You had to know this one would show up sooner or later.
Shortly after this video came out, an hour-or-so-long documentary, The Making of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller,”came out on cable, and my mom recorded it for my siblings and me because, of course, we were huge Michael Jackson fans, just like most of the rest of the industrialized world in the 1980s. We watched it repeatedly, learning the behind-the-scenes awesomeness of the creation of this mini-movie. In it we saw the multiple layers of make-up and special effects required to transform him from himself to the various creatures he becomes in this video, and we also got to see just how exuberant and hyperactive his personality was in rehearsal. He was like a kid.
Anyway, this is a Hallowe’en staple. I hope your holiday is wonderful.
So, the Space City Weather blog — which, by the way, is a competent, no-hype, really enjoyable source for meteorological information pertaining to Houston — is declaring this Fall Day, because somewhat cooler weather has finally arrived, and it’s likely we have seen the last of the summer-like weather for this year. (Let us hope so!)
I could not find the original music video for Don Henley’s “Boys of Summer,” which has meant, in my mind, the end of the summer ever since the song first became a hit in 1984. If you ever do find the original video for it, check it out, because it’s quite a fabulous thing. Here’s what Wikipedia has to say about it, and they’re not wrong:
The music video to “The Boys of Summer” is a French New Wave-influenced piece directed by Jean-Baptiste Mondino. Shot in black-and-white, it shows the main character of the song at three different stages of life (as a young boy, a young adult and middle-aged), in each case reminiscing about the past relationship. This is shown during the line “A little voice inside my head said don’t look back, you can never look back” at which point, each of the three people look back in turn. The young boy in the video, played by seven-year-old Josh Paul,[12] resembles a young Don Henley. The girl in the music video is played by Audie England.
Interspersed with these scenes are segments of Henley miming the words of the song while driving in a convertible. At its conclusion, the video uses the post-modern concept of exposing its own workings, as with a wry expression Henley drives the car away from a rear projection screen.
This song has been stuck in my head and in my kids’ heads and in my husband’s head for most of the last week. (Blame it on my iPod.)
And it’s totally danceable. In fact we cannot stop dancing when it comes on. Except for my husband, who doesn’t really love dancing all that much. (Ah well.)
I’ve been visiting New York City off and on the last few days. It’s been a good vacation, but I think I’ve had enough of Manhattan for a while. That is one more crowded city.
So here, enjoy this gem from the amazing and gorgeous and talented Eartha Kitt, who was incidentally also my first (and possibly still my favorite) Catwoman.
Sappho's Torque 