Turkish Cinema Icon Cuneyt Arkin is 70 Today

The Turkish Chuck Norris was born on this day in 1937 in Eskisehir, Turkey. Cuneyt Arkin was a matinee idol throughout the 1960s and 1970s.

My personal favorite Arkin film is "Hayatim Sana Feda/I Love You Feda," a romantic comedy which was influenced by Douglas Sirk films of the 1950s. In the 1970 film, Arkin is a playboy who befriends a female singer played another Turkish film icon Turkan Soray. He acts like a jerk. She goes blind......Well, we've all seen this sort of film before, but Feda was a unique Turkish film experience nevertheless. Oh, of course, they fall in love and get married.

But, in the West, Arkin is best known for starring in "Dunyayi Kurtaran Adami," aka "The Turkish Star Wars." The 1982 film has become the most popular Turkish film on the Internet Movie Database. The film's director Cetin Inanc said that he wanted to make a science-fiction movie in Turkey because it was something that had never been done before. Ironically, he chose to rip off George Lucas, but when one considers how much money American films have made in Turkey, often at the expense of the domestic film industry, one really can not fault Inanc for feeling the way he did. Though, one should fault him for his filmmaking!

Arkin was the hero of Inanc's film, and he did things that most box office icons in the West would have refused to do, including ridicilous high jumps over 'alien invaders' which should have made him the Turkish Bart Conner.

Arkin was also a contradiction. He frequently starred in films which correlated with his own nationalist political views, incluing the "Battal Gazi" series of the '70s and "Once Vatan/My Country First," in which Arkin goes to Cyprus ala James Bond to liberate Turkish Cypriots from the 'evil Greeks.' That film was made in 1975, only a year after the Turks and Greeks had a brief, but bloody war in Cyprus. But, in 1977, Arkin actually joined socialist-leaning actors in a May Day parade in Istanbul. And, in 1978, Arkin was in the ensemble cast of "Maden/The Mine," which was a scathing indictment of labor abuses in Turkey. Thus, in many ways, Arkin is the epitamy of Turkey, which is also a contradiction of cultural and geopolitical trends.

Arkin does not make many movies now, though he did star in a sequel to "The Turkish Star Wars" that was made recently. My understanding is that is 'not quite as good as the first!"

For more info on Arkin, go to http://www.imdb.com

And, to see some hilarious movie clips of his, some of which are in archive editions of this blog, you can go to http://www.youtube.com

 

 

Congrats to My Friend Ugur Celikkol on His Marriage

One of the nice things about a blog that gets considerably fewer hits than those of my friends like Christopher Knight and Moviezzz is that I can personal things without fear of sounding well, a bit too personal.

Though my good friend of 20 years Ugur Celikkol lives far away in Bursa, Turkey, we have always managed to keep in touch. Ugur is a highly succesful tour business operator in Bursa and his family has managed the Karagoz Antique Shops in Bursa, Turkey's fourth largest city and a former Ottoman capital, for two generations.

On Saturday, Ugur is getting married! While I can not be there in person, I certainly wish him and his new wife much happiness. I am sure they will have many happy years together_ size mutlu yillar diliyorum, arkadasim!

The Celikkols are also very active in perserving Turkish shadow puppet theatre, best known for the primary character of Karagoz (Black Eye) and Hacivat....I have always viewed Karagoz as a semi-literate figure who symbolizes traditional Turkish village life while Hacivat is a sophisticated man who represents the urbanized Turkish intellectual. The Celikkols involvement in this cause has always impressed me very much.  

Ugur is also a fan club president for the local Bursa soccer team, BursaSpor aka The Bursa Crocodilees (see earlier entry).

Anyone wishing to send best wishes can leave them here as a comment or email me at turkam@yahoo.com

Ugur's Travel Business, which has tour trips in both Turkey and Greece can be linked too at:

http://www.karagoztravel.com

 

Theatre Roundup-Entry 3- Arena Stage_Washington, DC

This is a continuation of my blog which details the theatre seasons of various stage companies. While much of these entries pertain to theatres in North Carolina and Virginia, there are some from outside the two states that take my life revolves around.

