#charles minsky

[esqueletosgays]

APRIL FOOL'S DAY (1986)

Director: Fred Walton Cinematography: Charles Minsky

[brookstonalmanac]

Birthdays 8.9

Beer Birthdays

Franz Falk (1823)

Ken Wells (1949)

Kenny Gross (1958)

Megan Flynn (1983)

Five Favorite Birthdays

Gillian Anderson; actor (1968)

Betty Boop; cartoon character (1930)

Daniel Keyes; writer (1927)

Harry Mills; singer, "Mills Bros." (1913)

Audrey Tautou; French actor (1978)

Famous Birthdays

Tommie Agee; New York Mets CF (1942)

Amedeo Avogadro; physicist (1776)

Eric Bana; actor (1968)

Amanda Bearse; actor (1958)

Kurtis Blow; rapper (1959)

Coco Chanel; French fashion designer (1883)

Bob Cousy; Boston Celtics PG (1928)

William Fowler; nuclear astrophysicist (1911)

Melanie Griffith; actor (1957)

Ralph Houk; New York Yankees C / manager (1919)

Whitney Houston; pop singer (1963)

Tove Jansson; Swedish writer (1914)

Rod Laver; tennis player (1938)

Pierre Charles L'Enfant; French architect (1754)

Thomas Lennon; actor (1970)

Marvin Minsky; computer scientist (1927)

Ken Norton; boxer (1943)

Jean Piaget; Swiss psychologist (1896)

Mary Randolph; cookbook author (1762)

Deion Sanders; Dallas Cowboys CB/WR (1967)

Clarence Saunders; Piggly Wiggly founder (1881)

Robert Shaw; actor (1927)

David Steinberg; comedian (1942)

P.L. Travers; writer (1899)

Izaak Walton; English writer (1593)

[ulkaralakbarova]

Veteran catcher Crash Davis is brought to the minor league Durham Bulls to help their up and coming pitching prospect, “Nuke” Laloosh. Their relationship gets off to a rocky start and is further complicated when baseball groupie Annie Savoy sets her sights on the two men. Credits: TheMovieDb. Film Cast: Crash Davis: Kevin Costner Annie Savoy: Susan Sarandon Ebby Calvin ‘Nuke’ LaLoosh: Tim Robbins Skip: Trey Wilson Larry: Robert Wuhl Jimmy: William O’Leary Bobby: David Neidorf Deke: Danny Gans Tony: Tom Silardi Millie: Jenny Robertson Jose: Rick Marzan Nuke’s Father: George Buck Mickey: Lloyd T. Williams Self: Max Patkin Doc: Gregory Avellone Teddy (Radio Announcer): Garland Bunting Whitey: Robert Dickman Ed: Timothy Kirk Scared Batter: Don Davis Umpire: Stephen Ware Bat Boy: Tobi Eshelman Mayor: C.K. Bibby Sandy: Henry G. Sanders Ballpark Announcer: Antoinette Forsyth Cocktail Waitress: Shirley Anne Ritter Minister: Pete Bock Chu Chu: Alan Mejia Core Baseball Player: Sid Aikens Core Baseball Player: Craig Brown Core Baseball Player: Wes Currin Core Baseball Player: Butch Davis Core Baseball Player: Paul Devlin Core Baseball Player: Jeff Greene Core Baseball Player: Kelly Heath Core Baseball Player: Mo Johnson Core Baseball Player: Tim Kirk Core Baseball Player: Todd Kopeznski Core Baseball Player: John Lovingood Core Baseball Player: Eddie Matthews Core Baseball Player: Alan Paternoster Core Baseball Player: Bill Robinson Core Baseball Player: Dean Robinson Core Baseball Player: Tom Schultz Core Baseball Player: Sam Veraldi Core Baseball Player: ElChico Williams Film Crew: Editor: Adam Weiss Producer: Thom Mount Set Decoration: Kris Boxell Writer: Ron Shelton Executive Producer: David V. Lester Editor: Robert Leighton Original Music Composer: Michael Convertino Costume Design: Louise Frogley Producer: Mark Burg Casting: Bonnie Timmermann Production Design: Armin Ganz Art Direction: David Lubin Director of Photography: Bobby Byrne Stunt Coordinator: Webster Whinery Construction Coordinator: Jim Hill Makeup Artist: Cynthia Barr Music Supervisor: Danny Bramson Sound Re-Recording Mixer: Bob Minkler Sound Recordist: Steven B. Cohen Script Supervisor: Karen Golden Camera Operator: Richard Craig Meinardus Foley Artist: Paul Holzborn Sound Re-Recording Mixer: Robert Thirlwell First Assistant Camera: Robert Allan Guernsey Additional Photography: Charles Minsky Gaffer: John Ferguson Supervising Sound Editor: Larry Kemp Camera Operator: Eric Engler Sound Recordist: Larry Boudry Still Photographer: Joel David Warren Sound Re-Recording Mixer: Robert W. Glass Jr. Hairstylist: Leslie Ann Anderson Costume Supervisor: Deborah Latham Scenic Artist: John A. Kelly Music Editor: Ellen Segal Supervising Sound Editor: Lon Bender Title Designer: Dan Perri Poem: Walt Whitman Associate Producer: Charles Hirschhorn First Assistant Director: Ric Kidney Second Assistant Director: Nina K. Noble Key Dresser: Dwain Wilson Set Dresser: Polar Bear Shaw Set Dresser: Kim McClees Set Dresser: Robert Beck Set Dresser: Ron Servicky Second Assistant Camera: Perry Adleman Costumer: Alonzo Wilson Costumer: Robin Hill Seamstress: Selma F. Hill Assistant Makeup Artist: Doreen Van Tyne Assistant Editor: Steven Nevius Assistant Editor: Margaret Goodspeed Assistant Editor: Celeste Beard Production Coordinator: Janice F. Sperling Second Second Assistant Director: Donald J. Lee Jr. Sound Mixer: Kirk Francis Boom Operator: Mychal D. Smith Special Effects Technician: Vern Hyde Special Effects Technician: Jeff Hyde Local Casting: Karen Standard Sound Recordist: Michael Boudry Sound Editor: Neal Burger Sound Editor: Kevin Hearst Sound Editor: Lou Kleinman Sound Editor: Dan M. Rich Sound Editor: Jeff Watts Sound Editor: Lorna Anderson Sound Editor: Wylie Stateman ADR Supervisor: Devon Heffley Curry ADR Editor: Stan Gilbert ADR Editor: Frank Smathers Assistant Sound Editor: William Dotson Assistant Sound Editor: Scott Warner Foley Recordist: David W. Alstadter Foley Recordist: Steve Cohen ADR Mixer: Alan Holly Foley Mixer: Richard L. Morrison Foley Mixer:...

