Monthly Archives: March 2014

Complete Classic Movie: Casino Royale (1967)

Stars: Peter Sellers, Ursula Andress, David Niven, Orson Welles, Joanna Pettet, Daliah Lavi, Woody Allen, Deborah Kerr, William Holden. In an early spy spoof, aging Sir James Bond comes out of retirement to take on SMERSH.


Our Gang – Three Men in a Tub (1938)

Three Men in a Tub is a 1938 Our Gang short comedy film directed by Nate Watt. When Darla shows up with a new beau, Alfalfa is bereft. Unable to compete with Waldo’s wealth, he decides to compete with skill. Waldo has a miniature speedboat. Alfalfa and the gang build their own “speedboat,” powered by ducks, and challenge Waldo to a race for the hand of Darla.



Touch of Evil – Trailer

“The magic is as wide as a smile and as narrow as a wink, loud as laughter and quiet as a tear, tall as a tale and deep as emotion. So strong, it can lift the spirit. So gentle, it can touch the heart. It is the magic that begins the happily ever after.” – Unknown


American Paintings: American Gothic by Grant Wood

American Gothic is a painting by Grant Wood in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago. Wood’s inspiration came from what is now known as the American Gothic House, and his decision to paint the house along with “the kind of people I fancied should live in that house.” The painting shows a farmer standing beside his spinster daughter. The figures were modeled by the artist’s sister and their dentist. The woman is dressed in a colonial print apron evoking 19th-century Americana, and the couple are in the traditional roles of men and women, the man’s pitchfork symbolizing hard labor, and the flowers over the woman’s right shoulder suggesting domesticity.


Amboy Dukes – Journey to the Center of the Mind

“The man that hath no music in himself, Nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems and spoils.” William Shakespeare


Quick Pix: Amanda Blake w/Video

Amanda Blake (born Beverly Louise Neill, February 20, 1929 – August 16, 1989) was an American actress best known for the role of the red-haired saloon proprietress “Miss Kitty Russell” on the television western Gunsmoke. She and her husband Frank Gilbert also ran one of the first successful programs for breeding cheetahs in captivity.

Complete Classic Movie: Sudden Death (1995)

Stars: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Powers Boothe, Raymond J. Barry, Whittni Wright, Ross Malinger, Dorian Harewood, Luc Robitaille. A disgraced former fireman takes on a group of terrorists holding the Vice President and others hostage during the seventh game of the NHL Stanley Cup finals.


Political Brain Drain: Are All Politicians Stupid, or Just American Politicians? (Video)

Trifecta continues its examination of American political stupidity by asking whether all politicians are stupid, or just the ones in the United States. British politicians, irrespective of party, appear witty and well-informed. So what is wrong with American politicians like Joe Biden, who seem so dumb that they have become late night comedy laugh lines? Find out.

Video linked here at original source.


Everything You Need To Know About Clint Eastwood’s ‘American Sniper’

Clint Eastwood’s new film ‘American Sniper’ is due to start production next month, what do we know about the project so far?


Two time Academy Award nominee Bradley Cooper is billed to play Chris Kyle

The life of Navy SEAL, Chris Kyle, a sniper with the highest recorded number of sniper kills for an American, is the subject of Clint Eastwood’s new film. American Sniper will be based on the autobiography of the same name, written by Kyle, Scott McEwan and Jim DeFelice. The astonishing story records the career of Kyle, who held the US record for sniper kills, with over 150 kills confirmed.

Described by Green Beret Charles W. Sasser as a ‘true American warrior down to the bone’, the autobiography shares details of Kyle’s career, which spanned a decade and included several combat tours as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Kyle tells the story of how he transitioned from life in his home state of Texas as a rodeo cowboy to become one of the most deadly assassins in US Military history.

The autobiography has been adapted for screen by Jason Hall and Bradley Cooper has been cast to star as Kyle, with Sienna Miller as his wife, Taya Renae Kyle. Initially there were rumours that both David O. Russell and Steven Spielberg were interested in directing the film, but instead it’s gone to double Oscar winning director Clint Eastwood, who is renowned for his gritty films and weighty directorial style.

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Complete text linked here.


Students Sue the State of California for Giving Them a Lousy Education

Nine public school students are suing California for failing to provide them with a good education:

Vergara v California, a case brought by nine California public school students against five state statutes they say keep ineffective teachers at the front of the class, concluded Thursday with an emotional closing argument by the plaintiffs’ lead co-counsel Marcellus McRae.

“Just because you have a license, doesn’t mean you can win the Indy 500. Just because you have a credential, doesn’t mean you are an effective teacher. That argument is done,” said McRae.

The students’ council stated that the state’s tenure and seniority laws unfairly keep ineffective teachers in front of the class – “cheating students of their right to equal opportunity” and an adequate education. Their closing argument was so compelling that even Joshua Pechthalt, president of the California Federation of Teachers, predicted that the students will win.

Original source.