): https://soundcloud.com/omfys/s1e8-the-elvis-episode-w-roustabout-1964-the-worlds-greatest-sinner-62 Music: OMFYS Theme Song: Chaki the Funk Wizard The Deadliest Man Alive: Count Dante and the Black Dragon Fighting Society (1997). All rights reserved. "Greaser" and "Smoke Jacket Blues" TrackTribe courtesy of YouTube Studio Audio Library All trailer audio courtesy of archive.org Twitter: OM4YStoners Instagram/Facebook (Meta): oldmoviesforyoungstoners Contact: oldmoviesforyoungstoners AT gmail DOT com
On March 15th, 1955, Orson Welles premiered as Lord Mountdrago in the British Omnibus horror film, Three Cases of Murder. The film consisted of three stories, Welles appeared in the one titled after his character. Ten days later he premiered in the french historical epic film Napoléon. He had a small part as Sir Hudson Lowe. Then on April 2nd, Welles appeared for BBC's TV network in the first of a six-part series entitled, Orson Welles' Sketch Book. Written and presented by Welles, the fifteen-minute episodes present his commentaries on a range of subjects. The six episodes were called, “The Early Days,” “Critics,” “The Police,” “People I Miss,” “War of the Worlds,” and “Bullfighting.” Later that year Welles took part in another series of shorts called Around the World with Orson Welles. Between June 16th and July 9th, 1955 at the Duke of York's Theatre in London, Orson Welles staged a two-act version of Herman Melville's Moby Dick. Welles used minimal design. The stage was bare, the props were minimal, and the actors, which included Christopher Lee, Joan Plowright, Kenneth Williams, Patrick McGoohan, and Gordon Jackson, wore street clothes. Brooms were used for oars, and a stick was used for a telescope. The actors provided the action, and the audience's imagination provided the ocean, costumes, and the whale. Welles filmed approximately seventy-five minutes of the production, hoping to sell it to Omnibus for a TV film, but he was disappointed in the result. The next year, old friend John Huston cast Welles as Father Mapple in his 1956 film adaptation of Moby Dick, which starred Gregory Peck. Welles later cast John Huston as director Jake Hannaford in The Other Side of The Wind. The film wouldn't be completed and released until 2018, more than thirty-three years after Orson's death. Welles modeled Jake Hannaford on his good friend Ernest Hemingway.
Beat the Kayfabe Effect at our Patreon: https://patreon.com/cartoonistkayfabe Ed's Links (Order RED ROOM!, Patreon, etc): https://linktr.ee/edpiskor Jim's Links (Patreon, Store, social media): https://linktr.ee/jimrugg ------------------------- E-NEWSLETTER: Keep up with all things Cartoonist Kayfabe through our newsletter! News, appearances, special offers, and more - signup here for free: https://cartoonistkayfabe.substack.com/ --------------------- SNAIL MAIL! Cartoonist Kayfabe, PO Box 3071, Munhall, Pa 15120 --------------------- T-SHIRTS and MERCH: https://shop.spreadshirt.com/cartoonist-kayfabe --------------------- Connect with us: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cartoonist.kayfabe/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/CartoonKayfabe Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Cartoonist.Kayfabe Ed's Contact info: https://Patreon.com/edpiskor https://www.instagram.com/ed_piskor https://www.twitter.com/edpiskor https://www.amazon.com/Ed-Piskor/e/B00LDURW7A/ref=dp_byline_cont_book_1 Jim's contact info: https://www.patreon.com/jimrugg https://www.jimrugg.com/shop https://www.instagram.com/jimruggart https://www.twitter.com/jimruggart https://www.amazon.com/Jim-Rugg/e/B0034Q8PH2/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1543440388&sr=1-2-ent
Braveheart. Hollywood made a name for itself in the 50s and 60s by creating epic films with a scale that made the big screen almost too small, yet has the years went on, these types of movies went out of style. In this episode of The 602 Club hosts Matthew Rushing and Zachary Fruhling talk about Braveheart. We discuss something epic, being noble, compromise, freedom, useful fiction, the cast, the music and our ratings. Chapters Something Epic (00:02:05) Being Noble (00:11:13) Compromise (00:21:40) Freedom (00:28:04) Useful Fiction (00:32:28) Mel Gibson (00:46:36) Catherine McCormack (00:49:26) Angus Macfadyen (00:51:34) Patrick McGoohan (00:53:49) Sophie Marceau (00:56:29) The Music (00:59:46) Ratings (01:03:29) Host Matthew Rushing Co-Host Zachary Fruhling Production Matthew Rushing (Editor and Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Social Twitter: @The602Club Instagram: @the602clubtfm
Braveheart. Hollywood made a name for itself in the 50s and 60s by creating epic films with a scale that made the big screen almost too small, yet has the years went on, these types of movies went out of style. In this episode of The 602 Club hosts Matthew Rushing and Zachary Fruhling talk about Braveheart. We discuss something epic, being noble, compromise, freedom, useful fiction, the cast, the music and our ratings. Chapters Something Epic (00:02:05) Being Noble (00:11:13) Compromise (00:21:40) Freedom (00:28:04) Useful Fiction (00:32:28) Mel Gibson (00:46:36) Catherine McCormack (00:49:26) Angus Macfadyen (00:51:34) Patrick McGoohan (00:53:49) Sophie Marceau (00:56:29) The Music (00:59:46) Ratings (01:03:29) Host Matthew Rushing Co-Host Zachary Fruhling Production Matthew Rushing (Editor and Producer) C Bryan Jones (Executive Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Social Twitter: @The602Club Instagram: @the602clubtfm
This week Ken welcomes fellow TV obsessive and the man behind the It's About TV site Mitchell Hadley to the show. Ken and Mitchell discuss Indiana, Ken's awful short term memory, growing up in Minnesota, Canadian TV, the Twin Cities, TV Guide's amazing writing, time capsules, futurism, the original source documents, why a period piece will never get it quite right, the golden age of television, sci fi, the benefits of television, how sugar is bad, making us further apart as a society, Howdy Doody, rethinking TV for kids, how crime shows can be instructional, politics on television, doom saying, Nixon getting TV right before he got it wrong, JFK, the 1968 Democratic Convention, Ronald Regan's origin story, the night James Brown saved Boston, The Year of the Sex Olympics, Bread and Circuses, the power of the Beverly Hillbillies, TV moving west from NY to LA, Edith Efron, the fake version of LA, essays, Gomer Pyle, a war show that never discusses a war, dragging TV into a more socially conscious world, allegory, Twilight Zone, how rules can be good sometimes, cringe, shades of grey, Barney Miller, true Broadcasting, Ed Sullivan, Stiller and Mira, Lawrence Welk, Vanilla Fudge, letting your guard down, Dick Cavet, reaction, the best way to interview people , worshiping the creed while forgetting the message, being superficial, things that are important to you, people who grew up watching TV making TV, MST3k, deconstruction, watching sports, '77 Sunset Strip, cookie cutter shows, commercials, TV regulating itself, The Family Hour, Donna Reed, legal dramas, spy shows, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., exposing new generations to shows, It's About TV, TV Guide as a serious historical document, revisiting shows from your youth that end up even BETTER, The Rifleman vs Branded, Rockford Files, Chuck Connors, The Prisoner, Patrick McGoohan, actors with drinking problems, Mitchell's book The Electronic Mirror and Atomic Bombs.
