#Jimmy John’s Rewards program

[sandboxworld]

Jimmy John’s is ready for Canada:

“The Sandwich of Sandwiches” opens its first Canadian location  in Toronto Peter Mammas, President and CEO of Foodtastic (left) and Michael Haley, President and Managing Director Jimmy John’s, the popular American sandwich brand known for its high-quality ingredients and speedy service, has opened its first Canadian location in Toronto near Sherway Gardens, at 197 North Queen St., Etobicoke. …

[starwarsnonsense]

Best Films of 2019 (So Far)

It’s that time of year again! As most of my followers probably know, I’m an avid cinema-goer beyond Star Wars. I also quite enjoy making lists, so what’s better than a combo of the two? Below, I run down my top 10 films of 2019 so far - please note that this list is based on UK cinema release dates, so some of these films were 2018 releases elsewhere.

What are your favourites so far from this year? Let me know in replies/asks!

Honourable mentions: Toy Story 4, Long Shot, Aladdin, Alita: Battle Angel & The Kid Who Would Be King

1. The Favourite, dir. Yorgos Lanthimos

This completely wowed me - it features a trio of magnificently compelling female characters (played by Olivia Colman, Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone) operating at the court of Queen Anne (Colman is Anne, Weisz and Stone are courtiers), and is focused solely on the shifting sands of the power dynamics between them. The script is savage without sacrificing poignancy, witty without ceasing to be genuine. And while I’ve seen some react to this film as a comedy (and it certainly has laughs, most of which are closely tied to shock), for me it was very clearly a drama about the inscrutable and complicated relationships that exist between women. Specifically, it is about how those relationships run the gamut from sincere affinity to ruthless manipulation. This is an amazing movie, and it also has the best use of an Elton John song in 2019 (sorry, Rocketman!).

2. Midsommar, dir. Ari Aster

I went into this film with reservations, since I wasn’t a huge fan of Hereditary (by the same director), which I found to have extraordinary moments but iffy execution overall. This movie, however, wowed me, and I am still uncertain as to whether this or The Favourite is my top film of 2019 so far (fortunately, this gives me a good excuse to watch Midsommar three or four times in cinemas). While marketed as a freaky cult horror film, the director has described it as a fairy tale, which is the level on which is spoke to me. Midsommar follows Dani (an incredible Florence Pugh), a young woman who has suffered a terrible loss, as she travels with her boyfriend and his friends to a pagan festival in the Swedish countryside. Dani is painfully isolated, and her grief is hers to shoulder alone since her boyfriend is un-receptive and distinctly unprepared to help her. Over the course of the film, destruction and creation are conflated in ways that are frequently beautiful and horrific at the same time - this film spoke to me on a profound level, and the way it ended gave me a sense of incredible catharsis. This won’t be for everyone, for I found it to be a deeply special film and I can’t recommend it enough.

3. One Cut of the Dead, dir.  Shinichirou Ueda

While I went into The Favourite with high expectations given the talent involved, I went into this with no expectations whatsoever - and what a treat it was! One Cut of the Dead is easily one of the funniest movies I’ve seen in ears, taking what initially seems like a trite concept (a crew is filming a zombie movie at a desolate location ... only to discover that the zombies are real!) and twisting it in a truly ingenious way. The comedy is often of the broad variety, but it is consistently delightful and always manages to avoid becoming crass - the movie even has some really sweet family dynamics at the centre of it, which gives it some real emotional heft. The success of this film is heavily reliant on a major twist that occurs part-way through, so the best advice I can give you is to stay as far away from spoilers for this one as possible - go in blind, and you will be amply rewarded for your faith.

4. The Farewell, dir. Lulu Wang

I saw this following a wave of festival hype, so while I was excited I was also a bit apprehensive (since I have been burned by the aforementioned festival hype before). Thankfully, my doubts were blown away as this turned out to be just as wonderful as the early reviews had suggested. It’s a personal story about a young Asian-American woman (Awkwafina) struggling to reconcile her heritage with her current situation and values - specifically, she is tested when her grandmother is diagnosed with terminal cancer and the wider family make the decision to hide the truth from her. The Farewell does a fantastic job of generating empathy for all the different perspectives and positions in play, but it’s truly anchored by Awkwafina’s amazingly nuanced and tender performance - basically, anyone who’s ever loved a grandparent should leave this feeling incredibly moved and inspired. The themes of The Farewell are both specific to the Asian-American experience and general to anyone who has struggled with maintaining bonds over a vast distance, whether physical or cultural.           

5. Booksmart, dir. Olivia Wilde

God, how I wish I’d had this movie as a teenager! While Booksmart has a cliched premise - two high-achieving teens decide to have one wild night before graduation - it tells the story in an incredibly charming and impressively creative way (I won’t spoil it, but let me just say this - that scene with the Barbies!). As someone who was an awkward nerd with no discernible social life in high school (as you Americans call it), I found this portrayal of that peculiar limbo period very sensitive and thoughtful - it doesn’t mock or shame its heroines for being studious, and it allows them to have limits and step back from situations that make them uncomfortable. It also serves as a beautifully honest portrait of a friendship, depicting the qualities that bring people together in friendship together in the first place, as well as the forces that can break people apart. This is a very accomplished debut from Wilde, and it makes me very excited to see where she goes next as a director.

6. A Private War, dir. Matthew Heineman

This was a very suspenseful and tightly focused film about an extraordinary woman, and the film soars on the strength of Rosamund Pike’s incredible performance as Marie Colvin. She provides piercing insights into the psyche of a person so driven to pursue truth and enact change that she loses all concern for her own wellbeing - it’s simultaneously a portrait of heroism and obsession, and it’s impressive for how it handles the ambiguity inherent in Colvin’s choices. She’s exceptionally brave, but the film is unflinching in depicting the costs of her bravery. It left me feeling inspired to learn more about Colvin’s life and work, and I still need to watch the documentary Under the Wire to get more insight into the real story behind the film.

7. Fighting With My Family, dir. Stephen Merchant

This is the year of Florence Pugh - she killed it in Midsommar, and she is just as fantastic here. If anything, Fighting With My Family and Midsommar make great complements as they serve as fantastic showcases for Pugh’s range as an actor. While her character in Midsommar is fragile and vulnerable, Fighting With My Family is a platform for her strength and comedic skill. As Paige, Pugh is instantly likable and compelling - I don’t give a damn about any form of wrestling, but this film (and Pugh specifically) did a fantastic job of drawing me in and making me root for Paige’s struggle to prove herself as a legitimate force in wrestling. This is a real underdog story, and Pugh did a wonderful job as the Cinderella of the WWE.

8. Apollo 11, dir. Todd Douglas Miller

My dad has always been crazy about the space program, but I hadn’t picked up the bug myself. That changed after I watched this extraordinary documentary, which brought the Apollo 11 mission to vivid life. The footage that’s used for this documentary is extraordinarily crisp, and some moments are vividly powerful - the crew getting into their spacesuits, the swirl of fire surrounding the moment of takeoff, and the journey of the spacecraft towards the moon. It left me feeling moved and touched by human potential, especially when you remember that this all happened 50 years ago when the available technologies were so fragile and primitive. I also loved how the footage was allowed to speak for itself, with no voiceover or exposition - it’s a must-see for anyone who’s ever looked up at the stars and wondered about reaching them.

9. High Life, dir. Claire Denis

This movie is second to only Midsommar in terms of how weird it is. I saw this in a Hungarian cinema while on holiday, which made for a disorientating experience in itself. While the meaning of the film is quite elusive and I’m sure that many people will find viewing it a uniquely frustrating experience, I appreciated how it created a hothouse environment that brought out some of the ugliest aspects of humanity. Robert Pattinson was great as what comes closest to amounting to our protagonist, though he is as inscrutable and inaccessible as the film itself. I can’t quite pin down why I liked this one so much, but I know I did and it made me want to seek out more of Claire Denis’ work. 

10. Free Solo, dir. Jimmy Chin & Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi

It’s tragic that most people will only watch this documentary on a TV screen (or, so much worse, a laptop!). I was fortunate enough to see it in its full IMAX glory, and it’s rare to see any film - let alone a documentary - take such full advantage of the format. The woozy spectacle of this film is the real star, though the subject - mountain climber Alex Honnold - is also fascinating with his unnerving detachment from the magnitude of what he is setting out on. It is clearly a necessary detachment for him to be able to achieve what he achieves, but I appreciated how the filmmakers questioned it and explored its impact on his girlfriend. This is a compelling documentary, and is worth watching even if you’re not usually a fan of the genre.

[zenlesszonezero]

[blakegalloway-blog]

Online Community Building

As mentioned in Social Organization, there are many ways to effectively build a community online. One example would be connecting with a business that already has an established social media presence, as this increases the chances of success for your business. For instance, a small business just starting out can reach out to a larger business in the community that already has social media pages that are successful. Maybe a new bakery could talk to a hotel in the area and ask if they can give out free samples in their lobby, and the hotel can post online about the new bakery and how they will be offering free samples to get them more publicity.

Another principle addressed in the book is that there should be a direct alignment between business goals and member benefits. This means that your consumers need to benefit from your social media pages. For instance, Jimmy Johns has a “Freaky Fast Rewards” system where you download their app, make a purchase, and you receive a free sandwich. (This program is very new, so check to see if it’s in your area here https://online.jimmyjohns.com/rewards?_ga=2.262520396.1912893843.1564188384-1082780658.1564188384). Many companies use this technique of offering free products in exchange for an app download, and it is effective because people love free products.

The Hootsuite module also mentioned some effective ways to build an online community, like making sure you’re connecting to your offline community as well as your online community. You need to keep your current followers engaged, but it is important to understand why the people who are not following you are not following you. Perhaps an incentive (much like the Jimmy Johns example listed above) would create more people to follow your page. Maybe if you offer a percentage off your product or service after someone follows you or reposts something of yours on social media, more people would interact with your company.

Another important lesson I learned from the module was that it is important to reply to comments that customers post on your page, whether they are positive or negative. Positive comments are easy to “like” and ignore but reassure that customer that you are happy they are happy with your company. Negative comments may anger you, but it would be beneficial get to the bottom of the situation. Maybe the customer had expectations that you did not know about, and therefore did not meet. Always follow up with your customers. Also, if they ask questions, make sure you reply to them. If you do not know the answer, be honest with them and try to direct them to someone who may know the answer. Effective community building will take some time and effort, but overall, it could impact your company immensely.

In terms of the client I am working with for the client project, I am working with a local company called Commercial Building Group. They are a construction company, and always try to network with other companies, like glass companies also working on the same job site, to try get more jobs to their company. So far, Commercial Building Group does not have a social media presence, so they can learn a lot about how to effectively use social media. For instance, they know to always reply to customers on social media pages and answer their questions. They also will know that offering exclusive discounts to social media followers can be an incentive to follow their pages.  

[newagesispage]

                                                  APRIL                      2019

PAGE   RIB

***** The Rolling Stones have cancelled their North American tour. Mick Jagger apologized for cancelling due to undisclosed medical treatments.  Oh Baby, Get Well Soon!!!!

***** Mick and his squeeze, Melanie Hamrick have put together a ballet set to Stones music called Porte Rouge. After premiering in Russia it will come to NY on April 18 for an opening night charity event to benefit Youth America Grand Prix.  Tickets start at $600.

***** Tina Fey and Carol Burnett  are working on a movie about Carol’s book, Carrie and me: A Mother –Daughter love story.

***** When I hear Bernie Sanders going on, I can’t help but think of Jimmy Carter. He was pushing many of these messages in the seventies. He tried to get us to have more respect for the land and to save energy and the greedy wrote him off as boring and the era of greed took over. Will we listen this time?

