#LA [May 1950]

[chronicowboy]

the marker of my final piece this year has so spectacularly missed the point of my story that i want to fucking scream

[aiiaiiiyo]

[hometoursandotherstuff]

Thanks to screamingflutes for sending in this crazy 1950 building in Montreal, Canada. 2bds, 2ba, $763,500. You gotta see this.

If you were a fan of the game Chutes & Ladders, like to rollerblade or skateboard, this home is perfect for you. Look at the ramps. (Just don't go thru the window.)

Actually, these little jumps would land you in the sofa.

The glass walls provide a lovely view of the deck and garden.

Look at this. Do you love the way they lift to reveal the kitchen? If you left a mess, and company comes, just close it.

Now, this is a built-in dining table.

So, here we are in the kitchen. Check out the crooked duct and wall- is that a reflection? I'm getting a little disoriented. Kitchen's nice, though.

This has to be my favorite house to date.

I'm seeing like a weird mirror or some portal to another dimension up ahead. This is actually bedroom #1.

This is the area under the bedroom. Actually, it looks like it could be made into another bedroom.

It looks like that black end table is a built-in.

I like the fireplace- look at the large firebox, although I think it may be an electric display. This area is set up as an office.

In this house, you definitely remove your shoes- look at the white stairs. Love that big gold cabinet.

It's actually the bathroom. Well, it has a lot of storage. There's the sink at the end.

This is beautiful, if disorienting.

The shower is magnificent. It appears to come to a point.

Then up the stairs, there's a lofted bedroom with a terrace.

Looking up from the 1st fl. That's an art piece.

And, this is a bathroom with beautiful marble walls.

Beautiful private covered terrace outside. Love the ivy-covered wall.

Then, this is the rooftop deck. You'd have to make sure you trim the grass around the a/c units and stuff.

https://www.centris.ca/fr/maison~a-vendre~montreal-rosemont-la-petite-patrie/17623955?

[batboyblog]

Welcome to Infrastructure Week, Biden edition.

For the 4 years of the Trump Presidency it felt like every other week was gonna be "Infrastructure Week" but some piece of chaos derailed the Trump White House's plans.

well Yesterday, May 13th 2024, The Biden Administration declared this week Infrastructure Week to highlight ALL the major work they've done in the last 3 years.

Under the 2021  Bipartisan Infrastructure Law $454 billion in funding has gone to over 56,000 specific projects across all 50 states, the territories, DC, and tribal communities.

The White House launched a Map of all the projects you can look at

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is part of President Biden's wider Investing in America agenda, and together with the Inflation Reduction Act, the CHIPS and Science Act, the American Rescue Plan, all passed by Biden and Democrats in Congress has brought $866 billion dollars in private sector manufacturing and clean energy investments.

They released a State by State factsheet to show projects in all 50 states, all the territories and DC

Roads & Bridges: The Biden Administration has launched improvements on 257,000 miles of roads, and repaired 13,000 bridges. This $300 billion investment in our roads and bridges is the biggest since President Eisenhower’s interstate highway system in the 1950s. The Administration has given special attention to addressing historic injustice in our infrastructure. Many minority communities have been divided by highway bypass projects from the 1940s forward, such as the Sweet Auburn neighborhood of Atlanta Georgia. The Biden-Harris Administration is now helping reconnect divided communities and righting historic wrongs. The Department of Transportation put out a video highlighting the story of Philadelphia's Chinatown, how being split in half and have a multilane highway in the middle of their community effects them, and how the Stitch project will positively impact the people who live there who have fought for years for such relief.

Rail: The Biden Administration has invested  $66 billion for rail, the largest investment in passenger rail since the inception of Amtrak. The President recently announced $16.4 billion for 25 passenger rail projects on the Northeast Corridor. This will improve service for riders from Boston to Washington DC. President Biden has also announced $8.2 billion in new funding for 10 major high speed passenger rail projects across the country. These include a high speed rail project to connect Los Angeles with Las Vegas, which broke ground April 22nd. Planned to be finished in 2028 in time for the LA Olympics, the train will take 2 hours to get from Rancho Cucamonga, California to downtown Las Vegas making it the fastest way between the two cities.

Transit and School Buses: The Administration has invested $90 billion in public transit, the largest in American history. To date the DoT has helped replace 3,000 public buses with low or zero emission buses while the EPA has replaced 5,000 school buses with clean buses.

Electric Vehicle Charging, EV Batteries & Critical Materials: The Biden Administration is the first to directly invest in electric vehicle charging. the number of publicly available charging ports on America’s roads has surpassed 182,000, over a 90% increase since President Biden took office. The President has also invested in domestic manufacturing of batteries, already five manufacturing plants have broken ground.

Clean Water: The President invested over $50 billion government-wide for the largest upgrade to the nation’s water infrastructure in history. This funding places us on a path to meet the President’s commitment to replace every toxic lead pipe in America and works to close the wastewater gap for 2 million people who lack basic sanitation. These funds have already financed over 1,400 drinking water and wastewater projects across the country, including over 800 projects that will deliver clean water for Tribal communities that lack basic water services. To date, the Administration has deployed funding that will help replace up to 1.7 million toxic lead pipes. 

High-Speed Internet: The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law invests $65 billion to help ensure that everyone in America has access to affordable, reliable high-speed internet—regardless of their income, race, or zip code.  Over the last year, all 56 states and territories have developed their plans for how they will spend more than $40 billion in funding to connect every unserved location within their borders. That funding comes atop $1 billion for middle-mile infrastructure, which will build more than 12,000 miles of fiber across 370 counties. These projects, will connect 10,500 people, 1,600 farms, and 295 businesses directly to fiber networks. The Department of Commerce has also awarded 148 Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program (TBCP) grants, serving over 280 Tribal Governments, which will connect more than 65,000 Tribal households, subsidizing thousands of devices, and funding digital inclusion activities for Tribal communities. 

Deploying Clean Energy: The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law includes more than $62 billion in funding at the Department of Energy to advance our clean energy future by investing in clean energy demonstration and deployment projects, developing new technologies, and modernizing our power grid. This includes an investment of over $20 billion to upgrade the nation’s grid—a critical component to achieve President Biden’s goal of delivering a 100% carbon-pollution free power sector by 2035. 

Legacy Pollution: Thanks to funding in the The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law the EPA has been able to cap 8,000 orphaned oil and gas wells, with tens of thousands more to be plugged in the years to come. Over 100 Superfund sites have also been cleaned up or started with funds from the Law as well.

And More!

[deadmotelsusa]

Tropicana, the second-oldest resort casino on the Las Vegas Strip, is closing.

