I stared at the sun and she stared right back

[sovay]

In his memoir In Spite of Myself (2008), Christopher Plummer tells a set of very funny and wincing stories about the time he was trapped in the original 1956 Broadway production of Arch Oboler's Night of the Auk, a science fiction verse drama which garnered a flurry of bemused and sarcastic reviews for its unvarnished message and sententious medium before closing, like the fondest dreams of Max Bialystock, after eight performances. The conceit of the triumphantly returning crew of the first manned mission to the moon discovering as they lock in for splashdown that the earth beneath them has broken out in nuclear war had worked when staged for radio in the half-hour shock-topical form of "Rocket from Manhattan," first aired on Arch Oboler's Plays in September 1945. Expanded and rewritten for the post-war theater, however:

Perhaps the most accurate assessment of the work and the tidiest summation of the audience's general perplexity came in the form of an opening-night telegram sent to me by the actor Jack Warden. How he got it through the mail service, I'll never know, for it simply read, "What the fuck's an Auk?!"

Of the five members of the cast, Plummer writes that Claude Rains alone escaped unscathed—playing the scientist of the expedition, he was stuck with most of the philosophizing, but managed through sensitive reading and long experience "to make it all sound like Milton or Wordsworth." Plummer, on the other hand, bonded with Wendell Corey over their mutual inability to turn any kind of naturalistic effect out of their high-strung scenes without being yelled at by Oboler, who having ignored all suggestions from producer Kermit Bloomgarden to temper the obstructive dialogue had moved on to interfering with the direction by Sidney Lumet.

He had been one of radio's most prolific writers and among the first to make a feature film in 3-D, the film process introduced into cinemas for which you were forced to put on goggles of dark glass in order to view the images on the screen. Looking like an early motorist, you would watch the action in laser-sharp relief leap out at you in aggressive three-dimensional proximity. That was all very fine, but upon removing the offending spectacles you became strangely disoriented, a trifle dizzy and, in some cases, engulfed in nausea. After my first 3-D encounter (Bwana Devil), there was no other. I had, in fact, been quite seasick. I told this to Wendell who, every time an altercation arose with the stubborn little author, would whisper violently in my ear, "Go on! Quick! Tell him you puked at his film! Tell 'im now!"

All this is by way of explaining that the minute I saw the Film Forum announcing BWANA DEVIL in 3-D! I heard the shoulder devil of Wendell Corey and cracked up.

Comments

[theseatheseatheopensea]

I told this to Wendell who, every time an altercation arose with the stubborn little author, would whisper violently in my ear, "Go on! Quick! Tell him you puked at his film! Tell 'im now!"

That's hilarious, but also very relatable! I remember that I nearly threw up after I watched Avatar in 3D, and couldn't tell if it was because of the glasses (which I obviously had to wear over mine), or because the movie was so bad! XD

Now I'm remembering that Wendell Corey also has a man-eating feline movie in his resumé, but in his case it's tiger (or a leopard, I'm not sure, this was buried in my memory until this moment for a reason--it's pretty bad, but at least it's not in 3D!)

[sovay]

I remember that I nearly threw up after I watched Avatar in 3D, and couldn't tell if it was because of the glasses (which I obviously had to wear over mine), or because the movie was so bad!

I watched it without the 3-D glasses and it didn't help.

Now I'm remembering that Wendell Corey also has a man-eating feline movie in his resumé, but in his case it's tiger (or a leopard, I'm not sure, this was buried in my memory until this moment for a reason--it's pretty bad, but at least it's not in 3D!)

Man-Eater of Kumaon (1948)! Good Lord, there's a strikingly unfuzzy copy on YouTube. Now I'll have to watch it.

[theseatheseatheopensea]

Man-Eater of Kumaon (1948)! Good Lord, there's a strikingly unfuzzy copy on YouTube. Now I'll have to watch it.

\o/ (I'm glad that the other cats he shared screen time with were smaller...)

[rushthatspeaks]

Honestly, a horrific flop starring Claude Rains, Wendell Corey, and Christopher Plummer, directed by Sidney Lumet, and interfered with/destroyed/brought into existence in the first place by Arch Oboler sounds as though someone ought to make a motion picture out of it on its own merits. It could be a perfect screwball.

[sovay]

Honestly, a horrific flop starring Claude Rains, Wendell Corey, and Christopher Plummer, directed by Sidney Lumet, and interfered with/destroyed/brought into existence in the first place by Arch Oboler sounds as though someone ought to make a motion picture out of it on its own merits.

When you put it that way, it does sound like the Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark of its day. But who do you think could play Claude Rains? (My brain supplied Chris Evans for Plummer.)

