Regular readers of Balladeer’s Blog may remember that I’m a silent movie geek, and have reviewed some of them in the past. Today, I decided to post this beautiful silent era movie poster for Douglas Fairbanks’ forerunner of modern-day special effects blockbusters – his 1924 version of The Thief of Bagdad.
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THE THIEF OF BAGDAD (1924) MOVIE POSTER
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END OF AN EPOCH (1901) – ANCIENT SCIENCE FICTION
THE END OF AN EPOCH (1901) – Written by A. Lincoln Green, this novel about a world-threatening disease presented the tale of brilliant young Adam Godwin, a recent Oxford graduate who pursues his interest in microbiology. During the course of his research into antitoxins, Adam becomes aware of the controversial Dr. Azrael Falk.
Falk is in India, experimenting on human test subjects with his hybrids of assorted bacteria and other microorganisms. Godwin becomes so fascinated with Dr. Falk’s heinous yet productive work that it strains his relationship with his fiancee Evelyn Morpeth, daughter of the wealthy Sir John Morpeth.
Ultimately, Adam starts neglecting Evelyn to the point that she lays down an ultimatum: Godwin must choose between her and his research. Adam chooses his research, so the engagement is ended, and the willful Evelyn joins her father’s expedition to the North Pole.
Dr. Falk relocates to London and hires Adam Godwin as his assistant. Adam’s admiration for the man’s scientific genius increases even as his personal dislike for Falk’s selfish nature threatens to overwhelm that admiration. When Azrael sufficiently trusts Adam, he reveals to him that he has developed a combination of dengue, tetanus, influenza, sleeping sickness, bubonic plague and meningitis. Continue reading
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LOVE OF RAIN (2022) BY PRITILATA NANDI
LOVE OF RAIN (2022) – This excellent – and lightning-quick – collection of stories about life, love, and passion was written by Pritilata Nandi. She is from India, and has made these tales very accessible by avoiding complicated idiomatic expressions and by omitting from the stories all but the necessary elements of Indian history and culture.
In this 70-page volume, Pritilata has presented assorted love stories that range from romantic love onward, reminding me once again that a shortcoming of the English language is the way we have just the one general word “love” and need modifiers to capture exactly what kind of affection is meant.
To stay focused on Love of Rain, available for purchase HERE, Ms. Nandi’s stories are evocative and left even a fairly cynical man like me moved and – I’ll be honest – near tears at some of the endings. The emotional punch delivered in the narratives was potent enough that my method of reading this fascinating work was one part at a time, letting myself soak in each tale individually. Continue reading
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COLLEGE BASKETBALL DISTRICT CHAMPIONSHIP GAME RESULTS
March Madness continues here at Balladeer’s Blog with a look at the District champs in the NJCAA Division Three.
NORTH ATLANTIC DISTRICT – The BROOKDALE COLLEGE JERSEY BLUES battled the NORTHAMPTON COLLEGE SPARTANS for this District title. By Halftime the underdog Jersey Blues were on top 46-38, and from there they maintained separation from the Spartans for a 90-84 victory. Darnell Askew led Brookdale College with a Double Double of 26 points and 14 rebounds. * THE JERSEY BLUES ARE NORTH ATLANTIC DISTRICT CHAMPIONS *
MIDATLANTIC DISTRICT – The last two teams standing in this District were the SANDHILLS COLLEGE FLYERS and the BUTLER COUNTY COLLEGE PIONEERS. The Flyers held a comfortable 53-36 advantage at Halftime. After the break, Sandhills kept up the pressure, ultimately defeating the Pioneers by a Century Club score of 114-91. Joey McMullin’s 22 points led the victors, & his teammate Jaquan Thurman logged a Double Double of 16 points and 10 rebounds. * THE FLYERS ARE MIDATLANTIC DISTRICT CHAMPIONS * Continue reading
Filed under College Basketball
DELTA FORCE COMMANDO (1987) AND TEN ZAN: THE ULTIMATE MISSION (1988)
DELTA FORCE COMMANDO (1987) – Balladeer’s Blog’s salute to cult icon Mark Gregory continues, with two movies that proved he could be just as dynamic as the villain as he was playing the hero, like in his other action flicks. Previously, I’ve reviewed Mark’s two movies in which he played the post-apocalypse/ dystopian biker Trash in 1990: The Bronx Warriors and Escape from the Bronx, plus his Thunder Warrior trilogy of Rambo knockoffs, and even his quasi-peplum Adam and Eve vs the Cannibals in which, as Adam, he fought dinosaurs, cavemen and green-skinned cannibals.
Because Italian filmmakers were always Enzo-on-the-spot with cash-in imitations of mainstream movie hits, it was inevitable that they would produce flicks coat-tailing on the popularity of Delta Force. Mark Gregory’s screen presence in Delta Force Commando reminded me of what a shame it is that he walked away from his acting career in 1989, just when he was at the peak of his game and his earnings. If only he’d signed up with Cannon films then.
I’ve long felt that if Mark had held on into the 90s, he might have turned up as either heroes or villains in movies made by Quentin Tarantino or Robert Rodriguez, and, in the 21st Century, as a player in one of the Expendables movies. Again, as either a good guy or a bad guy.
Hell, in Delta Force Commando, Mr. Gregory spices up the schlock as the main villain, even though his character is never even given a name! Hey, that’s Italian exploitation cinema for ya!
Villain X, as I’ll call Mark’s character (at right), has a much shorter haircut than usual and dresses like a Miami Vice or Scarface ’83 gangster in his first several scenes.