durée : 00:34:59 - Les Nuits de France Culture - par : Albane Penaranda - En 2008, avec "Séries télé - L'Amérique en 24 épisodes", Eric Verat et Benoît Lagane nous replongeaient dans les 60's et 70's avec l'histoire des séries, notamment d'espionnage. Le sixième volet avait pour titre "L'espion, le nouveau héros américain". Dans les années 60 et 70, bien avant Homeland et Le bureau des légendes, les télévisions américaines et britanniques ont produit des histoires d'espionnage. À cette époque, les anglais n'ont pas été les moins inventifs et talentueux si l'on pense notamment à Destination Danger et au Prisonnier avec Patrick McGoohan, qui en était aussi le scénariste et le producteur. * En 2008, sur les musiques de Jerry Goldsmith, Lalo Schifrin et Edwin Astley - avec Martin Winckler et Brigitte Gauthier - Éric Vérat et Benoît Lagane nous replongeaient dans les 60's et 70's, avec ces séries d'espionnage parfois fantaisistes, mais sans prétention, qui avaient pour titre : Destination danger, Chapeau melon et bottes de cuir, Des agents très spéciaux, Mission impossible ou encore Max la menace. Des séries cultes donc. que le cinéma revisitera d'ailleurs plus tard avec plus ou moins de bonheur. Production : Eric Verat et Benoît Lagane - Avec Martin Winckler et Brigitte Gauthier Réalisation : Lionel Quantin Séries télé, l'Amérique en 24 épisodes : L'espion : le nouveau héros américain, 6/24 1ère diffusion : 29/07/2008 Indexation web : Sandrine England, Documentation Sonore de Radio France
We discuss our re-watching of Patrick McGoohan in "The Prisoner," perhaps the most influential science fiction single-season show ever. More Science Fiction University at ScienceFictionUniversity.com. Support the show at patreon.com/scifiuSupport the show
We discuss our re-watching of Patrick McGoohan in "The Prisoner," perhaps the most influential science fiction single-season show ever. More at sciencefictionuniversity.com Support the show
TVC 602.2: Peter Berk, son of longtime television writer Howard Berk and the co-author of the sci-fi action thriller Time Lock, talks to Ed about his dad's experience working with Peter Falk on Columbo; the extent to which Patrick McGoohan contributed to the teleplay of “By Dawn's Early Light,” the episode of Columbo, written by Howard Berk, for which McGoohan won the first of his two Emmy Awards; and Peter's experience collaborating with Dick Van Patten on the nonfiction book Launching Your Child in Show Biz. Time Lock is available wherever books are sold through IESnaps, an imprint of IngramElliott. Want to advertise/sponsor our show? TV Confidential has partnered with AdvertiseCast to handle advertising/sponsorship requests for the podcast edition of our program. They're great to work with and will help you advertise on our show. Please email sales@advertisecast.com or click the link below to get started: https://www.advertisecast.com/TVConfidentialAradiotalkshowabout Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
FALL PREVIEW ALERT! September 10-16, 1966 This week Ken welcomes author of the new book, Primetime 1966-1967: The Full Spectrum of Television's First All-Color Season, Thom Shubilla. Ken and Thom discuss Ken's slaughter of Thom's last name, Batman '66, knowing the Fall Preview well, the year TV was born, shaking off radio, Westerns, the first TV season everything was in color, classy Miller High Life ads making Ken and Thom want to drink, commissioned art, murals, Joe E. Ross, It's About Time, how The Moon Landing both ruined and improved sci-fi, Sherwood Schwartz, The Monkees, The Jackie Gleason Show, "The Lost" Honeymooners, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Get Smart!, Mission Impossible, Secret Agent Man, Patrick McGoohan, Hollywood Palace, Ed Sullivan, Ken's love of Robert Loggia, T.H.E. Cat, a show of all wacky neighbors, Lost in Space, being a Ginger or a Maryann, Bewitched, I Dream of Jeanie, the long terrifying decline of Lucy, that one episode of Route 66, Big Eye paintings, The Green Hornet, Occasional Wife, That Girl, poorly translated JFK triangles, Green Acres, the truth about nerve deafness, F Troop, loving Larry Storch, heists, Irwin Alan, Time Tunnel, hating Milton Berle, Paul Revere and the Raiders, Burt Reynolds as Hawk and not as Marlon Brando, Larry Cohen's Coronet Blue, needing satisfaction on a show, The Fugitive, and how absolutely awful the Tammy Grimes show was.
This week Ken welcomes actor, comedian, writer and professional "That Guy", Larry Hankin. Ken and Larry discuss COVID, flying, quitting the world, growing up in Long Island, Breaking Bad, Barry, going out on top, stand up, Lenny Bruce, opening for Woody Allen, opening for Miles Davis, forgetting what you've done, having a career by accident, Janet Jackson's What Have you Done for me Lately video, making short films, Escape from Alcatraz, Clint Eastwood protection, endearing yourself to others, taking the boat to Alcatraz, getting royalties from streaming after you turn 65, how cool checks from Disney were, opening for The Loving Spoonful, Second City, George Carlin, getting attacked by the audience, getting arrested for doing stand up, Richard Pryor, The Kingston Trio, being homeless in San Francisco, when being homeless is a full time job, being in The Committee, Patrick McGoohan's issues, functional alcoholics, Highway Patrol, Broderick Crawford, having cue cards, Brando, ear pieces, being dyslexic, how hard it is to memorize lines, Doctor Dracula, Al Adamson, being in dirty movies as comic relief, how one movie can be edited into five different movies, Ratboy, and Larry's writing and thereallarryhankin.com.
OUTLINE of today's show with TIMECODESBritish journalist recounts his experience in Chinese Covid prison — a harbinger of what's coming for us all unless we STOP the medical martial law's pretended authority2:54The importance of Free Speech vs The Narrative.18:30Mao's Great Leap Forward and its repeat — The Great Reset.23:48Both parties paint this election as an existential turning point, yet both ignore how the real threat that's played out for the last 2 yrs with the approval of both parties40:25Is it un-Christian to NOT forgive what's been done or do we love our neighbor by STOPPING it from continuing?47:22Just a couple of days before the election and BOTH Trump and Biden throw their party under the bus at rallies. Trump's narcissism kicks in and he trashes, instead of supporting, fellow Republicans. Even worse, Biden proudly says he will KILL all coal mining, all forms of energy production but wind and solar.57:22"Ron De-Sanctimonious". At Pennsylvania's last minute election rally for tight races for Senate and Governor, Trump attacks all perceived rivals.58:52Biden like Hillary, declares that he will kill coal jobs. But as he's already showing, he will kill ALL jobs by killing fuel — the sanctions, prohibitions and regulations that are a SIEGE OF STARVATION1:05:06Joe Manchin hypocritically tries to save face. 1:09:46The White House comes out with a non-apology.1:15:40American Idol: MAGA groupies live out of their car to follow Trump around the country1:18:43New "Christian" politics: GOPP (Gospel of Prosperity & Politics) where Prosperity Gospel meets False Prophets1:25:40New York Times, CNN and "fact checkers" trash Biden who doesn't realize he was bragging about inflation he stoked when he boasted about Social Security increases1:33:13Joy Reid claims no one knows or cares about inflation (because she doesn't), the word was just taught to them by Republicans.1:36:34Why democratic virtues cannot stand on their own.1:42:31Humanism has become the religion of America.1:48:16Proud humanist politician rejects God, says "Public policy formed on the basis of reason, science and moral values". Whose morality?1:51:59News: Boy bites cobra after cobra bites boy. Cobra dies, boy survives1:56:34"Rover" from Patrick McGoohan's "The Prisoner" makes real appearance in London2:01:345G towers are appearing suddenly everywhere in NYC.2:03:41Different frequencies have different effects on our body. 2:08:46Residents complain about close proximity and warning sticker. City sent workers to remove — the sticker. 2:13:381996 Telecom Act & New York City's contract with the company to put the antennas up.2:14:43GMO mosquitoes released again without looking at data from previous release. What's the difference between genetic modification and selective breeding?2:17:25This court case could make it a crime to be a journalist in Texas.2:25:49UAE and Saudis find a way to rob Arizona of water. What's coming in the future with the resource disputes over water.2:33:34TSA to Require Covid-19 Vaccine for Non-Citizens in order to Enter the US (except illegal immigrants)2:49:42Trade organizations are going to be the deputies for the state to censor anybody who offers a medical opinion different from the establishment.2:55:04Find out more about the show and where you can watch it at TheDavidKnightShow.comIf you would like to support the show and our family please consider subscribing monthly here: SubscribeStar https://www.subscribestar.com/the-david-knight-show Or you can send a donation throughZelle: @DavidKnightShow@protonmail.comCash App at: $davidknightshowBTC to: bc1qkuec29hkuye4xse9unh7nptvu3y9qmv24vanh7Mail: David Knight POB 994 Kodak, TN 37764Money is only what YOU hold: Go to DavidKnight.gold for great deals on physical gold/silver
OUTLINE of today's show with TIMECODESBritish journalist recounts his experience in Chinese Covid prison — a harbinger of what's coming for us all unless we STOP the medical martial law's pretended authority2:54The importance of Free Speech vs The Narrative.18:30Mao's Great Leap Forward and its repeat — The Great Reset.23:48Both parties paint this election as an existential turning point, yet both ignore how the real threat that's played out for the last 2 yrs with the approval of both parties40:25Is it un-Christian to NOT forgive what's been done or do we love our neighbor by STOPPING it from continuing?47:22Just a couple of days before the election and BOTH Trump and Biden throw their party under the bus at rallies. Trump's narcissism kicks in and he trashes, instead of supporting, fellow Republicans. Even worse, Biden proudly says he will KILL all coal mining, all forms of energy production but wind and solar.57:22"Ron De-Sanctimonious". At Pennsylvania's last minute election rally for tight races for Senate and Governor, Trump attacks all perceived rivals.58:52Biden like Hillary, declares that he will kill coal jobs. But as he's already showing, he will kill ALL jobs by killing fuel — the sanctions, prohibitions and regulations that are a SIEGE OF STARVATION1:05:06Joe Manchin hypocritically tries to save face. 1:09:46The White House comes out with a non-apology.1:15:40American Idol: MAGA groupies live out of their car to follow Trump around the country1:18:43New "Christian" politics: GOPP (Gospel of Prosperity & Politics) where Prosperity Gospel meets False Prophets1:25:40New York Times, CNN and "fact checkers" trash Biden who doesn't realize he was bragging about inflation he stoked when he boasted about Social Security increases1:33:13Joy Reid claims no one knows or cares about inflation (because she doesn't), the word was just taught to them by Republicans.1:36:34Why democratic virtues cannot stand on their own.1:42:31Humanism has become the religion of America.1:48:16Proud humanist politician rejects God, says "Public policy formed on the basis of reason, science and moral values". Whose morality?1:51:59News: Boy bites cobra after cobra bites boy. Cobra dies, boy survives1:56:34"Rover" from Patrick McGoohan's "The Prisoner" makes real appearance in London2:01:345G towers are appearing suddenly everywhere in NYC.2:03:41Different frequencies have different effects on our body. 2:08:46Residents complain about close proximity and warning sticker. City sent workers to remove — the sticker. 2:13:381996 Telecom Act & New York City's contract with the company to put the antennas up.2:14:43GMO mosquitoes released again without looking at data from previous release. What's the difference between genetic modification and selective breeding?2:17:25This court case could make it a crime to be a journalist in Texas.2:25:49UAE and Saudis find a way to rob Arizona of water. What's coming in the future with the resource disputes over water.2:33:34TSA to Require Covid-19 Vaccine for Non-Citizens in order to Enter the US (except illegal immigrants)2:49:42Trade organizations are going to be the deputies for the state to censor anybody who offers a medical opinion different from the establishment.2:55:04Find out more about the show and where you can watch it at TheDavidKnightShow.comIf you would like to support the show and our family please consider subscribing monthly here: SubscribeStar https://www.subscribestar.com/the-david-knight-show Or you can send a donation throughZelle: @DavidKnightShow@protonmail.comCash App at: $davidknightshowBTC to: bc1qkuec29hkuye4xse9unh7nptvu3y9qmv24vanh7Mail: David Knight POB 994 Kodak, TN 37764Money is only what YOU hold: Go to DavidKnight.gold for great deals on physical gold/silver
