#The timeless legacy of Dean and Jerry

[jerrylewis-thekid]

And am I the only one who sees a certain resemblance between that waiter and Professor Kelp?

[helloworlddemo1122-yahoopar-blog]

2018 Oscars: The Best, Worst and Weirdest Moments of the Night

The 90th Annual Academy Awards aired Sunday, with Jimmy Kimmel at the helm for the second time following last year's shocking Best Picture mix-up, and the talented host deftly handled the multitude of political controversies that have rocked Hollywood over the last year, while ushering the show along with quick wit and charm.

The star-studded show was filled with some incredibly close races and a few genuinely surprising upsets, not to mention a slew of emotionally charged acceptance speeches and hilarious moments of touching comedy.

In honor of Hollywood's biggest night, here is a look at some of the best, worst and absolutely weirdest moments from this year's Oscars.

THE BEST

Classic Hollywood Intro

In honor of this Oscar's milestone anniversary, Kimmel kicked the show off in the style of a retro 1940s newsreel. Shot in black-and-white and narrated (by Kimmel) in an old-timey radio voice, he highlighted a few of the night's biggest stars sitting in the audience, including Meryl Streep, Gary Oldman, Salma Hayek and Lupita Nyong'o, who he introduced by sharing, "She was born in Mexico and raised in Kenya. Let the tweetstorm from the president's toilet begin!"

Kimmel's Politically Charged Intro

Ed Herrera

Kimmel once again proved his Oscar-hosting chops with his hilarious opening monologue that managed to nudge the envelope with jokes about a spate of awful stories of sexual harassment and abuse of power without offending everyone (a lesson James Corden could have used before hosting the amfAR gala back in October). Kimmel turned his razor-sharp wit toward Oscar himself, explaining, "Oscar is the most beloved and respected man in Hollywood, and there's a good reason. Just look at him. He keeps his hands where you can see them, never says a rude word, and most importantly, no penis at all."

Hellen Mirren Presents a Grand Prize

Kimmel also revealed that, in an attempt to keep the show as short as possible, winners' acceptance speeches would be timed and the person with the shortest speech would win a brand new jet-ski. To prove he was serious, the back of the stage opened to reveal the aquatic prize, as Oscarwinner Helen Mirren stepped out, looking as regal as ever, to serve as a Price Is Right-esque prize model, and she reminded us all what timeless grace really is.

Rita Moreno Proves She's Just the Best

The 86-year-old West Side Story star won in just about every way imaginable at this year's Oscars. She rocked the same dress she was wearing when she earned her Best Supporting Actress Oscar in 1962, she appeared to be enjoying quite a few drinks backstage and she was generally just flawless at every turn.  

Allison Janney's Great Opening Line

The I, Tonya star took to the stage after winning the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress and delivered one of the greatest opening lines of any acceptance speech ever: "I did it all by myself." After the laughter died down, Janney smiled and added, "There's nothing further from the truth," before earnestly thanking her co-stars, friends and family. This was Janney's first nomination and win, but it's still hard not to wish she stuck with her joke and walked off stage after accepting all the credit.

Tiffany Haddish Stuns in Her Favorite Dress

The Girls Trip star presented alongside Maya Rudolph during the Oscars, and she looked absolutely flawless in her gorgeous Alexander McQueen dress. In fact, she's looked flawless in it every time she's worn it, which is quite a lot. Haddish even wore it while hosting Saturday Night Live earlier this season, and explained that she loves the dress because it looks great on her and she bought it herself and she doesn't see any reason not to wear it every chance she gets. It was an absolutely perfect choice for making her debut on the Oscars stage.

'In Memoriam' Honors Late Stars

Eddie Vedder provided the emotional musical accompaniment for this year's "In Memoriam" segment, where he performed a cover of Tom Petty's "Room at the Top" in honor of the late musician. The touching segment celebrated the lives and legacies of such late Hollywood luminaries as Harry Dean Stanton, director George A. Romero, James Bond star Roger Moore, Martin Landau, John Heard, Sam Shepard and Don Rickles, among many others.

Keala Settle Slays 'This Is Me'

The amazing singer delivered a live performance of the Best Original Song nominee "This Is Me" from The Greatest Showman, and she brought the entire room to their feet (and to the verge of tears) with the amazing number. The song might not have won the Oscar,  but the performance definitely stole the spotlight at the show.

