Month: May 2008

“It’s a Really Big Shoe….”

On May 11, 2008

As readers of my blog know, I just did a story on the Weinermobile, a 27-foot vehicle that visited the Quad Cities recently, with its 2-month-old baby brother in tow, a 13-foot smaller weiner, built on a Mini Cooper chassis. [See blog archives.]

But how many Quad City readers are aware that, back in 1922, a local business (Hallas & Mead) built a giant shoe thirteen feet long that weighed about a ton and was an exact metal replica of a work shoe of the day, for advertising purposes for the Mendel Shoe Store?

Back in December of 1978, Jim Arpy (now retired) of the Quad City Times interviewed the then-77-year-old creator of the giant shoe, Harry Hallas, a sheet-metal fabricator for 25 years for his brother, George. George, along with Arthur Mead, owned Hallas and Mead Company (24^th St. and 3^rd Avenue.) Harry Hallas worked there for 47 years, but building the Big Shoe was among his most unusual job chores…right up there with prying six bullets out of one of John Looney’s vehicles following a gun battle.

The Hallas and Mead Company is long gone, but listen to Harry Hallas talk about one of the prototypical vehicles that the Weinermobile is based on, and a vehicle he helped build:

Harry Hallas:

“I can’t for the life of me remember where Mendel’s (Shoe Store) was located, but one day he (Mendel) came into the shop and said he wanted us to make a shoe large enough to be mounted on a Model T Ford chassis. We’d never done anything like that, but we were the only place in the area equipped to do it, so we took it on.”

[Hallas and the partners worked for about a year to complete the shoe, which had a driver who sat in the arch behind a windshield and steered conventionally, separated from the rear and uppers by a compartment door. The shoe also had eyelet hooks (three of them) on each side and four similarly-situated large holes for the same purpose and was painted work-shoe brown.]

Hallas: “It sure stirred a lot of interest. I don’t think we would have accepted any more orders like that. We didn’t want that kind of business, because it was too much work and took too much time. We didn’t make a dime on it. In fact, if the truth were known, we probably lost money, but it was a challenge we wanted to try.”

Every weekend, Mendel, (the shoe store owner), would come to the shop and create more of the shoe shape out of wire.

Hallas: “Then, following Mendel’s pattern, we’d take the wires out and replace them with one-inch channel iron every four inches. The skin was riveted galvanized iron. When we were done with it, it went to the paint shop and was painted to look just like a big brown work shoe. I never did hear what happened to it, but I’d sure like to know,” said the 77-year-old Harry Hallas back in 1978, when the original Jim Arpy interview was conducted. [If Harry Hallas were alive today, he’d be 106, so it’s probably safe to say that he never saw the Big Work Shoe again.]

If anybody knows the whereabouts of Mendel’s Giant Shoe, drop me a line.

West Virginia Win for Clinton on 5/13 A Foregone Conclusion

By Connie Wilson

On May 10, 2008

In Politics

$Hillary\'s In It to Spin It$ West Virginia is Clinton country. It is such a foregone conclusion that Hillary Clinton will carry the state on May 13^th, that “Election Inspection”, online, put it this way: “Clinton will win West Virginia by more than 25%. There’s no point in nailing it down further, because it’s nearly impossible to be exact when there’s a blowout…”

The polls dating from 4/20 through 5/4 show this:

ARG – 5/2-5/4 Obama 45 Clinton 53

SUSA-5/2-5/4 Obama 42 Clinton 54

Suffolk U-5/3-5/4 Obama 43 Clinton 49

Zogby – 5/3-5/4 Obama 44 Clinton 42

Zogby – 5/2-5/3 Obama 43 Clinton 41

Zogby – 5/1-5/2 Obama 43 Clinton 42

ARG – 4/30 – 5/1 Obama 44 Clinton 53

Insider Advantage

4/30-5/1 Obama 42 Clinton 42

Zogby 4/30 – 5/1 Obama 40 Clinton 47

Down C Ctr.