TVC 595.4: From October 2010: Actor Ron Masak (Murder, She Wrote, Ice Station Zebra, Harper Valley PTA, Second Effort) talks to Ed about the one-man show about Mark Twain that he wrote and starred in; his passion for baseball, including how Ron was offered a contract to play for the Chicago White Sox after being scouted by Major League Hall of Famer Rogers Hornsby; and working with Patrick McGoohan in both Ice Station Zebra and Columbo. At the time we spoke to Ron, he had just released his memoirs, I've Met All My Heroes from A to Z, a heartfelt tribute to some of the many people from all walks of life that Ron met in his career who had an impact not only on his life, but the world in general—people such as Neil Armstrong, Lucille Ball, Jack Benny, Roy Campanella, Joe DiMaggio, Rock Hudson, Cary Grant, Audie Murphy, Angela Lansbury, Elvis Presley, Alan Shepard, John Wayne, NFL Hall of Fame coach Vince Lombardi, legendary Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda, country western artist Garth Brooks, and General Norman Schwartzkopf. Ron Masak passed away last Thursday, Oct. 20 at the age of eighty-six. Want to advertise/sponsor our show? TV Confidential has partnered with AdvertiseCast to handle advertising/sponsorship requests for the podcast edition of our program. They're great to work with and will help you advertise on our show. Please email sales@advertisecast.com or click the link below to get started: https://www.advertisecast.com/TVConfidentialAradiotalkshowabout Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
This week's episode looks at “All You Need is Love”, the Our World TV special, and the career of the Beatles from April 1966 through August 1967. Click the full post to read liner notes, links to more information, and a transcript of the episode. Patreon backers also have a thirteen-minute bonus episode available, on "Rain" by the Beatles. Tilt Araiza has assisted invaluably by doing a first-pass edit, and will hopefully be doing so from now on. Check out Tilt's irregular podcasts at http://www.podnose.com/jaffa-cakes-for-proust and http://sitcomclub.com/ NB for the first few hours this was up, there was a slight editing glitch. If you downloaded the old version and don't want to redownload the whole thing, just look in the transcript for "Other than fixing John's two flubbed" for the text of the two missing paragraphs. Errata I say "Come Together" was a B-side, but the single was actually a double A-side. Also, I say the Lennon interview by Maureen Cleave appeared in Detroit magazine. That's what my source (Steve Turner's book) says, but someone on Twitter says that rather than Detroit magazine it was the Detroit Free Press. Also at one point I say "the videos for 'Paperback Writer' and 'Penny Lane'". I meant to say "Rain" rather than "Penny Lane" there. Resources No Mixcloud this week due to the number of songs by the Beatles. I have read literally dozens of books on the Beatles, and used bits of information from many of them. All my Beatles episodes refer to: The Complete Beatles Chronicle by Mark Lewisohn, All The Songs: The Stories Behind Every Beatles Release by Jean-Michel Guesdon, And The Band Begins To Play: The Definitive Guide To The Songs of The Beatles by Steve Lambley, The Beatles By Ear by Kevin Moore, Revolution in the Head by Ian MacDonald, and The Beatles Anthology. For this episode, I also referred to Last Interview by David Sheff, a longform interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono from shortly before Lennon's death; Many Years From Now by Barry Miles, an authorised biography of Paul McCartney; and Here, There, and Everywhere: My Life Recording the Music of the Beatles by Geoff Emerick and Howard Massey. Particularly useful this time was Steve Turner's book Beatles '66. I also used Turner's The Beatles: The Stories Behind the Songs 1967-1970. Johnny Rogan's Starmakers and Svengalis had some information on Epstein I hadn't seen anywhere else. Some information about the "Bigger than Jesus" scandal comes from Ward, B. (2012). “The ‘C' is for Christ”: Arthur Unger, Datebook Magazine and the Beatles. Popular Music and Society, 35(4), 541-560. https://doi.org/10.1080/03007766.2011.608978 Information on Robert Stigwood comes from Mr Showbiz by Stephen Dando-Collins. And the quote at the end from Simon Napier-Bell is from You Don't Have to Say You Love Me, which is more entertaining than it is accurate, but is very entertaining. Sadly the only way to get the single mix of "All You Need is Love" is on this ludicrously-expensive out-of-print box set, but the stereo mix is easily available on Magical Mystery Tour. Patreon This podcast is brought to you by the generosity of my backers on Patreon. Why not join them? Transcript A quick note before I start the episode -- this episode deals, in part, with the deaths of three gay men -- one by murder, one by suicide, and one by an accidental overdose, all linked at least in part to societal homophobia. I will try to deal with this as tactfully as I can, but anyone who's upset by those things might want to read the transcript instead of listening to the episode. This is also a very, very, *very* long episode -- this is likely to be the longest episode I *ever* do of this podcast, so settle in. We're going to be here a while. I obviously don't know how long it's going to be while I'm still recording, but based on the word count of my script, probably in the region of three hours. You have been warned. In 1967 the actor Patrick McGoohan was tired. He had been working on the hit series Danger Man for many years -- Danger Man had originally run from 1960 through 1962, then had taken a break, and had come back, retooled, with longer episodes in 1964. That longer series was a big hit, both in the UK and in the US, where it was retitled Secret Agent and had a new theme tune written by PF Sloan and Steve Barri and recorded by Johnny Rivers: [Excerpt: Johnny Rivers, "Secret Agent Man"] But McGoohan was tired of playing John Drake, the agent, and announced he was going to quit the series. Instead, with the help of George Markstein, Danger Man's script editor, he created a totally new series, in which McGoohan would star, and which McGoohan would also write and direct key episodes of. This new series, The Prisoner, featured a spy who is only ever given the name Number Six, and who many fans -- though not McGoohan himself -- took to be the same character as John Drake. Number Six resigns from his job as a secret agent, and is kidnapped and taken to a place known only as The Village -- the series was filmed in Portmeirion, an unusual-looking town in Gwynnedd, in North Wales -- which is full of other ex-agents. There he is interrogated to try to find out why he has quit his job. It's never made clear whether the interrogators are his old employers or their enemies, and there's a certain suggestion that maybe there is no real distinction between the two sides, that they're both running the Village together. He spends the entire series trying to escape, but refuses to explain himself -- and there's some debate among viewers as to whether it's implied or not that part of the reason he doesn't explain himself is that he knows his interrogators wouldn't understand why he quit: [Excerpt: The Prisoner intro, from episode Once Upon a Time, ] Certainly that explanation would fit in with McGoohan's own personality. According to McGoohan, the final episode of The Prisoner was, at the time, the most watched TV show ever broadcast in the UK, as people tuned in to find out the identity of Number One, the person behind the Village, and to see if Number Six would break free. I don't think that's actually the case, but it's what McGoohan always claimed, and it was certainly a very popular series. I won't spoil the ending for those of you who haven't watched it -- it's a remarkable series -- but ultimately the series seems to decide that such questions don't matter and that even asking them is missing the point. It's a work that's open to multiple interpretations, and is left deliberately ambiguous, but one of the messages many people have taken away from it is that not only are we trapped by a society that oppresses us, we're also trapped by our own identities. You can run from the trap that society has placed you in, from other people's interpretations of your life, your work, and your motives, but you ultimately can't run from yourself, and any time you try to break out of a prison, you'll find yourself trapped in another prison of your own making. The most horrifying implication of the episode is that possibly even death itself won't be a release, and you will spend all eternity trying to escape from an identity you're trapped in. Viewers became so outraged, according to McGoohan, that he had to go into hiding for an extended period, and while his later claims that he never worked in Britain again are an exaggeration, it is true that for the remainder of his life he concentrated on doing work in the US instead, where he hadn't created such anger. That final episode of The Prisoner was also the only one to use a piece of contemporary pop music, in two crucial scenes: [Excerpt: The Prisoner, "Fall Out", "All You Need is Love"] Back in October 2020, we started what I thought would be a year-long look at the period from late 1962 through early 1967, but which has turned out for reasons beyond my control to take more like twenty months, with a song which was one of the last of the big pre-Beatles pop hits, though we looked at it after their first single, "Telstar" by the Tornadoes: [Excerpt: The Tornadoes, "Telstar"] There were many reasons for choosing that as one of the bookends for this fifty-episode chunk of the podcast -- you'll see many connections