Monthly Archives: January 2010

Up Helly Aa! A Celebration of Fire and Vikings in Shetland

January 18, 2010
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Up Helly Aa! A Celebration of Fire and Vikings in Shetland

Every mid-winter in the Shetland Islands, the residents celebrate their Nordic heritage (the islands changed hands between the Scots and Vikings for centuries early in the fist half of the last millennium) with a fire festival, commonly called “Up Helly Aa” by the locals. It’s celebrated in just about every Shetland town, including Scalloway, where my wife’s mother was born and her uncle now lives. The festival — which was first held after the Napoleonic wars — celebrates the end of the “yule season,” and has evolved to include a procession of torch-bearers wearing festive garb. Some wear Viking outfits. Some just wear special T-shirts. And some even dress like a Vegas-era Elvis). A good time is had by all — and good times are valuable in such a harsh climate in winter. At the end of the procession, a painstakingly built replica viking galley in the harbor is set ablaze in a spectacular display. It’s the kind of festival would have a hard time getting off the ground in the United States. You’re going to what? Carry oil-dripping torches? Around children? You’re going to set fire to a wooden ship? In the water? But what about the fish? Do

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TCM Thrillers (January 18 – 24)

January 16, 2010
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TCM Thrillers (January 18 – 24)

This week: * Monday—Valentino feels the heat. * Tuesday—William Holden goes for a swim. * Wednesday—Robert Montgomery gets highly subjective. * Thursday—Lee Marvin is doublecrossed, which means somebody’s gonna die. * Friday—Nazis and escaped cons—can you tell them apart? * Saturday—Herbert Lom absolutely, positively loses it. * Sunday—Charles Bronson plays cowboys and Indians—but which ones can he rely on not to kill him? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Monday—January 18th 1:30 AM—Stolen Moments (1920) In this silent film, love turns a young innocent into a blackmail victim and murder suspect. Cast: Marguerite Namara, Rudolph Valentino, Albert L. Barrett. Dir: James Vincent. BW-35 mins, TV-G 4:00 AM—The Man Between (1953) An East Berliner helps a British woman trapped behind the Iron Curtain. Cast: James Mason, Claire Bloom, Hildegard Knef. Dir: Carol Reed. BW-102 mins, TV-G 6:00 AM—Go Down Death! (1942) Gangsters try to frame a minister out to clean up their Southern town. Cast: Myra D. Hemmings, Samuel H. James, Eddy L. Houston. Dir: Spencer Williams. BW-54 mins, TV-PG ———- Tuesday—January 19th 7:30 AM—The Band Wagon (1953) A Broadway artiste turns a faded film star’s comeback vehicle into an artsy flop. Cast: Fred Astaire, Jack Buchanan, Cyd Charisse. Dir: Vincente Minnelli. C-112 mins, TV-G, CC

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The Frantically Boring Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

January 15, 2010
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The Frantically Boring Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

In another post I stated that I looked forward to The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus based, in part, on an impressive movie poster. After seeing the movie, it is clear one cannot judge a book, or movie in this case, by its cover. The films of Terry Gilliam are an acquired taste and even then the aficionados are few (like rare and smelly cheese). While Time Bandits, Brazil, and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen might have an earnest if not broad following, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus fails to stir even these loyalists. That’s no surprise. Imaginarium is dull and tedious, struggling to get past even its first act. It’s a mess, full of unsympathetic characters pursuing selfish ends who never develop in an meaningful way. My friends Liberty Belle and her fiancé, with whom I saw the film put it well, “It’s an intriguingly boring film.” And in a perverse way it is. Watching it you wonder if the stultifying dullness of the last scene will be topped by the next. Imaginarium focuses on a man, Doctor Parnassus (Christopher Plummer), an immortal ex-monk and now traveling showman who made a deal with the Devil to restore his youth so

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Radio Days Thrillers from Crippen & Landru

January 14, 2010
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Radio Days Thrillers from Crippen & Landru

The Casebook of Gregory Hood Radio plays by Anthony Boucher (1911 – 68) and Denis Green (1905 – 54) Edited by Joe R. Christopher Crippen & Landru Publishers Paper: 257 pages ISBN (cloth): 978-1-932009-81-1/(paper): 978-1-932009-82-8 $29.00 (cloth)/$19.00 (paper) Ah! Radio, the theater of the mind, where a word or two could evoke night and fog and danger in a city of two million, manifesting an entire universe for just a few dollars; where the unwitting listener actually did most of the work for the writers and performers, and was all the better for being an active participant rather than a passive observer. Along with mystery maven John Dickson Carr, Anthony Boucher was in the thick of radio drama in its heyday. An experienced author and critic, Boucher knew the ins and outs of detective fiction, so that when he came to write for radio he knew what would and wouldn’t work in this unique medium. As Joe R. Christopher tells us in his introduction to The Casebook of Gregory Hood, Boucher already had plenty of experience writing for The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (with the definitive radio Holmes, Basil Rathbone) when, in the summer of 1946, Rathbone declared he’d had

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Should Shakespeare Be Translated for Modern English?

