Tag Archives: blogging

BALLADEER’S BLOG COLLEGE BASKETBALL: FEB SIXTEENTH

NJCAA DIVISION THREE

CENTURY CLUB – Teams scoring 100 or more points in Regulation: The BRISTOL COLLEGE BAYHAWKS shredded the visiting QUINSIGAMOND COLLEGE WYVERNS 115-62   ###   The OWENS COLLEGE EXPRESS won 100-74 at the LORAIN COUNTY COLLEGE COMMODORES   ###   And the NORTHERN ESSEX COLLEGE KNIGHTS defeated the UCONN AT AVERY POINT POINTERS 109-90.

ONE-POINT WONDER – The JEFFERSON COLLEGE CANNONEERS welcomed the FINGER LAKES COLLEGE LAKERS. A hard-fought opening Half ended with the Cannoneers up 35-31. From there the contest grew even tighter but Jefferson College held on for an 82-81 win. Owen Coall’s 20 points led the way, while fellow Cannoneer Brian Rivera logged a Double Double of 17 points and 11 rebounds. Continue reading

6 Comments

Filed under College Basketball

VICE PRESIDENTS: A PRESIDENTS DAY WEEKEND LOOK AT HISTORY’S SECOND BANANAS

John Adams

John Adams

Since it’s Presidents Day Weekend here’s a seasonal post.

John Adams called the Vice Presidency “the most insignificant office that ever the invention of man contrived.” A very old joke went “Once there were two brothers. One ran away to sea and the other became Vice President. Neither was ever heard from again.”

In George S Kaufman’s and Morrie Ryskind’s classic stage work Of Thee I Sing one of the characters turns down an offer to be Vice President because he’s ashamed to have his mother know. He’s persuaded to accept the office when it’s pointed out that if he doesn’t tell her about it she’ll never find out.

The office has featured eminently forgettable figures as well as comic relief buffoons like Dan “The Global Village Idiot” Quayle and Al “Koo Koo for Cocoa Puffs” Gore. In the light-hearted style of Balladeer’s Blog’s look at U.S. Presidents here’s a look at the folks who got to hang around and see if the country’s Chief Executive wound up six feet under. I’m omitting VP’s who went on to actually become President, so no John Adams or Thomas Jefferson, etc. 

aaron-burrAARON BURR

Served Under: Jefferson 

Noted for: Shooting dead more Treasury Secretaries and hatching more plots to start his own country than any other Vice President. (So far, anyway.)

Best Burr Quote: “I’m still searching for the real killers of Alexander Hamilton.” 

GEORGE CLINTON

Served Under: Jefferson and Madison

Noted for: P-Funk and Funkadelic Leading American Rebel forces against the British troops of his loyalist cousin Sir Henry Clinton during the Revolutionary War.

Best Clinton Quote: “Do fries go with that shake?” Continue reading

16 Comments

Filed under humor, Independent Voters, LIBERALS AND CONSERVATIVES, Neglected History, opinion

GHOST OF FLANDERS: FORGOTTEN SUPERHERO

How ya diddly-doin’? Okay, not THAT Flanders, but Flanders as in a World War One reference. This weekend’s escapist, light-hearted superhero post from Balladeer’s Blog looks at a forgotten character from Quality Comics.

GHOST OF FLANDERS

Secret Identity: Rip Graves

First Appearance: Hit Comics #18 (December 1941)

Origin: I doubt that even the original writers could reconcile all the contradictory elements of this hero’s origin story while they were writing it! Okay, it’s nowhere near as ridiculous as Quality’s origin tale for Black Condor but nothing ever could be.

Here goes. Readers are told that Rip Graves was 15 years old in 1918 but lied about his age to enlist in the U.S. Army during World War One. He was mistakenly believed to be killed in the Second Battle of the Marne, which is roughly 200 miles away from Flanders in Belgium.

In reality the young man was in a Prisoner of War camp until being released after the war ended on November 11th, 1918. 

By the time that Graves – who has been doing God knows what for 14 years – shows up back in America in 1932, Arlington Cemetery’s Tomb of the Unknown Soldier has been freshly dedicated. Continue reading

6 Comments

Filed under Superheroes

CASABLANCA (1942) – VALENTINE’S DAY MOVIE REVIEW

CasablancaCASABLANCA (1942) – Happy Valentine’s Day! A few readers of Balladeer’s Blog have asked me for my opinion on this classic movie so I figured Valentine’s Day was the perfect opportunity.

