OF PLAYBOY AND DAUGHTERS AND A WEIRD NFL PLAY

Gravity

Sculpture by Lana Cochrun

    The recent work by Lana seems an appropriate symbol of this post.The woman wears life and the cumulative affect of unseen forces and her manner is haunting.

Photo by Playboy 

     Hugh Hefner's passing at 91 is a moment to consider who we are and what we have become.

     It seems a mistake to consider only the lifestyle of Hefner who seemed to patent the idea of a playboy. There is much about how he portrayed and used women that people can find offensive and demeaning. But Hefner and Playboy made an impact on America that is to our benefit.

     He was an early advocate for racial equality and took bold steps to make an integrated society the norm.

     He was a tireless advocate of free speech and expression. He fought against censorship and a government's heavy hand.

    He was an advocate and supporter of feminism a maturing of his own sexual views.

    His early TV show was the essence of hip, cool and intellectual discussion and fostered a new format.

    Playboy brought sexual behavior and practice out of the bedroom and into the light of analysis, study and public discussion. 

     And as cliche' as it may have been, he provided a forum for writers, published excellent literature and journalism. It published scores of brilliant articles and probing interviews. 

     He advanced music, art and genuine scholarship.

     In a roundabout way he helped launch Gloria Steinem's writing career.

     Yes, he published pictures of naked women. But the naked human body is nothing to be ashamed of, it is a rather marvelous signet of life on this planet. 

      One's view, on possibly everything we consider, may well change over time and the arrival of heirs.

       I did not hope that my daughters would grow to be Playboy Bunnies, and there was a time when both of them thought the magazine was exploitative. As they aged they came to see modern sexuality in their own enlightened ways. Hugh Hefner contributed to America's maturation.

      As a high school and college boy I enjoyed the magazine, including the beautiful women. I make no apology for that. My hormones were kicking on, sexual experience was a very present motivation in my life and I enjoyed the slick and polished style of Playboy magazine.

     In college I was able to visit a couple of Playboy Clubs and enjoyed the experience. Later, as a journalist and speaking with "Bunnies" and Playmates I gained a broadened view about what those women experienced and the difficulties of it. I saw the truth behind the pretense.

     As a correspondent I profiled one of the magazines leading photographers and accompanied him as he and his crew shot for a feature on mid western women. Let me explain a moment that forever changed my attitude about the models.  

     I'll start with the finished photo. It featured a beautiful young women, partially dressed with a come hither seductive look on her face. The truth is she was an 18 year old kid who found poses only because the photographer's assistants helped her attain them. The seductive look on the page of the magazine was in real life a confused "what do you want me to do?" expression. There was nothing sexual in her mind or behavior and the "look" the magazine was trying to attain was an accidental moment that a skilled photographer was able to glean. The "sexiness" of the shot was nothing in that kid's mind or experience.

       I met Hefner and he was an endearing man, well read and highly intelligent.  Years later I interviewed his daughter Christie when she became CEO. She too was endearing, articulate and deep thinking. 

       In later years Playboy seem an anachronism and even a bit silly.  Hefner's lifestyle seemed the same and perpetually adolescent.  But that does not negate the innovation he brought or the good battles he fought. He was an original.

consider 

     It surprised some the NFL Owners and Commissioner lined up with the players in the battle of words with the occupant of the White House. 

      It would be nice to think these plantation owners firmly believe in the full benefits of free speech and expression. But consider another angle.

      The players and the league are locked in a battle over the NFL's policy of dropping player's medical insurance after a time. That time is usually about the time the players begin suffering the maladies of the game's brutality.

       The biggest concern now and one that some of the public is finally starting to pay attention to is CTE. The statistics of former NFL players with CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy) is shocking. Many are wondering if it is not a matter of IF, but WHEN NFL players begin to experience the disastrous destruction of their brains and their lives.

       Getting locked into a battle with the twitter in chief is a great diversion from the CTE concerns. Remember this is a league that tried to prevent a popular movie about CTE from being made, released or advertised. Changing the subject is like an audible change made at the line of scrimmage. 

     See you down the trail

WHISPERS, CAKE, PRETTY YOUNG WOMEN IN SWIMSUITS

DEPENDS ON HOW YOU LOOK AT IT

   A promise of what?

   What is this?  See it in context below.

  An afternoon whisper, excluding one? 

  The partner pictures follow below, but first

SLICING CAKE

    There's a lot about Cake that is improbable.  Most obviously is Jennifer Aniston. The glamorous star turns in an extraordinary performance as an actress, more than a marquee star. She portrays a woman horribly tortured by life and loss. Gone are her beauty and the often formulaic or predictable roles.  