4/29-4/30 Obama 45 Clinton 52

TeleSySA Research

4/25-4/29 Obama 38 Clinton 48

Rasmussen 4/29 Obama 41 Clinton 46

SUSA – 4/25-4/27 Obama 43 Clinton 52

Howey/Gauge-

4/23 – 4/24 Obama 47 Clinton 45

ARG 4/23-4/34 Obama 45 Clinton 50

Reserved TOVO

4/21 – 4/24 Obama 48 Clinton 47

Selzer & Co/Indiana-

Apolis STAR/WTHR

4/20-4/23 Obama 41 Clinton 38

Chadwick Martin, writing online on “At the Foot of the Mountaineers” on 5/9/08 reported, “less than 25% of likely Democratic primary voters are planning to vote for Obama.” Martin gave a 43 point lead to Clinton and said that less than 20% of whites would vote for Barack Obama, and even the youth demographic would go to Clinton by 35 points.

This year’s vote in West Virginia is noteworthy because it is the first time that the state is having an “open” primary, where voters need only declare their preference to vote, according to Jennifer O’Shea. Back on Super Tuesday, 18 of 30 Republican delegates were voted to Mike Huckabee, but all of the Democratic delegates will be awarded on May 13^th, according to “U.S. News & World Report” online on 5/10/08.

Obama has not been campaigning actively in West Virginia, ceding the state to Hillary Clinton. Since 1968, the state has voted Democratic in 6 of 9 contests. It was a pivotal state for John Fitzgerald Kennedy in overcoming Hubert Humphrey’s challenge in 1960, and he won it 60.8 to Humphrey’s 39.2.

RealClearPolitics online also gives West Virginia to Hillary Clinton by large margins, reporting that, on 5/07-5/08, the ARG poll of 600 likely voters gave Clinton a +43 point lead. Other polls on RealClearPolitics show the lead as +29 (Rasmussen), +40 (TSG Consulting), +15 (ARG on 3/29 to 4/02 and +28 for Rasmussen back on 3/13, all to Clinton.

“The Fire Society,” online, reports that, in a survey taken on May 4^th of 840 likely voters, Hillary Clinton had a +43 point lead. She was viewed favorably by 72% of the West Virginia voters, versus 48% who viewed Obama favorably. In fact, Obama’s numbers had actually dropped by 5.7 points. The Jeremiah Wright pastor flap had been followed by 78% of polled voters and 57% said that they thought that Obama would “share Pastor Wright’s views.” (These were ALL voters; not just Democratic voters.)

In a general election, West Virginia voters say they would vote for Hillary over John McCain (72%), but if the nominee is Obama vs. McCain, only 56% of West Virginia voters respond affirmatively that they would vote for Barack Obama over John McCain.

Wienermobile Hits Town

By Connie Wilson

On May 9, 2008

In Humor and Weird Wilson-isms, Local, Pop Culture

Bill Blansett Shows Off the Goods

The Oscar Mayer Wienermobile is all over the Quad Cities and was in the parking lot of the Hy-Vee Food Store at 2351 West Locust from 2 to 5 p.m. on Friday, May 9th. Three “hotdoggers,” Bill Blansett, 23, a graduate of Pennsylvania State in Advertising, Stephanie Geidel, 24, a graduate with a degree in sports management and a Master’s in Education from the State University of New York at Cortland who plans to teach, and Nick Osiecki, a graduate of the University of Wisconsin, were the three “hotdoggers” driving the two vehicles in the Quad Cities. The Oscar Mayer hotdogger team is comprised of 12 individuals who are chosen from recent college graduates. They travel the country, handing out whistles and small hot dogs and other Oscar Mayer paraphernalia at stops arranged by sponsors.

The concept of the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile began seventy-two years ago (1936) with a thirteen-foot metal hot dog on wheels in Chicago. The small hotdog mobile is the eleventh design and is built upon the frame of a Mini Cooper. The small fifteen foot car gets about 25 to 30 mpg. The larger Wienermobile, at 27 feet with a sky roof, gets only 10 to 15 mpg and costs about $115 to fill the 32.1 gallon tank. Normally, the team travels about 500 miles per week.

