yes, its the birthday of the late, great steve mcqueen. he's my james dean. he first really struck me about eleven years ago when i saw him alongside ali mcgraw in the fast-paced 1972 film 'the getaway,' directed by sam peckinpah. i was struck by how he could be tough, but human. even though the movie was 100% action, steve managed to portray joy, confusion, frustration, anger, fear, and even jubilation. he and ali mcgraw worked so well together. it was a complicated part for her (ali) at that crucial time for women's liberation in america. she sacraficed for him, obeyed him, but yet, was very much in control of her choices, and handled a gun and a muscle car every bit as adeptly as mcqueen. in fact, i think her character Carol McCoy was the one behind the wheel like, 90% of the time, hence steve's oft-uttered refrain, '...punch it, baby!' as he sat in the passenger seat with a shotgun. do yourself a great favor, if you're keen on seeing 'the getaway,' make damn sure you don't pick up the alec baldwin-kim basinger version by mistake. (ecchh) the original is a hell of a movie, i highly recommend it.
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