Pride & Dignity

Happy birthday Jeff Bridges

uwem — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 21:15:06 +0000

It’s the Dude’s birthday today. Great actor. No film with him has ever been a dissappointment. Always true to himself. Funny, hilarious, honest, serious. Keep up the good work.

with his father Lloyd Bridges.

photo courtesy Corbis.

in The Last picture show, with Cybill Sheperd, 1971.

in Thunderbolt and Lightfood, with Clint Eastwood., 1974.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDy8picL57E

Yes, the driver is the “Moutain Men” from Deliverance. Check out what happens at 01:46.

in Rancho Deluxe, with Sam Waterston, 1975.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_p4NsgH05E

with Harry Dean Stanton in Rancho Deluxe, playing Pong.

with Bianca Jagger.

Heaven’s gate, Montana, 1979.

with beard and Rolex Submariner in a Porsche 911, in Against all odds, 1984.

with brother Beau during filming of The Fabulous Baker Boys, 1989.

with Beau and Michelle Pfeiffer in The fabulous Baker Boys, 1989.

long hair….

…longer hair

no hair. The guy always looks good.

The dude abides in The big Lebowski, by the Coen brothers, 1998.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Be7Og9Gc_KY

finally an academy award for Crazy heart, 2009.

as Bill Django in Men who stare at goats, 2009.

in True grit, 2010.

a Widelux fan.

with father Lloyd.

His website jeffbridges.com is always worth a visit.

they showed no fear

uwem — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 20:26:34 +0000

if you aren’t familiar with navypilotoverseas blog hop over and klick yourself through hundreds of vintage photos of USN and USMC pilots, their aircrafts, flight gear and their jackets. Mostly from the 40′s and early 50′s. Some of them in colour and all in high resolution. A great collection and a tremendous job putting it together. Lots of M-422a, M-444 and M-445a, khakis, chambray, OD, life vests and other gear. There is no sign of worry or fear in these faces yet they were risking their life everyday defending their country.

Honi soit qui mal y pense

uwem — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 21:18:41 +0000

if the question is asked: How can he dare to do that? How can Gerard Depardieu pee into the aisles of an Air France plane and get away with it? Well. This guy is a rock. He can ride a Münch Mammut. He had a Renault R 5 Turbo. He can drink more than you and me. He played in almost 200 films with all great directors, actors and the most beautiful women. He was Columbus, Danton, Cyrano der Bergerac and many more. He emasculated himself with an electric knife in The Last Woman, 1976 (by Marco Ferreri who also directed La Grande Bouffe/Das grosse Fressen). He was heading the jury in Cannes 1992. He could run for french President at any time and for sure would win. And he played Obelix (4 times!) and as we all know Obelix fell into the magic potion. And Obelix can indeed pee into the aisles. And Serge Gainsbourg would have done it anyway. Vive la France!

with the other french madman actor, Jean Reno.

with Nastassia Kinski.

with Robert de Niro in 1900.

with John Travolta, 1980.

with Travolta and Catherine Deneuve, 1980.”She is the man I always wanted to be.”

with his Renault R 5 Turbo. It needs a man to drive this car.

in Ciao Maschio, 1978.

with Marcello Mastroianni in Ciao Maschio.

with Serge Gainsbourg.

in Cyrano der Bergerac, 1990. Nominated for an academy award ’91.

with John Malkovic.

in Babylon A.D.

in Mammuth, 2010.

Is at least one button of this shirt closed?

www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnxCcENCpbI

the first 10 seconds and then again from 03:20

happy birthday Robert Redford

uwem — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 11:20:12 +0000

It is his 75th birthday today. There is only one Robert Redford. A true icon. Great actor, director & producer, environmentalist, patriot, founder of the Sundance film festival & big time charmer. Loved by million ladies. Big styler with great looks to this day.

with Paul Newman in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, 1969. The Sundance Festival and Institute got his name from his character in that film.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lOSH2QMdqw

with Dustin Hoffman, in All the president’s men, 1976

www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRGYKFMV0GI

in The Candidate, 1972, wearing RLX Submariner.

photo by Ron Gallella.

with Barbra Streisand in The way we were, 1973.

with Jane Fonda in The Electric Horsemen. 1979

www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmDGrapbb1k

Happy Birthday

uwem — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 07:42:51 +0000

Sean Penn & Robert de Niro. Today is their birthday. 2 great actors, directors, personalities. Lifetime membership in the Pride&Dignity hall of fame

www.youtube.com/watch?v=dM44eaasx0Y

“I’m so depressed.”

www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxmDcTjzjig

John Cazale – in memoriam

uwem — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 21:21:37 +0000

One of great character actors of the seventies would have turned 76 today. Time to remember and to rediscover. Sadly his name is not known to many. He portrayed volatile and vulnerable men. “He had a very congenial way of expressing himself” recalls Al Pacino with whom he shared a house in Provincetown, Mass. and with whom he played in 3 films (The Godfather, The Godfather Part II and Dog Day Afternoon), “all I wanted to do was working with John for the rest of my life.”

During his short career he only appeared in 5 films but each of them was nominated for an academy award as best picture. Three of them won the award: The Godfather, the Godfather Part II and The Deer Hunter.

