Questions Only VII: Answer In Your Pants

[RJDiogenes]

Roger Moore.

Live and Let Die was the first Bond movie I saw at the theater, so Moore is kind of "my" Bond. I admit that most of his movies were not the best, but Live and Let Die and The Man With The Golden Gun are my favorites.

What was the first movie you saw in the theater?

[scottydog]

Moore was too flippant a Bond. Well, come to think of it, every Bond actor was flippant But Moore was over the top.

I think a couple modern-day actors were pretty good, like Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig. People seem enamored with Sean Connery but I never understood why.

I think the first movie I saw in the theater was the Disney movie Snow White. This was probably around 1965.

The first really serious movie I saw was at a drive-in movie theater with the entire family. We saw Patton. My dad loved Patton -- the movie and the general. I don't remember much about the movie other than George C. Scott scared me

What are your early movie theater experiences?

[RJDiogenes]

I think a couple modern-day actors were pretty good, like Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig. People seem enamored with Sean Connery but I never understood why.

Well, Connery basically created the movie version of Bond, so he set the standard. Pierce Brosnan was born to play Bond, but didn't get very good movies. As for Craig, I just can't deal with a Bond who looks like Vladimir Putin.

What are your early movie theater experiences?

When I was very young, like six or under, my parents used to go to the Drive-In all the time. I would sit in the back seat with a pillow, a blanket, and Fluffy the Bunny, and fall asleep. Needless to say, I don't remember any of those movies. The earliest one I can remember is Bambi, I think. The forest fire freaked me out, because I had a terrible fire phobia as a kid. Then I also remember seeing Old Yeller when I was about seven, which also scared the hell out of me. I can't remember the first movie I saw in an actual theater, but it was probably the old theater in Field's Corner.

What's the first TV show you remember seeing?

[scottydog]

As for Craig, I just can't deal with a Bond who looks like Vladimir Putin.

Maybe that's why I like Daniel Craig. He's not a pretty boy. He's an average looking guy, which I can relate to.

What's the first TV show you remember seeing?

Good question. I'm not sure. Probably either Romper Room or Captain Kangaroo. Good old Mr. Greenjeans

I was also addicted to cartoons, especially Saturday morning cartoons. Who knew that Bugs Bunny would become such a hero to me? Not to mention Popeye and Sinbad the Sailor.

What cartoons influenced you the most, and why?

[RJDiogenes]

Maybe that's why I like Daniel Craig. He's not a pretty boy. He's an average looking guy, which I can relate to.

I don't like characters I can relate to.

Good question. I'm not sure. Probably either Romper Room or Captain Kangaroo. Good old Mr. Greenjeans

I remember those very well from my early years, along with Gumby. But I'm pretty sure that my earliest TV memories are The Flintstones and One Step Beyond.

What cartoons influenced you the most, and why?

That's a good question, because I don't think I ever thought about it before. I've thought about what books and TV shows and stuff influenced me, but not about cartoons. And I watched a lot of Saturday morning (and other) cartoons. For the most influential, I think I would say The Bullwinkle Show, because of the clever and satirical (and serialized) stories, plus all the extra little features, like "Fractured Fairy Tales," and QT Hush, which was a pretty obscure serialized cartoon of a Pulpish detective character, with short chapters that aired on The Captain Boston Show for a while.

Did you listen to any radio adventure shows when you were a kid?

[scottydog]

That's a good question, because I don't think I ever thought about it before. I've thought about what books and TV shows and stuff influenced me, but not about cartoons. And I watched a lot of Saturday morning (and other) cartoons. For the most influential, I think I would say The Bullwinkle Show, because of the clever and satirical (and serialized) stories, plus all the extra little features, like "Fractured Fairy Tales," and QT Hush, which was a pretty obscure serialized cartoon of a Pulpish detective character, with short chapters that aired on The Captain Boston Show for a while.

Bullwinkle was a classic for sure. And I had forgotten all about the fractured fairy tales. In some ways they were way ahead of their time -- it was almost like a variety show. Plus the voices of the characters were very interesting and creative. Could you ever work as the guy who did cartoon voices?

Did you listen to any radio adventure shows when you were a kid?

Not really. I used the radio to mainly listen to pop music. Did you own your own transistor radio?

[RJDiogenes]

I did have a couple. One was a clock radio and one was in the form of a knight (with a sword that was a letter opener). In junior high school, CBS Radio Mystery Theater came on the air, which was very exciting to me-- but on way past my bedtime. I used to take my knight radio to bed with me like a Teddy bear and secretly listen under the covers.

What did you mostly get in trouble for when you were a kid?

[scottydog]

I got in trouble for a few things. The most serious was smoking -- I'd steal cigarettes from my parents and smoke in the forts we'd build in the woods across the street Beyond that, just little things, such as teasing my sister, disobeying my parents now and then, etc. Mostly I was a goody two shoes, and I always did well in school which to my parents was the most important thing.

How did you get in trouble as a kid?

