Searching online, all over the place… nothing’s turned up, so far… about something memorable a famous comedian had joked about, having to do with capturing the attention of a Las Vegas audience.
But what he said, in his comedy routine, pretty much stuck in my mind — that Vegas audiences had experienced so many things, that you almost had to pull nails out of the wall with your butt just to get their attention.
He actually used another word, rather than butt, buttocks, or keister… but I leave that to your imagination.
Another comedian, a long time ago, describing high-rise buildings going up in downtown Los Angeles, said the buildings looked like the boxes a giant theme park came in. He had mentioned the theme park, by name, as I recall, but I should probably leave that to your imagination, too.
To be fair to downtown LA, there’s also some interesting architecture out there nowadays, but this was years ago when the comedian was poking fun at LA’s downtown area, when high-rise buildings were pretty boxy-looking.
Sometimes, everyone’s flying in formation. Different brands of SUVs, cars and trucks don’t look all that different, from year to year. Usually, something style-wise is tweaked a bit, but looking closely, usually not all that much. (I can say this with some authority, because my first job was writing for an automotive trade magazine… but that was a long time ago.)
Anyway, leaving vehicle designs in the rear view mirror, so to speak, and getting back to buildings and architecture, the pictures of the proposed “Hot Springs Mixed Use Development” in the Daily Post the other day, reminded me of mixed use buildings being built, where I am, in the San Francisco Bay Area.
There’s a certain similarity. Which might be a sign that property developers, and their designers and architects, are maybe marching to the beat of the same — not a different — drummer. Or, they’re on the same page? Or they’re flying in formation?
Which, like an old friend would say, a long time ago… “Maybe that’s good? Or maybe that’s bad?
But one thing about it, I suppose… whether you’re in one place or another, whether in some SF Bay Area community, or somewhere in the Midwest, the South, or the East Coast, I’ll bet developers are marching to the same beat… pretty much.
Harvey Radin is former senior vice president in charge of corporate communications and media relations, Bank of America Western Region. He makes his home in Redwood City, CA.