Cap'n Bob & the Damsel

Entertainment

Tag – We’re It!

Damsel and I have been tagged by LinkedInUSAF to respond to a list of questions in a meme recently seen circulating in the blogosphere. Since the Damsel and I have to collaborate on our answers, it may be a day or two before the meme gets posted here.

Oh, by the way . . . WTF is a meme?

One definition of meme on the Web:

As defined by Richard Dawkins in The Selfish Gene (1976): “a unit of cultural transmission, or a unit of imitation.” “Examples of memes are tunes, ideas, catch-phrases, clothes fashions, ways of making pots or of building arches. Just as genes propagate themselves in the gene pool by leaping from body to body via sperms or eggs, so memes propagate themselves in the meme pool by leaping from brain to brain via a process which, in the broad sense, can be called imitation.

A meme is sort of like a chain letter, I guess.

07 Feb 2006 by Blogosphere Entertainment Humor

Happy Groundhog Day

We tend toward more scientific data collection for weather prediction, but he folks in Punxsutawney seem to be having fun with this, so we’ll take Phil’s word on it.

PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pennsylvania (Reuters) – Punxsutawney Phil, the groundhog who fans claim is never wrong, predicted six more weeks of winter on Thursday, matching the forecast of professional meteorologists.

“Phil is incapable of error. If he says six more weeks of winter, you can take it to the bank,” said Mike Johnston, one of the 15 members of the Groundhog Club Inner Circle in Punxsutawney, site of the annual Groundhog Day ceremony.

Visit Groundhog .org – the Official Site of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club

02 Feb 2006 by Culture Entertainment

Mail Call Okinawa Style

Damsel and I are big fans of R. Lee Ermey, “Gunny Ermey” of the History Channel’s Mail Call feature. We see Ermey as a no-nonsense patriot who supports the troops and is justifiably intolerant of moonbats who seek to impose their jackassery on American values.

Ermey has what Damsel describes as the “BEST.JOB.EVER!” We see him riding shotgun in military planes, visiting NORAD, driving amphibious Marine equipment, going to the annual gathering of automatic weapons enthusiasts and firing everything in sight, destroying the “enemy” (watermelons) with every imaginable weapon, and just generally having a good time. In spite of his fun job and his popularity, Ermey gets out among his fans, just like he’s one of the regular folks. Recently, Ermey visited Camp Foster on Okinawa to visit the troops, pose for pictures, and sign books, posters and DVDs.

From Ermey’s Website:

R. Lee Ermey fans in Okinawa were not in short supply. Fans waited in line for up to 3 hours just to get the chance to meet and get an autograph by the Gunny.

His book signing visits included Camp Hansen, Kadena Air Base and Camp Foster (shown left). Fans were able to purchase the “MAIL CALL” book at the signing, the Gunny didn’t stop there though, taking time talking with each person and even posing for photographs. Copies of “MAIL CALL” and FULL METAL JACKET DVDs were also autographed for those bringing them to the signing.

Read the rest of the article at Stars and Stripes Website.

Hat tip to America Supports You for their feature about Gunny on their front page today.

As a closing thought, Damsel and I occasionally watch Full Metal Jacket up until the time Ermey’s character gets killed off in the latrine. As Damsel says “Who wants to watch Matthew Modine for the rest of the picture? Once Gunny’s gone, there ain’t much left.”

14 Jan 2006 by Entertainment Military

Lou Rawls, 1935-2006

We’re sad to report that this instantly-recognizable voice has fallen silent today. Damsel and I have always loved and enjoyed Lou Rawls’ style and music. Rawls was a veteran of the U.S. Army 82nd Airborne Paratroopers. He had an extraordinary gift as a performer. We have all benefited from that gift.

From Wikipedia: Lou Rawls

Louis Allen Rawls (December 1, 1935 – January 6, 2006) is a Chicago-born American soul music, jazz, and blues singer. Known for his smooth vocal style, Frank Sinatra once said that Rawls had “the classiest singing and silkiest chops in the singing game.”

Rawls has released more than 70 albums, been in movies, television shows and voiced-over many cartoons. A high school classmate of soul giant Sam Cooke, Rawls sang with Cooke in the Teenage Kings of Harmony, a 50’s gospel group. Rawls enlisted in the US Army as a paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne Division in 1955. He would leave the “All-Americans” three years later as a Sergeant and hook up with a group he had sang with before enlisting, the Pilgrim Travelers. In 1958, while touring the South with the Travelers and Sam Cooke, Rawls was in a serious car crash which claimed the life of one person. Rawls was actually pronounced dead before getting to the hospital where he stayed in a coma for 5 1/2 days. It took him months to regain his memory and a year to fully recuperate. Rawls considered the event life-changing.

More . . .

06 Jan 2006 by Arts Entertainment People

Clooney Tunes

Damsel and I are inaugurating a new category to highlight entertainment icons who use their notoriety to promote left-wing ideology. We call this category “Star Whores.”

Today we recognize George Clooney for his hack at portraying the US government and the CIA as bad guys in the film “Syriana.” Clooney is either ill-informed or is part of the complex web of left-leaning organizations who seek to blame America for everything in an attempt to discredit the administration and freedom in general. I prefer to think of Clooney as stupid and not evil – but I could be wrong. Clooney has often been critical of the administration, as is his right, but when cross-examined, he shows a dearth of factual material to back his statements.

From the Monterey Herald:

George Clooney wants ‘Syriana’ to challenge its audience

George Clooney is opting for transparency when it comes to “Syriana,” opening Friday.

“It’s complicated, confusing even. And it’s political. I’m not trying to sidestep that. I’m pleased about it.”

Clooney, who plays a veteran – burned out, worn down, distrustful – CIA agent frustrated at the way the agency has become politicized, is also the film’s producer, along with Steven Soderbergh. “Syriana” was inspired in part by a book by former intelligence agent Robert Baer, a Mideast specialist who is the basis for Clooney’s character, Bob Barnes. But Stephen Gaghan, the Oscar-winning writer of “Traffic” who directed and wrote “Syriana,” says the movie is “pure imagination – based on fact.”

How’s this for transparency? I speculate that there is 90% imagination and 10% fact – maybe less – so thin, it’s nearly transparent. Clooney and Soderbergh have clearly done no research other than to present their own biased take on the book by Baer, who is probably a malcontent ex-CIA agent with an axe to grind (like Valerie Plame perhaps). Clooney seems to bias the film’s message against America in the hope that the audience will will be indoctrinated – not challenged.

And, of course, a payoff from the box office: George Clooney – Star Whore.

05 Jan 2006 by Entertainment Star Whores Whacko Politics

March of the Penguins

The March of the Penguins documentary about the Emperor Penguins in Antarctica – Awesome! Damsel and I watched the feature first and then the behind-the-scenes footage on how they shot this amazing film. The following is a comment from sam-650 via IMDB, which closely echoes our sentiments:

This is perhaps the most amazing animal documentary ever. The footage was gathered in what truly must be “the harshest place on earth”. It is barren, cold beyond cold and then there is the endless night of winter. The underwater footage was my favorite, but every single frame is magnificent. I can’t wait for the DVD, so I can see how the filmmakers did this.

The narration is less objective than it is romantic – making it less a true documentary than a story, but that is fine in this case, and Morgan Freeman does a great job. You really should make the effort to see this on the big screen – it is absolutely stunning!

29 Dec 2005 by Entertainment Environment Photography

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