#thick-billed cuckoo | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

gay-mormon-wizard · 7 months ago

Text

"May" by John Clare

Come queen of months in company

Wi all thy merry minstrelsy

The restless cuckoo absent long

And twittering swallows chimney song

And hedge row crickets notes that run

From every bank that fronts the sun

And swathy bees about the grass

That stops wi every bloom they pass

And every minute every hour

Keep teazing weeds that wear a flower

And toil and childhoods humming joys

For there is music in the noise

The village childern mad for sport

In school times leisure ever short

That crick and catch the bouncing ball

And run along the church yard wall

Capt wi rude figured slabs whose claims

In times bad memory hath no names

Oft racing round the nookey church

Or calling ecchos in the porch

And jilting oer the weather cock

Viewing wi jealous eyes the clock

Oft leaping grave stones leaning hights

Uncheckt wi mellancholy sights

The green grass swelld in many a heap

Where kin and friends and parents sleep

Unthinking in their jovial cry

That time shall come when they shall lye

As lowly and as still as they

While other boys above them play

Heedless as they do now to know

The unconcious dust that lies below

The shepherd goes wi happy stride

Wi moms long shadow by his side

Down the dryd lanes neath blooming may

That once was over shoes in clay

While martins twitter neath his eves

Which he at early morning leaves

The driving boy beside his team

Will oer the may month beauty dream

And cock his hat and turn his eye

On flower and tree and deepning skye

And oft bursts loud in fits of song

And whistles as he reels along

Crack[ing] his whip in starts of joy

A happy dirty driving boy

The youth who leaves his corner stool

Betimes for neighbouring village school

While as a mark to urge him right

The church spires all the way in sight

Wi cheerings from his parents given

Starts neath the joyous smiles of heaven

And sawns wi many an idle stand

Wi bookbag swinging in his hand

And gazes as he passes bye

On every thing that meets his eye

Young lambs seem tempting him to play

Dancing and bleating in his way

Wi trembling tails and pointed ears

They follow him and loose their fears

He smiles upon their sunny faces

And feign woud join their happy races

The birds that sing on bush and tree

Seem chirping for his company

And all in fancys idle whim

Seem keeping holiday but him

He lolls upon each resting stile

To see the fields so sweetly smile

To see the wheat grow green and long

And list the weeders toiling song

Or short not[e] of the changing thrush

Above him in the white thorn bush

That oer the leaning stile bends low

Loaded wi mockery of snow

Mozzld wi many a lushing thread

Of crab tree blossoms delicate red

He often bends wi many a wish

Oer the brig rail to view the fish

Go sturting by in sunny gleams

And chucks in the eye dazzld streams

Crumbs from his pocket oft to watch

The swarming struttle come to catch

Them where they to the bottom sile

Sighing in fancys joy the while

Hes cautiond not to stand so nigh

By rosey milkmaid tripping bye

Where he admires wi fond delight

And longs to be there mute till night

He often ventures thro the day

At truant now and then to play

Rambling about the field and plain

Seeking larks nests in the grain

And picking flowers and boughs of may

To hurd awhile and throw away

Lurking neath bushes from the sight

Of tell tale eyes till schools noon night

Listing each hour for church clocks hum

To know the hour to wander home

That parents may not think him long

Nor dream of his rude doing wrong

Dreading thro the night wi dreaming pain

To meet his masters wand again

Each hedge is loaded thick wi green

And where the hedger late hath been

Tender shoots begin to grow

From the mossy stumps below

While sheep and cow that teaze the grain

will nip them to the root again

They lay their bill and mittens bye

And on to other labours hie

While wood men still on spring intrudes

And thins the shadow solitudes

Wi sharpend axes felling down

The oak trees budding into brown

Where as they crash upon the ground

A crowd of labourers gather round

And mix among the shadows dark

To rip the crackling staining bark

From off the tree and lay when done

The rolls in lares to meet the sun

Depriving yearly where they come

The green wood pecker of its home

That early in the spring began

Far from the sight of troubling man

And bord their round holes in each tree

In fancys sweet security

Till startld wi the woodmans noise

It wakes from all its dreaming joys

The blue bells too that thickly bloom

Where man was never feared to come

And smell smocks that from view retires

Mong rustling leaves and bowing briars

And stooping lilys of the valley

That comes wi shades and dews to dally

White beady drops on slender threads

Wi broad hood leaves above their heads

Like white robd maids in summer hours

Neath umberellas shunning showers

These neath the barkmens crushing treads

Oft perish in their blooming beds

Thus stript of boughs and bark in white

Their trunks shine in the mellow light

Beneath the green surviving trees

That wave above them in the breeze

And waking whispers slowly bends

As if they mournd their fallen friends

Each morning now the weeders meet

To cut the thistle from the wheat

And ruin in the sunny hours

Full many wild weeds of their flowers

Corn poppys that in crimson dwell

Calld 'head achs' from their sickly smell

And carlock yellow as the sun

That oer the may fields thickly run

And 'iron weed' content to share

The meanest spot that spring can spare

Een roads where danger hourly comes

Is not wi out its purple blooms

And leaves wi points like thistles round

Thickset that have no strength to wound

That shrink to childhoods eager hold

Like hair-and with its eye of gold

And scarlet starry points of flowers

Pimpernel dreading nights and showers

Oft calld 'the shepherds weather glass'

