When I was a kid, there was only one Metropolis, and that was the city where Superman lived (I thought it was pronounced like “Metro-polis”). But then I stumbled upon a picture in a magazine from the 1927 Fritz Lang film Metropolis. It kinda confused me at first, because I thought this was the same place where Superman lived. In the film Metropolis, The Future looks pretty cool, that is, if you can afford it. Turns out: it’s a dystopian nightmare for everyone else. In the film, an inventor named Rotwang builds a female robot (a Machinenmensch!) as an expression of unrequited love for a former flame. Original stills and posters from this film are valuable, this one was selling for $24,000 (no, I did not purchase it). Here’s the scene where the Machinenmensh is brought to life by Rotwang, reminiscent of the laboratory scene from Frankenstein (which came out 4 years later in 1931):
Although Metropolis is known for its ground breaking special effects, which are numerous and wonderful, I really dig the ridiculously exaggerated over-the-top acting styles embraced by the performers in the film. Here’s a recent trailer celebrating the 2010 release of a newly restored “definitive” version of the film:
When I was a kid, my Mom & Dad had a handful of “Comedy Albums”* in their record collection, and my favorite one was The Best of the Stan Freberg Shows (pictured at left): a double album filled with hilarious comedy sketches which made fun of pop culture and politics (many of which I did not fully understand, but thought they were funny just the same). His supporting cast included such notables as June Foray (voice of Rocky the Squirrel), Daws Butler (voice of Yogi Bear) and others. Mr. Freberg passed away on April 7, 2015.
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