A couple of recent incidents have reassured me that my memory is still functioning, at least in some particulars. The first occurred during my eager rewatching on DVD of Crime Wave, which I had first seen several years ago on Turner Classic Movies. I've mentioned before that the movie included an unforgettably weird performance by Timothy Carey, who has been referred to as a "Method character actor" (whose method? Stanislavsky's or Rasputin's?). This screen capture proves my memory was not at fault.
In this scene, Carey has been introduced to Phyllis Kirk, who plays the wife of an ex-con whom a group of San Quentin escapees are trying to enroll in a bank robbery. The lascivious intentions of the hoods have before been betrayed by the actor on the right of this scene, who is credited as "Charles Buchinsky"--and at that point in his career, Charles Bronson was at least attempting to act. Carey, the seated criminal, is trying to convey by this facial rictus that he is both charmed by Kirk and trying to charm her. Unbelievable.
The other event happened while I was rereading a book that I had first read probably 35 years ago. During one portion, I started laughing uncontrollably--every phrase, every clause, released gales of laughter, paroxysms of cleansing mirth--the kind of laughs that make you dizzy while you try to catch your breath. And I recalled that I had laughed at the exact same passage all those years ago. I don't think one's sense of humor changes all that much over time.
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