#Arthur Friedman

[gameraboy2]

"Count Morbida is Missing" Dynamite #62 (1979) Illustration by Arthur Friedman

[esonetwork]

The Great American Songbook Chapter One: Male Pop Singers | Tales From Hollywoodland

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The Great American Songbook Chapter One: Male Pop Singers | Tales From Hollywoodland

In this episode of “Tales from Hollywoodland,” hosts Steve, Arthur, and Julian are joined by guest  Jimmy Scalia to explore the great American songbook and its influential male pop singers. The discussion highlights Bobby Darin’s significant impact on the genre, with Jimmy Scalia sharing his personal connection to Darin and his efforts to preserve his music. The conversation also covers contributions from artists like Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Ray Charles, and delves into the challenges and triumphs faced by these singers. The episode underscores the enduring legacy and diverse talents of these iconic artists. Tune in to the Tales From Hollywoodland Podcast, available wherever you listen to podcasts.

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#TalesFromHollywoodlandPodcast #GreatAmericanSongbook #GreatAmericanSongbook #Classicmalevocalists #AmericanSongbooklegends #Iconicmalesingers #ClassicAmericanmusic #GreatAmericanSongbookpodcast #Legendarycrooners #Famousmalevocalists #Goldenageofmusic #AmericanSongbookartists #GreatAmericanSongbookdiscussion #Timelessmalesingers #Classicmusichistory #IconicAmericansingers #Malevocallegends #GreatAmericanSongbookstars

[nerds-yearbook]

Transformers the movie was released on August 8, 1986. Originally, G.I. Joe the movie was meant to be released first but was pushed back. Blowback from the Death of Optimus Prime (Peter Cullin) caused the producers to change the planned death of Duke (Michael Bell) in the G.I. Joe movie. Also, the commercial failure of the movie also down graded The G.I. Joe movie to straight to video/TV release. The movie was the final theatric roles of Orson Welles and Scatman Crothers. The human character Spike (Corey Burton) swore in the movie because they wanted a PG rating (The G.I. Joe movie had originally planned a scene of brief topless nudity to get their PG rating, but that was dropped somewhere in production). Seasons 1 and 2 were supposed to take place in the present, but the movie and season 3 were pushed forward 20 years in time to the year 2005. The movie not just killed off Optimus Prime, but also Ironhide (Cullen), Ratchet, Prowl (Michael Bell), Brawn (Burton), Wheeljack, Windcharger, Megatron (Frank Welker), Starscream (Christopher Collins/Chris Latta), Skywarp, Thundercracker, Shrapnel (Hal Rayle), Kickback (Clive Revill), Bombshell and (off screen) Huffer. The movie introduced Unicron (Welles), Galvatron (Leonard Nimoy), Arcee (Susan Blu), Ultra Magnus (Robert Stack), Hot Rod/Rodimus Prime (Judd Nelson), Springer (Neil Ross), Kup (Lionel Stander), Blurr (John Moschitta Jr), Wheelie, Cyclonus (Roger C Carmel), Scourge (Stan Jones), Kranix (Norman Alden), Arblus, Daniel Witwicky (David Mendenhall), the Lithones, the Shrikebats, the Sharkticons, the Quintessons, the Allicons, (the Mini-Cassettes) Eject, Rewind, (the Junkions) Wreck-Gar (Eric Idle), Junkyard, Scrapheap, Re-Cycle, Rubbish, Hazmat, Ashtray, Greasestain, Wasteoid Gamma, and Trashbin. The movie also included Astrotrain (Jack Angel), Scrapper, Swoop (both by Bell), Grimlock (Gregg Berger), Devastator (Arthur Burghardt), Shockwave (Burton), Jazz (Cruthers), Dirge (Bud Davis), Perceptor (Paul Eiding), Blitzwing (Ed Gilbert), Bumblebee (Dan Gilvezan), Blaster (Buster Jones), Cliffjumper (Casey Kasem), Laserbeak (Latta), Scavenger (Don Messick), Bonecrusher, Hook, Slag (all Ross), Soundwave, Rumble, Frenzy, and Ravage (all Welker). Leonard Nimoy would return to the Transformers franchise in the live action reboot as the voice of Sentinel Prime in Transformer's Dark of the Moon. The sound track was very eclectic including the iconic "The Touch" by Stan Bush and "Dare to Be Stupid" by Weird Al Yankovic. The score was by Rocky IV composer Vince DiCola. While it underperformed and was controversial upon its release, the movie has since gone on to be a cult classic. ("Transformers: The Movie", Movie, Event)

[moviemosaics]

Subject

directed by Camilla Hall and Jennifer Tiexiera, 2022

[mychameleondays]

Yoko Ono: Feeling The Space

Gatefold Sleeve, Coloured Vinyl

Secretly Canadian/Chimera SC284/SC284, 2017

Originally released: November 16, 1973

[badmovieihave]

Bad movie I have Eight Crazy Nights 2002

[elfleccy]

Give this album a listen: Reimagining In The Court Of The Crimson King

[nitrateglow]

Spooky Season 2024: 12-22

Phantom of the Mall: Eric's Revenge (dir. Richard Friedman, 1989)

The opening of the new mall is hampered by one thing: a Phantom hiding in the air vents, and committing robbery and murder. It turns out this Phantom is really a teenager named Eric (Derek Rydall) disfigured in a fire set by the mall's developers to clear out any remaining houses impeding their dreams of commercial development. Now, Eric plans on having his revenge and watching over his girlfriend Melody (Kari Whitman), now an employee of the mall. But what will he make of her burgeoning romance with a journalist?

