Johnny just walked into my office (wearing nothing but socks and jocks, I might add, which is all he's had on all day today. It's not pretty. The socks are green.) and he asked me a question:
"Erin," he said. "This kid who was in the Youth Club that me & McGuigan did is in this movie I'm watching. Come and see."
Okay, so that's not so much a question.
"You mean he's in the movie?" I said, as I got up to follow. "Or it's about him?"
"No, it's the actual kid. He's a lot younger than us. He was in the club when we were running it. I think it's called Once? They said it won the Oscar?"
Fuck me.
Sure enough, it is called Once, and it did win the Oscar.
You know how it used to be a standard bad joke to ask every black person if he or she knew Sammy Davis or Muhammed Ali? Well, it's a pretty safe bet, I'm learning, to ask Johnny if he knows this or that famous Dubliner. Especially if they're involved in the arts, or grew up poor.
Not Colin Farrell, though, I've asked him. Because Farrell grew up on the NorthSide of Dublin and Johnny and all his mates grew up on the South. Which makes Colin Farrell the Andrew McCarthy to Johnny's Ducky in a Dublin version of Pretty in Pink.
Which has nothing to do with why neither of us think he ought to be let play Brendan Behan, which the Boston Globe recently reported he's slated to do.
There isn't enough makeup in the world.
P.S. Johnny never knew Brendan Behan, either; because Johnny was only 4 years old when Behan died. But Johnny's father knew him.
And that's a story for another day
4 comments:
Ciao, un saluto da Roma.
I really enjoy reading your blog and I love the title. This is such a funny post because my best friend in England is Irish, from Dublin and we were just talking about Once as well. And Bono's wife grew up next door. Small world
Oreste -- You are probably spam, but I clicked through and saw you in your Italian speedo and it made me laugh, so I will let you stay.
Audrey -- Thanks! I was reading yours for a while but lost track of it somehow. I'll add it to my blogroll so I don't lose it again. (PS we don't know Bono or his wife, but there is a Larry Mullen story kicking around here somewhere...)
Colin's playing Brendan Behan? Well he'll have to shave off the unibrow first. And maybe develop a hunch.
Anyway, shouldn't they get Shane McGowan to play Mr. Behan? He was born for the role. Go Shane go!
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