#coda private academy

[roseymaegameplay]

👛💅🏻👄💖Think Pink💖👄💅🏻👛

[starwarsnonsense]

Top 10 films of 2019

Here’s my very belated top 10 films of 2019! Note that this is a list of films that were released in the UK theatrically in 2019, meaning it includes certain releases that would be considered to belong to 2018 by others.

Honourable mentions: Joker, Hustlers, Booksmart, A Private War, Fighting With My Family

(And don’t worry - Little Women, 1917 and Uncut Gems are all already on my list for 2020.)

Look out for my most anticipated films of 2020 list, coming soon!

With that out of the way, here’s my list (in ascending order)! Do share your picks in the comments!

10. The Irishman (dir. Martin Scorsese)

This is clearly the work of a master filmmaker with much on his mind. In telling the story of Frank Sheeran, Scorsese is telling the story of a man who makes his trade in violence. Instead of elevating Frank as a hero or a figure of glamour, he’s consistently shown to be rather pathetic. He stumbles into the role of hitman for various factions of the criminal underworld, and sticks to it seemingly because it’s what comes most easily to him. The violence enacted by Sheeran is inane and routine, with no thought given to the personal cost until it is far too late. The final 15 minutes of this film show a life petering out with a whimper, laying bare the indignities of old age and the cold, empty horror of enduring it with no company besides your own regrets. The Irishman is a portrait of a life lived badly, and in the hands of anyone besides Scorsese it could have been dry and tedious. Instead, the filmmaking is incredibly assured and the editing is whip-sharp (in Thelma Schoonmaker we trust), making it a pleasure to watch even with the lengthy runtime. 

9. The Farewell (dir. Lulu Wang)

The Farewell is a personal story about a young Asian-American woman (Awkwafina) struggling to reconcile her heritage with her current situation and values - specifically, she is tested when her grandmother is diagnosed with cancer and the wider family make the decision to hide the truth from her. The Farewell does a fantastic job of generating empathy for all the different perspectives and positions in play, but it’s truly anchored by Awkwafina’s amazingly nuanced and tender performance - basically, anyone who’s ever loved a grandparent should leave this feeling incredibly moved and inspired. The themes of The Farewell are both specific to the Asian-American experience and general to anyone who has struggled with maintaining bonds over a vast distance, whether physical or cultural. Lulu Wang is an exciting new voice in cinema, and I will watch her career with great interest.           

8. Pain & Glory (dir. Pedro Almodóvar)

Almodóvar is one of my favourite filmmakers, and one of the reasons I love his work so much is its wild diversity. My favourite from him is The Skin I Live In, a film that could not be more different than Pain & Glory. This is a small, very personal film telling the story of a middle-aged director (Banderas, clearly playing a version of  Almodóvar himself) who’s struggling with his legacy as a filmmaker and the increasing privations attached to middle age. Suffering in the present, Salvador finds himself retreating into memories of his childhood - particularly of his mother (Penelope Cruz) and his first crush. The childhood sequences were where the film really sung for me, perfectly capturing the sun-dappled glow of reminiscences of childhood. And the ending, where  Almodóvar truly shows his hand, is delightfully mischievous and the perfect cap on this very personal picture.

7. Once Upon a Time in ... Hollywood (dir. Quentin Tarantino)

This is a slice of life movie, but while that might call to mind ‘kitchen sink’ dramas, this is unabashedly a ‘slice of life’ movie about Hollywood and the mythology that has developed around it. It’s meandering and feels rather aimless for the bulk of its runtime, but that’s kind of the point. It’s exactly what the title promises in that it recaptures what life was like in a very specific time and in a very specific place - it’s an idealised, loving depiction of the Hollywood of the time, with the movie stars, flawed and fading as they are, cast as heroes menaced by the drugged-up hippies poised to dismantle the status quo. It ends in the fashion you’d expect from Tarantino, but here I found his revisionist approach to history remarkably poignant and effective. Film is a magic medium, with Hollywood serving as the ultimate dream factory - it feels completely right that Tarantino would attempt to use celluloid to right one of the great tragedies of Hollywood history.

6. One Cut of the Dead (dir. Shinichirou Ueda)

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

5. Midsommar (dir. Ari Aster)

I went into this film with reservations, since I wasn’t a huge fan of Hereditary (by the same director), which I found to have extraordinary moments but iffy execution overall. This movie, however, wowed me. While marketed as a freaky/arty horror film, the director has described it as a fairy tale, which is the level on which is spoke to me. Midsommar follows Dani (an incredible Florence Pugh), a young woman who has suffered a terrible loss, as she travels with her boyfriend and his friends to a pagan festival in the Swedish countryside. Dani is painfully isolated, and her grief is hers to shoulder alone since her boyfriend is un-receptive and entirely unprepared to help her. Over the course of the film, destruction and creation are conflated in ways that are both beautiful and horrific - this film spoke to me on a profound level, and the way it ended gave me an incredible sense of catharsis. This won’t be for everyone, for I found it to be a deeply special film. Let’s all raise a toast to the imminent, and much welcome, reign of Florence Pugh.

4. Parasite (dir. Bong Joon-Ho)

Parasite is that rare film that more than lives up to the massive hype surrounding it (you don’t get more hyped than winning Best Picture at the Academy Awards!). It’s hard to write about this film without spoilers, since so much of the joy of Parasite lies in discovering what the hell is going on. This is an ‘upstairs downstairs’ movie for the 21st century, where the downstairs people have fierce designs on the lives and pleasures enjoyed by their social superiors. The rich people here are not vilified, though they are depicted as vapid and shallow, perpetually searching for new ways to fill their lives with meaning. Their struggling counterparts from the rough side of the city are struggling only to get by - their lives too hard to allow time for such indulgences. This is a film about the fantasy of social advancement, and the power that dreams have to hold us in thrall to hopeless ambitions. It’s masterfully directed, acted and designed, and it has been extremely gratifying to see it receive such widespread recognition.

3. Marriage Story (dir. Noah Baumbach)

I was always going to see this (hey Adam Driver!) but I was entirely unprepared for how great Marriage Story was. Easily Baumbach’s best film, Marriage Story is a masterclass in acting and character writing - it’s fiercely intelligent in how it constantly forces you to reassess what you’re seeing and where your sympathies lie. Does Charlie seem like an oblivious, navel-gazing asshole? Sure, but he’s also confused and vulnerable and thrown entirely off balance by his awakening consciousness of his wife’s dreams and ambitions. Nicole is self-effacing and self-denying, as so many women are, which makes her emerging confidence and newfound sense of direction incredibly satisfying to witness. In the second half of Marriage Story, Driver’s Charlie undoubtedly takes the spotlight - it’s clear to me that he becomes the focus largely because he continues to flounder as Nicole finds her footing. Baumbach, wisely I feel, is most interested in his characters when they’re lost, struggling to be better but barely understanding what that means. Even if you don’t sympathise with Charlie by the end of Marriage Story, I can promise you will come away with a thorough understanding of him thanks to Driver’s extraordinary performance. Superlative work, all round. (It’s also, just for the record, the only film of 2019 to make me cry.)

2. Portrait of a Lady on Fire (dir. Céline Sciamma)

This is the 2019 film I am most excited to see again (it’s coming out in a week in the UK - I’m so excited!). Sciamma’s film is an incredibly moving and deeply beautiful love story, depicting how a female artist in 18th century France falls in love with the woman she has been covertly employed to paint. Portrait is very much a film about the act of looking, and in many ways it’s the ultimate female gaze film - it’s all about women looking at women, as depicted by a female filmmaker. Gazes are political as much as they’re romantic - here, our two heroines drink each other, aware of exactly how dangerous and forbidden their mutual intoxication is. The woozy thrall of their relationship is exquisitely conveyed through the cinematography and direction, and the final shot - which I won’t spoil - is an all-timer that serves as an exquisite coda to the entire film. This is a truly superb film, and I’m still incensed that it received no substantial awards recognition. Let’s hope it goes down in film history as the masterpiece it is, yet another omission proving the limitations of the Oscars as a metric for great art.

1. The Favourite (dir.  Yorgos Lanthimos)

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

Fly away, skyline pigeon fly, towards the things you’ve left so very, so very far, behind.

[yegarts]

EAC celebrates the Outstanding Achievements of 20 Local Professional Artists

The Edmonton Arts Council, City of Edmonton and Edmonton Community Foundation are pleased to announce the 2020 recipients of the Edmonton Artists’ Trust Fund awards.

“We are delighted to celebrate 20 remarkable local artists that call the Edmonton region home” said Sanjay Shahani, Executive Director of the Edmonton Arts Council. “These artists excel in their disciplines and are constantly working to broaden and promote the Edmonton arts community. The recipients help make Edmonton a vibrant and engaging city, alive with arts and culture.”

“Congratulations to this year’s recipients,” said Martin Garber-Conrad, CEO of Edmonton Community Foundation. “We look forward to watching these artists’ careers grow as they continue shaping our city.”

The Edmonton Artists' Trust Fund (EATF) recognizes an artist’s work and contribution to the community. The $15,000 awards provide financial stability for artists to renew, develop, create or experiment. These awards are supported by the proceeds from the Edmonton Artists’ Trust Fund, held by the Edmonton Community Foundation. In 2017 the Eldon and Anne Foote family fund began making contributions directly, to allow for an increased value and number of awards. This stands now at $120,000 annually, committed through 2021. In addition, in the fall of 2020 an anonymous, private donation of $100,000 was received via the Edmonton Community Foundation to invest directly in artists though the EATF process.