On May 9, 2023, it was announced that a 33,000-seat baseball stadium will be built on the Tropicana site. It has to be removed by late 2024 so construction can start.

The Tropicana dates back to 1955, when hotelier Ben Jaffe, part owner of the Fontainebleau in Miami Beach, purchased the land. Gone is the original showroom where Les Folies Bergère dancers danced for 50 years, where Siegfried & Roy made their Vegas debut in 1967 and where Muhammad Ali held public training sessions for his fight against Ron Lyle in 1975.

Pictured here in the 1950s, 1990s and 2023. Two of my favorite features are the ornate stained-glass ceiling (built in 1979) above the blackjack tables and the bright orange carpet.

[noneun]

Sarò distratto io...

ma dopo le critiche di Elena Cecchettin alla condanna dell'assassino di sua sorella, i giornali si sono affrettati a riportare il comunicato di ieri della Camera Penale Veneziana:

Non possiamo non evidenziare come le parole della Signora Elena Cecchettin sviliscano la funzione difensiva criticando le tesi sostenute dall’Avv. Caruso (...) appare un fuor d’opera farlo sui social, senza neppure avere contezza delle basi giuridiche sottese alle decisioni.

Ma non ho trovato nessun articolo che riportasse gli elogi dell'altro ieri dell'Unione delle Camere Penali Italiane alle parole di Gino Cecchettin e le successive aspre critiche a Matteo Salvini:

Davvero lezioni di grande civiltà che segnano la insuperabile distanza con la società politica e con i nostri governanti, impegnati, come sempre, a diffondere sguaiati e rabbiosi spot per la solita propaganda populista da bassifondi. Così, il ministro Salvini, perdendo una ghiotta occasione per tacere, si lancia in spericolati auspici di “lavori forzati” per l’imputato Turetta perché la sua detenzione non gravi economicamente sulla collettività. Forse il Ministro Salvini non conosce affatto le convenzioni internazionali vincolanti per l’Italia, fra tutte la Convenzione per la salvaguardia dei diritti dell’uomo e delle libertà fondamentali, comunemente nota come Convenzione Europea dei Diritti dell’Uomo (CEDU), sottoscritta proprio a Roma il 4 novembre 1950 e che all’art. 4 stabilisce che “Nessuno può essere costretto a compiere un lavoro forzato o obbligatorio”, così come analogamente statuito dall’art. 5 della Carta dei diritti fondamentali dell’Unione europea, adottata con il Trattato di Lisbona del 1 dicembre 2009. Forse le conosce e allora, cosa ben più grave, intenzionalmente le calpesta e con esse calpesta la Costituzione e quei principi che rappresentano un baluardo di civiltà e soprattutto impediscono che la nostra società precipiti verso la barbarie. Nell’un caso e nell’altro, in ogni caso, il Ministro dimostra una netta e incolmabile distanza con i valori di civiltà che hanno espresso i familiari stretti della povera Cecchettin, nonché l’assoluta urgenza di un accelerato corso di alfabetizzazione costituzionale a cui magari invitare gli altri noti esponenti del governo e del Parlamento, purtroppo non pochi, che, da una parte e dall’altra, ostendono una clamorosa ignoranza, oltre che il vilipendio della Costituzione e della Repubblica italiana. Se invece, il Ministro Salvini intendeva denunziare il fallimento economico – per noi anche sociale – del sistema penitenziario italiano che costa a tutti i cittadini più di 3 miliardi di euro l’anno, incapace di svolgere adeguata attività di risocializzazione e di reinserimento sociale, inutile alla prevenzione della recidiva giunta oramai al 70% di ricaduta nei reati, senza rispetto alcuno per la dignità dei detenuti e di coloro che svolgono la loro attività lavorativa, foriero del più alto numero di morti “in e di” carcere mai registrato prima d’ora, allora si attivi per una sessione parlamentare per discutere pubblicamente delle condizioni attuali delle carceri italiane, consentendo, così, ad un Parlamento, troppo muto, di intraprendere un percorso illuminato di riforme. In entrambi i casi, potrà contare sul contributo della comunità di penalisti che si spende continuamente per il superamento delle condizioni di inciviltà in cui si trova il mondo delle carceri italiane.

Mi sembra un filino più rilevante che un ministro mostri una clamorosa ignoranza in materia giuridica e costituzionale.

[haveyouseenthismovie-poll]

End of month update - May

Hello, all! This is the end-of-month update, where I post Tumblr’s current top four films that have received the highest percentage of “yes,” “no,” and “haven’t even heard of this movie” votes.

As of today, the top four films with the highest percentage of “yes” votes are:

Finding Nemo (2003) | Shrek (2001) | Monsters, Inc. (2001) | The Lion King (1994)

Next, the top four films with the highest percentage of “no” votes are:

Sausage Party (2016) | Pinocchio (2019) | Sharknado 2: The Second One (2014) | All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)

This top four changed through the new addition of Pinocchio (2019), which replaced Bonnie and Clyde (1967).

Finally, the top four films with the highest percentage of “haven’t even heard of this movie” votes are:

Like a Cat on a Highway (2017) | Dean Spanley (2008) | Monica and Friends: Bonds (2019) | Monsturd (2003)

This top four changed through the new additions of Like a Cat on a Highway (2017) and Dean Spanley (2008), which replaced Heroic Losers (2019) and Death Trance (2005).

Currently, The Incredibles (2004) is the still the only film to receive absolutely zero “haven’t heard of this” votes.

That’s it for May’s end-of-month update! Remember that you can view last month’s update by clicking here. Additionally, you can view the full ranked Letterboxd lists of movies that have come up on this blog by clicking the following links:

This list is ranked from highest-to-lowest percentage of “yes” votes.

This list is ranked from highest-to-lowest percentage of “no” votes.

This list is ranked from highest-to-lowest percentage of “haven’t even heard of this movie” votes.

Remember to vote on the polls that are currently running: The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994) | Now Add Honey (2015) | Lady Bird (2017) | Kath & Kimderella (2012) | Gangs of Wasseypur - Part 1 (2012) | The Fly (1986) | First Reformed (2017) | Candleshoe (1977) | The Thief and the Cobbler (1993) | Addams Family Values (1993) | Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) | The Young Girls of Rochefort (1967) | Yentl (1983) | Two Times Lotte (1950) | The Fox and the Hound (1981) | Muriel's Wedding (1994) | The Loved Ones (2009) | Kenny (2006) | Winter Sleep (2014) | Mustang (2015) | The Butterfly's Dream (2013) | Re-Animator (1985) | Bride of Re-Animator (1990) | The Runaways (2010) | American Psycho (2000) | Nim's Island (2008) | No Reservations (2007) | Nancy Drew (2007) | Battle Royale (2000) | [REC] (2007) | La Vage aux Folles (1978) | Y Tu Mamá También (2001) | Beau Travail (1999) | Happy as Lazzarro (2018) | Farewell My Concubine (1993)

[notbecauseofvictories]

The full list is quite long, so I didn't want to clutter up the last post with it---still, it is impressive to see them all laid out together. So without further ado!