That sleep till suns have dyd the grass

Then wakes and spreads its creeping bloom

Till clouds or threatning shadows come

Then close it shuts to sleep again

Which weeders see and talk of rain

And boys that mark them shut so soon

will call them 'John go bed at noon

And fumitory too a name

That superstition holds to fame

Whose red and purple mottled flowers

Are cropt by maids in weeding hours

To boil in water milk and way1

For washes on an holiday

To make their beauty fair and sleak

And scour the tan from summers cheek

And simple small forget me not

Eyd wi a pinshead yellow spot

I'th'2 middle of its tender blue

That gains from poets notice due

These flowers the toil by crowds destroys

And robs them of their lowly joys

That met the may wi hopes as sweet

As those her suns in gardens meet

And oft the dame will feel inclind

As childhoods memory comes to mind

To turn her hook away and spare

The blooms it lovd to gather there

My wild field catalogue of flowers

Grows in my ryhmes as thick as showers

Tedious and long as they may be

To some, they never weary me

The wood and mead and field of grain

I coud hunt oer and oer again

And talk to every blossom wild

Fond as a parent to a child

And cull them in my childish joy

By swarms and swarms and never cloy

When their lank shades oer morning pearls

Shrink from their lengths to little girls

And like the clock hand pointing one

Is turnd and tells the morning gone

They leave their toils for dinners hour

Beneath some hedges bramble bower

And season sweet their savory meals

Wi joke and tale and merry peals

Of ancient tunes from happy tongues

While linnets join their fitful songs

Perchd oer their heads in frolic play

Among the tufts of motling may

The young girls whisper things of love

And from the old dames hearing move

Oft making 'love knotts' in the shade

Of blue green oat or wheaten blade

And trying simple charms and spells

That rural superstition tells

They pull the little blossom threads

From out the knapweeds button heads

And put the husk wi many a smile

In their white bosoms for awhile

Who if they guess aright the swain

That loves sweet fancys trys to gain

Tis said that ere its lain an hour

Twill blossom wi a second flower

And from her white breasts hankerchief

Bloom as they ne'er had lost a leaf

When signs appear that token wet

As they are neath the bushes met

The girls are glad wi hopes of play

And harping of the holiday

A hugh blue bird will often swim

Along the wheat when skys grow dim

Wi clouds-slow as the gales of spring

In motion wi dark shadowd wing

Beneath the coming storm it sails

And lonly chirps the wheat hid quails

That came to live wi spring again

And start when summer browns the grain

They start the young girls joys afloat

Wi 'wet my foot' its yearly note

So fancy doth the sound explain

And proves it oft a sign of rain

About the moor 'mong sheep and cow

The boy or old man wanders now

Hunting all day wi hopful pace

Each thick sown rushy thistly place

For plover eggs while oer them flye

The fearful birds wi teazing cry

Trying to lead their steps astray

And coying him another way

And be the weather chill or warm

Wi brown hats truckd beneath his arm

Holding each prize their search has won

They plod bare headed to the sun

Now dames oft bustle from their wheels

Wi childern scampering at their heels

To watch the bees that hang and swive

In clumps about each thronging hive

And flit and thicken in the light

While the old dame enjoys the sight

And raps the while their warming pans

A spell that superstition plans

To coax them in the garden bounds

As if they lovd the tinkling sounds

And oft one hears the dinning noise

Which dames believe each swarm decoys

Around each village day by day

Mingling in the warmth of may