[RJDiogenes]

Everybody was always yelling at me for something, but I wasn't paying attention so I wasn't sure what it was most of the time. The main thing I remember getting in trouble for was going places that I wasn't supposed to go. For example, when we lived in Dorchester there was a little space behind our garage that was like a little wooded area-- there was a hill that went up to Cushing Ave and then a little valley beside it. It seemed big to me at the time. Anyway, it was a Forbidden Zone, but I couldn't resist the siren song of nature, so I used to squeeze through the neighbor's fence and sneak up there to play.

What kind of a neighborhood did you live in when you were under ten?

[scottydog]

When I was eight, we moved to Los Angeles, but before that we lived in a small house in Pittsburgh across the street from a big woods. The neighborhood could be described as either middle class or lower-middle class. That house was maybe 1,000 square feet, or less. My dad worked hard in sales, became a sales-manager, and did well enough that we could buy a bigger house in California. That L.A. neighborhood was probably slightly better than middle-class.

The Pittsburgh is where I'd sneak across the street into the woods with my buddy Bobby Crawford and smoke cigarettes stolen from my parents. At a young age I was in touch with my inner bad-ass

When my mom caught me smoking, there was hell to pay. I've never smoked since.

Have you ever had any moments of bad-assery?

[RJDiogenes]

Not many. I used to sneak off into the woods, but that was just because I liked the woods. I guess there were a couple of things. One time my friend and I skipped school and went to the Combat Zone. And one time I snuck out of the house in the middle of the night to meet my girlfriend and almost got caught by the cops a couple of times. There were probably other minor infractions that I'm not remembering right now.

Do you think Biden will pardon Trump if or when he gets convicted?

[scottydog]

One time my friend and I skipped school and went to the Combat Zone. And one time I snuck out of the house in the middle of the night to meet my girlfriend and almost got caught by the cops a couple of times. There were probably other minor infractions that I'm not remembering right now.

You braver than me. I never skipped school. Were you able to sneak back into your house undetected after meeting up with your girlfriend?

Do you think Biden will pardon Trump if or when he gets convicted?

I know that's what you think might happen, or should happen. I'm not sure. I've been following your back-and-forth with Gary on this issue. I guess I'm not sure what's best, but I kind of like your emphasis on forgiveness, moving on, putting the past behind us, etc.

Let's face it, when Ford pardoned Nixon, it's not like it removed Nixon's guilt. If anything, it solidified it. And the pardon allowed the country to move on rather than face years of interminable legal proceedings. The sooner Trump's name is forever gone from the headlines, the better, and if a pardon accomplishes that, then I'm all for it.

People might say that Trump belongs in jail, but really, it's pretty clear that he's in his own personal hell just being who he is.

So what are your thoughts about a pardon allowing for faster closure on an ugly situation, and an indication of guilt rather than an abdication of a protracted legal process?

[RJDiogenes]

Were you able to sneak back into your house undetected after meeting up with your girlfriend?

She never showed, but, yeah, I got away with it.

So what are your thoughts about a pardon allowing for faster closure on an ugly situation, and an indication of guilt rather than an abdication of a protracted legal process?

Well, I think the pardon should come after he's convicted, so there should definitely be a legal process. If Biden or another Democratic president pardons him, it will be a good thing, but if a Republican president pardons him then it will probably be a bad thing (unless it's recommended by a bipartisan vote in Congress or something).

Do you think it's most likely he will be convicted of espionage, treason, election tampering, racketeering, or tax fraud?

[scottydog]

Well, I think the pardon should come after he's convicted, so there should definitely be a legal process.

So I guess that means you disagreed with Ford's premature pardon of Nixon.

Do you think it's most likely he will be convicted of espionage, treason, election tampering, racketeering, or tax fraud?

It's most likely that nothing will come of any of these investigations. Trump has known for a long time that he's untouchable.

A hundred years from now, will historians judge Trump as the worst US President? Or will other bad presidents, such as Nixon or Harding, be ranked as worse than him?

[RJDiogenes]

So I guess that means you disagreed with Ford's premature pardon of Nixon.

In some ways, yes, but he had little control over it-- I'm sure it was all decided and agreed to before he was even nominated. The first problem was that Ford was from the same party as Nixon, which couldn't be avoided. The second problem was that Nixon hadn't actually been charged with anything-- talk of impeachment had just begun. The third, and biggest, problem was that Ford gave him a generic blanket pardon. If Ford had pardoned him for a specific crime or crimes, it would have gone down a lot better. But a pardon was definitely the way to go.

It's most likely that nothing will come of any of these investigations. Trump has known for a long time that he's untouchable.

I remember this. Talk about the power of suggestion.

A hundred years from now, will historians judge Trump as the worst US President? Or will other bad presidents, such as Nixon or Harding, be ranked as worse than him?

Certainly the worst president to date, by far. I hope we don't have anything worse coming up.

Do you think Giuliani will end up behind bars?