Talk about pure '80s cheese. This film feels like it was made to capitalize on the slasher cycle and the popularity of the Andrew Lloyd Weber Phantom of the Opera megamusical. It's not a particularly good movie, but it is dumb fun. I love how this Phantom makes free use of the goods available in the stores and how he spams his spin kick attack like he's in a video game.

Also, Pauly Shore is in this. He has a great scene talking about subliminal messaging in department stores, but is otherwise the usual Pauly Shore.

Hangover Square (dir. John Brahm, 1945)

Musician George Harvey Bone (Laird Cregar) is disturbed by long sessions in which he blacks out. He fears he may be committing murder, but is reassured by the police when he goes to them that isn't likely. Detective Dr. Allen Middleton (George Saunders) advises the overworked George take a break from composing. George does so by going to a pub where he meets the lovely Netta Longdon (Linda Darnell), a music hall entertainer who dreams of fame. George and Netta enter into a toxic relationship in which she uses him to advance her career while seeing other men on the side. When George discovers her treachery, his blackouts return-- this time in a far more violent form.

I'm starting to become fascinated by John Brahm, a director best remembered for his moody, macabre dramas in the 1940s. Hangover Square was his second and final collaboration with the talented but doomed Laird Cregar, who died two months before the film was released. It's as much a noir as a horror picture, drenched in that chiaroscuro lighting and urban dread so common to the classic cycle.

Cregar is astonishing in the lead role. Though handsome, he was a bigger man, so Hollywood refused to allow him to transition into leading man parts. He is marvelous here, passionate and sensitive, yet also sinister once his jealous rage takes over. I've seen Cregar in multiple films and he was truly fantastic, able to be comic as well as dramatic. Hollywood didn't deserve him.

Lastly, Linda Darnell's character sings this really catchy song when Cregar first sees her. I saw this film weeks ago but it is STILL STUCK IN MY HEAD.

The Sealed Room (dir. DW Griffith, 1909)

In some nondescript time period (everyone's dressed like it's either the early 18th century or the middle ages), a king (Arthur V. Johnson) learns his mistress (Marion Leonard) is smooching with a musician (Henry B. Walthall). Jealous to the point of rage, he has the couple sealed in a small room where they suffocate to death.

The Sealed Room is a gem from the nickelodeon era, though I admit my liking for it comes from how extra all the performances are, even by the standards of the early silent period.

It also has one of my favorite instances of what I like to call "silent film logic"-- that is, scenes featuring action that would be very loud in real life, but in a silent film, you may not think about it as much. Here, the king has the lovers walled up alive in a small room, where they lounge unaware. And yet, there's workers slapping up a brick wall not ten feet away from them! It's very amusing.

Frankenhooker (dir. Frank Henenlotter, 1990)

When his girlfriend Elizabeth (Patty Mullen) gets hacked to death by an automatic lawnmower he built, medical student Jeffrey (James Lorinz) decides to resurrect her by killing sex workers for their shapely body parts then sewing Elizabeth's severed head on top. He does this by having his victims smoke explosive crack.

No, I'm not making this up.

I first heard about Frankenhooker from James Rolfe of Angry Video Game Nerd fame. It sounded so insane that I knew I had to watch it. It's-- well, it's definitely a bizarre movie with lots of crude humor and pitch black jokes.

Would you believe me if I said it was kind of an unsung feminist work? I definitely did not expect THAT angle coming in, but that messaging is definitely there. Jeffrey is a villain-protagonist through and through, even before he starts committing murder. We learn he was already demanding Elizabeth modify her appearance to suit his tastes before she got killed. He views women as more a collection of body parts than proper people. However, his misogyny does catch up with him in the end and his fate at the resurrected Elizabeth's hands is the very definition of irony. I don't want to spoil it.

It's definitely not for everyone, but if you have a sick sense of humor and some friends that share that humor, you'll have a good time.

Friday the 13th: Part 2 (dir. Steve Miner, 1981)

A summer camp close to the infamous Camp Crystal Lake is about to open. Little do the young, horny counselors know, Jason (Warrington Gillette and Steve Daskewicz)-- the boy that allegedly drowned long ago-- is still alive and he's mad his mama got decapitated in the previous film. Lots of people die.

