Farewell, Albuquerque.

Like the true moderate I am, I watch — watched (sob) — “Breaking Bad” from a perspective in the vast acreage between casual and obsessive. I went to college and have dabbled in criticism, so when I learned the final episode would be called “Felina,” I immediately thought of Marty Robbins’ “El Paso,” but didn’t consider that the title is an anagram for “finale.”

(My appreciation for “El Paso” comes from pushing quarters into the jukebox at the Scioto Trails, a great roadhouse from my youth that long ago fell to the developer’s wrecking ball. MarkH, I’m sure you were there.)

Anyway, if you know the song at all, you know it’s about the tragic fate of a jealous cowboy. And at this point, I guess we have to say SPOILER ALERT FOR THE FINAL EPISODE OF “BREAKING BAD.” If you don’t know what happened, why are you even reading this? Seriously.

The lyrics of “El Paso” are as effective as a beat sheet (TV writer jargon; it’s an outline) for the final episode, which — all seem to agree — was as satisfying as it could be, without being entirely perfect.

Cowboy music has a lot in common with bluegrass — a tragic story told in many, many verses. But let’s take it from the turning point:

Just for a moment I stood there in silence,
Shocked by the foul evil deed I had done.
Many thoughts raced through my mind as I stood there;
I had but one chance and that was to run.

As we all know, Walt was on the run for the last two episodes, deep in not “the badlands of New Mexico,” but the very cold landscape of New Hampshire. Brooding. Broken. Ready to give up. Until, galvanized by the Charlie Rose ramblings of his former partner and girlfriend (now man and wife), he finds the strength to return to the scene of his many crimes and set things right.

Back in El Paso my life would be worthless.
Everything’s gone in life; nothing is left.
It’s been so long since I’ve seen the young maiden
My love is stronger than my fear of death.

Walt’s young maiden is his guilt, or maybe it’s what remained of Heisenberg, meth king and rampaging angel. His love for his family is what it most certainly isn’t, and Vince Gilligan gets credit for the pivotal line of the episode, the final shred of self-delusion falling from Walt’s eyes: “I did it for me. I liked it. I was good at it. And I was really … I was alive.” Remember, he made this decision when he was under a death sentence. And that feeling of being alive is cited often enough by people in criminal enterprises that “adrenaline junkie” doesn’t really cover it. In “Thelma & Louise,” not long before they hurtle toward the cliff OOPS SPOILER, Geena Davis says, “I feel awake.” That’s a powerful feeling.

And at last here I am on the hill overlooking El Paso;
I can see Rosa’s cantina below.
My love is strong and it pushes me onward.
Down off the hill to Felina I go.

Off to my right I see five mounted cowboys;
Off to my left ride a dozen or more.
Shouting and shooting I can’t let them catch me.
I have to make it to Rosa’s back door.

To Rosa’s back door he made it, in the sense that he touched base with the Schwartzes, Skyler, Lydia and Todd before finally facing the music at the Nazis’ meth compound. This was the most implausible sequence, but it’s not like Walt invented the idea of using the trunk of a car as a shooting station.

Something is dreadfully wrong for I feel a deep burning pain in my side.
Though I am trying to stay in the saddle,
I’m getting weary, unable to ride.

And we all know the rest. Because recaps and criticism aren’t my strong suit, I’ll leave the rest to you. I would like to note one thing, however: For all his self-justification of doing this for the money, Walt was never all that driven by it. Granted, a man trying to hide criminal activity would be unwise to flash cash around town, but beyond the episode with the car(s), he didn’t even allow himself the little luxuries that wouldn’t have drawn attention — a kitchen remodel, a cashmere pullover. That’s why I loved the scene in the Schwartzes’ ridiculous mansion, with Walt gazing at the appointments and proportions like an archaeologist. One of my favorite episodes of the whole series was when Walt and Skyler go to a birthday party at their place, Skyler wearing what looks like a repurposed bridesmaid dress and all the other guests so effortlessly and expensively underdressed. One of the gifts is a guitar once owned, and signed, by Eric Clapton. Walt’s wounded seething was something to see.

