THE FIRST TARZAN MOVIE AND MORE: ELMO LINCOLN’S SILENT FILMS

For Balladeer’s Blog’s latest look at a silent movie star I will cover Elmo Lincoln, who is best known as the big screen’s very first Tarzan but also starred in other films outside the Tarzan series.

TARZAN OF THE APES (1918) – Though Elmo had been appearing as an extra or in small supporting roles since 1913, his portrayal of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Tarzan in this movie put him on the map. For nitpickers, Gordon Griffith of silent Tom Sawyer fame played the very young Tarzan when his parents died early in this film, but Elmo Lincoln was the first adult Tarzan performer in movie history.

Surviving prints of Tarzan of the Apes run 61 minutes and cover the basics of the original novel’s opening half in workmanlike if not spectacular fashion. Lord Greystoke and his wife perish after becoming shipwrecked in Africa and their surviving heir is raised by apes.

The boy’s discovery of his late father’s knife among the shipwreck ruins enables him to rise to dominance among the apes by killing off rivals. As he matures, Tarzan becomes a legend in the jungle as he wars on tribes which kill apes plus frees slaves captured by Muslim slavers.

Binns the sailor realizes Tarzan is the long-lost Greystoke heir and an expedition heads to Africa, headed by Professor Porter. The professor’s daughter Jane Porter (Enid Markey) accompanies her father’s expedition and winds up abducted by a villain only to be saved by our King of the Jungle.

Jane uses gentleness to calm down the horny Tarzan when he gets too pushy. Her line “Tarzan is a man, and men do not force the love of women” conveys what we need to know without getting graphic. Charmed by the Ape Man, she eventually canoodles with him willingly.    Continue reading

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MARCH FOURTH NEWS ROUNDUP

Independent Voter Site Balladeer’s Blog is back with another current events roundup.

EVEN BILL CLINTON – IN HIS JEFFREY EPSTEIN DEPOSITION – ADMITS TWICE THAT PRESIDENT TRUMP HAD NO INVOLVEMENT WITH EPSTEIN’S ILLEGAL ACTIVITIES. And if ever a person had reasons to want to lie about it, it’s Bill in this situation.

PRESIDENT TRUMP CALLS OUT IRAN FOR ATTACKING NEUTRAL NATIONS. That silence you hear is pro-terrorist Democrats refusing to do the same.

IRANIANS DO “THE TRUMP DANCE” TO THANK HIM FOR TAKING OUT KHAMENEI.  

IN TEXAS, SETH TOTH SCORES A DOUBLE-DIGIT PRIMARY VICTORY OVER ANTI-TRUMP DAN CRENSHAW.

DEMOCRAT JASMINE CROCKETT HEAVILY LOSES TEXAS SENATE PRIMARY. And she doesn’t even have her old House seat to go back to. She’s out when the next session begins. More HERE.

CBS REPORTER IN AUSTIN COURAGEOUSLY IGNORES ORDERS NOT TO COVER THE TRUTH ABOUT IRANIAN-AMERICANS THANKING TRUMP FOR HIS IRAN STRIKES

SUPREME COURT HANDS DEMOCRATS A DEFEAT ON REDISTRICTING BATTLE IN NEW YORK.

PRIVILEGED WHITE ONE PERCENTER DEMOCRAT NANCY PELOSI TAUNTED WITH HER OWN REMARKS WHEN SHE STATED OBAMA DID NOT NEED CONGRESSIONAL APPROVAL TO TAKE DOWN MOAMAR QADAFFI IN LIBYA. More HERE. And remember Hillary’s remark “We came, we saw, he died.”

MELANIA TRUMP, WHO SPEAKS MORE LANGUAGES THAN BOTH OBAMAS AND BOTH BIDENS COMBINED, MAKES HISTORY AS THE FIRST U.S. FIRST LADY TO CHAIR A U.N. SECURITY COUNCIL MEETING. A terrific positive role model for women!

VIRGINIA’S DEMOCRAT GOVERNOR SPANBERGER REFUSES TO COOPERATE WITH ICE REGARDING THE KILLER OF STEPHANIE MINTER. And never forget Spanberger’s career with the criminals at the CIA before running for public office.