January 13, 2010
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Should Shakespeare Be Translated for Modern English?

John McWhorter sure thinks so, as he argues in “The Real Shakespearean Tragedy,” which would be, The Bard is awesome but only three people in the world can understand what the heck he’s saying. As a linguist McWhorter knows something about language and I think he makes an airtight case. Ever since I was in high school way back when, I knew Shakespeare was something I should like and appreciate, but I could never get past your basic 16th Century English. I tried many times, but it just wasn’t worth it. I thought I must be some kind of dolt, but I never shared that with anybody lest I confirm my lack of ability to appreciate the greatest playwright ever. Now somebody with the stature and intellectual heft of John McWhorter comes along and says what most everyone who has ever tried to read Shakespeare or been to a play already knows: it’s indecipherable. There is a link in the piece about something I had not been aware of called the Shakespeare Translation Project. I think I might actually now be able to read and understand what’s been inaccessible to me and most every other English speaking person in the

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Student Sheds Light on Necessity for Reform in K-12 Schools

January 13, 2010
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Student Sheds Light on Necessity for Reform in K-12 Schools

There is a great deal of energy and resources spent addressing the issue of Left-wing domination on America’s colleges and universities. David Horowitz has done yeoman’s work documenting the networks indoctrinating students in higher education. Groups such as the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, Institute for Humane Studies, and others work diligently combating the illiberal education provided in many colleges and universities. This quote, from Lloyd Marcus writing for the American Thinker, reminds us that we need to focus as much, if not more so, on K-12 education: “Years ago, a white friend’s son came home from middle school in tears over the cruelty of our founding fathers against Native Americans. Today, that kid is a 23 year old America-hating Marxist. Thank you public schools for your liberal America-sucks curriculum.” Years later K-12 students are getting much of the same as reported by a student in the Chicago, Illinois area, who is currently in the 12th grade. Her class schedule includes Advanced Placement English, Advanced Placement European History, Pre-Calculus, Theater Arts, French, and Gym class. When asked if she has ever experienced what might be considered indoctrination in any of her classes she responded: All the time! The books we are given

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O’Brien Complaint May Be Tenuous

January 13, 2010
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Tonight Show host Conan O’Brien is on shaky ground in his complaint against NBC, according to the celebrity gossip site TMZ: We’re now told Conan’s contract never specified a guaranteed time period. If NBC wanted to run the show at 3:00 AM, Conan would have no recourse. We’re told Conan’s reps never even asked for a guaranteed time period when they negotiated his contract — shocking, but true. By contrast, we’re told Jay Leno‘s deal specifically guarantees his 10:00 PM time period, so the network must negotiate a new deal with him before he moves back to 11:35 PM. NBC did guarantee that Conan would host “The Tonight Show,” and the network has been willing to make good on that promise. As for Conan’s legal position, his claim is a lot more tenuous than first reported to us. This may be why O’Brien’s public statement yesterday did not explicitly state that he was quitting the Tonight Show (although it clearly suggested that he was done with it), and why the comic’s  representatives have reportedly been seeking an agreement with NBC as opposed to taking a hard line against the network, threatening lawsuits and the like. It also would explain why

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O’Brien Leaves ‘Tonight Show’, NBC

January 12, 2010
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O’Brien Leaves ‘Tonight Show’, NBC

Statement from Conan O’Brien UNIVERSAL CITY, California, January 12  — NBC TV personality Conan O’Brien has released the following statement. People of Earth: In the last few days, I’ve been getting a lot of sympathy calls, and I want to start by making it clear that no one should waste a second feeling sorry for me.  For 17 years, I’ve been getting paid to do what I love most and, in a world with real problems, I’ve been absurdly lucky.  That said, I’ve been suddenly put in a very public predicament and my bosses are demanding an immediate decision. Six years ago, I signed a contract with NBC to take over The Tonight Show in June of 2009.  Like a lot of us, I grew up watching Johnny Carson every night and the chance to one day sit in that chair has meant everything to me.  I worked long and hard to get that opportunity, passed up far more lucrative offers, and since 2004 I have spent literally hundreds of hours thinking of ways to extend the franchise long into the future.  It was my mistaken belief that, like my predecessor, I would have the benefit of some time and,