I confess I have a hard time getting into these Friday the 13th films. I've read it took a few entries for the series to find its footing as gloriously dumb schlock, but the first one and this sequel were mostly boring for me. About all I liked was the last twenty minutes, when the heroine's background in child psychology comes into play. Otherwise, this gets a big meh from me. Not horrible, but nothing I can imagine I'll ever rewatch.

Corridor of Mirrors (dir. Terence Young, 1948)

A party girl (Edana Romney) becomes involved with a Renaissance era-obessed artist (Eric Portman). Their fetishistic relationship leads to heartbreak and murder.

Already discussed this one is great detail at my Wordpress blog. It's a great romantic thriller in the vein of Vertigo and Rebecca.

The Old Dark House (dir. James Whale, 1932)

During a thunderstorm, a group of unwary British travelers are marooned at the crumbling mansion of the Femm family, a collection of eccentrics who may be insane. Everything goes wrong: the hulking butler gets drunk and preys on the women visitors, the area may flood, the lights go out, and there may be a homicidal maniac imprisoned in one of the rooms upstairs. Will anyone survive the night?

I have raved about this film for a long time now. It's truly a favorite of mine in general, not just for the Halloween season. Both witty and chilling, it's an atmospheric masterpiece. The damp and mold are palpable.

What fascinates me most is the Femm family itself and the gaps in their backstory. This is one movie where I feel like there's a Tolstoyan novel's worth of drama with the Femms. It's hinted that the 102-year-old patriarch of the house (played in drag by actress Elspeth Dudgeon) used to host orgies there. The death of the seductive sister Rebecca at the age of 21 may or may not have been due to inter-family foul play. Morgan the butler has a close, even weirdly tender relationship with the homicidally insane brother Saul, suggesting a myriad of possible connections between them. It's very interesting-- I like that the movie doesn't fill in all the blanks.

A Game of Death (dir. Robert Wise, 1945)

Don Rainsford (John Loder), big game hunter extraordinaire, finds himself shipwrecked on a mysterious island. The owner is Erich Kriegler (Edgar Barrier), an urbane German who also enjoys hunting, though with a slight difference-- he likes hunting humans. Teaming up with other shipwreck survivors Ellen (Audrey Long) and Robert (Russell Wade), Don tries finding a way to escape before they become Kriegler's next wall trophies.

This movie is a pallid, watered down, shot-for-shot remake of The Most Dangerous Game, one of the crown jewels of 1930s horror, so of course, I am not fond of it. And yet, I rewatch it every few years, so it must have something going for it. So instead of tearing into it as I normally do, I'll list a few things I think are actually good about it:

I like that the main character initially tries tricking Kriegler into thinking he will hunt people with him. Very pro-active.

I think Kriegler is a good villain. Not as memorably deranged and campy as Leslie Banks' Zaroff in the original film, but chilling in a more low-key way. His "the strong deserve to prey upon the weak" philosophy fits in nicely with Nazi ideologies-- no doubt what this wartime horror flick intended.

Um... I think Audrey Long is really pretty. I like her flow-y outfits.

... Yeah, that's it.

The Most Dangerous Game (dir. Ernest B. Schoedsack and Irving Pichel, 1932)

All-American big game hunter Bob Rainsford (Joel McCrea) is shipwrecked on the unlisted island of Count Zaroff (Leslie Banks), a Russian aristocrat and master sportsman who claims he now hunts "the most dangerous game" of all. Being a himbo, it takes Bob a while before he realizes that game is human beings. Unwilling to hunt alongside Zaroff when given the offer, Rainsford and fellow prisoner Eve Trowbridge (Fay Wray) wage a game with Zaroff: let loose into the island's thick jungle, if they survive the night without Zaroff or the terrain killing them, they'll go free. If not, Rainsford dies and Eve will become a rather different kind of quarry for the evil count.

Now, here's my favorite "hunter hunts people" movie! While "The Most Dangerous Game" has been adapted and ripped off multiple times for a century, the original is still hard to beat. The castle set drips with gothic grandeur. The jungle soundstage is thick and suffocating, and once the chase intensifies, it becomes like something out of a nightmare.

I actually think the climactic hunt is among the greatest sequences in all cinema. The editing is so dynamic and the images are brilliant. And when you consider this is still an early talkie, when films were still trying to rediscover their footing after silent cinema came to an end, it becomes even more remarkable.

Going on Letterboxd, I was shocked to find a lot of people on there have mixed to negative opinions about this movie, largely because they think it's too over the top and that it's messaging is too on the nose.

I mean-- yes, these things are true, but I don't see them as flaws. It probably helps that I love camp and melodrama, and am not ashamed to admit it. And regardless of the fervent camp on display, I still think the trophy room scene is creepy and the chase is super intense. I have probably seen this movie close to a hundred times and yet, the chase still has me shouting at the TV, willing the characters to run faster. That's damn fine filmmaking.

