Balladeer’s Blog’s end of year retrospective continues with a look at April’s best.
EIGHT JAMES WOODS MOVIES – My reviews of James Woods films like Videodrome, Salvador, The Hard Way and others. Click HERE.
BAKARIDJAN KONE – A neglected epic myth from Africa. Click HERE.
THE SCARLET PLAGUE (1912) – Jack London’s often forgotten science fiction work about a world ravaged by class divisions and a deadly disease. Click HERE.
JIM HENSON’S PROTO-MUPPETS WILKINS AND WONTKINS (1957-1961) – A fascinating look at Henson’s early work. Click HERE.
QUALITY COMICS SUPERHEROES – A look at the 1940s and 1950s superheroes from Quality Comics. Figures like Phantom Lady, Margo the Magician, Uncle Sam, Black Condor, etc. Click HERE.
JOE BIDEN: AUSTRALIAN NEWS ON BIDEN’S STUPIDITY BEING A THREAT TO THE WEST – Biden has been even worse than expected. Click HERE. And HERE.
CAMERONE DAY – The French Foreign Legion’s most hallowed military action. Click HERE.
AGON: ATOMIC DRAGON (1964) – The often forgotten giant Japanese kaiju monster. Click HERE.
TRUMP VINDICATED YET AGAIN – And another anti-Trump lie was exposed, adding to the long, long list. Click HERE.
FOOL KILLER – March 1912, as he targeted corrupt lawmen and lawyers, Click HERE … April 1912, as he targeted the Steel Trust, political corruption rings and more. Click HERE.
ANTIFA SETS FIRE TO OCCUPIED BUILDING – Hate squads are gonna hate squad. Click HERE.
THE CLOCK: His first 1930s adventures. Click HERE.
ANCIENT SCIENCE FICTION – Steam Man of the Prairies (1868) HERE, Are The Planets Inhabited? (1913) HERE, and Cavern of Fire (1888) HERE.
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FIRST SEMIFINAL – The VALDOSTA STATE BLAZERS took on the COLORADO SCHOOL OF MINES OREDIGGERS in this game. A 10-3 1st Quarter lead for the Blazers turned into a 24-14 advantage by Halftime. Valdosta State made it a 34-14 game to end the 3rd Quarter, then withstood an Orediggers rally in the 4th for a 34-31 victory. 
BR’ER RABBIT’S CHRISTMAS CAROL (1992) – Balladeer’s Blog’s Twelfth Annual Christmas Carol-A-Thon continues! Br’er Rabbit, Br’er Fox, Br’er Bear, Br’er Gator and many other characters created by Joel Chandler Harris are featured in this animated version of the Dickens tale. 
All the characters live in a town in the American South, where a charity stage production of A Christmas Carol is being performed, with the proceeds going to benefit the terribly ill Timmy Mouse. No, not “Br’er Timmy” or anything like that, just Timmy Mouse as our Tiny Tim stand-in. 
SPIDER-MAN Vol 1 #147 (August 1975) 
Leeds gives Peter copies of the long line of medical tests that the new Gwen has undergone in the past few days. Somehow the cloning process was accelerated, meaning she was created mere months ago, even though she is an adult as much as the real Gwen was when she was killed. 
WHITE LIGHTNING (1973) – Some readers have been asking for non-Christmas blog posts, so here we go with a review of this Burt Reynolds movie back before he settled in to lazily being a clownish parody of himself. Back when he was still legitimately a film star who could play things seriously. 
DREAM NO EVIL (1970) – A horror movie so bad that I was almost devastated that I never knew it existed until March of this year. Edmond O’Brien and cult favorite Michael Pataki are in the cast. Click 
X-MEN: THE NEW TEAM’S FIRST TWENTY 1970s STORIES – In 1975 Wolverine, Storm and others joined the team, beginning a legendary run of stories. Click 
GARRISON TALES FROM TONQUIN (1895) – American James O’Neill, who served in the French Foreign Legion in the 1880s and 1890s, wrote this collection of short stories based on his Legion experiences in Vietnam. Jaw-droppingly prescient material from this man. Click 
A CHRISTMAS CAROL (1947) – Yet another Christmas Carol version produced by the long-gone Dumont Network. This one aired live on December 25th, 1947 and starred John Carradine as Ebenezer Scrooge. According to Variety the broadcast was simulcast in New York City, Philadelphia, Washington D.C. and Baltimore. There were 22 cast members and 12 sets. 
LIFEPOD (1981) – My review of another of the 10 cheapjack Robert Emenegger/ Allan Sandler science fiction movies from 1980 and 1981. In my view this is the best of the bunch. For the review click 
THE DEFENDERS: THEIR FIRST TWENTY 1970s STORIES – The opening tales of the Defenders, back before they were the mere street-level heroes that fans consider them today. 
RIVALS OF SHERLOCK HOLMES: THE MOABITE CIPHER – My review of the final episode of the 1971-1973 BBC series, this one featuring a Dr Thorndyke mystery. Plus a look at the subsequent radio series about Holmes’ rivals. Click 
TRUMBO (2015)- My review of the movie that proves Democrat hypocrisy is hilarious. We need 3rd Parties. Click 
FIRST SEMIFINAL – The GRAND VIEW UNIVERSITY VIKINGS were on the road against the defending National Champions of NAIA football – the LINDSEY WILSON COLLEGE BLUE RAIDERS. A 14-7 Vikings lead in the 1st Quarter became a 21-20 Blue Raiders edge by Halftime. The 3rd Quarter ended with Lindsey Wilson College on top 28-26 but the 4th saw Grand View U win the game 34-28. 
SECOND SEMIFINAL – In this game the MORNINGSIDE COLLEGE MUSTANGS welcomed the NORTHWESTERN (IA) COLLEGE RED RAIDERS. The Mustangs were chasing the Red Raiders 13-7 in the opening Quarter and 16-14 at the Half. Morningside College moved out in front 21-19 in the 3rd Quarter, then won out 28-19. 
FIRST QUARTERFINAL – The COLORADO SCHOOL OF MINES OREDIGGERS took on the visiting ANGELO STATE RAMS. This was a tale of two Halves, with the Orediggers holding a comfortable 20-3 advantage at the midpoint only to have to hold on tight in the 2nd Half against a Rams rally. Colorado School of Mines won a 34-28 thriller. 
SPIDER-MAN Vol 1 #145 (June 1975) 
Peter himself is in a state of shock, while the “new” Gwen, whose memories are months out of date, cries and pleads with him to help her understand what is going on. When Gwen tries to embrace him, Peter loses it, recoiling from her and screaming at her that she must be an impersonater. 