between that episode and this one if you listen to them back-to-back -- but among them was that it's a song inspired by the launch of the first ever communications satellite, and a sign of how the world was going to become smaller as the sixties went on. Of course, to start with communications satellites didn't do much in that regard -- they were expensive to use, and had limited bandwidth, and were only available during limited time windows, but symbolically they meant that for the first time ever, people could see and hear events thousands of miles away as they were happening. It's not a coincidence that Britain and France signed the agreement to develop Concorde, the first supersonic airliner, a month after the first Beatles single and four months after the Telstar satellite was launched. The world was becoming ever more interconnected -- people were travelling faster and further, getting news from other countries quicker, and there was more cultural conversation – and misunderstanding – between countries thousands of miles apart. The Canadian media theorist Marshall McLuhan, the man who also coined the phrase “the medium is the message”, thought that this ever-faster connection would fundamentally change basic modes of thought in the Western world. McLuhan thought that technology made possible whole new modes of thought, and that just as the printing press had, in his view, caused Western liberalism and individualism, so these new electronic media would cause the rise of a new collective mode of thought. In 1962, the year of Concorde, Telstar, and “Love Me Do”, McLuhan wrote a book called The Gutenberg Galaxy, in which he said: “Instead of tending towards a vast Alexandrian library the world has become a computer, an electronic brain, exactly as an infantile piece of science fiction. And as our senses have gone outside us, Big Brother goes inside. So, unless aware of this dynamic, we shall at once move into a phase of panic terrors, exactly befitting a small world of tribal drums, total interdependence, and superimposed co-existence.… Terror is the normal state of any oral society, for in it everything affects everything all the time.…” He coined the term “the Global Village” to describe this new collectivism. The story we've seen over the last fifty episodes is one of a sort of cultural ping-pong between the USA and the UK, with innovations in American music inspiring British musicians, who in turn inspired American ones, whether that being the Beatles covering the Isley Brothers or the Rolling Stones doing a Bobby Womack song, or Paul Simon and Bob Dylan coming over to the UK and learning folk songs and guitar techniques from Martin Carthy. And increasingly we're going to see those influences spread to other countries, and influences coming *from* other countries. We've already seen one Jamaican artist, and the influence of Indian music has become very apparent. While the focus of this series is going to remain principally in the British Isles and North America, rock music was and is a worldwide phenomenon, and that's going to become increasingly a part of the story. And so in this episode we're going to look at a live performance -- well, mostly live -- that was seen by hundreds of millions of people all over the world as it happened, thanks to the magic of satellites: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "All You Need is Love"] When we left the Beatles, they had just finished recording "Tomorrow Never Knows", the most experimental track they had recorded up to that date, and if not the most experimental thing they *ever* recorded certainly in the top handful. But "Tomorrow Never Knows" was only the first track they recorded in the sessions for what would become arguably their greatest album, and certainly the one that currently has the most respect from critics. It's interesting to note that that album could have been very, very, different. When we think of Revolver now, we think of the innovative production of George Martin, and of Geoff Emerick and Ken Townshend's inventive ideas for pushing the sound of the equipment in Abbey Road studios, but until very late in the day the album was going to be recorded in the Stax studios in Memphis, with Steve Cropper producing -- whether George Martin would have been involved or not is something we don't even know. In 1965, the Rolling Stones had, as we've seen, started making records in the US, recording in LA and at the Chess studios in Chicago, and the Yardbirds had also been doing the same thing. Mick Jagger had become a convert to the idea of using American studios and working with American musicians, and he had constantly been telling Paul McCartney that the Beatles should do the same. Indeed, they'd put some feelers out in 1965 about the possibility of the group making an album with Holland, Dozier, and Holland in Detroit. Quite how this would have worked is hard to figure out -- Holland, Dozier, and Holland's skills were as songwriters, and in their work with a particular set of musicians -- so it's unsurprising that came to nothing. But recording at Stax was a different matter. While Steve Cropper was a great songwriter in his own right, he was also adept at getting great sounds on covers of other people's material -- like on Otis Blue, the album he produced for Otis Redding in late 1965, which doesn't include a single Cropper original: [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "Satisfaction"] And the Beatles were very influenced by the records Stax were putting out, often namechecking Wilson Pickett in particular, and during the Rubber Soul sessions they had recorded a "Green Onions" soundalike track, imaginatively titled "12-Bar Original": [Excerpt: The Beatles, "12-Bar Original"] The idea of the group recording at Stax got far enough that they were actually booked in for two weeks starting the ninth of April, and there was even an offer from Elvis to let them stay at Graceland while they recorded, but then a couple of weeks earlier, the news leaked to the press, and Brian Epstein cancelled the booking. According to Cropper, Epstein talked about recording at the Atlantic studios in New York with him instead, but nothing went any further. It's hard to imagine what a Stax-based Beatles album would have been like, but even though it might have been a great album, it certainly wouldn't have been the Revolver we've come to know. Revolver is an unusual album in many ways, and one of the ways it's most distinct from the earlier Beatles albums is the dominance of keyboards. Both Lennon and McCartney had often written at the piano as well as the guitar -- McCartney more so than Lennon, but both had done so regularly -- but up to this point it had been normal for them to arrange the songs for guitars rather than keyboards, no matter how they'd started out. There had been the odd track where one of them, usually Lennon, would play a simple keyboard part, songs like "I'm Down" or "We Can Work it Out", but even those had been guitar records first and foremost. But on Revolver, that changed dramatically. There seems to have been a complex web of cause and effect here. Paul was becoming increasingly interested in moving his basslines away from simple walking basslines and root notes and the other staples of rock and roll basslines up to this point. As the sixties progressed, rock basslines were becoming ever more complex, and Tyler Mahan Coe has made a good case that this is largely down to innovations in production pioneered by Owen Bradley, and McCartney was certainly aware of Bradley's work -- he was a fan of Brenda Lee, who Bradley produced, for example. But the two influences that McCartney has mentioned most often in this regard are the busy, jazz-influenced, basslines that James Jamerson was playing at Motown: [Excerpt: The Four Tops, "It's the Same Old Song"] And the basslines that Brian Wilson was writing for various Wrecking Crew bassists to play for the Beach Boys: [Excerpt: The Beach Boys, "Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)"] Just to be clear, McCartney didn't hear that particular track until partway through the recording of Revolver, when Bruce Johnston visited the UK and brought with him an advance copy of Pet Sounds, but Pet Sounds influenced the later part of Revolver's recording, and Wilson had already started his experiments in that direction with the group's 1965 work. It's much easier to write a song with this kind of bassline, one that's integral to the composition, on the piano than it is to write it on a guitar, as you can work out the bassline with your left hand while working out the chords and melody with your right, so the habit that McCartney had already developed of writing on the piano made this easier. But also, starting with the recording of "Paperback Writer", McCartney switched his style of working in the studio. Where up to this point it had been normal for him to play bass as part of the recording of the basic track, playing with the other Beatles, he now started to take advantage of multitracking to overdub his bass later, so he could spend extra time getting the bassline exactly right. McCartney lived closer to Abbey Road than the other three Beatles, and so could more easily get there early or stay late and tweak his parts. But if McCartney wasn't playing bass while the guitars and drums were being recorded, that meant he could play something else, and so increasingly he would play piano during the recording of the basic track. And that in turn would mean that there wouldn't always *be* a need for guitars on the track, because the harmonic support they would provide would be provided by the piano instead. This, as much as anything else, is the reason that Revolver sounds so radically different to any other Beatles album. Up to this point, with *very* rare exceptions like "Yesterday", every Beatles record, more or less, featured all four of the Beatles playing instruments. Now John and George weren't playing on "Good Day Sunshine" or "For No One", John wasn't playing on "Here, There, and Everywhere", "Eleanor Rigby" features no guitars or drums at all, and George's "Love You To" only features himself, plus a little tambourine from Ringo (Paul recorded a part for that one, but it doesn't seem to appear on the finished track). Of the three songwriting Beatles, the only one who at this point was consistently requiring the instrumental contributions of all the other band members was John, and even he did without Paul on "She Said, She Said", which by all accounts features either John or George on bass, after Paul had a rare bout of unprofessionalism and left the studio. Revolver is still an album made by a group -- and most of those tracks that don't feature John or George instrumentally still feature them vocally -- it's still a collaborative work in all the best ways. But it's no longer an album made by four people playing together in the same room at the same time. After starting work on "Tomorrow Never Knows", the next track they started work on was Paul's "Got to Get You Into My Life", but as it would turn out they would work on that song throughout most of the sessions for the album -- in a sign of how the group would increasingly work from this point on, Paul's song was subject to multiple re-recordings and tweakings in the studio, as he tinkered to try to make it perfect. The first recording to be completed for the album, though, was almost as much of a