Comments Show 21 - Mad with Phantom!

Apropos of nothing from this ep: I've really been enjoying the BBC Whisperer in Darkness Podcast, which features modern rewrites of Lovecraft tales in a faux-investigative podcast format. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p06spb8w/episodes/player

Androgyny for the win!

What is it about?

One of the things I've always really liked about goth culture is how relatively relaxed the social norms around gender performance are. Are you a guy who wants to wear eyeliner and jam out to the Phantom of the Opera soundtrack? NBD, so do all the other cool guys. Want to do all that while wearing a frilly pirate shirt? So much the better. In fact, the chicks will love it. I see what you're saying about how all music and poetry and, when you get down to it, almost any art form, could be considered feminine by modern standards because art is inherently emotional. But that hasn't always been the case. It was a big thing, apparently, for vikings to come home and compose poems about their raids and battles (usually on the spot). Poetry was considered to be a gift from Odin and was one of the most highly regarded forms of art. So, historically, it's perfectly manly to get down to the Lost Boys soundtrack, just make sure you do so while drinking enough mead to kill a small ox.

You have my sincere condolences.

I could shoot a rabbit out of their hat. Or a balloon animal out of their butt.

I just pictured a crime thriller starring Danielle in which the climax involves her effort to snipe a person or persons with magic tricks, like how David Blaine throws cards through solid matter.

And I hope my tombstone has an airbrushed wizard battling a viking and riding tiger!

"His entire story could be told on the side of a van." I do hope this is on my tombstone.

WHO DID THE CAR BELONG TO?!!!

Alan Ricks

I really want you to cover Bunicula now. April's just around the corner...

Regarding "Phantom of the Opera" adaptations, they seem to be plagued by indecision and post-production meddling. There were the various reshoots and re-edits as you mentioned for the Lon Chaney classic. For the Claude Rains version, it was decided to reshoot additional scenes of comedy to replace some of the darker material, and to remove the revelation that Erik was Christine's father. The ending of the Hammer version was softened by removing lengthy shots of the Phantom's disfigured face, also omitting the ultimate fate of Michael Gough's character. There was an initial hope to land Cary Grant in the title role for this version, and so the script was rewritten to make the Phantom a tragic antihero while all evil doings were perpetrated by the lecherous theatre own (Michael Gough) and a mute henchman of the Phantom's who goes around killing people, much to the Phantom's annoyance. While not spoiled by any post-production issues as far as I'm aware, the Robert Englund film was written with the intent that a sequel would be produced wherein the immortal Phantom now lives in the Manhattan sewers, hence the present day bookend to the film. It's also the only major adaptation of the story not to feature the infamous chandelier, the omission being a budgetary decision. Then of course there's film version of the musical, which was maligned by a restrictive budget owing to Webber's producing the film himself, and the baffling decision to cast people without musical backgrounds. More like Phantom of the Karaoke Bar.

Sad day indeed--I've finally caught up with the latest episode of the show. No more binging! What am I supposed to do now? Listen to other podcasts? Read a book? TALK TO PEOPLE? Screw that noise. The only thing to do is start over at the beginning and relive every moment of horror and hilarity. You guys have been constant companions over the last several weeks as I've prepared for my first feature film, which starts shooting TOMORROW! If the endeavor doesn't kill me, I look forward to cuddling up with you guys when it's over to help assuage the deep post-project depression that is sure to come. I love this show dearly. Thank you guys for keeping my ears warm on cold nights. Yes, I said cuddling.

I recently discovered that somebody I went to school with has made a career as a professional pickup artist. I stumbled across an article about him in The Guardian and spent an hour searching the internet, to confirm it was really him. Unfortunately, the algorithms at Google have now decided I'm a sexually frustrated misoginyst. All my targeted ads are for pickup seminars and dating coaches.

Hey Chad, don't knock goofy vampires. Every undead Breakfast Club has to have one. Of course, you, and anyone, would want to be a blood sucking Bender, but somebody has to write the essay (and hide the hemoglobin in their shorts). Sorry, I'll get off the Hughes kick in a moment.

Yeah those Greek pronunciations'll getcha.

Mandy Reznor (She_It)

LOL! Turns you into Frasier Crane!!

FYI, for people who want to see historical sexual harassment in silent film, go to about 1:11:20 in the New York cut: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hf2vfULRj_U

Heh-Ka-Tea.

Steve

It's a sign! I kid you not, I was just washing dishes, listening to the show, when an errant thought popped into my head - that i should really work on some of the stories I started. And then you read my comment. Better get typing. I'll start tomorrow!

Thanks for covering all two thousand of my comments! I commented so many times because I listened to all four Phantom episodes during a long 6 hour layover while flying back to school after Christmas break. So, while listening I had nothing better to do than to ramble on about a nearly hundred year old film that I may have seen too many times. Thanks for all the great content which kept me sane during the hellishly long wait. (Just a note: I actually read the entirety of The Invisible Man and listened to the podcast episodes on the way home for Christmas, HPPodcraft is a travel tradition!)