Very few people know how much the Catholic faith influenced AA, though neither Bill W. nor Dr. Bob were Catholics. When the original text, "Alcoholics Anonymous" (aka 'The Big Book") was being written/compiled Bill relied VERY heavily on a Jesuit with whom he corresponded regularly (I'd have to dig through boxes of books for my copy of the rare, "The Soul of Sponsorship" which discusses this relationship to find the name of the Jesuit.)
And...given AA's heavy reliance on the Oxford Group in England, I can't help wondering if, in turn, the Oxford Group was at all influenced by Venerable Matt Talbot from Ireland, a lifelong drinker who got sober simply by practicing his Catholic faith.
"The Days of Wine and Roses" is a very great film, and one which I probably will never see again. And yet I highly recommend it to others, because "seeing is believing" when it comes to such an addiction. I learned a lot many years ago from some AA "graduates" about recovering, enough to keep me away from the stuff altogether. That and the grace of God. And I thank God, too, for your 34 years and counting!!
"One very good thing came of the film: Alcoholics Anonymous got more and better publicity than they had in all their history. It’s odd to think that a film could save a human life, but this one surely did." Yes!
And yet some comics in the day would use drunkenness as a means of getting laughs. I don’t mean an occasional lush in a movie or TV episode, but someone making a drunkard seemingly his entire comedic routine – one thinks of Foster Brooks, though he surely displayed other talents during his career. I may be out of touch, but I haven’t noticed recent comedians creating a character based on the abuse of alcohol. Perhaps the MADD movement had something to do with this; yet whatever the reason, I would say it’s a rare area of improvement in the culture over the last couple of generations.
You mention a few wonderful, original teleplays from the 1950s dramatic anthology programs that were remade for the movie screen (one might also include Twelve Angry Men among a handful of others). It is curious that only shortly before, the major Hollywood studios were mostly dismissive of television.
The many teleplays on those 1950's anthology series were quite amazing. The writers and producers took their art seriously, and there were audiences for that kind of thing. There was nothing snooty about these, either. Just real dramatic art presented to ordinary people via that new technology. We have seen a lot of these series, but it just how many there were is pretty astounding. I wish we had access to more of them.
Very few people know how much the Catholic faith influenced AA, though neither Bill W. nor Dr. Bob were Catholics. When the original text, "Alcoholics Anonymous" (aka 'The Big Book") was being written/compiled Bill relied VERY heavily on a Jesuit with whom he corresponded regularly (I'd have to dig through boxes of books for my copy of the rare, "The Soul of Sponsorship" which discusses this relationship to find the name of the Jesuit.)
And...given AA's heavy reliance on the Oxford Group in England, I can't help wondering if, in turn, the Oxford Group was at all influenced by Venerable Matt Talbot from Ireland, a lifelong drinker who got sober simply by practicing his Catholic faith.
And yes, I am a drunk, sober 34 years...
"The Days of Wine and Roses" is a very great film, and one which I probably will never see again. And yet I highly recommend it to others, because "seeing is believing" when it comes to such an addiction. I learned a lot many years ago from some AA "graduates" about recovering, enough to keep me away from the stuff altogether. That and the grace of God. And I thank God, too, for your 34 years and counting!!
"One very good thing came of the film: Alcoholics Anonymous got more and better publicity than they had in all their history. It’s odd to think that a film could save a human life, but this one surely did." Yes!
And yet some comics in the day would use drunkenness as a means of getting laughs. I don’t mean an occasional lush in a movie or TV episode, but someone making a drunkard seemingly his entire comedic routine – one thinks of Foster Brooks, though he surely displayed other talents during his career. I may be out of touch, but I haven’t noticed recent comedians creating a character based on the abuse of alcohol. Perhaps the MADD movement had something to do with this; yet whatever the reason, I would say it’s a rare area of improvement in the culture over the last couple of generations.
You mention a few wonderful, original teleplays from the 1950s dramatic anthology programs that were remade for the movie screen (one might also include Twelve Angry Men among a handful of others). It is curious that only shortly before, the major Hollywood studios were mostly dismissive of television.
The many teleplays on those 1950's anthology series were quite amazing. The writers and producers took their art seriously, and there were audiences for that kind of thing. There was nothing snooty about these, either. Just real dramatic art presented to ordinary people via that new technology. We have seen a lot of these series, but it just how many there were is pretty astounding. I wish we had access to more of them.