From Peabody to Sea Bodies
By Steve Herte
As
years are added to my life I appreciate more and more the power of
memories. My niece Julie and her husband James are on a mission to
visit all of the national parks and will be touring Badlands National
Parks and Mount Rushmore this year with my sister Kathy and her
husband Rob. My travel memories were stirred as I searched through my
multitude of photo albums for a picture of RoseAnn to post on
Facebook. It was an Easter Sunday on the island of Montserrat (before
the volcano blew for three years) and we were all there on a glorious
Eastern Caribbean day to attend her husband Tony’s graduation from
the American University of the Caribbean School of Medicine. While
searching for this photo I found the album of our cruise along the
West Coast of Mexico in 1984 (Yikes, 30 years ago!) on Sitmar Cruise
Line (now Princess) aboard the Fairsea. Now that was a
real cruise ship! Not like these top-heavy floating cities where
everyone has a balcony. (Frankly, I’m scared to board one of
those.)
Memories
make elders repetitive because they love to relive them over and
over. But that’s also how family histories are passed down. I think
I’ve memorized my father’s entire life by now and that of every
family member he knew. But I have my own memories as well. The
cartoons of my childhood still remain funny when I think back on
them. I can set myself laughing at any moment. (Sometimes
inappropriately so.) I can quote them and recall famous pieces of
music from them. Of course Mr. Peabody & Sherman are among
these and I was curious to see what today’s writers would do with
my cherished memories. I was most pleasantly surprised. Enjoy!
Mr.
Peabody & Sherman (DreamWorks,
Bullwinkle Studios, 2014) – Director: Rob Minkoff. Writers: Jay
Ward (based on the series produced by), Craig Wright (s/p), Robert
Ben Garant, and Thomas Lennon (additional dialogue). Voices: Ty
Burrell, Max Charles, Lauri Fraser, Guillaume Aretos, Patrice A.
Musick, Ariel Winter, Karan Brar, Stephen Tobolowsky, Allison Janney,
Dennis Haysbert, Stephen Colbert, Leslie Mann, Zach Callison, Stanley
Tucci, Patrick Warburton, Mel Brooks, & Jess Harnell. Rated PG.
Color, 92 minutes
“Where
are we going today Mr. Peabody?” “The more correct question,
Sherman, is when?”
Followers
of The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show remember these
lines from every episode. And then off they would go on an adventure
in history via the marvelous “WABAC” machine. We could always
expect some famous character to be helped into greatness by them and
a grand pun from Mr. Peabody at the end. What we didn’t know was
how Mr. Peabody became the most brilliant dog in the world and how
and when he met and adopted Sherman. This movie cites the beginnings
for both.
Nobody
wanted to adopt Mr. Peabody as a puppy because he wouldn’t do all
the required, pointless things every dog does when commanded i.e.,
bark, fetch, beg, shaking hands. When he realized this, he turned to
the pursuit of knowledge instead, eventually gaining all possible
degrees and finishing several PhDs. He mastered all martial and
culinary arts, became proficient in hypnosis, and became truly
international in language.
With
this background we see Mr. Peabody (Burrell) taking Sherman (Charles)
for his first day in school. It doesn’t go well. He corrects Penny
Peterson (Winter) about George Washington and the cherry tree and
alienates her. She bullies him in the lunchroom and in the struggle
he bites her, which brings Mr. Peabody to Principal Purdy’s
(Tobolowsky) office and under the scrutiny of Ms. Grunion (Janney),
the Child Welfare Agent. Peabody is shocked that Sherman would do
such a thing. “She called me a dog!” says Sherman. This sets Mr.
Peabody thinking and reminiscing. So, to the tune of John Lennon’s
“Beautiful Boy” we travel back in time with him to the day he
found Sherman abandoned in a cardboard box as a baby and see him
making his case for adoption before a judge (Haysbert).
Peabody
has a brainstorm and organizes a fancy dinner party, inviting Penny
and her father Paul (Colbert) and mother Patty (Mann) hoping to
smooth over this sibling hostility by bringing everyone together for
a pleasant evening. Warning Sherman not to tell Penny about the WABAC
machine only lasts until Penny finds out that Sherman actually spoke
with George Washington. To prove it they travel to pharaoh-ruled
Egypt and Penny decides to stay, becoming King Tut’s (Callison)
girlfriend. In the hilarious process of getting her back, Peabody,
Sherman and Penny make Mona Lisa smile for Leonardo DaVinci (Tucci),
get involved in the Trojan War when Sherman joins with Agamemnon
(Warburton) and cause a rift in the space-time continuum when Sherman
and Penny return home before they left and Sherman meets himself.
Then all craziness breaks loose as various historic people and things
drop out of the sky into the present, including Albert Einstein
(Brooks).