PRESIDENT TRUMP AND NETANYAHU PRAISED AS THE MODERN DAY ROOSEVELT AND CHURCHILL. Continue reading

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BALLADEER’S BLOG: COLLEGE BASKETBALL POSTEASON ACTION CONTINUES

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HBCU CONFERENCE: CHAMPIONSHIP GAME – The title tilt in this storied conference pitted the 3 seeds – the SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY AT NEW ORLEANS KNIGHTS – against the top seeded TOUGALOO COLLEGE BULLDOGS. The Knights were up 35-30 at Halftime but Tougaloo forced Overtime with a 72-72 tie. In the extra session SUNO won out 84-81. Dorian Booker led the victors with his 26 points. 

AMERICAN MIDWEST CONFERENCE: CHAMPIONSHIP GAME – Fighting it out for the conference crown were the top seeded COLUMBIA (MO) COUGARS and the 3 seeds – the WILLIAMS BAPTIST UNIVERSITY EAGLES. The Cougars had Williams Baptist on the run, leading them 42-29 at the midpoint before putting them away by a final tally of 83-71. Seventeen points from Max Rieger led the way for Columbia College.    Continue reading

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FORGOTTEN TELEVISION: BEHIND CLOSED DOORS (1958-1959)

BEHIND CLOSED DOORS (1958-1959) – This Cold War spy series starred and was narrated by Bruce Gordon, who portrayed U.S. Navy Commander Matson (no first name given). Matson would take an active role in some episodes and would narrate from a supporting role in others.

The half-hour series ran for 26 episodes and was based on the espionage files of Rear Admiral Ellis M. Zacharias, who had served in World War One and World War Two. Zacharias offered closing commentary in 17 of the episodes.

Behind Closed Doors was a docu-drama and is generally pretty entertaining. The half-hour running time and the inventive plots prevent any potential boredom from setting in.

THE EPISODES:

THE CAPE CANAVERAL STORY – Commander Matson and U.S. Naval Intelligence deal with a Soviet submarine sent to monitor American rocket tests at Cape Canaveral as well as with a Russian spy who tries forcing a charter boat captain in the area to take him to a spot where he can observe launches. Virginia “Mrs. Olson” Christine also stars.

FLIGHT TO FREEDOM – Dr. Brauer (Francis Lederer), a German rocket scientist now working for the Soviet guided missile program, is motivated to try defecting to the U.S. when his longtime colleague Dr. Von Elm is lobotomized by the communists for dissent. Television debut of Arlene Martel.  Continue reading

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NEIL SEDAKA R.I.P. – PLAYGIRL KILLER (1967)

PLAYGIRL KILLER (1967) – Oh, Canada! With the passing of Neil Sedaka I no longer had an excuse to put off reviewing this Canadian-made “horror” film which was Sedaka’s first, last and only thespian effort.

Though Playgirl Killer, also released as Decoy for Terror with unrelated footage edited in, is close to So-Bad-It’s-Good territory Neil Sedaka doesn’t have a very big role in the film. If he’s your only reason for checking out this movie you can quit right after Neil’s character rides off in a limo. He does get to sing, though!

Taking things from the top, William Kerwin from blood-soaked Herschell Gordon Lewis flicks like Two Thousand Maniacs is our star. He plays serial killer Bill wearing facial hair that makes him resemble William Campbell as a Klingon on the original Star Trek series.

We see Bill in the Canadian wilderness rowing a beautiful young lady in a boat while the French song Montage is heard, performed by female singer Andree Champagne. Playgirl Killer was filmed in and around Quebec, hence the French language song and some French signs here and there.   

Bill and his lovely lady pull up at a rock overlooking the lake and he starts trying to sketch her since he’s an artist. She’s not in the mood to sit still, though, and starts laughing at how bizarrely angry Bill gets about it.

Pssst! Bill! There are people called artist’s models who can be paid to sit still and let you paint them, buddy. Rather than pursue that common-sense solution, Bill grabs a handy harpoon gun (What the hell kind of fishing gets DONE at this lake?) and shoots her to death with it. Continue reading

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NEWS ROUNDUP: MARCH SECOND

Here’s another current events roundup from Independent Voter Site Balladeer’s Blog.