The Haunting (dir. Robert Wise, 1963)

A researcher of the paranormal brings a motley crew of ordinary people into the allegedly haunted Hill House. Both potential ghosts and the neuroses of the visitors bring on sinister events and ultimately tragedy.

I love this movie more and more. I already wrote a bit about my reaction this time around, though since then, I started rereading the source novel, Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House. Obviously, the book delves more deeply into Eleanor's psyche, but the film does a fantastic job of this as well. Given film is a visual medium, it can be a challenge to depict a character's interior state without delving into expressionism and this film does that well.

The Phantom of the Opera (dir. Terence Fisher, 1962)

Aspiring songstress Christine Charles (Heather Sears) and producer Harry Hunter (Edward de Souza) are drawn into a mystery at the London Opera House. A phantom is sabotaging any attempt to produce Joan of Arc: A Tragedy, a show allegedly written by the cold, snobby, rapey Lord Ambrose (Michael Gough). After some investigating, it turns out the Phantom (Herbert Lom) was once the meek-mannered Professor Petrie, whose music was stolen by Ambrose. Now, he wants only to see his opera done justice and only Christine's voice can make that happen.

I am very fond of this version of The Phantom of the Opera even though I think it has a myriad of dramatic flaws. Let's get the flaws out the way first. I think the film is a bit repetitive in retelling us Petrie's story over and over, at first through onscreen description and then through filmed depiction. I also think the ending is anti-climactic, like the writers didn't want to go the usual route of making the Phantom a homicidal maniac but they weren't sure how to make a properly dramatic finish without that characterization.

That out the way, this is a unique, even refreshing retelling in many ways. The Phantom/Christine relationship is no longer one of unrequited love-- in fact, Petrie seems wholly uninterested in romance or sex at all. He views Christine and himself as victims of the truly despicable Lord Ambrose: Petrie had his music stolen and Christine was sexually harrassed. Therefore, it is up to the two of them to wrest the opera back from Amrbose's influence and make it the production Petrie wanted. Petrie is one hard taskmaster. He is relentless in training Christine and at one point throws filthy sewer-water in her face when she faints.

But the Phantom is hardly an out and out villain here. He doesn't even kill people-- he has a convenient hunchbacked assistant to do that. No, the real baddie is Ambrose, among the nastiest villains in the Hammer canon. Ambrose never even kills anyone, yet he makes the blood boil with his wanton cruelty. Michael Gough (who I always remember best as Alfred in the Tim Burton Batman movies, as well as Batman Forever and Batman and Robin) is so good at being bad.

This version of POTO also has my favorite version of the Phantom's compositions. Usually, he writes a "burning" piece called Don Juan Triumphant, fitting his romantic obsession with Christine. Here, Petrie writes an opera about Joan of Arc, a virginal saint persecuted by powerful men-- a fitting subject for Petrie given his own persecution by an aristocrat. Joan's aria "I Hear Your Voice" is gorgeous and always brings me to tears, it's that beautiful.

Not a perfect film, but still a very good one.

[daloy-politsey]

do you have any recommendations for jewish media (movies, tv shows, books, etc) that isnt painfully zionist? it doesnt even have to be explicitly anti-zionist (although that would be preferred, just hard to find) , just ANYTHING that doesnt bend over backwards to shove isr**l down your throat. i just watched 'the chosen' (1987) for the first time (i know i know im late) and am so disappointed.

Hey anon. There are many pieces of media I can think of!

Music:

Daniel Kahn Batya Levine I don't think Debbie Friedman has any Zionist songs (if anyone can confirm this that would be great)

Chabad Religion; Yes, Chabad is Zionist but even if the band members are Chabad (which I don't know at all) it's more of a play on words/reference to the band Bad Religion and nothing more.

Fully Automated Luxury Kosher Space Kibbutz; I know the word kibbutz is in there but that's the only thing about this group that can be interpreted as Zionist (imo the reference to a kibbutz is not an endorsement of Zionism but just a neutral reference to it)

I don't think Schmeckel has any Zionist songs. There is a line in their song Maybe She's Shomer Negiah "But we didn't shake hands when I said 'chag sameach' / 'cause she's keepin' it Kosher like Shmuley Boteach" but I don't think it's an endorsement of the Shmuley Boteach.

Movies:

There's the classic Fiddler on the Roof; Sholem Aleichem (who wrote the short stories the movie is based on) was a Zionist and there's a part at the end of the movie that can be interpreted as endorsing Zionism but it's a very minor part of the plot.

The Rabbi's Cat

Yentl

Arranged

An American Pickle

You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah; the synagogue where it takes place has Israeli flags and yes I know Adam Sandler is a Zionist but as far as Zionism in the actual movie it's just the flags.