***** The Mueller report was finally turned over to Attorney General William Barr. This has started a whole new set of problems. Barr gives us a summary that is like springtime for Trump. He jumps right in to those that done him wrong and FISA warrants. Should congress get a look at the full report? Everyone is talking over each other and don’t seem to hear what the other is saying. Everybody piles on Adam Schiff because they think he isn’t accepting the report like a good Dem should. If they would listen, he makes it very clear that he respects the findings but they need to see the report. How dare they ask HIM to resign as Intel committee chair. It was heartwarming to see his backbone. They must quit backing down. We still don’t have the whole story but he still free to say that he thinks the actions we already know of were wrong. What the hell is wrong with that? Barr is supposed to release the heavily redacted report in mid- April. No collusion? Perhaps, Scary Clown 45 would probably not get his hands dirty. Obstruction? We’ll see. ** Tyler Mcgaughey, William Barrs son in law will now advise Trump and the White House staff. ** I am really sick of listening to the old white man POV.

***** Dow chemical has donated a mil to Trump’s campaign. Strange that Trump has blocked a report  that took years of research and shows proof of Dow toxic pesticides which jeopardizes over 1,200 endangered species.

***** US from Jordan Peele opened to 70.3 mil. Just like his last movie, critics tell us to watch it twice. How great for the bottom line.

***** John McCarty, a dead man is running for village President in Spring Bay, Il.

***** Look out for the new film, The Kid, directed by Vincent D’onofrio. The western stars Ethan Hawke, Chris Pratt, Hawk , D’onofrio , MorningStar Angeline and Leila George.

***** Did you ever see the reunion movie ‘Return to Green Acres? ‘  They tried to warn us of who Trump was a long time ago. How strange that it came full circle with that ridic Emmy Green Acres thing he did.

***** Shaq has become a deputy sheriff and has also been added to the board of directors of Papa John’s where he is an investor.

***** In sexual harassment news, Lucy Flores, a former Nevada assemblywoman has accused Joe Biden of unwanted touching and kissing at a 2014 campaign event.

***** Mark Hamill will voice the Chucky doll in the new Child’s Play.

***** Law and Order will get its 21st season.

***** The daytime Emmy noms have been announced and Days got the most this year. WOO HOO! The soap was nominated for drama, writing, costume, music, casting, art direction and oh, just everything. In the acting category the lead noms are Marci Miller, Tyler Christopher and Billy Flynn.  Kate Mansi was noticed for a guest spot as Abigail so 2 actresses are up for Emmys in the same role. Other guest noms went to Thaao Penghlis and Philip Anthony Rodriguez. Kassie Depaiva, Linsey Godfrey (really?), Martha Madison, Greg Rikaart and Eric Martsolf were all nominated.  Younger actor nods went to Olivia Rose Keegan, Lucas Adams, Victoria Konefal and Kyler Pettis.  C’mon , why nothing for Lauren Koslow, Greg Vaughan, Casey Moss, Susan Seaforth Hayes and Robert Scott Wilson?? I think I would switch a few of these around but it is still great to see Days so blessed.  I was also happy to see Max Gail from GH get noticed. CBS led the networks in noms. Hooray for Wayne Brady for game show host and Mark Hamill, Ruth Negga and Steve Buscemi in animated programs. Watch for the Daytime Emmys on May 5 which will not be on television again.

***** General Robert Neller has told the Pentagon that funds diverted to the wall are keeping Marines from rebuilding hurricane hit bases.

***** Devin Nunes is suing Twitter for the parody accounts, Devin Nunes Mom and Dvin Nunes cow which is pretty funny.

***** The EU is banning straw, cotton swabs and plastic cutlery by 2021.

***** Jenny McCarthy has a book out that slams The View.

***** Roseanne is thinking about suing ABC and has said some rather nasty stuff about Sara Gilbert.

***** Michael Avenatti was arrested for trying to extort $20 mil from Nike in NY. He claims he was just doing some lawyering.  California has him on bank fraud charges.  Why is there so much shadiness in this world? Let’s start rewarding the people doing good in this world and quit talking these headlines everyday.

***** Why did this Jussie Smollett thing go away?

***** Wal Mart is walking back this getting rid of the elderly and handicapped greeter thing.

***** Tracy Morgan and Will Forte are to star in the new animated Scooby Doo movie.

***** Johnny Depp has sued ex Amber Heard over the abuse allegations.

***** Martha Stewart is diving into the Marijuana product industry.

***** New York charges Manafort with 16 crimes. Perhaps he won’t get off as lightly with the state crimes.

***** Season 9 of American Horror Story has no premiere date yet. Emma Roberts is confirmed to return. It looks like it will also include Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters and silver medalist Gus Kenworthy.

***** New California Gov. Gavin Newsom has halted executions for now.

***** Dems will hold their convention in Milwaukee. And if I hear again that Hillary didn’t go to these sorts of places, I am gonna puke. She went! She went! Just not so much at the end.

***** Howard Stern will release his first book in 20 years this May.

***** Ok, so glad to see Whoopie Goldberg is starting to get back to work but it is just so unbelievable in this day and age and access to info that she seemed shocked that the insurance companies decide people’s fate. Of course, that is if you are lucky enough to have insurance.

***** Sandy Hook families can take lawsuits against the gun companies to court now.** Three suicides have recently come from survivors and a parent of Parkland and Sandy Hook. The pain goes on.

***** The Senate voted 59-41 to terminate the emergency declaration. VETO

***** Rick Singer, founder if a college prep business had pled guilty to money laundering, obstruction of justice and racketeering. The nationwide college entrance exam scandal involves about 50 people including Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin that dates back to 2011. People paid millions to use ringers to take or fix their children’s exams and sometimes faked photos with coaches to include them in sports they were never involved in. The U.S. attorney does not believe the schools themselves were involved. **Lawsuits have already begun from those claiming they could not get into a good college because those spots were taken by these alleged cheaters.

***** Jennifer Hudson will play Aretha Franklin in the biopic.

***** Experts say a recession is on the horizon.

***** Two Sacramento police officers will face no charges for their overkill of the unarmed Stephon Clark. Oh Big surprise!!

***** White supremacist groups on line are growing faster than ISIS. ** I never get it, if white supremacists are so supreme, so wonderful, wouldn’t they rise to the top naturally? Why do they need to rid the world of others or keep minorities down?? If they think others are so inferior, those they hate or fear should not be a problem .

***** Jeanine Pirro was pulled off Fox news after a racist rant about Muslims. ** And where is Rudy? The lawyer hasn’t been seen on the air since January. ** Is this true? Did Ivanka and Jared really try to resign? Did Scary Clown 45 try to push them into it and then not accept those resignations?

***** This can’t be true. Only 5 states have laws requiring patient consent for medical students to do vaginal exams on women under sedation.

***** I rarely think about Jay Leno but he was right about the late night comics all doing different versions of the same joke.  But, who is he to talk? I mean how many different things did you do on OJ and Clinton?? At least these guys are funny.

***** The talk that people stay in their bubble becomes crystal clear when you see the poll asking if the President is truthful: Fox viewers : 84%, MSNBC viewers : 21% and CNN viewers: 1%. Whoa!

***** Word is that Scary Clown ordered economic advisor Gary Cohn to pressure the Justice Department to file a lawsuit to block the Att-Time Warner merger to retaliate against CNN.

***** At least 250 power plants across the country are leaking toxic chemicals into nearby water.

***** Jay Inslee is running for president! I think Stacey Abrams and Jay Inslee would be a nice ticket>

***** Beta O’Rourke is running for President! The psychedelic warlord!

***** Kristen Gillibrand is running for President!

***** Conor McGregor was arrested and charged with felony strong armed robbery and criminal mischief in Miami.

***** The process is in the works to get Trumps tax returns.** The house Judiciary committee has requested 81 documents.** This can’t be true. Trump was signing Bibles for volunteers and survivors in Alabama??

***** Just when it can’t get any weirder: Li Yang and her hubby, Zubin Gong run a string of massage parlors with questionable reputations. Until recently they ran the one that Robert Kraft was busted in. They also had a web site that seemed to sell access to their buddy, Donald Trump with Chinese business contacts. As soon as the story broke, the sites for an international consulting firm, text only in Chinese and no prices for the meets came down. Li Yang and her associates are in pictures at the inauguration, the White House, Mar A Lago and Trump’s super bowl party with the Pres, his sons and other Trump family members. We should have seen this coming. The old adage that always holds true with this administration seems true here. They always blame others for what they are really guilty of, this explains the Pizzagate garbage. This could be bigger than we ever dreamed. Even stories that we may have thought a bit out there need to be looked at closer. Can we connect the sex trafficking, the White House, the money? It is time to quit fucking around with the sellers and customers of those exploited in the sex trade. I don’t get it, all these men from Trump to R Kelly have the power over the women they supposedly use and abuse and yet they are always so angry. Perhaps they wouldn’t be losing their power if you treated others with respect and dignity. They always want all the power for themselves. And c’mon media, stop talking your heads off about the Omar story and give this Li Yang story a closer look.

***** The story of the fall of Theranos and Elizabeth Holmes is a sad one. It does show that greed and massive fraud are not just for the men of this world. When I first heard of her plans for the blood testing, I was so impressed with what she was accomplishing at her age. Yes, she was another poor little rich girl whose family fortune was quite diminished by the time it got to her. Even without the Fleischman yeast money, she did seem to have advantages. I can see how some of us were fooled but what about the big investors, the stalwart statesmen?  Do they not remember that if it seems too good to be true, it probably is? How can all the hype, the press, the marketing snowball before there is any proof that something is what is actually supposed to be?? I always assumed that by the time I am hearing about it, things are about ready to go. Seeing all these stories like Trump and Deutsche bank, light sentences for Manafort and now Holmes and her partner in crime seeming to get off lightly, there is not much hope for the little guy. WHY can’t we hold those involved in big money crimes really responsible??

***** It’s true, rich people cause socialism – Neal Brennan.

***** Even in 1692 the rich were different. –Stacy Schiff- The Witches.

***** FEMA released the personal data of 2.3 million victims.

***** They have dug up old words from Fox’s Tucker Carlson. Big surprise that he seemed to empathize with Warren Jeffs, thought women should just shut up and called a woman “cunty.”  The women who lap up the words of these men must not think much of themselves.

***** Why are we letting the banks finance detention centers and prisoners? It’s more than immigration or punishing criminals. Why is this big business?? I can’t believe this is still going on. Wake up!!! When will the children be free?  C’mon House and Senate, Pass the Shut Down child prison camps bill.

***** Somebody has to pay for this President’s folly: The scary clown new budget cuts:$ 1.5 trillion from Medicaid/ $845 billion from Medicare/ &25 billion from Social Security.

***** About 1 rural hospital a month is shutting down due to lack of support and lack of funds.

***** Globalization seems to be spreading a pathogen killing the olive trees in Italy.

***** A fake Melania?? WTF? UGH!

***** Matthew Whitaker is out! Bill Shine is out!

***** When will we ever be able to buy the boxed set of Late Night with Dave?? Hurry so the next generation can see the genius they may have missed.

***** Pete Davidson and Kate Beckinsale??

***** Hey Bill Maher, way to go with your PETA message about the terrible treatment of the geese used to make Canada Goose down jackets.  I will stay away!!

***** J Lo and A Rod are engaged.

***** Bette Midler and Judith Light will join the cast of The Politician.

***** Jussie Smollett has been indicted on 16 felony counts.

***** HBO’s Crashing was cancelled. Pete Holmes was great in this but I never really saw much promotion for it. I hate it when good stuff falls thru the cracks.

***** Kathy Griffin has a new film about the ridiculous Trump head, nearly career ending, Government harassment crap in her life. Kathy Griffin: A Hell of a story. Make that lemonade!! A girl has to take care of herself. It premiered at SXSW.** Speaking of SXSW, Alexandria Ocasio Cortez drew great crowds while she was there.

***** R Kelly lives in Trump tower in Chicago. Well, of course he does.  Why is it ok for the rest of us to put up with these arrogant, abusive males in this society? Everyone is giving kudos to Gayle King for her calm demeanor in her interview. Yes, how professional of her but why should she be subject to that disrespect??  She is in her workplace. Would R Kelly have liked his Mother or daughter to be treated that way?