In addition to the sky roof, there is a hot-dog-shaped instrument panel, a 27-inch color video monitor, seating for six in relish-colored seats, two exterior cameras, illuminated Oscar Mayer logos, a gull wing door and condiments decorating the carpeting of the vehicle.

The three in town on Friday described it as “a good thing to do for a year if you aren’t sure what you want to do permanently.” Mr. Blansett was interviewing by phone for a job while present in Davenport. Nick Osiecki has been thinking of going into television sales (after abandoning writing as a career) and Steph Geidel, whose mother is an elementary school teacher, thinks she will teach.

Hot dog Kudos to all!

Jason Castro, “the Loopster” Departs “American Idol” on May 7th

By Connie Wilson

On May 7, 2008

In Music, Pop Culture, Television

$Jason Castro, AKA \$

I’ve taken to calling Jason Castro “the loopster.” His loopy answers and attitude perhaps coincide well with his comment that “I’m a fun guy. I hope I can convey that to the American public.” After that video clip on the Wednesday night show, Jason is seen saying, “These are terrible answers.” He proves that his answers were, indeed, terrible, by saying (of the song from Andrew Lloyd Webber week), “I didn’t know a cat was singing it. Oh, boy!” Maybe a good idea to look into the origin of the song you are singing, from the musical “Cats!” which might have provided the Loopster with his first clue.

Earlier on May 7^th‘s “American Idol,” the four contestants remaining (David Archuleta, David Cook, Syesha Mercado and Jason Castro) were flown to Las Vegas’ Mirage Hotel to see “Love,” the Beatles extravaganza on a private jet. Jason is shown reclining on a bed in the back of the private plane saying something about how it is so cool. (spelled “kewl,” in the Loopster’s case).

A large portion of the show was taken up with callers, ranging from 24-year-old Emily in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, who asked David Cook out on a date when the “American Idol” tour hits her town (David said, “We’ll see.” My mom always said that when she meant no.) to 45-year-old Marla who told Simon Cowell he was “sexy and intriguing” and should be “the next James Bond.”

The performing group for the night was “Maroon Five,” and the soloist who returned to “American Idol” from a previous year’s competition was Bo Bice, who announced that he and his wife are having (or have?) a new son.

The Loopster got in a few good lines before departing. As Ryan Seacrest introduced him as having sung “most of Tambourine Man,” he said, “Somebody told me I shot the Tambourine Man,” (a reference to the two songs he selected on Rock & Roll Week, “I Shot the Sheriff” and “Mr. Tambourine Man.”)

Jason seemed genuinely glad to be leaving and left with the comment that he thought “My inexperience has just been coming through” and “Dreams do come true, so dream big.”

David Archuleta Emerges as Frontrunner After May 6th “Idol”

By Connie Wilson

On May 7, 2008

In Music, Pop Culture, Television

David Archuleta Emerges As Clear Front-Runner After May 6^th “Idol”

Not that this will surprise anyone, but David Archuleta has to be considered the front-runner after all three judges praised his vocal prowess and he blew away the competition with his renditions of “Love Me Tender” and “Stand By Me” during Rock & Roll Hall of Fame week. The big loser: the dreadlocked Jason Castro, who forgot the words to Bob Dylan’s “Mr. Tambourine Man,” looked as awful as usual, and earned, from Simon this succinct review: “Jason, I’d pack your suitcase.” (Ouch!)

Most of us have been saying, “Jason, pack your suitcase for weeks now, so the Castro kid is beginning to remind a bit of that lesser talent, Sanjia Malakar, who consistently made it through after inferior performances. His gimmick: his hair. I’d think about a haircut, were I Jason, but, failing that, at least get Bob Marley’s music right. Simon summed up his performance of Marley’s “I Shot the Sheriff” as “utterly atrocious” and something that was more like the open auditions days, not the final four. The ending of the “Mr. Tambourine Man” song sounded horrible, the guitar Jason clutched seem to really be just a prop, and from his breathy opening to his weak close, Jason was outclasses. The lyric he sang that applies? “If I am guilty, I will pay.” He was definitely guilty of all the above, and I have a feeling he will pay.