Frances McDormand Takes a Stand

The outspoken actress took home the golden statuette for Best Actress for her role in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, and she used her time onstage to make an important statement. McDormand asked every female Oscar nominee in the audience to stand up, and during the emotionally charged demonstration of unity, McDormand asked every executive watching to help female filmmakers and stars tell their stories on the big screen. She then finished her speech with two important words: "Inclusion rider." The term refers to a stipulation in an actor's contract that requires the cast and crew on the films they're acting in to be diverse, or risk losing the star. It was a powerful moment and one that will undoubtedly go down in Oscars history.  

THE WORST

The Over-the-Top Ice Palace Set

%Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images

While the Academy Awards tries something different every year when it comes to its set design, we couldn't help but feel like they were staging a production of Frozen. It looked like Superman's Fortress of Solitude got a glittery makeover, or the inside of a particularly ostentatious geode. Every time someone stood onstage, they looked like they were about to get eaten by a shark that had its teeth replaced with diamonds. It was just too much all the time.

Kimmel Brings Out His 9-year-old Self

In a joke that just fell flat, Kimmel brought out a young kid who was playing himself as a child. The exchange allowed a few funny jokes about how old the host looks (with the kid assuming Kimmel is his 60-year-old future version, when Kimmel is only 50). But given how often he joked about wanting to keep the show moving along, this felt like a very unnecessary bit that took time away from what could have been better moments.

Not Giving BB-8 His Due

Star Wars: The Last Jedi co-stars Oscar Isaac, Mark Hamill and Kelly Marie Tran took the stage alongside everyone's favorite rolling droid, but while the three stars had awkward banter that elicited polite laughter (at best), BB-8 was relegated to the sidelines. His adorable beeping would have unfortunately been better than whatever it was we got from the human stars.  

THE WEIRDEST

Lakeith Stanfield's Wonderful Awkwardness

In an ongoing effort to keep acceptance speeches short, Kimmel revealed that stars who rambled on too long wouldn't get played off by the orchestra, instead they would get chased off by Stanfield, reprising his unsettling role from Get Out, who ran out from behind the stage dressed in the same wardrobe as his character in the film, madly screaming "Get out!" The bit was hilarious, but the perpetually fascinating Atlanta star elevated the comedy to the next surreal level when he just sort of stayed onstage before slowly walking back behind the set as Kimmel laughed at his deliberate brand of awkwardness. It was a weird moment, but that doesn't necessarily mean it wasn't a strong highlight.

- Jimmy Kimmel Brings Stars to the People

In a reverse of Kimmel's stunt from last year -- when he brought random people from off the street into the Dolby Theatre to meet the night's big stars -- Kimmel filled the theater next door with people who were watching a sneak preview of A Wrinkle in Time, and then surprised them when he brought a cadre of A-listers into the theater to meet them. Margot Robbie, Ansel Elgort, Armie Hammer, Gal Gadot and others were among those who joined in on the fun by passing out movie concessions and firing off hot dog cannons (which are exactly what they sound like) into the overjoyed theater of screaming fans. While there was a certain fun, chaotic energy to the bit, it proved to be far less bizarrely fun than last year's stunt and ended up just feeling like an ill-conceived attempt at being weird for weirdness sake.

'In Memoriam' Snubs

Every year, the Oscars draw heat for the stars they forget (or choose to not include) in their "In Memoriam" segment, and this year was no different. Among the snubs that drew the most viewer anger were actors Powers Boothe, Robert Guillaume, John Hillerman, Adam West, Jim Nabors, John Mahoney, Rose Marie and Jerry Van Dyke, among many others.  

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[the-record-columns]

August 23, 2017

Kathy Bauguss, a timeless legacy...

                                          Kathy Bauguss

By KEN WELBORN

Record Publisher

Upon learning of the death this week of legendary entertainer Jerry Lewis, my mind wandered quickly past the stories about his partnership with Dean Martin and his later movies like the classic "The Nutty Professor."

And yes, that is the same story the Eddie Murphy nutty professor movies were based on. My mind, however, immediately jumped to the many years Jerry Lewis worked with the Muscular Dystrophy Association and hosted the annual Labor Day Telethon. In all, Lewis helped raise nearly $2 billion (yes, that is billion with a "b") for the aid and treatment of patients and research to find a cure for this degenerative muscle disease.

And then I flashed back to the 1970's and my years of selling advertising on WWWC Radio 1240 when it was a Top 40 station in Wilkesboro which was owned by my dear friend and mentor, Paul Cashion. Like most small market stations in those days, the morning drive-time slot was where you put your most popular disc jockey, and ours was a New Yorker named Walter Joseph Vandett, who went by the air name of Ric Ross.

