B-Rock NYLA

Books: REVOLUTIONARY ROAD by Robert Yates

I never have the time or desire to read a new novel.  In fact, I think every piece of fiction I have read has been because it was assigned to me in school or required for my work.  Given the ton of awful film/television scripts I read for work, I think I'm allowed to neglect that aisle of the bookstore.

So, it is with surprise and wonder that I've come across a novel that I am looking forward to reading just for shits and giggles.  REVOLUTIONARY ROAD by Robert Yates is the inspiration for the upcoming film set to reunite Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet.  As if that weren't enough Sam Medes (American Beauty, Jarhead)is directing and Scott Rudin is producing.  Can we say OSCAR?!?

Anyway, I have the script which I will read, but the point of this post is that I actually want to read the book despite having read the script.  This is a first for me.

Variety describes the story thusly:

Yates' heart-rending and bleak tome, celebrated for its storytelling style, follows a seemingly happy suburban couple with two children in the mid-1950s who find themselves caught between their true desires and the pressure to conform -- with explosive consequences.

Not a bad description.  That sounds interesting.  But the breakdown description is what really got me:

Its the story of Frank and April Wheeler, a bright, beautiful, and talented couple who have  lived an the assumption that greatness is only just around the corner.  With heartbreaking compassion and remorseless clarity, the story shows how Frank and April mortage their spiritual birthright, betraying not only each other other, but theirbest selves.

Deal me in.  That sounds amazing.

Getting Things Done (GTD)

This isn't a tech site by any means, but I love playing with new toys. My latest "toy" is David Allen's Getting Things Done. I'm planning on reading the book this weekend. In the meantime I've been busy trying to figure out the best way to implement the principles I've come to understand thus far. The good folks over at 43 Folders and Lifehacker have been all over this for years. They have loads of useful information and tips. But, count on me to be indecisive and all over the map. I've tried to implement GTD with Omni Outliner Pro (using kgtd), but I keep coming back to Entourage because that is where all my email comes in and it syncs well with my other new favorite toy, the "BlackBerry 8700g Phone (T-Mobile)" (more about that amazing tool later.). I've tried to use David Allen's recommended Entourage methodology, but it just gives me a list of all the crap I need to do. This weekend I'm gonna try the Entourage route using the Projects option outlined by SlackManager and Jarango. Anyone else out there figure out an efficient system for actually getting GTD up and running?

TV Gold: Oprah vs Frey

Say what you will about Oprah, but the woman is genius.  I blogged a earlier about the flap over James Frey's memoir/novel, A Million Little Pieces. I read Frey's manuscript in consideration for the film version.  Well, I just watched Oprah revisit the issue on her show.  Superficially, I think this whole flap is about embarrassing Oprah.  There would have been a Smoking Gun investigation if Oprah had not given the book her seal of approval.  This was about putting a kink in her armor.  There are a few things going to my head about this now.

Firstly, Oprah did a great job of tackling the controversy head on.  Shen invited James Frey and his publisher back to her show to confront him and brought along a few legit reporters to pile on.  She made a mistake and took responsibility for defending Frey on Larry King Live!   Bravo for her.  Only Oprah could turn such an embarrassing incident in to TV gold.

Secondly, journalists are the scum of the earth.  These "journalists" are jumping all over Frey, Oprah and Doubleday for not digging deeper in to Frey's story.  Someone should ask them how deeply they dig in to the shit fed to them by George W. Bush.  Journalists are in no position to criticize anyone about the almighty 'truth'.

Thirdly, What the fuck is up with Doubleday?  How could they let something like this happen?  The question is, of course, rhetorical because we know it is all about the benjamins.  But, they are fools.  The minute they got a call from Oprah about featuring the book on her Book Club they should have said "hell to the no".  If Oprah's people didn't figure out their lie than surely someone out there looking to make Oprah look bad would figure it out. Dumb, dumb, dumb.

Finally, is this whole thing really about a deteriorating appreciation for truth?  Surely, that deterioration is a reality, but why all the fuss about a damn book?  If anything this man's lies were helping people. Ultimately, that is a good thing.  Yes, it would be nice for all the books in the library and at the bookstore to be properly categorized.  But, where is all this outrage regarding truth in government.  Are our standards for books in the Oprah Book Club higher than our standards for policy making?  for war?

Give me a break and spare me the outrage!

News Flash: Oprah Not Perfect

A Million Little Pieces by James Frey has come under tremendous scrutiny lately.  It seems that Frey's memoir of his struggle with addiction was more fiction than fact.  The Smoking Gun  revealed Frey's most daring crime: Duping Oprah!  Frey should have listened to Boondocks creator, Aaron McGruder , when he warned:

We should all have a healthy fear of Oprah!

To make matters worse for Frey Oprah initially stood by him.  In fact, she called in to Larry King Live! to defend him. But, Oprah has had a change of heart and now complaining that she was duped.  Her millions of fans complained when she asserted that the essential truth of Pieces remained true and the details were less significant.  Ooops!

My take:  The main story here is that Oprah is not perfect.  This whole thing is about Oprah, of course.  Frey's book would never have reached the heights of its success without her stamp of approval.  In lending her name to a fraud, Oprah has perhaps revealed her the first kink in her mighty armor. 

Personal note:  I had to read the manuscript for Pieces because they were considering a film version.  I read it for an actor who was auditioning for the role of one of the other junkies in the institution.  The story is quite compelling regardless of the details.  Oprah was correct in that regard.  I just hope the damn movie still gets made and I didn't read the whole thing for nothing.  That shit was long!