More information about the Edmonton Arts Council’s grants and award programs can be found at: grants.edmontonarts.ca 

Recipients of the 2020 Edmonton Artists’ Trust Fund Award:

Former Edmonton Poet Laureate Ahmed Ali, AKA Knowmadic, is a community organizer, public speaker, youth worker, poet and musician who strives to empower diverse communities across the globe. Knowmadic is co-founder and former Artistic Director of Edmonton’s only spoken word collective, Breath In Poetry.

Alma Visscher is an installation artist whose actions and built environments are inserted into the landscape. Her work is influenced by traditional dye methods, notions of vastness and intermediary spaces, and surface architecture.

Andrea Bellegarde-Courchene is a skilled fiber artist from Little Black Bear First Nation in Treaty 4 who truly brings vision to form. Through her traditional star blankets and ribbon skirts she transmits her gift of artistic expression and a healing resurgence of her Cree/Ojibway culture.

A long-time fixture in the Edmonton music scene, Cam Neufeld has played his own style of fiddle music in clubs and festivals across the prairies and around the world. From the street to the concert hall, his musical journey has spanned the gamut of styles from traditional fiddling to jazz.

Celeigh Cardinal is a multi-award-winning Métis singer-songwriter. With numerous accolades to her name, several highlights include taking home awards at the 2020 Juno Awards, the 2018 Western Canadian Music Awards, multiple Edmonton Music Awards, and recently she received two nominations for the 2020 Western Canadian Music Awards for Indigenous Artist of the Year and Songwriter of the Year.

As a musician and sound designer, Dave Clarke has composed and produced music and sound designs for over 500 projects in theatre, film, dance and multi-media. He is also a playwright, whose multi-award-winning Theatre for Young Audiences piece, Songs My Mother Never Sung Me, draws on his experience growing up as a CODA (Child of Deaf Adults).

Josh Languedoc is an Anishinaabe playwright, theatre artist, and educator. Josh has toured across Canada with his solo storytelling show Rocko and Nakota: Tales From the Land, and is currently studying at the University of Alberta, working on his Masters of Fine Arts in Theatre Practices with a research interest in Indigenous playwriting and storytelling.

Kristi Hansen is a prolific theatre artist whose work includes dramaturgy, direction, stage management, administration, and teaching. She is also the co-founder of Edmonton’s all-female theatre company, The Maggie Tree, whose mandate is to support the development and visibility of female-identifying humans in creative leadership roles in the arts, and was until recently the co-Artistic Producer with Azimuth Theatre.

Leona Brausen is a multi-talented actor, writer, costume designer, and improviser. As a costume designer, she has worked for Mayfield Theatre, Citadel Theatre, Shadow Theatre and Teatro La Quindicina where she's an Artistic Associate. Her work has garnered her both Sterling nominations and awards.

Marty Chan is a children's author with a background in theatre, radio, and television. Using a combination of storytelling, improv, humour, and stage magic, he shares his love of words with audiences young and old, inspiring the next generation of lifelong readers and writers.

Matthew MacKenzie is a multi-award-winning Métis playwright. MacKenzie founded Pyretic Productions in Edmonton in 2008, which produces new works with strong socio-political themes. In 2018, his play Bears won Doras for Outstanding New Play and Outstanding Production, was named a co-winner of the Toronto Theatre Critics Outstanding New Canadian Play Award and won the Playwright Guild of Canada’s Carol Bolt National Playwriting Award.

Matthew Stepanic is a freelance writer, poet, editor of The Glass Buffalo, and poetry editor for Eighteen Bridges. Stepanic also co-manages Glass Bookshop, Edmonton’s newest bookstore that focuses on Canadian writing with special attention paid to LGBTQ2SIA and IBPOC writers, as well as the independent publishers who help to produce their work.

Matthew Wood, AKA Creeasian, is an entrepreneur, youth educator, dancer, DJ, producer, and tours as a dancer with the Juno Award winning group A Tribe Called Red. He is committed to bridging hip-hop and Indigenous culture, using the arts to empower and unite youth.  

Megan Dart is a playwright, poet, and the co-Artistic Producer of the award-winning indie company Catch the Keys Productions, best known for its site-specific, immersive theatre creations. Dart is also the co-Artistic Producer of Common Ground Arts Society, the Communications Specialist with Fringe Theatre, and a member of The Edmonton Poetry Brothel.

Swiss native Michael Zaugg is the Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the professional chamber choir Pro Coro Canada. A passionate pedagogue, Zaugg is strongly committed to his work with choirs and emerging artists.

Michele Vance Hehir is an accomplished playwright. She won first place in the 2017 annual Alberta Playwrights’ Network competition for her full-length play, The Blue Hour, which received its premiere production at Edmonton’s Skirts Afire Festival in 2020.

Shannon Blanchet has appeared on stages across Canada, off-Broadway and in London's West End.  Off the stage, Blanchet is a teacher and coach with the University of Alberta’s Department of Drama and has recently completed a Master of Fine Arts in Theatre Voice Pedagogy at the University of Alberta, where her interdisciplinary research focused on the neurological correlates of Voice and Speech Training.

Sharmila Mathur is the Director of the Indian Music Ensemble in the Department of Music at the University of Alberta and the founder of the Indian Music Academy. Through her music instruction and performances, she shares the rich tradition of classical Indian music, and continues to collaborate with musicians from other cultures to create fusion music showcasing the diversity of our community.

For over two decades, Timothy Bowling’s fiction, non-fiction, and poetry has been regularly published and recognized for its excellence, garnering numerous national, provincial and civic honours. In 2008, the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation awarded Bowling a fellowship recognizing his entire body of work. As an active member of Edmonton’s literary community Bowling has worked closely with many local writers as a mentor, writer-in-residence and Sessional instructor in literature and creative writing.

Zach Polis is a writer, filmmaker, and photographer, and former Poet Laureate of St. Albert. He has performed in New York City, as well as on CBC Radio. His poems have been recognized on Vogue Italia’s PhotoVogue, and he recently completed a spoken word residency at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity.

[a-man-for-hire-and-his-archives]

The Last Smile in Sunder City by Luke Arnold Book Review

Jun 26, 2020. By: Drew @ The Tattooed Book Geek

The Last Smile in Sunder City (The Fetch Phillips Archives #1).

Luke Arnold.

352 pages.

Urban Fantasy.

My Rating: Hellyeah Book Review.

Book Blurb.

I’m Fetch Phillips, just like it says on the window. There are three things you should know before you hire me:

1. Sobriety costs extra. 2. My services are confidential. 3. I don’t work for humans.

It’s nothing personal – I’m human myself. But after what happened, it’s not the humans who need my help.

I just want one real case. One chance to do something good. Because it’s my fault the magic is never coming back.

Book Review.

I received a free copy of this book courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

There was once magic in the world and magical creatures, dragons, gryphons, elves, werewolves, vampires, gnomes, dwarves, giants, ogres, wizards, gremlins, goblins, banshees, sirens etc. If it is a fantasy creature that you have heard of then the chances are very high that Arnold has included it in The Last Smile in Sunder City and then you had humans, flesh and blood, non-magical and ordinary human beings.

After a devastating event that has come to be known as ‘the Coda‘ where humans who had hoped to harness the power of magic ended up breaking the world. The magic didn’t just cease to exist and leave the world, it also left the magical creatures too making them non-magical and decimating the population. Ageless elves aged, dragons could no longer fly and fell from the skies, unicorns went deranged and, consumed by madness and now run crazed across the land, werewolves got stuck part-way through their transformation leaving them as disfigured monsters, dwarven forges went cold, goblin machinery failed and stopped working and the blood, the sustenance that had sustained the vampires no longer had any effect, it no longer replenished them and they are now, withering. All of the creatures that didn’t outright die when their connection to the magic was severed became ordinary and are slowly fading from the world.

In Sunder City, six years after the Coda Fetch Phillips, a former soldier is now a ‘Man for Hire’ which is a Private Investigator. Fetch receives a phone call from the Principal of the Ridgerock Academy, a cross-species school in Sunder City when a faculty member, Professor Edmund Albert Rye, a three-hundred-year-old vampire goes missing and hasn’t turned up to teach in over a week. Rye is respected and liked, he has even tried to put the old ways behind him and has embraced his new existence in the post-Coda world as best he can and it is entirely out of character for him to no show his lessons. However, when one of Rye’s students, a young siren also goes missing and other vampires are found dead too what was a single disappearance turns into something more with wide-reaching implications.

Sunder City was built on top of a huge underground fire pit. Originally it was a factory mining, smelting iron, making bricks and employed blacksmiths and metal workers and the only citizens were the workers. But, as more and more of the workers decided to stay after their employment ended and over time, it transformed, houses and businesses were built, culture was introduced alongside the production from the factory and it turned into a metropolis. When the Coda hit the fires that Sunder City had been built on were immediately quenched and the city suffered. It is barely hanging on, turning into a slum, many of the residents are destitute, the streets aren’t safe and life there is both dangerous and bleak. Due to the Coda, there is a festering animosity and resentment towards humans. There is still some good left in the city, not much but some, a religious group of winged monks who help the most in need. Devoting their lives to caring for the destitute and the poor. There is bad too, Nail gangs. Roving gangs of humans whose sole intent is to kill the dwindling magical races, erasing them from the world and consuming them to history. That is where the name ‘Nail gang’ comes from as they want to put the final nail in the coffin of the various species, wiping them from existence.

The Last Smile in Sunder City is narrated in the first-person by Fetch Phillips over duel timelines, the past which features a series of flashbacks of important events over the course of Fetch’s life and the present. Fetch is trying to be a better man, trying to redeem himself, atone for his past mistakes and he is taking the first steps on the road to redemption. He is a self-loathing alcoholic who drinks to forget, to numb the pain and who tries and fails to find solace in the bottom of a bottle. His past haunts him, he is full of regrets that weigh heavily upon him, he has made more than a few mistakes during his life, suffered loss and he is drowning in a sea of self-pity, shame and guilt. He hates both himself and humanity and he plies his trade as a Man for Hire solely for the now non-magical races. It is his penance as being a human he is better able to cope with the new world than they are as they attempt to adjust to their new magic-less half-lives.

