Everyone knows that the 1st generation immigrants are the great keepers of the American Traditions. From the time they get their copy of “How to become an American” handbook when they cross the border, they start religiously celebrating all of the American holidays from singing auld lang syne on the New Years Eve to consuming mass quantities of turkey and stuffing on the Thanksgiving day. It’s the immigrants who have real citizenship certificates signed and sealed by a federal judge and not a baby footprint. It’s the immigrants who can pass a 100 question civics test to become a citizen. It’s the immigrants who know that the second stanza of the National Anthem is not just humming. It’s the immigrants who can correct spelling errors for their American co-workers.

This explains why a flawless reenactment of the First Thanksgiving was performed at my house today; I might have thrown a piece of pork in the smoker, but otherwise – flawless.

As a Thanksgiving present to my less-certified American citizens I present a short video based on the poem personally composed by the Midtown Miscreant.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HmaMDSO1Kw

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Although The Circus (Tsirk) was made in 1936 it was still shown on TV in the 1970’s and 80’s and the songs took on the life of their own with “My Country is So Vast” (Shiroka Strana Moya Rodnaya) becoming the Soviet equivalent of  “God Bless America”.

The movie is beautifully done propaganda piece for the Soviet Society where there is no place for racism and hatred and everyone wears white. It stars the most popular actress of that time Lyubov Orlova whose looks and voice dominated the best Soviet movies of the 30’s and 40’s.

Below are some clips I cut and lightly subtitled; some of the scenes are actually in understandable English, the others are musical numbers where no translation is needed; some scenes can be understood without words: in 1930’s actors still knew how to display emotions on their faces from their years in the silent movies.

The movie starts with an angry  mob scene, someplace in the racist US of A, where a bunch of screaming people sans torches and pitchforks are chasing Marion Dixon, a mother of an interracial child who happened to be a circus performer.

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEJUt_EGTVQ

The billboard-covered walls contrast with the Soviet general lack of advertisement.

On the train Marion meets Franz Von Kneishiz, who will become her manager. The story moves to the Moscow Circus where Marion performs her death-defying stunt – “Flight to the Moon”. The music playing in the beginning of the clip is a de facto anthem of the Soviet Circus. I still remember the circus being this grand and amazing.

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ud3DLEr1nsE

During the act the Director of the Circus asks his actor -a military hero – Martynov to recreate and improve this act. His partner is to be the Director’s daughter whose fiance also appears carrying flowers. Martynov throws the bouquet to Ms. Dixon. Love is in the air.

Evil capitalist Von Kneishiz threatens Marion Dixon to tell everyone about her black baby. While she is crying over Martynov’s photos, he comes into the room to pick up his suitcase. The scene ends with the war of stares between him and Von Kneishiz.

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYdD7RlTI5g

Von Kneishiz hints that he would like the contract extended, instead the director shows him the new replacement act.

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9zWQd09zCU

Stunt fails and Marion runs downstairs concerned for Martynov. Seeing her interest Von Kneishiz tries to make an announcement about her baby.

Von Kneishiz begs Marion to leave, she refuses. She says that Martynov loves her, but Von Kneishiz screams that no one will love her with her black baby. When he leaves, she sings a lullaby to her baby in Russian but with an “american” accent.

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=djesek2-e-Q

Notice the black maid. This movie probably employed the whole black population of Moscow. The baby was played by James Lloydovich Patterson who lived in the USSR, served in the Soviet Navy, but later emigrated back to the USA.

Von Kneishiz tries to leave Moscow with Marion, but she is being helped by her Soviet friends. Instead she partners with Martynov for a now successful “Flight to the Stratosphere”.

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1aBlL5TIUq8

Von Kneishiz finally gets a chance to tell everyone about the black baby. To his dismay no one cares. Instead the circus patrons, each one of a different nationality takes turns singing a lullaby in there own language. One of the singers is a world-famous Jewish actor Solomon Mikhoels who sings in Yiddish. My Dad always pointed out this scene because this was probably the only Yiddish on film which wasn’t censored. Mikhoels was assassinated on Stalin’s orders after the WWII but in this movie he illustrates the supposed internationalism of the Soviet people.