In later years, Ric went back to school and ended up in a very successful career as a school administrator, but the warm spot for him in my heart will always be the fact that he is the reason I was able to meet, get to know, work with, and come to love a young woman names Kathy Bauguss. Kathy was the daughter of the late Clay and Mae Bauguss and was an inspiration to anyone who ever met her.

Ric Ross and WWWC had done a radio marathon for the Wilkes Jaycees to raise money for a young man injured in an accident and, not too long after, he was called by a very special listener to that event-Kathy Bauguss. At the age of 7, about 1961, Kathy had been diagnosed with muscular dystrophy. Kathy, who at this time was about 19, told Ric of her dream for an event to be held in Wilkes to raise money through the summer to be presented on the Labor Day Telethon, hosted by Jerry Lewis.

And the rest, as they say, is history.

The first time Ric took me to see Kathy, I was amazed. Her bedroom was hooked up electrically like I had never seen. Her father, Clay Bauguss, was a wizard at rigging up things and she could control her television, open and close the drapes, even do her school work through his hookups to Wilkes Central High School. Before we ever arrived she had the whole thing pretty much planned out-"Muscular Dystrophy Week in Wilkes," it was to be called, and we were on committed from that day on.

     As planning progressed, it grew into a 78-hour radio marathon in the West Park Shopping Center where the manger of the Sky City Discount Center, Will Bryant, became an anchor supporter of the event, providing flat-bed trailers for the bands and uncounted other things to help make it work smoothly. In no time Carmen and Mickey Mancusi who operated a jeans store in West Park were on board, and Carmen quickly showed himself to be a master fundraiser in his own right.

That year, 1974, MD Week, as it came to be called, raised over $17,000 which was presented on WXII-TV by Ric on behalf of Kathy Bauguss and all of Wilkes County. We held the event for two more years with each being more successful that the one before. Kathy literally ran the show from her bedroom on Colonial Dive in North Wilkesboro. She could get more done on her little Princess telephone than you could ever imagine. Folks were happy and honored to hear from her, and even happier to help.

Time became harder and harder on Kathy as the disease continued to weaken her. She never complained and always began every visit with that beautiful smile you see in the photo with this column. In December of 1977, however, she was hospitalized with pneumonia and died the morning of December 19, 1977, at the age of 23.

Time marches relentlessly on and Kathy's parents, Clay and Mae Bauguss, Will Bryant, Carmen Mancusi, and countless others who helped make Muscular Dystrophy Week such a success for those three years are gone-but never forgotten.

     And now Jerry Lewis, too.

     But the person who made it all happen in Wilkes was, and always will be, Kathy Bauguss. We are all better for having known this remarkable young woman.

Again, we love you and we miss you.

-Ken and Ric

    After the eclipse

By LAURA WELBORN

"Listen and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles. …But what comes out of the heart proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles." Matthew 15:10 and 15:27

     It is during these times that we need to care about the humanity of all and embrace our shared humanity, own our own prejudices and question our reactions.   As the eclipse happens in our own backyard we should look to the sky together with the knowledge we were all created equal.  From the enormous time of that one moment the moon blocks the sun and our problems become insignificant compared to what is in our soul.  And it is with our soul that our heart takes over, and then travels through our mouths.  The Eclipse can be a reminder to us, of just how insignificant our problems are, and they too will pass but it is the condition of our soul that defines our faith in humankind.  Let it be love and kindness to all.

     As I study mindfulness practices I found one I would like to share as I journey through my own thoughts and "hick ups" that can either leave me "stuck" or learn to "let it go."

     Let's start with the simple practice of the 3 P's.  This technique is adapted from the University of Wisconsin School of medicine, Family Medicine program.  The 3P's are particularly helpful for people who have to open doors a lot during the day or who have a repetitious movement that they can use as a trigger for the 3P's (such as a doorknob).  As you reach for the doorknob or whatever you are doing take 1 second, or the length of one breathe to:

     Pause- takes a moment for just you.  Even just a single breath.  Let go of the planning mind and the task orientation of the day and simply notice the moment.

     Be Present- be aware of what is happening in this moment by experiencing the sensations of the body, noticing the thoughts, and feeling the emotions just as they are without trying to change anything.  

     Precede- Use mindful speech and skillful means, respond compassionately to whatever needs your attention in this moment.

     This is just one technique in the mindfulness series that help us all become more intentional to our soul/heart and maybe our thoughts will be kind and kindness will flow from our mouths.  

