Word: bland
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...William Schmidt, 35, of San Jose, Calif., is a successful dentist. If that description conjures up nervous waits in a bland, Muzak-filled office and a white-coated figure poking fingers, drills or needles into the patient's mouth, with possibly a palliative lollipop or pat on the back afterward, forget it. Dr. Schmidt practices his profession in a red cape and bright blue tights. He calls himself "Plaque Invader." The cape outfit is only one of twelve costumes he dons to amuse young patients. At Christmas he may be dressed as Santa Claus, and around July...
...minutes at a time as he is sweating on stage, crying in the arms of his estranged wife, shaving, rolling a joint, driving, taking a bath (twice), and reflecting (countless times) with mellow but righteous indignation on the sorry state of the society that will not buy his bland music. The concentration of the camera and the script on Simon would be fine if he portrayed an interesting or at least three-dimensional character, but Jonah Levin is neither, and his colorless professional and domestic problems complement the monotonous musical score to make One-Trick Pony a very boring...
Andrew Sellon fares better as Cocky since his character is--at least by musical comedy standards--more flesh-and-blood. Though his singing sometimes weak, Sellon's performance has a weet subtlety and his flexible, loose-limbed body enlivens Sara Roy's bouncy but bland choreography. Sellon, through charm and verve, survives one of the show's most dismal moments--an inane dream sequence in which Cocky slays a rag-doll dragon for his white-clad maiden (Belle Linda' Halpern) whom Robert Swerdlow's fair-to-middling lighting design strikes at most unflattering angles...
Garfunkel brings very little to the party. He is a bland, pleasant-faced man who seems incapable of strong words, let alone strong feelings. As for Actress Russell, one's heart goes...
...father's grave lies buried the secret of his story." And yet ... and yet ... the Londoner Leon Garfield, 59, hitherto a writer of juveniles, composes his own conclusion to Edwin Drood, including Antony Maitland's new illustrations, happily capturing the Master's locutions: "Curious, bland, yet deeply various gentleman ... he was very like a convert to a new faith, who walks in the ways of the Lord with such assiduity as to obliterate His footsteps entirely...