People are often surprised when I like movies that so many other people rate highly. I like plenty of the old, old classics, it’s just that I prefer to blog about much more offbeat and obscure items. My favorite film of all time is Citizen Kane. Really. But I’ve never reviewed it here because I wasn’t in the mood to write the 100 millionth glowing review of that particular movie.

masc chair and bottleGetting back to Casablanca, it’s possibly the greatest “bittersweet ending” romantic flick ever made. I find that it appeals to almost everyone. If you’re young and naïve it can make you ache at the thought of persevering despite your broken heart. If you’re older and cynical it makes you nostalgic for a time when you actually thought a broken heart was the worst thing that could happen to you. Continue reading

10 Comments

Filed under opinion

TEXAS TWENTY-SEVEN FILM VAULT: FORTIETH ANNIVERSARY YEAR

1a randy and richard

Randy (right) and Richard way down on Level 31 hosting The Texas 27 Film Vault

Balladeer’s Blog’s fondness for the old Movie Host Shows of long ago has been well established. Sunday was the Fortieth Anniversary of the very first episode of The Texas 27 Film Vault from Saturday, February 9th of 1985. Before Joel and Mike there was Randy and Richard, as I often mention. 

My psychotically obsessive research on the show has yielded a lot of info over the years but I have worn out every source I could find.

Even the show’s co-host and co-creator Randy Clower has been bled dry of information on the show by me. Over the years other fans of the show – and a special shout-out goes to “the Cap’n” – have provided info here and there that often led me to concrete source material.

Anyway, here are some movies that we all have general, varied reasons to believe were shown on The Texas 27 Film Vault but I need original broadcast dates, info on comedy sketches or movie ticket give-aways, etc. Episodes aired for 2 and a half hours Saturday nights from 10:30pm to 1:00am in Texas and Oklahoma.

Fiend without a faceFIEND WITH-OUT A FACE (1958)

The Film: “Thought Monsters” leech into atomic energy, then extract human brains and spinal columns to use as their corporeal forms. This is a Bad Movie Classic remembered largely because of the scenes where the flying brains, sporting antennae, attack their prey, with their spinal cord “tails” streaming along behind them.     

Serial Episode: No idea, for now.

Reason for believing it was shown: Some of the Flying Brain Creatures are on the 1987 Texas 27 Film Vault poster. Continue reading

10 Comments

Filed under Bad and weird movies, Movie Hosts

FORGOTTEN TELEVISION: PROFILES IN COURAGE (1964-1965)

PROFILES IN COURAGE (1964-1965) – This television series took its name from the late President John F. Kennedy’s non-fiction book of that title. Some of the episodes dramatized specific sections of JFK’s book while others depicted what the producers felt were similar instances of political figures facing tough choices.

Those choices were between following their conscience or following what was best for their political career at the time.    

John F. Kennedy’s book – like many (probably all) such works by sitting politicians – was supposedly ghost-written and dealt purely with senators, the office Kennedy held when putting the book together.

The television version of Profiles in Courage ran for 26 episodes, each of which filled a 1-hour time slot with commercials. 

NOTEWORTHY EPISODES:

OSCAR W. UNDERWOOD (Nov 8th, 1964) – Senator Underwood was a top contender for the Democrat presidential nomination in 1924. However, he obeyed his conscience by speaking out against the Ku Klux Klan, one of the Democrat Party’s most powerful forces.

His courageous stand cost him the presidential nomination and then his senate seat. Sidney Blackmer played Oscar Underwood and Victor Jory played Charles Carlin. 

MARY S. MCDOWELL (Nov 15th, 1964) – Mary McDowell was a New York teacher during World War One. She refused to support the war effort via War Bonds rallies or sign a loyalty oath due to her religious principles as a Quaker.