IRANIANS AROUND THE WORLD CELEBRATING THE DEATH OF GENOCIDAL MANIAC KHAMENAI. And yes, anti-Trump fascists, Khamenai was an actual genocidal maniac.

DEMOCRATS CALLED OUT FOR NOT CARING ABOUT WHAT THE IRANIAN PEOPLE SUFFERED UNDER KHAMENAI AND HIS ALLIES.

DEMOCRAT MEDIA OUTLET THE NEW YORK TIMES PRAISES KHAMENAI IN THEIR OBITUARY FOR HIM. No surprise.

MORE IRANIANS AROUND THE GLOBE CELEBRATING KHAMENEI’S DEATH.

DEMOCRATS STILL MIRED IN THEIR ANTI-DONALD TRUMP HYSTERIA.

ARTICLE PRAISING PRESIDENT TRUMP AND BASHING THE REPULSIVE GEORGE W. BUSH.

PINSKER ON THE U.S.-ISRAELI STRIKES ON KHAMENEI’S REGIME.

SAUDI ARABIA, QATAR AND BAHRAIN CONDEMN IRAN.

DEMOCRAT CONGRESSMAN DON DAVIS JOINS SENATOR JOHN FETTERMAN IN SUPPORTING PRESIDENT TRUMP’S STRIKES ON IRAN.

COURAGEOUS DEMOCRAT SENATOR JOHN FETTERMAN CALLS CRITICS OF THE STRIKES ON IRAN “BIZARRE.” More HERE. I hope Fetterman stays safe given what violent fascists 2026 Democrats are.

IRANIAN-AMERICAN WOMAN MOJ MADHARA SHAMES DEMOCRATS FOR LETTING THEIR HATRED OF TRUMP BLIND THEM TO KHAMENEI’S ATROCITIES. More HERE. Among her remarks “I am a Democrat. I’ve been a huge Democrat, and I am incredibly disappointed with my party”. She also stated her fellow Democrats need to “WAKE UP” and get past their feelings about President Trump.

IRAN STRIKES PREVENTED A MASSACRE BY KHAMENEI’S REGIME.

SBA’S KELLY LOEFFLER PRAISES PRESIDENT TRUMP’S TAX CUTS FOR WORKING FAMILIES SAVING THEM FOUR TO SIX TRILLION DOLLARS. The greatest president for the working class and the poor during my lifetime.

BONO’S VERY OWN EPSTEIN SCANDAL

TRUMP EFFECT: MAKARY POINTS OUT THE U.S NOW HAS THE LOWEST PRICES IN THE DEVELOPED WORLD FOR MANY PRESCRIPTION DRUGS. Continue reading

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FLASHBACK: A PREVIOUS TIME THAT REPULSIVE DEMOCRATS BASHED TRUMP OVER THE KILLING OF AN IRANIAN TERRORIST LEADER – SOLEIMANI

As usual, Democrat bacteria are so blinded by their hatred of President Donald Trump that they are bashing him for taking beneficial action against Iran. Here are three items from when they did the same thing in JANUARY OF 2020.

        Even many Mid-East experts who don’t like Trump blasted Democrat vermin for their phony and uninformed outrage. Just as these tiresome anti-Trump loons didn’t deserve to be taken seriously back THEN they don’t deserve to be taken seriously NOW.

ONE: FROM JANUARY SIXTH, 2020 – “AMERICA’S DEMOCRATS MOURN QASSEM SOLEIMANI”  – 

Trump soleimani and pelosiHonorary Democrat Qassem Soleimani was eulogized by America’s increasingly deranged Democrats over these past few days. We need Third Parties. Join so many of us former members of that insipid political party and #WALKAWAY from the fascist organization. 

#WalkAwaySome of that animal Soleimani’s atrocities which have endeared him to America’s Democrats: assassinations, bombings, targeting civilians and other war crimes like EFPs, plus crushing the student demonstrations in Iran. (America’s Democrats feel only students who agree with them have the right to hold demonstrations.) 

Soleimani killingHey, Democrats, any time you want to consider rejoining the human race and recovering your sanity, bear in mind that you do not have to canonize garbage like Soleimani purely out of spite.  And if you’re NOT just applauding the man out of sheer spite over your impotent hatred of President Trump then you need professional help.