[stillsmybeatingheart]

[genevieveetguy]

I’m gonna treat you so nice, you’re never gonna let me go.

Pretty Woman, Garry Marshall (1990)

[fourframesatatime]

Pretty Woman (1990) Dir. Garry Marshall, Cin. Charles Minsky

“So what happened after he climbed up the tower and rescued her?’ ‘She rescues him right back,”

[passion-of-arts]

Filmrezension: New Year's Eve

Filmrezension: New Year’s Eve

“New Year’s Eve” ist ein Episodenfilm, den man sich mal zum Jahreswechsel ansehen kann, wenn sonst nichts anderes zur Hand ist. INHALT: “New Year’s Eve” ist ein Episodenfilm von Romantikspezialist Garry Marshall mit Sarah Jessica Parker, Michelle Pfeiffer, Ashton Kutcher, Hilary Swank und Zac Efron. “New Year’s Eve” erzählt Geschichten unterschiedlicher Menschen, die den Jahreswechsel feiern und…

[poeticblkcoffee]

My Great Auntie Venus La Doll. The Bronze Goddess Burlesque

Venus LaDoll performs at Club Savannah, 68 West 3rd Street. (Photo by John Pedin/NY Daily News Archive

Photograph of Venus La Doll dancing by Lonnie Simmons Jet Magazine December 3, 1953

Cabaret of a life

Keeping up with Venus Irving-Prescott

BY BILL RODRIGUEZ

THEN AND NOW: 'The Bronze Goddess of Love' (top) and Venus at AS220.

Anybody who at one time was known — and advertised in Paris — as "The Bronze Goddess of Love" deserves to be the center of attention onstage for an evening.

So the goddess herself, Venus Irving-Prescott, will be performing in the Camp Cabaret at AS220 on March 5 and 6 (on Saturday at 7 p.m. and on Sunday at 3 p.m.; call [401] 831-9327). The sequined glory that was the 1950s and ’60s will be celebrated in song and story by the erstwhile chanteuse and 15 nostalgic young performers. Even admission is vintage: $5 general and $3 if you’re over 60 and thereby can sing along without the bouncing ball.

Venus will be 80-going-on-30 come April. She has found work as an actor, drama coach, costume designer, director, and writer, among other skills she picked up along her way. Dance instructor, publicist, comedienne, TV commercial "on-camera principal" . . . you get the idea.

The cabaret will center around her life, with songs springing out of colorful descriptions and anecdotes. Of which there are many.

Take the time a stranger briskly stepped onto her Saigon stage, took her by the hand, led her away from the microphone, and protected her with his body on the floor. Seems that the Vietcong were lobbing mortar rounds their way.

She’ll probably tell you about a famous Paris club owner. "Freddie Carroll was very well-respected by men and women," Venus says. "She wore men’s suits and shoes and had a diamond pinkie ring. She put her hand out as soon as men came, and they would have men’s conversations. I was so fascinated with all that stuff."

And not every performer can boast of a command performance before the queen of Siam.

For the cabaret, Venus will have plenty of help.

"A lot of it I wrote — eight or nine pieces, something like that," she says. "Then Keith has some things in there."

That would be Keith Munslow, multi-instrumentalist, storyteller, and music director for the show. Venus glances around for a glimpse of his black leather jacket near the AS220 stage, where the cast is assembling for a rehearsal. Casey Seymour Kim is there speaking to some of them, having stepped forward to direct the cabaret so that Venus could turn her attention to her own numbers.

"I just passed my music around to whoever would fit it," Venus says, "and they all fit like a glove."