departure in its own way as "Tomorrow Never Knows" had been. George's song "Love You To" shows just how inspired he was by the music of Ravi Shankar, and how devoted he was to Indian music. While a few months earlier he had just about managed to pick out a simple melody on the sitar for "Norwegian Wood", by this point he was comfortable enough with Indian classical music that I've seen many, many sources claim that an outside session player is playing sitar on the track, though Anil Bhagwat, the tabla player on the track, always insisted that it was entirely Harrison's playing: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Love You To"] There is a *lot* of debate as to whether it's George playing on the track, and I feel a little uncomfortable making a definitive statement in either direction. On the one hand I find it hard to believe that Harrison got that good that quickly on an unfamiliar instrument, when we know he wasn't a naturally facile musician. All the stories we have about his work in the studio suggest that he had to work very hard on his guitar solos, and that he would frequently fluff them. As a technical guitarist, Harrison was only mediocre -- his value lay in his inventiveness, not in technical ability -- and he had been playing guitar for over a decade, but sitar only a few months. There's also some session documentation suggesting that an unknown sitar player was hired. On the other hand there's the testimony of Anil Bhagwat that Harrison played the part himself, and he has been very firm on the subject, saying "If you go on the Internet there are a lot of questions asked about "Love You To". They say 'It's not George playing the sitar'. I can tell you here and now -- 100 percent it was George on sitar throughout. There were no other musicians involved. It was just me and him." And several people who are more knowledgeable than myself about the instrument have suggested that the sitar part on the track is played the way that a rock guitarist would play rather than the way someone with more knowledge of Indian classical music would play -- there's a blues feeling to some of the bends that apparently no genuine Indian classical musician would naturally do. I would suggest that the best explanation is that there's a professional sitar player trying to replicate a part that Harrison had previously demonstrated, while Harrison was in turn trying his best to replicate the sound of Ravi Shankar's work. Certainly the instrumental section sounds far more fluent, and far more stylistically correct, than one would expect: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Love You To"] Where previous attempts at what got called "raga-rock" had taken a couple of surface features of Indian music -- some form of a drone, perhaps a modal scale -- and had generally used a guitar made to sound a little bit like a sitar, or had a sitar playing normal rock riffs, Harrison's song seems to be a genuine attempt to hybridise Indian ragas and rock music, combining the instrumentation, modes, and rhythmic complexity of someone like Ravi Shankar with lyrics that are seemingly inspired by Bob Dylan and a fairly conventional pop song structure (and a tiny bit of fuzz guitar). It's a record that could only be made by someone who properly understood both the Indian music he's emulating and the conventions of the Western pop song, and understood how those conventions could work together. Indeed, one thing I've rarely seen pointed out is how cleverly the album is sequenced, so that "Love You To" is followed by possibly the most conventional song on Revolver, "Here, There, and Everywhere", which was recorded towards the end of the sessions. Both songs share a distinctive feature not shared by the rest of the album, so the two songs can sound more of a pair than they otherwise would, retrospectively making "Love You To" seem more conventional than it is and "Here, There, and Everywhere" more unconventional -- both have as an introduction a separate piece of music that states some of the melodic themes of the rest of the song but isn't repeated later. In the case of "Love You To" it's the free-tempo bit at the beginning, characteristic of a lot of Indian music: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Love You To"] While in the case of "Here, There, and Everywhere" it's the part that mimics an older style of songwriting, a separate intro of the type that would have been called a verse when written by the Gershwins or Cole Porter, but of course in the intervening decades "verse" had come to mean something else, so we now no longer have a specific term for this kind of intro -- but as you can hear, it's doing very much the same thing as that "Love You To" intro: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Here, There, and Everywhere"] In the same day as the group completed "Love You To", overdubbing George's vocal and Ringo's tambourine, they also started work on a song that would show off a lot of the new techniques they had been working on in very different ways. Paul's "Paperback Writer" could indeed be seen as part of a loose trilogy with "Love You To" and "Tomorrow Never Knows", one song by each of the group's three songwriters exploring the idea of a song that's almost all on one chord. Both "Tomorrow Never Knows" and "Love You To" are based on a drone with occasional hints towards moving to one other chord. In the case of "Paperback Writer", the entire song stays on a single chord until the title -- it's on a G7 throughout until the first use of the word "writer", when it quickly goes to a C for two bars. I'm afraid I'm going to have to sing to show you how little the chords actually change, because the riff disguises this lack of movement somewhat, but the melody is also far more horizontal than most of McCartney's, so this shouldn't sound too painful, I hope: [demonstrates] This is essentially the exact same thing that both "Love You To" and "Tomorrow Never Knows" do, and all three have very similarly structured rising and falling modal melodies. There's also a bit of "Paperback Writer" that seems to tie directly into "Love You To", but also points to a possible very non-Indian inspiration for part of "Love You To". The Beach Boys' single "Sloop John B" was released in the UK a couple of days after the sessions for "Paperback Writer" and "Love You To", but it had been released in the US a month before, and the Beatles all got copies of every record in the American top thirty shipped to them. McCartney and Harrison have specifically pointed to it as an influence on "Paperback Writer". "Sloop John B" has a section where all the instruments drop out and we're left with just the group's vocal harmonies: [Excerpt: The Beach Boys, "Sloop John B"] And that seems to have been the inspiration behind the similar moment at a similar point in "Paperback Writer", which is used in place of a middle eight and also used for the song's intro: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Paperback Writer"] Which is very close to what Harrison does at the end of each verse of "Love You To", where the instruments drop out for him to sing a long melismatic syllable before coming back in: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Love You To"] Essentially, other than "Got to Get You Into My Life", which is an outlier and should not be counted, the first three songs attempted during the Revolver sessions are variations on a common theme, and it's a sign that no matter how different the results might sound, the Beatles really were very much a group at this point, and were sharing ideas among themselves and developing those ideas in similar ways. "Paperback Writer" disguises what it's doing somewhat by having such a strong riff. Lennon referred to "Paperback Writer" as "son of 'Day Tripper'", and in terms of the Beatles' singles it's actually their third iteration of this riff idea, which they originally got from Bobby Parker's "Watch Your Step": [Excerpt: Bobby Parker, "Watch Your Step"] Which became the inspiration for "I Feel Fine": [Excerpt: The Beatles, "I Feel Fine"] Which they varied for "Day Tripper": [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Day Tripper"] And which then in turn got varied for "Paperback Writer": [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Paperback Writer"] As well as compositional ideas, there are sonic ideas shared between "Paperback Writer", "Tomorrow Never Knows", and "Love You To", and which would be shared by the rest of the tracks the Beatles recorded in the first half of 1966. Since Geoff Emerick had become the group's principal engineer, they'd started paying more attention to how to get a fuller sound, and so Emerick had miced the tabla on "Love You To" much more closely than anyone would normally mic an instrument from classical music, creating a deep, thudding sound, and similarly he had changed the way they recorded the drums on "Tomorrow Never Knows", again giving a much fuller sound. But the group also wanted the kind of big bass sounds they'd loved on records coming out of America -- sounds that no British studio was getting, largely because it was believed that if you cut too loud a bass sound into a record it would make the needle jump out of the groove. The new engineering team of Geoff Emerick and Ken Scott, though, thought that it was likely you could keep the needle in the groove if you had a smoother frequency response. You could do that if you used a microphone with a larger diaphragm to record the bass, but how could you do that? Inspiration finally struck -- loudspeakers are actually the same thing as microphones wired the other way round, so if you wired up a loudspeaker as if it were a microphone you could get a *really big* speaker, place it in front of the bass amp, and get a much stronger bass sound. The experiment wasn't a total success -- the sound they got had to be processed quite extensively to get rid of room noise, and then compressed in order to further prevent the needle-jumping issue, and so it's a muddier, less defined, tone than they would have liked, but one thing that can't be denied is that "Paperback Writer"'s bass sound is much, much, louder than on any previous Beatles record: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Paperback Writer"] Almost every track the group recorded during the Revolver sessions involved all sorts of studio innovations, though rarely anything as truly revolutionary as the artificial double-tracking they'd used on "Tomorrow Never Knows", and which also appeared on "Paperback Writer" -- indeed, as "Paperback Writer" was released several months before Revolver, it became the first record released to use the technique. I could easily devote a good ten minutes to every track on Revolver, and to "Paperback Writer"s B-side, "Rain", but this is already shaping up to be an extraordinarily long episode and there's a lot of material to get through, so I'll break my usual pattern of devoting a Patreon bonus episode to something relatively obscure, and this week's bonus will be on "Rain" itself. "Paperback Writer", though, deserved the attention here even though it was not one of the group's more successful singles -- it did go to number one, but it didn't hit number one in the UK charts straight away, being kept off the top by "Strangers in the Night" by Frank Sinatra for the first week: [Excerpt: Frank Sinatra, "Strangers in the Night"] Coincidentally, "Strangers