***** So, word is that Isaiah 45 is a Trump thing with the evangelicals. This scripture refers to Cyrus , the anointed one. OY!

***** Days alert: Robin Strasser is coming OH BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!** Judith Chapman and her old style soap acting just too much. ** C’mon Chloe and Rex!!** More Nurse Shelly!! ** Is Johnny Dimera on his way to town? ** I was so glad to see Tony, one of the best characters ever anywhere, even if it was part of an out of body experience.

***** Why do we have to keep talking about George and Kelly Ann Conway?? Are they just covering their bases? With one on each side of the Trump argument, they win no matter what happens right?

***** So now we know that about 400 Catholic clergy have been accused of sexual  misconduct in Illinois. It never ends.

***** End the electoral college!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

***** S

***** Fox has hired Donna Brazile. People seem to finally be taking Bill Maher’s advice and telling their point of view to the other side. How else will sanity prevail if we don’t find common ground? We cannot look to this administration for guidance in this world, we have to figure these things out for ourselves, which we should be able to do anyway.

***** Suicide is the second leading cause of death for 15-24 year olds.  We have to find our self- worth.  

R.I.P. Andy Anderson, Katherine Helmond, Nathaniel Taylor, Luke Perry, Alabama tornado victims, Jan Michael Vincent,  the Ethiopian airlines disaster victims, Hal Blaine, victims of the New Zealand Mosque shootings, Sydney Aiello, the Ogossogou village attack victims, Denise DuBarry, Larry Cohen, Jeremy Richman, Ray Sawyer, Tania Mallet and Nipsey Hussle.

[batmannotes]

DC Universe is gonna launch fully loaded!

Watch exclusive original series, legendary features, epic animated movies, classic TV series and more.

DC Universe released a trailer and new Robin poster today to help promote their upcoming streaming service. Here are some of the shows you’ll get to enjoy.

Members of DC UNIVERSE can:

WATCH exclusive originals and classic favorites;

READ from an extensive list of curated comic books;

CONNECT with the DC community;

EXPLORE the latest breaking news and the ever-expanding DC encyclopedia;

WIN premium rewards and participate in sweepstakes and contests;

SHOP for exclusive merchandise.

Fans can sign up today for an opportunity for beta access, which will open in August 2018. Beta access will give members a chance to test the new digital experience and provide valuable feedback on the early version of the service before it goes live later this fall 2018.

“DC UNIVERSE is so much more than a streaming service. It’s a welcoming place for everyone to immerse themselves in their own level of DC fandom, with the epic characters, stories, and experiences they have come to expect from DC,” said Jim Lee, chief creative officer and publisher, DC Entertainment. “We are investing in and creating original, high-quality shows including the new Titans series, and curating the most beloved nostalgic content, while at the same time elevating the comic reading experience to new heights. Nothing this robust has ever been offered to fans before.”

WATCH

At the heart of DC UNIVERSE will be all-new exclusive original live-action and animated series based on DC’s iconic characters. Developed by Warner Bros. Television, Swamp Thing and Doom Patrol are scheduled to debut in 2019, following the dramatic, live-action adventure series Titans which premieres later this year. Warner Bros. Animation is also developing a slate of animated TV series based on existing fan favorites, including Harley Quinn and the highly anticipated third season of the popular Young Justice: Outsiders animated series which are both scheduled to debut in 2019.

Titans follows young heroes from across the DC Universe as they come of age and find belonging in a gritty take on the classic Teen Titans franchise. Dick Grayson and Rachel Roth, a special young girl possessed by a strange darkness, get embroiled in a conspiracy that could bring Hell on Earth. Joining them along the way are the hot-headed Starfire and loveable Beast Boy. Together they become a surrogate family and team of heroes.

Doom Patrol is a reimagining of one of DC’s strangest group of outcasts: Robotman, Negative Man, Elasti-Woman and Crazy Jane. Led by the mysterious Dr. Niles Caulder they're called into action by the ultimate hero for the digital age, Cyborg. Banding together these rejects find themselves on a mission that will take them to the weirdest and most unexpected corners of the DC universe.

Swamp Thing follows Abby Arcane as she investigates what seems to be a deadly swamp-born virus in a small town in Louisiana but soon discovers that the swamp holds mystical and terrifying secrets. When unexplainable and chilling horrors emerge from the murky marsh, no one is safe.

Young Justice: Outsiders features the return of the fan favorite animated series with a huge cast of DC's most iconic young superheroes - plus brand-new characters, many of whom are just discovering their unique meta-powers and special abilities. Set against the backdrop of a rich, deep world that touches all corners of the DC universe, the season focuses on meta–trafficking, and an intergalactic arms race for control of these super–powered youths.

Harley Quinn follows Harley’s adventures after she breaks up with the Joker and strikes out on her own in this new adult animated comedy. With the help of Poison Ivy and a ragtag crew of DC castoffs, Harley tries to earn a seat at the biggest table in villainy: the Legion of the Doom.

An assortment of DC’s most beloved superhero films will also be available at launch for exclusive streaming windows, including all four original Superman movies as well as a selection of epic animated movies including Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox, Green Lantern: First Flight, and Wonder Woman. The service will also feature classic TV shows, including the first two seasons of Batman: The Animated Series and the original Wonder Woman series available for the first time in HD.

READ

The DC UNIVERSE comics reader will include native, untethered access across devices from a smartphone or tablet to a living room screen rendered in vivid detail. Fans can scroll through some of their favorite comics from the comfort of their couch with family or friends and see this vibrant art form come to life like never before. A curated selection of thousands of DC comics will be available to DC UNIVERSE members from a library that includes decades of comics creations.

Members can read some of the most famous stories in comic book history such as the first 1938 Action Comics that introduced Superman to the world as well as Detective Comics #27 which first introduced Batman in 1939. Other titles include Geoff Johns and Jim Lee’s iconic Justice League (2011), Swamp Thing (2011) written by Scott Snyder, and Harley Quinn (2013) written by Jimmy Palmiotti and Amanda Conner. Rotating selections will cater to both members new to comics and passionate fans looking for hard-to-find titles. Comics can also be downloaded for reading offline on a smartphone or tablet.

“We wanted the DC UNIVERSE comic reader to be a blend of art and technology that would further enhance fans’ experiences of the live-action and animated programming on DC UNIVERSE,” said Dan DiDio, publisher, DC Entertainment. “This hand-curated selection from our decades of comic creations gives fans a thematic digital longbox to carry with them on the device of their choosing or lets them watch exclusive video content on a big screen followed by the comic that inspired it.”

CONNECT

The community within DC UNIVERSE will be a place where members can rate, create and share their own personalized playlists of their favorite heroes and villains. Members can personalize their profile and select their own avatar, be it Superman, Wonder Woman, or another heroic character or symbol. Designed to be a place for finding commonality and sharing favorite rivalries or the latest list of must-read comic books, members will have a forum for posting information, finding friendship and sharing their DC passions in a shared, moderated space within DC UNIVERSE.

EXPLORE & WIN

Latest news, an extensive DC encyclopedia, and chances to win round out the membership benefits of DC UNIVERSE. Short-form news, interviews and previews in daily video segments will keep fans up-to-date on the latest from all corners of the DC universe. The ever-expanding DC encyclopedia, to which fans can contribute, will house bios of hundreds of DC characters and places. In addition, members will have chances to win premium rewards, including game unlocks, first-chance access to pop-culture events, exclusive experiences and more.  

SHOP

Exclusively for DC UNIVERSE members, DC Collectibles—the award-winning line of collectibles from DC Entertainment—will offer a wide range of new action figures and collector’s items based on DC’s iconic characters and stories. Members will have exclusive access to all-new six-inch Justice League Animated action figures based on designs from the fan-favorite animated series (2001-2004), starting in fall 2018. In addition to DC Collectibles, members will have access to a wide range of exclusive, curated and hard-to-find DC merchandise from a variety of licensing partners before the rest of the world.

The operation of DC UNIVERSE will be managed by Sam Ades, general manager and senior vice president, Warner Bros. Digital Networks, based in Burbank. The digital media executive formerly served as the senior vice president, direct to consumer, for DC Entertainment, where he was responsible for creating and executing DC’s digital marketing strategy.

DC UNIVERSE will be available in the United States at launch on iOS, Android, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and Android TV, as well as the web and mobile web. To learn more and register for an opportunity for beta access, visit dcuniverse.com and follow DC UNIVERSE on social networks including Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Watch the trailer below!

Be the first to sign up for updates: https://yourdcu.com/twsizzle1

[jazzviewswithcjshearn]

Somethin’ old, somethin’ blue: Jimmy Smith Plays Pretty Just For You (Blue Note, 1957).

Jimmy Smith: organ; Eddie McFadden: guitar; Donald Bailey: drums

Plays Pretty Just For You was Jimmy Smith's 11th Blue Note album, and sixth session of 1957.  Up to that point Smith's Hammond organ style was revolutionary, while his very first album A New Sound, A New Star, Jimmy Smith At The Organ (Blue Note, 1956) found the precocious 28 year old displaying influences in Wild Bill Davis and Bill Doggett, the majority of his catalog was firebreathing.  Smith's recordings were designed to feature exciting takes on bebop tunes, blues, standards and ballads, but the present recording focused on Smith playing standards with emphasis on melody with his regular group of Eddie McFadden on guitar and Donald Bailey on drums.  Smith's previous recordings of the year more often then not featured him in all star ensembles with all star hornmen like Lou Donaldson, Hank Mobley and Donald Byrd and rhythm section partners Kenny Burrell and Art Blakey.  Smith's new trio with McFadden replacing Thornel Schwartz and Donald Bailey remaining on drums was only featured on a track on A Date With Jimmy Smith, Vol. 1, a track from At The Organ, Vol 2, and half of The Sounds of Jimmy Smith.McFadden offered a more diverse, interesting second solo voice than that of Schwartz and finely tuned accompaniment from Bailey.

Smith's trio would travel to the ballroom of the Manhattan Towers Hotel, the site of his previous recordings just a few months earlier in February, and tackle 9 pieces, 8 of which yielded the original LP. Hoagy Carmichael's “The Nearness Of You” kicks off the program with a slow burn.  Smith shows the influence of his predecessors with rich, full organ and block chords mainly sticking to the melody. Eddie McFadden' dark toned guitar takes the lead with a gentle solo and Bailey's brushes on ride offering ever steady support.  An unusual choice of “Jitterbug Waltz” by Fats Waller with it's 3/4 skittering gallop anticipates Plays Fats Waller by five years, sees Smith alternating between the same setting for his Errol Garner infused sound he'd use for “squabbling”, and all stops out full organ, as McFadden lays out on this number.  “East Of The Sun” is the first uptempo number, and “Autumn in New York” maintains it's rich hues through Smith's full throated chords, and a dramatic ending.  “Penthouse Serenade” has the organist's signature squabbling technique and sensual float courtesy of Bailey's half time on the melody and McFadden's quarter note comping.  Only on “I Can't Get Started” does Smith first display the ahead of the beat, skittering soloing with the first 3 drawbars out and no percussion for the first time on the album, and reprises that style on “Old Devil Moon” offering more of the approach to soloing that would influence legions of organists.  The trio recorded another take of “Somebody Loves Me”  previously recorded in February and slotted as the album closer on The Sounds Of Jimmy Smith at the same May 8, 1957 session but it was not issued until 1996 only in Japan on Cherokee.  The track was  later issued in 2004 on the Japanese Rudy Van Gelder mastered edition of Plays Pretty Just For You.