Kim is an actor and singer familiar to audiences recently from her boffo performance in the title role in Little Voice at the Gamm Theatre. She’ll probably be camping it up as Miss Pixie Feingold. There’s lots more talent to draw from. For example, Lawrence Nunes, whose recent song-and-poetry CD Hearts Unveiled Venus says she’s been listening to more often than to Ray Charles or Nat King Cole these days. Providence’s own Princess Pearl will do some comedy and maybe sing one of Venus’s songs. Other vocalists will include Denise Moffat and Maria Ventura.

There will also be hip-hop dancing by Project Heat and Alexandra Blackbird, and a traditional story from Mali, told by Mohamed Diakite. And much more.

Plenty of variety, in other words. Which certainly describes the long and action-packed life of Venus Irving-Prescott.

Born in Detroit but raised in Cleveland, as a 20something she made a splash as a cabaret singer, from Minsky’s in Chicago to the Savannah Club in the Big Apple. Career ups and downs included the requisite dark night of the soul in the New York theater district’s Actors’ Chapel, when she was 33. "I just sat there and tried to figure it out," she recalls. "I thought: ‘Well, did I step on any blue suedes on the way?’ Because at one time I had the Midas touch. What happened?" But she picked herself up, gathered her gumption and successfully stepped into the Paris cabaret scene. After that came Switzerland, Southeast Asia, and Australia.

Venus has seven grandchildren "and all kinds of great-grandchildren." She first came to Providence in 1981 to visit her daughter and has been based here ever since. One of her bread and butter mainstays is a business she developed called Show Polish, for which she checks out performers’ acts and suggests improvements.

The memoir she’s writing has a revealing title — Life Doesn’t Owe Me a Thing.

"In our culture we have people making megabucks, and they have platinum bling-bling all over them and they don’t even know whose shoulders they’re standing on, you know?" she laments. "Don’t even have a clue."

Venus shakes her head over encountering a young African-American student who didn’t know "Strange Fruit," the Billie Holiday song about lynching. The title is the name of a free performance Venus will give on March 17 at 7:30 p.m. in the University of Rhode Island Fine Arts Center, on the Kingston campus.

The lady does keep busy.

Issue Date: March 4 - 10, 2005

[wickedfilm]

Pretty Woman (1990)

Directed by - Gary Marshall

Cinematography by - Charles Minsky

[todaysdocument]

Inventory of people enslaved, 12/31/1850.

This was presented by Jacob Cook to support his ownership of four fugitive slaves: John, Ellen, and Matilda Green, and Andrew Jones. (Cook had purchased these people after they had escaped.)

File Unit: Jacob Cook's Original Fugitive Slave Petition and Ownership Documentation, 10/22/1850 - 1/1/1851

Series: Fugitive Slave Case Papers, 1850 - 1860

Record Group 21: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685 - 2009

Transcription:

Maryland, Ss_

    I hereby certify, that on an examination of the Records in the Office of the Register of Wills for Baltimore County, it appears that Emily MacTavish, Executrix of the last Will and Testament of Mary Caton, deceased, returned to the Orphans Court for said County, on the thirtieth day of March in the year Eighteen hundred and forty eight, an Inventory of the personal Estate of the said Mary Caton, deceased, and that in said Inventory, are the following among other items, to wit:

...........

"1 Negro      Woman, Hart's Wife 29 yrs old, slave for life        $    200_

"1         "    Man Henry Hart, One Arm,     do      31 years old               50_

"1         "       Woman, Elizth. Minsky        "      9       "      "                   50_

"1         "    Girl, Bekky Minsky        "            3         "      "                   _ _

"1         "        Prudence Minsky            "    18         "      "               250_

"1         "          Boy Jesse                "    14         "      "               100_

"1         "         "       Paul                "    12    "      "                    80_

"1         "       Girl Sophia                 "    10     "      "                   50_

"1    "    Boy Henry                "      6    "      "                    25_

"1    "    Boy Christopher            "      3    "      "                    _ _

"1    "    Girl Catherine            "      2         "      "              _ _

"1    "    Woman Kitty Jones        "    53      "     "              _ _

"1    "    Man Jesse                "    38     "     "                 300:_

"1    "    "       Andrew            "    28      "     "                300:_

"1    "    "       Luke                "    16    "      "            250:_    

"1    "    "       John Green            "    45    "      "            300:_

"1    "    Woman Ellen his Wife        "    39    "      "            250._

"1    "    "    Matilda            "    17    "      "            250_

"1    "    Girl Maria                "       6    "      "              25:_

"1    "    "      Nancy                "       2    "      "              _ _

"1    "    "      Elizabeth            "       5    "      "              25_

"1    "    "      Louisa      twins        "       5    "      "              25_

"1    "    Boy John                "       5    "      "              25._

[page 2]