The
puns fly throughout the film and sight gags abound. Many of these are
beyond the comprehension of small children. I only heard the children
laugh once while I was chuckling several times. And strangely, they
only understood one of the scatological jokes. The animation is
smooth and beautiful and I would expect no less of Dreamworks.
The formerly flat cartoon characters are now three-dimensional and
more believable. The story is well written and provides not only a
prequel to the cartoon, but follows a critical time in the
relationship between a dog trying to be a father and a boy learning
what they mean to each other. Yes, there’s even pathos in the
movie. The only jarring moment for was towards the end, when past
meets present, Washington steps forward and says, “We hold these
truths to be self-evident, that all men – and some dogs – are
created equal.” Meanwhile Abraham Lincoln is among the throng as
well (both voiced by Harnell). A word of advice to parents, tell your
children your memories of the cartoon before taking them to the
movie. They’ll either enjoy it more or not want to go.
Rating:
4½ out of 5 Martini glasses.
L
& W Oyster Co.
254
Fifth Avenue (28th Street),
New York
The
Lenten season is here, which means seven Fridays of seafood or
vegetarian restaurants.
A
black and white striped awning shades the entrance to a high
ceilinged, antiseptic white restaurant leading the sequence. Inside,
the minimal décor features a fish scale holding the menus, votive
candles suspended over diners in the front window, and caged light
bulbs illuminating the walls. Even the bar on the left is simple. The
tables are white without cloths or paper, only ornamented by the
placemats describing Japanese oysters. The chairs are silver aluminum
patio chairs (though a few are red) and definitely not created with
the American posterior in mind. I had to rearrange mine a few times
before I was remotely comfortable.
After
receiving a glass of water and the single-page brown paper menu I
ordered my Beefeater martini. My waitress, Katie, brought my drink in
an impressing graceful-stemmed glass (not the usual martini glass),
and it was delightful. The menu listed food items on one side and
wine, beer and drinks on the other. The food is organized into
categories starting with “Raw Things” (oysters), “Small
Things,” “Medium Things,”, “Bigger Things” and “Snacks.”
I took these definitions to be appetizers, first courses, main dishes
and sides. I discovered I was correct when I consulted Katie and she
told me a serving of oysters, a medium thing and a bigger thing would
not be too much food.
“He
is a bold man that first ate an oyster.” (Jonathan Swift) It was
many years ago when I had my first, in a Japanese restaurant and
deep-fried. It is indeed an acquired taste and texture. Now I have no
trouble eating them on the half-shell. I ordered three East Coast (in
this case Barnstable) and three West Coast (Samish Bay). As I’ve
learned over the years, the West Coast delegates were sweeter and
easier to remove from the shells. The East Coast oysters were
saltier, and clung to their shells. However, when they were topped
with horseradish cocktail sauce and a little lemon sorbet, they were
all wonderful.
From
the wine list I chose the 2011 “Le Cigar Blanc” from Bonny Doon
vineyards, Santa Clara, California. Are you surprised I ordered
“White Stuff”? (Yes, the wine list is entitled similarly to the
food menu and includes “Red Stuff,” “Booze Stuff,” “Brewed
Stuff” and “Sparkly Stuff.”) Having been introduced to this
particular wine by Mark Lahm of Henry’s End, I knew it to be a
reliable, crisp, tannic white with delicate nose and almost crystal
color. It was all that and perfect with the meal.
The
Baked Brie En Croute was my “medium thing” – a phylo
dough-wrapped piece of heaven, piping hot served with thinly sliced
Granny Smith apples, apple butter and three shiny-topped Parker House
rolls. It was one of those memorable dishes you wish were “bigger
things” so that you could enjoy more of it, longer. I know, ripe,
soft cheeses – another acquired taste – I’m glad I acquired
that taste in Paris.
My
“Bigger Thing” was Broiled Mahi-Mahi (dolphin fish) served with
halved Red Bliss potatoes stuffed with bleu cheese and accompanied by
roasted fennel. The fish was crisp outside, flakey inside and the
stuffed potatoes tender enough to cut with a fork. Even the fennel
was great (I normally do not prefer fennel.) After a few bites I knew
I could handle a “snack,” as the portion was not as big as I
imagined. It was a close tie between two, but the Vinegar and Salt
Home-made Crisps won over the Lobster Deviled Eggs. This good-sized
basket contained potato chips that were thinner than any I’ve had
before. Nevertheless, it was addictive and outlasted my main course.
Not
only a snack, but dessert as well: L & W’s unique twist on
Baked Alaska was irresistible (Peanut butter and Jelly Baked Alaska)
and an amusing decadence. Then, after a double espresso and a glass
of Busnel Calvados, I was happy and ready for the check. L & W
Oyster Company has made good use of the time since they opened in
November 2012. It was never empty the whole time I was there. I think
I will have to try those deviled eggs someday.
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