Most improved of the four remaining performers, as was the case last week, was Syesha Mercado, who came out and did “Proud Mary” proud, followed by Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna’ Come.” Randy reduced Syesha to tears by brusquely criticizing her red-hot vocals, and Ryan Seacrest got a laugh by saying, “Well, Randy. Thanks for the buzz kill.” When Randy attempted to explain his overly harsh criticism of one of the night’s outstanding performers and two of the night’s most consistently good performances (2^nd only to David Archuleta’s), Seacrest cut him off, saying, “We’re running out of time. ‘Hell’s Kitchen”s gonna start.”

David Cook performed his first song, Duran Duran’s “Hungry Like the Wolf” to criticism from Randy (“Just an OK choice”) that was echoed by the others, and, later, said he agreed with the judges and would wipe the memory of his first song away by performing more strongly on his second song, which, unfortunately, was a Who song that, aside from it use on “C.S.I.” episodes, is not that big a crowd-pleaser and ended with the words “Teenage waste” or “Teen waste,” hardly an uplifting image.

For me, there was no stronger performer for the evening than the other David (Archuleta), followed by Syesha, David Cook and…last and certainly least, Jason Castro, who has overstayed his welcome and should have been gone long before Carly Smithson, Michael Johns and/or Brooke White.

The War Business is Good in the Quad Cities

By Connie Wilson

On May 6, 2008

In Of Local (Quad Cities') Interest

Where Does the Money Go, When It Comes In?

The Quad Cities of Iowa/Illinois has an entire island devoted to munitions manufacturing, Arsenal Island. In fiscal year 2006, according to the Consolidated Funds Report for 2006, the most recent year for which reports are available, nearly $166 million in defense contracting dollars flowed into Scott and Rock Island counties, up from $95 million in 2002. Contracts made up 7.7 cents of every dollar coming into the area.

The report, released in April, tracked 3,000 counties across the United States and $2.45 trillion dollars in domestic spending.

Salaries for federal employees account for almost 13 cents of every dollar coming in to the Quad Cities. More than 9 cents of that total of $198 million went to Defense Department workers at the Rock Island Arsenal, mentioned above, which even has a cemetery in which Confederate prisoners of war from the Civil War are buried.

Our of every incoming dollar, 98 cents—almost one full buck—goes to Retired Military personnel. Another $1.16 goes to defense contracts for munitions and equipment such as those machines I snapped while touring on the island recently. Salaries for inactive military account for 67 cents of every dollar. Defense contracts pull in $7.76. Payments to disabled veterans or the families of soldiers killed in battle account for $22.5 million dollars, or 1% of the total. $133,199,438 thousand went to Defense Contracts in fiscal year 2006, after the Iraq War started by George W. Bush reached full flower, for Rock Island County, where Arsenal Island is located, and $33,148,093 went to Scott Country in Iowa (which has no comparable military base presence), for a total of $166,347,531 or 7.76%.

By far the biggest federal domestic payouts, though, …$20.56% amounting to $440,541,900 in the Quad Cities, …was paid out for Social Security. The next biggest % on the Quad City Times chart (taken from the Consolidated Funds Report for 2006)…and a drop of nearly half, was 9.27% for the salaries for Defense Department civilians: a whopping $198,612,000. I know that, in my years in business, the three biggest employers in the Quad Cities’ area were John Deere (Moline is their international headquarters), Alcoa Aluminum (Bettendorf/Pleasant Valley) and Arsenal Island. Naturally, during a time of war, the take is better for a high security facility that houses what was the second-largest official residence for a government official after the White House, Quarters One, for the Commandant of the Arsenal, which is now being mothballed because it is too expensive to maintain and too antiquated to bring up to code.

I went on a tour of Quarters One during a recent Ladies Auxiliary function, and was amazed at the size of the place and the outdatedness of all the military residences on the island. There was only one “house” that looked modern and livable by modern-day standards.