Villain X, who has scarring on the lower left side of his face, speaking of the Pacino movie, leads a covert 
team of communist commandos from Nicaragua in a daring raid on a military base in Puerto Rico. Villain X and his team succeed in making off with a nuclear bomb despite a few firefights, one of which kills the pregnant wife of Delta Force member Lieutenant Tony Turner (Brett Baxter Clark). Continue reading
Filed under Bad and weird movies
2023 COLLEGE BASKETBALL POSTSEASON CONTINUES
NAIA
FRONTIER CONFERENCE: CHAMPIONSHIP GAME – The MONTANA TECH OREDIGGERS and the PROVIDENCE UNIVERSITY ARGONAUTS clashed in this conference title game. Points flew like shrapnel as the Orediggers led 62-55 at Halftime, then defeated the Argonauts by a Century Club final score of 103-95. Asa Williams notched 23 points to lead Montana Tech. * THE OREDIGGERS ARE FRONTIER CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS *
GREAT PLAINS ATHLETIC CONFERENCE: CHAMPIONSHIP GAME – In this title tilt the DORDT UNIVERSITY DEFENDERS faced the UNIVERSITY OF JAMESTOWN JIMMIES. At the Half, the score was knotted up at 42-42, and from there the underdog Defenders managed some separation from the Jimmies for an 86-81 victory. Jacob Vis led Dordt University with 21 points. * THE DEFENDERS ARE GPAC CHAMPIONS * Continue reading
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CONCLUSION: ADAM WARLOCK VS THE MAGUS
This weekend’s escapist superhero blog post will present the final 4 parts of the 1970s clash between Adam Warlock, who is coming up in the next Guardians of the Galaxy movie, and the Magus, evil head of a thousand-planet empire. For the first 3 parts, click HERE.
PART FOUR
Strange Tales #181 (August 1975)
Title: 1,000 CLOWNS
NOTE: The writer dedicated this issue to the brilliant Steve Ditko, “Who gave us all a different reality” and it’s drawn largely in the style of Ditko’s early Doctor Strange stories.
Get ready for “Adam Warlock Meets The Prisoner.” The title 1,000 Clowns is obviously a reference to the Herb Gardner play (and later movie) A Thousand Clowns. Gardner’s play dealt with a happy non-conformist forced to try to fit in with “normal”, conventional society for family reasons.
The title and the theme of nonconformity may come from Gardner’s play but this installment of The Magus almost seems as if it’s an episode of the 1967 Patrick McGoohan series The Prisoner (previously examined here at Balladeer’s Blog). Adam’s resistance to conditioning by the Universal Church of Truth puts one in mind of the Prisoner’s resistance to the Villagekeepers. The surreal, off-kilter presentation is also reminiscent of that program.
Synopsis: Adam Warlock has come to after his lapse into unconsciousness caused by the trauma of his Soul Gem’s theft of Kray-Tor’s soul at the end of last issue. He has awakened into a bizarre alternate reality with walkways and small islands of matter floating in an endless sky. Bizarre symbols and designs ornament the skyscape like imagery from an acid trip. Continue reading
Filed under Superheroes
1990: THE BRONX WARRIORS AND ESCAPE FROM THE BRONX
1990: THE BRONX WARRIORS (1982) – Spaghetti-pocalypse movies were to the 1980s what Spaghetti Westerns were to the 60s and 70s. Italian-made ripoffs of post-apocalypse and/or dystopian flicks like The Road Warrior and Escape From New York were everywhere back then.
Today, Balladeer’s Blog takes a look at two such movies that starred cult icon Mark Gregory, real name Marco De Gregorio. Years ago, I covered Mark as Adam in Adam and Eve vs the Cannibals. Last week I reviewed his Thunder Warrior trilogy of Rambo imitations, this week it’s the pair of films in which Mark played a dystopian man of action called … Trash.
Talk about making your hero’s name a joke right off the bat! He SHOULD have been called something like Vandal, which has much more panache and was more befitting of a character following in the footsteps of Mad Max and Snake Plissken.
The story is set eight years in the future from its 1982 release and presented a crime-ridden New York City run by plutocratic corporations who have every politician in their pocket. So, just think of New York as it is right now.
Crime in the Bronx has become so out of control that the borough has been declared a No Man’s Land in which gangs and other criminals rule the streets and any law-abiding citizens are on their own. Most of the gangs have silly theme costumes like the gangs in The Warriors, so there’s some of that movie’s flavor in this, too. Continue reading
Filed under Bad and weird movies
COOL-NAMED SPORTS TEAM: FLORIDA STATE COLLEGE AT JACKSONVILLE
College: FLORIDA STATE COLLEGE AT JACKSONVILLE
Team Name: BLUE WAVE
Location: Jacksonville, FL Continue reading
Filed under Cool names and cool logos
RAFAEL SABATINI NOVELS
Rafael Sabatini (1875-1950) was an incredibly prolific writer of novels, short stories and nonfiction works. Even people who think they’ve never heard of him may well be familiar with the movie versions of some of his writings: Captain Blood, Scaramouche, The Sea Hawk and The Black Swan.
THE SEA HAWK (1915) – In the late 16th Century, English gentleman Sir Oliver Tressilian is betrayed into galley slavery by his jealous half-brother Lionel. After a time, the galley on which Oliver has been condemned to serve as an oarsman is raided by Barbary Corsairs in the Mediterranean Sea.
Our main character and other survivors of the pirate attack are given the usual “convert or die” ultimatum by their Muslim captors, and the embittered Sir Oliver is content to embrace Islam and serve as a corsair himself. His leadership abilities and seafaring savvy let him rise to command of his own pirate ship and he becomes infamous as Sakr-el-Bahr, the Hawk of the Sea. Continue reading
Filed under opinion, Pulp Heroes
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