Names and faces
■ Bob Dylan often has things to say in dark times. He threw another surprise late Thursday when, on Twitter, he dropped a new (old) song, “Murder Most Foul.” It’s the longest song he’s ever recorded — 16 minutes, 56 seconds (25 seconds longer than 1997’s epic “Highlands,” for you Dylanologists). “It was a dark day in Dallas,” Dylan starts on “Murder Most Foul.” “November ‘63. A day that will live on in infamy.” Yes, it’s the story of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and the death of the dream and the ideals that he stood for. Backed by impressionistic piano and violin shading, Dylan, 78, turns the song into a rambling series of rhyming couplets filled with all kinds of pop culture references. Weaved throughout are references to the JFK situation, whether it’s Vice President Lyndon Johnson being sworn in on Air Force One or “That strip club owner named Jack,” referring to Jack Ruby, who killed accused JFK assassin Lee Harvey Oswald. Dylan mentions Dealey Plaza and the Crossroads in juxtaposed couplets. And Marilyn Monroe is there, too. The bard does deliver one positively Dylanesque line: “I hate to tell ya mister but only dead men are free.” It’s unclear exactly when Dylan — who hasn’t offered any new original tunes since 2012’s Tempest album — recorded “Murder Most Foul.” Judging by his vocal vibe and the spare jazzy instrumental accompaniment, the recording sounds of recent vintage. On Twitter, Dylan thanked his fans, saying, “This is an unreleased song we recorded a while back that you might find interesting. Stay safe, stay observant and may God be with you.” ■ Robert Englund, the actor who turned Freddy Krueger into a fearsome household name, says he’s looking forward to someone else taking a stab at reviving the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. Englund said it’s time for Krueger’s razor-fingered glove to permanently pass to another actor. “I’m too old,” said the 72-year-old. “I know that everything gets remade eventually.” Englund played Krueger, a murderous villain who stalks his victims through their dreams, in eight films and occasionally on TV. He acknowledges that a few years ago he thought he might’ve had the stamina for one more
Nightmare movie. But he says that with new technologies, “We can do special effects even better and more sophisticated, and I’m kind of looking forward to seeing a new ‘Nightmare’ film where they can really go crazy with a dream landscape, with the nightmare sequences, using some of the techniques used in Inception or in that old Robin Williams film What Dreams May Come.”
Englund is currently hosting the new Travel Channel series True Terror with Robert Englund.