May 24, 2013 by balladeer
THE RETURN OF DR X (1939) – Category: Enjoyably campy bad movie elevated by kitsch-value in the casting.
Yes, it’s the famous “Humphrey Bogart as a zombie mad scientist” movie. The tale goes that Jack Warner inflicted this role on gangster-flick star Bogart as punishment for 
resisting being cast in too many formulaic crime films. This was, of course, before The Maltese Falcon made Bogie a big-time star and long before actors had the kind of contracts that they have these days.
Bogart plays the titular Dr X, but not the same Dr X that Lionel Atwill played in a movie of that name earlier in the decade. This Dr X is Dr Maurice Xavier, a mad scientist executed in the electric chair for, among other things, bizarre experiments on infants (a pretty ballsy story element in those pre- Auschwitz awareness days). The “return” mentioned in the title refers to the fact that Bogart’s Dr X has been brought back from the dead by the film’s secondary menace, Dr Flegg (and let’s face it , The Return Of Dr Flegg just doesn’t have the same sinister appeal).
Flegg can bring people back from the dead but needs Dr X’s help to Continue Reading »
Posted in Bad and weird movies | Tagged badfilm, Casablanca, Conrad Veidt, Humphrey Bogart, Huntz Hall, Jack Warner, Lionel Atwill, Maltese Falcon, Tagged Bad Movies, The Return Of Dr X (1939) | Leave a Comment »
May 23, 2013 by balladeer
Tomorrow the College World Series begins in the NAIA and in D3, but for today here’s a look at teams from Division 2 of the NJCAA that won their District Championships and are advancing to their own Series.
EAST DISTRICT – The UCONN-AVERY POINT POINTERS (38-8) took the district title with a masterful 12-7 victory over the MONROE TRIBUNES in the championship game. Other teams left waiting for next year from the East District were the MERCYHURST NORTHEAST SAINTS, the ROCKLAND COLLEGE HAWKS, the WESTCHESTER VIKINGS and the COLLEGE OF RHODE ISLAND KNIGHTS.
MIDWEST DISTRICT – The HEARTLAND COLLEGE HAWKS (48-9) won the Midwest District by decimating the DANVILLE COLLEGE JAGUARS THIRTEEN to THREE! Also left in the wake of the Jaguars were the PARKLAND COLLEGE COBRAS, the LINCOLN COLLEGE LYNX, the ILLINOIS CENTRAL COLLEGE COUGARS and the LINCOLN LAND COLLEGE LOGGERS. Continue Reading »
Posted in College Baseball | Tagged 2013 NJCAA College World Series, Balladeer's Blog, baseball, college baseball, college baseball scores, College World Series, Edward Wozniak, NJCAA baseball, Sport, sports | Leave a Comment »
May 23, 2013 by balladeer
RELIGION KILLS
Jihad and Shariah Law enthusiast, Muslim preacher Anjem Choudary has called the Oklahoma tornado ” a soldier of Allah” sent to “punish America for oppressing Muslims”. Uh. Yeah. Muslims live better in America than they do in countries run by their fellow Muslims excepting some royal families and clerical leeches like Choudary himself.
Choudary, better known to his friends (assuming he has any) as “Chowderhead”, did not explain if the 2010 floods in Pakistan were also “soldiers” of his non-existent god. Allah is, after all, a distortion of Allilat (also called Alliyat), a revered female deity of the Arabian Peninsula from long before Continue Reading »
Posted in LIBERALS AND CONSERVATIVES | Tagged Anjem Choudary, human rights, Islam, Islamic Apartheid, Muslim apartheid, Muslim misogyny, Pakistan, Sidra Ali, Taliban, The real war on women, voter intimidation, voting rights, women's rights | 3 Comments »
May 22, 2013 by balladeer
CENTRAL DISTRICT – The NEOSHO COLLEGE PANTHERS emerged as the Central District champions with a 7-3 victory over the COFFEYVILLE COLLEGE RED RAVENS. The Panthers have an overall record of 35-25. Along the way to the district title Neosho also defeated the DODGE CITY COLLEGE CONQUISTADORS, the FORT SCOTT GREYHOUNDS and the KANSAS CITY COLLEGE BLUE DEVILS.