The whole series was something to see. RIP, and on to the next one.

Of all the last-episode recaps out there, I recommend Hank’s and Matt Zoller Seitz’.

So, back from New York, where much fun was had and many miles were walked. My feet feel like old bread dough in need of some serious kneading. More on that tomorrow.

Posted at 11:42 am in Television |
 

54 responses to “Farewell, Albuquerque.”

  1. James said on September 30, 2013 at 12:23 pm

    I went to the Scioto Trails as well, in my 20s. I remember that had one of those great old bowling machines where you either (now I forget) knocked down pins with a puck or a little wooden ball.

    I used to imagine my parents went there in their youth.

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  2. LAMary said on September 30, 2013 at 1:05 pm

    We had one of those bowling machines in our basement. With four older brother we had the dream basement. A pool table, a bowling machine, a pinball machine and a wet bar. The coin slots still worked but you could bypass the coins. I think everyone of us bilked a friend once or twice telling them they had to pay to use the pool table or machines.

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  3. Holly said on September 30, 2013 at 1:21 pm

    I guess I will be watching Breaking Bad in rerun if I am lucky. I will most likely get hooked on it then. I never seem to catch shows when they are on. I am always stuck watching the crap my hubby likes. Science programs, things on aliens, Ice Road Truckers, how things are made. This list goes on. Did not start watching Home Improvement until it was almost done with its run. Same thing with Everybody Loves Raymond. Started watching The Big Bang Theory about 6 months ago. Hopefully that wont go off the air.

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  4. coozledad said on September 30, 2013 at 1:48 pm

    Aww. The Greeks just put their Tea-Trash franchise in Jail.

    http://wonkette.com/530111/leaders-of-greek-neo-fascist-party-arrested-may-be-sent-to-fema-camps#more-530111

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  5. Dexter said on September 30, 2013 at 2:15 pm

    It wasn’t the DC snipers that originated the importance of the car trunk. Q. Tarantino used the trunk-camera in at least four of his films that I can recall. I guess I was pretty-much in-tune with BB’s direction…my prediction on the last thread was close, really close to what happened.
    So, was “Breaking Bad” really a classic, a bust-out sensation ala “The Wire” and “The Sopranos”?
    Hell no. No way. I was constantly exasperated that this show was on commercial-based TV, where we only have a few moments for a crescendo to build and then back to the goddam Cialis ads. By this time I know…if I have an erection for longer than four hours…I KNOW already!
    Can we compare the performances of James Gandolfini and Clarke Peters to Bryan Cranston’s? I loved BB, but I also love Steven Buscemi in “Boardwalk Empire”, but compared to “The Wire” and “The Sopranos”, Breaking Bad has to stand at least third in line, and maybe behind “Treme” as well, even though “Treme” didn’t bust down any doors, for whatever reason.
    I never search out the TV rankings , but via scuttlebutt I hear that “Low Winter Sun” is taking a beating. I think it is a great show, I love the location shots in downtown Detroit, I think it is a throwback (a real stretch here!) to film noir…but I also hear that young adult viewers are trashing it and avoiding it. I fear for S2…if it ever happens, that is…is it doomed?
    I never studied acting, but wasn’t the pure drama , the hand-wringing, the yelling, the portrayed hatred all through every Breaking Bad episode a bit ‘over the top’? You’d think the actors OD’d on Konstantin Stanislavsky and Lee Strasberg.
    http://www.methodactingstrasberg.com/history

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  6. Dexter said on September 30, 2013 at 2:24 pm

    http://www.gocomics.com/that-new-carl-smell/2013/09/30#.UknBwlPpwVA

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  7. Dexter said on September 30, 2013 at 2:35 pm

    Truth revealed: It was Marie, not Gilligan.
    http://www.theonion.com/articles/breaking-bad-ends-with-reveal-that-whole-series-wa,34036/

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  8. LAMary said on September 30, 2013 at 2:46 pm

    There is an alternative interpretation of “Felina.”

