Letters
Lazy Sunday: Transparent
Dear Ann,
Just when I think I’m running out of good things to watch while knitting on Sundays, the sun breaks through the clouds in the form of someone reminding me of a show I was curious about and never got around to watching.
Transparent is one of those series, starring Jeffrey Tambor. It’s about a 70-year-old pater familias who is beginning to transition to being a woman. I’m finding it moving despite the aspects of it that are soap opera. (I’m only halfway into the first season, but the young-people plot lines are topically formulaic in a way that reminds me of Sisters and Thirtysomething, to which I was once devoted. If you liked those shows, I think you will like Transparent, which is deeper and more humorous.)
Judith Light and Jeffrey Tambor both give performances that are tender and funny. Their kids are kind of a mess, verging on caricature, but perhaps as things develop that will change.
One aspect that I love is the set design, indoors and out. Not your typical sitcom or drama setting; it’s very realistic and visually rich.
The series streams on Amazon. Here is Jeffrey Tambor talking about it in an interview with Terry Gross on Fresh Air.
For Something Completely Different
You could also watch this short video of Maira Kalman’s Museum Workout. See if you spot anybody you recognize, bopping along to the Bee Gees, wearing Blundstone boots and a handknit sweater. (It was snowy that morning.)
Love,
Kay
the clip of the museum workout is magnificent: the celebration, the vigour. Stayin’ Alive indeed. xoxo
That museum work out! What a great concept. I loved it on so many levels. Did you?
FYI – The Tambour link goes to 30-something. (Talk about a blast from the past. I began watching it with housemates my first year out of college. When I thought 30 was so old!
Thank you, Marilyn–fixed it.
In the workout clip (and well done, you!) I particularly loved the completely disengaged gentleman in the suit who apparently saw nothing except his I-pad the entire time. How easy it is to become blind to beauty, I suppose.
He was running the soundtrack and carrying the boom box for us.
Yeah, who was that?
It looked like maybe he had a speaker, and the laptop carried the narration and the music for the workout? But love the suit amongst the people working out!
Definitely a series worth staying with! The “kids” do eventually become more 3-dimensional. And the last episode of each season was incredibly moving!
There are also some amazing flashback episodes that explain a lot of the family dysfunction.
The museum workout! How fabulous was that? Squats with John Singer Sargent; arm pumps with Ben Franklin and Washington Crossing the Delaware. Thanks for sending it into the knitting blogosphere.
Transparent is a show I’ve been wanting to watch as well. I think it’s on Netflix here. Tambor and Light are brilliant actors, and the story is worth sharing.
I thought that was you! I loved that video, I LOLed several times.
Now THAT is a workout I would love. Brilliant!
Perishing with jealousy over the museum event. Being in a museum when it’s closed is always amazing, but this is a whole other thing. How very cool! And how great that you were there!
I read about The Museum Workout in The New Yorker and once again wished I lived closer to NYC – but then I thought, “maybe Kay will do it and blog about it!” The video might not be quite as wonderful as a Kay blog post, but still it was pretty great – thanks for posting the link.
LOVE the museum workout. Thank you for sharing
I LOVE that video. *envy* Now tell me about Blundstones!
Blundstonese are the Official Clodhoppers of Modern Daily Knitting. From Australia. So comfy, waterproof and secure for walking. I’m sad when it’s summer and the Blunnies take a vacation.
Awesome workout video! You find the most fun and unusual events! Way to rock!
Thank you for the Museum Workout, that was GREAT!! I would so do it, if I lived in New York!! Every city should have a similar venue, the arts are amazing and this looked like so much fun!!!!
The trip to the museum looked like so much fun. I also enjoy Transparent because of the music, which I think is original to the series. Thanks for encouraging us to knit the pussy hats. So fun to feel part of the movement.
Love Transparent, and they do flesh out the kids’ characters as the series progresses. I think I binge-watched all of it in about a week.
For many years Maira Kalman has been a great inspiration to me. It would be so cool to work out around all that beauty to her narration. Thank you for sharing this!
That looked like a fun workout! Thanks for sharing the video.
I love experiencing public and usually crowded spaces when they are empty or nearly so, which usually means off-season and/or early in the morning.
All this time I’ve been thinking I need serious exercise clothes (and a good sports bra), but what I really want now is a sparkly dress to wear for exercise. I might be more motivated… What a wonderful place to work out!
Yes! Sparkly dress! Love!
So agree! Wonder if anyone would mind if I put on headphones and worked through LACMA or the Norton Simon? The best 2-mile, 45-minute workout ever!
That workout is yet another reason I wish I lived in NYC. And OMG 30 something. Loved that show!
I love Transparent. At first I found it a little shakey too, but as they’ve added more writers and directors who understand the subject first hand it’s gotten better and better . Plus Soloway is giving a lot of cool actors and directors who have had trouble getting work a chance to shine! I especially like the way contemporary religion situations and Jewish history are intertwined with all the rest. The second season is even better than the first, so hope you’ll keep with it.
Tsk. I wish MDK didn’t get involved with the controversial stuff we are NOT all on board with ie: trans-sexuality and “pussy” hats.
Just tidying up my many open tabs and saw this video. GENIUS! I danced. <3