There is a melancholic charm to Fetch, grit and a dogged determination to him. He has demons but he hasn’t yet fully given into them. He is a terrific main character and narrator, cynical, jaded but wholly likeable. You want to see Fetch solve the case, pull himself up from the brink and redeem himself, not put the past behind him, it is a part of him and always will be but finally come to accept it, that he can’t change the past or erase his mistakes but he can move forward and try to make a difference in the present.

The story is definitely not action-packed, it’s not needed. The few action sequences that are featured add to the overall story which is very character-driven with an additional focus on the world-building. Throughout the course of the story, you learn a lot about Fetch, the magical creatures, Sunder City and the world, in other words, every aspect of the book. It is only a small niggle but, what you learn can feel like information dumping. However, the information is always interesting, adds depth and detail and takes the outline and pencil sketch and transforms it into a full-colour and meticulous picture.

The writing itself is descriptive with some rather unique phrasing and use of words by Arnold giving him his own distinctive and quirky voice.

“His laughter rattled like a sandpaper saxophone”.

To go along with that uniqueness there are also some passages that are laced with meaning and that show a more thoughtful side to the writing.

“You don’t measure age in years, you measure it in lessons learned and repeated mistakes and how hard it is to force a little hope into your heart”.

I’m not the biggest fan of urban fantasy, in fact, it is a genre that I rarely enjoy and that I tend to stay away from. However, I found The Last Smile in Sunder City to be an accomplished and very satisfying debut that I thoroughly enjoyed. It is gritty and grimy fantasy noir and in Fetch Phillips, you have someone to root for who is the beating and damaged tortured heart of the book.

-  The Tattooed Book Geek:

[jafreitag]

Grateful Dead Monthly: Academy of Music – New York, NY 3/28/72

Before Europe ’72, there was Academy of Music ’72. Between March 21 and 28, 1972, the Grateful Dead played seven concerts at the Academy of Music in New York City.

That’s the original Academy of Music. It opened in 1854 as a 4,000 seat opera house on the northeast corner of East 14th Street and Irving Place in Manhattan. The Dead didn’t play there. They played across the street at a 3,400 seat movie palace also named the Academy of Music, which opened in 1927.

That’s the latter Academy of Music. It shifted from a cinema toward a concert venue in the mid-60s. The Rolling Stones played there on their first U.S. tour in 1965. Around the closing of the Fillmore East, some eight blocks south and east (if my dodgy NYC geography is correct), the former movie palace was a full-on rock palace, hosting the Allman Brothers Band (8/15/71), Aerosmith opening for Humble Pie and Edgar Winter (12/2-3-71), and the Band (12/28-31/71 – those shows were excerpted for the 1972 live album Rock of Ages and featured in their entirety for the 2013 box set Live at the Academy of Music 1971).

The Academy of Music was renamed the Palladium in 1976. And on 9/20/79, this happened there.

The guitar smash, not the album, obv. #paulsimononftw The venue was converted to a nightclub by Studio 54 guys Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager in 1985. In 1992, they sold it to Peter Gatien, who kept it open until 1997. The last concert at the Palladium was Fugazi on 5/1/97 (Red Medicine tour, I think). It’s now an NYU dorm with a gym in the basement.

The Dead visited the Academy/Palladium twice – once in 1972 and once in 1977. In ’72, they were workshopping material that they would soon take across the pond. In ’77, they were solidifying material that they would soon take upstate for the ne plus ultra. Fun fact, the fourth night of the ’72 run was presented by Hells Angels. Here’s the full poster.

[The lessons of Altamont ’69 apparently had been learned, then put to rest. Quick replay, tho, from less than three years earlier.]

The New York Daily News summarized the run like this: “Seven concerts in one week at the Academy of Music, every one of them sold out within hours, more by ESP than advertising… The week’s series will help finance the Dead’s traveling expenses for a two-month, seven-country tour of Europe beginning Saturday.” That quote appears in an excellent and exhaustive recap of all the shows (and their recordings) by someone called “Light Into Ashes” on the Grateful Dead Guide blog. There, LIA posits:

“Musically, this run falls midway between the honky-tonk vibe of the fall ’71 shows, and the smoother Europe ’72 tour. Probably one of the Dead’s plans for the run, aside from raising money for the Europe tour, was to hone their performances for the upcoming live-album recording – after a two-month break from playing shows together, they would need to get back in the groove! 

People who saw them at the time were probably struck by the changes in repertoire. (They only played two songs that had been on Live/Dead, one time each; few songs from Workingman’s Dead or American Beauty were played at all; and many of their newer songs were not on any albums yet.) Pigpen was also singing and playing more than he had in ’71 (singing five or six songs a night); a new piano player had altered the band’s sound quite a bit; and some unknown longhaired lady would come onstage to sing for a song or two. New Yorkers would also have noticed that the Dead no longer played til dawn, as they had done so often at the Fillmore East!

The average show length was three and a half hours, as they played through most of their repertoire each night. (Any audience members who went to several shows in the run would hear most of the same songs a LOT of times.)”

The Grateful Dead Sources blog has a 1972 newspaper review from Toronto’s Grapevine. Pretty funny, it’s worth a look.

Betty Cantor-Jackson recorded the shows, but the tapes disappeared until some guy from Northern California bought them at an auction in 1987. The tapes sat in his barn deteriorating. When Jerry died in 1995, one of the guy’s friends, who must’ve known a thing or two about the Dead, contacted Dark Star Orchestra’s Rob Eaton. Eaton cleaned and restored the tapes at his own expense, and returned them to the guy.

(^ Rob Eaton)

From LIA’s post, which quotes Eaton from an interview with Katie Harvey:

“‘The collection was really unique. Half of it was Garcia-Saunders from ’73, 74, 75. It was just nothing anybody had ever seen. And all the Academy of Music tapes from the Dead in ’72, which no one had ever heard a tape of: really bad audience tapes were the only thing [from that run], nothing was in the Vault. So I knew it was really important.’

Eaton kept DAT copies of the reels, although the buyer made him sign a contract not to copy or distribute the recordings. ‘He drew up this contract that I was liable for $100,000 in liquefied damages if I released the contents of the collection without his written authorization. And I wasn’t allowed to keep a copy according to this thing. All the copies had to be in his possession. Of course I’m keeping a DAT master of everything I’m doing. I’m not that stupid. I was a deadhead and protecting the music was my first and foremost thought. Legally, I wasn’t really that concerned with it. Because I was sort of in with the Dead office at the time, they found out that I had these. They wanted to get a hold of the guy. So I got them in touch with this guy who wanted a million dollars. They just told him to fuck himself. They came back to me and they go, “Look, we know you’re smart. We know you probably kept a set of DATs. What would it take to get that set of DATs from you?” And I said, “Well, first of all, I signed this contract.”’

But according to Hal Kantor, the Dead’s attorney, ‘He can’t claim rights to what’s on the tape. He has rights to the actual physical tapes, but what’s on the tape is our rights, not his.’ So Eaton copied his DATs (including Dead shows from 1971-76) and gave them to the Vault. And as Harvey writes: ‘They prohibited him from distributing copies because they planned to commercially release the material.'”

Parts of all seven nights in 1972 are scattered across various official releases, but the archivists have unloosed only two complete shows – 3/26 (Dave’s Picks #14) and 3/28 (Dick’s Picks #30). The latter also contains the Bo Diddley sit-in from 3/25, so ECM and I decided to focus on that one.

According to the DP#30 Wiki, the 3/25 show was a “semi-private party” billed as Jerry Garcia & Friends. In reality, it was a GD with the band backing Bo Diddley for the first set, then playing its own second set. The entire show has sound quality issues, but the first set is quite poor. The “jam” is the most notable part. It’s essentially a slower version of the “Hard to Handle” wig-out, and not super interesting.

The Dead opened their set with a couple rarities – How Sweet It is (To Be Loved by You), on which Donna Jean reaches a truly wicked level of caterwaul, and Are You Lonely for Me Baby?, from which Bobby must’ve gotten inspiration for Black-Throated Wind. Are You Lonely was later a staple of Garcia/Merl Saunders sets in ’72-74.

3/28 is better, and offers more typical Dead fare. The first set features an extremely hot China Cat Sunflower > I Know You Rider duo, and some funny stage banter from Phil Lesh. After the band played Mexicali Blues, some audience members chanted for Alligator. Phil responded, “Hey, for all you Alligator fans out there, we done – ah alright alright alright. We understand that there’s a lot of Alligator fans out there, but we done forgot it, see. And so ah, we’re gonna have to remember it sometime later, you know.” The second set showpiece is an extended version of The Other One that offers a preview of what the band would do in Europe.

Ed reminded me that this show was Pigpen’s last in NYC. And he added that it contains Donna’s first Playing in the Band wail. Awesome. His listening notes are more robust than mine, as usual:

The Europe ’72 tour began on April 7th, but the boys played a preparatory seven-night run at the Academy of Music in NYC in the days leading up to their flight across the pond. 