Laura Welborn is a Mediator and Licensed Clinical Addiction Specialist.  Visit Laura Gentry Welborn on facebook or laurawelborn1@gmail.com

   Don’t throw away your eclipse glasses!

By Heather Dean

Reporter/Photojournalist

The "once in a lifetime phenomenon" that we witnessed here yesterday, wasn't exactly that. Eclipses occur quite often around the globe, it just depends on where you're located. In Asia and South America, where there will be solar eclipses in 2019.

     I do hope most of you (unlike some people I've heard of) used proper solar eclipse glasses and watched the event without permanently damaging your vision.  But what to do with the cardboard and black polymer that adults and children alike were crying over not having because they procrastinated just hours ago?

     DO NOT throw them away, and for gosh sake, DON'T hoard them just to tell a good story.   (I'm looking at you, Ken Welborn…)

     As I was reading up on eclipse stories from across the U.S., I came across a story about Astronomers Without Borders.  They are offering to take them off your hands so that children will be able to use them in future eclipses.

     The organization's mission is to provide astronomy-related education and equipment for developing countries. It raises money to buy new glasses for children, but it is hoping to use this opportunity to build a stockpile, and   is soon to announce a program dedicated to redistributing glasses to schools in the paths of future eclipses.    

In the article Astronomers Without Borders President Mike Simmons said "This is an opportunity for schools to have a first-hand science experience that they might not otherwise have. Many schools in developing countries don't have resources for science education and this is a rare opportunity that inspires students and teachers and shows them that science is something they can do. It can be a ray of hope for young people who don't otherwise see a path to a career like this."

I thought this was an amazing idea. And being the pauper philanthropist I am, I immediately made a plan. As soon as the library opened Tuesday morning, I called our County Librarian, Julia Turpin, and ran the idea by her, especially since they hosted the Eclipse Party on Monday. She, as always, was more than happy to help to do some good in our community. So, here's what you can do to pass it on- drop off your glasses here at the offices of The Record & Thursday Printing, at 911 Main Street, or you can drop them off at the Wilkes County Library on 10th  Street North Wilkesboro. Also, if you have a large group or organization and would like to take a collection up yourself, you can send them directly to the Astronomers Without Borders' corporate sponsor, Explore Scientific, based at 621  Madison Street, Springdale, Arkansas.

    The Deed belongs to Israel - not Islam

By EARL COX

Special to The Record

     The Temple Mount is the focus of a greater battle than meets the eye. Most commentators agree that the struggle for sovereignty is a key factor in the dispute; and certainly some Arab leaders exploit the religion card to keep the street agitated. But this ancient battle has multiple layers of truth, including the apocalyptic-the destiny of Israel and the nations surrounding her. Its center axis pivots not so much on conflicting religious systems, but on worship: Who is worshipped at the Temple Mount? Who is worshipped at Al-Aqsa Mosque? How does this spiritual side of life impact our world?

     Why are the Temple Mount and Jerusalem dead center at the crosshairs of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict-and a flashpoint of global Muslim wrath? Though in Jerusalem, religious zeal seems to evoke more passion than politics does, a parallel conflict looms behind the tense stand-off between Israel, the Palestinians, Jordan, and others in the Muslim world.

     Has anyone ever wondered why Islam's third holiest place has become so hotly contested when Muslims have Mecca and Medina in their back pocket? Or why Ramallah is not considered as a possible capital of a future Palestinian state instead of Jerusalem, with its 3,000-plus years of Jewish history and holy temple? Why are so many nations lining up against Israel in the UN and across the globe? Why is anti-Semitism spinning out of control while ruthless tyrants elsewhere inflict human suffering without censure?

     On the religious side, why have the Jews and their worship been threatened with annihilation for millennia, time and again? Though other nations and faiths also have faced persecution and genocide, the Jews and Israel have broken the world record.

     From the 13th century BCE through the present, attempts to annihilate the Jews include pre-Exodus Egypt; Haman; King Herod's slaughter of the innocents; Moorish Spain; the Crusades; the Black Death massacres in Europe; pogroms in the Russian Empire and Ukraine; Hebron and Safed during the Palestinian Mandate; the Holocaust, and many more. This list does not include massacres in Israel after 1948, or threats today from Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas, the Palestinian Authority and others.

     Some Jewish streams believe that satan is an angel who tries to lure Jews away from righteous living and their life's mission. Is not a part of that mission to worship G-d in the place that He chose and where His Name dwells?

