Seth,

I CAN'T WAIT FOR THIS! WOWOWOWWOWOWO! Fantastic!

Seth,
I like the very serene tone...the quality that you're on the outside looking in...reminiscent, but no longer a part of that life.....nice

Re: Lakeville
Watching that almost makes me want to visit the grounds of the school one last time. They filmed a Bubblicious commercial while I was a student there in the early '80s.

Seth, I just watched the trailer for A Year in the Life. This looks absolutely amazing!
I were mesmerized.
It made our day.

Adam

I am 64 yrs. old and have many happy memories of Lakeville School. This video made me so happy.

My clearest memory was of the playground and it looks pretty much the same, and, of course, I remember the impressive portico of the school. I also recall a picture by Goya in the hall, outside my classroom.

I remember assembly time and singing songs where the words appeared on a movie screen up on the stage. These were "the good old days"!

On your Lakeville School movie:

I was at Lakeville from Sept 1960-June 1967 and, like VictorAGR007, I remember it fondly. In fact, the current principal very kindly took a group of us on a tour of our old school just last week. It was a memory-filled visit. I remember that Goya print, too, and years later, when I saw the original, I thought back to my happy days at Lakeville. A lovely video, thanks.

Dear Seth:

When my father was in high school at James Monroe in 1937, he was too young to be signed to a major league contract. So he instead spent that entire summer as the batting practice catcher for the New York Giants--warming up Hubbell, Melton, Schumacher et al., and being the understudy to...Harry Danning!

Yesterday, I received the DVD I had ordered from you of "The Last Giant\"... and tomorrow will give it to my dad, who actually IS "the last Giant" from that storied team! Having watched your film this morning, I KNOW he will cherish it!

Many of the same stories that Harry told (and along with Weintraub, my dad was the OTHER Jew on that squad), my dad has regaled us with over the years. He is now 89 (a year older than Danning when you interviewed him) and beginning to decline...but still has all his "marbles," and memories. The segment where Harry bemoans the game today is a monologue that I\'ve heard for decades :-)

So thank you so much for that.

Also, I watched your "Magical Mystery Tour" film on your site. Being a huge fan of The Beatles--on Feb. 9, 1964 I attended a performance of "Tosca" in the afternoon and returned home just in time to tune in for the Fab Four\'s debut on Ed Sullivan--I actually went on an EIGHT HOUR private tour of Liverpool in 1998, so your film brought back many memories.

I had hunted up Hilary Oxlade, the chief researcher for the definitive book, "In the Footsteps of the Beatles." and she took my wife and me around in her car to ALL the prime locations. Hilary had seen the boys play FORTY FIVE TIMES at The Cavern Club when she was a teenager, and was a close personal friend of Pete Best. So she had tons of stories to share.

In fact, if you wish to do a SEQUEL to your earlier tour, she'd be the perfect person to contact. I have all her details.
(Clearly, it's a lot better to film outside a private car than a rainy bus window :-)

On the day we went, the weather was PERFECT--"blue suburban skies"--and the light poured in as we sat on Paul's bed at 20 Forthlin Road, which inspired him (at 14) to write, "I'll Follow the Sun." I can assure you that it all looks very different in the sunshine, even though the rain drops definitely added a "misty" element to your film. And the driver-guide was great!

Did you notice how much the caretaker of Paul's place looks like Sir Paul? How ironic, or fitting, that his name is John.

And one thing you might not have seen is that across Penny Lane from the barber shop and the bank is a business concern: "Strange Strange & Partners, Consultant Engineers." Or, VERY Strange.

These guys were geniuses!

We also hunted up Eleanor Rigby\'s grave: it\'s NOT a myth, she "died in the church and was buried along with her name" on October 10, 1939. I have the photo... (and "Father McKenzie" was the pastor there until his death in 1994!)

I'd be happy to discuss any and all of this with you at any time.
In any case, thanks for doing superb work and giving a son the PERFECT present for his doting dad!