The festivities open with a rockin Truckin.’ All the first set songs are played with gusto and feeling especially the “new” songs such as Tennessee Jed, Chinatown Shuffle, BT Wind, Mr. Charlie, You Win Again and Mexicali Blues.  After Mexicali, the audience is calling out for “Alligator” and Phil tells them that “we done forgot it.” A rare, mid-set Brokedown follows and it is a pure joy. It just might be my favorite song from the entire first set. Next Time You See Me is perfectly executed. The band tears up Cumberland. Bobby is high in the mix and it is exciting to hear his guitar part. Next, Bobby introduces LLR as a “cryin’ song.” It’s a gorgeous version that has Jerry on pedal steel and Phil on backing vocals.  and China->Rider really stands out. The segue jam in China->Rider is especially interesting as the band seems to struggle at first to find the groove behind Bobby’s solo, then they just roll with it, and then Jerry locks into a cool riff before diving into Rider. The only minor complaint is that after 6 shows, Garcia’s voice is beginning to show signs of strain (You Win Again, Big Railroad Blues and China Cat). 

The setlist for Set II pretty much speaks for itself. Playing in the Band continues to progress. This performance marks the the first time that Donna lends her vocal contributions. The jam section starts off drifty like Veneta with that big psychedelic bubble. By the 6-minute mark Jerry is in full guitar psychosis mode. They cool down into drifting, mournful ribbons of sound only to bring it to another peak around the 10-minute mark before entering the reprise. A few songs later we get a high-energy Sugar Magnolia. Jerry goes nuts on the wah pedal during the coda. Donna has not yet found her way into the arrangement yet). This segues directly into a brief drum intro that leads into a 28-minute version of The Other One. The entry is surprisingly laid back as is the entire performance. By the 7-minute mark there are no traces of the song. The band has entered uncharted territory…deep space. This is pretty experimental stuff…atonal notes and peals of feedback. Things begin to become melodic again at about the 14-minute mark as the band prepares to deliver the first verse but it takes them 2 more minutes to eventually get there and after dispensing with it they return to the same misty pastures where they once were. The concert ends in fine form with their standby crowd pleasing closer of NFA>GDTRFB>NFA. The jam at the end of NFA leading into GDTRFB especially shines. 

The only version of the Sidewalks of New York is just a half-minute tuning.

Here’s the Spotify widget.

I’ll add LMA links at some point.

More soon.

JF

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[itsmajel]

Majel Reads - October 2017

[What is this?]

Supernatural - Destiel

Purgatory's Angel by Ltleflrt                

In an act of heroism Castiel sacrifices one of his wings to save lives. But he isn’t sure he wants to live tethered to the ground, never to dance in the sky again.  Two stubborn Winchester brothers have faith that his future isn’t quite so grim, and that flight may be possible someday.  Castiel thinks they’re full of shit, but in the face of Dean’s cheerful optimism it’s hard not to believe.

[Explicit] [ 26,779 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

Good One's Gonna Be by remmyme                

Castiel Novak receives a rather alarming text message from an unknown number, and what started as a simple misdial quickly turns into the greatest friendship Castiel has ever known. But Dean has many secrets, dangerous truths about the life he lives, and would like to tell Castiel exactly none of them.

[Explicit] [ 37,130 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

somewhere I have never travelled by museaway                    

Driving home from work at his family's shop, Dean is hit by a man driving a Prius. Though Castiel is initially rude, he offers dinner as part of his apology, and Dean is drawn to him the more they talk. Since Castiel is raw from a divorce with a teenage daughter, Dean doesn’t expect the relationship to go anywhere and is surprised when Castiel quickly becomes a fixture in his life. But while Castiel seems eager to build a life with him, Dean is hung up on his past and family obligations.

[Mature] [ 53,375 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

Andrew Lloyd Webber Gets a Pass by delicirony (deliciousirony), opal_bullets

In which Castiel's manner is vague and aloof, Dean Winchester doesn't care for a cuddle, and there's no doing anything about it.

Or, Dean and Castiel attempt to survive rehearsals for a new production of Cats, and each other.

[Explicit] [ 37,597 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

nothing else matters by  xylodemon

"You say goodbye."

deancas codas: season thirteen

[Not Rated] [ 1,210 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

take that history by vaudelin

“How did you meet my father?” the kid asks him, over breakfast, while he’s pouring milk over Cheerios in tiny spoonfuls.

“In Hell,” Dean grits, like a warning. Let it be enough.

[General Audiences] [ 1,200 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

we are nowhere (and it's now) by xylodemon

Dean dreams about smoke billowing up toward a dark, starless sky. deancas codas: season thirteen

[Teen And Up Audiences] [ 3,248 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

Captain America / Marvel CMU - Stucky

Not To Win But To Take Part by MarcellaBianca

Vignettes in the life of Olympic silver medalist, World Champion, and figure skating coach James Buchanan Barnes, from 1992 to 2018.

[Mature] [ 5,790 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

Citius, Altius, Fortius (Faster, Higher, Stronger) by MarcellaBianca *re-read

Steve Rogers. James Barnes.

One, an NHL star with dreams of finally capturing an Olympic gold medal. The other, a former World champion and Olympic silver medalist, now a current coach and choreographer for the top flight figure skaters in the Russian Federation.

But before all of that..they were Steve and Bucky.

[Mature] [ 50,623 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

That Would Be Enough by MarcellaBianca                

Bucky Barnes, a Columbia University graduate with a Masters Degree in Education, is in his fourth year of teaching AP US History at Shield Academy, a private school in the very heart of the Connecticut valley in the bucolic town of Barkstead. He also helps run the Russian Club with his colleague and best friend, Natasha Romanov. He’s got amazing friends, three nephews he adores, and a beautiful little apartment. The only thing Bucky would change about his life? His luck in love. It’s been two years since Bucky ended an emotionally abusive relationship and he’s just now starting to feel that his heart has healed enough to try dating again. Then, a new Art History and English teacher arrives with tattoos he doesn’t like talking about, a body like a Greek god, and some secrets of his own, and Bucky knows he’s done for. Cue pining, sass, and a ton of Hamilton references.

CW: Eating disorders, references to emotional and psychological abuse, and attempted dub-con sex.

[Explicit] [ 59,797 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

Happy Accidents by BetteNoire (WeAreWolves)

Bucky's still in cryo. Steve is in New York, angry and unsettled. And then Trump takes a photo in front of a Captain America mural like Steve has ever supported anything he says or does. So Steve enlists Pepper to throw a costume gala for LGBTQIA causes, and to celebrate his coming out.

It's a terrible idea, especially when a bunch of people come dressed as Bucky.

But then Steve meets a tall dark stranger...

  nb: the Trump content of this fic is essentially zero other than as an inciting incident in the first couple paras.

[Explicit] [ 29,777 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

Alphabet Verse by thesardine

Summary verse: At a pivotal point in his recovery, Bucky is abducted and forced to act as the Winter Soldier for a SHIELD that is spiraling into the dark side.  This won't stop him from pursuing his goal: in the year 2016, times finally being what they are, Bucky has a very important question he wants to ask Steve...

Summary first part: There wasn’t anything left to salvage. That’s what Fury believed. It would have been a kindness to put him down.

When SHIELD finally releases Bucky from custody, he is not the man anyone expects him to be. Steve struggles to reconcile the stranger with the man who was once his best friend, but with Hydra regrouping after the events at Triskelion, Steve is dragged back into battle when Bucky needs him the most. Meanwhile, Hydra is itching to have its prize weapon back under their control, and a devastating betrayal pits Bucky against a terrible piece of ex-SHIELD tech that threatens to destroy everything he's struggled to rebuild. In order to survive, he must decide who he is going to be: the vulnerable Bucky Barnes or the indomitable Winter Soldier? It turns out there might not be as big a difference as everyone seems to think.

[Teen And Up Audiences] [ 99,778 Words] [4 Works] [Read on AO3 here]

Reflex Memories by sariane

Bucky Barnes never remembers who he is.

That doesn’t stop him from falling in love with Steve Rogers.

[Mature] [ 34,174 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

Talking Pictures by sariane

Steve and Bucky go to the movies (together)

[General Audiences] [ 823 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

Blank Slate by sariane

When Steve looks up at him, his eyes are slow to focus on Bucky. Steve sends him a blank look.

“Who’s Steve?” he asks.

Bucky’s heart sinks.

[General Audiences] [ 4,991 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

your homecoming will be my homecoming by lupinely

This is what Bucky thinks he remembers. Writing a letter to Steve in the trenches, muddy footprints, impressions of army boots on the ground. So cold his fingers ache. He’s writing the letter but it doesn’t make sense. He’s writing the letter but he wants to go home. It’ll make sense then, he thinks—it’ll make sense when they both come home.

[Steve/Bucky, post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier]

[Mature] [ 18,972 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

Lamb and Martyr by Dira Sudis (dsudis) *Re-Read

"You could, though," Steve said. "If you were willing to hurt me.

[Explicit] [ 39,589 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

Ring the Bell Backward by Dira Sudis (dsudis), pium_poetam

"I know how it is," Wanda said. "Being half of something. I would go anywhere if I knew he was there waiting for me."

[Teen And Up Audiences ] [13,234 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

Come To Morning by emilyenrose

He figured it was natural, kind of—well, not natural, but he and Steve spent a lot of time together, and Steve didn’t get so much attention from girls, which was a crying shame because he was a good guy and a girl could do a lot worse. But it meant maybe Steve got a bit confused, because sometimes he would look at Bucky with this look. This bright, astonished look, like he was seeing something so good he couldn’t quite believe it was real. It made Bucky squirm inside, a little.

[Teen And Up Audiences ] [ 4,707 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

Winter Comfort by greenbergsays

Thing is, peace of mind has been hard to come by since his programming had been destroyed.

Hell, if he's being truthful, peace of mind has been hard to come by since the Stark Expo of '43. Maybe even before then.

But the crafts? They help. More than he ever could’ve imagined, they help.

--

Also known as the fic where Bucky Barnes uses arts & crafts as a recovery tool and ends up teaching himself how to knit. Much to Steve's surprise.