Sixty Six

Keeping Up With the Steins

TV Shows:

The Rugrats is famous for being the first cartoon to have Hannakah and Passover episodes

Hey Arnold has an episode where one of the characters (Harold) has a Bar Mitzvah. There's other episodes that reference Harold's Jewishness but this is the only one where it's a major part of the plot.

As Told by Ginger has a Hannakah episode

Lizzie McGuire has an episode where on of the characters (Gordo) has a Bar Mitzvah

Arthur has a Yom Kippur episode

Muppet Babies has a Hannakah episode

Elena of Avalor has a Hannakah episode

Books:

I rarely finish books but I can say that I did finish Becoming Eve, which is Abby Stein's memoir and it's great

If anyone else has any other recommendations please either tell me in the replies or the reblogs

[newyorkthegoldenage]

Above: Sandra Church, Jack Klugman, Lane Bradbury, Ethel Merman, and Peg Murray in Gypsy.

Gypsy, the musical based on the memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee, opened at the newly-refurbished Broadway Theater on May 21, 1959. It had a book by Arthur Laurents, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and music by Jule Styne. Originally, Sondheim had been slated to write the music as well as the lyrics, but Ethel Merman was nervous about entrusting the whole thing to such a young man (he was 29). Jerome Robbins directed and choreographed it.

Despite the title, the star of this show is Gypsy's mother, Rose Hovick, the stage mother to end all stage mothers. Often described as monstrous, she ruthlessly pushes her two young daughters into vaudeville, spotlighting the pretty blonde, June. But vaudeville is dying, and the girls are eventually forced into doing their act in burlesque theaters. It is there that one of the dancers persuades Louise, the "plain" brunette daughter, to consider striptease. She blossoms, of course, and becomes the famous stripper Gypsy Rose Lee. Her sister runs away and becomes the actress June Havoc.

Above: left, Jacqueline Mayro as Baby June (doing split) and Karen Moore as Baby Louise (Uncle Sam). Right, Sandra Church as the adult Gypsy and Ethel Merman as her mother.

The score is chock full of what would become standards: "Let Me Entertain You," "Everything's Coming Up Roses," "You Gotta Get a Gimmick," among others, as well as the most exciting overture in all musical theater. But the crowning musical achievement was the show's final song, "Rose's Turn," which one critic described as a "quick-mix of aria, stomp, anthem, hymn, recitative, shout, [and] wail." It's also the essence of the integrated musical number.

Above: Ethel Merman and Maria Karnilova.. Right, Jack Klugman and Merman.

Gypsy is often mentioned when the question of Best Musical Ever Made comes up. In addition to a film and a television version, it has been revived on Broadway four times; it would have been five if not for Covid. The 2015 West End production, starring Imelda Staunton as a stunning Rose, was supposed to have transferred. But the production is available to watch on DVD.

All photos: Friedman-Abeles via the NYPL. Click/tap on each one to enlarge.

[esonetwork]

A Conversation with Deborah Rennard and Al Sapienza | Tales From Hollywoodland

New Post has been published on https://esonetwork.com/a-conversation-with-deborah-rennard-and-al-sapienza-tales-from-hollywoodland/

A Conversation with Deborah Rennard and Al Sapienza | Tales From Hollywoodland

Don’t miss this exciting episode of the Tales From Hollywoodland Podcast as we sit down with talented entertainers Deborah Rennard and Al Sapienza! Known for their iconic roles in hit shows and films, Deborah and Al share stories from their dynamic careers in Hollywood, insights into the entertainment industry, and the creative journeys that have shaped their lives. From memorable roles to behind-the-scenes experiences, this conversation is filled with inspiration, laughter, and insider perspectives. Tune in for an unforgettable chat with these two Hollywood stars!

Links Tales From Hollywoodland on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/talesfromhollywoodland  

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We want to hear from you! Feedback is always welcome. Please write to us at  talesfromhollywoodland@gmail.com and why not subscribe and rate the show on Apple Podcast, Spotify, iHeartRadio, PlayerFM, Pandora, Amazon Music, Audible, and wherever fine podcasts are found. 

#deborahrennard #alsapienza #podcast #talesfromhollywoodland

[nerds-yearbook]

