A few thoughts about recent events:
POTHOLES: Experienced drivers expected potholes to sprout all over the place considering the winter weather weƵve had, but how many of us expected so many of them, and such large ones?
Huntington Mayor Patrick Farrell told City Council Monday evening that two crews from the Public Works Department are cold-patching potholes on city streets. ThatƵs good, because Wednesday evening I found a couple of new ones that surprised me by their size.
This past weekend I was on Green Valley Road out in Cabell County for the first time in a while. State road crews will spend a few hours or days there filling in those big ones if they havenƵt already.
Spring canƵt come soon enough.
GENE HACKMAN: The death of actor Gene Hackman at age 95 has led movie fans to reflect on the movies he was in and the roles he played. Many people will pick ƵHoosiers,Ƶ the fictional story based on a real-life Indiana basketball team that won a state championship in the 1950s, as their favorite.
ƵHoosiersƵ was indeed a showcase for HackmanƵs skill as an actor. The movie had a few good characters but several stereotypical ones, and the plot was a predictable one for a sports movie. One thing about the movie stood out for me, and it had little to do with Hackman. It was Jerry GoldsmithƵs score, specifically in the opening title sequence.
That sequence starts at sunrise, with HackmanƵs character driving through the rural southern Indiana countryside on his way to become the new basketball coach at Hickory High School. It begins with a four-lane highway on flat land. The trip soon moves to rural roads through countryside thatƵs both flat and hilly. His green two-door 1951 Chevrolet Skyline Deluxe passes farms and boys shooting basketball with the rims attached to a barn. He crosses a steel bridge similar to those that once were common in this area but have been replaced. He drives through a small town where someone is burning leaves and old farmers stand beside their trucks talking about something or other. He stops at a country store with a single gas pump out front.
If you remember this region in the 1960s Ƶ primarily its rural areas and small towns Ƶ then these scenes overflow with nostalgia. IƵve never been to the places used in filming ƵHoosiers,Ƶ but I remember them.
The scenery is outstanding, but GoldsmithƵs score behind it makes it memorable. I watch it about twice a month Ƶ once for the nostalgia and once for the music.
ThereƵs no question that John Williams wrote most of the memorable movie soundtracks from the 1970s onward, but Goldsmith was a musical force, too. Among his credits are the soundtracks for several ƵStar TrekƵ movies, including one that was recycled for ƵStar Trek: The Next Generation,Ƶ the Disney animated version of ƵMulan,Ƶ and the Sylvester Stallone movie ƵFirst Blood.Ƶ There were many more. He also wrote theme music for several television shows in the 1960s and 1970s.
Yet HackmanƵs performance stood out in ƵHoosiers,Ƶ and it would have been another forgettable feel-good sports movie without him, even with GoldsmithƵs score.
OSCARS: The Oscar ceremony Ƶ excuse, the Academy Awards Ƶ are scheduled for Sunday evening. I havenƵt paid much attention to them since ƵThe Lord of the Rings: The Return of the KingƵ did well about a decade ago. Since then the Academy has tended to reward films I havenƵt seen and actors I havenƵt heard of. ThatƵs understandable, as IƵm not exactly the demographic that the smart and beautiful people in Hollywood want to appeal to.
The best joke IƵve heard about the Oscar ceremony came from Jeff Foxworthy: If you have boycotted the Academy Awards since ƵSmokey and the BanditƵ was snubbed for Best Picture, you might be a redneck.