You first pass a series of what appear to be low-income housing…squat buildings that do not look the least bit inviting. After that, you get to the different houses that are home to the families of the brass. While they are definitely bigger, better does not seem to be the right term. Almost all seem to date from the late 1800’s and the screened-in porch just isn’t the draw it used to be before air conditioning. The problem is that the kitchens and bathrooms of nearly every facility I saw (save one) looked like they had not been updated since the seventies. When I asked why that was, it was explained to me by a resident officer that each family gets an ‘allowance” for repairs and modernization and updates to their temporary assigned residence. What happens, however, if the roof gives out during your tour of duty? Then you are on the pan to fix it, and your budgeted amount may not be sufficient. Therefore, knowing that their lives are always in transit, most residents do not see the wisdom in sinking much into the improvement(s) of their quarters, let alone into upgrading and updating them.

Here are pictured some weapons seen alongside the roads of Arsenal Island, and one of the cemeteries, honoring soldiers killed in battle. Sometimes, you can hear the Army “testing” large cannons or guns over the river…or at least you could back in the day. One never knows what is being manufactured “over there” and guards will check you as you drive on and off the island,. But one thing is for sure: business is good, right now, with a huge hawk in the White House, and, if the nominee of his party, John McCain, prevails in November, the war business could be good for another hundred years.

Preview: St. Louis Arch Article Coming Soon…

By Connie Wilson

On May 5, 2008

In travel

Actor Jeff Daniels Visits Rock Island, Illinois, to Raise Money for Michigan Theater

By Connie Wilson

On May 4, 2008

In Music, Pop Culture, Reviews

Actor Jeff Daniels, the actor we know from films like “Dumb and Dumber” and “The Purple Rose of Cairo,” traveled from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to Rock Island, Illinois’ Circa Dinner Theater to play acoustic guitar and sing his own songs for a small but enthusiastic audience on Thursday, May 1^st. The performance was a fund-raiser for the small theater back home, dubbed the Purple Rose in honor of the Woody Allen film “The Purple Rose of Cairo” in which he starred.

Daniels is well-known from his roles in such films as “Dumb and Dumber,” “The Purple Rose of Cairo” and “The Squid and the Whale.” He’s made 45 films and will soon be heard as the voice of an animated character in “Space Chimps” (for which, he humorously remarked to the crowd, he had recently been offered…and turned down… a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame.)

To be honest, I didn’t expect much in the way of musical excellence when I decided to take a chance and attend the concert on a Thursday night. I just knew that Daniels is a very fine actor and seems to be a very “centered” regular guy, in appearances such as one he recently made on “David Letterman.” As the former “Times” movie critic and a bona fide movie fan, I went to see Jeff Bridges, the actor, and the fact that he was just as talented, musically, as he is gifted, dramatically, was the frosting on the cake.

I was unable to convince either my husband (who refused, outright, to go) or my friend (who voted for the Rolling Stones documentary “Shine A Light,” instead) to accompany me, so I went alone, entering after the performance had begun.

Daniels, clad in jeans, a rumpled flannel shirt and a battered brown hat, asked the crowd at the outset, “How many of you have no idea what I’m about to do?” I had a vague idea: he was going to sing songs he had written in an attempt to raise money for his Michigan Purple Rose Theatre through the $25.50 ticket price. You could also purchase either of his two CD’s, one of which, “Jeff Daniels Live and Unplugged To Benefit the Purple Rose Theatre” I bought. It is very good and the material is extremely clever.

It turned out that Jeff can both play and sing with proficiency and that his material is entertaining in the best sense of that word. When asked by David Burke of the Quad City Times about the difference between his movie career and his sidelight, singing, Daniels responded, “The thing about the singing that I enjoy a lot is that, especially when you’re writing, you’re in complete control of everything. It’s the exact opposite of the movie actor…It’s just that it’s (a movie) out of your control creatively. (Here) I’m the writer, I’m the director, I’m the editor, I’m the entertainer, I’m the performer, and all those people who I’ve been and am are out there with me…Plus, the fact that, with me, they (audiences) expect the worst. ‘Oh, yeah, another actor/singer/songwriter who sucks.'” (with sarcasm).