TWO: FROM JANUARY NINTH, 2020 – “MAAJID NAWAZ WITH TEN TIPS ON SOLEIMANI ‘EXPERTS’ –

Maajid NawazAmerica’s Democrats took time out from telling us that U.S. troops “are the REAL terrorists” to pretend they care about what may happen to American troops in the field after the slaying of atrocity-master Qassem Soleimani. Islamic expert Maajid Nawaz (above) weighed in on social media and elsewhere with his 10 tips on what to look for in anti-western demagogues “who know nothing about the Middle East but will now talk as if they do:

“1) before yesterday they’d never heard of & still struggle to remember what his first name was   

2) they’ll proactively and without invitation, condemn “America in the region” without saying anything at all about “Iran in the region”, thinking this wins them brownie points from brown people from the region. It doesn’t.

3) at some stage, they’ll either accidentally tweet out or otherwise approve of official Iranian state propaganda & voices sent by the theocratic regime, without realising, it because they have absolutely *no idea* how to recognise Iranian proxy propaganda voices (NOTE FROM BALLADEER: Like the way the Democrats at the New York Times and various cable networks have accepted damning claims at face value.)

4) their narcissistic obsession with hating Trump (even at the expense of hundreds of thousands of dead Arab civilians, and the medieval theocratic oppression of millions of Iranians) will be what really guides their “analysis” not what’s objectively happening on the ground

5) just as they’ll struggle to recall ’s first name, they think watching @azizansari on Netflix (no offence my bro 👍🏽) qualifies as “knowing a Muslim voice” in order to then pronounce their emotionally charged “hot takes” on Middle East politics in “defence of Muslims”

6) they will be unable to recognise or even name Iran’s terrorist militias everywhere in the world (responsible for war crimes that were often on par with or worse, than ISIS in Syria & elsewhere) and all the wars Iran has interfered in

7) they will be unable to tell you which is Soleimanis largest & most effective terror group, who leads it and which country it practically runs entire regions in.

8) they’ve never heard the word “Hashd” and cannot tell you what it means

9) nor could they name the entire Arab countries & populations who absolutely despised & hated Soleimani as a genocidal maniac & who will be dancing in the streets with joy right now

10) they will read the above thread and turn very binary on me, by accusing me of being pro-Trump or pro-Saudi rather than understanding the mixed picture I’m painting, without ever having had a relationship with anything in the Middle East, beyond twitter.” 

To follow Maajid on Twitter click HERE

THREE: FROM JANUARY FOURTEENTH, 2020 – “HUFFINGTON POST’S YASHAR ALI: DEMOCRATS ARE SIDING WITH IRAN’S MULLAHS AGAINST FREEDOM-FIGHTING IRANIANS OUT OF SPITE” – 

Yashar AliThis story is about the excellent work by Yashar Ali of the Huffington Post about how irrational the Democrats are for siding against Iranian protestors just because of their (Democrats’) crazed animosity toward President Donald Trump. (Especially regarding THE PLANE THAT IRAN SHOT DOWN.)

The link is below but first some excerpts:

Yashar explained that “all the family/friends I spoke to who live in different parts of Iran) are furious that they were lied to for three days about the case of the plane crash. The Iranian government lied left and right about where the plan was headed” and what “brought down the plane.”

“The Iranian government completely mishandled the plane crash, destroying evidence in the process. Iranians are in the street calling for death to the Supreme Leader (something that could get them executed). Iranians are in the street calling for prosecutions, saying Soleimani is a murderer. Telling leadership of the Iranian government to resign and saying Trump isn’t the problem, that the Iranian government is.”

“The idea that [Trump is] to blame for a decision the IRGC made” to shoot down the passenger airliner, he writes, “is just absurd. And while Iranians aren’t a monolith and there are 80 million people in Iran, you don’t see Iranians blaming President Trump for the crash (in which Iranian citizens were killed). They’re blaming the IRGC and the Supreme Leader for a series of horrific mistakes.”

In other words, the Iranian protesters aren’t NeverTrump. They’re NeverKhamenei.