G.I. Joe the Movie was released on August 14, 1987. It was meant to be a theatrical release, see the death of Duke (Michael Bell), and have a topless scene with Zarana (Lisa Raggio). The production went longer than predicted so the Transformers movie was released first, which ended up having a huge impact on the Joe movie. Because Transformers the Movie underperformed in the theaters, it was decided to release the Joe movie as a direct to video and TV presentation. Because the Transformers movie recieved so much backlash from killing Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen), dialogue was added explaining Duke didn't die but went into a coma. The topless scene was story boarded but the scene was altered in the final film with a swim top. Most of the new characters introduced were the new recruits (Lt Falcon - Don Johnson, Kunoichi Jinx - Shuko Akune, Chuckles, Law - Ron Ortiz and Order, Big Lob - Brad Sanders, and Tunnel Rat - Laurie Faso), Sgt Slaughter's (Robert Remus), Renegades (Mercer - Kristoffer Tabori, Red Dog - Poncie Ponce, and Taurus - Earn Boen) and the mutants from Cobra-La (Pythona - Jennifer Darling, Golobulus - Burgess Meredith, and Nemesis Enforcer - Cullen). As Cobra Commander (Christopher Collins/Chris Latta) was facing a mutiny by Dr Mindbender(Brian Cummings), Baroness (Morgan Lofting), Destro (Arthur Burghardt), Zartan (Zack Hoffman), Tomax (Corey Burton) and Xamot (Bell), Pythona arrived and convinced Cobra to steal the BET device. The mission failed, Serpentor was captured, and Cobra Commander retreated his forces to Cobra-La. There Golobulus revealed that Cobra Commander was an escapee from Cobra-La. Also that Cobra-La had secretly manipulated Dr Mindbender into creating Serpentor (Dick Gautier). While Lt Falcon was court martialed by the Joes, Cobra Commander was put on trial in Cobra-La. The movie also featured the familiar Joes and Cobras Low Light (Charlie Adler), Wet Suit (Jack Angel), Blow Torch, Lift-Ticket (both Bell), Motorviper (Gregg Berger), Iceberg (Burghardt), Beach Head (William Callaway), Quick Kick (Francois Chau), Zandar (Cullen), Dial-Tone (Hank Garrett), Hawk (Ed Gilbert), Slip Stream (Dan Gilvezan), Roadblock (Kene Holiday), Bazooka (John Hostetter), Doc (Buster Jones), Gung Ho, Ripper, Televiper (all Latta), Lady J ( Mary McDonald-Lewis), Letherneck (Chuck McCann), Cross-Country (Michael McConnohie), Snow Job (Rob Paulsen), Mainframe (Patrick Pinney), Flint (Bill Ratney), Buzzer, Shipwreck, Monkeywrench, Hector Remirez (all Neil Ross), Thrasher (Ted Schwartz), Scarlett (B.J. Ward), Alpine (Lee Weaver), Torch, Wild Bill (both Frank Welker), Lifeline (Stan Wojno), and Jackson Beck as the narrator. ("G.I. Joe the Movie", Movie, Event)

[grits-galraisedinthesouth]

Supreme Court Overturns DOJ's Use of Key J6 Felony Court

"Today's decision means Attorney General Merrick Garland and federal judges in Washington wrongfully prosecuted roughly 350 J6ers with the post-Enron felony"

JULIE KELLY

JUN 28, 2024 In a devastating but well-deserved blow to the Department of Justice’s criminal prosecution of January 6 protesters, the U.S. Supreme Court today overturned the DOJ’s use of 18 USC 1512(c)(2), the most prevalent felony in J6 cases.

The statute, commonly referred to as “obstruction of an official proceeding,” has been applied in roughly 350 J6 cases; it also represents two of four counts in Special Counsel Jack Smith’s J6-related criminal indictment of Donald Trump in Washington. 

In a 6-3 decision, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote that the “c2” subsection is tethered to the “c1” subsection that addresses tampering with a record, document, or “object.”

From the opinion:

Roberts was joined by Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Ketanji Brown Jackson. Justice Amy Coney Barrett authored the dissent (!) joined by Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor.

Today’s decision means hundreds of Americans have been wrongfully prosecuted by Attorney General Merrick Garland as he insists his department is dedicated to upholding the “rule of law” and pursuing justice “without fear or favor.”

An Irreversible Black Eye for DOJ and Federal Courts in Washington

The matter originated in the case of Joseph Fischer, a Pennsylvania man who attended Trump’s speech and later went to the Capitol. According to court documents, Fischer briefly entered the building around 3:25 p.m., nearly an hour after the joint session of Congress to certify the electoral college votes had recessed. He exited about four minutes later.

In March 2021, a D.C. grand jury indicted Fischer on numerous counts including 1512(c)(2). The statute reads:

Whoever corruptly— 

(1) alters, destroys, mutilates, or conceals a record, document, or other object, or attempts to do so, with the intent to impair the object’s integrity or availability for use in an official proceeding; or 

(2) otherwise obstructs, influences, or impedes any official proceeding, or attempts to do so.

It is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

Fischer, in addition to many J6ers facing the count, asked his judge to dismiss the charge. Judge Carl Nichols, appointed by Trump, dismissed the count against Fischer and two other defendants by finding the language in the post-Enron/Arthur Anderson statute covered tampering with records or documents not interrupting a meeting of Congress. The DOJ appealed Nichols’ decision.

In December, SCOTUS granted Fischer’s petition to grant cert seeking to reverse the appellate court’s mandate. Oral arguments were held on April 16.