While I was living in the Woodstock, Va., area, I would venture some 90 miles north to Washington, D.C., to enjoy some plays at Arena Stage. The most famous theatre in DC may be the Ford's Theatre- where Lincoln was assasinated, but Arena Stage is the one which consistently produces outstanding productions. It has also been a national launching pad for plays like "The Great White Hope," and the theatre has enjoyed a clsoe association with playwright Paula Vogel, of "How I Learned to Drive" fame.

Starting Sept. 14, Arena Stage produces "Well" by Lisa Kron. The autobiographical comedy focuses on stories of childhood and family with a focus on mother-daughter relationships. During her journey, Lisa is visited by characters from her past, including a bully who tormented her in grade school. The heroine also talks about growing up in a household full of allergies and activism.

Other Arena Stage plays this season include: "The Women of Brewster Place," "Christmas Carol 1914," "Ella," "Mystery of Irma Vep," and two Arthur Miller plays, "Death of a Salesman" and "A View from the Bridge."

"Salesman" starts on March 14, 2008, and runs through May 28. The lesser-known but equally impressive "A View from the Bridge" runs from March 21-May 18. Both plays are a part of Arena Stage's Arthur Miller festival.

I was fortunate enough to see M. Emmet Walsh in an Arena Stage production of another Miller play "All My Sons" some years ago.

Future entries in the theatre roundup are scheduled to include the Mill Mountain Theatre in Roanoke, and  Live Arts Theatre in Charlottesville as well as the Deep Dish Theatre in Chapel Hill.

http://www.arenastage.com

John Waters is Coming to Greensboro

It's way too &*%$#@ hot here in NC. But, it is not the first time that I have been unable to sleep due to misreable conditions. Though now that it is September, I was hoping some relief was in sight. One really has to envy anyone who lives in a place like Belfast, Maine, this time of year.

But, the bout with insomnia gives me an opportunity to promote mando filmmaker John Waters' one-man show at the Carolina Theatre in downtown Greensboro on Sept. 22 at 8:00 p.m.

The Carolina Theatre's web site says the show will be about how Waters came into becoming a filmmaker and why he chose the trash cinema genre. One can also expect that he will talk about his frequent 'leading man,' the late actor Divine as well as his hometown of Baltimore.

The venue is located at 310 South Green Street. Phone #: 336-333-2605.

I actually briefly met Waters at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.

My personal favorite film of his is the 'smell-o-rama' 1981 classic "Polyster," though it has its faults. Waters is currently riding the waves of success following the musical film "Hairspray," with John Travolta, which was an adaptation of a Broadway musical based on his original film of the same name. I actually prefer the new "Hairspray" over the original, and apparently many other folks did as well!

Useful Links:

http://www.carolinatheatre.com

 

Karl Rove Told Bush: "Don't Pick Cheney!"

It was reported in yesterday's "Washington Post" that former George W. Bush aide Karl Rove, aka Bush's Brain, told the 43rd president not to tap Dick Cheney as vice president.

The revealation comes from former "GQ" journalist Robert Draper who has just penned "The Presidency of George W. Bush." Since Draper knew W from his days as Texas governor, he was able to gain access that the media shy prez has denied virtually everyone else except Fox News.

According to the article in "The Post," Rove told Bush that naming Cheney as veep would be a mistake:

"Selecting daddy's top foreign-policy guru ran counter to message," the  passage from the book reads. "It was worse than a safe pick-it was needy."

Though I am not a fan of Rove, who according to Christopher Hitchens is shockingly an agnostic, I do not wish that Bush II listened to him on this piece of good advice.

Links:

http://www.washingtonpost.com

For articles that are slgihtly more slanted on GWB:

http://www.thenationmag.com

http://www.motherjones.com

http://www.michaelmoore.com

Apparently, there are increasingly a growing number of conservatives who are also at odds with Team Bush....if anyone has some good links from folks of that ilk, they can email me at turkam@yahoo.com

 

 

New Turkish PM Gul Promises Secularism

The BBC is reporting that newly-elected Turkish Prime Minster Abdullah Gul, whose political party has Islamic roots, has promised the parliament in Ankara that he will maintain the separation of mosque and state.