    We really like the interpretation of the episode’s title as being made up of elements: FeLiNa, meaning iron, lithium and sodium on the periodic table, or blood, meth and tears according to one Twitter user’s translation.

    Read more: http://www.digitalspy.com/tv/s166/breaking-bad/recaps/a519483/breaking-bad-series-finale-recap-blood-meth-and-tears-in-felina.html#ixzz2gP3fAITr
    Follow us: @digitalspy on Twitter | digitalspyuk on Facebook

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  9. Connie said on September 30, 2013 at 2:55 pm

    I have never watched Breaking Bad, but after today I sure know what happened. And that Marty Robbins song, never a favorite of mine; now I am singing it at my desk!

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  10. beb said on September 30, 2013 at 2:55 pm

    I just returned from a visit to redneck country. I’m still shuddering.

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  11. Dorothy said on September 30, 2013 at 3:43 pm

    Deborah at comment #58 over the weekend pretty much nailed the ending of the show. I shared her theories; I was convinced the ricin was for Walt so never imagined it was in the Stevia packet for Lydia. Brilliant! I cried through much of the scene with Skyler and the kids. I felt a little cheated that we didn’t see much of Jesse for the last few shows, but then again he was chained to the meth lab and was living in a hole in the ground, so there wasn’t much exposition available to his character. What little the writers gave him, he sure made the most of. No character was more tortured during the two year time span of the show than poor Jesse.

    I really dislike comparing actors/plots/series, trying to have one triumph over another. Can’t they all be on the same playing field, with differences enough to ensure that none are perfect? The richness of the performances are what carry me, and then the stories are a close second. Many times the best acting happens with no dialogue – if I’m mesmerized by the expression n someone’s eyes or on their face, I know I’m seeing brilliance. Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul, Anna Gunn – they all rank up there with James Gandolfini and Edie Falco and so many others. I’m sorry to see Breaking Bad end, but it was oh so satisfying and I find no fault with any of it. My favorite episode? Other than the heart stopping Ozymandias – it was Crawl Space.

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  12. Basset said on September 30, 2013 at 3:47 pm

    Never saw “Breaking Bad,” but I have used the roof of my Subaru as a shooting station… and have a muzzle-blast-induced dent to prove it, you wouldn’t think a little 22 would do that.
    “Buying Alaska” is more our speed…

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  13. Prospero said on September 30, 2013 at 4:20 pm

    Aside from crawling off to boff the skeevy MoFo Ted (and a spouse could not for whatever reason find a more insulting and hurtful POS to commit adultery with twice than Ted, Sky was a criminal long before Walter was. She cooked Ted’s books like an overdone haggis. And Marie was worse than Skyler because she hated her sister for being the pretty one so she stole baby tiaras. Uncle Hank may have been a crimebusting hero to his nephew Flynn, but he was a hubristic obsessive malcontent since nobody that wasn’t Gregory Peck going down with the White Whale. Like Oedipus, Jocasta and Laius. There is plenty of Sophocles here to go around. Overweening pride is man’s inevitable downfall.

    No offense intended Basset, but Breaking Bad was just like NYC, no reason to go there. Our delicate sensibilities might be offended. I was accepted at Vandy and chose Holy Cross instead because I was more impressed with the English Dept. facullty, and Nashvull seemed kinda boring. As far as BB is concerned, how much of Walter’s behavior rresulted directly from his giving up the Gray Matter dream for less than 40 pieces of silver and losing the woman he loved (no matter how rattus norvegicus the overbite) to his partner in Nerdstrom? I’d say a lot. I will say, as soon as I saw the Stevia packet, I knew Lydia was going to die of severe flu symptoms. Did anybody else feel a shiver with the continued motion of the assault rifle in Walt’s trunk echoing the irrepressible bounce bounce of jesse’s lowrider car out in the desert wasteland. I thought this was undeniable. And I said it when it happened. When Walt let Jane die, he sealed his fate. Subhuman. And I have loved that Marty Robbins song since I was an altar boy downtown in Memphis and Cocolas wer a nickle in on of those ice cold maze machines and I heard it on the sacristy radio, some Cubano Batistaite hiding out. Jane was a junkkie, but she was the best person of all of these. Doubt that’s a coincidence. Sweet Jane, aholes.