Sweet scented herbs her skill contrives

To rub the bramble platted hives

Fennels thread leaves and crimpld balm

To scent the new house of the swarm

The thresher dull as winter days

And lost to all that spring displays

Still mid his barn dust forcd to stand

Swings his frail round wi weary hand

While oer his head shades thickly creep

And hides the blinking owl asleep

And bats in cobweb corners bred

Sharing till night their murky bed

The sunshine trickles on the floor

Thro every crevice of the door

And makes his barn where shadows dwell

As irksome as a prisoners cell

And as he seeks his daily meal

As schoolboys from their tasks will steal

ile often stands in fond delay

To see the daisy in his way

And wild weeds flowering on the wall

That will his childish sports recall

Of all the joys that came wi spring

The twirling top the marble ring

The gingling halfpence hussld up

At pitch and toss the eager stoop

To pick up heads, the smuggeld plays

Neath hovels upon sabbath days

When parson he is safe from view

And clerk sings amen in his pew

The sitting down when school was oer

Upon the threshold by his door

Picking from mallows sport to please

Each crumpld seed he calld a cheese

And hunting from the stackyard sod

The stinking hen banes belted pod

By youths vain fancys sweetly fed

Christning them his loaves of bread

He sees while rocking down the street

Wi weary hands and crimpling feet

Young childern at the self same games

And hears the self same simple names

Still floating on each happy tongue

Touchd wi the simple scene so strong

Tears almost start and many a sigh

Regrets the happiness gone bye

And in sweet natures holiday

His heart is sad while all is gay

How lovly now are lanes and balks

For toils and lovers sunday walks

The daisey and the buttercup

For which the laughing childern stoop

A hundred times throughout the day

In their rude ramping summer play

So thickly now the pasture crowds

In gold and silver sheeted clouds

As if the drops in april showers

Had woo'd the sun and swoond to flowers

The brook resumes its summer dresses

Purling neath grass and water cresses

And mint and flag leaf swording high

Their blooms to the unheeding eye

And taper bowbent hanging rushes

And horse tail childerns bottle brushes

And summer tracks about its brink

Is fresh again where cattle drink

And on its sunny bank the swain

Stretches his idle length again

Soon as the sun forgets the day

The moon looks down on the lovly may

And the little star his friend and guide

Travelling together side by side

And the seven stars and charleses wain1

Hangs smiling oer green woods agen

The heaven rekindles all alive

Wi light the may bees round the hive

Swarm not so thick in mornings eye

As stars do in the evening skye

All all are nestling in their joys

The flowers and birds and pasture boys

The firetail, long a stranger, comes

To his last summer haunts and homes

To hollow tree and crevisd wall

And in the grass the rails odd call

That featherd spirit stops the swain

To listen to his note again

And school boy still in vain retraces

The secrets of his hiding places

In the black thorns crowded cops~e1

Thro its varied turns and stops

The nightingale its ditty weaves

Hid in a multitude of leaves

The boy stops short to hear the strain

And 'sweet jug jug' he mocks again

The yellow hammer builds its nest

By banks where sun beams earliest rest

That drys the dews from off the grass

Shading it from all that pass

Save the rude boy wi ferret gaze

That hunts thro evry secret maze

He finds its pencild eggs agen

All streakd wi lines as if a pen

By natures freakish hand was took

To scrawl them over like a book

And from these many mozzling marks

The school boy names them 'writing larks'