Sound

Jimmy Smith Plays Pretty Just For You is a unique and historic entry into the Blue Note catalog in that it is the label's second session issued in stereo.  Rudy Van Gelder would run both stereo and mono tape decks simultaneously until the Moanin' session by Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers in October 1958, whereas all mono versions would be made from stereo fold downs. Earlier on May 8th, Van Gelder taped The Stylings Of Silver by Horace Silver that afternoon in Hackensack, NJ and the Smith session later that evening in NYC.  What is unusual about this session is that the stereo image is atypical of most Blue Notes of the period because the drums are on the left channel, organ in the center and guitar on the right.  Clearly Alfred Lion and Van Gelder were trying to figure out the right kind of sound with the new technology, before settling on guitar in the left, organ in the center and drums on the right for future sessions.  Consequently, the engineer was still trying to figure out the best placement and sound at Manhattan Towers using remote equipment used on live sessions. The organ has tons of presence, especially with all stops out it rings loud and clear, McFadden's guitar has a rich depth and Bailey's cymbals shimmer.  The rear sound stage has lots of hall and reverb depth, and in the 1994 Japanese CD TOCJ 1563 that I have, has a 3 dimensional sound stage similar to that of the  Audiowave Blue Note XRCD's.  “I Can't Get Started” has an annoying high pitched tape squeal at the start, but this was also present on a 70's United Artists Blue Note era blue label vinyl pressing I've heard.  Overall though the sound is very detailed and vivid.  Unquestionably Smith used a wider range of tone colors on the organ in the mid to late 1950's and this album is a perfect example of that.

Concluding thoughts

Jimmy Smith Plays Pretty Just For You is a prototype of similar sessions the organist would record for the label like Softly As A Summer Breeze (Blue Note, 1958,  released in 1965) and Standards (released in 1998 in complete form on CD) that focused on  a low key mood.  It also serves as the calm before the storm on Groovin' At Smalls Paradise taped in November, that demonstrated Smith playing at an absolutely fevered pitch diving into the same kind of harmonic terrain as the sheets of sound technique John Coltrane was investigating at the time. Plays Pretty Just For You should not be the first entry in the world of Jimmy Smith but for those well acquainted, it shows a softer side that is every bit as rewarding as the more fiery examples.

Music: 8.5/10

Sound: 8/10

[zenlesszonezero]

[acsversace-news]

Is David Lynch just too damn weird for Emmy voters?

That’s a question that could be answered by Emmy nominations in the limited series and television movie categories, where Lynch’s return to “Twin Peaks” on Showtime is both a monumental achievement and one of the strangest things ever put on television.

Among the top contenders in the limited series category, the 18-episode “Twin Peaks” is longest piece of work by more than six hours — and it’s also so bizarre that it makes the last season of “Westworld” look like a model of concise storytelling. There’s a real question as to whether Lynch’s flights of fancy will be embraced or scorned by voters.

Among the other contenders, FX’s Ryan Murphy is always a major presence in these categories, with his big entry this year not the post-election edition of “American Horror Story” but the second installment of the true-crime dramatization series that began with his Emmy juggernaut “The People v. O.J. Simpson”: “”The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story.” It should be the most-nominated show in the field, though the limited series “The Looming Tower,” “Godless,” “Patrick Melrose,” “Genius: Picasso,” “Howards End” and “The Sinner” will all find support.

On the TV movie side, the Netflix anthology series “Black Mirror” has been able to enter individual episodes as standalone movies, and its “Star Trek” spoof “USS Callister” will be up against the likes of Laura Dern’s Sundance drama “The Tale” and HBO’s “Paterno” and “Fahrenheit 451.”

Outstanding Limited Series “Gianni Versace” is a sure thing, while Hulu’s pre-9/11 drama “The Looming Tower” and the Western “Godless” came on strong as voting approached. With only five nominees in the category, that means the battle for the last two slots will include “Twin Peaks,” “Howards End,” “Top of the Lake: China Girl,” “American Vandal,” “Patrick Melrose,” “Alias Grace,” “Genius: Picasso,” “The Alienist,” “The Sinner” and Steven Soderbergh’s “Mosaic.”

NatGeo has been relentless in its campaign for “Genius: Picasso,” the followup to last year’s nominated “Genius: Einstein,” but the show’s heat may have faded in Season 2. That show, along with USA’s “The Sinner” and Showtime’s “Patrick Melrose,” may find its reward in the acting categories, while voters show how schizophrenic they can be by giving noms to Starz’s stately period piece “Howards End” and the wild Lynchian nightmare “Twin Peaks.”

Predicted nominees (in order of likelihood): “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story,” “The Looming Tower,” “Godless,” “Howards End,” “Twin Peaks” Watch out for: “Genius: Picasso,” “Patrick Melrose,” “Top of the Lake: China Girl,” “The Sinner,” “The Alienist”

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie The year’s powerhouse male performances could easily fill this category a couple of times over. After all, you can’t leave out Darren Criss as the killer in “The Assassination of Gianni Versace,” or Al Pacino as Joe Paterno, or Benedict Cumberbatch in “Patrick Melrose,” or Kyle MacLachlan as multiple versions of Agent Cooper in “Twin Peaks,” or Antonio Banderas as Picasso, or Jeff Daniels in “The Looming Tower,” or Michael B. Jordan as the tortured fireman in “Fahrenheit 451,” or Jesse Plemons as a Captain Kirk run amok in “USS Callister.”

And that doesn’t even count “Jesus Christ Superstar” lead John Legend, who stands a pretty good chance of becoming the first person to land an Emmy acting nomination for a performance in a live musical.

In fact you will have to leave out some of those guys, because there’s not room for all of them unless the category supersizes itself courtesy of a wrinkle in the Emmys rule book. And even if it goes up from six to seven nominees, voters will be hard-pressed to give a spot to deserving actors like Jared Harris (“The Terror”), Jack O’Connell (“Godless”) and Jimmy Tatro (“American Vandals”).

Criss, Cumberbatch and Pacino seem to be the locks, and we suspect that Banderas’ performance in “Genius: Picasso” will join them, as will Daniels in “The Looming Tower” and, in a close vote over Legend, MacLachlan in “Twin Peaks.”

Predicted nominees: Darren Criss, “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”; Benedict Cumberbatch, “Patrick Melrose”; Al Pacino, “Paterno”; Jeff Daniels, “The Looming Tower”; Antonio Banderas, “Genius: Picasso”; Kyle MacLachlan, “Twin Peaks” Watch out for: John Legend, “Jesus Christ Superstar”; Michael B. Jordan, “Fahrenheit 451”; Jesse Plemons, “USS Callister”; Jared Harris, “The Terror”; Jack O’Connell, “Godless”

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie There will probably be six nominees in the category, but how many shows will they represent? “The Assassination of Gianni Versace,” after all, has formidable contenders in both Edgar Ramirez and Ricky Martin, while “The Looming Tower” supplies worthy candidates in Peter Sarsgaard, Michael Stuhlbarg, Bill Camp and Tahar Rahim.

Ramirez is a lock as Versace, and we’re guessing that Sarsgaard (as a CIA chief who doesn’t want to share pre-9/11 intelligence with the FBI) and Rahim (as a Muslim-American FBI agent) will make the cut from “The Looming Tower.”

Jeff Daniels is inescapable as the villain in “Godless” — and he’s one of several bad guys in the running, also including Michael Shannon in “Fahrenheit 451,” Jason Ritter in “The Tale” and Brandon Victor Dixon as the ultimate tortured bad guy, Judas Iscariot, in “Jesus Christ Superstar.” If John Legend doesn’t become the first performer to be nominated in a live musical for that program, Dixon probably will.

Predicted nominees: Edgar Ramirez, “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”; Jeff Daniels, “Godless”; Michael Shannon, “Fahrenheit 451”; Peter Sarsgaard, “The Looming Tower”; Brandon Victor Dixon, “Jesus Christ Superstar”; Tahar Rahim, “The Looming Tower” Watch out for: Michael Stuhlbarg, “The Looming Tower”; Ricky Martin, “The Assassination of Gianni Versace”; Bill Camp, “The Looming Tower”; Jason Ritter, “The Tale”; Alex Rich, “Genius: Picasso”

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie “The Assassination of Gianni Versace” should place two actresses in this category, Penélope Cruz for her role as Donatella Versace and Judith Light as the wife of another murder victim (if voters don’t think her role is too small). Merritt Wever is all but assured a nomination for “Godless,” while Nicole Kidman brings star power to “Top of the Lake: China Girl” and Jennifer Jason Leigh is in the running for “Patrick Melrose.” Laura Dern figures to be a strong contender for “Twin Peaks,” though her chances (and those of co-star Naomi Watts) could suffer if voters are baffled by the show.

Angela Lansbury is the most-nominated actress who has never won an Emmy, and voters will likely give her another chance this year with “Little Women.” Wild cards include Sharon Stone as a celebrated writer in Steven Soderbergh’s miniseries and app “Mosaic” and Billie Lourd and Alison Pill in “American Horror Story: Cult.”

Predicted nominees: Penelope Cruz, “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”; Merritt Wever, “Godless”; Nicole Kidman, “Top of the Lake: China Girl,” Angela Lansbury, “Little Women”; Judith Light, “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”; Jennifer Jason Leigh, “Patrick Melrose” Watch out for: Laura Dern, “Twin Peaks”; Ellen Burstyn, “The Tale”; Sharon Stone, “Mosaic”; Anna Paquin, “Alias Grace”; Naomi Watts, “Twin Peaks”

[dccomicsnews]

DC UNIVERSE is a first-of-its kind digital subscription service that gives fans access to exclusive content and experiences not available anywhere else. With membership, fans will enjoy all-new original live-action and animated series, classic TV series and films, a curated selection of digital comic books, breaking news, an expansive DC-centric encyclopedia, and access to exclusive merchandise. Additional fan features include opportunities to connect with others in the DC community, earn premium rewards and participate in sweepstakes and contests.

“Developing new ways for consumers to access some of our most popular and iconic brands and franchises as well as exclusive, new content whenever they want, on the devices they choose, is one of our studio’s top priorities,” said Craig Hunegs, President of Warner Bros. Digital Networks. “The DC UNIVERSE platform gives fans a place to tailor their experience and build a direct relationship with DC in a way they never could before.”

  Members of DC UNIVERSE can:

WATCH exclusive originals and classic favorites;

READ from an extensive list of curated comic books;

CONNECT with the DC community;

EXPLORE the latest breaking news and the ever-expanding DC Encyclopedia;

WIN premium rewards and participate in sweepstakes and contests;

SHOP for exclusive merchandise.

  Fans can sign up today for an opportunity for beta access, which will open in August 2018. Beta access will give members a chance to test the new digital experience and provide valuable feedback on the early version of the service before it goes live later this fall 2018.

“DC UNIVERSE is so much more than a streaming service. It’s a welcoming place for everyone to immerse themselves in their own level of DC fandom, with the epic characters, stories, and experiences they have come to expect from DC,” said Jim Lee, Chief Creative Officer and Publisher at DC Entertainment. “We are investing in and creating original, high-quality shows including the new Titans series, and curating the most beloved nostalgic content, while at the same time elevating the comic reading experience to new heights. Nothing this robust has ever been offered to fans before.”

WATCH

At the heart of DC UNIVERSE will be all-new exclusive original live-action and animated series based on DC’s iconic characters. Developed by Warner Bros. Television, Swamp Thing and Doom Patrol are scheduled to debut in 2019, following the dramatic, live action adventure series Titans which premieres later this year. Warner Bros. Animation is also developing a slate of animated TV series based on existing fan favorites, including Harley Quinn and the highly anticipated third season of the popular Young Justice animated series which are both scheduled to debut in 2019.

Titans follows young heroes from across the DC Universe as they come of age and find belonging. This gritty take on the classic Titans franchise finds Dick Grayson and a special young girl possessed by a strange darkness named Rachel Roth as they get embroiled in a conspiracy. They’re joined by Starfire and Beast Boy to become a surrogate family and team.