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  14. Prospero said on September 30, 2013 at 4:34 pm

    Sorry, Ted? Remember when Walt diddled Sky under the table at the parent-teacher meeting? At least he was never a whiny wimp like Ted. Women do this thing on purpose where they cheat with the most ridiculous ahole they can think of. It’s Ur-mother instinct. Make it hurt. Jane was clearly the best person of all of the people on Breaking Bad. She loved Jesse, She was murdered by Walt. Pretty clear that Tara has to come out on top on SOA. I want her to strangle Jemma with her own bare hands the way Todd’s neck snapped (and you were sure as shit right about that Dex. He snapped his fucking neck. There may have been sorrier aholes in the genre, but Ted is a putz, a disgraceful POS.

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  15. brian stouder said on September 30, 2013 at 4:40 pm

    We interrupt the ongoing Breaking Bad kibitzing for the following digression:

    At the end of the last thread, Julie said this, regarding Fort Wayne South Side’s (“SS”) football team, and the unpleasant ending of their last game in Indianapolis:

    The vast majority of SS coaches and players did nothing, but unfortunately this incident will be one reason Homestead and Carroll do not join the conference.

    I just wanted to express my sincerest hope that this proves incorrect, even as I suspect Julie may be absolutely right.

    Those long-distance treks for a Friday night football game are tiresome for everyone to begin with, and may well even be a factor in the poor behavior of some of the (Indy) coaches.

    I confess that I will become a fairly relentless anti-Homestead anti-Carroll partisan (more-so than I may already be!) if this comes to pass.

    We now return you to the ongoing discussion of the end of Breaking Bad (and indeed, I was expecting the Cadillac to explode. The machine gun in the trunk struck me as extra-cheesey, and exponentially more likely to be flatly ineffective, than to be as stunningly spot-on as it ultimately was)

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  16. Julie Robinson said on September 30, 2013 at 5:00 pm

    Different Julie, BTW. I suspect no one will be happy with the outcome from that fight.

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  17. brian stouder said on September 30, 2013 at 5:03 pm

    Hah! If I’d have noticed it wasn’t the Julie, I might have been been lots less temperate!

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  18. LAMary said on September 30, 2013 at 5:03 pm

    Off topic: I had an eye exam last Thursday and I’m a member of the early stages of cataract club. On a better note, I picked out cool new frames.

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  19. Dave said on September 30, 2013 at 5:35 pm

    I’ve seen exactly one episode of Breaking Bad, it was the second episode, my son had started watching it. I was afraid that it was too morbid for my tastes, perhaps not. I’ve never seen the other favorites frequently talked about here, such as The Wire, Deadwood, actually anything on HBO or Showtime, which we’ve never subscribed to. I did, however, watch most of Burn Notice, until it just started dragging on, and I’ve missed most of the last two seasons. I know that it’s come to an end but haven’t worked up the interest to learn how.

    One network show that I’ve watched, even though I find a lot of the plots completely unbelieveable, is The Mentalist where, this season, they’re finally going to reveal who the ruthless murderer, Red John, is. Yes, it’s true, I watch TV from the cheap seats.

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  20. Dave said on September 30, 2013 at 5:37 pm

    BTW, Nancy, where was Scioto Trails? Was that somewhere on the north side, it sounds like it should have been right on Route 23 but I recall no such place. Just wondering.

    I would have added this but, alas, no edit button. I’m glad to be able to say that things seem to be working well now, thank you, JC.