Bum barrels twit on bush and tree

Scarse bigger then a bumble bee

And in a white thorns leafy rest

It builds its curious pudding-nest

Wi hole beside as if a mouse

Had built the little barrel house

Toiling full many a lining feather

And bits of grey tree moss together

Amid the noisey rooky park

Beneath the firdales branches dark

The little golden crested wren

Hangs up his glowing nest agen

And sticks it to the furry leaves

As martins theirs beneath the eaves

The old hens leave the roost betimes

And oer the garden pailing climbs

To scrat the gardens fresh turnd soil

And if unwatchd his crops to spoil

Oft cackling from the prison yard

To peck about the houseclose sward

Catching at butterflys and things

Ere they have time to try their wings

The cattle feels the breath of may

And kick and toss their heads in play

The ass beneath his bags of sand

Oft jerks the string from leaders hand

And on the road will eager stoop

To pick the sprouting thistle up

Oft answering on his weary way

Some distant neighbours sobbing bray

Dining the ears of driving boy

As if he felt a fit of joy

Wi in its pinfold circle left

Of all its company bereft

Starvd stock no longer noising round

Lone in the nooks of foddering ground

Each skeleton of lingering stack

By winters tempests beaten black

Nodds upon props or bolt upright

Stands swarthy in the summer light

And oer the green grass seems to lower

Like stump of old time wasted tower

All that in winter lookd for hay

Spread from their batterd haunts away

To pick the grass or lye at lare

Beneath the mild hedge shadows there

Sweet month that gives a welcome call

To toil and nature and to all

Yet one day mid thy many joys

Is dead to all its sport and noise

Old may day where's thy glorys gone

All fled and left thee every one

Thou comst to thy old haunts and homes

Unnoticd as a stranger comes

No flowers are pluckt to hail the now

Nor cotter seeks a single bough

The maids no more on thy sweet morn

Awake their thresholds to adorn

Wi dewey flowers-May locks new come

And princifeathers cluttering bloom

And blue bells from the woodland moss

And cowslip cucking balls to toss

Above the garlands swinging hight

Hang in the soft eves sober light

These maid and child did yearly pull

By many a folded apron full

But all is past the merry song

Of maidens hurrying along

To crown at eve the earliest cow

Is gone and dead and silent now

The laugh raisd at the mocking thorn

Tyd to the cows tail last that morn

The kerchief at arms length displayd

Held up by pairs of swain and maid

While others bolted underneath

Bawling loud wi panting breath

'Duck under water' as they ran

Alls ended as they ne'er began

While the new thing that took thy place

Wears faded smiles upon its face

And where enclosure has its birth

It spreads a mildew oer her mirth

The herd no longer one by one

Goes plodding on her morning way

And garlands lost and sports nigh gone

Leaves her like thee a common day

Yet summer smiles upon thee still

Wi natures sweet unalterd will

And at thy births unworshipd hours

Fills her green lap wi swarms of flowers

To crown thee still as thou hast been

Of spring and summer months the queen.

#may #poetry #may poetry

1 note · View note

todaysbird · 3 years ago

Text

the groove-billed ani is a tropical member of the cuckoo family found throughout the americas, ranging from texas to peru. they are named for their distinctive bill, which is short, thick, and distinctively grooved. they feed on a variety of insects, seeds, and fruits. interestingly, the groove-billed ani has very unusual nesting behavior; one to five breeding pairs form a communal large nest and raise the babies together.

#groove billed ani #ani #cuckoo #bird #birblr #thank you for the kofi request!!

1K notes · View notes

flowerfeast444 · 3 years ago

Text

you were a house on fire || h.s. {pt 1}

harry styles x o.c.

summary: After One Direction’s break, Harry tried his best to live anonymously in Chicago. He always told himself he could date "normal" people. After all, he's a normal person too, right?

word count: 1.3k

series masterlist

She sifted through the green bills again, ensuring fatigue didn't cause any errors in her counting. The girls in her diner deserved evenly split tips; they all work hard, she knows that. She's been where they are, and tips- they're life or death sometimes. The bell above the front door chimed, unsettling her focus. This time of night always put her on high alert, but knowing Lucas was just behind the wall separating the kitchen from the main dining area brought comfort.

Tonight’s patron was a man; alone, only accompanied by a worn leather journal and thick gray scarf. He kept his head down the entire time he led himself to a booth in the far left corner. Usually, this profile of a man would shoot anxiety up her spine. But whether it was the near-visible rain cloud floating over the man’s head or her sheer lack of energy, she found herself standing adjacent to his table only moments after he arrived.

“Hello,” she placed the tattered menu on the table in front of him, “Take your time looking, just call me over when you’re ready to order. I’m Roe.” He nodded in response.

Roe shuffled back to her perch by the register and tried to finish splitting tips as quickly as possible. Every few seconds, she spared a glance at the man in the booth. His dark brows knitted together, shadowing the rest of his sharp features. He remained hunched over the menu until a cuckoo clock on the wall next to him screeched the arrival of three A.M. and made him jolt. He scratched his neck underneath the curls dusting his collar bones. Finally, he called Roe's name uncertainly and she hopped off her stool once again to hover by his table.

He gently asked for a slice of apple pie and a cup of tea. Roe brought him his order and against her fair judgment sat across from him as she did so. He bit his lip, wanting to reject her boldness before he realized the empty pit in his stomach craved more than just food.

“This pie is good.”

“It’s from Costco,” she smirked, “but I will take all of the credit anyway.”

“It’s good,” he complimented gently as if she would leave him were he to speak too loudly.

“Good.”

He took his time drawing the fork to his lips like this was exactly what he was meant to be doing for the rest of his life. Before the man arrived, Roe considered preparing a slice of pie for herself, but the strong cinnamon scent of it in front of her satisfied her enough for now. It wasn’t often that soft, kind men occupied the diner at this hour, so she did her best to paint it in her memory forever. The dark beige of his coat contrasted the starkness of his pale skin, but somehow it worked together well. The coat was made of pure wool, at least she assumed so. She couldn't recall a time seeing such a thing. He had three rings on each hand, each of them was intricate and glittered brighter than any of the cutlery in the diner. With only two bites of his pie left, Roe addressed him again.

“Are you okay?” she set her chin on her palm, absentmindedly reaching her fingers up to twist the ring in her right nostril.

“What do you mean?” his voice was strained, but that could be written off as fatigue. At least, he thought so.