In his final film The Deer Hunter he chose to continue acting together with his fiancee Meryl Streep despite being diagnosed with terminal bone cancer and died shortly after completing his role aged 42. The director Michael Cimino rearranged the shooting schedule so that he could film all the scenes first.

12 years after his death he appeared in The Godfather Part III using archival footage.

as Fredo Corleone in The Godfather, with Al Pacino, 1972.

with James Caan, Marlon Brando and Al Pacino.

as before but with Francis Ford Coppola in the center.

In the Conversation, 1974 with Gene Hackman.

as Sal in Dog Day Afternoon, 1975.

with Al Pacino.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=cS61hWuh43Y

The famous “Wyoming scene”. As Sidney Lumet recalls: “To me that was the funniest, saddest line in the movie, and my favorite, because in the script he wasn’t supposed to say anything. I almost ruined the take because I started to laugh so hard… but it was a brilliant, brilliant, ad lib.” “John Cazale … had a tremendous sadness about him.”

with Christopher Walken and Robert de Niro in The Deer Hunter, 1978.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=4onhv63jom8

www.youtube.com/watch?v=V95cSlAu2l8

“I want to hold you so much!”

with his fiancee Meryl Streep.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=exULQJRhS6M

Rest in peace. Eternal membership in the Pride&Dignity hall of fame.

Rock’n'Roll leather part v

uwem — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 20:53:11 +0000

Andy Warhol would have turned 83 today. Hero of pop culture. Master of pop art. King of all big-stylers. Big time narcissistic personality. Invented the stage show and costumes for The Velvet Underground. They had to wear black clothes and sunglasses were a must. He wore many different leather jackets over the years.

with Nico.

with Lou Reed.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgcuU_JWuQU

must have been filmed at the factory. Edie Sedgwick dancing.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjjDmX9Tkss

with Nico, 1968. Stand up collar both on shirt and jacket. Patched chest pocket. Notice the zipper puller.

Andy Warhol with Brian Jones.

with Edie Sedgwick.

Andy Warhol adoring Edie Sedgwick.

with WeeGee.

with Tenessee Williams. Paul Morrissey in the back.

photo by Cecil Beaton.

with Candy Darling.

with Candy Darling at a Lou Reed Concert.

showing his wounds after the attack, 1968. Photo by Richard Avedon.

New York, 1983.

Detroit, 1985

something else: Andy Warhol painting the BMW M1, 1977:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWTlpeeaJZw

Hunter S. Thompson – in memoriam

uwem — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 10:05:52 +0000

Gonzo would have turned 74 today. They don’t make them like that anymore. Smoker of smokers. Boozer. Gunner. Writer like no other. Always with the hand deep into the wounds. Time to remember.

As filmmaker, author and publisher Michael Wiese recalls:

“… after spending a night at Hunter S. Thompson’s cabin in Woody Creek, Colorado, recording commentary tracks for the DVD release of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Reflecting on that peculiar night now, five years after Thompson’s death, I’m struck by how gracious our host was, giving so generously of his time and mind and supplies. It was clear he was struggling physically, but what I remember most about the session is the sense of humor in the room. From the random crank calls at four in the morning to the house full of booby traps like exploding pens and toilet paper that doesn’t unroll, the man really loved to laugh, I think, and that energy was absolutely infectious. When I left in the morning, my face hurt from cracking up. Wherever you are, Hunter, a thousand thanks! Mahalo, mahalo, mahalo. “—Michael Wiese

and on:

“Well, I’ve been to more than a few weird recording sessions for Criterion, but this one definitely takes the cake. On Saturday night, I recorded Hunter S. Thompson, along with his assistant Anita Bejmuk and producer Laila Nabulsi, in his tiny kitchen near Aspen for the upcoming Fear and Loathing disc. I’m sure Herr Ashcroft or one of his fatherland security thugs will get around to screening this e-mail sooner or later, so in the interest of not spending the next fifteen to thirty years in prison, I’ll spare you the gory details until I see you in person. Suffice it to say, the good doctor’s books should not be interpreted as fiction! The freshly dented Red Shark is parked in the driveway, and there’s a collection of stun guns and cattle prods next to the old electric typewriter on the kitchen counter. Years of artifacts and gonzo debris stacked to the ceiling: a Bible beautifully cut into the shape of a pistol, a huge Ralph Steadman portrait of Bob Dylan dressed as Uncle Sam playing a cruciform guitar, Night Porter in the DVD player. The session started about 7:30 p.m., as Hunter was finishing breakfast, and I ended up turning off the tape recorders around 2:30 a.m. Very smart and funny man, constantly in motion but never leaving his chair. Cigarette holder and all, he opens his mouth and those words just spill out . . . I have bite marks on my arm from trying to keep from laughing (I think). It was a sound person’s nightmare/fantasy: squawking peacocks, refrigerator motors, thunderstorms, bug zappers, ice machines, phone calls from people in prison, seemingly random bloodcurdling screams, and the general din of vice. My increasingly wobbly perch was the Exercycle, with decks draped over the handlebars. Pansexual Luther of Aspen (a.k.a. Victor, one of his devil cats) perpetually attacked the damn cables, and we had a subject who couldn’t sit still if his life depended on it (Johnny Depp is a better mimic than you could ever imagine!). I was happy to get anything even vaguely intelligible on tape, but it should be a good piece when it’s cut together. The HST fans are going to flip! When I finally left around five in the morning, after far too many organic radishes and being forced to read the man’s own work aloud in front of him (“Louder!”), he gave me a copy of his book Screw-Jack….”.