"1    "    "      John                "     10    "      "                 100._

"1    "    Woman Molly Reynolds    "      39     "       "                 100._

"1    "    "             Mary Reynolds    "      31     "    "        300:_

"1    "    Man Wm Reynolds        "      43    "    "        200:_

"1    "    "        Jack Wells            "      43    "    "        200:_

"1    "    "     Oliver Joyce        "      25    "    "        300:_

"1    "    "    Mingo Harris        "      43    "    "        200:_

"1 Negro    Man   Aaron Harris, Slave for life, (old)   33 years        250:_

"1        "    "    William Stewart        "        31    "        300:_

"1    "    Woman Sally, his wife        "        31    "        250:_

"1    "    Boy Geo. Foote  Lame        "        16    "          75:_

"1    "    "       James Blaye        "        15    "        200:_

"1    "    Girl    Henrietta Stewart    "        16    "        200:_

"1    "    Boy    John Stewart        "        15    "        200:_

"1    "    Girl    Helen Stewart        "        14    "        150:_

"1    "    Boy    Charles Stewart        "        13    "        100:_

"1    "    "    Bill Stewart            "        11    "          75:_

"1    "    "    Harry Stewart        "          9    "          75:_

"1    "    "    Thomas Stewart        "          5    "          _ _   

"1    "    Man    Peter Cole            "        73    "          _ _

"1    "    Woman Rachel his wife    "        83    "          _ _

"1    "    "        Nelly Purviance    "        43    "        200._

"1    "    "        Polly Hayes        "        68    "          _ _

"1    "    Man   Luke    Minsky          "        71    "          _ _

"1    "    "    Danl. Branson, lame    "        20    "        250._

"1    "    "    Richard Hamilton        "        43    "        300:_

"1    "    Boy    Benjn. Hawkins        "        14    "        100:_

...............

        In Testimony that the aforegoing is a true Extract, & taken from the Inventory of the personal Estate of Mary

[page 3]

Caton, deceased, as returned by Emily MacTavish, Executrix as aforesaid, and recorded in "Inventories Liber D. M.P. No 59 folio 283[etc?], being one of the Records in the Office of the [possibly symbol for pi] Register of Wills for Baltimore County.

I hereunto subscribe my name, and affix the seal of my Office this thirty first day of December in the year of our Lord Eighteen hundred and fifty.

Test._     D. M. Perine, Register of Wills for            Baltimore County

 [embossed seal]

[printed seal]

The State of Maryland.

        I, Charles Howard [wavy line] Presiding Justice of the Orphans' Court for Baltimore County, in the State aforesaid, do certify that the aforegoing Attestation of DAVID M. PERINE, Register of Wills for said County, is in due form, and by the proper officer.

        Given from under my hand at the City of Baltimore, this first day of January in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty.

                    Charles Howard

[brookstonalmanac]

Birthdays 8.9

Beer Birthdays

Franz Falk (1823)

Ken Wells

Kenny Gross (1958)

Megan Flynn (1983)

Five Favorite Birthdays

Gillian Anderson; actor (1968)

Betty Boop; cartoon character (1930)

Daniel Keyes; writer (1927)

Harry Mills; singer, "Mills Bros." (1913)

Audrey Tautou; French actor (1978)

Famous Birthdays

Tommie Agee; New York Mets CF (1942)

Amedeo Avogadro; physicist (1776)

Eric Bana; actor (1968)

Amanda Bearse; actor (1958)

Kurtis Blow; rapper (1959)

Coco Chanel; French fashion designer (1883)

Bob Cousy; Boston Celtics PG (1928)

William Fowler; nuclear astrophysicist (1911)

Melanie Griffith; actor (1957)

Ralph Houk; New York Yankees C / manager (1919)

Whitney Houston; pop singer (1963)

Tove Jansson; Swedish writer (1914)

Rod Laver; tennis player (1938)

Pierre Charles L'Enfant; French architect (1754)

Thomas Lennon; actor (1970)

Marvin Minsky; computer scientist (1927)

Ken Norton; boxer (1943)

Jean Piaget; Swiss psychologist (1896)

Mary Randolph; cookbook author (1762)

Deion Sanders; Dallas Cowboys CB/WR (1967)

Clarence Saunders; Piggly Wiggly founder (1881)

Robert Shaw; actor (1927)

David Steinberg; comedian (1942)

P.L. Travers; writer (1899)

Izaak Walton; English writer (1593)

[outoftowninac]

SWEET ADELINE

1929

Sweet Adeline is a musical with music by Jerome Kern, with book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. Additional music is by Irene Franklin and Jerry Jarnagin.

It was originally produced by Arthur Hammerstein, and staged by Reginald Hammerstein, with dances by Danny Dare. The cast on opening night starred Helen Morgan, for whom the musical was written, and partly about.

The story, set in the Gay Nineties, concerns Hoboken girl Addie Schmidt, a waitress and amateur singer in her immigrant father’s beer garden. There she falls in love with sailor Tom Martin, only to lose him to her younger sister, Nellie. Dejected, Addie moves to New York to become a singing star. She ends up in burlesque and meets James Day, a wealthy socialite who takes Addie under his wing and makes her Adeline Beaumont. Eventually she finds herself reciprocating James’s feelings, despite the disapproval of his snobby family. But things work out in the end when Addie gets success and happiness in the arms of Sid Barnett, a composer and orchestra leader.

Sweet Adeline celebrated its world premiere at Nixon’s Apollo Theatre on the Boardwalk in Atlantic City on August 19, 1929. 

The venue began as a legitimate theatre in the 1880′s. The theatre was also used as a dance hall in the 1920’s. The front door was located on South New York Avenue but the side was along the world-famous Boardwalk. It eventually was converted to a movie theatre and was demolished in the 1970’s.

