Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Let's Do the Hustle! by Suz deMello

Remember this?


The Hustle is an immortal from the disco era. I can now picture all of you muttering, "Gee, thanks, Suz, for the lovely earworm."

And there was this movie with Paul Newman:




A TV series with Robert Vaughn:




And there's this magazine by Larry Flynt:




Why do we celebrate and condemn hustling? What is hustling?

It has a couple of definitions, the simplest of which is hurrying. But to hustle someone has a negative connotation of trickery.

But we have a long history of admiring tricksters.






Shakespeare, in the guise of Puck, tells us:


If we shadows have offended,
Think but this, and all is mended,
That you have but slumber'd here
While these visions did appear.
And this weak and idle theme,
No more yielding but a dream,
Gentles, do not reprehend:
If you pardon, we will mend:
And, as I am an honest Puck,
If we have unearned luck
Now to 'scape the serpent's tongue,
We will make amends ere long;
Else the Puck a liar call;
So, good night unto you all.
Give me your hands, if we be friends,
And Robin shall restore amends.

I guess we all love a joke, even when it's on us.

3 comments:

  1. Thanks for that little bit of nostalgia, Suz. Even though the dancers appear a little silly--wasn't that what it was about? Fun.

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  2. And how could you forget the fabulous recent film "American Hustle"?

    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1800241/

    This could be the defining work for the term!

    (Love the image of Puck!)

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    Replies
    1. Oh yeah! I know there was something I missed--that film with Christian Bale and Jennifer Lawrence! I was thinking about it but couldn't remember the title, so when I entered "Hustle movie" in my search box I got Paul Newman instead :(

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