  Doom Patrol is a reimagining of one of DC’s strangest group of outcasts: Robotman, Negative Man, Elasti-Woman and Crazy Jane. Led by the mysterious Dr. Niles Caulder they’re called into action by none other than the ultimate hero for the digital age, Cyborg. These rejects band together on a mission that will take them to the weirdest and most unexpected corners of the DC universe.

  Swamp Thing is a scary love story following Abby Arcane as she investigates what seems to be a deadly swamp-born virus in a small town in Louisiana but soon discovers that the swamp holds mystical and terrifying secrets.

  Young Justice: Outsiders features the return of the fan favorite animated series with a huge cast of DC’s most iconic young superheroes – plus brand-new characters, many of whom are just discovering their unique meta-powers and special abilities. Set against the backdrop of a rich, deep world that touches all corners of the DC universe, the season focuses on meta–trafficking, and an intergalactic arms race for control of these super–powered youths.

  Harley Quinn tracks the lovable, raucous villain with a fractured psyche after she breaks up with The Joker and tries to make it on her own to become Gotham’s main queen-pin.

  An assortment of DC’s most beloved superhero films will also be available at launch for exclusive viewing windows, including all four original Superman movies and classic TV shows remastered in HD which include, Batman: The Animated Series and the original Wonder Woman series. The service will feature a selection of epic animated movies including, Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox, Green Lantern: First Flight, and Wonder Woman.

  READ

The DC UNIVERSE comics reader will include native, untethered access across devices from a smartphone or tablet to a living room screen, rendered in vivid detail. Fans can scroll through some of their favorite comics from the comfort of their couch with family or friends and see this vibrant art form come to life like never before. A curated selection of thousands of DC comics will be available to DC UNIVERSE members from a library that includes decades of comics creations.

Members can read some of the most famous stories in comics history such as the first 1938 Action Comics book that introduced Superman to the world as well as Detective Comics #27 which first introduced Batman in 1939. Other titles include Geoff Johns and Jim Lee’s iconic Justice League (2011), Swamp Thing (2011) written by Scott Snyder, and Harley Quinn (2013) written by Jimmy Palmiotti and Amanda Conner. Rotating selections will cater to members new to comics and passionate fans looking for hard-to-find titles. Comics can also be downloaded for reading offline on a smartphone or tablet.

“We wanted the DC UNIVERSE comic reader to be a blend of art and technology that would further enhance fans’ experience of the live-action and animated programming on DC UNIVERSE,” said Dan DiDio, Publisher at DC Entertainment. “This hand-curated selection from our decades of comic creations gives fans a thematic digital longbox to carry with them on the device of their choosing or lets them watch exclusive video content on a big screen followed by the comic that inspired it.”

  CONNECT

The community within DC UNIVERSE will be a place where members can rate, create and share their own personalized playlists of their favorite heroes and villains. Members can personalize their profile and select their own avatar, be it Superman, Wonder Woman, or another heroic symbol. Designed to be a place for finding commonality and sharing favorite rivalries or the latest list of must-read comics, members will have a forum for posting information, finding friendship and sharing their DC passions in a shared space within DC UNIVERSE.

  EXPLORE & WIN

Latest news, an extensive DC encyclopedia, and chances to win round out the membership benefits of DC UNIVERSE. Short-form news, interviews and previews in daily video segments will keep fans up-to-date on the latest from all corners of the DC universe. The ever-expanding DC encyclopedia, to which fans can contribute, will house bios of hundreds of DC characters and places. In addition, members will have chances to win premium rewards, including game unlocks, first-chance access to pop-culture events, exclusive experiences and more.

SHOP

Exclusively for DC UNIVERSE members, DC Collectibles—the award-winning line of collectibles from DC Entertainment—will offer a wide range of new action figures and collector’s items based on DC’s iconic characters and stories. Members will have exclusive access to all-new six-inch Justice League Animated action figures based on designs from the fan-favorite animated series (2001-2004), starting in fall 2018. In addition to DC Collectibles, members will have access to a wide range of exclusive, curated and hard-to-find DC merchandise from a variety of licensing partners before the rest of the world.

  The operation of DC UNIVERSE will be managed by Sam Ades, General Manager and Senior Vice President of Warner Bros. Digital Network, based in Burbank. The digital media executive formerly served as the senior vice president, direct to consumer, for DC Entertainment, where he was responsible for creating and executing DC’s digital marketing strategy.

DC UNIVERSE will be available at launch on iOS, Android, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and Android TV, as well as the web and mobile web. To learn more and register for an opportunity for beta access, visit DCUNIVERSE.com and follow DC UNIVERSE on social networks including Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

DC Universe Beta Access Sign Up Now Available DC UNIVERSE is a first-of-its kind digital subscription service that gives fans access to exclusive content and experiences not available anywhere else.

[armeniaitn]

100 U.S. Representatives call on Biden Administration to stand with Artsakh Republic and Armenia

New Post has been published on https://armenia.in-the.news/politics/100-u-s-representatives-call-on-biden-administration-to-stand-with-artsakh-republic-and-armenia-69552-19-02-2021/

100 U.S. Representatives call on Biden Administration to stand with Artsakh Republic and Armenia

One hundred Members of Congress – from more than twenty U.S. states – have called upon the Biden Administration to undertake concrete steps for Artsakh’s survival and Armenia’s security, in a bipartisan Armenian Caucus letter strongly supported by the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

“The strong Congressional participation in the Armenian Caucus letter to the Biden Administration reflects and also powerfully reinforces growing bipartisan support for Artsakh among legislators from across America,” said ANCA Government Affairs Director Tereza Yerimyan. “We look forward to working with the leadership of the Caucus and each of our legislative friends to translate these pro-Armenian, pro-peace policy priorities into action.”

The letter, addressed to the Secretaries of State and Defense, underscoring the severity of the regional crisis caused by six weeks of unrelenting Azerbaijani and Turkish aggression last fall, proposes urgent action on the following U.S. policy priorities:

— U.S. emergency assistance that provides the people of Artsakh with the ability to reconstruct their communities and rebuild their lives without fear of further bloodshed.

— U.S. re-engagement in the search for an enduring regional settlement – based on the fundamental right of self-determination – that protects the security of Artsakh and helps to ensure another war does not break out.

— U.S. recognition of the right to self-determination for the people of Artsakh and their role as a legitimate negotiating party in resolving this conflict.

— U.S. leadership in securing the immediate release of Armenian prisoners

— U.S. accountability, including sanctions against high-ranking Azerbaijani and Turkish leaders, the withholding of U.S. aid to Baku, and ending the waiver of Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act.

— U.S. support for Armenia’s economic development and assistance to Armenians displaced by Azerbaijani aggression

— U.S. recognition of the Armenian Genocide by President Biden

The Armenian Caucus letter was spearheaded by its leadership, Reps. Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Jackie Speier (D-CA), David Valadao (R-CA), and Adam Schiff (D-CA). Joining them in co-signing this bipartisan appeal were Representatives Jake Auchincloss (D-MA), Jim Banks (R-IN), Nanette Barragan (D-CA), Karen Bass (D-CA), Don Beyer (D-VA), Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), Brendan Boyle (D-PA), Julia Brownley (D-CA), Ken Calvert (R-CA), Salud Carbajal (D-CA), Tony Cardenas (D-CA), Judy Chu (D-CA), David Cicilline (D-RI), Katherine Clark (D-MA), Jim Costa (D-CA), Jason Crow (D-CO), Madeleine Dean (D-PA), Peter DeFazio (D-OR), Ted Deutch (D-FL), Mike Doyle (D-PA), Veronica Escobar (D-TX), Anna Eshoo (D-CA), Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), Dwight Evans (D-PA), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), John Garamendi (D-CA), Chuy Garcia (D-IL), Mike Garcia (R-CA), Jimmy Gomez (D-CA), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Glenn Grothman (R-WI), Josh Harder (D-CA), Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA), Jared Huffman (D-CA), Darrell Issa (R-CA), Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX), Hank Johnson (D-GA), David Joyce (R-OH), Ro Khanna (D-CA), Dan Kildee (D-MI), Young Kim (R-CA), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), Doug LaMalfa (R-CA), James Langevin (D-RI), Brenda Lawrence (D-MI), Susie Lee (D-NV), Andy Levin (D-MI), Mike Levin (D-CA), Ted Lieu (D-CA), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Alan Lowenthal (D-CA), Stephen Lynch (D-MA), Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY), Brian Mast (R-FL), Tom McClintock (R-CA), Betty McCollum (D-MN), James McGovern (D-MA), Grace Meng (D-NY), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Grace Napolitano (D-CA), Richard Neal (D-MA), Joe Neguse (D-CO), Donald Norcross (D-NJ), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Devin Nunes (R-CA), Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), Chris Pappas (D-NH), Kathleen Rice (D-NY), Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA), John Rutherford (R-FL), Linda Sanchez (D-CA), John Sarbanes (D-MD), Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA), Janice Schakowsky (D-IL), Brad Schneider (D-IL), David Schweikert (R-AZ), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Albio Sires (D-NJ), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Christopher Smith (R-NJ), Michelle Steel (R-CA), Haley Stevens (D-MI), Tom Suozzi (D-NY), Mike Thompson (D-CA), Dina Titus (D-NV), Paul Tonko (D-NY), Lori Trahan (D-MA), David Trone (D-MD), Juan Vargas (D-CA), Nydia Velazquez (D-NY), Maxine Waters (D-CA), Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ), Peter Welch (D-VT), and Susan Wild (D-PA).

The full text of the letter is provided below:

Dear Secretaries Blinken and Austin,

As bipartisan Members of Congress who are engaged in the US-Armenia relationship and interested in strengthening it, we write to offer our congratulations on your recent confirmations and to share a list of our bipartisan priorities we hope to work together on during the 117th Congress.

One of the most pressing issues for the Caucus and for the future of American foreign policy in the South Caucasus region is the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh). As you are aware, Azerbaijani and Turkish forces initiated an unprovoked attack on September 27, 2020, leading to six weeks of devastating fighting that killed an estimated 5,000 people and forced more than 100,000 ethnic Armenians to flee from the Karabakh region.

Azerbaijani forces were able to make rapid advances into the region with the aid of Turkish-backed foreign mercenaries, many alleged to have ties to internationally recognized terrorist groups, Bayraktar drones that utilize American components and technology, and heavy weaponry including the illegal use of cluster and white phosphorus munitions.

With the rising risk of a mass atrocity against thousands of Armenian civilians, Armenia agreed to a peace agreement brokered by Russia on November 10. This agreement brought an end to the fierce combat, but it has done little to address the immediate and significant problems of feeding, sheltering, and ensuring the safety of thousands of displaced families during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In violation of the ceasefire, Azerbaijan also refuses to free dozens of Armenian prisoners of war and apprehended civilians, which illustrates how this agreement fails to address the structural issues that have caused uncertainty and fueled the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict for decades. There remain several important issues that must be resolved and many critical questions that must be answered before a binding and durable peace settlement can be reached.

First, the terms laid out in the current ceasefire are untenable for Artsakh’s long-term security and stability in the region. The United States cannot allow Russia, Turkey, and Azerbaijan to solely dictate and dominate the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh. While we have seen some reengagement in the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group process, we believe more must be done to pursue an enduring settlement based on the fundamental right to self-determination. We appreciate the response Secretary Blinken gave during his confirmation hearing to this end, stating that he will “reinvigorate U.S. engagement to find a permanent settlement to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict that protects the security of Nagorno-Karabakh and helps to ensure another war does not break out.”

In negotiations, our diplomats must insist that any future settlement supported by the United States will provide the people of Artsakh with the ability to reconstruct their communities and rebuild their lives without fear of further bloodshed. This should include significant U.S. commitments to provide an urgently needed humanitarian aid and assistance package for the people of Artsakh. The international community, including the United States, also has an important role to play by finally recognizing the right to self-determination for the people of Artsakh and their role as a legitimate negotiating party in resolving this conflict. Absent this recognition, they will continue to face the threat of displacement by Azerbaijani and Turkish forces without any option for formal redress.

