Probably the last True Summer bleatban for the year. Next up, something from a soda ad, probably, with a California end-of-summer vibe. Ever wonder where I come up with these, all coded to the season? Ever care? I've been staring at some blogs that haven't changed in 10 years; it would drive me nuts. At least we're not reprising the nutso years when I changed them daily. Actually felt lazy when I went back to one per week.

I took my usual walk to the end of the Nicollet Mall today. Someone has to. There’s not a lot of people and no one seems to be doing much of anything. Across from the RBC Gateway tower, under construction, sat a dudebro with headphones, probably waiting for a bus. Or so I thought.

THAT’S A LOT OF F***KING WORK! He shouted. PUTTIN’ UP A BUILDING! THOSE GUYS AREN’T PAID ENOUGH! IT’S A LOT OF WORK! THEY SHOULD BE PAID A LOT, MAN! THAT’S WORK! F***KING WORK!

Ah, he’s not well. No one sits in the sun and presumes insufficient wages for a major construction project.

As it turned out, there was one (1) mentally ill person for every block. The second was a fellow who sat in the shade of the library. He just gestured, simply, as if casting very ordinary and minor spells. He was ragged and filthy. His mouth moved but he didn’t say anything.

The third one was a young woman muttering nonsense as she pawed through a series of plastic bags. Quite agitated. Possibly just annoyed, but the speech had that rapid babble you associate with being unwell.

The fourth was a fellow I have come to call The Bear, because he always sits on the same bench - it’s actually a huge expensive piece of decorative sculpture. He sits quietly for a while, then rises to his feet and raises his hands and makes bear noises. It’s startling the first time, but after a few instances it becomes predictable, like the eruption of a geyser.

I thought the next block was missing a disturbed person; there was just a middle-aged woman fiddling with a locked bike. But as I passed it was clear she was spouting nonsense, too. Hectic rant about some incident that bedeviled her.

No one accosted anyone. You just felt sad for their torments (except for Gesture Guru; he was at peace.) I suppose nothing can be done because they’re not a danger to themselves - a curious thing to say about someone in the throes of mental illness who is wandering the streets.

We just gave up on putting them in safe places, I guess. Institutions were bad, so they closed, and the new theories said they could be treated with drugs in outpatient settings, and besides, you saw “Cuckoo’s Nest,” who’s to say who’s really crazy in this mad world.

But. I don’t want people to think downtown is roaming with the daft, or that Minneapolis is a smoldering ruin. Downtown today:

Tue: both buildings were designed by the same architect - and he did the World Trade Center.

This is the site of great hubris and destruction, but that's another Bleat.

From my vast collection of things with almost no monetary value whatsover, I bring you this week's entry.

		Somewhere in France there's a stamp with a Spanish saint.

Here's the Hennepin side. Notice anything new?

The glass is already going on!

It's really not a very exciting building! Sigh.

The weekly sweep:

Let's take a look from another angle.

Meanwhile, the Larking has filled in the foundation and parking ramp, and is dead-level with the world, ready to rise.

Is he doing the interrogation during an eclipse?

EEEEEAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH

Solution is here.

Dragnet made every other cop show look stodgy and fake. People who grew up on the TV show might think it was fake and stagey, but . . . well, it's a long story.

Post Dragnet, cops had to be weary and talk about trivial things, and the sound had to be realistic. Many shows tried to capture the essence of Webb's creation; few succeeded. The Line-Up was an odd bird. It began with a line-up prefaced by a rote speech by Sgt. Greb, or Greth, or Gram, depending on how it was pronounced. Then it might, or might not, have something to do with the crime for which the suspects had been arranged. It had a tragic, weary theme that didn't quite do the trick.
		But. Dig this closing music. THIS IS FANTASTIC.

I'm not sure it was what the show used in domestic broadcast; AFRS may have stuck it on.

Never heard of him. But from the start you get that Martin Denny vibe. It's a particular type of popular piano playing.

Wikipedia:

Melis was born in Havana, Cuba. He studied at the Havana Conservatory of Music and a Cuban government scholarship enabled him to continue his education in Paris. When he was 16, he arrived in the United States, graduated from the Juilliard School of Music and worked as a lounge pianist. During World War II, while he was serving as the musical director for the USO's New York City branch of the USO, he met Jack Paar, and the two remained friends for years.

In 1954–55, Melis was the pianist when The Morning Show on CBS was hosted by Paar. Then Paar moved from mornings to late night, and from 1957 to 1962, Melis served as the musical director of The Tonight Show during Jack Paar's tenure as host. He also wrote the music for Paar's theme song, "IM4U" (lyrics by Sev F. Marino), and he performed with Paar on other shows, including Parr’s Startime (1960). One of his routines on Paar's shows was the "telephone game," in which Melis would improvise a musical number based on the last four digits of an audience member's telephone number.

Died in 2005.

		It should be noted that they satisfy.

And we're done! The last week of August awaits. thank you for your visits, and next week it's going to be a bit different - I see what's lined up, unlike the last few weeks, and I think you'll like it.