As it turns out, Daniels does not suck. His songs are clever slices of life, such as his song about actors who think they can sing, simply because they are actors, entitled “If William Shatner Can, I Can Too,” which mentions actor/singers ranging from Shatner to Russell Crowe to Adam Sandler. (Bruce Willis and Johnny Depp are not mentioned, but the Olson Twins are.)

Daniels is loose onstage, singing songs about the time he “accidentally” lost his wife, Kathy, at a truck stop in Erie, Pennsylvania, entitled “Recreational Vehicle,” and musing on the many common rites of passage in life, such as teaching his daughter to drive, his love affair with the Detroit Tigers baseball team and his first car (a blue Valiant) and/or growing old.

While in the Quad Cities, Daniels stopped at a local analog recording studio to record his song(s) “Are You As Excited About Me As I Am?” that reminded of the theme of Bruce Springsteen’s “Glory Days” and “The Dirty Harry Blues,” about playing the villain opposite Clint Eastwood’s good guy, in the film “Bloodwork.” Daniels said he was inspired to write the first song mentioned after walking the red carpet at an Awards night. Sample lyric(s): “I was everything to everyone, Just for a moment, I’m who I used to be. Shine like a diamond, bright as the sun, I used to be everything to everyone.”

His “Dirty Harry Blues” contained a killer impression of Eastwood calling him up on the phone and asking him to play the villain in “Bloodwork.” The denouement was his shooting death (in the film) at Eastwood’s hands, after his make-up girl told him, “It’s a good day to die.”

Daniels called to his “roadie” (his son) to help him involve audience members in performing what he dubbed “Doing the Big Bay Shuffle” and in playing a wooden train whistle on the song “I’m on a Detroit Train.” The audience gave Daniels several standing ovations and seemed to really enjoy his show, from start to finish.

Daniels mused about aging, saying, “You do have regrets when you’re 50. I’m 50 years old…I’m old. Not falling apart, just going downhill and every other week you’re updating your will.” He reminisced about hearing Mary Hart telling the world on Entertainment Weekly that he was fifty years old that day. Research into Ms. Hart’s birth date revealed that she was born November 8, 1950, making her a full 7 years older than Daniels…a fact he seemed to revel in discovering.

Daniels name-dropped a bit, but in a humble way. In addition to the Eastwood story, which never implied that he and Clint were good friends, Daniels told the story of working with stars like Eastwood and Jim Carrey with humility and mentioned the making of two Civil War films, “Gettysburg” and “Gods and Generals.” In describing Ted Turner, Daniels said, with affection, “If it’s on his mind, it’s out of his mouth,” and told the story of Turner coming up to him, onset, in full costume, saluting him (also in unform) and saying, “Colonel: hold at all costs.”

When the actor mentioned the offer of a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame (which Turner has been given), Daniels reminisced about seeing old-time movie stars Esther Williams and Margaret O’Brien that day, actresses who really represented their era of movie stars with class and glamour. They were there to meet and greet Turner (who was receiving his star) and told Daniels how grateful they were to Turner for his television movie channel. They said, “We get to see who we used to be.” Sad commentary on the fleeting nature of fame and “all that crap,” as Jeff Daniels referred to it. He seems very “grounded” about his Hollywood persona, unlike many others.

Jeff Daniels’ frequent references to his “twenty-eight foot Jayko” RV, his family, his home state of Michigan, his humble gratitude that his parents supported his acting aspirations, his interest in the great American pastime (i.e., baseball, specifically the Detroit Tigers) made him seem like the regular, ordinary guy next door.

Reviews in the next day’s paper locally were glowing, with Sean Leary of the (Moline, Illinois) Daily Dispatch suggesting that Daniels could be “the next Jimmy Buffett. Leary hailed Daniels’ performance as “loose and funny” and lauded the performer as “natural and humble.”