“Ruby’s Diner is nice and all, but it doesn’t seem like a place you’d frequent when you’re really livin’ it up. Especially not at this hour,” she tried to withhold anything but a neutral tone from her words, but judging by the way his bloodshot eyes fell to the crumbs left on his plate when she spoke, she knew she was unsuccessful.

“Just a rough couple of days, you know.” He shrugged halfheartedly.

“Yeah, I know.”

For the rest of that night- or morning rather, words seemed a sparse occurrence. Roe’s co-worker, Jodie, came near three-thirty to let Roe go home. Although she felt the weight in her limbs and eyelids as she traveled back home, sleep held itself from her. The only thing that consumed her headspace was the unnamed man with the apple pie.

Friday floated by innocuously enough with regular customers at the diner asking for this and that. They were relatively polite too; something rare in this part of Chicago. Heat blasted through the restaurant but inevitably yielded to the temperatures outside, causing Roe’s arm hair to stand on end from the bumps raised on her skin. Each plate placed in front of an individual was one more minute closer to the day concluding in sweatpants and blankets. She already felt the warmth begin to radiate in her as she neared her house. River stood at the coffee table, running Hot Wheels over the scratched surface. She felt she should reprimand him, but the table was already beyond repair with little original varnish left, and his cheeks always did look so soft when he gleamed and giggled like that. The warmth Roe had built up, however, immediately dissipated when she caught a glimpse into the kitchen.

”Ari, ” Roe exhaled, shocked, ”What are you doing here?” Arielle’s slender body turned from the kitchen table to face her. She cast her eyes to the ground, tucking her long curled hair behind her left ear. Roe’s heart beat rapidly against her will.

”Hey baby, thought I'd join you for dinner.” Roe remembered the bags of diner food hanging in her hands. She ignored the other woman at first, merely whispering an ”excuse me” as she sped past her to dump the bags on the table.

”I told you, you don't get to call me that anymore.”

Roe unpacked the now cold food. The scent of bread and roast beef summoned the rest of Roe’s family, and she heard their footsteps and chattering grow louder, but she kept her focus on the dinner in front of her.

”Can I help?” Arielle reached a hand to rest on Roe’s forearm. She flared in irritation but made no move to alter their position.

”Keep unpacking the food. I'll get plates.” She kept her voice as monotone as possible, not seeking to invite an argument. As Roe reached in the cabinets next to the sink, a more welcome hand lay on her shoulder. Lucas. Roe took a deep breath and prepared for what might come from her brother’s mouth.

”I tried to get her to leave, I really did. But, she's stubborn, ” he softened his voice in an attempt to keep their conversation private.

“Unfortunately, I’m very aware of that.”

“Do you want me to pick her up and just throw her out on the sidewalk? I can do that if you want,” he joked.

“No, Lucas, it’s okay,” she yawned and pulled her auburn hair away from her face, “there’s no use in fighting her right now. I’ll make sure she’s gone before I have to drop the kids off at school. I can take River with me during my shift at the shop too. I know you’re busy tomorrow.”

He shook his head, eyebrows wound tightly together. His muscles bulged as he crossed his arms, angry heat radiating off of him, “I know you loved her, but I thought after everything, you decided she wasn’t good for you anymore. I don’t care if you’re lonely or horny or whatever, she can’t keep coming back, Rosalie. It’s not healthy.”

Roe turned away from him. The kids already began eating spare fries and chicken tenders despite the fact that Roe still held all of the plates in her hands. The table bubbled with conversation, yet despite all of the commotion, Arielle locked eyes with Roe.

“I know,” Roe conceded, “I know.”

#harry styles #hs #fanfic #fanfiction #imagine #harry styles x oc #one direction #1direction

10 notes · View notes

ducktracy · 4 years ago

Text

185. porky’s hero agency (1937)

release date: december 4th, 1937

series: looney tunes

director: bob clampett

starring: mel blanc (porky, emperor jones), tedd pierce (gorgon, assistant), sara berner (porky’s mom)

the final porky cartoon for 1937, and what a busy year it’s been for him! hard to believe he had an entirely different voice, look, and demeanor just 8 months prior. even then, his character still had much to explore, as we see here—in this cartoon, he’s cast as a child again. curiously, bob clampett is often credited as the one who refined his personality into the one we know today (he did give him his iconic suit and tie), but, like everything else, it was more of a collaborative exploration by all of the directors.

the title card is one of the more interesting title cards in the warner bros. repertoire—it’s a photo of a porky statuette! bob clampett would make several statues during his time at WB and distribute them to his top animators. while the statue in the credits is painted over, you can view an unpainted model here!