[Teen And Up Audiences ] [ 2,578 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

to feel for the first time by lord_is_it_mine

I love him, Bucky thinks. I'll burn for it one way or another, but I love him.

The thought blooms inside him, attaches itself to the base of his heart and tethers him to Steve's side. He tries to remember a time when he didn't feel like this. He can't. That's it. This feeling isn't new. But the admission to himself in the simplest of terms- that's new. And it hasn't hit him yet, just how difficult it's going to be, to love someone you can never have, because he has Steve for now, at least in every way he's allowed to have him.

He has to believe that it'll be enough.

((five firsts Bucky got and one he thought he'd never have))

[Teen And Up Audiences ] [ 5,980 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

Schrödinger's Romance by The_StonedSoldier

"It could be a relationship, it could not be. You can assume either until you see for sure the results."

We all know those moments. Those moments when your family all gathers around you and asks "So, do you have a boyfriend yet?". Bucky knows these moments all too well and, quite frankly, he's sick to death of them. Unfortunately, being a 21 year old college student makes it harder for him to come up with excuses, and with Christmas coming up he needs to think of a way out fast. A chance encounter with a stranger through an old library textbook could just be the kind of miracle he needs to make it through the holidays with his last shreds of sanity intact.

[Mature] [ 196,220 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

Aim Towards The Sky by littleblackfox

Steve gets to his feet, taking the two steps to the container. He lifts the latches and pops the seal. Luis unholsters his second favourite gun and points it at the crate with a nervous whine. “Steve, what the hell are you doing?” Natasha hisses. Steve glances at her. “Lets see what we’ve got.”

[Mature] [ 57,709 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

Take Apart Your Bones and Put 'em Back Together by die_traumerei

It seems so simple: Bucky is captured by SHIELD and brought to a facility in upstate New York.

Of course, it isn't. No one knows who is going to wake up in that bed, and what that will eventually mean for Steve Rogers, SHIELD, the Avengers, or Bucky himself.

A story about a man putting himself back together despite what everyone expects of him. A story about Steve finding a measure of peace, a story about a broken-up institution. A story about three women who made a magical place where not just Bucky can heal.

A story featuring a load of OC's, BAMF Bucky Barnes, an older but not particularly wiser Steve Rogers, fallible Sam Wilson who is no less perfect for that, and, eventually, two nonagenarians gettin' it on in a world they pretty well transformed, between the two of them.

[Explicit] [ 63,467 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

Shadowhunters - Malec

Bits of canon Malec by lemonoclefox

A bunch of unrelated canon drabbles

[Mature ] [ 17,958 Words] [16 works] [Read on AO3 here]

So Bright by lemonoclefox

"You want me," Magnus says, "to pretend to be your boyfriend." He sounds wholly unimpressed, and Alec has a moment of panic when he hears it out loud. "Yes," he says. "Temporarily." "You want me to fake date you," Magnus says flatly. It's not even a question, but more a way of really driving the point home about how dumb the idea is. "Pretty much.". Magnus narrows his eyes. "You do realize that this never works out well in movies, right?" he says. "Ever." Alec feels a distinct sense of embarrassment creep up now. "Look, I―" "Ever."

-

Alec has come out, but that doesn't stop his parents from their continuous attempts to set him up with a nice shadowhunter girl. So, what better way to finally get them off his back, than to say he has a boyfriend? Problem solved. Except they now apparently want to meet this guy, who doesn't exist. Thankfully, Magnus Bane -- who encouraged Alec to come out in the first place, and whose silent crush on Alec is just as bad as Alec's crush on him -- is more than happy to help. Even if the night doesn't end up going entirely as planned.

[General Audiences] [ 17,504 Words] [Read on AO3 here]

- - - - - - - - - -

(All summaries are the official summaries of the author. Stats and infos as according to hosting site or information given by the author)

Looking for more reading inspiration? Check out my fic rec tag here on tumblr, my reading list masterpost or just check out my AO3 bookmarks.

[mrmichaelchadler]

The Right Side of History: Backstage at the 91st Academy Awards

“This is my sixth glass,” quipped Spike Lee, drink in hand, upon entering the press room of the 91st Academy Awards. “And you know why.” The trailblazing director of such masterworks as “Do the Right Thing” and “When the Levees Broke” had just earned an Oscar for adapting Ron Stallworth’s memoir into the acclaimed Best Picture contender, “BlacKkKlansman,” along with fellow scribes Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz and Kevin Wilmott. What should’ve been a joyous victory became bittersweet at best when Peter Farrelly’s intensely divisive “Green Book” took the night’s top prize, besting a slew of titles that favored diversity and representation over old-fashioned comfort food. Lee’s film is as unsettling and immediate as Farrelly’s is reassuring and eager to please. The focus of “Green Book” is an interracial friendship between an Italian-American bouncer and the African-American pianist he’s been hired to drive on a concert tour across various southern states during the volatile 1960s. 29 years ago, Lee received his first Oscar nomination for “Do the Right Thing” in the screenplay category—and lost—while “Driving Miss Daisy,” a strikingly similar feel-good picture about an elderly white woman’s friendship with her black chauffeur, was crowned as the year’s best film.  

“Every time somebody is driving somebody, I lose,” Lee laughed while cavorting about the press stage, which he visited in the aftermath of the telecast. “But they changed the seating arrangement.” When pressed for his thoughts on the film to which he lost the Best Picture prize, the director said, “I thought I was courtside at the Garden. The ref made a bad call.” Lee’s prolonged sipping of his drink spoke more volumes about his frustration than any fiery elaboration. Yet he still credited April Reign’s #OscarsSoWhite campaign and the efforts of former Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs in creating the path that led him to win his first competitive Oscar, just three years after he was given an Honorary Award for career achievement. He also reflected on the alarming relevance of “Do the Right Thing,” where he tackled not only racial tensions and police brutality but gentrification and global warming. I instantly flashed back to the film’s 25th anniversary screening at Ebertfest, when an audience member suggested that the events portrayed onscreen had little relation to the present. It was mere months later that Ferguson occurred���a real-life mirror image of the famous climatic sequence in Lee’s 1989 film. By ending the story of “BlacKkKlansman,” chronicling a black police officer’s infiltration of the Ku Klux Klan, with a sudden cut to the white supremacist demonstrations in modern-day Charlottesville, Lee reaffirms that racist movements are not only still active but woven into the fabric of our culture. 

“The coda of this film is where we saw homegrown red, white and blue terrorism,” said Lee. “The murder of Heather Heyer was an American terrorist act. When that car drove down that crowded street in Charlottesville, Virginia, the President of the United States did not refute, did not denounce the Klan, the alt-right, and neo-Nazis. Whether we won Best Picture or not, this film will stand the test of time being on the right side of history.” Lee told the press in attendance that he had prepared two acceptance speeches, one featuring a list of people to thank and the other, more artful draft, which he decided to go with instead. “I said to myself, ‘Self, your black ass may not be up here again, so let me go with the speech,’” the director recounted, and it’s a good thing he made that decision, since it resulted in one of most stunning monologues in recent Oscar history.

“The word today is irony,” said Lee after arriving onstage. “The date is the 24th. The month is February, which also happens to be the shortest month of the year, which also happens to be Black History Month. The year 2019, the year 1619. History, Herstory. 1619 to 2019, 400 years. 400 years our ancestors were stolen from Mother Africa and brought to Jamestown, Virginia, enslaved. Our ancestors worked the land from can’t see in the morning to can’t see at night. My grandmother, Zimmie Shelton Reatha, who lived to be 100 years young, was a Spelman College graduate even though her mother was a slave. My grandma saved fifty years of Social Security checks to put her first grandchild—she called me Spikie Poo—through Morehouse College and NYU Grad Film. N.Y.U.! Before the world tonight, I give praise for our ancestors who helped build this country into what it is today along with the genocide of its native people. If we all connect with our ancestors, we will have love, wisdom, and will regain our humanity. It will be a powerful moment. The 2020 presidential election is around the corner. Let’s all mobilize. Let’s all be on the right side of history. Make the moral choice between love versus hate. Let’s do the right thing! You know I had to get that in there!”

The applause from members of the press that greeted Farrelly and Nick Vallelonga, who shared Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay Oscars for “Green Book,” was conspicuously chilly when contrasted with the rapturous ovation that welcomed Lee moments later. Their film’s portrayal of the bond between Vallelonga’s father, Tony Lip (Viggo Mortensen), and the far more fascinating musician Dr. Don Shirley (Mahershala Ali), has been blasted as “a symphony of lies” by members of the late pianist’s family. Yet Vallelonga insisted that he told the story in the precise way that Shirley had instructed, arguing that this perspective on the subject is as valid as any. 

“If you're discussing the Don Shirley family thing, that falls on me,” said Vallelonga. “Don Shirley himself told me not to speak to anyone. He told me the story that he wanted to tell. He protected his private life and all the other miraculous things about him. He's an amazing man. He told me, ‘If you're going to tell the story, you tell it from your father and me. No one else. Don't speak to anyone else. That's how you have to make it.’ He also told me not to make it until after he passed away. So I just kept my word to that man. I wish I could have reached out to Don Shirley's family. I didn't even know they really existed until after we were making the film, and we contacted his estate for music. Then the filmmakers invited them all to screenings and discussions. But I personally was not allowed to speak to his family, per Don Shirley's wishes. I'm an Italian from New York. They call that a stand-up guy.  I kept my word to the man, and that's the reason for that. But Don Shirley and my father had an amazing story together. They went on the road and changed each other, and I think that comes out. That's why the film is what it is. It's because of the both of them.”

