Otis Spann was an amiable, soft-spoken man who enjoyed a good drink, a good joke, and a good story. At the keyboard he was one of the giants of the blues. He will always be remembered as a driving force in the Muddy Waters band, the go-to session piano player for Chess Records, and a …
In a recent Wall Street Journal, an opinion piece written by Arthur Herman, who is identified only as the author* of a book titled, Freedom’s Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II, focused on the (alleged) aging weaponry used by the military. Mr. Herman lauds the free market in contrast to “layers …
Partisans, pundits and properly behaved patriots are welcome at London’s Olympic Games which open on Friday, July 27. Political protestors, dissidents, publicists or satirists, however, need not present their tickets because organizers have banned strong political statements of all kinds, especially those emblazoned on t-shirts. Writing for the Independent, Tom Peck explains, “Many of those …
More people in Colorado and elsewhere are buying guns because A. They’re not nuts and B. They don’t want to get hurt by one. People debate the gun issue until they’re blue in the face, but between liberals (civil rights, funding) and conservatives (civil rights, funding) – no one wants to do anything about the …
I had no idea that “The Wave Speech” from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas had been given a name and taken on a life of it’s own amongst Thompson mavens and literary academics. I had wrongly assumed that I was the only one to find beauty in these six paragraphs and to excerpt them …
Why does every movie have to involve superpowers? And not geopolitical superpowers, individuals with superhuman powers. John Wayne didn’t need a superpower. He had his magnificent voice and demeanor. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jKWJZsjm5U
You’ve probably seen more than a few movies in which bail bondsmen are portrayed as unscrupulous, duplicitous, or brutal in their dealings with wayward clients. These days, the actual bail bonds industry is a bit more buttoned-up, but bondsmen still face their share of financial and physical risks each day at work. If you are …
In tough times, the best solution for job seekers is to pick a field where there will always be work. This usually leads to less glamorous careers, but skilled blue collar workers can make as much money as those in the white collar world, and unlike many jobs in the modern age, it is nearly …
When you get on a plane, your goal really should be to stay on it until you reach your destination. There are a surprising number of things that could get you kicked off the plane or keep your flight grounded, however. To avoid ever experiencing that, refer to some basic ground (or is it, flight?) …
Best-selling author and onetime publisher of legendary Northwest music magazine, The Rocket, Charles R. Cross, is throwing a reunion for all of the writers, artists, phographers, staffers and anyone who ever contributed to the publication. The soiree will take place Sunday, August 5, 2012, from 2:00pm until 7:00pm at the Feedback Lounge in West Seattle. …
Five Car Anti-Theft Devices You Should Invest In Over a million vehicles are stolen every year to use in criminal activities, scrap for parts or re-sell. While the police are able to locate some stolen vehicles, many more are never recovered. Having your vehicle stolen can be a major source of stress, and it’s expensive …
Maybe there really is a culture war going on. Family Guy made a Seventh Day Adventism joke tonight. It wasn’t offensive. Not really funny, either. But jokes about Seventh Day Adventists are pretty rare. I can’t remember any others, really. The Road to Wellville, maybe? The rest of the show was dedicated to belittling Christian …
A new protest organization has sprung up in Seattle. They are The Student Debt Noise Brigade. SDNB have organized to rally and march to protest the rising cost of tuition and the staggering debt students must now endure if they want a college education. The #SDNB (Student Debt Noise Brigade) was formed by by Seattle …
(Photo of Ian Hunter with Mick Ronson’s daughter.) ”I didn’t know if I was going to become a musician, because I couldn’t sing very good. In those days you really had to be a good singer. I didn’t know I had a chance until Dylan came along. I couldn’t really understand what he was saying, …
Fats Waller (1904-1943) was literally the most well-rounded jazz pianist of the 20th Century. He was a song writer, singer, master of stride piano, a hit maker, and he often did it with a comic flair. Art Tatum was perhaps a superior contemporary pianist, at least technically, but few brought as much passion and energy …
I don’t like Jazz, much. Never did, perhaps never will. But when I do like it, it sounds like Art Pepper Meets the Rhythm Section. As legend has it, West coast Art Pepper, alto saxophonist, had no idea his wife booked him a recording gig with three seasoned “rhythm” players from the East coast, fresh …
Daisy the pit bull who captured hearts across Portland as she remained trapped all day on an unstable ledge 50 feet below the lip of the quarry and 200 feet above the floor, has been saved by firefighters. The full story is HERE.
The importance of Andy Griffith‘s 1974 TV movie of the week, Pray for the Wildcats, is hard to understand without bathing oneself completely in the 100 minutes of sun-dappled glory featured in this small screen cinematic masterpiece, and for the sake of cinephiles everywhere I hope Wildcats is re-released now in the wake of Griffiths’ …
http://youtu.be/__HeE6NWmDE
On Sunday June 24, 2012, I attended my first Pride Parade. Actually, that may not be entirely true. I remember attending a pride event in Seattle way back in 1979. But recently I received an invitation from my employer, Seattle Public Schools, to ride with them on their school bus, and since my younger son …
NBC is making a big mistake on this one by letting Oregon’s own Ann Curry go. It’s Matt Lauer and Al Roker who are driving down the ratings: http://www.kgw.com/entertainment/160009605.html
Behold the 2-minute, sci-fi short film, Secular Quarter 3, which floats UFOs over Israel 100 years from now. It’s excellent, please check it out. Currently, this vid is a semi-finalist for YouTube’s Your Film Festival sponsored by Prometheus director Ridley Scott. Friends of Secular Quarter 3‘s director, David Gidali, are doing outreach to Jewish fans …
Ridley Scott has thrilled and frightened audiences for more than 30 years through a mixture of rich storytelling, diametrically opposed characters, and complex environmentally driven plots that clash in varying degrees of discovery, conflict, destruction and resolve. Prometheus is another fine example of this type of film making, and without going too far into this …
Here’s some vintage video of monks chanting & painstakingly drawing sand mandalas among other things. I got to see a performance like this a few years back when a group of monks was in residence at a health food store for a month painting this huge mandala in public. Then one day, of course, they …
Here’s how this video is described at the site, “This is one of the most poignant and profound messages our youth can hear today. With a culture obsessed with sex, violence and tolerance, there are more and more obstacles standing in the way of our Savior than ever before. Music, media and cultures can have …