Nostalgia Sunday

July 13, 2008 - 11:02 PM by Rachel Neiman · 3 Comments
Filed under: General

I’ve been thinking a lot about The Blaumilch Canal lately. Maybe it’s the heat, maybe it’s summer ennui, or maybe it’s simply because they showed this classic Israeli film on cable a few weeks ago. I dunno, everything lately seems a bit Blaumilchy and it keeps flashing through my mind.

In the movie, written and directed by the late and very great Ephraim Kishon, a escapee from a lunatic asylum bcomes enamored of a jackhammer and, one bright day, starts digging up Allenby Street. By mid-morning, there’s a big pile of dirt jamming traffic and bothering the neighbors whose complaints spur the municipality into misguided, malicious action. Unwilling to admit they know nothing about the project, two warring city offiicals begin assisting the unplanned project in an ever-escalating show of one-upsmanship, sending in more workers, earth movers and police guards.

Meanwhile, the crazy man with the jackhammer continues steadily onwards toward the beach. When he finally reaches the Mediterranean, the floodgates open, water rushes up Allenby and Tel Aviv is declared “The Venice of the Middle East” at a grand ceremony presided over by a myopic mayor and his self-serving flunkies – who of course take all credit for having planned, overseen and executed the thing. Little do they know that in the meantime, jackhammering has commenced over at Kikar Malchei Yisrael (today’s Rabin Square).

Wikipedia has a nice summary of the movie. It’s also fun to watch because of the mod fashion, groovy soundtrack and arty editing. Check out the opening scenes on YouTube (or watch the full version):

Of course, like all works of satire, Blaumilch is intended as a parable, in this case about bureaucracy and politics. The frightening part is that, even though the movie is almost 40 years old, it still rings true today. And not just in Israel. The film’s international title was “The Big Dig”. As I’m from Boston – home of the 20 year long project of the same name which was supposed to take half that time – I can only shake my head in amazement.

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Tags: Allenby Street, Ephraim Kishon, film, Israeli culture, nostalgia, summer, Tel Aviv, The Blaumilch Canal

Sheffield Sends Coexistence

July 11, 2008 - 10:57 AM by Harry · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Music

Joe Cocker! As previously discussed on these pages, the summer of 2008 is shaping up as a respectable time for Israelis to see international rock shows. Acts like Dinosaur Jr. and Cypress Hill have already wowed us. Bjork and Leonard Cohen might have canceled their planned Israel concerts, but The Breeders, Macy Gray, Low, Air and even Snoop are reportedly on their way.

While many A-list names are certainly being increasingly associated with concerts here, the biggest trend seems to be for nostalgia acts – classic rock brand names that play small auditoriums and rock clubs in Europe or the US but come here and succeed in selling out amphitheaters full of Baby Boomer sabras. Hence Ra’anana gigs last week from Air Supply as well as Blondie. Deep Purple and Blood, Sweat and Tears have also recently announced that they’re headed this way in the coming weeks.

And now wall-of-white-man’s-soul pioneer Joe Cocker has entered the ring as well. The Woodstock-bred performer has just two non-North American shows booked for this summer: an environmentalism-themed festival in Germany and a coexistence-themed festival in Gilboa, set to take place on August 26 through 28.

The appropriately titled Gilboa Coexistence Festival’s program consists mostly of outdoor nature activities, seminars and Jewish and Muslim folk music performances. A Bible-Koran quiz and the two-day “Gilboa Women’s Jeep Challenge” are also on the program. According to The Jerusalem Post,

“This will be one of the biggest events ever put on in Israel promoting coexistence,” says Daniel Atar, head of the Gilboa Regional Council, “In the Gilboa, coexistence is our reality and proves that a way of life of brotherhood and equality forms a solid foundation for cooperation, understanding and mutual recognition that we believe can be established in all of Israel and beyond.”

Cocker’s last performance in Israel, at Jerusalem’s Sultan’s Pool in the fall of 1994, was certainly fun. Even if we’re talking about someone who hasn’t broken new ground since the early Seventies, how can one not enjoy mildly enthusiastic (alright – somewhat spastic in the Belushi tradition), real-time renditions of classics like “Summer in the City” and “With a Little Help from My Friends”?

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