Oh, I've watched reruns of 77 Sunset Strip recently with
enjoyment but the enjoyment in the episodes I've seen is
primarily nostalgic. I enjoy watching all those old WB shows
not because they recreate a period in America because they
don't, other than such things as the cars and hairstyles and
not because they are particularly good. I enjoy seeing the
old actors going (usually rather stiffly) through their paces
and often laugh out loud at how much the writers could get
away with in those days. I have fonder memories of Peter Gunn
but I have not watched one in many years. Some of the Johnny
Staccato episodes are quite good. There is one with Cloris
Leachman that is stunning.
Do you really think Kookie's dialog is an accurate reflection
of the patter as spoken by hipsters circa 1960?
Richard Moore
--- In
rara-avis-l@yahoogroups.com, "Jeff Vorzimmer"
<jvorzimmer@...> wrote:
>
> > wonder if it would hold up? Mysteries too tied
to music trends
or
> > hipster lingo date very badly. It's like
watching a rerun of "77
> > Sunset Strip" and listening to Kookie go
through his patter. Too
> > gone Daddy.
>
> I've been watching reruns of 77 Sunset Strip lately
and I'll have
to say
> that they're actually as good as I remember them. I
disagree with
your point
> on slang. To say something is "dated" suggests
you're talking about
a story
> from the not-too-distant-past, in which their is a
lot of slang
from a
> period in which it has just recently been out of
vogue. If you're
reading
> the same story or watching a show like 77SS 50 years
later it helps
recreate
> the whole time period and can be nostaglic (if
you're old enough),
fresh
> again, or new to you (if you weren''t around then)
and interesting
to hear
> the patter as spoken by hipsters circa 1960. I laugh
when I hear
Kookie
> again all these years later, just like we laughed at
him then. Same
as
> hearing Wilbur again in Peter Gunn. It's a gas,
man.
>
> Haven't read Bloch's Dead Beat, but I just recently
read Markson's
Epitaph
> for a Dead Beat and the beatnik lingo really helps
recreate the
time period.
>
> Jeff
>
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