The pro-Trump tweet from 2015 that led Vallelonga to delete his Twitter once it was unearthed a month ago was echoed in a question directed to the filmmakers about whether Tony might’ve been a supporter of the current president.

“I never thought of him as a MAGA guy,” said Farrelly. “It's a different era, and whether he would have been one of those guys, I don't know. But he was a guy who was flawed in the beginning. For a couple of months, he was in a car with a man who was completely different from him, and they got to know each other, and they realized they had a lot more in common than they thought they did starting out on this journey. The message is, ‘Talk to each other, and you'll find out we all have a lot in common.’ It's a hopeful message, because sometimes it seems like there is no hope, but there is. All we have to do is talk, and we get closer together. I know that sounds corny and like, you know, Pollyanna-ish, but it's the truth. The only way to solve problems is to talk.”

Though Alfonso Cuarón’s widely perceived frontrunner, “Roma,” lost to “Green Book” in the Best Picture category, it did become the first Mexican nominee to win Best Foreign Film, and also picked up richly deserved honors for Best Director and Best Cinematography. Cuarón’s astonishing portrait of an indigenous maid in Mexico City who becomes a second mother to her client’s children was based on the actual woman who helped raise the filmmaker and his family during the turbulent early 70s. In his second acceptance speech of the night, Cuarón quoted French icon Claude Chabrol, who responded to a question about the New Wave by declaring, “There are no waves, there’s only ocean.” Cuarón then stressed that his fellow nominees, including Paweł Pawlikowski—who also directed an achingly personal, black and white stunner, “Cold War,” have proven that “we are all part of the same ocean.” The filmmaker also thanked the Academy for recognizing a film centering on “one of the 70 million domestic workers in the world without work rights, a character that has historically been relegated in the background in cinema. As artists our job is to look where others don’t. This responsibility becomes much more important in times when we are being encouraged to look away.” 

In many ways, “Roma” serves as a spiritual companion piece to the director’s 2006 thriller, “Children of Men,” another immersive film tackling the challenge of bringing new life into a chaotic world. When I asked Cuarón about the parallels between these films, he replied, “I don't really see my films after I finish them. I prefer to see other people's movies. I don't really think so much about my films. I know that thematically and in terms of cinematic approach, they have a lot in common, but I would go farther back, probably to ‘Y Tu Mama Tambien,’ which is very connected to this film. But yeah, I will tell you something. The whole theme of birth—I was not even aware that I had been repeating that in my films until you journalists, people from the press and critics mentioned that. So yeah, I guess that there is a connection, but it's more up to you to find it.” Before he left the room, Cuarón expressed his gratitude to members of the press for being “amazingly respectful and supportive” to him during the long journey of awards season.

Another interviewee who made a point of thanking critics, surprisingly enough, was Best Actor winner Rami Malek, star of Bryan Singer’s poorly reviewed yet phenomenally profitable Freddie Mercury biopic, “Bohemian Rhapsody.” His sincerity and sweetness were so infectious that it left no doubt as to why Academy voters favored him on their ballots, in addition to the fact that his performance single-handedly carries much of the picture. “I don't think critically the decision on this film was unanimous,” said Malek, dryly making the understatement of the evening in his first words to the press, “but I do appreciate everything you guys had to write. As a kid, I read criticism of film, and I learned so much from it. So no matter what, I still do very much appreciate you.” 

Malek got choked up when recalling the “tough battle” of making the film—most of it attributed to Singer, the fired director and alleged perpetrator of sexual assault who still was never mentioned either on or offstage—and how unlikely his Oscar win was in light of it. He also spoke about growing up as a first-generation American, the son of Egyptian immigrants, and how his status as an outsider made it all the easier for him to identify with the lead vocalist of Queen. 

“I grew up in a world where I never thought I was going to play the lead on ‘Mr. Robot’ because I never saw anyone in a lead role that looked like me,” said Malek. “I never thought that I could possibly play Freddie Mercury until I realized his name was Farrokh Bulsara, and that is the most powerful message that was sent to me from the beginning. That was the motivation that allowed me to say, ‘Oh, I can do this. That man steps on stage and he moves people in a way that no one else does. He has the ability to look everyone in the eye and see them for who they are. And that's because he was struggling to identify himself. All of that passion and virtue and everything burning inside of him allowed him to look to everybody else and say, ‘Hey, I see you.’ Not right here in the front—I see you there in the back. I see all of you, I will play to all of you, and together we will transcend. Because it's not about being from one place or looking like one thing, one race. Any of that. We are all human beings. And forgive me for this, but collectively we are all the champions.” 

Mahershala Ali’s unwavering class and genuinely humble demeanor also led him to emerge unscathed from the controversy endured by his film, as he received his second best Supporting Actor statuette only two years after his win for “Moonlight.” In the press room, he spoke warmly about his fellow nominees, all of whom had roles that fit the definition of “supporting player” much more than Don Shirley, who is practically a co-lead in “Green Book.”

“Any of those gentlemen could have been up here and would be, obviously, deserving of being up here,” said Ali. “They did wonderful work, beautiful work, work that inspired me. So to be the one that was chosen to get to hold this trophy again, it's not something that I take lightly. It's not something I take for granted. If anything, it makes me more aware of all the people that have really contributed to my life, from childhood to my team that works on my behalf and is always looking to take advantage of the best opportunities that are fit for me. And so I'm very grateful. The first one helped me get ‘Green Book.’ I don't think if I had won—I wasn't just getting offers like that, you know. Getting an Oscar for ‘Moonlight’ changes your profile. It gets you in other rooms, and it shines a light on your work. You could have been around for 15, 20 years and suddenly people notice you. I’m really grateful for that, because I've been wanting to work and expand and stretch. This was the first time I got to stretch my legs.”

Whereas Malek and Ali were largely favored to win their respective categories, hardly anyone expected Olivia Colman to claim Best Actress over seven-time nominee Glenn Close, who was considered to be unbeatable after her surprise win at the Golden Globes. No one appeared to be as shocked as Colman, the brilliant British star of Yorgos Lanthimos’ “The Favourite,” whose speech was so endearingly gobsmacked that it even got a laugh out of Close. By the time she arrived in the press room, Colman was almost entirely at a loss for words. I told her that I knew she was one of the great actors as soon as I saw her in Paddy Considine’s 2011 gem, “Tyrannosaur,” and asked how she went about finding the tragic in the absurd—and vice versa—as the neurotic queen in Lanthimos’ film. “Well, that is lovely of you,” Colman gushed. “That is a lovely thing for you to say. Thank you very much.” And then with a giggle, she answered, “I don’t know…sorry!” Later she admitted, “I could not tell you what I'm feeling. Next year, I might be able to put it into words, but I don't know what to do with myself at the moment.”

The pangs of disappointment undoubtedly experienced by Close were shared by your’s truly near the beginning of the telecast, when Jimi Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi’s visual powerhouse, “Free Solo,” won Best Documentary over Bing Liu’s Kartemquin production “Minding the Gap,” one of the very best films I’ve ever seen. So deeply was I invested in its victory that I wore a shirt baring its title under my tuxedo, if only to ensure that the film would have a presence in the press room regardless. Liu’s film is a testament to the cathartic power of cinema, enabling its subjects to see themselves reflected in each other’s story, as they open up about their experiences of domestic abuse and how it has shaped their young adulthood. I was reminded of the film when listening to the riveting words of Regina King, winner of Best Supporting Actress for “If Beale Street Could Talk,” directed by one of Liu’s most high-profile champions, Barry Jenkins. Recounting her most wrenching scene in the film, where her character, Sharon, encounters the woman who mistakenly believes she was raped by “Fonny” (the fiancé of Sharon’s daughter), King said she drew upon her own experiences as a woman. 

“If we have not experienced a violation on that level firsthand, we have lifted a sister up through that,” King said. “Every woman that had something to do with this production [had] the understanding and the need to make sure that it was very clear in the story that we all knew that she was raped. It wasn't Fonny, but she was raped. And we hold each other up through a secret that shouldn't be a secret, so often. That's the beautiful thing about the #MeToo movement. It has gone beyond that with creating opportunities for women to find their voice—even beyond just being violated sexually, but being marginalized. When you have put in the work to be at the table and are denied a seat at the table, this movement has allowed us and has inspired us to say, ‘No, I am supposed to have a seat at that table.’ That energy was going on throughout the production of this film. Barry supported that and lifted it up as well. When you have men and women working together, pretty amazing things happen.”

There’s no question Lady Gaga would agree with King’s words, as she joined co-writers Mark Ronson, Anthony Rossomando and Andrew Wyatt in the press room following their Best Original Song win for their showstopper, “Shallow.” Gaga appeared with Bradley Cooper onstage for an uncommonly intimate performance on their signature tune, recapturing the chemistry that ignited their duets—both musical and otherwise—in the movie.  

“There are many songs written for this film, but there was one song that was written with true, true friends of mine that I've known, and who know everything about me, the ups and the downs,” said Gaga. “And the truth is people see what they see on the outside. In some way, shape, or form, at times, we become architects. The truth is, I was so determined to live my dreams and yet there was so much in the way. There were so many things I did not anticipate that broke me, that tortured me, that traumatized me. And I think sometimes, what you are trying to clarify, is that people think that it comes easy to us because when we show up and we have our suits on, that it's all okay. But the truth is every single person on this stage has been through so much. We are friends. We have worked on ourselves in life. We have tried to heal through the torment of this industry and being artists. And the truth is that this is very, very hard work. It is not for the faint of heart. But I would never want to imply that anyone in the world is faint of heart. I wanted everyone tonight to feel like they could be each one of us on that stage.”

When she was handed her Oscar, Gaga said that she looked it in the eye and “saw a lot of pain. I saw all the things that I've been through. And I also felt the camaraderie and the truth of the pain that the men standing next to me have been through as well.” 