in the Night" was co-written by Bert Kaempfert, the German musician who had produced the group's very first recording sessions with Tony Sheridan back in 1961. On the group's German tour in 1966 they met up with Kaempfert again, and John greeted him by singing the first couple of lines of the Sinatra record. The single was the lowest-selling Beatles single in the UK since "Love Me Do". In the US it only made number one for two non-consecutive weeks, with "Strangers in the Night" knocking it off for a week in between. Now, by literally any other band's standards, that's still a massive hit, and it was the Beatles' tenth UK number one in a row (or ninth, depending on which chart you use for "Please Please Me"), but it's a sign that the group were moving out of the first phase of total unequivocal dominance of the charts. It was a turning point in a lot of other ways as well. Up to this point, while the group had been experimenting with different lyrical subjects on album tracks, every single had lyrics about romantic relationships -- with the possible exception of "Help!", which was about Lennon's emotional state but written in such a way that it could be heard as a plea to a lover. But in the case of "Paperback Writer", McCartney was inspired by his Aunt Mill asking him "Why do you write songs about love all the time? Can you ever write about a horse or the summit conference or something interesting?" His response was to think "All right, Aunt Mill, I'll show you", and to come up with a lyric that was very much in the style of the social satires that bands like the Kinks were releasing at the time. People often miss the humour in the lyric for "Paperback Writer", but there's a huge amount of comedy in lyrics about someone writing to a publisher saying they'd written a book based on someone else's book, and one can only imagine the feeling of weary recognition in slush-pile readers throughout the world as they heard the enthusiastic "It's a thousand pages, give or take a few, I'll be writing more in a week or two. I can make it longer..." From this point on, the group wouldn't release a single that was unambiguously about a romantic relationship until "The Ballad of John and Yoko", the last single released while the band were still together. "Paperback Writer" also saw the Beatles for the first time making a promotional film -- what we would now call a rock video -- rather than make personal appearances on TV shows. The film was directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg, who the group would work with again in 1969, and shows Paul with a chipped front tooth -- he'd been in an accident while riding mopeds with his friend Tara Browne a few months earlier, and hadn't yet got round to having the tooth capped. When he did, the change in his teeth was one of the many bits of evidence used by conspiracy theorists to prove that the real Paul McCartney was dead and replaced by a lookalike. It also marks a change in who the most prominent Beatle on the group's A-sides was. Up to this point, Paul had had one solo lead on an A-side -- "Can't Buy Me Love" -- and everything else had been either a song with multiple vocalists like "Day Tripper" or "Love Me Do", or a song with a clear John lead like "Ticket to Ride" or "I Feel Fine". In the rest of their career, counting "Paperback Writer", the group would release nine new singles that hadn't already been included on an album. Of those nine singles, one was a double A-side with one John song and one Paul song, two had John songs on the A-side, and the other six were Paul. Where up to this point John had been "lead Beatle", for the rest of the sixties, Paul would be the group's driving force. Oddly, Paul got rather defensive about the record when asked about it in interviews after it failed to go straight to the top, saying "It's not our best single by any means, but we're very satisfied with it". But especially in its original mono mix it actually packs a powerful punch: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Paperback Writer"] When the "Paperback Writer" single was released, an unusual image was used in the advertising -- a photo of the Beatles dressed in butchers' smocks, covered in blood, with chunks of meat and the dismembered body parts of baby dolls lying around on them. The image was meant as part of a triptych parodying religious art -- the photo on the left was to be an image showing the four Beatles connected to a woman by an umbilical cord made of sausages, the middle panel was meant to be this image, but with halos added over the Beatles' heads, and the panel on the right was George hammering a nail into John's head, symbolising both crucifixion and that the group were real, physical, people, not just images to be worshipped -- these weren't imaginary nails, and they weren't imaginary people. The photographer Robert Whittaker later said: “I did a photograph of the Beatles covered in raw meat, dolls and false teeth. Putting meat, dolls and false teeth with The Beatles is essentially part of the same thing, the breakdown of what is regarded as normal. The actual conception for what I still call “Somnambulant Adventure” was Moses coming down from Mount Sinai with the Ten Commandments. He comes across people worshipping a golden calf. All over the world I'd watched people worshiping like idols, like gods, four Beatles. To me they were just stock standard normal people. But this emotion that fans poured on them made me wonder where Christianity was heading.” The image wasn't that controversial in the UK, when it was used to advertise "Paperback Writer", but in the US it was initially used for the cover of an album, Yesterday... And Today, which was made up of a few tracks that had been left off the US versions of the Rubber Soul and Help! albums, plus both sides of the "We Can Work It Out"/"Day Tripper" single, and three rough mixes of songs that had been recorded for Revolver -- "Doctor Robert", "And Your Bird Can Sing", and "I'm Only Sleeping", which was the song that sounded most different from the mixes that were finally released: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "I'm Only Sleeping (Yesterday... and Today mix)"] Those three songs were all Lennon songs, which had the unfortunate effect that when the US version of Revolver was brought out later in the year, only two of the songs on the album were by Lennon, with six by McCartney and three by Harrison. Some have suggested that this was the motivation for the use of the butcher image on the cover of Yesterday... And Today -- saying it was the Beatles' protest against Capitol "butchering" their albums -- but in truth it was just that Capitol's art director chose the cover because he liked the image. Alan Livingston, the president of Capitol was not so sure, and called Brian Epstein to ask if the group would be OK with them using a different image. Epstein checked with John Lennon, but Lennon liked the image and so Epstein told Livingston the group insisted on them using that cover. Even though for the album cover the bloodstains on the butchers' smocks were airbrushed out, after Capitol had pressed up a million copies of the mono version of the album and two hundred thousand copies of the stereo version, and they'd sent out sixty thousand promo copies, they discovered that no record shops would stock the album with that cover. It cost Capitol more than two hundred thousand dollars to recall the album and replace the cover with a new one -- though while many of the covers were destroyed, others had the new cover, with a more acceptable photo of the group, pasted over them, and people have later carefully steamed off the sticker to reveal the original. This would not be the last time in 1966 that something that was intended as a statement on religion and the way people viewed the Beatles would cause the group trouble in America. In the middle of the recording sessions for Revolver, the group also made what turned out to be their last ever UK live performance in front of a paying audience. The group had played the NME Poll-Winners' Party every year since 1963, and they were always shows that featured all the biggest acts in the country at the time -- the 1966 show featured, as well as the Beatles and a bunch of smaller acts, the Rolling Stones, the Who, the Yardbirds, Roy Orbison, Cliff Richard and the Shadows, the Seekers, the Small Faces, the Walker Brothers, and Dusty Springfield. Unfortunately, while these events were always filmed for TV broadcast, the Beatles' performance on the first of May wasn't filmed. There are various stories about what happened, but the crux appears to be a disagreement between Andrew Oldham and Brian Epstein, sparked by John Lennon. When the Beatles got to the show, they were upset to discover that they had to wait around before going on stage -- normally, the awards would all be presented at the end, after all the performances, but the Rolling Stones had asked that the Beatles not follow them directly, so after the Stones finished their set, there would be a break for the awards to be given out, and then the Beatles would play their set, in front of an audience that had been bored by twenty-five minutes of awards ceremony, rather than one that had been excited by all the bands that came before them. John Lennon was annoyed, and insisted that the Beatles were going to go on straight after the Rolling Stones -- he seems to have taken this as some sort of power play by the Stones and to have got his hackles up about it. He told Epstein to deal with the people from the NME. But the NME people said that they had a contract with Andrew Oldham, and they weren't going to break it. Oldham refused to change the terms of the contract. Lennon said that he wasn't going to go on stage if they didn't directly follow the Stones. Maurice Kinn, the publisher of the NME, told Epstein that he wasn't going to break the contract with Oldham, and that if the Beatles didn't appear on stage, he would get Jimmy Savile, who was compering the show, to go out on stage and tell the ten thousand fans in the audience that the Beatles were backstage refusing to appear. He would then sue NEMS for breach of contract *and* NEMS would be liable for any damage caused by the rioting that was sure to happen. Lennon screamed a lot of abuse at Kinn, and told him the group would never play one of their events again, but the group did go on stage -- but because they hadn't yet signed the agreement to allow their performance to be filmed, they refused to allow it to be recorded. Apparently Andrew Oldham took all this as a sign that Epstein was starting to lose control of the group. Also during May 1966 there were visits from musicians from other countries, continuing the cultural exchange that was increasingly influencing the Beatles' art. Bruce Johnston of the Beach Boys came over to promote the group's new LP, Pet Sounds, which had been largely the work of Brian Wilson, who had retired from touring to concentrate on working in the studio. Johnston played the record for John and Paul, who listened to it twice, all the way through, in silence, in Johnston's hotel room: [Excerpt: The Beach Boys, "God Only Knows"] According to Johnston, after they'd listened through the album twice, they went over to a piano and started whispering to each other, picking out chords. Certainly the influence of Pet Sounds is very noticeable on songs like "Here, There, and Everywhere", written