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31kSvUrBd6I

The Circus director tells Marion that the Soviet people love all children – white, black, green, pink with stripes. Marion starts singing “My Country is So Vast”. The scene moves to the Red Square where the Circus performers lead the demonstration singing, marching and carrying portraits of the Soviet leaders.

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1ioY7tD5_E

This movie was immensely popular throughout the Soviet times. As any propaganda movie it wasn’t very truthful, there was a lot of national hatred, antisemitism and conflicts in the USSR; many of them manifested themselves only after the break-up of the Soviet Union, but it didn’t mean that on a personal level many different nationalities didn’t live happily side-by-side. People of different nationalities shared apartments, served in the military, worked in the camps. In these situation nationality took second seat to the necessities of hard life.

I am not a movie critic (but I once had a beer with a real-life professor of cinematography), so I will not comment on the technical aspects or the influences present in this movie. The characters and the musical numbers from this movie are an important part of the Golden Fund of the Soviet culture and you just had a chance to enjoy a small peek at it.

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The following photos were taken in 1945 in Josephsville, MO. Narrated by some old guy.

In my day we didn’t have the Easter Egg Hunt, we had to hunt for eggs every day, because we were hungry, that’s why.

In my day there was no entertainment, we had to quilt all day long and listen to Eunice’s old jokes every day; that damn Eunice, I get a heartburn just thinking about her.

In my day kids didn’t sit around and watch TV, they had to haul firewood long distance uphill both ways, and only rich people could afford wheels.

In my day we didn’t go fishing for fun and we didn’t have us no fancy boats; we had to go catch us some dinner.

In my day we had to churn our own butter, and churn and churn and churn; damn kids get off my lawn!

In my day we only got to keep the back side of a cow, we had to sell the front half to the government.

In my day we couldn’t afford the rubber tires, you were lucky to get round wheels on your tractor. Have you ever tried tractoring with square wheels? I thought so!

In my day you’d already get yourself a whipping if you sat around and read all this stuff for this long. Damn whippersnappers!

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 Delicious smell and delicate taste of smoked fish cannot be overstated. “Hot Smoked” fish is cooked by smoke, while “cold smoked” is cured by smoke allowing it to retain firm texture, natural fattiness and moisture, adding unbelievable smoky taste and golden skin. Smoked fish goes with everything: vodka or beer, baked potato, bread with butter, bread without butter, and then some more vodka or beer…..
Good enough for the last meal…

 

  

 

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Today is the 91st anniversary of the Great October Socialist Revolution – an event that truly changed the course of the world history and still influences all things political, military and diplomatic. Millions of people died, millions were displaced, families were shattered, hopes destroyed, lives broken.

Many blame Lenin and the Bolsheviks for the failed 70-year experiment but the truth is that they were at the right place at the right time when with the little agitation and slight prodding the Russian people were ready to fight for what they thought was a better future.

For almost 20 years after the break-up of the USSR people cannot agree if it was a good or a bad time in the Russian history. It was a time of great achievements, industrial development, first man in space, victory in the World War II, but at the same time it was paid for with civil war, oppression, labor camps, millions of lives, starvation, forced relocation of the whole nationalities, state-sponsored antisemitism and constant fear. Would one trade free education for free speech, free health care for freedom to see the world, man in space for plentiful food. To many the answer is clear, others can live with the trade-off.

Today many will gather in public places to celebrate or curse the legacy of the revolution. It lives in people like me who witnessed the last years of the USSR but it also lives in people like you who for the past 90 years tried to prevent this from happening here. Were you successful? Time will tell…

November 7,1977. Red Square, Moscow, the USSR

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IH42Gme4oIg

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