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  21. Basset said on September 30, 2013 at 5:45 pm

    No offense intended Pros, but give it a rest. This everyone’s-an-idiot-but-me trip got
    old a long while back.

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  22. BOb (not Greene) said on September 30, 2013 at 6:01 pm

    ^^^^^^^This

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  23. Crabby said on September 30, 2013 at 6:50 pm

    Dave@20 Scioto Trails was on Riverside Dr/Rt 33 near McCoy & Lane Rd (not Lane Ave) at the then north end of UA. Pretty much out in the woods, not much around it at the time – a real dive. I think I stopped in there a handful of times in the ’70s.

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  24. MarkH said on September 30, 2013 at 6:51 pm

    Wow, Nance. Of all of us here at nn.c I’m flattered that you chose me as a most likely visitor to Scioto Trails. Truth be told, it is only a possible distant recollection for me as I don’t recall ever going there. Your endorsement (and subsequently James’, which of course would lead to JC’s) indicates I have missed a lot.

    So, answering Dave’s question, I googled Scioto Trails and the only thing resembling a hit puts it in Jackson, OH. This would make sense as it is just a ways down the road from Athens and perhaps Nancy & co. wanted a hangout way off campus to cut loose. Four of my best high school buddies and an ex-girlfriend went to OU and I visited only a handful of times, never reaching Jackson.

    Am I correct or is it outside Columbus somewhere? If it is near Columbus, then I was REALLY out of touch!

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  25. MarkH said on September 30, 2013 at 6:53 pm

    My post #24 crossed with Crabby’s. Now I know how really unhip I was while in Central Ohio!

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  26. MarkH said on September 30, 2013 at 7:04 pm

    ALSO – since I know know where Scioto Trails was, that gives me a time frame for many heretofore untold roadhouse adventures of Nancy and our mutual friend, Becky!

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  27. Connie said on September 30, 2013 at 7:21 pm

    MY TV habits are like Dave’s. Junk like the Mentalist, none of the shows you all tend to talk about. Partly because I don’t have HBO. Soon I will turn on the box to watch Dancing With the Stars. I’ll admit it.

    We went out for our anniversary dinner tonight. The two women in the next booth – we couldn’t see them but we sure could hear them – spent the time talking about the ghosts they have seen, the spirits by which they have been visited, and the mediums they have visited. It was too weird for me.

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  28. Deborah said on September 30, 2013 at 7:29 pm

    Mark H, do tell the heretofore untold roadhouse adventures of Nancy and friends.

    Our friend is here to help us do the final hook up of the bathroom sink. We have most everything else done and I can’t tell you how great it felt to take a real shower this morning. I’m now looking forward to brushing my teeth at the bathroom sink hopefully tonight. Our bathroom is so tiny there can’t be many people in there at one time so our friend is in there now sawing away on the PVC drain hole (or whatever it’s called).

    Here’s hoping we don’t have to make an emergency call to a real plumber. Fingers crossed.

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  29. brian stouder said on September 30, 2013 at 7:38 pm

    Connie – Pam and I are “The Voice” people; and we almost never watch any of the talked about shows, either.

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  30. Deborah said on September 30, 2013 at 7:38 pm

    Happy anniversary Connie, mine was a week ago but since I’m in Santa Fe and my husband is working in Chicago (well actually right now he’s in Southern California for a project) we’ll celebrate later. He’ll be in SF in a couple of weeks, then we both go back to Chicago until Thanksgiving. Little Bird will be happy that we’re taking our cat back to Chicago, she’s been in Santa Fe since mid May. She’s a sweet cat most of the time but she can get crotchety, since she’s 16 years old. She hasn’t been happy about the clanging and banging around that this renovation project has brought about. She gets freaked out when we rearrange the furniture, so this is threatening to send her over the edge.