EAST CENTRAL DISTRICT – The WALTERS STATE SENATORS took this district’s championship by way of a dominant 6-0 shutout of the COLUMBIA STATE (TN) CHARGERS. The Senators boast a season record of 37-16. Left hoping for next year from this district were the GEORGIA PERIMETER COLLEGE JAGUARS, the VOLUNTEER STATE PIONEERS, MIDDLE GEORGIA TITANS and the DARTON STATE CAVA Continue Reading »
Posted in College Baseball | Tagged 2013 NJCAA College World Series, Balladeer's Blog, baseball, college baseball, college baseball scores, Edward Wozniak, NJCAA baseball, Sport, sports | Leave a Comment »
May 22, 2013 by balladeer
PART 3- THE WIZARD HODIADATGON. With the Wasp-Men overcome, Hodadeion the god of magic piled all of their naked bodies in a pile and burned them, all the while being observed by a sinister-looking owl. Then he ordered his wooden soldiers to go back to the cabin he shared with his sister Yeyenthwus and brother Otgoe. The demigod further ordered them to fall in a neat pile once there and revert to their stick forms so that they could be used as firewood by his siblings.
When those tasks were completed Hodadeion continued north on his quest, happily noting the vile owl was nowhere in sight. At length he came upon a large tree stump in the middle of the path he was following. The path was well-traveled so it seemed impossible that a tree had grown and eventually died on the path, leaving only this tall, thick stump.
Apprehensively the god of magic approached the stump, only to feel himself bounced back as he Continue Reading »
Posted in Mythology | Tagged Balladeer's Blog, Edward Wozniak, epic myths, God of Magic, Hodadeion, Hodiadatgon, Iroquois, Iroquois mythology, mythology, Otgoe, Saga of Hodadeion, Yeyenthwus | Leave a Comment »
May 21, 2013 by balladeer
AUGUSTANA REGION – The top seeded WEBSTER UNIVERSITY GORLOKS returned to the D3 World Series with a 7-3 victory over the 4 seeds, the CONCORDIA (Chicago) COUGARS, in the regional title game. Along the way the Gorloks also defeated the 6th seeded RIPON COLLEGE RED HAWKS and the 3rd seeded Continue Reading »
Posted in College Baseball | Tagged 2013 D3 College World Series, Balladeer's Blog, baseball, college baseball, college baseball scores, D3 baseball, Edward Wozniak, Sport, sports | Leave a Comment »
May 21, 2013 by balladeer
With the Memorial Day holiday weekend coming up what could be more appropriate than to examine a few of the forgotten conflicts from America’s past? The soldiers who fell in those wars are no less dead just because they served in actions that are neglected in the history books and/or were never formally declared by Congress. (details, details)
And in keeping with my blog’s overall theme I won’t be bringing any of that weak Korean War, World War One or War of 1812 crap. When Balladeer says forgotten I mean forgotten with a capital (or at least italicized) “F”. As forgotten as The Montefuscos and Hizzoner. As forgotten as a Polish memoir or a promise from a presidential candidate.
4. THE FORGOTTEN YEAR OF THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR (1781 – 1782) – My fellow Revolutionary War geeks and I are forever rolling our eyes at documentaries that act like Cornwallis’ surrender at Yorktown marked the end of that conflict. True, it was the last MAJOR battle of the war, but there were 13 more months of open bloodshed and another year after that before the peace treaty was signed.
October 1781 to November 1782 saw General “Mad” Anthony Wayne’s campaign to fully recover Georgia from British Loyalists and Continue Reading »
Posted in Revolutionary War | Tagged American History, Battle of Chillicothe, Ed Wozniak, Edward Wozniak, Forgotten History, Forgotten Wars of the United States, Memorial Day, Mexican War, The Philippine War, Wars of the United States | 2 Comments »
Older Posts »
THE RETURN OF DR X (1939) – Category: Enjoyably campy bad movie elevated by kitsch-value in the casting. 