journalism is hard work.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFL_rOcmYFo

Hunter S. Thompson at work in his ranch in Aspen, 1976.

with Jann S. Wenner, Rolling Stone party for Jimmy Carter campaign, 1976, by A. Leibovitz

Hunter in Vegas.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfoLKB0VZqg

photo by Annie Leibovitz.

with his wife.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHp2qL5O5A8

It is exactly what happened. Johnny Depp fired the gun with Hunter’s ashes over the mountains at the funeral.

Happy birthday Harry Dean Stanton – a tribute

uwem — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 08:15:17 +0000

the most underrated actor turns 85 today. King of the supporting role. Spent a lifetime just being himself. As film critic Roger Ebert once said: “no movie featuring Harry Dean Stanton in a supporting role can be altogether bad.”

Played a role and performed 4 songs in Cool hand Luke, 1967. Sountrack composed by Lalo Schifrin.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2__Hk1todQ

as the hitchhiker in Two-lane blacktop, 1971

with Kris Kristofferson in Cisco Pike, 1972.

with James Coburn in Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid, 1973.

in The Godfather, part II, 1974.

as Curt in Rancho Deluxe, 1975.

with Jeff Bridges in Rancho Deluxe, 1975.

in The Missouri Breaks, 1976, also starring Jack Nicholson and Marlon Brando.

He was best man to Jack Nicholson at his first wedding to Sandra Knight, 1962.

with Dustin Hoffman in Straight Time, 1978.

in Alien, 1979.

with Isaac Hayes in Escape from New York, 1981.

the lead role as Travis in Wim Wenders’ Paris, Texas, 1984 from a script by Sam Sheppard.

with Hunter Carson in Paris, Texas, 1984.

with Nastasia Kinski in Paris, Texas, 1984.

with Nastasia Kinski and director Wim Wenders.

same year, totally different movie:

with Emilio Estevez in Alex Cox’ Repo Man, 1984.

with Emilio Estevez and Alex Cox.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IzCyp-dwbs

Stanton recalled, “…. I thought Repo Man was a brilliant satire on the whole culture, on everything: violence, religion, desperation of the whole society trying to make it. How a man’s got to have a ‘code.’ “

in David Lynchs Wild at Heart, 1990.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=kc0r4SWjfI4

Played in so many films they cannot all be mentioned here. Watch him e.g. in The last temptation of Jesus Christ. Fear and loathing in Las Vegas. The Green Mile.

Worked for television (CBS’ Gunsmoke, Rawhide and even Two and a half men), starred in music videos “Sorry you asked” by Dwight Yoakam and “Dreamin’ of you” by Bob Dylan and worked as model on fashion shoots.

Sings and plays rhythm and harmonica live with The Harry Dean Stanton Band.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYGPYksv5OA

with Willie Nelson.

with Johnny Depp.

with painter & film maker Julian Schnabel and Mario Cotillard.

He sang at his friend Hunter S. Thompson’s funeral and he is even memorialized in the 1989 song of Blondie “I want that Man” (“I wanna dance with Harry Dean / Drive through Texas in a black limousine …“)

Yet another candidate for the Pride&Dignity hall of fame.

Rock’n'Roll leather part IV

uwem — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 16:00:55 +0000

searching the web for photos by The Clash is great fun. There are numerous cool photos showing the band or members of the band and it seems no outfit was complete back in the heydays of Punk without a leather jacket.

one, two, threee Perfectos.

three more Perfectos and the un-avoidable Creepers.

London, The 100Club: guy in the front row of the audience is indeed Shane McGowan of the later Pogues, then known as Shane O’Hooligan.

kickin’ the jams with MC 5′s Rob Tyner, London, 1977.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBt3_TuhuEw

The same year, Manchester, The Elizabethan Ballroom.

London, 1976: Paul Simonon with his Jackson-Pollock-styled bass guitar, fresh out of artschool.

Joe Strummer in one of many leather jackets.

another one.

with a Mohawk.

no idea who gets kissed here.

with Al Fields, David Johansen of the New York Dolls and Blondies’ Debby Harry, NYC, 1979.

greeting Andy Warhol and Susan Blond, Shea Stadium, NYC, 1982.

no access to the lounge in leather.

C’mon, we all know promo shots suck big time but we’re you serious?

Anyhow some of the promo shots come across a bit boygroup-gay-ish, or is it just me? See here:

or this?

Joe with Robert de Niro.

Joe with William S. Burroughs

Joe with Henry Rollins and Johnny Cash.

1989, solo with Earthquake Weather.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1Gn0e7kvTA

You should have stayed…. R.I.P., John Graham Mellor.