I'll Never Forget What's'isname is a 1967 British comedy. You know it's British because the letter "H" in the title is replaced by an apostrophe. That's also how you know it's a comedy.
Leonard Maltin summed it up in three words: "Excellent comedy drama." All the other critics used far more verbiage, calling it overwrought, dated, muddled, pessimistic, heavy-handed. I could go on, but we've all paid too much attention to negative reviews already, haven't we?
Orson Welles gets fairly high billing for a part that barely used up any celluloid and Oliver Reed chops up the place, literally, as an ad man who makes Don Draper seem like a milquetoast.
The wine pairing for What's'isname is a wine which actually has no name. Like the Horse With No Name. Or the Man With No Name. Borgogno's 2020 Barolo failed an Italian taste test and was declassified to Nebbiolo. In protest, the winery slapped "No Name" on the label. Which means that's actually the name, I guess. It sells for $50 online. For that price, I'd expect a name.
The Private Lives of Adam and Eve came out in 1960, a time when things were just looking up for America. Elvis was wrapping up a tour of duty, Kennedy was preparing to beat Nixon's perspiring upper lip, and The Flintstones were about to become the modern stone-age family.
Mickey Rooney co-directed this film with Albert Zugsmith, who probably should have called himself What's'isname, except the film wasn't British. Rooney also tackled the role of Satan, which is how you know it's a comedy.
It's a film about paradise, which seems to be set in purgatory. A busload of people are headed to Reno, the across-the-border name for Lake Tahoe, where people in movies went to get divorced. The lead couple, Mamie Van Doren and Martin Milner, end up dreaming that they're in the Garden of Eden. The biggest temptation they faced might have been to get off this picture. But, their per diems were already doled out, so they stayed and ate from the honey wagon.
It's not a bad way to waste an hour and a half, but don't expect a major skin show just because the Catholic Legion of Decency condemned it.
Paradise Springs Winery is in Santa Barbara County. They also have an operation in Virginia, making them one of the only bicoastal wineries. They pick fruit from some well respected vineyards, and bottles start at $35.
With James Garner starring, you know it's a comedic western about to happen. Sure enough, in 1969's Support Your Local Sheriff, Garner's sharp shooter character becomes the sheriff of a gold rush town that is held in check by a rich family that charges a toll to use the only road in and out of town. Hey, it's nothing but dirt everywhere you look. Just make a new road! But no, that would leave us with a movie only 17 minutes long and not very interesting.
Garner's touch with the western motif was a gift, so much so that in The Rockford Files it was disappointing to see his home surrounded by beach sand instead of desert.
This film features a great supporting cast. The likes of Walter Brennan, Jack Elam, Bruce Dern, and Harry Morgan are worth the investment of 90 minutes and $4 to rent the flick on your local iPad.
Shadow Ranch, in the Sierra Foothills, has a red blend they call The Sheriff. As in "Support Your Local Sheriff," "There’s a new sheriff in town," and "Y'all drive careful now, heah?" The blend is Syrah, Petite Sirah, Tempranillo, Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Grenache, all for $23.
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