A week later, the show inched towards Broadway with a stop in Newark NJ, where it re-opened the Shubert Theatre. The theatre opened on January 8, 1912. It was located in what was then a residential part of North Broad Street, many blocks north of Newark’s main entertainment district. By the 1920’s it had gone over to screening movies and was later home to Minsky’s burlesque. Last known as the Broad Theatre and back on movies again, it closed in 1950 and was later demolished.

In the much-praised score, two of the breakout songs were “Here I Am” and “Why Was I Born”.

The score did not include the popular song “Sweet Adeline” which was first written in 1903 by Richard Husch Gerard to music by Harry Armstrong, which became (and still is) a barbershop quartet standard.  The Sweet Adelines also became the name of an all-female barbershop quartet that still performs today. 

Sweet Adeline opened on Broadway at Hammerstein's Theatre on September 3, 1929 and closed March 22, 1930, after 234 performances. Produced by Arthur Hammerstein the show was directed by Reginald Hammerstein (the brother of Oscar Hammerstein II) and was choreographed by Danny Dare. The cast on opening night included Irene Franklin, Charles Butterworth and Helen Morgan. 

Hammerstein’s Theatre was only two years old when visited by “Adeline”, but just two years later, struggling financially in the Depression, Arthur Hammerstein had to forfeit the theatre. In the 1930s it became a popular nightclub. In fall of 1936 CBS signed a long term lease and converted the space into a radio, then television studio. In 1993 CBS purchased the space and it became the home for "The Late Show” and is now known as The Ed Sullivan Theatre.

“’Sweet Adeline’... begins telling the story, goes on felling it, stopping neither for repetitions in the music nor dances, until it comes to a somewhat idealized finale of extreme quietness, sending the audience out on a thoroughly proper soft note instead of the loud, insistent blare which seems to mark - in something of a wrong tradition - the endings of most operettas, musical comedies, and comic operas.” ~ ROBERT F. SISK

Two weeks after the Broadway opening, Hammerstein (Arthur) announced that a second company would set its sights on Chicago, after a stint in Detroit.

Helen Morgan (1900-1941) was a quintessential torch singer. She starred as Julie LaVerne in the original Broadway production of Hammerstein and Kern's musical Show Boat in 1927, as well as in the 1932 Broadway revival of the musical, and appeared in two film adaptations. 

“[Helen Morgan] has the gift of pathos and she always manages to look both unhealthy and unhappy.” ~ BURNS MANTLE

Charles Butterworth (1896-1946) was an actor specializing in comedic roles, often in musicals. Butterworth's distinctive voice was the inspiration for the Cap'n Crunch commercials. Sweet Adeline was his fourth Broadway show before leaving Broadway for Hollywood success. 

Irene Franklin’s (1876-1941) Broadway credits included The Greenwich Village Follies (1921), The Passing Show of 1917 (1917), Hands Up (1915), The Summer Widowers (1910), and The Orchid (1907). She wrote lyrics for Sweet Adeline and The Passing Show of 1917 in addition to performing in those productions. She died in the Actor’s Home in Englewood NJ in 1941. 

Many attribute the stock market crash of October 1929 and the subsequent Depression for the show’s short run. However, star Franklin had an attack of appendicitis on February 11, 1930, and after her emergency appendectomy went to Havana for three weeks to recuperate. On March 12, she announced that she would rejoin the show on March 17. The next day the press reported that the show would close on March 22. It may be that her absence had an effect on the box office. Despite this, 234 performances was still quite good for the time.  

In the fall of 1930, there was a five-month tour starring Helen Morgan and Franklin in their original roles.

A film based on the stage musical was released in 1935 by Warner Brothers, directed by Mervyn LeRoy and starring Irene Dunne in the role originated by Helen Morgan. It opened in Atlantic City at the Rialto on January 13, 1935 and was also seen at the Colonial, the Astor, The Lyric, the Palace, and finally the Hollywood - ‘The Theatre Beautiful’ - on Atlantic and Kentucky Avenues. 

The Goodspeed Opera House, East Haddam, Connecticut, produced the musical in May 1977, starring Cynthia Wells.

In 1985 a concert presentation was given at The Town Hall, New York as part of a Jerome Kern centennial celebration, which featured Judy Kaye and Paula Laurence.

Sweet Adeline was produced in 1997 as part of City Center's Encores! Great American Musicals in Concert.

Sweet Adeline was a musical born in New Jersey and set in New Jersey. 

[365days365movies]

February 2, 2021: Pretty Woman (Review)

Before I jump right into this review, I would like to say something about this movie: it’s timeless, while not aging super well for a couple of reasons. Those reasons make this film a tad problematic, and they are as follows, at least according to me:

Prostitution: Look, in NO WAY can I claim to be an expert, or very knowledgeable on culture in the world of sex workers, duh. But, given changing opinions in this during the past three decades since this film came out, this is bound to seem a little dated. Still, some credit for Edward not being...terribly condescending to her throughout this movie. Again, this is just something I’m noting. If anyone with more expertise knows more about how sex workers feel about this film, hit me up; I’m quite curious.