“The song itself is a conversation, and it's between a man and a woman,” said Rossomando. “I think that maybe there's some timing involved where people's hearts are open to that conversation. Maybe that's why it's translated so widely. Someone sent me a couple videos this week of an entire church congregation singing the song. And it actually brought me to tears.”

“I really believe in my heart that the unfortunate truth is that our cell phones—as I watch you all typing—are becoming our reality,” said Gaga. “It's becoming reality for the world. And in this song, we provide not just a conversation, but also a very poignant statement. I wish to not be in the shallow, but I am. I wish to dive off the deep end, and watch me do it. I think this is something that speaks to many people. And during, I think, a very shallow time, it's a chance for us all to grab hands, dive off into the water together, and swim into the deepest depths of the ocean that we can.”

Though “BlacKkKlansman” was passed over for considerably lighter fare in the top category, an equally incendiary picture went on to be named Best Live Action Short Film. Israeli director Guy Nattiv’s “Skin” centers on a family of white supremacists and the senseless violence waged by its monstrous patriarch. When he severely beats a black man for having a harmless interaction with his son in a supermarket, the hateful sadist eventually finds himself having what can only be defined as an out-of-body experience. Asked whether the film was intended to be a response to the racism frequently voiced by President Trump and members of his administration, producer Jamie Ray Newman said that she and Nattiv weren’t necessarily trying to make a political statement.

“Guy is the grandchild of four Holocaust survivors,” said Newman. “He grew up with stories about the Holocaust. I'm Jewish as well, and I think that we just deeply want to explore. In the short, we explored how what you teach your children is going to perpetuate the next generation. We have a five-month-old, so we see she's a sponge. Everything we do, she inherits. The film starts out with a father shaving his boy's head because he's literally carving him in his own image. And the feature, which is next, is a true story about a very famous skinhead who was covered in neo-Nazi tattoos, and through the collaboration with a black activist, got all of them taken off. I think that the beauty of Guy as a filmmaker is he doesn't pound anything over your head. He's subtle. He doesn’t have answers, but he shows you the questions.”

While watching the film, I was struck by its excerpted inclusion of Mica Levi’s indelible score for Jonathan Glazer’s “Under the Skin.” It’s something only film musical aficionados would likely spot, and I couldn’t resist asking Nattiv about his soundtrack choice, considering Levi is one of the most exciting composers working today. “Mica Levi is probably the musician that influenced me more than any musician right now,” he told me. “I’m very influenced by her work, and I think that our musician was too. Inspiration is what I would call it. I hope to work with Mica one day on my next film.”

It’s only fitting that “Captain Marvel” stars Brie Larson and Samuel L. Jackson presented Spike Lee with his Academy Award, seeing as Marvel had a hugely successful evening, with Ryan Coogler’s “Black Panther” scooping up three accolades including the first Oscar for Lee’s longtime costume designer Ruth Carter. As the first-ever black recipient of the prize, she admitted to the press that she had been dreaming and praying for this night to arrive because of what it would mean for the young people coming behind her. Carter said that her innovative use of 3-D printing may have “tipped the iceberg” in her favor. It was UCLA professor Julia Koerner who developed the algorithm for the isicholo—the South African married woman's hat—in her computer and sent it to Belgium for 3-D printing. 

“There were several iterations of the ‘Black Panther’ story through every comic book writer and illustrator, but it all started with Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, and their idea that the black community in the 60s needed a superhero,” noted Carter. “And guess what? The black community in 2018 needed a superhero as well. So with that, we created a new Wakanda because it's a forward nation. It's forward in technology. So we couldn't really use the old tech from the other comics. We had to create new tech. And with that, the door was open to us to be creative. […] I love the neck rings from the Ndebele tribe. I love the use of leather skins from the Himba women. I love the symbolism of the beadwork on the Dora Milaje. I love how their costume honors the female form. It shows that you can also be beautiful and be a warrior without being exploited.”

Another key member of the “Black Panther” team, Hannah Beachler, also made history as the first black production designer to be honored with an Oscar. Fighting back tears, she credited Coogler with enabling her to stand before the audience “with agency and self-worth,” and likened the massive undertaking of the project to “eating an elephant one spoonful at a time.”

“A lot of the inspiration came from where we located Wakanda on the continent, because if people were going to migrate, they were going to migrate around that area,” said Beachler. “So we took a very anthropological look at how the country was placed on the continent, and then from there, you've got your Omo Valley tribes that are in southeast Ethiopia. It's like they migrated down to Wakanda, and that became our river tribe. These were our inspirations. We wanted to be as real as we could.”

Few films I’ve seen in recent memory earned as euphoric a reaction as this year’s Oscar winner for Best Animated Feature, “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.” When the titular superhero’s co-creators Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, who both passed away last year, turned up at the end in a dedication card, the entire audience at my screening rose to its feet and cheered. After recounting this experience to the film’s trio of directors—Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, Rodney Rothman—they told me that they had intended on mentioning the late comic mavericks in their acceptance speech, but were cut off by the music. 

“We were going to thank Stan Lee and Steve Ditko for really inspiring this whole thing, and for being a force of believing that all of us—human beings—have the potential and the capacity to be heroes,” Persichetti told me. “Phil and Chris had put together a treatment for us to make a movie that challenged the audience to believe in themselves, believe in their neighbor and really be positive and make a difference in the world. And possibly be a mentor or be heroic. That was really it.”

Joining the trio onstage were the film’s co-writer/producer Phil Lord and producer Chris Miller, the extraordinarily inventive duo behind “The Lego Movie,” who are fully committed to expanding representation in cinema, as evidenced by the vibrantly diverse ensemble in “Spider-Verse.”

“When we hear that somebody’s kid was watching the movie and turned to them and said, ‘He looks like me,’ or, ‘They speak Spanish like us,’ we feel like we already won,” said Lord in his acceptance speech.

“To be a storyteller, it's really just about connecting with your audience, whether it's your little kid that you are putting to sleep or, apparently, millions of people who go see your movie,” reflected Persichetti in the press room. “So I think it's just validation of being a human and sharing the experience of being a human. It's kind of an amazing career.”

Added Miller, “To feel like you have affected someone else's life positively, one way or another, is a really magical thing that we don't take lightly.”

After the briskly paced three-hour-and-17-minute telecast came to a crisp close, I ran into Bing Liu, his mother and “Minding the Gap” producer Diane Quon outside the Dolby Theatre. I showed them the shirt I had been wearing under my tux all night, and they insisted on taking a picture of it. Liu may not have gone home with an Oscar in hand last night, but I have no doubt that when he encounters someone whose life has been deeply impacted by his work, he knows in his heart of hearts that he’s already won. 

from All Content https://ift.tt/2XmY1J3

[roseymaegameplay]

Once upon a time in a faraway land, There was a mighty sorceress Who cast spells all a grand...

[henryasaunders]

Tower of power: A look at the big names buying at this Chicago condo

9 West Walton Street, Jason Heyward, Ken Griffin, Omer Asik, Steve Stratton, Todd Siwak, and Matthew Lawton (Credit: JDL, ESPN, JLL, ULI)

A 7-foot-tall Chicago Bull, a candy company magnate and the richest man in Illinois walk into the lobby of a luxury Chicago condo tower.

If you’re waiting for a punchline, don’t. There’s no joke here — just the possibility of what could happen once Omer Asik, Jason Heyward and Ken Griffin all have moved in to their units in the still-under-construction high-rise from JDL Development at 9 West Walton Street in the Gold Coast. The 38-story building was scheduled to open later this year.

The roster of soon-to-be residents at No. 9 Walton already includes hedge-fund managers, financial advisers, real estate execs, doctors, lawyers and other wealthy buyers who gave the building the record for most sales of $3 million or more, according to Crain’s.

And while it’s true there are many Gold Coast buildings boasting well-heeled leaders of Chicago industry living in multimillion-dollar homes, No. 9 Walton has dominated the list of most expensive residential sales in recent months.

Penthouses chicago

In addition to the usual luxury amenities, the building also features a house car and driver, private wine storage available, a covered dog run and two guest suites available to all homeowners. And Gemini restaurant owner Ryan O’Donnell bringing over Coda Di Volpe chef Christopher Thompson for a new two-floor restaurant inside the building, Eater reported.

A JDL executive declined to comment for this article, citing the privacy of the firm’s buyers. While a number of the units were purchased through trusts or LLC, The Real Deal was able to determine the identities of a number of the buyers:

Ken Griffin

The hedge fund billionaire behind Citadel made a splash late last year when he bought four unfinished floors at the top of the building for $59 million, shattering the record for most expensive home sale ever in Chicago. And even with the millions he’d have to spend to build out the home, it wouldn’t come close to the price tag of Griffin’s sprawling South Florida compound.

Todd Siwak

The Ferrara Candy Company CEO paid $4.6 million for a three-bedroom unit on the 17th floor. Siwak has led the Oakbrook Terrace-based firm since 2013 and plans to use the condo as a second residence, according to the ChicagoTribune. He also has a home in the St. Louis area.

Jason Heyward

The Cubs outfielder bought a 19th-floor unit for $6.9 million through an LLC. But the 29-year-old shouldn’t have many problems making his payments: He’s in the middle of an eight-year, $184 million contract with the Cubs.

Matthew Lawton

The executive managing director of commercial real estate firm HFF paid $4.5 million for an 8th-floor condo.

Steven and Sarah Stratton

JLL’s Steven Stratton is the firm’s Chicago tenant representation group co-lead and oversees its Midwest practice. He and his wife, Sarah, paid $3.8 million for the 10th-floor unit.

Omer Asik

The 7-footer from Turkey who is in his second stint with the Bulls paid $3.1 million for a seventh-floor condo with Wilma Wyngaart.