[rushthatspeaks]

Jared Harris, but he might be too old? Tobias Menzies?

[sovay]

Jared Harris, but he might be too old? Tobias Menzies?

Claude Rains was in his mid-sixties in 1956 and I'll watch Jared Harris in anything: sold.

[muccamukk]

I always did wonder what the play had to do with the extinct seabird, but no one has ever told me.

[sovay]

I always did wonder what the play had to do with the extinct seabird, but no one has ever told me.

I believe the common theme is extinction, but I haven't yet managed to make myself read the script to be sure.

[shewhomust]

Oh, I see - I had been wondering. Not all auks are extinct, of course, but that does make a sort of sense.

[muccamukk]

I can only think of auklets, but maybe that's a Pacific thing. I do feel like it's an odd choice of extinct animal, given "What the fuck is an auk?" must have been a common reaction.

ETA: Though I guess you mean auk = alcid generally, which isn't local usage for me, but again may be a Pacific thing.

[shewhomust]

I admit to being puffin-obsessed - but we do also have little auks in the North Atlantic (as winter visitors, at any rate...)

[sovay]

I admit to being puffin-obsessed - but we do also have little auks in the North Atlantic (as winter visitors, at any rate...)

I'm not convinced Arch Oboler knew his seabirds.

[thanate]

I continue to be confused as to why the people who advertise these things think "a lion in your lap" is a selling point.

...so knowing this, are you more inclined to go see it, or is Plummer's nausea a sufficient deterrent?

[sovay]

...so knowing this, are you more inclined to go see it, or is Plummer's nausea a sufficient deterrent?

We're thinking it over. If it weren't in New York, we'd have tickets already. (Under any circumstances, we do not expect it to be good.)

[thanate]

Fair-- New York is a bit of a hike for voluntary nausea, even with a gloriously horrible movie to inspire it.

[thanate]

(tho should you make the trek, I look forward to your write-up afterwards!)

[sovay]

(tho should you make the trek, I look forward to your write-up afterwards!)

(Understood! I can only hope it would be bad enough to justify the trip.)

[ethelmay]

"Arch Oboler" has big anagram energy, but all I am getting from the Rearrangement Servant is stuff like "Rehab Color" and "Crab Lore Ho." Oh, and I guess "Barrel Coho," if you want something easy to shoot.

[sovay]

Oh, and I guess "Barrel Coho," if you want something easy to shoot.

I'll applaud that.

[gwynnega]

This whole production sounds more like one of your dreams than something that really happened!

[sovay]

This whole production sounds more like one of your dreams than something that really happened!

I like to think if I'd dreamed it, the play wouldn't have sucked!

[moon_custafer]

If only it had been a musical!

[thisbluespirit]

LOL, that's amazing. XD And, to think, you could also throw up at it like Christopher Plummer if you really wanted, I suppose.

[sovay]

And, to think, you could also throw up at it like Christopher Plummer if you really wanted, I suppose.

Mercifully I have little track record of throwing up, but it could still be that bad!

[moon_custafer]

Oboler, who having ignored all suggestions from producer Kermit Bloomgarden to temper the obstructive dialogue had moved on to interfering with the direction by Sidney Lumet.

Oh dear lord. I’ve been in/seen shows with that kind of thing going on behind the scenes; but at least it wasn’t usually the writer interfering with the direction (usually it was the other way round, which gets “interesting” when the writer is Shakespeare or Jonson)

I’ve never actually been to a 3D movie, so I don’t know how I’d react. I remain fond of SCTV’s various spoofs in which the medium was always represented by someone holding up an object to the camera lens as a “spooky” sound played.

[sovay]

Oh dear lord. I’ve been in/seen shows with that kind of thing going on behind the scenes; but at least it wasn’t usually the writer interfering with the direction (usually it was the other way round, which gets “interesting” when the writer is Shakespeare or Jonson)

I have to ask what happened with the Jonson.

I’ve never actually been to a 3D movie, so I don’t know how I’d react.

I saw Scorsese's Hugo in 3-D in 2011 and found the effect distracting but not disorienting. I liked the movie on its own terms very much. The technological experience did not inspire me to watch more movies in 3-D.

I remain fond of SCTV’s various spoofs in which the medium was always represented by someone holding up an object to the camera lens as a “spooky” sound played.

Doctor Tongue's 3-D House of Cats!

[moon_custafer]

Also, Dr. Tongue’s 3D House of Pancakes (“Would you like to… SEE THE MENU?” *oooweeeeeooooowooooo*), and Tip O’Neil’s 3D House of Representatives (“Here, sign this… BILL!” *oooweeeeeoooooowoooo*)

[oracne]

ROFLMAO!

[sovay]

ROFLMAO!

I had to tell someone!