This is the fifth part of Balladeer’s Blog’s look at the swashbuckling legends that surround Francois Villon (1431-1463?), remembered as one of France’s greatest poets and a notorious outlaw.
FRANCOIS VILLON PART FIVE – We left off last time with Villon on the run again, having fled Paris after the Navarre College job in which he and his fellows robbed a record amount of gold for the time period.
Formerly, despite his criminal career most of the notoriety Francois had earned was for his scandalous, irreverent poetry regarding The Powers That Be in France of his era. The December 20th, 1456 Navarre caper changed that.
From early 1457 and for a few years more, Villon continued his outlaw existence in and around the French province of Anjou and the Loire River Valley. Depending on the source, Francois either officially became a member of the criminal fraternity called the Coquillards at this time or was already a member and deepened his ties to them.
Falling in with a gang of highwaymen, Villon helped prey on the carriage trade, which enhanced his underdog/ quasi-Robin Hood reputation because only the wealthy and the high-born traveled by carriage in that era. No one else could afford to. Continue reading
Before MST3K there was … The Texas 27 Film Vault (1985-1987)! Before Joel and Mike, lovers of bad movies had Randy and Richard (at right)! Before Pearl and Kinga there was Laurie Savino! Before Devil Dogs, Observers and Deep 13 there came Cellumites, giant rats and Level 31!
THE MAN WHO SAW TOMORROW (1981) 
THE MOVIE: The Man Who Saw Tomorrow was a hilariously melodramatic and irrational documentary playing along with the silly notion that the 16th Century “seer” Nostradamus’ vague and noncommital quatrains predicted major future events. Orson Welles, in his “anything for money” phase, narrated the film. 
Readers let me know a few years back that they were bored with college baseball so I discontinued my coverage. Let’s give Women’s College Football a shot. Once again, it’s up to you readers if I continue covering this sport, which is Flag Football. 
“SHOW US YOUR LARK!” – This weekend the HESSTON COLLEGE LARKS – who were the runners-up in last year’s National Championship game – won a pair of games on the road. First up, the Larks delivered a 20-7 smackdown to the BRYANT & STRATTON COLLEGE (WI) BOBCATS. 
AMAZING FANTASY Vol 1 #15 (August 1962) 
THE MILLTILLIONAIRE (1895) – This novel was written by American author Albert Waldo Howard under the pen name M. Auburre Hovorre. A second edition came out in 1898. 
It’s been a while, so here’s Balladeer’s Blog’s latest installment of Transgress with Me. As usual, it’s only for the courageous and mixes old with new. As I’ve often mentioned in the past, I used to be a Democrat before their increasing intolerance and fascism drove me to leave the party and become an Independent Voter.
*** Authoritarian Democrats are only content in environments where they have a captive audience, like in schools or wherever they can use the full force of the government or other higher “authorities” to impose silence on those who disagree with them.
NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) 
NCCAA (National Christian College Athletic Association) DIVISION ONE
This is the fourth part of Balladeer’s Blog’s look at 
LE DUEL D’HAMLET (1900) – In this roughly 2-minute short, the 56-year-old Bernhardt gave cinema a gender-flipped Hamlet as she fenced with Pierre Magnier as Laertes in the climactic duel. 
TOSCA (1908, 1912) – Bernhardt portrayed Floria Tosca in this adaptation of the Puccini opera. (Yes, it’s a silent movie version of an opera.) The entire story was condensed into just 40 minutes and Sarah was so appalled with the production that she insisted that it not be released and, in fact, wanted it destroyed! 
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME – Closing out Balladeer’s Blog’s 2024 college basketball season was this game between the top seeded BARTON COLLEGE COUGARS and the 7 seeds – the TRITON COLLEGE TROJANS. 
Balladeer's Blog 