here, porky dreams of the wonders of ancient greece, prancing around as the mythological messenger parkykarkus. however, a gorgon has her sights set on turning him into stone, and it requires some quick thinking from porky to weasel his way out of this mess.

bobe cannon animates the expositional sequence, with porky propped up in bed, sucked into a giant book full of greek myths. his mother (offscreen) tells him it’s time to go to sleep, but porky objects, protesting that he was just at the exciting part. cannon’s animation is easy to spot with his trademark buck teeth, yet the gestures he gives porky--finger points, turning the page, etc.--give him a nice dose of youthful energy as he recaps the story, telling tales of gorgons and “great great great” greek heroes.

nevertheless, a disembodied hand turns out the light, dismissing porky’s protests. he heaves a resigned sigh, lamenting how he wishes he could be a great greek hero.

the cartoon doesn’t make any attempts to keep the dream sequence a surprise--instead, the face of the book’s cover takes up the entire screen, the pillars emblazoned on the front melting to life as we fade into ancient greece. and, as to be expected, our favorite porcine hero proudly stands in front of the building, proudly advertising “HERO FOR HIRE AGENCY -- PORKYKARKUS PROP.”

porkykarkus is a play on parkykarkus (”park your carcass”), a character on eddie cantor’s radio show “the chase & sanborn hour”. truck into porky’s services as he narrates over the specials:

“has anybody any eh-deh-deah-deah-dragons you want seh-seh-sleh-slay-slaye--rubbed out? or maybe ya have some, uh, fair meh-mai-meh-maide--honeys ya want rescued! it’s a peh-pleasure. is your daughter safe? phone eh-peh-porkykarkus at olympia 2222!”

porky’s narration, as always, is fun to listen to, and the physical advertisement has its own charm and appeal, with discounts and deals on certain rescues. not only that, but it’s a damn smart way to save money, having just the narration over the still frame. smart thinking!

conveniently, porky gets a phone call, sparking the tried and true “gear up for a big sprint but merely tinker on over to your destination” gag. as porky answers the phone, filling us in by repeating the hidden dialogue from the other line, we find out it’s the emperor--he wants one hero to go.

chuck jones’ layouts stick out quite strongly throughout this cartoon, especially in the human designs. porky’s statue of mercury is no exception--the bulbous nose and rounded body construction are all surefire trademarks of his work. porky grabs the messenger’s hat and winged shoes from the statue, never once taking a beat to stop as he hobbles along, dressing as he prepares to head out. woodblock sounds simulate the sound of his hooves clopping, but also add an extra jaunty jive to the merry score of “have you got any castles?” in the background, the cartoon’s motif. it would also be a merry melody courtesy of frank tashlin not even a year later.

with that, porky takes off, soaring in the skies like a pro with his winged shoes. if the scene wasn’t appealing enough with the overhead layouts, the animation of porky steadying himself is wonderfully smooth and fun--the cherry on top. he circles the palace where the emperor is located, swooping down to his destination. complete with airplane sound effects, of course.

“howdy, empy!” another bulbous-nosed jones character silences porky from behind his armchair. emperor jones (boy, who could that name reference, i wonder?) speaks in a ridiculously hilarious dialect, completed with a thick accent: “shh! i’m making a fireside chat with my sheeps!” his voice then slips into a rooseveltian draw as he coos “my friends, grecians and customers, this is emperor jones speaking...”

pan to the audience, which consists of a sea of smiling statues. this entire speech sequence is wonderful--not only is his terrible grammar terribly amusing, (”statistics show... what last season at this time was population in greece from 6,000 with 500 with 54 people, with 17 statues.”) but little touches such as one of the audience statues roasting marshmallows and later a hotdog over the fireplace, the emperor making his audience clap by pulling on ropes tied to their arms, and so forth make the entire charade highly amusing with lots of details to look out for. porky standing idly in the background, awkwardly fidgeting as he tries not to intrude is a great little piece of character animation as well.

the emperor gives the skinny, all while chowing down on a hotdog: a gorgon has been turning more and more people into statues, and they need a hero to steal her life-restoring needle in order to turn all of the statues back into humans again. the hero he has in mind is, of course, porky, who bashfully accepts the offer. when the emperor asks those in favor to raise their right hand, he pulls on a lever that causes all of the statues to raise their hands in unison, including a hand on a nearby clock. with a handshake, empy concludes “it’s a deal!”

one of the most impressive pieces of animation in the cartoon (i actually dedicated an entire drawing to it!) is when the emperor sends porky on his way, who waves goodbye as he flies through the air with his winged shoes. just as he tips his hat, he knocks into a pillar, which sends him tumbling upside down, but still airborne. the wings on his shoes form hands as they shake their fists in the glory of the good landing, with porky flashing a cheeky grin to the audience before spiraling lower in the air, regaining his balance, and barreling onward towards a smoldering volcano. the animation is full of life and character--though porky is consistently jolly in the B&W clampett cartoons, the grin towards the camera as he prides himself in his save is a great little touch of personality. slowly but surely, bits of character are now becoming more defined.