    In CAKE she suffers from chronic pain, heartbreak that is slowly and effectively revealed, dependence on drugs and is not a nice person, though as the story unfolds you understand why.  Aniston moves in a way that makes you hurt for her and she brings life to those who must live with chronic pain, physical and emotional.  It is a powerful performance.

    Patrick Tobin has been writing for years and without a great deal of success. A few years ago his short story Cake started creating a buzz in Hollywood and Tobin adapted it for film. He's got a great new credit on his resume. 

     Anna Kendrick, Felicity Huffman and Sam Worthington turn in fine performances. Adriana Barraza as the long suffering and loyal house keeper Silvana is brilliant.

    It's a good film but even better as a kind of gentle slap in the face. It is easy to forget how absolutely difficult the simplest things in life can be, or how painful for some. If nothing else this film alerts your empathetic synapses and can make you aware of what it is to live with afflictions. This is a departure from normal entertainment fair. Cake's fresh story and the performance of its unexpected star give it more impact. Those who see  Cake are likely to see Jennifer Aniston in a new light.

THE SPORTS ILLUSTRATED SWIM SUIT DEBATE

     There's less than unanimity in this house, and a few others about the SI Cover.  

      Is the pose of model Hannah Davis lowering her bikini bottom, inappropriate, lewd or worse?  Depends on who you ask. 

      The SI Swimsuit issue is a kind of annual social divide.

Awful, exploitive, sexist or art, beautiful, sexy?  Eye of the beholder land here. 

       Some say it's terrible that men who could be their fathers or grand fathers leer at the models. Is it anymore terrible they look now than when were the models age.  SI has done this with a generational history and it seems the same arguments ensue. Are the readers "dirty old men?"

      Given all the other things people argue, fight and war over in this world, this annual debate is refreshing. I certainly look forward to it each year. And to the magazine as well!

THE NOT SO SI COMPANION PICTURES

   The more complete ballet.

   Sea spray.

   Left out. Were the two above, whispering about her?

   Peace descends and dreams are launched.

   See you down the trail.  

THE WEEKENDER-EURO STYLE

FRENCH, OR ITALIAN, OR CALIFORNIAN

    Admiring what I call the old "buck board bench" at Giovanni's Harmony Cafe, warmed by the coastal sun, reading a note from our pal Bruce about recipes from Provence' as we await the latest offering from our local master chef, the aromas of the kitchen mixing with the roses, my cocoon of well being is bumped by a realization. 

    Lana and I have been chatting about the joie d'vivre of the Susan Loomis book ON RUE TATIN as she recounts her move to France to write a cookbook as her husband rebuilds a centuries old home in a northern town.  It strikes us that our life here in what some have called the "American Provence'" is authentic provincial joy itself. The cafe for example, guests reflect that with the alfresco setting, the climate and cuisine they could be in Tuscany or Provence.  Indeed! The culture here is younger than Loomis's Louviers in Normandy, but it is unique, as in 

ART ON A LADDER

    Art Van Rhyn that is.  Artist, gallery owner, musician, founder of the whimsical 927 art show, cartoonist of the weekly From the Beach cartoon in The Cambrian and personality unique is one of the pantheon of  "Cambria Characters" this village is known for. Emphasis on "character!"

CAN YOU GUESS WHAT THIS IS?

     30 minutes down the gorgeous Pacific Coast Highway is the beautiful small city of San Luis Obispo.  Truly Mediterranean in look and temperament, S-L-O, as many call it, is a university town, full of playfulness, as in the scene above. Bubblegum Alley.

   Yep, that's all gum.  It's a changing work of art, as generations have created their own morphing images, words, messages and etc. Bet they don't have one of these in Normandy.

    So later I'll slip into my easy chair, crack open ON RUE

TATIN, peak out the window at the Santa Lucia mountains and start thinking about what we're going to do for dinner.

The whir of the mixer as I write this is the reminder Lana is making pasta.  We'll probably pick a few tomatoes from one of the raised beds and likely find the other items to round it out at the Farmer's Market underway in the village. Many of the characters will be there. In fact the longer one stays here, the more we all transform, or aspire to our niche in the ways of eccentricity.  

    Oh yea, we'll be using olive oil, but then, which type?  While this region produces great wine, we have a burgeoning olive oil market as well.  So, perhaps, there is a place for our version of this fellow---enjoy.  

Have a fun, delicious and sexy weekend!

   See you down the trail.