“Rosemary’s Baby”

There’s Lucy and the chocolates, Felix at the I.R.S. and Rosemary and her thermos.

I’ve always wanted to write a piece about my TV top fifty comedy episodes. 30 Rock’s “Rosemary’s Baby”, where Carrie Fisher plays Liz Lemon’s aging comedy writer idol would land in my top five. 

There’s so much going on here – three insane plot lines – that I could not begin to do it justice. You simply have to see it to believe it. And when you do, you’ll recognize great writing, acting, and directing. Not surprisingly, Alec Baldwin received a Primetime Emmy award and writer Jack Burditt and director Michael Engler both received Emmy nominations for the episode.

As much as I love “Rosemary’s Baby”, watching it is a bittersweet experience. The real-life mother and daughter story ended tragically in late 2016, when Fisher, who had multiple health issues, suffered a cardiac arrest at age 60, and Reynolds had a stroke and died the next day.

Summer Reading

“This, by the way, is your curse. And I say this about you all the time. You’re a gifted, gifted actor who is cursed with the mind of a writer.” – Jerry Seinfeld

I love old movies. And I love a good movie star bio. For many school vacations, when I was a teenager, this was what summer reading was all about. The first one I remember is Lauren Bacall’s By Myself. Veronica Lake’s, The Autobiography, was pretty powerful. I haven’t read one in a while, but I must say Alec Baldwin’s Nevertheless has rapidly made it to number one on my top ten.

As a kid, I read these books because I wanted the dirt. Now, I’m compelled by the stories. And Alec Baldwin is a master storyteller. If laughter is the best medicine, then the great comic will always win me over. It wasn’t until I watched 30 Rock – repeatedly -- that I began to appreciate the comic genius that is Alec Baldwin.

Nevertheless, however, is no comic work. Here is the Baldwin I knew nothing about, growing up amongst multiple siblings in a Long Island home awash in laundry and bills, Baldwin’s father a high school English instructor barely able to make ends meet. Apart from anything else, his story is a scathing indictment of the education system in America.

Normally, I would always buy the book, but this time I sprang for Audible because I wanted to hear the author read his words. And boy, was it worth it. Baldwin’s timing is measured and precise, in contrast to his lighting fast and almost manic comic deliveries. This, in combination with his understanding of suspense, makes the work all the more compelling.

Can’t wait to catch up with Chapter 7…