     The question of "who is being worshipped" is crucial. The prophet Isaiah received the understanding that a satanic power behind the king of Babylon sought to be worshipped. "How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! … You said in your heart, I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of G-d; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain.I will make myself like the Most High."

     The Jewish Scriptures have encouraging words for Israel and for us. G-d is true to his word, which says he will punish "the powers in the heavens above and the kings on the earth below," and the G-d of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem. Islam will never own the Temple Mount. The deed belongs to Israel and the Jews.  

    Ten Governors, Violence and Wild Turkeys

By CARL WHITE

Life in the Carolinas

My attraction to history and town squares has taken me to many interesting places.

It was by chance that I came across the historic town square in Edgefield, S.C. At first, I noticed the turkey statues, and I quickly found a parking spot and started taking pictures of the colorful turkeys.

As I was making my way around the square the past was beginning to reveal itself with old buildings and well-placed information about the history of the people who were born in the area.

Another significant thing that caught my attention was a mural which boasts 10 South Carolina governors, starting with Andrew Pickens, who served as governor from 1816-1818, up to Governor Strom Thurmond. Thurmond was elected in 1946 and then went on to serve the U.S. Senate for a total of 47 years five months and eight days, which currently ranks him the third longest serving member of the Senate.

As I continued around the square I discovered an area with historic information boards. As it turns out Edgefield has had a reputation for violence from its beginning.

Beginning with the bloody Cherokee war of 1760 and general lawlessness, the people of Edgefield seemed well suited for any encounter or skirmish. Preston Brooks was born in Edgefield County and attended South Carolina College, now known as University of South Carolina, however he did not graduate, he was expelled for run-ins with local law enforcement. This however would not keep him from serving in the S.C. House of Representatives in 1844 and then go on to the 33rd US Congress in 1853.

With the advancement of his political career it would be logical to think that his temper might become more balanced, however this was not the case. It was in 1856 when Senator Charles Sumner from Massachusetts was speaking against the admission of Kansas to the Union that Brooks took great offense when his relative Senator Andrew P. Butler was insulted by Sumner.

A few days after the event, Brooks went to Sumner’s office and beat him nearly to death with a cane. He did so, because he said Sumner was not a gentleman and unworthy of a duel.  Brooks did resign, but was re-elected in the following election.

And then, there is the story written by Parson Mason Locke Weems and retold by others about Rebecca Kennedy who was born around 1765. She was known by most as “Becky.”

Becky’s father, James had a land argument with three of his neighbors. He came to Becky and her husband, John Cotton’s, home to lay low for a few days, however the angry neighbor’s followed and, upon entering the home, they shot James Kennedy in front of his daughter. John did nothing to try to help his wife’s father.  

Becky’s fury grew over time and one night she brought the axe from the woodpile and as she stood over her sleeping husband her revenge found its mark on John Cotton’s head.

Becky and her brother, David, dragged the dead body to the potato vault and then she set off. She was captured in Kings Mountain, and she was tried for murder. However, it is said that the all-male jury was spell bound with her charm and beauty, so she was acquitted of all charges.  Becky had other men in her life and they too were met with miserable ends.

It was Becky’s brother, Stephen, who would finally administer justice. On May 5, 1807, he spotted her on the court house steps flirting with a handsome young man. He knew what fate would come.  Without hesitation, he picked up a rock and with one swift blow Becky fell on the steps of the court and died in a pool of her own blood.

There are many macabre stories in Edgefield’s history that we can visit in the future, but I think it is best that we get back to the turkeys.

The National Wild Turkey Federation was formed in 1973 and is in Edgefield. They have more than 230,000 members worldwide and they put forth a great effort for wildlife conservation. When the organization started there were approximately 70,000 wild turkeys in America and now there are more than seven million. The Federation is also responsible for the eight turkey statues that greet visitors of Edgefield town square.

There are many mysteries in Edgefield it seems, there are even six principal theories on how it got its name. I’ve been invited for another visit. I think I’ll go. Ralph Scurry, told me they have a great history class that I can join when I visit.

Carl White is the executive producer and host of the award winning syndicated TV show Carl White’s Life In the Carolinas. The weekly show is now in its seventh year of syndication and can be seen in the Charlotte viewing market on WJZY Fox 46 Saturdays at 12:00 noon. For more on the show visit  www.lifeinthecarolinas.com, You can email Carl White at Carl@lifeinthecarolinas.com.

Copyright 2017 Carl White