"The Turkish Republic is a democratic, secular state governed by the rule of law," Gul said. "I am determined to uphold these principles and to further strengthen them at every opportunity."

Ironically, Gul's election last week is being welcomed more by European Union nations than it is at home, where secularists are generally very adamant in their opposition to Gul, whose wife is the first Turkish first lady to wear a head scarf (Tansu Ciler actually became the first woman elected as prime minister some 15 years ago in Turkey).

Senior military officials did not attend Gul's inaguration.

And, opposition leader Onur Oymen also expressed reservations to the BBC:

"A president should have the approval of the majority of the public," Oymen said. "This is not the case for Gul. I hope his election will not lead to tension."

Acclaimed Turkish newspaper columnist Mehmet Ali Birand Gul will face an uphill battle in terms of easing secularist concerns, but he added that the new Turkish PM is capable of fulfilling his obligations of uniting what has become the ultimate swing state on the world stage.

Secularist protests in Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir and the port city of Channakkale drew thousands of people to the streets several months prior to the August elections where Gul's party also won 47 percent of the parliamentary seats.

Personally, while I am concerned about Gul's election, he seems more capable of leading Turkey through a difficult geopolitical period than our own inept president here in America.

Useful links:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice

My thoughts go out to all those affected by Hurriance Felix in Central America. The hurricane hit the Honduran border of Nicaragua earlier today. For those, who are able and willing to help, assistance can be sent to the U.S. Red Cross.

http://www.redcross.org

 

The Minor Leagues are Winding Down

Here is les etats unis, baseball season is winding down in many minor league towns, including my hometown of Salem, Va.

Last night, the Salem Avalanche defeated their Carolina League arch rival the Lynchburg Hillcats 5-1 behind six innings from starter Brad Norris. With a 7-3 win over the Wilmington Blue Rocks in Delaware, the Avs clinched a playoff spot though they remain a few games back of the division-leading Kinston Indians.

Meanwhile, those very same Indians clobbered the Myrtle Beach Pelicans 17-4 in South Carolina. Today, the Tribe's Sung-Wei Tsey takes to the mound against the Pelicans.

Our two local teams in the Piedmont region of North Carolina have been struggling here at the end of the regular season. The Greensboro Grasshoppers lost their fifth game in a row by a 5-2 to the West Virginia Power in Charleston. The 'Hoppers made local headlines thanks to two consecutive games with bench-clearing brawls when they played at home against the Kannapolis Intimidators_ a team neamed for local hero, the late NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt.....only in NC!

The Winston-Salem Warthogs fared a bit better on the road in Maryland as they split a double-header with the Frederick Keys. Mark Fleischer won the game for the Keys in game one, which the home team won 4-1. In Game 2, the Warthogs won 7-1 thanks to some solid pitching from starter Derek Rodgriguez, who improved to 14-5.

Two other NC teams battled it out in Durham, where the visiting Charlotte Knights won behind a shut-out from pitcher Andrew Sisso. The Bulls set an attendance record with 11,071 fans. They also set a new record for the whole year, as did the Greensboro Grasshoppers. The Bulls are one game behind the Richmond Braves in their division in the Triple-A International League.

Lastly, I saw that the Portland SeaDogs from Maine lost 7-5 despite a three-run homerun from Jay Johnson to the New Britain Rock Cats in Connecticut. But, the SeaDogs are just a half-game behind New Hampshire in the Double-A Eastern League. The problem is the season ends tomorrow........!

Useful link:

http://www.salemavalanche.com

http://www.lynchburghillcats.com

http://www.portlandseadogs.com

http://www.durhambulls.com

http://www.warthogs.com

 

 

Apologies to the other teams, I simply don't have time to list every team mentioned up here!