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  31. alex said on September 30, 2013 at 8:21 pm

    Count me as someone who doesn’t have premium channels either. Or time to watch the cheap ones. I’m lucky if I can fit 60 Minutes into my week, and though it used to be a Sunday ritual, I just record it now and catch it if I can. Desperate Housewives was the only other show in recent years that captured my fancy enough to be be bothered with it. I recently sat through the premiere of Robin Williams’ new ad agency sitcom with Calista Flockhart and it struck me as the same sort of treacly Mrs. Doubtfire crap he used to do in Hollywood. Mork & Mindy: The Septuagenerian Years might have been a better boob tube comeback concept than this schlock.

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  32. Connie said on September 30, 2013 at 8:27 pm

    I also watched the Robin Williams and probably won’t again. And it was Sarah Michelle Gellar, for what it’s worth.

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  33. brian stouder said on September 30, 2013 at 8:38 pm

    Well, even if you are not a Formula One race fan, I’m thinking Ron Howard’s new movie “Rush”, more or less about James Hunt, ought to be good. Check out this marvelous article from BBC –

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/22887679

    “I trained like mad,” says Hunt’s great rival and friend Jody Scheckter, the 1979 world champion . “I didn’t have sex for three days before a race. I don’t know how you’d be more professional than that. I had parties, just not when I was racing. Niki Lauda didn’t do anything, at least that he talked about or that we saw.

    and

    Hunt was indeed an arch roisterer, a man who claimed to have slept with 5,000 women, who caroused with the great and the good, who hoovered up cocaine in far-flung nightclubs. Who had an awful lot of fun, or at least seemed like he did. And the 1976 Formula 1 season was indeed a transitional one, with Hunt representing the last flowering of corinthianism and the rational, ultra efficient Lauda providing a glimpse of the sport in its modern form.

    “corinthianism”?

    I suppose that made sense to some large portion of the BBC’s readers, eh?

    Anyway, I look forward to catching Opie’s new movie

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  34. Sherri said on September 30, 2013 at 9:08 pm

    From my reading of Georgette Heyer’s Regency books, I think a Corinthian is someone who lives luxuriously or even in a debauched manner.

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  35. brian stouder said on September 30, 2013 at 9:25 pm

    I’m still pondering the “arch roisterer” thing, wherein he claims “to have slept with 5,000 women”….

    I suppose the KEY is, that it was the “roisterer” his-own-self who made the claim….but Good Heavens!

    Considering that there are 365 days in a year, and assuming that the count doesn’t begin until – what? – 16 years of age? and that he’s dead by 45…. that leaves 29 years (or 10,500 days) to meet and seduce 5,000 individuals??!! Good God!! One would need to take a vacation, no? (On the other hand, if one was at a big enough orgy, I suppose one might ‘run up the score’ on one particular night, but still!!)

    I’m pretty sure my grand total number of encounters cannot even be half that number, and the total number of people is in the low single digits. And I’ve already been alive for 7 years (2500+ days!) longer than Hunt

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  36. Dave said on September 30, 2013 at 9:28 pm

    Far north end of Upper Arlington, should have been able to guess, that was far out of my track. Now, if anyone has ever been to the Pour House, in Reynoldsburg, which was primarily a beer bar, where the 3.2% beer was served up by the barrel in the late sixties and very early seventies, when the age for 3.2 was 18, then we can talk.

    Today, there’s a bank setting where the Pour House was.

    I have never seen a ghost, Connie, but a relative of a relative told us a ghost story recently, where she saw her dead husband’s face in a glass and her daughter’s boyfriend saw him sitting on a sofa, where he used to sit and watch TV. Then, we have our family ghost picture, where it looks like someone is peeking around my nephew’s side, three days after my father passed away.