THE 50 MOVIES AND 50ISH BOOKS I WATCHED/READ IN 2024

MOVIES

The Count of Monte Cristo (2024) Emilia Pérez (2024) Wicked (2024) American Psycho (2000) Heavy Trip (2018) La Planète sauvage / Fantastic Planet (1973) The Slipper and the Rose (1973) Bottoms (2023) I Saw the TV Glow (2024) *We’re All Going to the World’s Fair (2021) Oddity (2024) Maxxxine (2024) *The Substance (2024) *The Wicker Man (1973) Housebound (2014) Problemista (2023) Showing Up (2023) *Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) It Comes at Night (2017) The Boy and the Heron (2023) Abigail (2024) Seven Samurai (1954) The Iron Claw (2023) Talk to Me (2023) Bodies Bodies Bodies (2023) Rashomon (1950) *M (1931) Lord of Misrule (2023) The Tale of Princess Kaguya (2013) *Crimes of the Future (2022) Sanctuary (2022) After Yang (2022) **The Florida Project (2017) Pig (2021) The Favourite (2018) Poor Things (2023) Infinity Pool (2023) The Feast (2021) Office Space (1999) *Corsage (2022) Robots (2023) The Deer King (2021) Madame de… (1953) Orphée (1950) Master Gardener (2022) *Something in the Dirt (2022) Black Orpheus (1959) Priscilla (2023) How to Blow Up a Pipeline (2022) *The Lure (2015) To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar (1995)

BOOKS

The Shambling Guide to New York City, Ghost Train to New Orleans, Mur Lafferty What Feasts At Night, T. Kingfisher *Bad Girls, Camila Sosa Villada Don't Fear the Reaper, Stephen Graham Jones *Vintner's Luck, Elizabeth Knox The Barrow Will Send What it May, Margaret Killjoy You Know How the Story Goes, Thomas Olde Heuvelt Bloodchild, Wild Seed, Octavia E. Butler The Angel of Indian Lake, Stephen Graham Jones The Default World, Naomi Kanakia Fantasyland, Mike Bockoven Something is Killing the Children, issues 1-15 The Night Eaters Book 1, Book 2, Marjorie Liu This Wretched Valley, Jenny Kiefer These Deathless Bones, Cassandra Khaw *Dead Inside, Chandler Morrison Mental Diplopia, Julianna Baggott A Human Stain, Kelly Robson The Shape of My Name, Nino Cipri Daughter of Necessity, Marie Brennan The Mist, Stephen King A Skinful of Shadows, Frances Hardinge The Chalk Man, C. J. Tudor *The Rehearsal, Eleanor Catton Come Closer, Sara Gran The Underwater Welder, Jeff Lemire Blink, Christopher Sebela Pulling the Wings Off Angels, KJ Parker Thirteen Ways to Kill Lulabelle Rock, Maud Woolf An Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good, Helene Tursten Thornhedge, T. Kingfisher HEX, Thomas Olde Heuvelt Midnight Rooms, Donyae Coles Aglaeca, Mohnfisch Dr. Limos Plays God, Stevie Barot Home by the Rotting Sea, Otava Heikkila Last Crane, Narsid Sacred Bodies, Ver No Trouble at All, Various Authors (short story collection) *Wylding Hall, Elizabeth Hand Glass House, Paul Jessup Agony's Lodestone, Laura Keating * Big Swiss, Jen Beagin House of Rot, Danger Slater Dreadful, Rebecca Rozakis *Diavola, Jennifer Thorne Lute, Jennifer Thorne Regrettably, I Am About To Cause Trouble, Amie McNee The Rules Upheld by No One, Amie McNee The Sacrifice, Rin Chupeco The Bog Wife, Kay Chronister The Unmothers, Leslie J. Anderson *The Eyes Are the Best Part, Monika Kim Paying for It, Chester Brown Snow, Ronald Malfi Midnight on Beacon Street, Emily Ruth Verona Haunt Sweet Home, Sarah Pinsker The Doll-Master, Joyce Carol Oates The Third Person, Emma Grove The Werewolf at Dusk, David Small It's Lonely At The Centre Of The Earth, Zoe Thorogood Mom's Cancer, Brian Fies Mary Astor's Purple Diary, Edward Sorel Impossible People, Julia Wertz Roaming, Jillian Tamaki

[blueiscoool]

Century-Old Clara Bow Silent Film Believed Lost Forever Found

Long-Lost Clara Bow Silent Film Found in a Omaha Parking Lot.

The Pill Pounder, one of the key titles in the CV of the iconic flapper, has enjoyed a belated revival at the San Francisco Silent film festival

A century after she first began to turn heads, Clara Bow is “It” once more. The iconic flapper of the silent film era inspired Margot Robbie’s character Nellie in Damien Chazelle’s Hollywood epic Babylon, is namechecked on Taylor Swift’s forthcoming album The Tortured Poets Department, and yesterday at the San Francisco Silent film festival, one of her earliest films was shown for the first time since the days of bathtub gin.

The story of the film’s discovery has already caused excitement online. Film-maker Gary Huggins inadvertently snapped up a slice of lost silent film history at an auction in a car park in Omaha, Nebraska, that was selling old stock from a distribution company called Modern Sound Pictures. Hoping to bid on a copy of the 1926 comedy Eve’s Leaves that he had spotted on top of a pile, Huggins was informed that he could only buy the whole pallet of movies, not individual cans. The upside? The lot was his for only $20.

Huggins soon discovered that his new pile of reels included 1923’s The Pill Pounder, a silent comedy that had been thought to be lost for decades. It is a short, two-reel film, shot on Long Island, New York, and directed by Gregory La Cava, best known for later classics such as My Man Godfrey (1936) and Stage Door (1937). The film stars rubber-faced vaudeville veteran Charlie Murray, the so-called “Irish comedian” who was actually from Laurel, Indiana. He plays a hapless pharmacist, the “pill pounder” of the title, who is trying to host a clandestine poker game in the back room of his drugstore. What few realised until Huggins watched the film, was that it also features 17-year-old Bow in a supporting role. She plays the girlfriend of Murray’s son, played by James Turfler, who had already appeared with Bow in her second film Down to the Sea in Ships, directed by Elmer Clifton and screened in 1922. Turfler’s character is the butt of some bizarre gags. At one point, he chugs a jug of effervescent “fomo seltzer” and Bow watches in horror as he floats up to the ceiling.

In this, one of her earliest surviving performances on film, Bow looks even younger than her years. Although she lacks the sleek Hollywood glamour she later acquired, she has the charisma to turn a thankless bit-part into something of a scene-stealer. The critics took note: based on the evidence of this film, the Exhibitors’ Trade Review described her as “perhaps the most promising of the younger actresses”. In his introduction to the film at San Francisco’s grand Palace of Fine Arts theatre, Bow’s biographer, the screenwriter David Stenn, speculated that the actor may have forgotten that she made the film, as she never talked about it. It was made during a traumatic period in her life, only a few weeks after her mother’s death following prolonged mental illness. He invited us to imagine how Bow might have felt appearing in a lighthearted slapstick comedy in such circumstances.

The film, which has been restored by the festival’s organisers and was screened with accompanying music from composer Wayne Barker, now looks remarkably good for its age. The festival’s senior film restorer, Kathy Rose O’Regan, said it was in great shape when they received it. She added: “We imagined it was screened maybe a few times, but there’s hardly any damage – a few scratches here and there, some dirt, but overall in pretty stellar condition.”

Now it has been freshened up and looks its best, but it is still incomplete, being in what Stenn called a “beta version”.

That’s because the copy Huggins found was not from the 1920s, but a 35mm print from the 1950s or 1960s of an edit of the film that was destined to become part of a 16mm compilation of old silent films with a comic voiceover poking fun at its archaic aspects. The intertitles have been removed and there are a few scenes and shots missing, too.

This process is deeply unflattering to old movies, but it has been responsible for preserving versions of silent films that would otherwise have been lost, including the Lois Weber melodrama Shoes from 1916. And the lack of titles are no barrier to following the film.

“For me, it is a pretty perfect 14-minutes of fun,” says O’Regan. “It would be nice to know what the titles were, but you can certainly get the gist without them.”

Stenn called the tale of the film’s discovery “miraculous” and led a round of applause for Huggins, who was in the audience. He explained that there was reason to believe that some of the discarded material was among the other cans that were sold at the Omaha auction. The hunt is on to round out The Pill Pounder, and several people have joined in the search, combing through thousands of reels. One Omaha-based film-maker and silent film enthusiast, Alexander Payne, was quick to offer his support.

The film fills in a brief blank period in Bow’s filmography. She shot the role – probably in just a couple of days – in the early “false start” phase of her film career. Bow, a tomboy from a troubled home in Brooklyn, made her debut after winning a magazine talent competition in 1921 but struggled to get her career off the ground.

“I wore myself out goin’ from studio t’studio, from agency t’agency, applyin’ for every possible part,” she later recalled. “But there was always something. I was too young, or too little, or too fat. Usually I was too fat.”

In 1923, she found her way into a handful of films, including The Pill Pounder, where she had the chance to shine in supporting roles, and this is when she finally got her ticket to Hollywood and Paramount.

“She’s not the star of the film, but you can’t take her eyes off her,” says O’Regan. “For the few minutes she’s there she’s divine, she’s fun, she’s full of energy.”

The festival screened The Pill Pounder alongside another new restoration. The feature film Dancing Mothers directed by Herbert Brenon in 1926, is a flapper drama that Bow made for Paramount, in one of her last supporting roles. She plays the reckless daughter of a lonely woman (Alice Joyce) who tires of staying home while her husband and daughter party hard in New York and steps out to go nightclubbing. Bow completely pulls focus from the grownups around her, playing a hedonistic minx, whose body spasms with pleasure when she sips a cocktail.

Stenn described the later film as “like watching a star being born”. Finally, Bow was able to make good on her early promise and start her career as a leading lady. With the breakout comedy It directed by Clarence Badger in 1927, she became a genuine star for the ages. It is easy to look back and assume Bow was destined to become a sensation, but her overnight stardom took a good five years of hard work. The Pill Pounder offers a fascinating glimpse into the route that she took to get there.

By Pamela Hutchinson.

[tina-aumont]

Il Ladro di Venezia, 1950

"Il Ladro di Venezia" is a 1950 Italian film directed by John Brahm. The US title was "The Thief of Venice".

It was released in the US two years after being made.

Plot (it may contain spoilers)

In 1575 Venice, the Doge has just died and Scarpa the Grand Inquisitor leads a plot to seize control of Venice.

Disani, a popular admiral works to stop the Grand Inquisitor's power grab with the help of Lorenzo, one of his officers. They manage to get back to Venice in record time by promising the galley slaves their freedom. When they arrive back Disani is killed and Lorenzo goes into hiding.

Lorenzo continues the fight against Scarpa, who plans to marry Disani's daughter Francesca. Lorenzo and Francesca fall in love even though Lorenzo is also loved by tavern girl Tina.

Lorenzo's rebellion against Scarpa is successful.

Cast

Maria Montez - Tina

Paul Christian - Alfiere Lorenzo Contarini

Massimo Serato - Scarpa the Inquisitor

Faye Marlowe - Francesca Disani

Aldo Silvani - Capt. von Sturm

Luigi Saltamerenda - Alfredo

Guido Celano - Polo

Umberto Sacripante - Durro

Camillo Pilotto - Adm. Disani

Ferdinando Tamberlani - Lombardi

Liana Del Balzo - Duenna

Paolo Stoppa - Marco

Mario Tosi - Mario

Vinicio Sofia - Grazzi

Leonardo Scavino - Sharp Eye

Shooting

Filming started November 1949 and went until February. Then it resumed in June. The movie was shot on location in Italy with studio work done at Scalera Studios. Filming finished by March 1950.

While filming a scene in the canal, Maria Montez almost drown herself, that's why when the filming ended, she decided to write her will.

It was released in Rome on the 22nd December 1950 and Maria's character was highly praised by the press & critics.

Here you can watch part 1, part 2, part 3 & part 4

Scans from "María Montez: La Reina del Technicolor", book written by Antonio Pérez Arnay & ebay.

[sleepanonymous]

This is a reminder to everyone in North America who is unable to get tickets for the pre-sale and general sale of Sleep Token’s Teeth of God tour. DO NOT buy resale tickets through third-party vendors like StubHub, Seat Geek, Vivid Seats, etc. Tickets for the Teeth of God tour are mobile-only and non-transferable. This means the seller will not be able to transfer the tickets you purchased from them. The only reliable way to purchase tickets to this tour is through Ticketmaster or your local venue’s ticketing system. Please protect yourself and do not get scammed. If you do not have tickets and need tickets, check out the list I’ve created below the cut. Once pre-sales/general sales are over, I’ll update this post with more links. For more context, check my post here.

Saturday, April 27 – Las Vegas, Nevada Sick New World Music Festival Purchase Tickets through Sick New World’s Website. Third-party sites and sellers can transfer mobile tickets.

Tuesday, April 30 – Phoenix, Arizona Arizona Financial Theatre 400 W Washington St, Phoenix, AZ 85003 (602) 379-2800 Purchase tickets resale through Ticketmaster.

Wednesday, May 1 – Albuquerque, New Mexico Revel Entertainment Center 4720 Alexander Blvd NE, Albuquerque, NM 87107 (505) 321-0406 Purchase tickets resale through Prekindle.

Friday, May 3 – Austin, Texas H-E-B Center 2100 Ave of the Stars, Cedar Park, TX 78613 (512) 600-5000 Purchase Tickets resale through Ticketmaster.

Saturday, May 4 – Dallas, Texas Toyota Music Factory 316 W Las Colinas Blvd., Irving, TX 75039 (469) 840-9730 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Monday, May 6 – Tampa, Florida Yuengling Center 12499 USF Bull Run Drive, Tampa, FL 33617 (813) 974-3111 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Tuesday, May 7 – Atlanta, Georgia Coca-Cola Roxy 800 Battery Ave SE #500, Atlanta, GA 30339 (470) 351-3866 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Wednesday, May 8 – Asheville, North Carolina ExploreAshville.com Arena 87 Haywood St, Asheville, NC 28801 (828) 259-5736 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Friday, May 10 – St. Louis, Missouri The Factory 17105 N Outer 40 Rd, Chesterfield, MO 63005 (314) 423-8500 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Sunday, May 12 – Morrison, Colorado Red Rocks Amphitheatre 18300 W Alameda Pkwy, Morrison, CO 80465 (720) 865-2494 Purchase Tickets through AXS. Third-party sites and sellers can transfer mobile tickets.

Tuesday May 14 – Des Moines, Iowa Vibrant Music Hall 2938 Grand Prairie Pkwy, Waukee, IA 50263 (515) 895-4980 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Wednesday, May 15 & Thursday, May 16 – Chicago, Illinois Salt Shed 1357 N Elston Ave, Chicago, IL 60642 (708) 967-2168 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster. Third-party sites and sellers can transfer mobile tickets.

Saturday, May 18 – Columbus, Ohio Sonic Temple Art & Music Festival Purchase Tickets through Sonic Temple’s Website. Third-party sites and sellers can transfer mobile tickets.

Sunday, May 19 – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Petersen Events Center 3719 Terrace St, Pittsburgh, PA 15261 (412) 648-3054 Purchase Tickets through AXS.

Monday, May 20 – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania The Met 858 N Broad St, Philadelphia, PA 19130 (800) 653-8000 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Wednesday, May 22 – New York, New York Radio City Music Hall 1260 6th Ave, New York, NY 10020 (212) 465-6000 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster. Third-party sites and sellers can transfer mobile tickets.

Friday, May 24 – Boston, Massachusetts MGM Music Hall 2 Lansdowne St, Boston, MA 02215 (617) 488-7540 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Saturday, May 25 – Laval, Quebec Place Bell 1950 Rue Claude-Gagné, Laval, QC H7N 0E4, Canada (514) 492-1775 Purchase Tickets through Ticketmaster.

Monday, May 27 & Tuesday May 28– Toronto, Ontario Massey Hall 178 Victoria St, Toronto, ON M5B 1T7, Canada (416) 872-4255 Purchase Tickets through Massey Hall.

[bitter69uk]

Died on this day: Britain's answer to Jayne Mansfield, TV personality, b-movie starlet, pin-up, Stockport’s finest export and all-round glamour girl (when that was still a legit job title) – the fabulously ridiculous Sabrina (née Norma Ann Sykes, 19 May 1936 - 24 November 2016)! In her 1950s and 60s heyday, the sex kitten’s sensational 42½ inch bust and a 19-inch waist earned her lecherous publicity titles like “Britain's Finest Hourglass”, “Queen of the Big Top" and "The Juliet with the Built-in Balcony.” Sabrina also had great taste in men: she enjoyed a tempestuous fling with Hollywood film noir tough guy Steve Cochran in the fifties. I treasure Sabrina’s gloriously awful performance in 1962 American sexploitation masterpiece Satan in High Heels. But I also clearly need to seek out The Ice House (1969) (aka Love in Cold Blood, aka The Passion Pit) in which Sabrina plays Venus De Marco, a role originally intended for Jayne Mansfield before her death. (The part was also offered to Mamie Van Doren, Diana Dors and Joi Lansing). Pictured: Sabrina in Las Vegas, 1962.

[b5ttyb1tch]

How I think Hazbin hotel Characters died (Most of These are Theory's Don't take them as Cannon. Also Most of this Info is From the Unreliable Wiki so Take this with a Grain of Salt)

• Alastor- Alastor died in 1933 In his (20 - 30) From a dog related death. He also has an X on his forehead that we see in the Pilot and in the Season. A popular fan Theory Is that When Alastor Was Burying A body In the woods he was Shot in the head (For being Mistaken for a Deer) And Mauled by Dogs to Finish him Off. But I have Another thought Maybe his cabalistic and Sadistic Nature was Discovered by the Towns people Of Louisiana (Where He lived) And was Promptly and Forcibly Shot in the Head for it. And dogs maybe Ate his Remains Because The Town refused to bury him Just leaving him in the woods.

• Angel Dust- Now it's Cannon that Angel Dust died in 1947 In his (30) From a Drug Overdosed. (But I am gonna Add another Theory Because I can) We know that AngelDust Grew up In New York. In a Crime Family so Maybe He was Caught stealing Drugs From another Rival Gang and Beaten to Death. If you notice he Has One black eye So maybe that Resembles a Black eye he Died with? Also he Has Pink sploches Over his Body That may Resemble Blood Spots/Wounds.

• Niffty- Niffty Died in 1950 (In her 20 I think) Notice on her Apron that She has 3 Red sploches I think these Resemble Gun shots. Niffty had a husband That she Was OBSESSED With. One day she Found Out her Husband was Cheating on Her and she Killed the other Women. And got shot down By the Police when she ran.

• Cherry Bomb- Cherry Bomb died in 1980 (Most Likely 19 - 20) Cherry has an X On her Chest. So giving her personality She probably Got shot down By the Police for Endangering Others (Threatening to Bomb things/Bombing things Ext)

• Sir Precious- Sir Pentious Died in 1888 (Idk how Old he was) I think Sir Pentious Tried to be a Famous Inventor In England back in the Day. Over come with the Greed of wanting to Be Famous He pushed himself to Hard and Fucked up. Probably Get Blown Up by Smt.

• Husk Husk died In 1970 (60 - 70) We know he Grew up In las Vegas. I think Husk Used to Cheat and Scam People with Card tricks Since he WAS A magician. One day Maybe He got caught And Some people Got pissed and Drowned him (That's what they Used to do To Cats/Kittens in His Time). I also think that Maybe He Fell off Smt high (Since he is a Cat/Bird Hybrid the Two animals That basically Can't take Fall damage. It would be a Dark Pun)

• Molly- Molly the Twin Brother of AngelDust. We don't know Much about her But. Molly is Named after the Drug (Ecstasy) Which makes The User Feel Extreme Emotional Pleasure. My thoughts are that Molly was A Cheerful Happy person And Tried to Fall away From the Sinful life her Family was in. One day maybe she had a Break up That left her Heart broken.(She does have Skull hearts on her Boobs) and Taking after her Brothers she Looked Up to Took that Drug. Probably Taking too Much and Died. She Was good enough on earth to Get into heaven tho.

• Arackiness- We Also Don't know Much about Arackiness. But my Guesses are that He either 1 Also died from a Drug overdose 2 Died from a Battle with a Rival Gang or 3 Died from Old age.

• Baxter- Baxter Died in 1910 From Drowning. Baxter is also an Angler Fish A Deep sea Fish. My guess is that He died in a Ship While Traveling over seas Probably Going down with the Ship. The wiki also states he HATES Being touched So I think He was in an Abusive Relationship. He Tried to Run away and Died In the Process.

• Crymini- Crymini Died in 1990 (When she was 19) Crymini is a Hyena and Has little Sploches all over her Body Some look Like paw Prints and Claw Marks. Maybe She was an Animal Abuser and Angerd a Dog Resulting her In being Mauled. And Later Bled to Death. Or She Got into a Car crash For reckless Driving (Viv described her as a Rebellious Teen so it would fit) She may be a Hyena Because she was a Mean Petty Bitch.

• Valentino- (DISCLAMER) I do NOT support Vals Actions Towards Angel. I just wanna Give him a Reason Explaining why he would Do The terrible Things he Does. I am not Trying to Dismiss it Just give him a Backstory.(I am glad That Bitch is Dead) Val Died in 1970 (30 - 40 (Guessing) Probably From some Kind of STD. I Think Val was a Prostitute. Also Serving under an Abusive Boss He Slowly Started getting weaker from the STD And Avenchally it got So bad that he couldn't work Anymore. so His Boss Left him on a Street corner. Leaving him to die There.

• Vox- Vox died in The 1950 (Probably In his 20 - 30) My Theory Is that He was a Pritty Popular Show host back in the Day. But one day when he was On set q Stage Light fell On his Head while he was On set. Hence why his head is a TV.

• Velvette- We don't know when Velvette died But I am Guessing Somewhere in the 2000 (Probably Died in her 20). She probably Was obsessed with her Looks and Phone when she was Alive. Hence why she looks like a Doll. Maybe she was texting while Driving and Crashed Killing her.

[thebusylilbee]

Comment a-t-on pu en arriver là ? À mesure que l’on feuillette la bande dessinée, la question se répète, s’amplifie, jusqu’à former une tornade d’incompréhension. Dans Spirou et la Gorgone bleue, paru en septembre 2023 aux éditions Dupuis, certains personnages noirs ressemblent à des singes. D’autres cochent toutes les cases des caricatures racistes : une peau noir foncé, des lèvres surdimensionnées d’une couleur rosée et, parfois, des grandes mains et une mâchoire prognathe. 

Les représentations s’étalent sur des dizaines de pages et pourtant, l’œuvre a été relue, éditée et diffusée massivement en France et en Belgique depuis un an. Le synopsis de l’album tient en quelques mots : Spirou et Fantasio traquent une bande d’écoterroristes en lutte contre la malbouffe. Leur enquête les mène sur un porte-avions de l’armée américaine, subtilement baptisé USS Obama, dont les militaires poursuivent aussi les militantes écolos. À bord de l’USS Obama, tout le personnel est noir. Ou plutôt, « furtif », comme l’affirme en riant l’amirale Denzelle Jackson à bord, une grosse femme noire aux immenses lèvres roses et au cou poilu. 

Au téléphone, le dessinateur de l’album, Dany, tente de nous expliquer la « blague » : « On a repeint le porte-avions avec une couleur noire, qui lui permet de ne pas être décelé par les radars. C’est un navire “furtif”. La dimension furtive est amusante. D’ailleurs, la pacha [commandante du navire – ndlr] dit en rigolant que tout le personnel est furtif. Ils sont tous blacks ! [sic] C’est ça qui amusait beaucoup le scénariste et qui m’a fait rire aussi. C’était une bonne trouvaille, un équipage complètement noir... » 

Mais depuis quelques jours, une foule de nouveaux lecteurs et lectrices est loin de partager ce point de vue. « Quand j’ai découvert les dessins, j’ai eu l’impression que c’étaient des animaux qui étaient dessinés, et non des humains », s’étonne le blogueur Seumboy. 

« Retrait de l’ouvrage »

Le militant antiraciste a, comme beaucoup d’internautes, découvert l’existence de Spirou et la Gorgone bleue après qu’une Française a diffusé une courte vidéo sur TikTok, le 29 octobre. « Je tiens entre mes mains une des BD les plus racistes de 2024 », présente-t-elle en feuilletant les pages de l’album, paru en réalité un an plus tôt. Sa vidéo est reprise sur d’autres réseaux sociaux, cumule rapidement des centaines de milliers de vues et génère des trombes de commentaires indignés.

Contactées par Mediapart, les éditions Dupuis ont répondu ce jeudi par voie de communiqué, actant que « les prises de parole se multiplient pour exprimer la colère ressentie devant la représentation des personnes noires et des femmes » dans l’œuvre mise en cause.

« Nous sommes profondément désolés si cet album a pu choquer et blesser. Cet album s’inscrit dans un style de représentation caricatural hérité d’une autre époque. Plus que jamais conscients de notre devoir moral et de l’importance que représente la bande dessinée en tant qu’éditeur et plus largement le livre dans l’évolution des sociétés, nous prenons en ce jour la pleine responsabilité de cette erreur d’appréciation. C’est pourquoi nous tenons à présenter nos plus sincères excuses. »

La maison explique avoir « mis en œuvre le retrait de l’ouvrage de l’ensemble des points de vente ». L’album se serait toutefois très bien vendu ces 13 derniers mois, selon le dessinateur Dany, qui nous informe qu’elle aurait même été réimprimée. Elle avait été tirée en septembre 2023 à 22 000 exemplaires, apprend-on sur le site BDZoom. 

L’univers de Spirou, popularisé par Franquin, est dense. D’un côté s’égraine, depuis les années 1950, la saga officielle des Aventures de Spirou et Fantasio,dont le 57e numéro est paru cet automne. De l’autre, une série dérivée« Le Spirou de... »permet à la maison d’édition de décliner la franchise en demandant à des dessinateurs de réinterpréter le célèbre héros à leur sauce.

C’est là que Yann et Dany entrent en scène. Le premier est scénariste de BD, l’autre auteur et dessinateur. À 81 ans, Dany est un incontournable du neuvième art belge, qui fait vivre depuis cinquante ans les aventuresd’Olivier Rameau, un héros rêveur et son acolyte féminine hypersexualisée en robe courte, Colombe Tiredaile. Il y a huit ans, les éditions Dupuis sont venues le chercher pour développer ce nouveau Spirou, raconte-t-il dans une interview accordée aux Amis de la BD en 2023. 

Le processus de création a visiblement pris du temps. L’éditeur qui avait démarché Dany est remplacé en 2020 par un autre, plus jeune, qui se serait alarmé en voyant la tête de certains personnages. « Le nouvel éditeur m’a dit : “Tu sais, on ne peut plus dessiner les Noirs comme ça.” Alors j’ai changé, on a refait pas mal de visages… Mais apparemment pas suffisamment », explique Dany à Mediapart. 

La bande dessinée que l’on connaît aujourd’hui aurait donc déjà fait l’objet de modifications. C’est ce qu’a confirmé Julie Durot, la directrice générale de Dupuis depuis 2021, au Parisien ce jeudi : « Le contrat a été signé il y a plus de dix ans, par des gens qui ne sont plus aux commandes. Depuis mon arrivée, nous avons à plusieurs reprises demandé des modifications à son dessinateur, Dany. C’est un homme de plus de 80 ans : il ne voyait pas en quoi ces dessins, qui sont des caricatures, étaient choquants. Nous avons sans doute commis une erreur en acceptant de la publier. »

« On peut se demander pourquoi l’éditeur a quand même publié l’album alors qu’il ne semblait pas satisfait. Refuser d’éditer ce Spirou aurait été à perte, mais cela aurait évité une grosse polémique »,souligne Lloyd Chéry, rédacteur en chef adjoint de Métal hurlant, un magazine de référence sur l’univers de la BD.

Peu de remise en question

Auprès de Mediapart, le dessinateur alterne aujourd’hui entre excuses et justifications. « S’il faut retenir quelque chose, c’est que je suis désolé si j’ai pu blesser certaines personnes, africaines ou pas [sic]», insiste celui qui se dit « interloqué » par les réactions. « J’ai peut-être un peu forcé la main, peut-être que j’ai fait une erreur… Cela dit, l’album est sorti en septembre 2023, jusqu’ici, je n’ai eu aucune critique. » 

Dany défend la « caricature » qui, « par définition, consiste à forcer le trait ». Et d’expliquer un raisonnement à faire s’évanouir des militants antiracistes : « Il est évident que la plupart des Africains, enfin presque tous d’ailleurs, ont des lèvres plus épaisses, plus grosses que les Blancs, c’est un fait. Ça fait partie de la caricature. »

Il mentionne ensuite les protagonistes blancs, qu’il considère également avoir « caricaturé » : « Il y en a un qui ressemble à Trump, ce n’est pas particulièrement gentil non plus… Et puis à ce moment-là, j’aurais aussi dû refaire le nez de Fantasio aussi ? », ajoute-t-il à propos de l’acolyte de Spirou.

Il admet toutefois : « J’aurais dû faire gaffe à ne pas dessiner les Noirs comme dans les années 1960 ou 1980, c’est sans doute vrai [...], mais je voulais me rapprocher de l’univers de Spirou. Mon modèle absolu, c’est Franquin, c’est le genre de dessins qu’il faisait. J’en suis vraiment désolé et je voudrais présenter toutes mes excuses à ceux que j’aurais pu blesser, car c’est totalement involontaire. J’ai peut-être beaucoup de défauts, mais je ne suis pas raciste, ça, c’est certain. »

Un blog qui en dit long

Sur le blog professionnel de Dany, on retrouve pourtant une autre publication, preuve d’une inclination à déshumaniser les personnes noires, qui n’est pas propre à la BD de Spirou. Le dessin montre, d’un côté, les deux personnages blancs créés par Dany, le fameux Olivier Rameau et son amie, s’opposer à un groupe de cinq personnes racisées. « Ça ne va pas être facile de les intégrer, ces deux-là », soupire un protagoniste noir aux airs de singe, avec de grandes oreilles, une grande bouche, un « museau » brun, entouré d’autres personnages racisés. Comme si les personnes blanches, devenues minoritaires, étaient victimes de discriminations, dans une sorte de mise en abyme de la théorie raciste du « grand remplacement ».

Le blog regorge également de dessins de femmes nues ou hypersexualisées, comme c’est le cas dans Spirou et la Gorgone bleue. Une autre planche, signée Dany et Tibet, montre un homme qui tabasse une travailleuse du sexe. 

« Quand on fait un tour sur le blog de Dany, on se rend bien compte qu’il ne s’agit pas d’une erreur de jeunesse, mais d’une prise de position politique dont il est coutumier, remarque Seumboy, créateur et animateur du site de vulgarisation de l’histoire coloniale Histoires Crépues. Le message qu’il essaye de délivrer, c’est que les personnes noires prennent trop de pouvoir aux États-Unis et que si l’on n’y prend pas garde, la société multiculturaliste américaine va arriver chez nous en Europe. »

Aux origines de l’esthétique coloniale de la BD franco-belge

Celui que Dany présente comme son modèle, l’iconique dessinateur franco-belge André Franquin, créateur du Marsupilami et illustrateur régulier des aventures de Spirou et Fantasio, avait lui-même une façon bien particulière de crayonner les personnages noirs.

Dans Spirou chez les Pygmées, paru pour la première fois en 1949, l’auteur de BD met en scène des personnages noirs… dont on découvre qu’ils sont en réalité « des bruns qui ne se sont jamais lavés », dixit Spirou, en nettoyant au savon un enfant noir. Une illustration qui préfigurait les spots télés pour détergents qui « lavaient plus blanc que blanc » et qu’on illustrait d’un Africain dont les membres ressortaient du bain dépigmentés. Dans un livre d’entretien, exhumé par le journaliste spécialiste Jérôme Lachasse, Franquin se défendait de tout racisme et expliquait caricaturer les Blancs comme les Noirs. 

Pourtant, dans les dessins de Dany, comme dans ceux de son illustre inspirateur Franquin, les personnages blancs ne sont pas ou peu caricaturés, et souvent dépeints sous les traits d’aventuriers en quête de frissons et d’exotisme, ont des physiques avantageux et diversifiés, quand les personnages noirs sont souvent primitifs et présentent des physiques très homogènes.

« Convoquer cet imaginaire colonial, c’est aussi faire preuve de paresse artistique, déplore Laura Nsafou, écrivaine et bédéiste afroféministe. Là où on va se poser la question de varier les physiques pour les personnages blancs, on va uniformiser le corps noir, sans jamais essayer de rendre compte des différentes carnations ou textures de cheveux. Plutôt que de faire ça, on va reprendre des attributs racistes, rappelant les singes. »

L’histoire de la bande dessinée franco-belge recèle en réalité beaucoup de ces représentations stéréotypées, reprenant l’esthétique coloniale des pubs Banania, donnant aux personnages noirs des traits indiscernables de ceux des primates et les campant dans des rôles secondaires de faire-valoir humoristiques, imbéciles et dociles. Les protagonistes noirs évoluent fréquemment dans des contextes de guerre, d’esclavage ou de ségrégation raciale, et n’occupent que très rarement les rôles principaux. 

L’exemple le plus mémorable reste le numéro de Tintin au Congo, où l’on suit le reporter à houppette déjouant les pièges d’une bande de gangsters qui cherchent à mettre la main sur la production de diamants au Congo. Cette bande dessinée était le reflet de l’esprit paternaliste de la Belgique colonialiste du début des années 1930. Et presque cent ans plus tard, les planches de Hergé continuent de nourrir l’inspiration et les préjugés racistes de bédéistes contemporains. 

Plusieurs spécialistes et acteurs de la bande dessinée relèvent la responsabilité de l’éditeur d’avoir validé, après réunion du comité éditorial, une telle publication. Mais ils saluent la décision rare de retirer des ventes le numéro et invitent à saisir cette occasion pour amorcer une réflexion plus large. « Il est nécessaire que les maisons d’édition de bande dessinée soutiennent d’autres narrations et proposent des récits actuels et respectueux des personnes noires, avec des protagonistes de différentes carnations, qui vivent à Paris, et qui ressemblent aux gens qu’on voit dans la rue et dans le métro », milite Laura Nsafou, elle-même autrice de plusieurs BD qui mettent en scène des personnages racisés. 

Marie Turcan et Yunnes Abzouz

[firstfullmoon]

J’ai l’impression quand je pense à tout ce temps sans toi de trébucher contre la vie. 

Albert Camus à Maria Casarès, 9 mai 1950

[When I think of all that time without you, I feel like I’m stumbling against life.]

[1863-project]

Thinking a bit about baseball and how it runs in my family so thoroughly on both sides.

My dad's father was such a good amateur third baseman that he was scouted by the Yankees. We have a letter from the team inviting him to tryouts. But he'd just started a family at the time and the Minor League life is rough, and it was rougher still in the 1950s, so he remained an amateur player who nevertheless had a deep love of the game. He apparently met and played with Willie Mays during the Korean War when he was stationed stateside. He got Mays to etch his name on the strap of his helmet. We still have that, too.

(Image description: the author's paternal grandfather in a right-handed batting stance.)

On my mom's side things were entertaining. My mom's grandfather was a New York (later SF) Giants fan. He and his wife had three children, who they raised in the Bronx. The oldest, my grandmother, was a Giants fan like him. The middle child, my great-aunt, decided she had to be different and adopted the Brooklyn Dodgers. The youngest child, my great-uncle, furthered that and became a Yankees fan.

Allegedly, according to my great-aunt, my great-grandfather predicted the Giants, then behind, would win the National League pennant in 1951. She was incredulous because at the time the Dodgers were well in first place. Until they weren't.

[Video description: Giants third baseman Bobby Thomson clobbers a 3-run homer off of Dodgers pitcher Ralph Branca to win the 1951 National League pennant. This moment is known as The Shot Heard Round The World and the radio call only survives because a fan was at work during the game and had his mom record it off the radio for him.]

This family arrangement continued for a few more years until the Dodgers and Giants left for California in the late 1950s, and the National League members of the family drifted until 1962, when the Mets started playing. My grandmother and great-aunt both picked them up immediately and it's been that way on my mom's side ever since - the people descended from my grandmother and great-aunt are Mets fans, and the people descended from my great-uncle are Yankees fans.

[Image description: the man who somehow knew the Giants would win the 1951 pennant carrying his firstborn child, my grandmother, on his back on all fours, likely in 1932.]

Grandma Dot was a deeply passionate Mets fan and passed that trait to her daughter, who at one point had a huge baseball card collection and knew the Mets's stats better than all the boys in her school. My mom experienced her first World Series win at the age of 10 in 1969 and from there she would be loyal forever. She and my dad were married a few days after the Mets's second World Series win in 1986 and my younger brother and I would be raised on stories of that team during our early years.

[Image description: the author and her brother photographed from the back at Citi Field. The author is wearing a Gary Carter jersey and her brother is wearing a Mookie Wilson jersey.]

Although I get baseball from both sides of my family, the intense passion for National League baseball in New York has been passed down matrilineally, from my grandmother to my mother to me, and I cherish that deeply. I'm the culmination of three generations of baseball-loving women and I think that's actually really cool.

I'm mostly writing this because I don't quite want to let this Mets team go yet. They were so much fun this year and I already miss them so much, and they took us so much farther than anyone expected. 2024 wasn't our year, but it was one hell of a year and I love this cast of characters a lot.

This World Series would have divided my grandmother's family in the 1950s. Not so much today, since the Mets aren't there, but the Dodgers and Yankees haven't played in the WS against each other since 1981, and before their move to LA the Dodgers and Yankees met a few times in the 1950s. I wonder what my grandmother's siblings talked about, or if they trash talked each other, or if they gathered around the radio together for the play by play.

I just love how much this sport is literally in my blood.