Paul Greenwalt

The partner at law firm Schiff Hardin paid $8.9 million for the 34th-floor condo, which puts it among the most expensive recent home sales.

Ashley and Jennifer Keller

Ashley Keller is a co-founder of Keller Lenkner, a plaintiff-side litigation firm. He also was a co-founder of litigation finance firm GKC, which sold in 2016 for $160 million. The Kellers paid $6.8 million for their 20th-floor condo.

Stephen Madry and Valerie Vlahos

Madry, a plastic surgeon, and Vlahos, a director at PriceWaterhouseCooper, paid $5.5 million for their 16th-floor condo.

Dominick and Cynthia Mondi

The president of Mesirow Financial and his wife paid $2.5 million for their fourth-floor unit.

Imad Bazzi and Salma Shawwaf

Bazzi is CEO of Oakbrook Terrace-based ACH Food Companies, a manufacturer of cooking and baking ingredients. They paid $3.2 million for their ninth-floor condo.

Joseph Rotter

The former Citadel hedge fund manager is managing director for Neuberger Berman Investment Advisers and head of the Principal Strategies Group. He paid $3.6 million for his fourth-floor condo.

David and Laura Eikenmeyer

The couple behind the Urban Child Academy preschools paid $5.3 million for their 19th-floor unit

Kevin and Shoshana Vernick

Shoshana Vernick is managing director at investment bank Sterling Partners, while Kevin Vernick is president of commercial real estate firm Vernick & Associates. They paid $3.7 million for their 12th-floor condo.

Cary and Teri Cicurel

Cary Cicurel is managing director at Loop Capital Markets. The couple’s 17th-floor unit cost $4.5 million.

Steve and Ariel Derringer

Steven Derringer is partner at law firm Bartlit Beck Herman Palenchar. The couple paid $4.5 million for their 14th-floor condo.

Helaine G. Cohen

The broker for Berkshire Hathaway Home Services Koenig Rubloff Realty Group paid $2.3 million for her seventh-floor condo. Cohen’s online bio says she is creator of ChicagoCondoFinder.com.

from Chicago – The Real Deal New York https://therealdeal.com/chicago/2018/08/10/tower-of-power-look-whos-buying-a-no-9-walton/#new_tab via IFTTT

[buttfuckinggremlin]

General Programming Resources Stack Overflow -A forum inhabited by professional developers. You can also ask questions and will receive help. MIT Open Courseware -Online Computer Science lectures from MIT University. Features lectures, resources and handouts The New Boston - Video tutorials of lots of languages, also entertaining. Code Cademy - Interactive learning with rewards in a variety of languages Code School - Interactive Tutorials in a variety of languages TopCoder - Programming competitions Google Code Jam - Archived Google Jam contests and exercises USACO Training Gateway - Programming problems Tutorials Point - Extensive written tutorials about a variety of languages Tutorialized - Tutorial Site with the code embedded next to the tutorials Educator - Tutorial site on a variety of languages Python Learn Python The Hard Way - Extensive HTML book on the basic of Python Dive Into Python - Same concept as the above resource, but slightly more advanced PyGame - Features tutorials for Python game development. Python.Org - Official Python website. Includes tutorials and documentation. Invent With Python - Online tutorials of actual programs and games (very good!) C Live Gnome - Variety of C resources and projects Learn C The Hard Way - Learn C the Hard way (Work In Progress) C Programming WikiBook - C programming Wiki Tutorials Point - Lots of C resources Learn C.org - Interactive C resources [bOOK] C Programming in Easy Steps -  Mike McGrath (isbn 978-1840785449) C# MSDN - Official Site for C# Home and Learn - Beginner C# Tutorials C# Crash Course C++ C++ Reference - C++ reference C Plus Plus - Official C++ reference Tutorials Point - C++ tutorials C Programming - In depth tutorials on C++ MSDN Visual C++ - Visual C++ tutorials Stephan T. Lavavej Video Tutorials: Core C++ Stephan T. Lavavej Video Tutorials: STL Stephan T. Lavavej Video Tutorials: Advanced STL Visual Basic VB Code - VB tutorials Home and Learn - Basic Visual Basic tutorials Tutorials Point - Loads of great VB tutorials Tutorialized - Even more Visual Basic tutorials Java Oracle Docs - Official Java documents Code Ranch - Great Java forum Tutorials Point - Lots of Java Tutorials Learn Java Online - Lots of Java resources and interactive learning Programcreek Great Java Tutorial Site HTML/CSS/Javascript W3 Schools - Good starting point for html/css/javascript Mozilla Developers - Web development tutorials HTML Dog - HTML, CSS and JavaScript tutorials CSS Tricks - CSS Tutorials JsFiddle - Javascript Collab Tool PHP Better PHP - PHP Video tutorials of code snippets PHP Academy - PHP videos and tutorials PHP.Net - Useful PHP documentation SQL Learn SQL the hard Way - Learn SQL the Hard Way Perl Perl.Org - Official Perl website. Perl Meme - Perl Tutorials. Perl Begin - Perl for beginners. Modern Perl Books - Book on Pearl High Order Perl Book - High Order Pearl Book Ruby Try Ruby - Ruby interactive resources. Learn Ruby The Hard Way - Learn Ruby the Hard Way Android Development Android Developers - Official Google docs, tutorials, guides, tips and tricks Google Developers - News and guides for a variety of languages including Android development XDA Developers - #1 Android dev forum. Includes tutorials, ROMS, news, tips, techniques and much more!!! iOS Development Apple Documentation - Official Apple Documentation Apps A Muck - Lots of iOS development tutorials App Coda - More iOS application development 3D Programming OpenGL Tutorials Learning Modern 3D Graphics Programming Books Free Programming Book List on Github Stackoverflow C++ Book Guide Think Python -Allen Downey Design for the non Designer -Robin WIlliams The Pragmatic Programmer -Dave Thomas Javascript: The Good Parts -Douglas Crockford Code Complete -Steve McConnell The Art of Computer Programming -Donald Knuth Discrete Mathematics for Computer Scientists -John Truss The art of Unix Programming -Eric S. Raymond Head First Java and Design Patterns -Eric Freeman C Programming Language -Brian Kernighan, Dennis Ritchie Computers as Components -Wayne Wolf Operating Systems Concepts with Java -Abraham Silberschatz, Peter Galvin, Greg Gagne Higher Order Perl - Mark Jason Dominus Perls of Wisdom - Steve Litt The C++ Programming Language -Bjarne Stroustrup Game Coding Complete -Mike McShaffry Introduction to Algorithms -Thomas H. Cormen, Charles E. Leiserson and Ronald L. Riverst Computer Organisation and Architecture -Linda Null and Julia Lobur The Mythical Man-Month -Frederick P. Brooks JR Computer Organisation and Design -David A. Patterson and John L. Hennesy Architecture of Open Source Applications Modern C++ Design -Andrei Alexandrescu Computer Networking: A top-down approach featuring the internet - Database System Concepts -Abraham Silberschatz, Henry F. Korth, S. Sudarshan Artificial Intelligence, A Modern Approach -Stuart Russel, Peter Norvig Concepts in Programming Languages -John C. Mitchell The Art of Prolog -Leon Sterling, Ehud Shapiro Elements of the Theory of Computation -Papadimitriou Computer Graphics: Principles and Practice -Hughes, van Dam, McGuire, Sklart Java - How to Program -Harvey & Paul Deitel Thinking in Java -Bruce Eckel C++ Primer Plus (6th Edition) (Developer's Library)-Stephen Prata Compilers/IDE's Microsoft Visual Studio - Microsoft Visual Studio (C, C#, C++) Eclipse - Eclipse (Java/Android) Netbeans (Java) Code Blocks - Code Blocks (C++) Bloodshed (C++) Android Studio Jetbrains - Several IDE's and/or plugins that make C#/Python/Java/Php etc easier to code Text Editors Notepad++(Windows) Text Mate (Mac) Sublime Text(Windows/Linux) Brackets Aptana -Open source web development tool Qt Project - C++/QML IDE VIM -Advanced (!) Text Editor (small tutorial[/url) Emacs -Advanced (!) Text Editor Other Gamedev.net - A forum full of professional game developers DBforums - Database Forums Codingbat - Java & Python Challenges Bitbucket - Source Control Provider like github, but then Private Sourcetreeapp - Tool to manage github/bitbucket OverAPI - Cheatsheets for several languages Regexr - Regular Expressioin Tester Project Euler - Programming and math exercises (Can get quite advanced)

https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/301263-ultimate-programming-resources-thread/

[roseymaegameplay]

Once upon a time In a world much older than rhyme, Lived an ever-powerful witch With scheming plans to unhitch...

[roseymaegameplay]

Hey look it's the super ultra rare MCC post from me! Hi everyone, I hope no one died while I was away. Here's Mel and Cadence showing off the collection of tidbits i won tonight through the gachas from the past couple months that I missed. 😅

[roseymaegameplay]

🎎Konichiwa~🎶🎎

[roseymaegameplay]

St. Melody & St. Cadence are donning different wings. One angel symbolizes strength to revitalize your days with new meaning, the other peace and grace during the end of a difficult chapter. May you receive both blessings over the weekend. 😇❣️😇

[roseymaegameplay]

I felt like dressing the gals up like teen-pop magical girls. If they starred in that kind of anime, it'd be called "Sirens or Love Idols?". Their voices would be their magic weapons and it'd be glamorous.

[roseymaegameplay]

You've been visited once again by angels St. Melody & St. Cadence. They're here to wish you well during the event and good fortune with all Ambition-related endeavors. Reblog to share good tidings with the rest of the community! 😇😇❤