and recorded a few weeks after this meeting: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Here, There, and Everywhere"] That track, and the last track recorded for the album, "She Said She Said" were unusual in one very important respect -- they were recorded while the Beatles were no longer under contract to EMI Records. Their contract expired on the fifth of June, 1966, and they finished Revolver without it having been renewed -- it would be several months before their new contract was signed, and it's rather lucky for music lovers that Brian Epstein was the kind of manager who considered personal relationships and basic honour and decency more important than the legal niceties, unlike any other managers of the era, otherwise we would not have Revolver in the form we know it today. After the meeting with Johnston, but before the recording of those last couple of Revolver tracks, the Beatles also met up again with Bob Dylan, who was on a UK tour with a new, loud, band he was working with called The Hawks. While the Beatles and Dylan all admired each other, there was by this point a lot of wariness on both sides, especially between Lennon and Dylan, both of them very similar personality types and neither wanting to let their guard down around the other or appear unhip. There's a famous half-hour-long film sequence of Lennon and Dylan sharing a taxi, which is a fascinating, excruciating, example of two insecure but arrogant men both trying desperately to impress the other but also equally desperate not to let the other know that they want to impress them: [Excerpt: Dylan and Lennon taxi ride] The day that was filmed, Lennon and Harrison also went to see Dylan play at the Royal Albert Hall. This tour had been controversial, because Dylan's band were loud and raucous, and Dylan's fans in the UK still thought of him as a folk musician. At one gig, earlier on the tour, an audience member had famously yelled out "Judas!" -- (just on the tiny chance that any of my listeners don't know that, Judas was the disciple who betrayed Jesus to the authorities, leading to his crucifixion) -- and that show was for many years bootlegged as the "Royal Albert Hall" show, though in fact it was recorded at the Free Trade Hall in Manchester. One of the *actual* Royal Albert Hall shows was released a few years ago -- the one the night before Lennon and Harrison saw Dylan: [Excerpt: Bob Dylan, "Like a Rolling Stone", Royal Albert Hall 1966] The show Lennon and Harrison saw would be Dylan's last for many years. Shortly after returning to the US, Dylan was in a motorbike accident, the details of which are still mysterious, and which some fans claim was faked altogether. The accident caused him to cancel all the concert dates he had booked, and devote himself to working in the studio for several years just like Brian Wilson. And from even further afield than America, Ravi Shankar came over to Britain, to work with his friend the violinist Yehudi Menuhin, on a duet album, West Meets East, that was an example in the classical world of the same kind of international cross-fertilisation that was happening in the pop world: [Excerpt: Yehudi Menuhin and Ravi Shankar, "Prabhati (based on Raga Gunkali)"] While he was in the UK, Shankar also performed at the Royal Festival Hall, and George Harrison went to the show. He'd seen Shankar live the year before, but this time he met up with him afterwards, and later said "He was the first person that impressed me in a way that was beyond just being a famous celebrity. Ravi was my link to the Vedic world. Ravi plugged me into the whole of reality. Elvis impressed me when I was a kid, and impressed me when I met him, but you couldn't later on go round to him and say 'Elvis, what's happening with the universe?'" After completing recording and mixing the as-yet-unnamed album, which had been by far the longest recording process of their career, and which still nearly sixty years later regularly tops polls of the best album of all time, the Beatles took a well-earned break. For a whole two days, at which point they flew off to Germany to do a three-day tour, on their way to Japan, where they were booked to play five shows at the Budokan. Unfortunately for the group, while they had no idea of this when they were booked to do the shows, many in Japan saw the Budokan as sacred ground, and they were the first ever Western group to play there. This led to numerous death threats and loud protests from far-right activists offended at the Beatles defiling their religious and nationalistic sensibilities. As a result, the police were on high alert -- so high that there were three thousand police in the audience for the shows, in a venue which only held ten thousand audience members. That's according to Mark Lewisohn's Complete Beatles Chronicle, though I have to say that the rather blurry footage of the audience in the video of those shows doesn't seem to show anything like those numbers. But frankly I'll take Lewisohn's word over that footage, as he's not someone to put out incorrect information. The threats to the group also meant that they had to be kept in their hotel rooms at all times except when actually performing, though they did make attempts to get out. At the press conference for the Tokyo shows, the group were also asked publicly for the first time their views on the war in Vietnam, and John replied "Well, we think about it every day, and we don't agree with it and we think that it's wrong. That's how much interest we take. That's all we can do about it... and say that we don't like it". I say they were asked publicly for the first time, because George had been asked about it for a series of interviews Maureen Cleave had done with the group a couple of months earlier, as we'll see in a bit, but nobody was paying attention to those interviews. Brian Epstein was upset that the question had gone to John. He had hoped that the inevitable Vietnam question would go to Paul, who he thought might be a bit more tactful. The last thing he needed was John Lennon saying something that would upset the Americans before their tour there a few weeks later. Luckily, people in America seemed to have better things to do than pay attention to John Lennon's opinions. The support acts for the Japanese shows included several of the biggest names in Japanese rock music -- or "group sounds" as the genre was called there, Japanese people having realised that trying to say the phrase "rock and roll" would open them up to ridicule given that it had both "r" and "l" sounds in the phrase. The man who had coined the term "group sounds", Jackey Yoshikawa, was there with his group the Blue Comets, as was Isao Bito, who did a rather good cover version of Cliff Richard's "Dynamite": [Excerpt: Isao Bito, "Dynamite"] Bito, the Blue Comets, and the other two support acts, Yuya Uchida and the Blue Jeans, all got together to perform a specially written song, "Welcome Beatles": [Excerpt: "Welcome Beatles" ] But while the Japanese audience were enthusiastic, they were much less vocal about their enthusiasm than the audiences the Beatles were used to playing for. The group were used, of course, to playing in front of hordes of screaming teenagers who could not hear a single note, but because of the fear that a far-right terrorist would assassinate one of the group members, the police had imposed very, very, strict rules on the audience. Nobody in the audience was allowed to get out of their seat for any reason, and the police would clamp down very firmly on anyone who was too demonstrative. Because of that, the group could actually hear themselves, and they sounded sloppy as hell, especially on the newer material. Not that there was much of that. The only song they did from the Revolver sessions was "Paperback Writer", the new single, and while they did do a couple of tracks from Rubber Soul, those were under-rehearsed. As John said at the start of this tour, "I can't play any of Rubber Soul, it's so unrehearsed. The only time I played any of the numbers on it was when I recorded it. I forget about songs. They're only valid for a certain time." That's certainly borne out by the sound of their performances of Rubber Soul material at the Budokan: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "If I Needed Someone (live at the Budokan)"] It was while they were in Japan as well that they finally came up with the title for their new album. They'd been thinking of all sorts of ideas, like Abracadabra and Magic Circle, and tossing names around with increasing desperation for several days -- at one point they seem to have just started riffing on other groups' albums, and seem to have apparently seriously thought about naming the record in parodic tribute to their favourite artists -- suggestions included The Beatles On Safari, after the Beach Boys' Surfin' Safari (and possibly with a nod to their recent Pet Sounds album cover with animals, too), The Freewheelin' Beatles, after Dylan's second album, and my favourite, Ringo's suggestion After Geography, for the Rolling Stones' Aftermath. But eventually Paul came up with Revolver -- like Rubber Soul, a pun, in this case because the record itself revolves when on a turntable. Then it was off to the Philippines, and if the group thought Japan had been stressful, they had no idea what was coming. The trouble started in the Philippines from the moment they stepped off the plane, when they were bundled into a car without Neil Aspinall or Brian Epstein, and without their luggage, which was sent to customs. This was a problem in itself -- the group had got used to essentially being treated like diplomats, and to having their baggage let through customs without being searched, and so they'd started freely carrying various illicit substances with them. This would obviously be a problem -- but as it turned out, this was just to get a "customs charge" paid by Brian Epstein. But during their initial press conference the group were worried, given the hostility they'd faced from officialdom, that they were going to be arrested during the conference itself. They were asked what they would tell the Rolling Stones, who were going to be visiting the Philippines shortly after, and Lennon just said "We'll warn them". They also asked "is there a war on in the Philippines? Why is everybody armed?" At this time, the Philippines had a new leader, Ferdinand Marcos -- who is not to be confused with his son, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, also known as Bongbong Marcos, who just became President-Elect there last month. Marcos Sr was a dictatorial kleptocrat, one of the worst leaders of the latter half of the twentieth century, but that wasn't evident yet. He'd been elected only a few months earlier, and had presented himself as a Kennedy-like figure -- a young man who was also a war hero. He'd recently switched parties from the Liberal party to the right-wing Nacionalista Party, but wasn't yet being thought of as the monstrous dictator he later became. The person organising the Philippines shows had been ordered to get the Beatles to visit Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos at 11AM on the day of the show, but for some reason had instead put on their itinerary just the *suggestion* that the group should meet the Marcoses, and had put the time down as 3PM, and the Beatles chose to ignore that suggestion -- they'd refused to do that kind of government-official