Nichols is the only judge to have dismissed the count; 18 district and circuit court judges in Washington refused to dismiss the count. The judges essentially enabled the Biden DOJ’s unlawful pursuit of Americans who protested Biden’s election that day.

The List of Shame:

Judge Beryl Howell (Obama, former chief judge)

Judge James Boasberg (Obama, current chief judge)

Judge Rudolph Contreras (Obama)

Judge Trevor McFadden (Trump)

Judge John Bates (GW Bush)

Judge Amit Mehta (Obama)

Judge Dabny Friedrich (Trump)

Judge Royce Lamberth (Reagan)

Judge Richard Leon (GW Bush)

Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly (Clinton)

Judge Amy Berman Jackson (Obama)

Judge Timothy Kelly (Trump)

Judge Randolph Moss (Clinton)

Judge Paul Friedman (Clinton)

Judge Christopher Cooper (Obama)

D.C. Circuit Court Judge Florence Pan (Biden)—Pan wrote both appellate court decisions upholding 1512c2

D.C. Circuit Court Judge Justin Walker (Trump)

D.C. Circuit Court Judge Cornelia Pillard

There Goes Your Summer, Your Honor

The federal courthouse in Washington has been bracing for a flood of motions post-Fischer; a few judges have released individuals from prison in anticipation of a reversal. Roughly 110 J6ers have been sentenced to prison on 1512(c)(2) convictions; several J6ers were held under pretrial detention for being charged with the nonviolent obstruction count alone.

But despite the law’s legal limbo over the past year, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Matthew Graves, a Biden appointee, continued to indict J6ers on 1512(c)(2) while some judges continued to sentence those convicted to lengthy prison terms. Last month, Beryl Howell, the former chief judge who upheld the 1512(c)(2) charges for defendants in her courtroom, sentenced a Missouri man to 60 months in prison for the 1512 conviction and assault on police.

In January 2022, Howell gave the green light for her colleagues to support the DOJ’s use of the obstruction count. Here is what she said in denying a motion to dismiss filed by two J6ers:

“For over 200 years, the peaceful transition of power from one presidential administration to another has been marked with Congress's certification of the Electoral College vote; and this event has been respectfully observed by American citizens, but not on January 6, 2021. And I start with this historical fact because what happened on January 6th was a chilling new type of criminal conduct to which our criminal laws have never before had to be applied. Application of criminal laws to conduct never before seen, like what occurred on January 6, 2021, appropriately generates the kind of legal questions the defendants raise here about whether the criminal law fits the charged criminal conduct.”

The first judge to uphold the obstruction charge in J6 cases was Trump-appointee Dabny Friedrich. In 2021, she agreed that interrupting a meeting of Congress met the definition of “official proceeding” and that the statute’s broad language did not require the government to prove the conduct involved tampering with records or documents.

Ironically—or not—Friedrich is married to Matthew Friedrich, a former DOJ official who worked on the Enron Task Force alongside Andrew Weissman and current deputy attorney general Lisa Monaco. The 1512(c)(2) statute was a product of the Enron/Arthur Anderson investigation; Weissmann, as the lead prosecutor for Special Counsel Robert Mueller in the bogus Russiagate probe, pushed the DOJ to charge Trump with 1512(c)(2) while in office.

Retired judge Thomas Hogan recently warned how a SCOTUS’s reversal of 1512(c)(2) would affect the DC courthouse. Here is Hogan, who upheld the statute in J6 prosecutions, with former DOJ official and FISAgate mastermind Mary McCord:

Reacting to the SCOTUS decision, Geri Perna, aunt of Matthew Perna, told me this by email:

“When Matthew was unexpectedly charged with the felony of Obstruction of an Official Proceeding—after initially facing only misdemeanors—his world collapsed. The weight of a potential lengthy prison sentence bore down on him, filling his days with insurmountable worry and anxiety. At that time, there was no glimmer of hope that this severe charge would be dropped.

Matthew has now been dead for 28 months. In the wake of his passing, the Supreme Court of the United States is finally set to rule on whether the Department of Justice wrongfully applied 1512(c)(2) in January 6 cases. As much as I am hopeful for a just ruling in favor of the January 6 defendants, I am consumed by a profound sense of loss and anger. My nephew's death was both avoidable and senseless.

I feel cheated, and if that sounds selfish, then so be it. The pain of losing Matthew under such circumstances is a burden I carry every day. I fervently hope that those responsible for wielding this charge erroneously will be held accountable in a court of law. However, I am not holding my breath.”

[l-1-z-a]

A reading list from The Sims (2000) game guide

Here are some titles that might enhance your understanding of some of the background and social issues entertained in The Sims.

Warning: all are filled with provocative ideas; Maxis disavows any responsibility for encouraging deep thought.

