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West Side Story Message Board


mapl posts a message on 12/16/2006 11:50:47 PM It was five years ago last October, in early October 2001, less than a month after Sept. 11, that I'd driven down to NYC for the special 40th-year anniversary screening of the great, venerable classic film, West Side Story, where my friends and I had a wonderful time. Five years later, again, in mid-October of this year, I again took another trip down to the Big Apple for yet another screening of the film West Side Story. This time, seeing the link for the weeklong screenings of West Side Story at NYC's Clearfield/Ziegfeld Cinema on another website, I couldn't resist the temptation, and I was determined to go down to NYC to take in yet another screening of this great film. After thinking about it, I phoned my cousin, who lives on NYC's Upper West Side, and spoke with her at length about it. Since she was headed for upstate NY over the weekend, and her other nights during the week were busy, we decided to take in Tuesday night's 8:15 screening of WSS. Attempts on my part to obtain the tickets online failed, so my cousin wilingly and graciously got the tickets for us. Leaving home at around 9:00 a. m. that Tuesday morning, I arrived in NYC shortly after 1:00 p. m. and waited around, enjoying the nice, crisp sunny October day and talking to people, until my cousin arrived home from work, at around four o'clock. After relaxing for awhile and having a light, quick dinner, my cousin and I took the subway downtown to mid-town Manhattan, where the theatre was located. What a wonderful evening that was--there was a beautiful new print of the film WSS, and the screen was big and long. As always, on the great big, wide screen, WSS could be seen in its entire glory, the way it was meant to be seen. All of the cast members, from Tony and Maria, to Doc, to the warring jets and Sharks, seemed to come even more alive and to move much more freely and fluidly, in a much wider, more open space. This was true of even Richard Beymer, who was a weak, lacklustre Tony. The soundtrack seemed to sound richer, and the richly-colored costumes and photography also took on a more intense dimension. In short, the entire film of West Side Story, from the opening aerial shots of NYC's West Side, to the playground skirmishes between the jets & Sharks, from Tony and Maria and Bernardo and Anita, to the Rumble and the Cool scenes to the graffitied credits at the very end of the film seem to take on a magical, almost 3-dimensional quality when shown on a great big, wide movie theatre screen. Although the evening screening of West Side Story didn't quite sell out, it was, in fact, very well-attended. Russ Tamblyn does a wonderful job as the exuberant, wacky, acrobatic Riff, as do David Winters as A-rab, Elliot Feld as the immature, constantly awed and frightened Baby-John. The same is true of Tony Mordente, who does a fabulous job playing the role of the hot-tempered, institagating troublemaker of the Jets, Action. Tucker Smith does an equally fantastic job playing the role of the handsome, calm, cool and collected Ice, who ultimately takes over the Jet gang leadership after Riff's death in the Rumble. The role of the sardonic, but hot-tempered Shark gangleader, Bernardo, is fabulously played by George Chakiris, as is the role of Bernardo's girlfriend, Anita, who is a feisty firebrand of a girl, by Rita Moreno, who does an excellent job. Simon Oakland also does an excellent job of playing the bigoted, cantankerous Lt. Schrank, and Bill Bramley also does well playing Officer Krupke. All told, WSS is a very strong movie, with a very strong cast, most of whom had been in the original Broadway stage productions of West Side Story. This, coupled with Jerome Robbins fantastic choreograqphy of the dancing--(might I add that the dancing in West Side Story is also one of the things that makes it so great?) is also terrific. Although Richard Beymer definitely played a rather weak, lacklustre Tony, he, too comes off as being somewhat more vital and alive on the great big, wide movie theatre screen, plus he's more than offset by the wonderful performances of the other actors/actresses in the film West Side Story. The Clearfield/Ziegfeld Cinema in NYC is a beautiful old theatre, very handsome and palatial-looking inside, that was converted into a movie theatre from a place where much live theatre, including vaudeville, had been performed previously. It's the perfect place for such great old films, or films, period, imo. After the screening, my cousin and I went back to her apartment, which is in a rather funky upper west side neighborhood of manhattan, and, the next day, in exchange for staying at her place, when she went off to work, I tuned her Mason-Hamlin grand piano, which made her very happy. All told, it had been a wonderful time. After another day in NYC, I drove home the next morning, after thanking my cousin for the WSS tickets, and her hospitality. It had been a wonderful two days. Vi
posts a message on 7/23/2006 10:28:00 PM Espoided 363 : Lydig's Place return ! Bronx Lebanon Hostipal ! Starts tomorrow my new story on July 24th , 2006 !
posts a message on 7/23/2006 11:55:25 AM Orienation 9am to 5pm on August 4th at Fulton Avenue in the Bronx !



posts a message on 7/23/2006 11:52:13 AM After breaking with Eddie Soto for 4 years ! I had gone on with my life without a realtionship for 4 years of my first realtionship ! I was ending 10 year realtionship with Eddie Soto in 2002 !
posts a message on 7/22/2006 6:20:07 PM Rene Lopez said " I love you to be here to work with me ! Don't walk out and leave me ! I like you ! " Rene Lopez hugged me after the interview in May at Bronx Lebanon hostipal !
posts a message on 7/22/2006 5:03:01 PM Rene Lopez called me" an angel" and " I like this girl attude ! " The interview process in may of Bronx Lebanon in the morning !
posts a message on 7/22/2006 4:43:12 PM How I keep up with my night job in Bronx Lebanon is going to be very insterting as time goes on ! How I started with getting the night job in May ! My boss realy like me and my attude durning the interview process ! My boss Rene Lopez held my hand because he did not want to let go of me. A good worker go away like me ! Rene Lopez kissed me on my hand and cheack of my face after the interview process !
posts a message on 7/22/2006 4:34:39 PM How I will deal with my day in orienation employment at Fulton avenue ! No more interviews and nomore suits for interviews anymore ! Transporting patients at night will be very insterting for me in the Bronx hostipal ! What coworkers I will be working with at night from Bronx Lebanon Hostipal and the people I meet at night from Bronx Lebanon hostipal !
posts a message on 7/21/2006 11:10:50 PM Characters will be annoced very soon in the night story of Bronx Lebanon after July 24 , 2006 ! The characters will be in production on July 24 , 2006 in Bronx Lebanon Hostipal in the Grandcourse , Bronx of the story in the daytime touring ! Characters and stories will devolp soon in July 24 , 2006 !
posts a message on 7/21/2006 4:36:38 PM My nights are full but my days are growing shorter in 10 years 2006 ! 15 hours a night at Bronx Lebanon hostipal ! This is a new shift for me at Bronx Lebanon hostipal and I will never know what I found here in the night ! Downstairs in the basement in human resources with Rene Lopez !
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