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  37. MarkH said on September 30, 2013 at 9:41 pm

    I have been looking forward to Rush as well, Brian. Howard reportedly put it together with care as he became an F1 fan years ago. Some in the motor racing press, especially the very opinionated facebook vintage racing pages, have reviled and nit-picked it to death. But the important thing is it’s one good story about a transitional year and a genuine rivalry that was not as dramatic as depicted in the film. Just two completely different men with completely different approaches to competition in general and F1 in particular. Dramatic license was taken, yes and some facts fudged, but Lauda collaborated and approved.

    http://www.autoweek.com/article/20130919/carnews01/130919988

    This paragraph from the above sums it pretty well:

    “…Hunt, for whom the term “playboy” has not been overused, perhaps knew he was getting his 15 minutes of fame and wanted to use every second of it. The exacting Lauda, meanwhile, planned every corner of his rise to racing success. Hunt says that people find the ever-present specter of death in racing sexy: “The closer you are to death, the more alive you feel.” Lauda doesn’t like anything at all about death, especially after his accident brought him so close to it, and instead calculates that he has “a 20 percent chance of dying every time” he races but that such a number is “acceptable.” Hunt spends every free moment knee-deep in a dalliance. Lauda spends it elbow-deep in the chassis, re-engineering his car. The character contrasts are as intriguing as the overblown rivalry….”

    Here is a documentary from 1996 on the ’76 season focusing on Hunt/Lauda, a little less sensational.

    http://www.autoweek.com/article/20130411/f1/130419971

    Hunt’s biography, released about ten years ago, goes into much detail and supports all the outlandish claims of a sex, drugs, rock&roll life. Early on in their careers, Hunt and Lauda were roommates and Lauda had always considered Hunt “an honet-to-God pal”. Their lifestyles may have played a part in their accomplishments and longevity: Hunt, no longer competitive, retired half way throgh the ’79 season, and died of a heart attack in 1993 at age 45. Lauda not only came back from the horrific German Grand Prix fiery accident in three weeks to compete again, he won the championship for a second time in 1977. Then, he walked away from the sport just prior to the Japanese Grand Prix in ’79, only to UN-retire in 1982, with the championship again in ’84 and finally leave the sport for good in ’85.

    For most of us, Rush will be all about the racing and how it is depicted, regardless of how the Hunt/Lauda ’76 season story is told.

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  38. MarkH said on September 30, 2013 at 9:49 pm

    Actually, it was SIX weeks between Lauda’s accident and his return at the Itaian Grand Prix, as the excellent article Brian linked to stated. Still, Lauda came from last rites in Germany to finish FOURTH in Italy!

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  39. Jolene said on September 30, 2013 at 9:50 pm

    Hunt was a piker compared to Wilt Chamberlain, Brian. He claimed to have had sex with 20,000 women. Of course, I’m not sure how long the relevant time period was, so Hunt may, indeed, have had the higher rate.

    I’m pretty sure, though, that interactions carried out at this pace don’t qualify for the label of seduction.

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  40. basset said on September 30, 2013 at 9:56 pm

    And Lauda started an airline, Lauda Air, after leaving F1 racing… http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lauda_Air

    I rarely go to a movie, Rush looks interesting though and Mrs. B and I will probably go see it this week sometime. Hunt was indeed notoriously attractive to women, but Mrs. B. says neither he nor the actor playing him does anything for her… any perspective on that from the ladies of nn.c?

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  41. Deborah said on September 30, 2013 at 10:29 pm

    Speaking of Opie and Breaking Bad in the same comment thread, I thought it was funny that Todd was often referred to as Opie. It was so true and such a juxtaposition.

    We have a half operating bathroom sink. The line to hook up to the hot water valve was not long enough so I have to go back to the plumbing supply place tomorrow morning and get an extension. There seem to be no leaks anywhere. I can still brush my teeth in the bathroom, I just have to use only cold water. The tiny room looks like a boutique hotel bathroom now. Almost done.

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  42. alex said on September 30, 2013 at 10:32 pm

    Wasn’t it Wilt Chamberlain who referred to women as “spinners”? He’d made it sound as if they existed for no other purpose than to be impaled and slapped around.

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  43. Little Bird said on September 30, 2013 at 10:36 pm

    For what it’s worth, I’m allergic to the cat. I’m not a cat hater.
    She also YOWLS every few hours each night demanding food. Starting at about midnight. I love my furry little sister, I do, but I look forward to only waking up due to my insomnia.

