Wow... Such a shame.Originally Posted by Dok
Wow... Such a shame.
I don't think his studio should be preserved - I'm not really in favor of such recent sites being turned into shrines or museums. Something from a couple hundred years ag would be different.
If the estate has debts, it probably makes sense to pay them, and they probably don't need the studio.
I love how he volunteers Steve Vai, Alice Cooper, Dream Theatre (!), and Matt Groening's money to get the house off the market. Personally, I figure I could scrape up 1% of the asking price for the house; I'd just need 99 roommates.
Hurtleturtled Out of Heaven - an electronic music composition, on CD and vinyl
https://michaelpdawson.bandcamp.com
http://www.waysidemusic.com/Music-Pr...MCD-spc-7.aspx
I agree. The studio won't be worth jack shit in a decade, as a studio (unless it's continually updated), as it's debatable that Zappa was a big enough "star" to make it into a profit-making museum.
The ZFT has debts. They're the result of poor management. What is the solution?
1. Get an outside manager, someone with some experience handing estates and paying down debts
2. Make use of the assets you have: video footage, unreleased recordings, marketing. Selling existing catalog into movie soundtracks, etc.
3. Stop the flow. Get all of the lawyers off retainer, cease all legal actions, pull up the gangplanks. Quit trying to litigate your way out of debt.
^^^^ What he said.
There is no extended future in Zappa's music. best get what you can, while you can. Any way to release video/dvd's do it now while they still can sell and have a minimum amt of piracy. -Of course, who can stop piracy? - Just better get what you can. it took the Zappa family less than 20 years to squander tens of millions of dollars. Better trade in the Beemer for a Camry, stop spending like its a bottomless pit and stop living like a celebrity Like Dweezle has done. He lives in a Modest home his kids have their heads all screwed on straight (for the most part) and He is actually producing revenue by using his talent in a way that you can appreciate, because you actually are the beneficiaries of that talent.
I for one would pay to go see, and then own a wall to wall FZ documentary on his life and music... For laughs you could even include how you've pissed all his hard earned money away.
That'll be $2700 for my consultation. Do I bill the Foundation directly, or will that be cash?
I got nothin' :
...avoiding any implication that I have ever entertained a cognizant thought.
live samples:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwbCFGbAtFc
https://youtu.be/AEE5OZXJioE
https://soundcloud.com/yodelgoat/yod...om-a-live-show
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUe3YhCjy6g
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VOCJokzL_s
You used the word Zappa twice, and the initials FZ, once in your post so you owe the trust $2500.^^^^ What he said.
There is no extended future in Zappa's music. best get what you can, while you can. Any way to release video/dvd's do it now while they still can sell and have a minimum amt of piracy. -Of course, who can stop piracy? - Just better get what you can. it took the Zappa family less than 20 years to squander tens of millions of dollars. Better trade in the Beemer for a Camry, stop spending like its a bottomless pit and stop living like a celebrity Like Dweezle has done. He lives in a Modest home his kids have their heads all screwed on straight (for the most part) and He is actually producing revenue by using his talent in a way that you can appreciate, because you actually are the beneficiaries of that talent.
I for one would pay to go see, and then own a wall to wall FZ documentary on his life and music... For laughs you could even include how you've pissed all his hard earned money away.
That'll be $2700 for my consultation. Do I bill the Foundation directly, or will that be cash?
Ian
Host of the Post-Avant Jazzcore Happy Hour on progrock.com
https://podcasts.progrock.com/post-a...re-happy-hour/
Gordon Haskell - "You've got to keep the groove in your head and play a load of bollocks instead"
I blame Wynton, what was the question?
There are only 10 types of people in the World, those who understand binary and those that don't.
Guess they should have opened a heavenly bank account.
"The White Zone is for loading and unloading only. If you got to load or unload go to the White Zone!"
What about today's "recent sites" a couple hundred years from now? How do we enshrine or enmuseum them when they're a couple hundred years old if we don't protect them while they're "recent?"
What would JKL2500 say on the subject? "I don't think a site as recent as SongBot-X100's EarWurm AutoGen Moonbase should be turned into a shrine. Something from a couple hundred years ago would be different. How about Frank Zappa's studio? Oh, a shopping mall you say?"
Just kidding. There won't be any shopping malls in 2500.
However, in the year 2525, if man is still alive, if woman can survive, they may find...a parking space.
Hurtleturtled Out of Heaven - an electronic music composition, on CD and vinyl
https://michaelpdawson.bandcamp.com
http://www.waysidemusic.com/Music-Pr...MCD-spc-7.aspx
i think its a great idea. Moon had a great vision for the property, but apparently the rest of the "family" did not. I drove by there, and took a few pictures. I for one would LOVE to see where this music was created!
