SIRK: TARNISHED A[ngels]
[via Faulkner’s PYLON]
Something ‘s the matter with my typewriter;
I left it behind
reading
kicks one way or the other.
Time for tomorrow’s race
asking
Roger to squirm—-
ninety proof fiction,
in the last hour my vision ‘s become blurred.
Should move on,
heaven knows when I’ll be able to talk to anyone.
Engine ‘ll do the talking for you /
don’t make any promises.
A muddy bottom down there.
Barry Alpert / Silver Spring, MD US / 8-10-05 (5:39 PM)
I didn’t drive to the American Film Institute last night determined to
write during my first viewing of Douglas Sirk’s 1958 black & white
cinemascope feature (screenplay adapted by William Faulkner & George
Zuckerman). In fact, I got a late start and expected to arrive 5-10
minutes into the screening. When I found that the coming attractions were
still rolling, I decided to celebrate by treating myself to a writing
possibility. The title/procedure was concocted on the spot, and when the
film concluded I felt confident I could develop my rough draft into a
snapshot representative of the film as a whole. I should mention
that “Roger” references Roger Schumann, WWI ace fighter pilot whom we
observe within the Depression-era setting of the film racing planes around
pylon-marked courses on a gypsy circuit not unlike that of the rodeo.
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