David Burke of the (Davenport, Iowa) Quad City Times told me that Jeff and his son (and his son’s two college-age friends) had driven all the way to Rock Island from Michigan in the aforementioned RV, and shared several heart-warming incidents from their interview, displaying as much awe at meeting Daniels as Daniels showed when he talked about the time he met George Harrison, (who signed his guitar.)

The suggestion was made that, if Daniels decides to make the trip this way again, the hall won’t be half empty as it was this night. Word travels fast in smaller towns, and the word on Jeff Daniels and his singing talent was all good.

“Shine A Light” Shines A Light on the Rolling Stones

By Connie Wilson

On May 2, 2008

In Music, Pop Culture, Reviews

One of my favorite parts of Martin Scorsese’s documentary film focusing on the Rolling Stones occurs before the music even starts. Mick Jagger calls up Scorsese to express his concern over the large tracking cameras that will be used (nearly 24 cameras were employed in the filming) and whether they will intrude on the audience’s appreciation of their benefit concert for Bill Clinton’s foundation at the Beacon Theater in New York.

Filmed in 2006, the small ornate venue offered a great deal more intimacy than the Stones’ stadium shows, which generally seat thousands. (The only small show I attended, the “No Security” tour, took place at the United Center in Chicago; my friend was hit in the head by a drumstick that Charlie Watts pitched into the crowd and still managed not to catch it! Charlie’s drumsticks, I can report, have his name burned into the side, so they would have made a great souvenir, but it was not to be, despite my friend’s goose-egg on her forehead. I remember saying, “Didn’t you ever play softball?”)

As a long-time Stones fan, I have seen them “live” on every tour since 1982. “Steel Wheels” was the best, when I saw them in Ames, Iowa. An absolutely awesome experience. That tour was followed by the “Voodoo Lounge” tour (Chicago), the “Bridges to Babylon” tour (2x, Ames and Minneapolis), a smaller more intimate show in Chicago at the United Center dubbed the “No Security” tour, and their most recent outing two times in Chicago, “A Bigger Bang.” [I will say that I have never been colder in my life than at the fall Soldier Field concert this last time. Elvis Costello opened for the Stones this last time ( opening acts I have seen include Lenny Kravitz, Blues Traveler, and the Goo Goo Dolls, among others.]

Scorsese is noticeably frazzled on film by the Stones’ failure to know exactly what the order of their set is going to be until the last minute. We see shots of Mick on an airplane, going over the set list and then shots of Scorsese being given a “late-breaking” bulletin of the order of the songs. He wants to know so he can have the right camera in the right place at the right time, but, like the rest of us, he is clueless until the concert actually begins.

Scorsese really gets in close on the band, wrinkles and all, with Oscar-winning cinematographer Robert Richardson (“The Aviator,” “J.F.K.”) overseeing a nineteen-person team boasting three multiple Oscar winners in addition to Albert Maysles. Albert Maysles and his brother, David, made the Stones’ tour documentary “Gimme Shelter” in 1969, which became famous for the Hell’s Angels incident (the Hell’s Angels were hired to provide “security”) that caused the death of an audience member.

The Stones perform 19 songs, delivering some seldom-performed gems like “She Was Hot,” “All Down the Line,” and a country-flavored “Loving Cup,” which was a duet with Jack White of the White Stripes. Jagger also brought out Christina Aguilera to duet with him on “Live With Me,” which involved a bumping and grinding dance, with Christina clad in what appeared to be black tights and a man’s shirt, wearing a black formal tux tie loosely draped around her neck, untied. Another guest performing onstage was Buddy Guy, blues icon from Chicago, who sang “Champagne & Reefer” with Mick.