a gag that took me just now to recognize it--porky swoops into the heart of the volcano, where we spot the source of the black fumes pouring out the top: the gorgon statue factory. a merry score of “you’ve got something there” serves as some easy listening as we’re treated to a sign gag:

outside of the factory is a human picket fence, comprised of familiar faces: statues of bobe cannon, norm mccabe, john carey, bob clampett himself and chuck jones surround the area. directly outside of the factory is the frozen statue of a salesman with his foot in the door--the joke is not only amusing, but the pose is quite strong and readable, too. though nowhere near the dynamism of frank tashlin’s poses in the mid ‘40s, clampett’s poses in this cartoon are quite defined and exaggerated for the time period. this is especially sharp in the scenes with the emperor.

porky knocks on the door held ajar by the ceramic statue’s foot, holding out an envelope. “telegram for the guh-geh-gee-geh-gee-gor-geh--” a hand snags the envelope out of porky’s grip, causing him to mutter “aww, nuh-neh-nee-nuh-neh-neh-nut--shucks,” a phrase he echoed in clampett’s previous entry, rover’s rival.

we transition to the inside of the factory, where we see the gorgon herself, positioned in front of a camera, awaiting to take “pictures” of her models. tedd pierce voices the gorgon, whose vocal stylings are a parody of tizzie lish, bill comstock’s character on al pearce and his gang. interestingly, the cartoon before this, the woods are full of cuckoos, featured a caricature of lish as well, also voiced by pierce.

clampett and pierce’s comedic timing is sharp--not nearly as sharp as tashlin’s timing in the woods are full of cuckoos, but abundantly amusing nonetheless. the gorgon asks for a boy--”a sorta young-ish one”--and in comes a decrepit old man who can hardly hold himself up. the gorgon waits for the man to assume his position on the podium where his picture will be taken, singing a pitchy rendition of “am i in love?“, another homage to the characteristics displayed by lish’s character on the radio.

the gorgon snaps her photo, which turns the shaky old man into a stone statue at once, cheekily labeled “ANTIQUE -- $60,000 (P.S.: 000,000)” before he’s yanked off of the podium with a cane.

“now let’s try a group picture.” you know it’s a ‘30s cartoon if the three stooges come waddling in--they made their caricatured, cartoon debut in the 1934 film the miller’s daughter, notorious for being chuck jones’ first animation credit. as expected, they all beat the tar out of each other while on the podium, rendered immobile only through the power of medusa’s camera. they turn into the three wise monkeys, labeled “3 MONKEYS OF JAPAN -- MADE IN GREECE”.

norm mccabe’s animation is easy to spot in the next scene with porky, characterized by his signature double eyebrows. porky knocks on a door, parroting a favorite catchphrase from the al pearce show that frequented many a clampett cartoon: “i hope she’s eh-eh-at home, i hope, i hope, i hope, i hope, i hope...”

porky shakes the hand of the assistant, unfortunately a blackface caricature (save for the voice, who is just tedd pierce speaking in a deep, suave voice) as he greets “welcome, stranger. won’t you come in?” before porky has time to answer, he’s yanked through the iron bars of the door and placed neatly in line for the photoshoot, where he peeks through the door to see the action inside.

a pile of men form a pyramid, where the camera turns them into a literal statue of a pyramid, with some slight imperfections. “aw, shucks!” laments the gorgon. “you moved!” she approaches them with her life restoring needle, allowing the men to form into the proper position, maintaining good balance. she gets her “genuine egyptian statue”, quipping “ought to make a handy paperweight!”

the assistant informs porky that he’s next. porky backs up anxiously, echoing a short-lived catchphrase of his from the joe dougherty era: “nuh-neh-no! eh-nn-nee-no! a-a thousand times no!” the decision to make his thoughts visible (his head is slapped onto that of a piggy bank’s) is playful, and also reflects just how big of an influence comics had on bob clampett’s work: comic artists such as milt gross and george lichty have been cited by clampett as inspirations. the george lichty influence is definitely noticeable in rod scribner’s animation under bob clampett, as we’ll discover in the coming years.

in the midst of his panic, porky backs into a statue of "dick a. powello” (dick powell and apollo), causing it to break. but, rather than fuss over the mess, porky uses the opportunity to hatch an idea instead.