Edward: Speaking of Edward, though, I know that his character came off at the time as similar to Gordon Gekko from Wall Street (can’t confirm, never seen it), and stereotypical businessman characters (and actual people) from the time, and that he was probably considered quite suave and cool at that time. And don’t get me wrong, Edward is...fine...but living in 2021, and in the current political climate in America...dude comes off like a STRAIGHT sociopath throughout this movie. Yeah, no, less Prince Charming, more Prince Harming. I saw somebody describe him as a romantic Patrick Bateman, and GODDAMN does that resonate. That Zodiac Killer joke from the Recap? That was only slightly kidding, real talk.

I’m sure there are more (especially in terms of gender politics and sexism, but I AM NOT QUALIFIED ENOUGH FOR THAT), but these are the ones that came to me during the watching of the film. Anyway, shall we continue? Because I really DID like this movie, despite some problems with it. Let’s get the Review started!

Review

Cast and Acting: 9/10

Edward might be a sociopath, but I don’t lame Richard Gere for that at all. He works through the character to create some legit emotional development for him, and I appreciate it quite a bit. But he’s not the draw here. First, let’s talk about the supporting cast here. Yes, really.  Héctor Elizondo, a Garry Marshall regular, IS A GOD in this movie. I love Barney so much, you have no idea. Laura San Giacomo is a quirky best friend, and I love her. Ralph Bellamy plays a very sweet man in David Morse (even if I disagree with his business). And finally, Jason Alexnder’s Phil Stuckey is IMPRESSIVELY slimy, if a little much at times. Still, he made a good villain in a film that didn’t necessarily need one.

But you all know. You know who takes the entire show here, I know you do. That 9 up there? Sure, the supporting cast carries about 2 of those points, and Gere has one...but JULIA FRIGGIN’ ROBERTS, ACTRESS QUEEN OF ROMANCIA is the star and glue of this movie! She’s perfect, she’s charming, she’s quirky, and she’s absolutely fantastic. Holy shit, I understand solely from this movie, why Julia Roberts became as much of a star as she is.

Plot and Writing: 8/10

Roger Ebert called this a good take on the Pygmalion and Cinderella formulas, both of which the movie heartily acknowledges. And, uh...yeah, it’s a legitimately good take on those formulae, while still being its own unique film, and it’s getting credit for that! It’s interesting to me that J.F. Lawton is the writer, because he...he didn’t do any great things after this one. Under Siege, maybe. Blankman, maybe. I haven’t seen either, so I can’t comment. However, he also wrote Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death. Um. What. Pardon me. Wut. Anyway, plot’s good, character development is apparent through the writing and story, and the only real problem I have is that the time scale is literally a week. And it’s a fairy tale, yeah, and the cheesy nature of some of it definitely shows that. So, not perfect, but still good and unique!

Directing and Cinematography: 7/10

Garry Marshall, former advisor of the land of Romancia...yeah, you did alright. Nothing over-the-top amazing, but not bad by any means. It’s good, but it’s an average kind of good. Same goes for Charles Minsky’s cinematography, which is quite good, but never really breathtaking to me. Good, just not necessarily a cinematic masterpiece.

Production and Art Design: 8/10

The dichotomy between Vivian’s street world and Edward’s high-society world is very well visually portrayed, I gotta say. Most of that isn’t exactly iconically distinctive, but it’s still good. I say MOST of it because, well...Julia Roberts, man. The outfits she’s given in this movie are insanely iconic, even to this day, and they really pick up during the second half of the film. The polo dress, the Rodeo drive dress, the GODDAMN RED OPERA DRESS! It’s all gorgeous, and I genuinely love it all. But one wardrobe does not a movie make. Hence, it’s not perfect, but it’s still up there.

Music and Editing: 7/10

How goes it, James Newton Howard? This won’t be the last time I see you this year, I’m sure. And your score here is great! ANd I don’t remember it...at all! Literally, all of that music is drowned out for me by Roy Orbison’s “Pretty Woman.” By the way, DID NOT REALIZE that that wasn’t Elvis Presley, nor did my girlfriend. You learn something every day. But anyway, here’s the deal: this film is Dirty Dancing in reverse, in terms of music. And slightly worse than that. A lot of pop songs are peppered throughout this movie, and they’re all famous and good...but they aren’t really tied to this movie much, outside of “Pretty Woman.” But they’re mostly fitting with the times presented in the movie, unlike some of Dirty Dancing’s soundtrack. Not as iconic, but better fitting with the atmosphere. There you have it.

I mean, yeah, a LOT, even. At least 78% approval from me!

Pretty Woman is a cheesy yet heartfelt fairy tale of a movie, and it’s sweet all throughout. Problematic or not, I understand how this film but a crown on the heads of the King and Queen of Romancia. ALL HAIL KING GERE AND QUEEN ROBERTS!

But wait...on the horizon. A rival, and far larger nation, is arming its people, led by a fearsome warrior Queen, and one of her most faithful Kings. The Holy Romance Empire is on the march, and it wants blood. Until then...they will get no sleep.

February 3, 2021: Sleepless in Seattle (1993)

[agwtechnikundgesellschaft]

Künstliche Intelligenz und Gesellschaft- Weltneuheit KI

Verfasst von Ann-Kathrin Dimitrievski, Chebechukwu Olivia Ekweariri, Tracy Koch

Was ist Künstliche Intelligenz?  