Places of much less historical importance, in my view anyway, are kept intact due to "perceived" historical significance. Maxfield Parrish's studio and property for instance, is in ruin, while Augustus St. Gaudens is kept in pristine condition as a landmark. And I'll wager good money most haven't heard of Gaudens. This whole thinking is heartbreaking.
If this family would stop fighting among themselves and help Dweezil promote his dad's music and allow everyone to share equally in the legacy....they might not have these debt issues.
Why should Dweezil equally share his money from doing his dads music? All the other offspring/spawn do, as far as I can see is call Lawyers and lie about Dweezil in online rants. They should have a REASONABLE share, but NOT EQUAL, because being able to call your lawyer should not be considered "equally" sharing the burden of touring, practicing, booking shows, traveling, performing and basically spending a good share of your life away from home and family. Wow, um maybe give up the "everything is never enough" attitude?
Maybe they think that touring in a band is all sunshine and lollipops, but man thats a pretty self-absorbed attitude. "I get Dweezils money cause My dad was Frank Zappa" I would love to see what Frank would have to say about that... "Will that be window, or aisle seat?"
I got nothin' :
...avoiding any implication that I have ever entertained a cognizant thought.
live samples:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwbCFGbAtFc
https://youtu.be/AEE5OZXJioE
https://soundcloud.com/yodelgoat/yod...om-a-live-show
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUe3YhCjy6g
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VOCJokzL_s
Preserving what we have now is how it gets to be around hundreds of years from now.
Yeah, but is anybody gonna care in 100 years? Really?
It seems Dweezil and Moon have a good relationship with each other, but both are at odds with the rest of the family.
Maybe it is a good thing my family doesn't have money to fight over.
azdz.jpg
This is a brothers' love. Stop. Become a family again. Money is paper. We wipe with paper.
Didn't they preserve the Can studio?
Once something is gone, you can't preserve it anymore. And whatever one might think of Frank Zappa, I suppose his heritage will be recognised still in the future.
Sometime ago I saw a reference to him in some childrens program.
http://www.mendtereport.com/2009/07/...franklins.html
The Chalk Outline That Is Ben Franklin's House
Franklin Court is a wonderful piece of history sitting right smack dab in the middle of the block that is bordered by Market Street to the North, Chestnut to the South, Third Street to the East and Fourth to the West.
The brick archway that leads to Market Street is the same that Benjamin Franklin himself walked through. Before you step on the cobblestone under the archway look to your left and you see the First Post Office in the United States founded by Franklin. Look to right and there is "Benjamin Franklin Printing," inside is his original printing press and other artifacts.
The cobblestone leads you to a magnificent courtyard and in the center of all this historical wonderment is a mystery. The house where Benjamin Franklin lived most of his adult life, the house where he pondered both the magic of electricity and the possibility of American sovereignty, is gone.
In its place is what amounts to a stick figure drawing of the space the house once took up. It is a major disappointment.
What happened to Ben’s house? His grandchildren tore it down and sold the land in 1812. The area around the Franklin home was all very commercial and historians theorize that the land was becoming more valuable than the house. Talk about unappreciative little brats! Makes you worry a little about your own will doesn’t it?
“It was a sign of the times,” according to Coxey Toogood, an historian working for the National Park Service at Independence Mall and owner of the best name I had ever heard. “America hadn’t begun to look backwards yet. It was still a forward looking country.”
It wasn’t until 1948 that Congress created Independence National Park and included Franklin Court. “There was much debate about reconstructing the house,” according to Coxey.
But there was a big problem. No one knew exactly what then house looked like. “There are no images, paintings or pictures of the house,” according to Steve Setarski of the National Park Service.
In the 1760’s Franklin was doing diplomatic work in England while his wife Deborah was overseeing construction of the house. The two sent detailed notes back and forth to each other about the design of the house. Benjamin Franklin even drew pictures of what he wanted the rooms to look like and sent them to Deborah.
Unfortunately, for all his brilliance, Ben wasn’t much of an artist. “The drawings were pretty rudimentary,” and Steve was being kind. “There just wasn’t enough to go on.”
Ironically, the house that Ben Franklin stayed at in London on Craven Street is still standing and is a big tourist historical tourist attraction. They call it “The Benjamin Franklin House” and advertise it as “the world’s only remaining Franklin home.” Ouch!
And so the original basement was dug out and Plexiglas was placed over it so visitors could look down into all that is left of Ben Franklin’s home – a hole in the ground. It was a tad anticlimactic for tourists. “Visitors are surprised and disappointed that the house isn’t there,” admits Setarski.
The house had one last shot at rising again. In the years leading up to America’s Bicentennial celebration, there was a new push to reconstruct history in the city. The Olde City Tavern, where the Founding Fathers would let their powdered wigs down, was reconstructed. The birth of a nation and democracy were debated over a pint in the Olde City Tavern on Second Street and Chestnut. Also, the boarding house owned by the well know builder Jacob Graf was reconstructed. It was there that Thomas Jefferson rented a room and wrote the Declaration of Independence. The Graf house sat on the corner of 7th and Market right across the street from the Philadelphia stables. While writing the most important document in American History, Jefferson would constantly complain about the horseflies and the smell coming through the window. The original house was torn down in 1883. Photographs of the site allowed the National Park Service to feel confident in reconstruction. The building is now called “The Declaration House.”