Best regards,
Barry

Seth, I just watched the trailer for A Year in the Life. This looks absolutely amazing! When will this be available?There are scores of people who are interested so please give us more details!!!

Hi Seth,

We've never met, although it strikes me as odd that this is the case.

I'm Jodi Birkholm, a lifelong baseball historian and autograph collector. I was formerly an authenticator for JSA.

Harry Danning was a great man--I knew him well the last ten years of his life. Out of the 120 players I interviewed over the years, Harry was one of my favorites. He was the only player who loved "Jeopardy!" as much as I do.

We used to sit together in his Valparaiso home and try and beat each other in shouting out the answers. He astounded me by giving me a thorough licking in the category of Shakespeare! I'm delighted to see what you have done with your interviews. Thanks for keeping our friend's memory alive! Through Harry, I also befriended Joe Moore. Joe was a wonderful man. I miss both of them terribly.

It appears as though we share the same taste in music, as well.

I'm now a full-time autograph seller, specializing in vintage baseball material, with a particular focus on non-HOF rarities. Let me know if you're looking for any elusive signatures. I'll be glad to see what I can come up with (as long as it\'s not signed in Sharpie!).

Keep up your efforts in preservation. Let me know if you ever plan to do more with Danning's story--I have a few hours of interviews with him (and many, many others). Harry was always delighted to speak of those five HR's in one inning. He saved precious little in the was of mementos, but did prize the signed wire photo depicting all of the players who were part of that historic feat in 1939.

Harry was undoubtedly the most erudite player I knew--very atypical for a man of his time. His knowledge seemed to be entirely self-taught, although I didn't see many books in his apartment. Unlike many of the players I've known, he took a genuine interest in, as he put it, "keeping up with my progress". He had a granddaughter about my age.

I was a youngster the first few times I visited him. Harry would never speak down to younger people, but treat them as equals. Just a really different person. Besides Moe Berg, I really don't think baseball has ever encountered a character of his caliber. I think I might actually have recorded some of Harry's remembrances of Berg. It's been so long since I've listened to all of those tapes--maybe I'll dig 'em out and have a good listen tonight after my weekly poker game.

Besides all of the unique items I know you own, I'd love to hear about your autograph collection. I've been collecting for over twenty years. My tastes run toward obscure players whose autographs are tough to procure (due to early death, incapacitation, or, perhaps, because they flatly refuse/refused to honor requests--a LOT of great stories to share).

I should confess that your "Baseball Letters" got my dander up when I first encountered it in a Barnes and Noble! I had been planning on a similar book, and, strangely enough, you and I seem to have corresponded with the same individuals!!! I guess we both came up with the idea at the same time! I'll get over it someday! Seriously, though, it's a great read. Good job so far!

Take care,

Jodi

Holy Crap Seth!
You really got some great interviews.
Norman Smith, Brian Wilson....
It looks like a great movie.
I share you passion for the greatest band of all time and I think it is a wonderful concept.
I was born in 63 and probably got into the Beatles when I was around 15. They are easily the biggest musical influence of my life. I can't wait to see the finished product.
Jim

i just watched the Elvis movie, that was cool. great story.

hi i just watched the magical mystery tour film. that was great, being a beattles fan it was nice to see some of the history. Seth you make some realy cool stuff.

The Magical Mystery Tourist film was just wonderful. What a perfect tour guide! Great job, Seth. Wouldn't we have liked to see where Pete Best lives as well - they rehearsed in his basement. I wonder if Paul ever has a moment when he feels like calling Pete and saying "hey mate, I'm sorry about the way things worked out, but we did have some fun in your basement, didn't we? Come play drums on my next CD; what a kick that would be."

I just watched The Last Giant (again). Harry is my husband's grandad and David Danning's uncle and was adored and is greatly missed by us all. Harry was clearly having a very good time with you on the day of his visit and I'm so
glad you caught his charm and wit on film. Thanks a bunch!

