Been sick for two days. Can't stand it. Right now, my stomach seems to be settling down, but i'm now covered with hives. This morning it was all over my back, but now it's moved to my chest and neck. Ugh. Just disgusting. There were two press screenings today, but didn't want to risk being on the subway and then having some sort of emergency.

Watched Monte Hellman's "Back Door to Hell" on Fox Movie Channel. Also "Circle of Deception". What's interesting about "Circle of Deception" is that it's based on a TV show. In 1955, Fox started an hour-long anthology series, and most of the shows were stripped down versions of their movie "classics". But in 1956, there was an "original" called "Deception" which starred Linda Darnell and Trevor Howard. The plot is the same (a woman, working in intelligence, must choose a man who is "breakable" so that he will be provided with wrong information so that he will divulge that information after being captured and tortured by the Nazis; after the war is over, she looks for him to make amends), though the movie is fitted out with torture sequences which were quite graphic for 1961. The whole Fox Television Hour series was an interesting example of shifting fortunes. For example: "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir" starred Gene Tierney, but the TV version starred Joan Fontaine. Of course, Joan Fontaine was always a bigger star than Gene Tierney, but by the mid-1950s, Fontaine's star was on the decline (one reason: the dissolution of her contract with Selznick; another reason: her attempts to produce her own movies, including "Letter from an Unknown Woman", which was expensive and - unfortunately - unsuccessful at the box office). "Circle of Deception" starred Suzy Parker and Bradford Dillman (they would marry soon after)... she was always so beautiful, but her voice was a real handicap. In some cases, it seemed appropriate (in "Ten North Frederick" and "The Interns"), but usually it seemed a little too inexpressive and shallow.

The recent police shootout is just sickening. How can this be justified? Men coming out of a strip club after a "bachelor's party"... one presumes that these men might be intoxicated, but does that justify the truly excessive force? And we all know this will be covered up, that the police will not be charged with anything.

The stock market went down because of the dip in Wal-Mart's sales. How disgusting! That Wal-Mart should have such an impact? What is this?