#WalkAway“I’ve gone through some of the most active and prominent liberal Twitter accounts and none of them mentioned the Iran protests today. These same people were actively tweeting about wanting to avoid war and attacking Trump for his decision. What happened?” Yashar wondered.

Yashar continued “Iranians are being used by certain people on the left (I didn’t say all) as a tool to attack President Trump. But these same people don’t seem to care to support their right to protest?” And so, he continues, “It seems to me the protests were inconvenient for some of these folks today. They were placing the blame on the Iranian leadership who lied repeatedly about what happened. They weren’t blaming President Trump… so it wasn’t worth it to bring attention to or support them?” Continue reading

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COLLEGE BASKETBALL POSTSEASON CONTINUES AT BALLADEER’S BLOG

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APPALACHIAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE: CHAMPIONSHIP GAME – The last two teams standing in this conference tournament were the 3 seeds – the JOHNSON UNIVERSITY ROYAL CRUSADERS – and the top seeded UNIVERSITY OF PIKEVILLE BEARS. By Halftime the Royal Crusaders had UPike worried with their 38-30 advantage. From there the Bears rallied but fell just short as Johnson University triumphed 76-75 led by Mason Lockhart and his Double Double of THIRTY-SEVEN POINTS and 12 rebounds.

CALIFORNIA PACIFIC CONFERENCE: ROUND ONE, GAME ONE – The 3rd seeded CAL MARITIME ACADEMY KEELHAULERS took the court against the 6th seeded PACIFIC UNION COLLEGE PIONEERS. This was a tale of two Halves as the Pioneers dominated at first, leading 51-41 at the midpoint. After the break, the Keelhaulers owned the 2nd Half, winning out 87-78. Lawrence Long led Cal Maritime with a Double Double of 25 points and 11 rebounds.  Continue reading

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LLAMA WESTERNS: SPAGHETTI WESTERNS ABOUT INCAN TREASURE

Lost Treasure of the IncasBalladeer’s Blog takes a look at some neglected westerns. And when it comes to neglected it’s tough to top the tiny sub-genre of what is already a sub-genre: Spaghetti Westerns. I’m talking about Llama Westerns, the microscopic fraction of Italo-Westerns that deals with gunslingers in Peru shooting it out over Inca treasure instead of the usual gold or revenge.  

If Indiana Jones used a gun exclusively and thrived on riddling his adversaries with bullets in slow motion while blood squibs burst open THAT would resemble these Llama Westerns.

LOST TREASURE OF THE INCAS (1964) – Alan Steel, best known for Peplums like the Hercules or Maciste movies, plays an often-shirtless gambler/ gunfighter called Samson in this film.

He and his gunslinging pal Alan Fox (Toni Sailer) nip a frame-up job in the bud, then get caught up in a violence-filled race for the untouched treasure of a lost Incan city in the Palladi Mountains of Peru.   Continue reading

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STEVE DITKO’S MR. A: COMIC BOOK FANS SHRUGGED

This weekend’s escapist and light-hearted superhero post from Balladeer’s Blog looks at Spider-Man co-creator Steve Ditko’s iconic Mr. A, warts and all.

MR. A

Secret Identity: Rex Graine, reporter for the Daily Crusader newspaper.

First Appearance: Witzend #3 (1967)

Origin: Rex Graine wanted to fight crime without endangering his friends and loved ones. He assumed the white-costumed identity Mr. A and took on the forces of evil.

Powers: Mr. A was in peak human condition and excelled at unarmed combat. He wore a white metal facial mask/ helmet for protection and anonymity. He also wore metal gloves and boots to make his punches and kicks more potent. I assumed he wore articulated body armor on his torso too, for some protection against bullets.

        This character was an expert investigator and used calling cards with no writing – just black on one half and white on the other to represent his black & white moral attitudes. I’d have had those calling cards be made of metal, too, with sharp edges so they could be thrown like Moon Knight’s crescent moon blades.

Comment: Mr. A was a more “pure” version of the Question, Steve Ditko’s similar character also created in 1967 when he worked for Charlton Comics. Ditko owned Mr. A, whose nom de guerre came from the Objectivist principle “A is A”. He was an uncompromising vigilante the like of which superhero comic books had rarely seen in 1967. In the decades to come such figures became very numerous in comics. Continue reading

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