1. Home: A Short History of an Idea by Witold Rybczynski (July 1987), Penguin USA; ISBN: 0140102310

2. Notes on the Synthesis of Form by Christopher W. Alexander (June 1970), Harvard University Press; ISBN: 0674627512

3. A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction by Christopher Alexander, Sara Ishikawa, Murray Silverstein (1977), Oxford University Press (Trade); ISBN: 0195019199

4. Architecture: Form, Space, & Order by Frank D. K. Ching, Francis D. Ching (February 1996), John Wiley & Sons; ISBN: 0471286168

5. Housing by Lifestyle: The Component Method of Residential Design by James W. Wentling (November 1994), McGraw-Hill; ISBN: 0070692939

6. Time for Life: The Surprising Ways Americans Use Their Time by John P. Robinson, Geoffrey Godbey (Contributor), Robert Putnam (June 1997), Pennsylvania State University Press (Trade); ISBN: 0271016523

7. Maps of the Mind by C. Hampden-Turner (March 1982), MacMillan Publishing Company; ISBN: 0025477404

8. Hidden Order: The Economics of Everyday Life by David D. Friedman (September 1997), HarperCollins; ISBN: 0887308856

9. Making the Most of Your Llama by Linda C. Beattie (Editor), Araneen Witmer (Illustrator), Kathyrn Doll (Editor), Dr. Linda Beattie (September 1998), Kopacetic Ink; ISBN: 0961963417

10. Finding Your Perfect Love by Arthur Clark, Cassandra Skouras (January 1998), Rosebud Press; ISBN: 0965276902

11. The User Illusion: Cutting Consciousness Down to Size by Tor Norretranders, Jonathan Sydenham (Translator) (April 1998), Viking Press; ISBN: 0670875791

Was found here:

[savage-kult-of-gorthaur]

"SEE, THIS AIN'T AMERICA'S MOST WANTED, THIS IS AMERICA'S MOST MACKIN'!"

PIC(S) INFO: Mega spotlight on American hip-hop group, BEASTIE BOYS, walking down Franklin Ave., Los Angeles (Hollywood), CA, from the B. Boys' "Check Your Head" photo-session, c. 1991. 📸: Glen E. Friedman.

OVERVIEW: "We met up by the Capitol Records building and eventually ended up in a beach parking lot in Santa Monica. Same lot you would have parked in if you had a car and were going to Arthur Lake's parents home in ‘76 to skate their pool. Pictures from this day ended up on the cover of "CHECK YOUR HEAD" and on various other merchandise the boys put out.

This is one of my FAVORITES from the day.

Hearing this album in the studio with them for the first time while they were working on the sequencing is what inspired me to ask them to do the photo session. They already had the LP cover done I was told, but that was fine by me, once I faxed them some of these they changed direction and threw a Fax on the cover of the LP. On the cassette and later CD they used the actual photograph. Inspired, conquered. Great day, amazing work. They also met AWOL for the first time this day, since i asked him if he'd mind hauling us around in his van and hang out."

-- GLEN E. FRIEDMAN (American photographer/living legend)

Sources: www.instagram.com/p/CSXscEqrXtL, Reddit, Pinterest, StreetArtNews, various, etc...

[luxe-pauvre]

Physicians often scoff at the suggestion that their prescribing habits might be swayed by the blandishments of pharmaceutical companies. This had been a cornerstone of Arthur Sackler’s worldview: the notion that doctors are priest-like figures, immune to flattery or temptation or greed, focused exclusively on the narrow dictates of appropriate medical care. In Arthur’s view, it was laughable — even insulting — to insinuate that a colourful ad or a steak dinner might be enough to sway the clinical judgment of an MD. Doctors, he argued, simply can’t be bought. But, of course, this is no more true today than it was when Arthur Sackler said it. Doctors are human, and the notion that donning a white coat might somehow shield them from temptation is a fantasy. A 2016 study found that purchasing even a single meal with a value of $20 for a physician can be enough to change the way that he prescribes. And for all their lip service to the contrary, the Sacklers didn’t need studies to tell them this. Some years, Purdue would allocate as much as $9 million just to buy food for doctors. Richard Sackler was enough of a stickler for detail that he would never countenance such an outlay of funds unless he was assured a good return on investment. In a 1996 email to Michael Friedman, he pointed out that according to Purdue’s own data, “physicians who attended the dinner programs or the weekend meetings wrote more than double the number of new Rxs for OxyContin compared to the control group.” (“Rx” is an abbreviation for prescription.) He noted that “weekend meetings had the greatest impact. Even physicians who took no hand-outs from the company proved to be highly susceptible to the message Purdue was promoting. “The primary goal of medical practice is the relief of suffering, and one of the most common types of suffering that doctors see is pain,” David Juurlink, who runs the Division of Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology at the University of Toronto, pointed out. “You’ve got a patient in pain, you’ve got a doctor who genuinely wants to help, and now suddenly you have an intervention that — we are told — is safe and effective.” What the company was really selling, some of Purdue’s marketing materials suggested, was “hope in a bottle.”

Patrick Radden Keefe, Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty