65 Quintessential Things

Added on by C. Maoxian.

I was watching an interview with Jerry Seinfeld and he mentioned a book called “Quintessence,” so I borrowed a copy through inter-library loan. It was written by Betty Cornfeld and Owen Edwards (whom I assume is gay) and published in 1983. Edwards writes: “this is a book about … things that offer more to us than we specifically ask of them and to which we respond more strongly than is easily explained.”

What follows is their list of 65 quintessential things from over forty years ago … it’s interesting to see which ones are still around:

  1. The Ace Comb

  2. The American Express Card

  3. Barnum’s Animal Crackers (recipe has changed since my youth, now awful)

  4. Bass Weejun Loafers

  5. Bayer Aspirin

  6. The Brown Paper Bag

  7. Budweiser Beer

  8. Camel Cigarettes

  9. Campbell’s Tomato Soup (1200 mg of salt, 20 g added sugar per can)

  10. Cartier Santos Watch

  11. The Checker Cab

  12. The Cigarette Hawk Speedboat

  13. Coca-Cola (in glass bottle)

  14. Coppertone Suntan Lotion

  15. Crayola Crayons (big box no longer has built-in sharpener)

  16. Dom Perignon Champagne

  17. El Bubble Bubblegum Cigar (now made by Tootsie Roll, another “quintessential” candy one could argue)

  18. The English Bull Terrier

  19. The Faber Mongol #2 Pencil (made in Mexico now)

  20. Fox's U-Bet Chocolate Syrup (never heard of it)

  21. Frederick's of Hollywood Lingerie (multiple Chapter 11 bankruptcies)

  22. The Frisbee Flying Saucer

  23. The Ghurka Express Bag No. 2 ($2,695)

  24. The Goodyear Blimp

  25. Green Giant Peas (no longer available in a can?)

  26. The Hamilton Beach Model 936 Drink Mixer (pdf of old user manual)

  27. The Harley-Davidson ElectraGlide Motorcycle ($27,000)

  28. Heinz Ketchup (in glass bottle) (squeeze bottle a great leap forward)

  29. The Hershey's Chocolate Kiss (awful chocolate, but I agree the foil packaging with tail is genius)

  30. Honey Bear (hard to find example with nipple on head)

  31. Ivory Soap

  32. Jockey Briefs (purely a boxer briefs man now)

  33. Johnson's Baby Powder (discontinued, $9 billion lawsuit settlement (cancer))

  34. Keds High-top Sneakers (not Converse?)

  35. Kleenex Tissues

  36. The L.L. Bean Maine Hunting Boot (only good if lined)

  37. Lacoste Polo Shirt (early status symbol, later overtaken by Liftshitz polo pony)

  38. LePage's Mucilage (looks like it’s no longer made)

  39. Levi's Jeans 

  40. The Louisville Slugger Bat (good thing for home defense)

  41. M&M's Chocolate Candies (peanut-filled was a good brand extension, peanut butter was pushing it)

  42. The Märklin Electric HO Gauge Model Trains (expensive hobby for adults only)

  43. The Martini (60 ml gin and 10 ml dry vermouth)

  44. The Milk-Bone Dog Biscuit

  45. Monopoly Board Game (awful game when you think about it)

  46. The Mont Blanc Diplomat Pen (does anyone use a fountain pen now?)

  47. Nathan's Famous Hot Dog (never had one)

  48. Ohio Blue Tip Matches (now owned by Diamond?)

  49. Oil Can

  50. The Oreo Cookie (authors lament advent of “Double Stuf” which ruins the Oreo’s quintessence, they say)

  51. The Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich (rarely had one of these as a kid, considered a great luxury junk food)

  52. The Polaroid SX-70 Camera (sold out of course)

  53. Ray-Ban Sunglasses (Aviator Classic the pair they mean)

  54. Silly Putty (played with as a kid, great stuff, esp. the smell)

  55. The Slinky (played with as a kid)

  56. The Spalding Rubber Ball (looks like Spalding no longer makes these)

  57. Steiff Teddy Bears (the ancient Steiff teddy bears in my life were too valuable to play with and therefore useless to me)

  58. The Steinway Piano

  59. The Stetson Hat

  60. The Swiss Army Knife (Victorinox sole manufacturer now?)

  61. Timex Mercury 20521 Watch (the 20521 is no longer made, but I’ve linked to the Marlin, which is a re-issue that appeals to vintage lovers)

  62. Tupperware Containers (not a fan of plastic food storage except for the lids)

  63. The Volkswagen Beetle Car (we had one when I was a kid)

  64. Wedgwood Plain White Bone China (plain white a little boring, but they have a point)

  65. The Zippo Lighter (I collect Zippo Armor lighters, love them)

Unfortunate typo of the author’s name on the cover page … Cornfeld not “Cornfield”

Movies Watched -- The Circle (2000)

Added on by C. Maoxian.

In Persian. 87 minute running time so the perfect length. Very interestingly constructed movie with the story shifting seamlessly from one character to the next over the course of a day … clever … the conclusion is I’m darned glad that I’m not a woman in Iran … this is feminism at its best … Jafar Panahi worked with Abbas Kiarostami (my favorite Iranian filmmaker) and clearly learned a lot … this is a green-go, but it ain’t a feel-good picture. John Farr also recommends it.

27 Remaining Car Models You Can Get with Stick Shift

Added on by C. Maoxian.

  1. Aston Martin Valour  $1,500,000

  2. Porsche 911  $117,000

  3. Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing  $96,000

  4. BMW M4  $80,275

  5. Lotus Emira  $77,100

  6. BMW M3  $76,995

  7. Porsche 718  $69,950

  8. BMW M2  $64,195

  9. Cadillac CT4-V Blackwing  $62,890

  10. Toyota GR Supra  $47,535

  11. Nissan Z  $44,110

  12. Toyota GR Corolla  $37,595

  13. Hyundai Elantra N  $34,850

  14. Volkswagen Golf  $34,000

  15. Subaru WRX  $33,855

  16. Ford Mustang  $33,000

  17. Acura Integra  $32,995

  18. Chevrolet Camaro  $32,495

  19. Subaru BRZ  $31,315

  20. Toyota GR86  $30,395

  21. Mazda MX-5 Miata  $30,170

  22. Mini Hardtop and Convertible  $29,945

  23. Honda Civic  $26,000

  24. Mazda 3  $25,355

  25. Volkswagen Jetta  $22,660

  26. Kia Forte  $21,145

  27. Nissan Versa  $17,820

Movies Watched -- The Last King of Scotland (2006)

Added on by C. Maoxian.

123 minute running time so 23 minutes too long … needed subtitles and it thankfully had them … Forest Whitaker had fun playing Amin, no doubt … I liked this movie though I had to ffwd a lot since it was too long and I really didn’t have any idea how much of it was true and accurate and how much was made up … Agent Scully is so beautiful and I love her weird British-American accent, always have. I sorta want to give this a green-go, but no, too long, and may be wildly inaccurate historically (though it did make for a fun movie). John Farr recommends it anyway.

But Mulder, this can only mean that….

Movies Watched -- A Soldier's Story (1984)

Added on by C. Maoxian.

101 minute running time, so the perfect length. Movie set in 1944 Louisiana on a segregated army base … honest about racism and murder and self-hatred. I enjoyed it and recommend it. Green-go. Rare to see a movie with an almost all-black cast. This was a John Farr recommendation and I second it.

We need ·doctors, lawyers, generals -- senators! Stop thinkin' like a niggaI [In the script but less heavy-handed on the screen]

Movies Watched -- Julia (1977)

Added on by C. Maoxian.

116 minute running time so 16 minutes too long ... I liked this one ... it's a thriller of sorts ... I make fun of Hanoi Jane, but she was truly beautiful and a very talented actress, and may have been at her peak here at age 40 ... young Meryl Streep makes an appearance ... I'm surprised I hadn't heard of this movie, I guess Fred Zinnemann made several good movies (High Noon, of course) and this was definitely one of them. This is a green-go. John Farr says this is a personal favorite.

Movies Watched -- Sea of Love (1989)

Added on by C. Maoxian.

113 minute running time so 13 minutes too long … starring NYC and its iconic coffee cup … 1989 pre-cellphone and internet so society not yet destroyed … Al Pacino as mid-life crisis cop … interesting how closely he re-played this role in Heat (1995) and they even re-used the who? who? what are you, an owl? bit of dialogue in the latter movie … Ellen Barkin a strange femme fatale with her weirdly crooked smile, though she does have great tits … John Goodman (6’2”) fat even as a young man … father from Six Feet Under was in a lot of movies in the late 80s, but I never learned his name (Richard Jenkins, I’ll never remember that) … the story wasn’t terrible, I liked the twist, but I don’t think I’d recommend this, though John Farr does.

I believe in animal attraction.

Movies Watched -- Poor Things (2023)

Added on by C. Maoxian.

141 minute running time so 41 minutes too long. I’ve seen a lot of Lanthimos movies and liked them all, he’s my kind of nut, but I can’t imagine the general public can watch these. He clearly does some serious drugs and comes up with some wacky ideas, but he’s very funny … a lot of scenes in Poor Things made me laugh out loud … I missed maybe 20% of the dialogue because I couldn’t hear it or it was unclear; I will have to re-watch with subtitles once it comes out on disc (I saw it in the theater). Emma Stone is a good sport and has guts to take on a role like this (lots of screwing).

Bad whore