If the free passes to the premiere of the re-release of "Around the World in 80 Days" didn't sell at the auction last week, it must've been because everybody already had one. There were certainly enough fans at the premiere on Saturday. Besides a large number of regular LASFS attendees, Blake Maxam was there, as was Rusty and her new family. After the 3-hour movie, most of us went to a coffee shop together, and then to the Trimbles for tea and conversation. It was a very enjoyable day, and I hope that John & Bĵo are able to get more premiere passes like this one.
The movie itself was excellent, as it was when it was first released over ten years ago, but this re-release had an unexpectedly morbid aspect in the number of now-deceased actors who kept appearing. Edward R. Murrow, Peter Lorrie, Robert Newton, Buster Keaton, Charles Coburn ... Mike Todd, who made the movie, is dead; Cantinflas has attempted suicide; and a number of cameo performers have dropped from sight (whatever happened to Glynis Johns, Andy Devine ...) An actor (Bob Hope?) was once quoted as saying that there may be no ghosts, but that he was haunted every time he turned on the late, late show and saw himself as he was 20 or more years ago. I don't know why I should get this feeling; I've watched lots of old movies before now without dwelling on the present state of mortality of its actors. For some reason, it just struck me this way.
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I just got a completely unexpected windfall. One of my neighbors is moving, and she came over to ask if I'd like her bookcases, since she knows I like books. So I now have a nice 2 1/2' long, 3-shelf bookcase; and she says she'll have a matching one for me in another few days, as soon as she's through packing. Marvelous!
I have a number of uses for more bookcases, but I've filled this one with some of my unread paperbacks. It's been several years since I was completely caught up on my reading; it seems as though there's a half dozen new paperbacks every week, and I don't have time to read more than half of them. My big living-room bookcase is reserved for the paperbacks that I have read, and the others have been getting piled into boxes in my closet, to be read someday. As more and more books are added to the boxes, though, it's been getting increasingly difficult to find any one title, and a book that I may want to read, but not have time for at the moment, often gets buried under titles that are very low on my list of reading priorities.
Now, through, I've been able to unpack a couple of those boxes, and put the books into order. It's interesting to see the author breakdown. Lots of books by Brian Aldiss; he's one of those authors who I know I should read, but I never get around to. A number of titles by Keith Laumer; slight expansions of magazine serials that I'd just finished reading. Now that they're no longer so fresh in my mind, I'll read these paperback versions with more pleasure. The Rim-World Legacy, by F.A. Javor; an author I'd never heard of, so I didn't pay much attention to it, and by the time Larry Niven recommended it, it was buried in the box. I'll try to get around to it soon. a number of books that I read years ago, and that I mean to re-read now that I've got the paperbacks: the Silent Planet trilogy, by C.S. Lewis; Limbo, by Wolfe; even The Wind in the Willows, by Grahame. The Doc Savage set. The Professor Jameson books. Lin Carter. More bad stuff than good, because I do try to find time to read the good as soon as I get it. But all books that I intend to read someday. I still have a goal of reading all the s-f ever written.
Incidentally, I realize that this goal is practically pointless, because I can't remember all the s-f that I do read. Over half of it is completely forgettable, whether it was enjoyable at the time or not. Looking through the books that I have read, I see authors whose entire works are a blank spot in my mind. J.G. Ballard, for one. Most Ace Double-Books fall into this category. So it wouldn't really matter whether I read them or not.
Fred Hollander -- Hooray for teachers who feel that they can dispense with finals! At UCLA, when I was there, it wasn't allowed. I had one professor who was always complaining that the administration insisted that he give finals, and that he didn't see any need for it. His tests were the broad essay sort, and I suspect that he marked them all with passing grades without really checking them. He was an expert in his field, and a very interesting lecturer, but he just couldn't be bothered with the paperwork of teaching. Of course, if you have only four people in your class, your teacher can probably legitimately evaluate each of you. ## I find the discussion of the interialess drive fairly interesting, but too technical to rouse my interest to the point at which I'd feel like commenting on it.
Dian Pelz -- Well, if the Wilshire Walk didn't come off this time, maybe we can re-schedule it for later. Did people say that they weren't interested in it, period, or that they just didn't want to spend their time on it on that particular date? ## We'll probably get in a lot of walking during our bookstore tour, too. For instance, due to the difficulty of finding parking places around Hollywood Blvd., it'll probably be best to park just once, and walk to all the stores between Pickwick, near Highland, and the World Book & News Agency, on Cahuenga. This will also have the advantage of allowing somebody to shop a bit longer at one store, if he wants,and catch up with us at the next;which would be more difficult if we were driving from store to store. By the time we get back to our cars, we'll probably have covered a mile or more right there on Hollywood, and we'll still have Pasadena or another area ahead of us. How does mid- or late-April sound as a time for the expedition?
Bruce Pelz -- Welcome to the quitter's corner. I haven't had all that much to say in Apa L for a long time, either. I've been working on CAPA-alpha, of which I'm Central Mailer, and have monthly mailings to get out; other apazines; F-UN CON correspondence; and I've been trying to do something for SHAGGY -- besides finding time to read some of the books I want to read. If other people were still enjoying Apa L, I'd say fine; but with a very few exceptions, it's nothing but natter, with occasional padding. I'll agree to dropping it with #180; does anybody really object?