Another important component of ensuring lasting peace in the region is to hold destabilizing actors accountable. There is significant evidence that Azerbaijani and Turkish forces planned the invasion in the buildup to the September 27 assault on Nagorno-Karabakh. This evidence includes the stockpiling of armaments, including drones that killed many innocent civilians during the conflict, the July 2020 provocations by Azerbaijani troops in Armenia’s Tavush province, and several instances of large-scale joint military exercises near the Armenian border that foreshadowed the coming attacks. The United States and other international actors failed to acknowledge these warning signs and take necessary steps to prevent the sharp and unprovoked escalation of violence.

Actions that could have been taken at the time to halt Azerbaijani and Turkish aggressions included threatening sanctions on high-ranking officials from those countries and withholding aid, including ending the waiver of Section 907 of the Freedom Support Act and ceasing further military assistance through the Section 333 Building Partner Capacity program. We are encouraged by Secretary Blinken’s response during the confirmation process on this subject as well.

Similarly, the United States must reassess our policy toward Turkey. Turkish President Recep Erdogan’s regime reaps the rewards of the chaos he has sown in the Eastern Mediterranean, Libya, the Middle East, and the South Caucasus. His deliberate destabilizing behavior, which includes the installation of Russian made anti-aircraft missiles over the threat of sanction by the United States, demands a swift and decisive correction. We must learn from the failures of an appeasement policy used by past administrations toward Turkey and use every available diplomatic and economic tool to penalize these bad actors for their aggressions and abhorrent human rights abuses. If we do not act, we risk the likelihood that the Erdogan regime will trigger an ever-expanding zone of conflict.

Finally, the United States should seek to strengthen our strategic relationship with Armenia, a young democracy that has been shaken by last year’s events and the resulting uncertainty they have caused. We urge you to identify ways we can provide additional economic assistance to Armenia to support its democracy and development as well as respond to the significant number of displaced people who have fled the conflict in Artsakh.

We also request that your Administration identify ways in which our economic, cultural, and other ties to Armenia can be improved to benefit Armenia and the large Armenian American diaspora in the United States. Those steps should include the formal recognition of the Armenian Genocide by President Biden on April 24, following in the footsteps of both the House and Senate who passed resolutions recognizing the fact of the Genocide during the 116th Congress.

Thank you for attention to these important matters. We stand ready to work with you to craft a policy in the South Caucasus region that is consistent with U.S. national security, universal principles of human rights, and our democratic values. Our hope is to further discuss these issues with you and your teams at the earliest convenience.

Read original article here.

[sublimesheepballoon]

Post-Election Day free food: Get free coffee Wednesday at Dunkin' plus deals at McDonald's, Subway, Wendy's and more

UPDATED: Some deals and freebies continue after Election Day including at McDonald's, Wendy's, Subway, Jersey Mike's Subs and Jimmy John's. Also, Dunkin' has Free Coffee Wednesday for reward members.

Think of it as voting with benefits: Hit the polls on Tuesday and then pick up Election Day freebies.

Even if you already voted – or are abstaining from voting – you can still partake in a smorgasbord of discounts and free food. Tuesday also is National Sandwich Day so you can save on a sub at Subway and other restaurants.

But for Election Day, you can get a free glazed doughnut at Krispy Kreme along with a special voting sticker while supplies last Tuesday. Planet Fitness is offering a way to work off the stress of the election with a free workout and massage Tuesday through Nov. 8.

Save better, spend better:Money tips and advice delivered right to your inbox. Sign up here

Uber and Lyft also are offering discounted rides to the polls.

With more mail-in ballots and early voting this year, fewer people will have the "I Voted" stickers to show as proof that they voted.

But that's okay because most businesses don't require a sticker to get the deal. According to federal law, it technically is illegal to offer freebies in exchange for votes and businesses typically skirt this by offering the deals to all.

And if you're staying up late waiting for election results, Dunkin' has a deal Wednesday that can help. Members of the chain's DD Perks loyalty program can get a free medium hot or iced coffee for the first Free Coffee Wednesday.

Dunkin' also rolls out its new seasonal drinks Wednesday featuring Peppermint Mocha Latte and Gingerbread Latte.

What's open on Election Day?:Best Buy, White Castle, Adidas have shorter hours. J Crew and Ben & Jerry's are closed

Preparing for election results:Stores brace for post-election unrest and possibility of violence, damage to businesses after presidential results

[forestryandconservation]

Student Spotlight: Jordan Jimmie

Photo caption: Jordan Jimmie working in the Yukon-Kuskokwim (YK) Delta to collect hydrologic field data

By Jennifer Harrington, Native American Natural Resources Program Director

Jordan Jimmie is a master’s student in the Forestry program in the W.A. Franke College of Forestry and Conservation at the University of Montana. Jordan is currently working with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (CSKT) to model the impact of water delivery on the Flathead Reservation if the CSKT Water Compact is passed or not passed by the United States Senate. His graduate work is titled, "Modeling Hydrologic Impacts of Water Rights Quantification and Settlement on the Flathead Indian Irrigation Project."

Jordan is a Sloan Fellow and a fellow in the UM BRIDGES NSF Research Traineeship Program, which supports graduate student research at the food-energy-water nexus. Jordan is a proud member of the Navajo Nation (Diné) from Flagstaff, Arizona, and holds a B.S. in environmental hydrology and water resources from the University of Arizona. As an undergrad, Jordan held a variety of impressive research positions including studying cancer emergence from groundwater contamination exposure at UA and studying soil isotopes at the University of Texas Austin. In 2016, Jordan was selected for the prestigious Udall Native American Congressional internship program, through which he served the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Natural Resources as they debated issues surrounding Native American water rights settlements. Jordan worked over two summers participating in a research expedition in the heart of the Yukon-Kuskokwim (YK) Delta to collect hydrologic field data regarding physical changes in tundra lakes and ponds – data that was later analyzed at the Woods Hole Research Center in Falmouth, Massachusetts. Jordan has a passion for science – particularly hydrology – and education. Through his career, he hopes to use his education to give back to Indian Country and specifically to teach hydrology and STEM education at a tribal college or university.

I first met Jordan over the phone as he was deciding where to apply for graduate school. We talked about the programs offered in the W.A. Franke College of Forestry and Conservation and about the faculty, particularly Brian Chaffin, assistant professor of water policy and governance, who would become Jordan’s advisor. Jordan and I were both fortunate to participate in the Pacific North West (PNW) Cosmos Indigenous Mentoring Program float trip on the Middle Fork of the Salmon River. The program gathered Native American scholars entering a graduate program in one of the participating institutions (including the University of Montana, Montana State University and the University of Idaho)  and their respective advisors on a four-day trip. Activities included learning about teepee design and set up with a Nez Perce tribal member and environmental scientist. There were many talking circles, and on the second day the group started a three-day, two-night float on the Middle Fork of the Salmon River. Students and advisors got to know each other and were able to learn about the importance of culture and identity for Native American students and tools for mentoring.

I was able to speak with Jordan over the phone recently to talk about his time at UM and what his plans are after graduation.

What did you think that graduate school would be like when you first began here at UM? 

I thought there would be no life outside of graduate school. I thought that it would be difficult to find balance – to eat healthy, to exercise and to go to church. I saw relatives go to grad school and saw things become imbalanced.

What were some of the challenges that you were able to work through in graduate school?

The level of my presentations and how I conduct myself in professional settings. Learning how to distinguish how I speak to friends and how I speak professionally and learning not to mix them, which required practice. I learned to take ownership of my research and to create top-notch research that others could build upon. One of the expectations that I had of graduate school was that all research needed to be life changing. I’ve realized that the research needs to be meaningful but does not need to save the world or be Nobel-worthy to be impactful. 

I experienced challenges with faculty that I did not see eye-to-eye with that I eventually learned to coexist with and to work together in a professional setting. I have had to learn to advocate for myself. Coming to Montana from out-of-state, you better do your best to make sure that everything is covered like housing and financial aid. I experienced issues like being over-awarded and scholarships were sent back and there was misfiled paperwork and a deadline was missed. I tried to advocate for myself and other Native students to make sure that things were getting done.

Did you find that graduate school opened you up to new ways of understanding the world?

On a personal level, I thought about who I decide to spend my time with and how I spend my time. I learned to let go and not worry so much. I learned to say, “This is out of my hands.”

I am an introvert, and I am picky about how I spend my time. If you are going to do something, make it meaningful! I have learned not to limit myself; the sky is the limit. I count my blessings! I am privileged; I have resources as a graduate student that others do not have. 

How important was it to include the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes in your research? 

Foundational. It was my first thought before entering UM. Working with tribes, it drives you! It reaffirms my commitment to serving Indigenous peoples. I am an Indigenous hydrologist!

It is so important to have representation on all levels, in academia and in the private sector. 

How did working with the Tribes influence your research process and your research outcomes?

It is a process. Sovereignty is a real thing! You must build relationships, or you will have a hard time doing your research. Transparency is key! The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes have cultivated the research idea. There were pivotal meetings with Casey Ryan (FCFC graduate in hydrology – 2015 and current CSKT hydrologist) and Seth Makepeace (CSKT hydrologist). The research chosen is a priority, it is relevant, and it is timely for the Tribes. I am fortunate because of the relevance of the 2015 Compact. 

The outcomes of this research include learning how to effectively communicate the importance of this project to the Flathead and beyond. I am learning how to be confident about the results. I am interested in presenting it to the Salish Kootenai College, to share my findings with relevant people.

How was the PNW-Cosmos float? Do you feel it helped you connect with your advisor and other students?

The float trip was awesome! I love water in general. A couple of days camping on the Middle Fork of the Salmon River was incredible!

The trip and the activities did make me and Brian, my advisor, closer. It was a little forced in how structured it was, but it allowed me to see him in a new setting, chilling, makes him more personable. 

Going through that experience builds camaraderie and strengthens bonds. It was awesome to be around Native peoples and allies to learn together. We were able to share our viewpoint of science, the Indigenous way. It was a good experience!  

What student groups have you belonged to?

I am the president of the UM American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES). I was a co-chair of the Native American Student Advisory Council (NASAC). I am currently a student senator for the Associated Students of the University of Montana (ASUM). And I am a member of the Missoula community Run Wild Missoula group. 

How have the groups influenced your graduate education here at UM? What was a project with student groups that really had an impact on you?

Being active in student groups has had a positive influence on my education. AISES is a struggle. ASUM has been rewarding, seeing the government side of how things are run. It is important to have representation. There is only me and one other Native American student on Senate. I am learning how to be most effective, and I am learning how to advocate for students. There are things that some students have to worry about that I do not. How can I make it meaningful! 

What are you plans after you graduate?

I will graduate in a month and defend. I will be starting a PhD program at Oregon State University (OSU) in Water Resources Engineering in the Fall. I have been awarded a Diversity Advancement Fellowship which starts this summer. I will be working with John Selker at OSU.

We wish you all the best, Jordan! It has been wonderful having you here at the University of Montana in the Franke College of Forestry and Conservation!

[mitchbeck]

CANTLON'S CORNER: ARMSTRONG ON BEING HONORARY AHL ALL-STAR CAPTAIN

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - His happiness resounded off the Colorado mountains he was in. Former Hartford Wolf Pack legend, Derek Armstrong, was ecstatic after learning that he and former Pack teammate, goalie, Robb Stauber, were officially named the honorary captains for this year's AHL All-Star Classic. This year will mark the first time that the game will be hosted in a Pacific Division city. The game will be in Ontario, CA, the home of the LA Kings top farm club, the Ontario Reign. “It’s so cool. When I got the call two weeks ago, my schedule synced up with this. I’m truly honored to be named, and along with one of my first teammates in Hartford better,” remarked Armstrong in his singularly well-known gravely voiced and rapid-fired delivery, much like his goals and assists came during his pro career. The Ontario, Canada boy is now thoroughly, So Cal (Southern California for the non-natives). His being able to celebrate both sides of his hockey career is important to him. “My NHL life was here. It's where I really had my best, and longest NHL time, and I met so many important people, such as Luc Robitaille, and Rob Blake. The AHL was also my home and the foundation at the beginning of my career. To get the chance to merge the two at the All-Star Classic is something. I’m so looking forward to it and I'm extremely appreciative of the opportunity. The chance to mingle with the current AHL generation is going to be wild.” In his AHL career, Armstrong skated for Manchester, Peoria, and Worcester, but Hartford is where his heart is. Armstrong’s place in Wolf Pack history is well cemented after having garnered 309 points in 265 games, good for third-best in team history. He made two AHL All-Star Game appearances. He won the Jack Butterfield AHL Playoff MVP in the Wolf Pack’s lone Calder Cup year (1999-00). He was awarded the Les Cunningham AHL Regular Season MVP and the John Sollenberger trophy for winning the scoring title (2000-01). He is the only player to top the century mark in points scored (101 in 2000-01) during the season. That all leaves him as a cornerstone in the foundation that built the Pack franchise. Joking with Muhammad Ali-like bravado, Armstrong lets everyone know his place in Wolf Pack history. “Let’em know, I’m the greatest Wolf Pack player of all time,” Armstrong said with a laugh. Armstrong sending a jab at his lifelong rival, close friend, and former teammate, Brad “Shooter” Smyth, the Wolf Pack’s all-time leading in points, (365 in 345 games). What would have been wonderful to see was his being inducted into the AHL Hall-of-Fame where he would join the other three pillars of the Wolf Pack hockey trinity, Smyth, Ken Gernander, and J.F. Labbe. Armstrong is still involved in hockey on several levels. He is still a coach and still does a FOX-TV pre-game and post-game for Kings games. He is the head coach of the LA Kings U-18 team. Armstrong also works with the Kings' international hockey development program in mainland China, and he'll do a hockey camp for boys and girls this weekend. Armstrong was en route to doing an outdoor hockey camp at Mammoth Mountain (CO) with a group of 80 kids. “This is really an important outreach the Kings are doing because hockey is growing out West. Getting young people involved, learning it the right way, and then they go back to their communities enthused and wanting to be involved. Doing the overseas thing in China has been a very rewarding experience. Doing something so innovative there, in another part of the planet, has been amazing.” Come January 26-27 he will have a national TV presence to celebrate his AHL life and his time in Hartford. NOTES: Keeping with a West Coast theme. The AHL’s longest-serving head coach (1,638 games), Roy Sommer, has been summoned to become an assistant coach with the NHL's San Jose Sharks in the wake of yesterday’s firing of Peter DeBoer. He played just three NHL games with the Edmonton Oilers and scored his one, and only NHL goal, in his first game. Sommer played ten years of minor pro hockey while working his way up the ladder. He started playing in his native Oakland, CA playing high school hockey. He then went on to the Spokane (WA) Flyers of the Pacific Hockey League where he lasted all of two seasons. He primarily played with the Wichita Wind of the old Central Hockey League and played one season in the AHL with the original Maine Mariners, where he won a Calder Cup in 1984-85. His current assistant coaches, Jimmy Bonneau, and Mike Chiasson, the son of late Hartford Whaler, Steve Chiasson, will be the co-coaches for the AHL's San Jose Barracuda for the rest of the season. Sommer’s first game was a 6-3 loss to the New York Rangers. On a sadder note, former Whaler Scot Kleinendorst has serious medical issues. Kleinendorst, 59, was badly injured and is fighting for his life following a heavy machinery accident at the Grand Rapids, MN paper mill, UPM Blandin, over the weekend. "Although it is still under investigation, there was an accident while Scot was operating a piece of heavy machinery at UPM," the family wrote on a Caring Bridge page. "He suffered multiple traumatic injuries, including very serious trauma to the brain. Scot was airlifted to Duluth and eventually stabilized after many blood transfusions. After he was stabilized, he went into emergency surgery to relieve the life-threatening hemorrhage on the left side of his brain." The family said Kleinendorst "pulled through" the surgery on his brain. He also suffered many broken bones in the accident. The incident occurred last Saturday evening, the company said in a statement, reiterating that Kleinendorst was stabilized and flown to a Duluth (MN) trauma center by helicopter. "We are all shocked by this tragic incident and our immediate thoughts are with our employee and family," UPM Blandin spokesperson Marsha Miller said. "We are in contact with the family and will support the family as much as possible in this difficult situation." The state office of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration confirmed the investigation. Blandin, which reported the incident, has seven days to respond. If Minnesota OSHA Compliance is satisfied with the response, the incident would be closed, officials said. Kleinendorst played in the NHL from 1982-90, appearing in 281 games for the Hartford Whalers, New York Rangers (53 games two goals and 13 points) and Washington Capitals his NHL totals were 12 goals, 58 points, and 452 PM. With the Whalers, he played five seasons 210 games with nine goals and 40 points. He played collegiately at Providence College then in ECAC, but who are now in Hockey East. He and his brother Kurt were drafted by the Rangers in the 1980 NHL Draft out of PC with Scot going in the 5th round 98th overall and Kurt was taken the round before and 77th overall. Kurt coached in the AHL with Lowell, Binghamton on two different occasions, Iowa and Belleville and presently he coaches Nuremberg Tigers (Germany-DEL) that features ex-Pack players Chris Summers and Chris Brown. Kleinendorst after starring at Grand Rapids High School, where he was first-team All-State defenseman in 1977-78 and part of a Minnesota state championship team in 1976. (Portions of an AP story were used in the formation of this piece) Read the full article

[danieliams]

Thank You Jimmy Johns for my FREE Veggie Sub for joining your rewards program. Love you, mean it! 😘 @jimmyjohns #danieliams #jimmyjohns #veggie #veggiesub https://www.instagram.com/p/BzGmGS4FxiY/?igshid=hcmhw1zstp7d

[blues-and-roll]

Black Label Society - Bored To Tears (Official Video)

Zakk Wylde can be considered one of the most successful guitarists of his generation, accumulating several titles and prizes, becoming the Most Valuable Player (MVP) in the election of the American Guitar World magazine. In 2005 he was also chosen as "Best Metal Guitarist", and also received the prizes of "Riff Lord" and "Golden God" of the English magazine Metal Hammer.

Over the years, Zakk Wylde has developed several highly regarded side projects, such as the Book of Shadows acoustic album and the Southern Rock Pride & Glory self-titled album coLive at Budokan) and in 2002 he recorded his own with Black Label Society (Boozed, Broozed and Broken Boned) in a memorable performance at Harpo's in Detroit, where along with the great public present managed to one night to end the entire stock of drinks from the house of shows during the filming. It was the first time in the history of Harpo's Concert Hall that this happened.

Zakk has also made some TV appearances, such as the comedy series "Crapsntando also with special appearances in several works of other bands, like the début of the Damageplan (guest vocalist) and the album of Derek Sherinian," Black Utopia ", next scored by Yngwie Malmsteen.

Zakk Wylde also appeared on some DVDs with Ozzy Osbourne (Live and Loud / hoot) with Jim Breuer, and starred in the Hollywood film industry as "Ghode," the lead guitarist for Steel Dragon, which had been created especially for the occasion, being responsible for the soundtrack of the film, still in its formation no less than the musicians Jason Bonham (UFO, drums) in the paper of "AC", Jeff Pilson (Dokken, down) in the role of "Jörgen", Jeff Scott Soto (Yngwie Malmsteen's Rising Force, vocals) performing vocals for actor Mark Wahlberg and actor Dominic West as guitarist "Kirk Cuddy." The film also features other well-known figures such as Nick Catanese (Black Label Society, guitar) in the role of guitarist "Xander Cummins", from the fictional band Blood Pollution.

Zakk is married to his former girlfriend since the age of 16, Barbaranne, with whom he has four children. Hayley-Rae, 14, Jesse John Michael, 13, Hendrix Halen Michael Rhoads, 4, and Sabbath Page, born in 2012 ("homage" to Jimi Hendrix, John Michael Osbourne and his band Black Sabbath, Eddie Van Halen, Mike Piazza, Randy Rhoads, and Jimmy Page). He was a very close friend of the late guitarist Dimebag Darrell since 1993, even getting to receive guitars from each other in mutual admiration as partners in the song. Dimebag had presented Zakk with an exclusive Dean Custom guitar displaying the painting in the "Bulls-eye" design, a trademark of Zakk's guitars, shortly before his death. Wylde decided to dedicate the song "In This River" to his friend, citing that although the song was not originally made for that purpose, the lyrics would be appropriate for the situation. Wylde has offered the song "In this River" to Dimebag at every performance of it at his shows.

Zakk began to get serious about guitar lessons when he was 15, while working at Silverton Music, a music store in Silverton, New Jersey. He practiced with his guitar daily for about 12 hours, which ended up harming his studies, since he was always falling asleep during classes in high school. It did not take long and began to play in his first band, called Stone Henge and later integrated the local band Zyris. At age 19 and practically unknown, Zakk Wylde made his big step to fame by getting the disputed wave of guitarist in the band of Ozzy Osbourne, also assuming the function of co-author.

Zakk had entered to replace the excellent guitarist Jake E. Lee, who in turn was the substitute of legendary Randy Rhoads, who had died at the age of 25 in a tragic and unfortunate air crash on March 19, 1982. Rhoads is considered as a true idol for Zakk Wylde, who had a kind of altar built in honor of the guitarist who inspired him so much.

There are several stories about how Zakk landed Ozzy's band. One of the most known is reported as follows:

Zakk's girlfriend at the time, Barbaranne (Today's Woman), had heard on Howard Stern's radio program that Ozzy was looking for a new guitarist and sent a demo tape. Ozzy rejected the tape as well as thousands of others, saying they were "just another clone of Randy Rhoads." But a few weeks later Ozzy's drummer told him that he had discovered a great guitarist from New Jersey and then Ozzy agreed to call him for an audition. It was obviously Zakk Wylde himself. Ozzy recognized him on the demo tape and then hired him.

Ozzy saw a lot of promising guitarists pass him after Jake E. Lee left. From the day of his predestined audition, Zakk remembers being hired right away even before he started playing while still tuning his guitar. sources] Zakk was admitted to the Ozzy solo band in 1987 and his first appearance was on the album No Rest for the Wicked of 1988. It is rumored that the first live performance with Ozzy would have taken place in a penitentiary.

Two more successful albums followed (Just Say Ozzy (1990) and No More Tears (1991)) getting huge repercussions in the media. But in 1992, after the No More Tears album tour, Zakk eventually left Ozzy's band and started to focus on the side projects he had been developing, releasing the self-titled album from the excellent band Pride & Glory a powerful Southern Rock sound, loaded with Blueseiras levadas with Heavy Metal. There are those who consider this album the cornerstone for the emergence of the Black Label Society.

In 1994 Zakk returned to work with Ozzy and the numerous sessions of recording of the album Ozzmosis begin. In that same time, Zakk was being probed to integrate the Guns N 'Roses, arriving to make some Jams with Axl Rose. But the lack of an agreement between Zakk's attorneys and Guns N 'Roses, who faced a complicated lawsuit after the departure of the original members, made Zakk's entry into Axl's band never happen. With plenty of time on the agenda, Zakk composed and released in 1996 the acclaimed acoustic album Book Of Shadows, considered by many to be the best of his career.

Parallel to Ozzy's albums in which he participated next, Zakk began to come up with ideas for a solo project to create his own Heavy Metal band, modeled after Black Sabbath. In 1998, in partnership with Phil Ondich (drums), Zakk founded the band Hell's Kitchen, later renamed the Black Label Society, and in 1999 released Sonic Brew, their first album with the new band, assuming their vocation for the post. frontman Zakk Wylde's solo career began to grow, then releasing another studio album and one live at the head of the BLS.