Um Ihnen den Hintergrund der nächsten Beiträge näherzubringen (Eroberung der Medizin durch KI, Gesellschaftliche Implikation und ethische Aspekte von KI am Beispiel des autonomen Fahrens und KI-basierte Erinnerungssysteme - Die Zukunft unserer Vergangenheit), möchten wir Ihnen einen kurzen Überblick über das komplexe Thema künstliche Intelligenz geben.

Künstliche Intelligenz – ein Begriff, der in den letzten Jahren immer häufiger im Gespräch ist. Doch was bedeutet KI? Eine einheitliche Antwort darauf gibt es nicht. Der Begriff ist nicht abgeklärt, wird allerdings in Zusammenhang mit einem Teilgebiet der Informatik gebracht. Dieses beschäftigt sich mit der Erforschung von Mechanismen des intelligenten menschlichen Verhaltens, was durch Simulation anhand künstlicher Artefakte mit Computerprogrammen abläuft [1].

Informationstechnische Hintergründe

Die KI ist bereits seit Jahrzehnten ein Thema in der Forschung. Den wirklichen Durchbruch erlangte diese aber erst in den vergangenen Jahren. Durch den Einsatz von künstlichen neuronalen Netzen (KNN) mit Methoden des tiefen Lernens, welche Abläufe im Nervensystem nachbilden, wurde diese Forschung relevanter und ein zentrales Thema. Wichtige Treiber sind aber nicht nur die Konzepte der KNN, sondern auch die Entwicklung der Rechentechnik, auf der entsprechende Verfahren ausgeführt werden. Während zu Beginn auf leistungsfähige Allzweckprozessoren (CPU) zurückgegriffen wurde, werden nun seit einigen Jahren vorrangig Prozessoren verwendet, die ursprünglich für Grafikkarten zur Bildausgabe konzipiert wurden (GPU). Aktuell werden diese zunehmend zu Spezialprozessoren (ASIC) für KI-Anwendungen weiterentwickelt. Zusätzlich wird ebenso der Ansatz verfolgt, die Struktur von KNN direkt in der Architektur eines Prozessors abzubilden. Dabei sind erste Versuche erfolgversprechend [2].

KI: Vom Beginn bis zur Gegenwart

In den 50er bis 70er Jahren lösen frühe Arbeiten an neuronalen Netzen (NN) die Begeisterung für denkende Maschinen aus. Walter Pitts und Warren Mc Culloch haben 1943 eine Arbeit über einfache Klassen von neuronalen Netzen veröffentlicht, die mit jeder arithmetischen oder logischen Funktion rechnen konnten.

Ab 1955 begann die große Zeit der neuronalen Netze, die bis etwa 1969 andauert. Frank Rosenblatt und Charles Wightman waren die Entwickler des ersten erfolgreichen Neurocomputers. Er konnte bei Problemen der Mustererkennung eingesetzt werden. Die beiden Wissenschaftler beschrieben verschiedene Varianten des Perzeptrons und haben bewiesen, dass das Perzeptron durch die entwickelte Lernprozedur alles lernen kann. Zahlreiche anderen Wissenschaftler hatten zu dieser Zeit ebenfalls mit neuronalen Netzen experimentiert. Die Grenzen dieser damaligen Modelle wurden erkannt und das Interesse an NNs lässt nach. Im Laufe des Jahres stellte sich bei ausführlichen Studien des Perzeptrons heraus, dass es viele wichtige Probleme nicht darstellen konnte [3]. 

Im Zeitraum von 1980 bis 2010 gewinnt das maschinelle Lernen an Bedeutung. Maschinelles Lernen hat eine lange Geschichte und ist aus statistischen und KI-Methoden abgeleitet. Ende der sechziger Jahre zeigen zwei bekannte KI-Wissenschaftler, Minsky und Papert, dass ein einzelnes Neuron keine einfache Entweder-Oder-Logik erlernen kann und dass größere neuronale Netze mit wenigen lokalen Verbindungen in ihrer Leistungsfähigkeit eingeschränkt sind. Dies führt zu einer Verlangsamung der KI-Forschung und zum sogenannten ersten "KI-Winter“.

In den 1980er Jahren war die Forschung auf symbolische Expertensysteme fokussiert. Ihre Wissensgrundlage besteht aus manuell erfassten logischen Regeln, die sich auf manuell ausgesuchte Merkmale oder auf Objekthierarchien beziehen, die ebenfalls manuell aufgebaut wurden. Diese Form der Wissensrepräsentation wird als "symbolisches Wissen" bezeichnet. Allerdings wurde gemerkt, dass der kontinuierliche Ausbau größerer Wissensgrundlagen immer schwieriger wird. Man hat erkannt, dass praktisch nie alle denkbaren Voraussetzungen für eine Handlung explizit angegeben werden können.

Außerdem entstehen Probleme im Umgang mit neuen Informationen, die dem bereits erfassten Wissen widersprechen. Dies führte Ende der 1980er Jahre zum zweiten "KI-Winter". Für praktische Anwendungen haben sich aber andere Lernverfahren, insbesondere Support-Vektor-Maschinen als besser geeignet erwiesen [4].