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  44. basset said on September 30, 2013 at 10:47 pm

    Meanwhile, a Breaking Bad reference:

    http://www.showbiz411.com/2013/09/30/breaking-bad-ending-song-badfingers-baby-blue-climbing-itunes-chart

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  45. Julie Robinson said on September 30, 2013 at 10:51 pm

    Corinthian would originally refer to Bible times, when St. Paul had to excoriate the church there for rampant debauchery, along with many other problems.

    And I’m with Mrs. B.

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  46. Connie said on September 30, 2013 at 11:15 pm

    Sorry Dave, still don’t believe in ghosts or any other kind of mythical being. Call me a skeptic.

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  47. Connie said on September 30, 2013 at 11:23 pm

    I’m off to bed with a heavy heart. My country is run by idiots.

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  48. Hattie said on September 30, 2013 at 11:53 pm

    I feel more alive than I want to be, sometimes, so I’d rather stay out of trouble.

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  49. Kaye said on October 1, 2013 at 12:24 am

    My eyes saw “Corinthianism” but my brain read/heard “rich Corinthian leather”.

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  50. MarkH said on October 1, 2013 at 2:11 am

    Deborah –

    Any roadhouse adventure stories will have to come from Nancy, as I don’t know any specifics. All I did was deduce a timeframe put together with certain individuals I knew about 35 years ago.

    Although…around that time, there was a memorable wedding, reception and aftermath at the Southern Hotel bar, of all places, with Becky, Nance and me. Not sure she remembers that, ’cause I barely do.

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  51. Prospero said on October 1, 2013 at 7:22 am

    One hellacious football player. Did he die dithering and sundowning? God knows, I don’t.

    Sherman Alexie is a very good writer, and I pretty much agree with him on the subject of ebooks. I have books piled up everywhere. And I love them. Particularly my first edition of The American Language, by the legendary, dare I say iconic, HL Mencken. Maybe the greatest book ever written. And American English is clearly the greatest language ever. Ginormous vocab and endlessly arguable grammar. I suppose that opinion sounds like I think I’m smarter than everyone, but believe me, that thought never crossed my mind. And I never met Basset, much less pissed in his Lucky Charms. Can I just mention Mathematics. I dislike anything but geometry with a bloody passion, but bringing up the ease with which one can finesse the SAT and GRE math components, by simply working the problems in reverse, as proving, I somehow made an enemy of Basset. Here’s to the math-phobic, of whom I am one.

    MarkH@50: Sounds like a Lowell George song.

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  52. Prospero said on October 1, 2013 at 7:43 am

    I’d like to express an opinion aobut opinions. The absolutely stupidest thing any human being ever said is “That’s just your opinion” No shit, asshole, that’s why it came out of my mouth. Anyone that lacks courage in her own opinions is pretty much a nebbish, somebody to be ignored. What is gained by entertaining an opinion different from my own? Rarely anything. I Basset thinks that means I believe I’m smarter than everybody else, I’ll grant him that asinine assumption. I have never treated anybody that way, and probably won’t, from here on out. Far as that goes. And Kaye@49: That is way hilarious. I prefer the homelier Montalban on Crossing Jordan and Covert Affairs. Particularly Crossing Jordan, and why wasn’t Jill Cassidy cast in Continuum? Most gorgeous woman in network series TeeVee in a long time. And for a long time, so long.

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  53. Prospero said on October 1, 2013 at 8:06 am

    One more thing: Anybody that thinks PEDs had an effect on baseball, that is still talking about the clear and the cream is a fucking moron. Injectable, maybe, lotions and drinks, washed out fast. Not even close. Barry Bonds is the best baallplayer not named Vlad Guerrero to this day. And now, I am out of here probably forever.

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  54. Basset said on October 1, 2013 at 10:54 am

    And earlier in the day than usual, too.

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