2015 was a great year for movie and television watching. Not only did I get to see FOUR FLIES ON GREY VELVET (Argento) and WHITE ZOMBIE (featuring Bela Lugosi) in 35mm, I had the occasion to watch quite a few great Westerns on DVD this year, including TWO FLAGS WEST (Robert Wise) and RAWHIDE (Henry Hathaway). As far as my TV watching, this year was all about catching up on Doctor Who (Pertwee years and Peter Capaldi), starting to watch HOMELAND on DVD as well as ARROW, TURN: WASHINGTON’S SPIES, and BLACK SAILS.
I’m going to try to expand my appreciation for, and knowledge of, Fritz Lang’s films, 1970s disaster films, and James Stewart’s Western films this year. As far as TV, lots more of HOMELAND and I also want to start watching some of the BBC series that have come out the past couple years
This will be a year of deacquisitioning for me. I have accumulated far too many books than I will ever have time to read. It’s time to find new homes for many of them. Perhaps a resolution of ten books out for every book added is in order, maybe more.
I think the direction and content of this blog will stay the same. I have many old reviews of my own that I plan to keep posting, and whatever I watch or read now almost always deserves a mention, or at least I think so.
I’m also sure that the current contributors to this blog will also continue along the same lines as they have. I thank them all for allowing me to post their words here.
I promised to read and review old Gold Medal paperbacks around this time last year, and that resolution went as far as most resolutions do. I won’t make that same promise again, but I can’t go wrong if I continue to try.
Except for a small group of authors, I find that I am reading almost no science fiction or westerns any more. There’s enough variety in what’s included in what’s generally called crime fiction that I can stay entirely within that field and never get bored.
And if I do, temporarily, there’s so much to watch on DVD, both movies and TV in all genres, that I needn’t ever run out. The biggest question is always what should I watch next? Then spend 20 or 30 minutes trying to decide. I don’t suppose that that ever happens to you.
Steve, Your first paragraph reminds me of something a friend of mine once said, “There’s no such thing as having too many books.” I think he regretted having said it, but he was young at the time. I was once asked to talk before a Victorian Literature class once and was introduced as having the fourth largest library in town. Instead of taking it as a warning I took it as a description I needed to continue to earn. May we both continue to dispose of more than we take in during the new year.
December 31st, 2015 at 11:34 pm
Happy New Year!
January 1st, 2016 at 12:04 am
Happy New Year!
2015 was a great year for movie and television watching. Not only did I get to see FOUR FLIES ON GREY VELVET (Argento) and WHITE ZOMBIE (featuring Bela Lugosi) in 35mm, I had the occasion to watch quite a few great Westerns on DVD this year, including TWO FLAGS WEST (Robert Wise) and RAWHIDE (Henry Hathaway). As far as my TV watching, this year was all about catching up on Doctor Who (Pertwee years and Peter Capaldi), starting to watch HOMELAND on DVD as well as ARROW, TURN: WASHINGTON’S SPIES, and BLACK SAILS.
January 1st, 2016 at 1:06 am
Happy New Year to all!
Goodness, Jonathan, that’s a lot of catching up you did. I hope you can continue at that pace in 2016.
January 1st, 2016 at 2:04 am
I’m going to try to expand my appreciation for, and knowledge of, Fritz Lang’s films, 1970s disaster films, and James Stewart’s Western films this year. As far as TV, lots more of HOMELAND and I also want to start watching some of the BBC series that have come out the past couple years
January 1st, 2016 at 8:27 am
This will be a year of deacquisitioning for me. I have accumulated far too many books than I will ever have time to read. It’s time to find new homes for many of them. Perhaps a resolution of ten books out for every book added is in order, maybe more.
I think the direction and content of this blog will stay the same. I have many old reviews of my own that I plan to keep posting, and whatever I watch or read now almost always deserves a mention, or at least I think so.
I’m also sure that the current contributors to this blog will also continue along the same lines as they have. I thank them all for allowing me to post their words here.
I promised to read and review old Gold Medal paperbacks around this time last year, and that resolution went as far as most resolutions do. I won’t make that same promise again, but I can’t go wrong if I continue to try.
Except for a small group of authors, I find that I am reading almost no science fiction or westerns any more. There’s enough variety in what’s included in what’s generally called crime fiction that I can stay entirely within that field and never get bored.
And if I do, temporarily, there’s so much to watch on DVD, both movies and TV in all genres, that I needn’t ever run out. The biggest question is always what should I watch next? Then spend 20 or 30 minutes trying to decide. I don’t suppose that that ever happens to you.
January 1st, 2016 at 11:46 am
Steve, Your first paragraph reminds me of something a friend of mine once said, “There’s no such thing as having too many books.” I think he regretted having said it, but he was young at the time. I was once asked to talk before a Victorian Literature class once and was introduced as having the fourth largest library in town. Instead of taking it as a warning I took it as a description I needed to continue to earn. May we both continue to dispose of more than we take in during the new year.
January 1st, 2016 at 5:05 pm
Looking forward to another year of this treasure-filled blog, Steve.
January 1st, 2016 at 6:21 pm
Am very much looking forward to more of this blog too.