Lesley Landis-Voller

I came across your video about Lakeville School. ( I was probably about 5 years) ahead of you in school. ) I truly enjoyed your video and have watched it many times. It made me feel good and at the same time, sad for years gone by.

I noticed that you dedicated the video to Sandy Christie. I was a friend of the family. There were 4 sisters and 1 brother.

Although I moved away after 6th grade, I still long for a way to return to my early life that was so simple.

Thanks for the memories and for your talent.

Most Sincerely,

Debbie Werner DuBreuil

Just wanted to say that I loved 'Kiss'. Visual poetry.

Seth- You made my day. I just watched the Lakeville School revisited. It made me cry and smile at the same time. Those were such great times. If we could only bottle that feeling...wow.. The only thing we worried about was if our kick could get us to first base and the kid on second home. Thanks.

My father passed away recently and I had to write a eulogy about him for his funeral. My Dad like many from Great Neck in those days was more often than not associated with all sorts of political causes for which he will be remembered by most people. I how however chose to remember him for things he did as Dad. Not least of which was the time he pulled me out of Lakeville School one sunny fall day to take me on a surprise trip to the home opener of '69 Mets World Series. It was an event that has provided me a lifetime of happy memories and your movie just brought me right back to that day...that day and the time you played your guitar and sang "Mao's Chinese Tea" to the tune of the popular Miller Time beer commercial for a class project we had. Thanks for the movie and all the memories Seth ---Fred

"The Last Giant" is a terrific film which features an interview with one of the most popular players ever to wear a New York Giants baseball uniform: Harry "The Horse" Danning, a four-time National League All-Star who was Hall of Famer Carl Hubbell's favorite catcher and who was named the best catcher in major league baseball in 1940 by the Baseball Writers Association of America. Seth Swirsky has done a great job in inter-weaving vintage film clips of Carl Hubbell, Mel Ott, Bob Feller, Ted Williams, Lou Gehrig, and Joe DiMaggio with Danning's commentary, and in doing so provides an excellent feel for what major league baseball was like in the 1930's and 1940's.

His subject is an engaging interviewee who offers anecdotes both sad and amusing about characters such as Hall of Famers Jimmy Foxx (sad) and Bill Klem (amusing), as well as some observations about the game as it is played today. In addition, Danning was catching when Gehrig hit his last World Series home run, when DiMaggio hit his first World Series home run, and when Williams hit his dramatic game-winning home run in the 1941 All-Star game, and he offers an insider's view of each of these events. Finally, film touches on one of major league baseball's most tragic moments: the suicide of Cincinnati Reds' catcher Willard Hershberger days after the Reds lost to the Giants on a dramatic home run by Danning.

If you are a baseball fan--or even if you are not--check out "The Last Giant"!

[In the interest of full disclosure: Harry Danning was my uncle - DD]

Thanks so much for the Elementary School Revisited film on Lakeville. I was there K through 6, graduated in 1970-so long ago but seems like yesterday. Guess that's always what us "old folks" say. Glad to have the memories.
-Linda

The VanTongerloo film is so funny, me and my kids were watching it today, its a great bedtime story!

"The Last Giant" is a wonderful, wonderful film about Harry. My son and I were mesmerized. It
made our day.

...having just enjoyed our 40th hs class reunion from great neck south... i was delighted to find your posting on classmates.com, that you actually had made a short film about lakeville school. i sent this link to so many of my friends. all of the comments were so similar..we were glued to the screen, felt such warmth and nostalgia...the poignancy of your film brought tears, to even the guy's eyes! we had graduated so long ago from lakeville...1959! someday please film the interior. nostalgia is a wonderful thing...and you brought happiness to so many of us. thank you,seth, for your film making embedded with such silent and meaningful poetry. sincerely, barbara

love the swan lake film, never seen something like that.

I think Kiss is so beautiful that I have watched it over and over again! You kind of lose yourself for a minute....

I loved the 'Magical Mystory Tourist' background music selection.