meet-and-greet ever since an incident in 1964 at the British Embassy in Washington where someone had cut off a bit of Ringo's hair. A military escort turned up at the group's hotel in the morning, to take them for their meeting. The group were all still in their rooms, and Brian Epstein was still eating breakfast and refused to disturb them, saying "Go back and tell the generals we're not coming." The group gave their performances as scheduled, but meanwhile there was outrage at the way the Beatles had refused to meet the Marcos family, who had brought hundreds of children -- friends of their own children, and relatives of top officials -- to a party to meet the group. Brian Epstein went on TV and tried to smooth things over, but the broadcast was interrupted by static and his message didn't get through to anyone. The next day, the group's security was taken away, as were the cars to take them to the airport. When they got to the airport, the escalators were turned off and the group were beaten up at the arrangement of the airport manager, who said in 1984 "I beat up the Beatles. I really thumped them. First I socked Epstein and he went down... then I socked Lennon and Ringo in the face. I was kicking them. They were pleading like frightened chickens. That's what happens when you insult the First Lady." Even on the plane there were further problems -- Brian Epstein and the group's road manager Mal Evans were both made to get off the plane to sort out supposed financial discrepancies, which led to them worrying that they were going to be arrested or worse -- Evans told the group to tell his wife he loved her as he left the plane. But eventually, they were able to leave, and after a brief layover in India -- which Ringo later said was the first time he felt he'd been somewhere truly foreign, as opposed to places like Germany or the USA which felt basically like home -- they got back to England: [Excerpt: "Ordinary passenger!"] When asked what they were going to do next, George replied “We're going to have a couple of weeks to recuperate before we go and get beaten up by the Americans,” The story of the "we're bigger than Jesus" controversy is one of the most widely misreported events in the lives of the Beatles, which is saying a great deal. One book that I've encountered, and one book only, Steve Turner's Beatles '66, tells the story of what actually happened, and even that book seems to miss some emphases. I've pieced what follows together from Turner's book and from an academic journal article I found which has some more detail. As far as I can tell, every single other book on the Beatles released up to this point bases their account of the story on an inaccurate press statement put out by Brian Epstein, not on the truth. Here's the story as it's generally told. John Lennon gave an interview to his friend, Maureen Cleave of the Evening Standard, during which he made some comments about how it was depressing that Christianity was losing relevance in the eyes of the public, and that the Beatles are more popular than Jesus, speaking casually because he was talking to a friend. That story was run in the Evening Standard more-or-less unnoticed, but then an American teen magazine picked up on the line about the Beatles being bigger than Jesus, reprinted chunks of the interview out of context and without the Beatles' knowledge or permission, as a way to stir up controversy, and there was an outcry, with people burning Beatles records and death threats from the Ku Klux Klan. That's... not exactly what happened. The first thing that you need to understand to know what happened is that Datebook wasn't a typical teen magazine. It *looked* just like a typical teen magazine, certainly, and much of its content was the kind of thing that you would get in Tiger Beat or any of the other magazines aimed at teenage girls -- the September 1966 issue was full of articles like "Life with the Walker Brothers... by their Road Manager", and interviews with the Dave Clark Five -- but it also had a long history of publishing material that was intended to make its readers think about social issues of the time, particularly Civil Rights. Arthur Unger, the magazine's editor and publisher, was a gay man in an interracial relationship, and while the subject of homosexuality was too taboo in the late fifties and sixties for him to have his magazine cover that, he did regularly include articles decrying segregation and calling for the girls reading the magazine to do their part on a personal level to stamp out racism. Datebook had regularly contained articles like one from 1963 talking about how segregation wasn't just a problem in the South, saying "If we are so ‘integrated' why must men in my own city of Philadelphia, the city of Brotherly Love, picket city hall because they are discriminated against when it comes to getting a job? And how come I am still unable to take my dark- complexioned friends to the same roller skating rink or swimming pool that I attend?” One of the writers for the magazine later said “We were much more than an entertainment magazine . . . . We tried to get kids involved in social issues . . . . It was a well-received magazine, recommended by libraries and schools, but during the Civil Rights period we did get pulled off a lot of stands in the South because of our views on integration” Art Unger, the editor and publisher, wasn't the only one pushing this liberal, integrationist, agenda. The managing editor at the time, Danny Fields, was another gay man who wanted to push the magazine even further than Unger, and who would later go on to manage the Stooges and the Ramones, being credited by some as being the single most important figure in punk rock's development, and being immortalised by the Ramones in their song "Danny Says": [Excerpt: The Ramones, "Danny Says"] So this was not a normal teen magazine, and that's certainly shown by the cover of the September 1966 issue, which as well as talking about the interviews with John Lennon and Paul McCartney inside, also advertised articles on Timothy Leary advising people to turn on, tune in, and drop out; an editorial about how interracial dating must be the next step after desegregation of schools, and a piece on "the ten adults you dig/hate the most" -- apparently the adult most teens dug in 1966 was Jackie Kennedy, the most hated was Barry Goldwater, and President Johnson, Billy Graham, and Martin Luther King appeared in the top ten on both lists. Now, in the early part of the year Maureen Cleave had done a whole series of articles on the Beatles -- double-page spreads on each band member, plus Brian Epstein, visiting them in their own homes (apart from Paul, who she met at a restaurant) and discussing their daily lives, their thoughts, and portraying them as rounded individuals. These articles are actually fascinating, because of something that everyone who met the Beatles in this period pointed out. When interviewed separately, all of them came across as thoughtful individuals, with their own opinions about all sorts of subjects, and their own tastes and senses of humour. But when two or more of them were together -- especially when John and Paul were interviewed together, but even in social situations, they would immediately revert to flip in-jokes and riffing on each other's statements, never revealing anything about themselves as individuals, but just going into Beatle mode -- simultaneously preserving the band's image, closing off outsiders, *and* making sure they didn't do or say anything that would get them mocked by the others. Cleave, as someone who actually took them all seriously, managed to get some very revealing information about all of them. In the article on Ringo, which is the most superficial -- one gets the impression that Cleave found him rather difficult to talk to when compared to the other, more verbally facile, band members -- she talked about how he had a lot of Wild West and military memorabilia, how he was a devoted family man and also devoted to his friends -- he had moved to the suburbs to be close to John and George, who already lived there. The most revealing quote about Ringo's personality was him saying "Of course that's the great thing about being married -- you have a house to sit in and company all the time. And you can still go to clubs, a bonus for being married. I love being a family man." While she looked at the other Beatles' tastes in literature in detail, she'd noted that the only books Ringo owned that weren't just for show were a few science fiction paperbacks, but that as he said "I'm not thick, it's just that I'm not educated. People can use words and I won't know what they mean. I say 'me' instead of 'my'." Ringo also didn't have a drum kit at home, saying he only played when he was on stage or in the studio, and that you couldn't practice on your own, you needed to play with other people. In the article on George, she talked about how he was learning the sitar, and how he was thinking that it might be a good idea to go to India to study the sitar with Ravi Shankar for six months. She also talks about how during the interview, he played the guitar pretty much constantly, playing everything from songs from "Hello Dolly" to pieces by Bach to "the Trumpet Voluntary", by which she presumably means Clarke's "Prince of Denmark's March": [Excerpt: Jeremiah Clarke, "Prince of Denmark's March"] George was also the most outspoken on the subjects of politics, religion, and society, linking the ongoing war in Vietnam with the UK's reverence for the Second World War, saying "I think about it every day and it's wrong. Anything to do with war is wrong. They're all wrapped up in their Nelsons and their Churchills and their Montys -- always talking about war heroes. Look at All Our Yesterdays [a show on ITV that showed twenty-five-year-old newsreels] -- how we killed a few more Huns here and there. Makes me sick. They're the sort who are leaning on their walking sticks and telling us a few years in the army would do us good." He also had very strong words to say about religion, saying "I think religion falls flat on its face. All this 'love thy neighbour' but none of them are doing it. How can anybody get into the position of being Pope and accept all the glory and the money and the Mercedes-Benz and that? I could never be Pope until I'd sold my rich gates and my posh hat. I couldn't sit there with all that money on me and believe I was religious. Why can't we bring all this out in the open? Why is there all this stuff about blasphemy? If Christianity's as good as they say it is, it should stand up to a bit of discussion." Harrison also comes across as a very private person, saying "People keep saying, ‘We made you what you are,' well, I made Mr. Hovis what he is and I don't go round crawling over his gates and smashing up the wall round his house." (Hovis is a British company that makes bread and wholegrain flour). But more than anything else he comes across as an instinctive anti-authoritarian, being angry at bullying teachers, Popes, and Prime Ministers. McCartney's profile has him as the most self-consciously arty -- he talks about the plays of Alfred Jarry and the music of Karlheinz Stockhausen and Luciano Berio: [Excerpt: Luciano Berio, "Momenti (for magnetic tape)"] Though he was very worried that he might be sounding a little too pretentious, saying “I don't want to sound like Jonathan Miller going on" --