If The National Park Service went to all that effort to bring back the Olde City Tavern and the Declaration House, what about Franklin’s house? “There was long and careful study and a differing of opinions on whether it could be replicated,” according to Coxey Toogood. “The staff really wanted it reconstructed.” But in the end the historians argued again that there was not enough to go on. “There was just not enough evidence,” says Coxey with a disappointing sigh. “All possible designs were far too conjectural.”
And Steve Setarski admitted that there was a bit of fear that they would look foolish. “What if a painting surfaced years later of Franklin’s house and it proved what we built was wrong? We just couldn’t risk that kind of embarrassment.”
Still everyone agreed that a hole in the ground just wasn’t enough. So the world famous architect Robert Venturi was commissioned to construct what is called “a ghost structure.” It gives people the general idea of how big and wide a structure was without trying to reconstruct it. Knowing that Franklin’s house was three stories tall and took up 33 square feet of land. Venturi built a skeleton of a house with white steel beams that is 54 feet high.
It looks like a homicide chalk outline of the house that was murdered by Franklin’s grandchildren.
“It is true that some visitors are still disappointed,” admits Setarski. “But the structure itself is considered the design and architectural standard for all ghost structures. We get architects and artists from around the world to study and photograph it.” And the Steve repeated the phrase that is said at least once about every piece of modern art, “Some people just don’t get it.”
Include me in the group who don’t get it.
And now I write this disappointing memo to the other people in my group:
Dear People Who Don’t Get It,
In regards to the Ghost Structure that is masquerading as Ben Franklin’s
house: Nothing is going to change anytime soon. – Larry
According to Steve Setarski, the policy of the National Park Service changed after the nation’s bicentennial. It no longer believes in the reconstruction of history. “The current feeling is that we do not do reconstruction because it is misleading.”
And so the stick figure, the homicide outline, that sits above the hole in the ground will have to suffice as an important historic site. The National Park Service calls it architectural art. I call it a constant reminder that the house was torn down. But maybe that is also the point. Maybe the tearing down of the structure is our forever reminder that we must preserve and protect our important buildings and homes because one day they too will be history.
Or maybe we can just hope that the philosophy of the National Park Service changes again and one day we can reconstruct the house. In the meantime, start looking at estate sales, in your attic and on EBay for a painting of Ben Franklin’s house. We get that and we solve a mystery that may finally exorcise the ghost of Franklin Court.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted 29th July 2009 by Editor
This is the house where Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence.
Actually, it isn't. The original was torn down. This is a replica built in 1975 on the original site.
In Rotterdam we had this, which was demolished after the bombardment in WWII
This was put to replace it;
Once upon a time...
There were machines called jukeboxes. They were at the Club, the Dance Hall, the Bar, the Bowling Alley, the Malt Shop - actually they were almost everywhere. One of the most famous makers - maybe you heard of them - was Wurlitzer.
wurlo front 2.jpg
Well, times change. And Wurlitzer didn't/couldn't. The last machine rolled off the assembly line in 1974. Organs and electric pianos soon followed.
wurlo decay 33.jpg
A giant empty factory sat for decades. Wasn't much demand for such things in the Rust Belt anymore. But - things have been picking up over the years, other businesses moved in, and they're fixing it up bit by bit. Actually looking much better now !
Why the boring story ?? Because it's the same old story. "They paved paradise, and put up a parking lot." This has happened in every little city in America. There will be no 400 year old buildings to save. Today's major corporations are practically 'virtual', the only 'bricks-and-mortar left for history is the billing dept..
Times Change. That's the Rule. Whether you're Ben Franklin, Frank Zappa, General Motors or the music industry it doesn't matter. But we're talking 'bout people here, and people don't change. Power corrupts, attitudes form, manipulation and control in every word. Add Money on top of that ! The perfect circus awaits us !! The Zappa story is nowhere near the end.
I wish Frank was here to kick some ass.
I do too, but Frank was one of the least sentimental people I've ever heard of. Had it been necessary, he would have scrapped the Laurel Canyon house and UMRK in an instant and built something more useful to him in its place.
My guess is that he wanted to be remembered, but not fetishized.
"We're standing on the spot where Frank Zappa wrote the immortal words 'I can take about an hour on the tower of power as long as I gets a little golden shower.'"
I wonder how realistic Moon's ideas are? Would there be more than twenty people who would pay to watch Die Hard with Diva or eat breakfast cooked by Moon? Does she have an elevated opinion of how much that experience would be worth, or how many people would be interested? I mean, Frank isn't Walt Disney.
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