SCIENTOLOGY, BROADWAY, UNCERTAINTY, AMBIVALENCE, ETC.

Walking down W. 46th St on my way to the theater last night, I see a huge vertical brightly lit sign for "Scientology" right in front of the sign for "Beauty and the Beast." I'm thinking Scientology the musical? Wow, what a great idea! But I'm really surprised that I haven't heard Tom Cruise and his fellow Thetanologists complaining about it since they seem to complain about virtually everything else. Then I walk closer and realize that despite its perfect mimicry of a Great White Way theater sign, and despite the fact that it stands in the middle of the world's most famous theater district, it is in fact not a Broadway show at all, but an 'actual' church. I can not tell if the mimicy of a Broadway show is intentional or unwitting. Perhaps the aesthetics of the star-worshipping church are so closely aligned with the garish aesthetics of the entertainment world as to be indistinguishable. Anyhow, it stands there as the perfect (and perfectly humorless) parody of a church, just as Scientology is arguably the perfect (and perfectly humorless) parody of a religion. It is truly fascinating and I cannot believe I never noticed it before. Religion as theater in the very place where theater functions as religion. I mention my observation (and my genuine, if temporary ,confusion) to my mother and her husband as we wait on line to see the theatrical adaptation of the Dogma 95 film "The Celebration" (retitled "Festen" for the stage) and he tells me that many many years ago an old friend of his dropped out of college and ran off with L. Ron Hubbard's wife. Then we went in and saw a nice play about family and incest and suicide, which played more like a dark comedy than the emotional shocker I had been expecting.

P.S. I just did a Google search for The Church of Scientology in NYC just to make sure that wasn't a Broadway show after all. And I am surprised anew to discover that it is really and truly their church. I'll check again in a few hours just to make sure again.

Oh, and as I post this, I see it's snowing outside. I have to go check Google to make sure I'm not mistaken about that too.

RANDOM EXCHANGE OF THE DAY:

-You want to hear something interesting?
-What?
-The sound of my voice.

NEPOTISTICALLY MOTIVATED QUOTE OF THE DAY:

"Those 9/11 911 tapes are a true lesson in the never ending need to question authority, huh?" -My Brother

SINGLE SENTENCE PORTRAIT OF THE DAY:

He was jealous of almost everyone, including himself.

SENTENCE OF THE DAY:

He was convinced that the aliens were built by pyramids.

MOVIE REFLECTION OF THE DAY:

Reading Anthony Lane's review of the recently re-released "Double Life of Veronique" by Kieszlowski, I remembered my first impression of the film after seeing it about 15 years ago. To wit, I was not sure whether I had just seen something really really profound or a 2 hour perfume commercial. Subsequent viewings of films by the masterful Polish director put me squarely and resolutely in the former camp (at least retrospectively), but until I'd seen those other films (notably, "Red", "White," "Blue" and "The Decalogue" series), I really didn't know what to think. This uncertainty is quite distinct from the unresolved and ongoing ambivalence with which I regard most of the films of Lars Von Trier. I tend to find his works brilliantly, transcendently, luminously, unforgettably, maddeningly, irresponsibly, exasperatingly, adolescently, insultingly impressive and I had "Dancer in The Dark" simultaneously on my worst films of the year list and best films of the year list the year it came out.

NEWS ITEM OF THE DAY:

On the theme of ambivalence and mixed feelings: For the first time ever, Apple Computer has provided software that allows users to run PC rather than Mac programs on their machines. In effect, they are opening the gate to Gates. In the computer world, this is the equivalent of the Berlin wall coming down, although it is not being greeted with as much fanfare (at least on the Mac side of the divide, where the famously brand loyal quasi-elitist underdogs are feeling a bit betrayed by this business driven accomodation.) As a Mac guy, I'm less than thrilled. As an Apple share holder, I'm totally jazzed. With any luck, the move will make me enough money to buy one of those new Macs with the Intel chips that I'm so ambivalent about. If only ambivalence always had such rewards, I'd be a very rich man.

CONCEPT OF THE DAY:

Non consenual masturbation.

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Posted on 4/5/2006 ( Permanent Link )
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