McDowell lost her job and was publicly vilified, with the New York Times going so far as to write that her case “proved that Quakers and other pacifists ought not to be allowed to teach children”. Rosemary Harris starred as Mary McDowell and Albert Salmi played Mr. Schneider.  Continue reading

10 Comments

Filed under Forgotten Television, Neglected History

ASTREA: THE STRONGWOMAN OF ITALIAN SILENT FILMS

ASTREA – One of the most enigmatic figures from the Silent Film Era. No precise birth or death dates are known. Her surname was supposedly Barbieri but not even that is certain.

Astrea’s background is equally murky with some sources claiming she was a circus strongwoman before becoming an actress, but other sources claiming she was a Countess from Venice. In one movie she was credited as “Principessa Astrea.”

What IS known is that from 1919 to 1922 this remarkable lady starred as a butt-kicking heroine of incredible strength. Astrea was called “the female Maciste” in reference to the strongman character in the Italian silent movie Cabiria (1914). I call her “the Gina Carano of the Silent Era.”

Her films: 

JUSTITIA (1919) – Astrea’s most well-known movie. She plays a prim, ladylike noblewoman who becomes a fiery, two-fisted champion of justice when need be.

Astrea totals a half-dozen villains in this 47-minute film, in addition to the Big Bad, Baron Max, who tries to defraud a pair of innocent lovebirds of their inheritance. Ferdinand “Polidor” Guillaume directed and played Birillo, our heroine’s comic relief sidekick.

The Bioscope praised the stunt work and Astrea’s dynamic performance, calling her “a female knight roaming the world to set wrong situations right with the force of her muscles.” Continue reading

8 Comments

Filed under Neglected History

ANCIENT SCIENCE FICTION: ELEKTROPOLIS (1928)

ELEKTROPOLIS (1928) – By Otfrid von Hanstein. Readers are introduced to Fritz, a young German engineer who has been having trouble finding a job. On what turns out to be a lucky Friday the Thirteenth for him, he gets a job offer from a mysterious Mr. Schmidt.

The pay is too good to turn down, but Fritz is sworn to secrecy and must abide by certain other peculiar terms. The engineer loves the money and is increasingly intrigued by the mysterious circumstances.

Fritz does as instructed and is taken to Australia, part of the way via a high-tech airplane which has no pilot and is completely automated. Similarly, once in Australia he boards a fully automated train which takes him to a cluster of iron huts in the desert of the Australian Outback.  Continue reading

12 Comments

Filed under Ancient Science Fiction

BLACKHAWK TECHNICAL COLLEGE: COOL NAMED SPORTS TEAM

Time to commend another college sports team for not going with the incredibly overused names like Eagles, Tigers, Bulldogs and Wildcats.

BLACKHAWK TECHNICAL COLLEGE Continue reading

4 Comments

Filed under Cool names and cool logos

NAMATHON: A JOE NAMATH MARATHON FOR SUPERBOWL SUNDAY

Joe Namath started life as a Pennsylvania boy. Later in life he became the quarterback for the University of Alabama Crimson Tide under iconic football coach Paul “Bear” Bryant. After college he was signed by the New York Jets for what was then the highest-ever contract for a quarterback.

Before long, he earned a place in NFL history by leading the underdog Jets to a victory over the (then) Baltimore Colts in Superbowl III. Though the rest of his football career was – let’s be honest – less than impressive, Joe’s charisma and appeal to the ladies carried him into a minor career as a piece of kitsch-casting in movies and on television. 

NORWOOD (1970) – The stunning sequel to True Grit. Okay, I’m kidding! I couldn’t resist since Norwood came out a year after True Grit, was based on another novel by the author of True Grit and starred Glen Campbell and Kim Darby, also from True Grit. Marguerite Roberts wrote the screenplay for both flicks, too. 

Glen stars as one of the few Vietnam War veterans not depicted by Hollywood as PTSD-riddled. As Norwood Pratt, the returning vet winds up in a job transporting cars from Texas to New York City but soon learns he’s driving stolen merchandise.

Joe William Namath plays Joe William Reese, a friend of Norwood who sees him become a singing sensation. Also in the strange circle of friends are dwarf actor Billy Curtis and runaway bride Rita (Darby).

A scene in which Namath tosses a football back and forth with Billy Curtis deserves to stand alongside the football-tossing scenes in The Room. Plus there’s Dom Deluise, Carol Lynley, David Huddleston and Joann, the intelligent chicken.      Continue reading

6 Comments

Filed under Bad and weird movies