vip in the city

How have the mighty fallen

It felt much longer due to the non-stop coverage, but in reality it was only two days after the news of the scandal first came out before New York got a new governor.

The New York Times broke out the full 12-inch banner headline: “Spitzer Resigns.” The Post, ever classy, added “And don’t let the door hit you on the way out.”

I felt deeply sad as I listened to Spitzer’s resignation on the radio in my office, though below on Wall Street, where the man had few friends, there were some cheers. New York magazine offered a rather comprehensive package analyzing the week’s events.

And of course, The Daily Show weighed in with their own snarky commentary on the resignation. Correspondent John Oliver on the Spitzer legacy: “A seven-diamond governor… He said he’d clean up the government, and by leaving, he’s done just that.”

Tags: governor, John Oliver, Spitzer, The Daily Show

Wouldn’t it be loverly?

When I read that My Fair Lady was going to be playing at the MoMA as part of “Rex Harrison: A Centenary Tribute” (March 5–24, 2008), I knew I would find the time to go. The 1964 film is one of my all-time favorites – one of three musicals to which I can sing along to just about every song. (The others are The Sound of Music and West Side Story.)

Roger Ebert called My Fair Lady “the best and most unlikely of musicals…The songs are literate and beloved; some romantic, some comic, some nonsense, some surprisingly philosophical, every single one wonderful.”

Controversy surrounded the casting of Audrey Hepburn instead of Julie Andrews for the part of Eliza Doolittle; Andrews had originated the role on stage to great acclaim, but producer and Warner Bros. Studio head Jack L. Warner chose established movie actress Hepburn for her greater box-office appeal. My Fair Lady went on to be nominated for twelve Oscars, winning eight (including best picture, actor and director). Hepburn, whose songs were (in)famously dubbed by Marni Nixon, was not nominated for Best Actress that year; ironically, Andrews was nominated… and won for Mary Poppins. In his Academy Award acceptance speech, Rex Harrison, the man who had played Professor Henry Higgins opposite them both, thanked “two fair ladies.”

The MoMA theater was packed tonight with fellow devotees of Hepburn and Harrison’s repartee, Lerner & Loewe’s classic songs and photographer Cecil Beaton’s delightful costumes.

The My Fair Lady DVD has a dual soundtrack, which features two songs with Hepburn’s original singing voice so listeners can judge for themselves how inadequate it was. (Contrast the scene with Nixon’s final cut here.) Interestingly, Harrison himself, despite extensive vocal training, was unable to sing his role either, which resulted in his signature quasi-speaking song delivery throughout the film. Sexy Rexy’s deliciously patrician tones reportedly inspired the voice of Stewie Griffin on “Family Guy”.

Tags: Audrey Hepburn, films, Julie Andrews, MoMA, musicals, My Fair Lady, Rex Harrison

Shock and awe

What a day.

When news of the scandal first broke on The New York Times website (via the Metro Desk) shortly after 2PM yesterday afternoon, the details were scant. (“Spitzer Is Linked to Prostitution Ring“? How maddeningly vague!) Like most New Yorkers, I was caught up in this story, not just because the coverage was relentless and unavoidable, but because the unfolding sordid tale was just so shocking and incomprehensible.

The headline writers at the New York City tabloids live for times like these, and over the course of the day there was much speculation (and off-color suggestions) over what would be emblazoned on the front pages around the city. For sure, The Post could be counted upon to rise — or sink — to the occasion; these were the people that brought us “Axis of Weasel” in January 2003, after all.

That night, David Letterman listed the “Top Ten Messages Left on Eliot Spitzer’s Answering Machine” (#7: “Hi, I’m calling from the ‘New York Post.‘ Would you rather be known as ‘Disgraced Governor Perv’ or ‘Humiliated Whore Fiend’?)

After the initial shock of Monday afternoon wore off, I was left with a feeling of deep disappointment that extended well beyond the personal failings of one man. HYB reminded me of a passage from Douglas Adams’s The Restaurant at the End of the Universe, which I last read over two decades ago:

To summarize: it is a well-known fact that those people who most want to rule people are, ipso facto, those least suited to do it.
To summarize the summary: anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job.
To summarize the summary of the summary: people are a problem.

Tags: governor, scandals, Spitzer