Die Fortschritte beim Deep Learning treiben den KI-Boom an. Die Wandlung vom maschinellen Lernen zum Deep Learning fand im Jahr 2006 statt.  Deep Learning funktioniert auf Basis von neuronalen Netzwerken. Die Grundidee ist, die Strukturen des Gehirns anhand von vernetzten Neuronen nachzubauen. Besonders die Leistungsfähigkeit der verfügbaren Computer stößt schnell an ihre Grenzen und die verfügbaren Datenmengen waren nicht ausreichend groß.

In den vergangenen Jahren hat sich dies aber rasant geändert. Mit der Einführung leistungsfähiger Hardware für Matrix-Operationen aus dem Grafikbereich wurde der Aufbau und das Training von noch komplexen Netz-Topologien möglich. Heute gibt es schon Prozessoren, die speziell für das Training neuronaler Netze optimiert sind, wie z. B. die Tensor Processing Units von Google. Mit dem Sieg von Googles Alpha Go über einen der weltweit besten Go-Spieler entwickelt sich in allen Bereichen des künstlichen Lernens ein enormer Hype um Deep Learning [5].

Vielfalt von KI-Systemen

In der nachfolgenden Tabelle können Sie die verschiedenen Arten von KI- Systemen mit Beispielen einsehen. Es wird in verschiedene Arten unterschieden, da jede Gruppe einen anderen Sinn und Zweck erfüllt [6].

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[maaarine]

MBTI & Science: academics, philosophers, educators, etc.

INTP

Hannah ARENDT (philosophy) Jocelyn BELL BURNELL (physics) Tim BERNERS-LEE (computer science) David DEUTSCH (physics) René DESCARTES (philosophy) Esther DUFLO (economics) Albert EINSTEIN (physics) Karl FRISTON (neuroscience) David GRAEBER (anthropology) Demis HASSABIS (artificial intelligence) Katalin KARIKO (biochemistry) Alan LIGHTMAN (physics) Marvin MINSKY (artificial intelligence) Isaac NEWTON (physics) Steven PINKER (cognitive linguistics) Jean-Paul SARTRE (philosophy) Nate SILVER (mathematics) Baruch SPINOZA (philosophy) Bjarne STROUSTRUP (computer science) Terence TAO (mathematics) Nikola TESLA (engineering) Karen UHLENBECK (mathematics) Cédric VILLANI (mathematics) Timothy WILLIAMSON (philosophy) Ludwig WITTGENSTEIN (philosophy)

ENTP

Dan ARIELY (psychology) André BRAHIC (physics) Agnes CALLARD (philosophy) Leonardo DA VINCI Neil DEGRASSE TYSON (physics) Richard FEYNMAN (physics) Milton FRIEDMAN (economics) Scott GALLOWAY (marketing) Michio KAKU (physics) Lawrence KRAUSS (physics) Janna LEVIN (physics) Katie MACK (physics) Bill NYE (science educator) Jordan PETERSON (psychology) Bertrand RUSSELL (philosophy) John SEARLE (philosophy) Michelle THALLER (physics)

INFP

Judith BUTLER (philosophy) Jane GOODALL (biology) Søren KIERKEGAARD (philosophy) May-Britt MOSER (neuroscience) Oliver SACKS (psychiatry) Simone WEIL (philosophy) Mithuna YOGANATHAN (physics)

ENFP

Edward FRENKEL (mathematics) Cornel WEST (philosophy) Slavoj ŽIŽEK (philosophy)

INTJ

Yoshua BENGIO (artificial intelligence) Pierre BOURDIEU (sociology) John DEWEY (philosophy) Francis DUPUIS-DERI (political science) Anthony FAUCI (medicine) Lex FRIDMAN (artificial intelligence) Étienne KLEIN (physics) Yuval Noah HARARI (history) William JAMES (philosophy) Karl MARX (economics) John Stuart MILL (philosophy) Siddhartha MUKHERJEE (medicine) Jesse PRINZ (philosophy) Jonas SALK (medicine) Roger SCRUTON (philosophy) Timothy SNYDER (history) Giulio TONONI (neuroscience) Yanis VAROUFAKIS (economics)

ENTJ

Frances ARNOLD (chemistry) Lisa FELDMAN BARRETT (psychology) Shafi GOLDWASSER (computer science) Andrew HUBERMAN (neuroscience) Charles ISBELL (artificial intelligence) Donna STRICKLAND (physics)

INFJ

Marcus AURELIUS (philosophy) Nicholas HUMPHREY (psychology) Carl JUNG (psychiatry) George LAKOFF (cognitive linguistics) Gabor MATE (medicine) Humberto MATURANA (biology) Friedrich NIETZSCHE (philosophy) David OLUSOGA (history) Daniel SIEGEL (psychiatry) Francisco VARELA (biology) Alan WATTS (philosophy)

ENFJ

Mary BEARD (history) Brené BROWN (social work) Susan DAVID (psychology) Ramani DURVASULA (psychology) Alison GOPNIK (psychology) Martha NUSSBAUM (philosophy) Arlie RUSSELL HOCHSHILD (sociology)

ISTJ

Neil ARMSTRONG (engineering) Ayn RAND (philosophy)

See also: writers of non-fiction in #MBTIwrinonfic