My favorite parts of the IMAX film involved the old archival footage of the Stones being interviewed as young men just starting out in the business. Charlie Watts, now the white-haired grizzled drummer, talks in his salad days about how he would have liked to have been a painter, but didn’t have the vision, so he could only aspire to be a “designer” (if he hadn’t become a member of the band). I would have enjoyed three times the quantity of “clips” of the early Stones that Scorsese included, but he’s the Oscar-winning director, and I’m just an audience member who is fascinated by strolling down memory lane.( I couldn’t help but compare the scarcity of clips with a brilliant documentary on Freddie Mercury I saw at the Chicago Film Festival this past fall that had ten times the amount of personal clips.) I also enjoyed the classics included like “Brown Sugar,” “I Can’t Get No Satisfaction” (the Stones’ first Number One hit in this country back in 1965) and “Start Me Up.”

Also interesting was the appearance of the Clintons (yes, those Clintons), Bill, Hillary and Hillary’s mother, who came onstage before the show to introduce the Stones. Bill announced that, for his sixtieth birthday, he wanted to “open for the Stones” and, by introducing them, he got his wish. The Clintons had at least 30 family members and friends present in the lower balcony of the small theater. Since the “f” bomb was unleashed at least three or four times during the concert, and Mick’s dancing has always been suggestive, I couldn’t help but think that, —if the tables were turned, and Obama played as dirty as Hillary in her campaigning—-Obama would be mentioning the Clintons participation in the concert with a holier-than-thou attitude, tsk-tsking all the way to the polls. (It’s certainly what Hillary has done with the Reverend Wright and his Wrong-headed ranting.)

A friend of mine, with whom I play Trivia in Pub Quiz (a British chat room online) told a story of meeting Charlie Watts and his Mrs., along with Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood (and families) at a posh restaurant in London one night. He described Charlie Watts as being as nice as could be, and described Ronnie and Keith as “borrowing” the waiters’ jackets and passing a cheese tray, to the amusement of their party.

I still remember walking through what was then the Union’s “River Room” at the University of Iowa in 1963 and hearing “Hey, You! Get Offa’ My Cloud” blasting from an old style juke box with colored lights. The Stones signed with Decca Records that year, later touring the United Kingdom with the Everly Brothers and Bo Diddley. In 1964, the Stones released their first album, “England’s Newest Hit Makers.” They also toured the United States for the first time that year and appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show.

In 1971, Rolling Stones Records released the “Sticky Fingers” LP, with a cover design by Andy Warhol that is now iconic. The Stones received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1986 and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989. The “Bigger Bang” tour of 2005 grossed half a billion dollars, with paid attendance of 4.68 billion, according to George Varga’s “Mature Focus'” May issue (p.56), and I attended two of those “live” concerts.

During their long career, the Stones have undertaken some fantastic tours and released notable albums. In the sixties it was:” The Rolling Stones, Now!” followed by “Their Satanic Majesties Request,” Beggars Banquet,” “Let It Bleed.” In the seventies, with “Sticky Fingers” “Exile on Main Street” and “It’s Only Rock & Roll”, the Stones were still hot. The eighties brought us “Some Girls” (the Stones sang at least 3 of the songs from the album during the IMAX event), “Emotional Rescue,” “Tattoo You,” and “Still Life.”

The latest release from the Kings of Rock & Roll and the greatest arena band ever is the soundtrack to the film “Shine A Light,” (now showing at an IMAX Theater near you.) I admire the fact that Keith, Mick, Charlie and Ronnie ( assisted by the nine members in their touring ensemble group, such as Lisa Fisher of Brooklyn) have let it all hang out in the aging department. After seeing the horror-show that now is Kenny Rogers’ face, I appreciate the fact that the Stones still enjoy what they are doing, do it well, don’t seem to have lost a step, and are letting themselves mature naturally. When you see Mick Jagger doing his chicken-on-acid dancing, non-stop, while wearing a long blue-black coat that seems to have been made of ostrich feathers, never stopping to rest, it is difficult to believe that the man was 62 when this was filmed.

As for Martin Scorsese’s filming them onstage at the Beacon Theatre in 2006, who better than the man who was assistant director of the Oscar-winning documentary “Woodstock” forty years ago, and also directed “The Last Waltz,” the story of The Band’s 1976 all-star farewell performance?