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It’s Official: Leno Back to 11:30, Competition Could Be Strengthened Across Board

January 12, 2010
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It’s Official: Leno Back to 11:30, Competition Could Be Strengthened Across Board

In a move that bodes well to strengthen TV programming overall in both primetime and late night, NBC has confirmed that Jay Leno will be moved back to his original 11:30 slot and his 10 p.m. show canceled on February 11, as rumored over the past week. USA Today reports: Under the new plan, Late Night With Jimmy Fallon would move from 12:35 a.m. to 1:05. (Carson Daly‘s talk show, which now follows Fallon, would be canceled, though Daly would remain under contract at the network.). There are details yet to be worked out, however: But “as much as I would like to tell you we have a done deal, we know that’s not true,” Gaspin said. “The talks are still ongoing.” NBC expects to resolve O’Brien’s fate, one way or the other, by the time the Winter Olympics begin Feb. 12. The Olympics are expected to deliver a big audience the network plans to use to promote its rebuilt prime-time and late-night schedules starting March 1. Update, 4:2o EST: O’Brien says that he will leave NBC, Tonight. The new 10 p.m. schedule will likely include a return to scripted dramas. Insiders argue that cost-cutting

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Breitbart Rips “Objective Media” in Welcome for Tucker Carlson’s New Site

January 11, 2010
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Breitbart Rips “Objective Media” in Welcome for Tucker Carlson’s New Site

Everyone who works in mainstream media (ok, almost everyone) believes that they are involved in a profession so pure that it believes it can sit in judgment on all that it surveys. What is it that gives these people the bone fides to think they can authoritatively intone upon our society’s many and varied workings? Objectivity. Like some Buddha upon a mountain who inhabits the rarified air that brings clarity not available to mere mortals, modern journalists are convinced they hold the keys to definitive truth on the issues and events of the day. Of course everyone else looks upon them as the emperor who has no clothes. Only Fox News and talk radio are biased and thus cannot claim to be part of real journalism. But Andrew Breitbart isn’t buying it. In his welcome post to Tucker Carlson’s new website The Daily Caller, Breitbart in his inimitable way rips into the pretense of modern journalism’s high horse, objectivity. Here is a taste: Over the last fifteen years, the Internet has become the battlefield, where the mostly false notion of “objective” and “bias-neutral” journalism clashes with those of us on the right who believe that media bias is the central

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Eric Rohmer’s Films Epitomize Elegance, Wit, Sophistication—and Wisdom

January 11, 2010
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Eric Rohmer’s Films Epitomize Elegance, Wit, Sophistication—and Wisdom

TAC contributor Shmuel Ben-Gad praises the great French filmmaker Eric Rohmer.

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TCM Thrillers (January 11 – 17)

January 9, 2010
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TCM Thrillers (January 11 – 17)

This week: * Monday—Rod Taylor is bad, then he’s good. * Tuesday—A dead man refuses to stay put. * Thursday—Dana Andrews should never needle a killer. * Saturday—Miss Marple, a maid? * Sunday—Alec Guinness gets marked for murder—eight times. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Monday—January  11th 11:30 AM—36 Hours (1965) Nazis kidnap a key American intelligence officer and try to convince him that World War II is over. Cast: James Garner, Rod Taylor, Eva Marie Saint. Dir: George Seaton. BW-115 mins, TV-PG, CC, Letterbox Format 3:30 PM—The Glass Bottom Boat (1966) A woman writing a scientist’s biography is mistaken for a spy. Cast: Doris Day, Rod Taylor, Arthur Godfrey. Dir: Frank Tashlin. C-110 mins, TV-G, CC, Letterbox Format, DVS 8:00 PM—A Place in the Sun (1951) An ambitious young man wins an heiress’s heart but has to cope with his former girlfriend’s pregnancy. Cast: Montgomery Clift, Elizabeth Taylor, Shelley Winters. Dir: George Stevens. BW-122 mins, TV-PG, CC ———- Tuesday—January 12th 4:15 AM—Scream of Fear (1961) A wheelchair-bound heiress doubts her sanity when she sees her dead father’s body around the family estate. Cast: Susan Strasberg, Ronald Lewis, Ann Todd. Dir: Seth Holt. BW-81 mins, TV-PG, CC 6:00 AM—Party Girl (1958) A showgirl and a

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