In 2001 Ozzy released the album Down To Earth, in which Zakk ended up not participating in the composition of any of the tracks. In fact Zakk already had a whole set of songs ready to put in the album of Ozzy but this rejected them, saying that "sounded very Black Label". The songs that were then rejected by Ozzy were all used by Wylde on the 1919 album Eternal, which curiously ended up becoming one of the Black Label Society's best albums, releasing several hits such as Bleed For Me, Demise Of Sanity, Bridge To Cross and Graveyard Disciples.

On January 17, 2006, Zakk Wylde was immortalized at the Hollywood Rock Walk of Fame, located at 7425 Sunset Boulevard, leaving his hands and signature on the pavement of fame in recognition of his victorious career as a musician and their contribution to the music industry. The ceremony was attended by several rock stars.

Zakk Wylde's playing style is generally characterized by pinch harmonics and his technique in soils is based on the use of the Small Pentatonic Scale with box-pattern fast Licks using strict alternating picking, creating an attack with a quite distinct footprint when compared to musicians with a more fluid style of playing. Another notable feature of Zakk is the liberal use of chicken picking, a technique generally related to the Country music style being rarely used in Heavy Metal, possibly acquired from musician Albert Lee, one of its influences.

Zakk is known primarily for his preference for the Gibson Les Paul Custom guitars with what would become his trademark, the unique painting with the Bulls-eye design he deliberately adopted so that he could visually differentiate from his idol Randy Rhoads (although he has long used an identical hairstyle), which he usually played with a Les Paul Custom cream.

The "Bulls-eye" painting actually should have looked like the spiral of the movie "Vertigo", but although it came from Luthier incorrectly, Zakk liked the result and decided to keep the guitar anyway. Curiously enough, Zakk also owns a replica of Rhoads Flying V Guitar which he considers to be one of his favorites.

In recognition of his charisma and musical success, Gibson Guitars has launched an entire line of custom guitars by Zakk Wylde, a true certificate of his enormous commercial success. Zakk Gibson Les Paul Custom "Signature" custom models include a guitar with the red and flame-maple Bulls-eye design, a white model aged with the Bulls-eye in black, a "Buzz- saw "orange, and a model" Camo "" Bulls-eye "with the greenish camouflage paint. The "Inlays" of the arms are made of mother of pearl.

Zakk's original guitar was bought in a store (and not custom-made, as one might think), being baptized (according to the tradition of several guitarists) of "The Grail". She was missing for some time when she had been stolen from Zakk on the return of a "Gig" (Tour) in Texas. It even offered a reward to anyone who had any information that could lead Zakk to recover his guitar, since it had a great sentimental value because it was a graduation gift received from his parents. Zakk only regained "The Grail" years later, after a fan got it in a pawnshop and realizing if it was authentic "The Grail" guitar through the serial number present in the "Headstock" and the initials "ZW" recorded on the back of the guitar, contacted the Webmaster of Zakk to get his return.

Despite the news of an audition for the possible hiring of a new guiarist for Ozzy, he went back and decided to keep Zakk integrating his line-up, as was seen in the recent performance of Crazy Train at the UK Music Hall of Fame.

In 2006, Zakk Wylde entered the studio for the recording of the new BLS album, Shot To Hell, which was in the US on July 3. Another great success of Zakk Wylde was the song "Stilborn" considered by many admirers of Zakk Wylde and his songs in the Black Label Society the best of his solo career Zakk also gave important touches on Ozzy Osbourne's songs like "Crazy Train" and many others .

[garrettblog]

What You Should Be Watching

Big Little Lies – Season 2 June

So, we’re getting a Meryl Streep bonus for the price of Kidman, Woodley, Witherspoon, Kravitz and Dern. Not mad about that. Everything you’d wanna know here: Don’t be made at me – this is just a summary.

https://www.hbo.com/big-little-lies/season-2-everything-you-need-to-know-cast

 Schitts Creek – Season 5

I initially avoided watching this show based on the name, thinking it was just “too too” something or other. Like writing sh*t instead of – well, you know. Well, it wasn’t and isn’t. It’s a good watch with everyone you love from the movie Best in Show and hahahahah  funny. And those eyebrows…

Chance- Streaming on Hulu

I love Hugh Laurie and would watch anything with him in it. He’s that acerbic character who causes a spew of collateral damage and just doesn’t seem to care.

As Dr. Eldon Chance, a neuropsychiatries with very damaged patients, Laurie often seems to be equally mentally challenged, crossing boundaries with the greatest of ease. Writing here is far from perfect but Laurie is capable of rescuing even the thinnest of plot lines.

 A Confession

Martin Feeman, Sherlock Holmes’ best man Friday, has an opportunity to be top dog in an upcoming ITV detective drama entitled A Confession.

 The 6 part series tells the true story of a detective superintendent who breached protocol to catch a killer.

 Mindhunter – Back for S2 on Netflix

 Directed by David Fincher, Mindhunter weaves a tale of how the FBI, in the 1970’s, create a criminal profiling program that interviews serial killers. Charles Manson the Boston Strangler and the (still unresolved) killing of Jon Benet Ramsey are some of the cases that the agents dig into for information about the psychological backgrounds of the offenders in what are seemingly random or senseless crimes.

Mindhunter tells the tale of the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit( led in real life by career agent John Douglas) and how they attempt to get in the heads of the very worst of the worst and use the information to ferret out offenders. Season 1 was pretty awesome – hoping S 2 is as rewarding

 Old Things I Love

 Gray’s Anatomy

The best part of Gray’s is that it elevates female friendship and the concept of having a bestie. It also deals with all kinds of loss, love, tragedy, obstacles, clarity and recklessness in a way that can reach in and grab you in unexpected places in your heart.

 The Wire

Possibly the best thing ever televised, The Wire looks at Baltimore in a scary real way.

Michael K Williams, who plays Omar – a criminal with ethics –  describes The Wire as “a social story told on American tapestry” that just happened to be in the hood.

 The Wire can scare the sh*t out of you, amuse and entertain, and elevate the dialogue about what it’s like to live in the projects and survive. One of the best 2 minute scenes in all of television is where Jimmy McNulty and a fellow detective, investigate a crime scene and discuss using just one single word as a verb, a noun and an adjective. Unf’ingforgetable.

 West Wing

Well – its Aaron Sorkin so that should give you a clue that it’s magical.

Every syllable of the dialogue is enviable. His words are a treasure and he makes me wanna cry.

 I wanted to be Donna so that I could work for Josh. I trusted Josh and Toby and the President to do The Right Thing and keep us warm and safe. I trusted CJ to tell the truth, no matter what and I learned about governance and campaigning and elections and how thumbing your nose at institutionalism can be legit, even when you work in the White House.

 Lost

There are good seasons and bad seasons. Then there are the ones you watch just  because. There are others who are never fully explained and, at the end of it all, it’s all just ---------. Watch it yourself and you’ll tell me.

Sons of Anarchy

 There are way too many seasons of Sons. That aside, it goes places that I never would image a television show would go, like killing ones own mother. Really, who does that?

 The short story here is that criminals, bikers and wanna-be’s reek havoc on an unsuspecting northern California community. Honestly, when I see Ron Pearlman in my local super market doing what people do in a super market (like shopping for food) he scares the sh*t out of me. Yeah, I know that makes no sense and he’s just buying food but …voices in my head.

 Russian Doll

 OMG – I’ve never, and I mean never, seen anything quite like this.  It’s a unicorn of a show on Netflix that I promise will catch you by the curlies and hold you there ‘till you beg for mercy. You MUST watch the trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHcKoAMGGvY

And when you finish watching it you’re gonna wanna see more. There are eight episodes for you to love.

 Natasha Lyonne – who was darned good in OINTB – is superb as Nadia, a deeply flawed 40 something woman of many bad habits who dies repeatedly. Yes, it’s ground hog day, but done as you’ve never seen.

 It’s so good that I don’t want to give anything away – stopping right here ‘till you’ve had a chance to see a few episodes.

[toldnews-blog]

New Post has been published on https://toldnews.com/politics/lawmakers-advocates-push-bill-to-end-taxpayer-funded-kitten-slaughter/

Lawmakers, advocates push bill to end ‘taxpayer-funded kitten slaughter’

Legislators introduced an act Thursday to stop what they are calling “taxpayer-funded kitten slaughter.”

The bipartisan bill aptly named Kittens in Traumatic Testing Ends Now Act, KITTEN Act for short, aims to stop the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) practice of killing kittens after they are used in agency testing.

Lawmakers in both the House and Senate allege that since 1970, the USDA has spent $650,000 of taxpayer dollars each year to infect and later kill kittens in a Beltsville, Maryland laboratory.

Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via AP, FILE

Rep. Jimmy Panetta, center, Hannah Shaw, an animal advocate know as “Kitten Lady,” play with kittens during a event on bipartisan legislation to end the Department of Agriculture’s scientific testing on kittens, June 7, 2018.

According to the legislators, the USDA lab breeds up to 100 kittens per year and once they’re two months old, they feed them parasite-infected raw meat. The lab then collects the parasitic eggs that form in their stool for experimental use, and slaughter and incinerate the 3-month-old felines.

“The USDA’s decision to slaughter kittens after they are used in research is an archaic practice and horrific treatment, and we need to end it,” Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., said in a press release. “The KITTEN Act will protect these innocent animals from being needlessly euthanized in government testing, and make sure that they can be adopted by loving families instead.”

The disease the USDA is researching is called toxoplasmosis. It is “considered to be a leading cause of death attributed to foodborne illness in the U.S,” according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). More than 40 million people carry the parasite, but very few will develop symptoms. It can have “severe consequences” on women who are infected during pregnancy or anyone with a compromised immune system.

The USDA defends their research and claims it has been “internationally credited with helping to cut the prevalence of [the infection] by as much as 50 percent in the U.S.,” in a statement provided to ABC News.

The USDA told ABC News they do not seek adoptions for the infected cats because of the potential risk they could pose to their adoptive families.

“We will always place public safety first,” a USDA Agricultural Service spokesperson said.

According to the CDC, American Veterinary Medical Association, and Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges, the disease is treatable, the kittens can be adopted and are safe to have as pets.

Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via AP, FILE

Hannah Shaw, an animal advocate known as “Kitten Lady,” attends an event on bipartisan legislation introduced by Reps. Jimmy Panetta and Mike Bishop to end the Department of Agriculture’s scientific testing on kittens on June 7, 2018.

Last spring, legislators introduced a similar bill entitled the “Kitten Act of 2018,” but it did not advance before the end of session. The Senate Appropriations Committee was successful in getting language enacted in the most recent spending bill asking the USDA to find other testing methods and to develop a program to adopt out cats that are no longer needed.

The agency has said that the total number of kittens killed is exaggerated, but a USDA administrator told Congress a total of 2,988 cats have been used for research since 1982.

The bill is championed by the watchdog group White Coat Waste Project which brought these practices to light. They obtained pictures of adult cats that were used for breeding inside the USDA lab through a FOIA request, and recently started an advertisement campaign against the labs in Maryland.

They also created specific Facebook ads targeted at USDA employees encouraging them to “blow the whistle” on the agency for a $1,000 reward. The comments are filled with USDA employees rejecting the claim that their employer kills kittens, but vice president of the White Coat Waste Project, Justin Goodman, the owner of two cats himself, believes they don’t know what is going on inside the USDA.

“The USDA is full of misleading claims and outright fabrications,” Goodman told ABC News. “They continue to defend this archaic practice because of institutional inertia and money.”

The KITTEN act would require that the USDA end “the use of kittens and cats in any experiments that unnecessarily hurts the animals.” Goodman says that if successful this act would stop the research entirely.

“The fact that we need a piece of legislation to tell the federal government to stop killing kittens is ridiculous on its face, but what’s even worse is when you hear the details,” Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., said.

ABC News’ John Parkinson contributed to this report.