in comes strolling porky, concealed by powello’s upper body and a blankett hiding his hooves. the triumphant score of “he was her man” and the gorgon’s smitten woos makes the scene hilarious as is, but the blanket falling off and revealing porky’s pudgy little hooves is the icing on the comedic cake.

porky perches himself on a conveniently placed couch, where the gorgon approaches him. “pardon me, is this seat taken?” she doesn’t wait a wink before snuggling right up to him, a heart symbolizing her affections popping in the air. though clampett would play with typography at times and maintain an overarchingly jovial mood to his cartoons, it’s an odd thing to see him play with comic-like visuals in this manner, such as porky physically envisioning himself as a piggy bank or the heart from the gorgon. i wish he had done it more in this nature!

with the gorgon too close for comfort, porky uses this as an opportunity to grab the gorgon’s life-restoring needle, dangling from her neck and lying against her body. it wouldn’t be a clampett cartoon without sexual innuendos--porky reaches aimlessly around for the needle, prompting the gorgon to let out a shriek, cooing “why, mr. a POWELLo!”

she smothers the ceramic head in kisses, giving him a nice lipstick finish to boot as she pretends the statue has given her a ring. her ecstasy is hilarious and WONDERFULLY conveyed through strong, rubbery poses worth freeze-framing. picturing porky’s befuddlement is another humor within itself.

finally, porky’s disguise is revealed when the gorgon literally crushes the statue in an embrace, stone crumbling around him as he desperately slips out of her grip. as the gorgon makes threats to call the cops, reciting the WB favorite catchphrase of “calling all cars! calling all cars!”, porky makes with the needle and jabs it in various statues, warning them “uh-geh-uh-get goin’! i-i-eh-it’s the guh-geh-geh-eh-geh-gorgon!”

as the gorgon chases porky with her camera, he continues to revive a barrage of statues: the antique, the famed discus thrower (who throws himself out of the scene rather than the discus), the man from the end of the trail statue, who exits riding his horse like a merry go round (a nod to friz freleng’s sweet sioux), a woman who marches off with popeye’s forearms--note the bobe cannon statue in the back here--and a mermaid who unzips her fin and makes a run for it. the highlight of the entire montage is when porky approaches two temples (the two of them together labeled “shirley temple”) and injects the needle into them, prompting the temples to use their pillars as legs and run for the hills.

the chase reaches its climax as the gorgon pursues porky with a movie camera, turning the crank ferociously as she runs. her plan works--porky slows down, freezing in mid-air as the gorgon cries “hold it!” thus, the gorgon pins porky to the ground, who tries his hardest to fight back, but ultimately flailing around as she commands him to open his eyes.

we melt into the present, where we find porky’s mother in place of the gorgon, telling him softly to wake up. he does so, after she pries one of his eyes opens. relieved that it was all a dream, he embraces his mother, prompting a happy end and an iris out.

this cartoon has a soft spot in my heart--it was one of the first LT cartoons i saw on this whole venture. i thought i was the smartest person alive, understanding the three stooges, popeye, and shirley temple references. who knew just how much i had (and still have!) to learn! though even without my sentimental biases, this still stands as a very good cartoon.

as i mentioned previously, the poses in this are full of elasticity and energy, especially in the emperor and the gorgon. porky does a very nice job as well--little pieces of animation such as him fidgeting awkwardly while the emperor rambles on, swinging from side to side as he’s offered the job to be a hero, etc. etc. are full of charm and character. while his personality isn’t the most electric in comparison to characters like bugs and daffy, it’s the little things like these that really make porky stand out. with him, a little subtlety goes a long way, and that’s why he’s one of my favorites. he’s so reserved in comparison to such a wild cast of characters that his timidness actually shines through and sets him apart! (though, on the other hand, he can still have quite the personality, as we’ll discover!)

personally, the only gripes i have with this cartoon is the blackface caricatured assistant (which, in comparison to some cartoons we’ve seen and still have yet to see, is relatively mild, but uncomfortable nonetheless). the jokes, while corny at times, still hit, the animation is full of life and vigor, and the short as a whole has a lot of charm, whimsy, and personality. it has my seal of approval! go check it out!

link!

#lt #porky’s hero agency #clampett #looney tunes #reviews #long post #A REVIEW!!! of one of my favorite cartoons! it's a christmas miracle!#well favorite for this era anyway

25 notes · View notes

namelists · 5 years ago

Photo

a list of names inspired by: birds

this list includes names of birds, birdlike names, and the meanings of each one.

Alouette: French for “lark”

Altair/Altaira: Arabic for ‘the flying eagle’

Ani: a species of tropical birds

Arini: the tribe of parrots that includes macaws and parakeets

Ava: from the Latin for “bird”

Birdie: cute vintage name, could be a nickname for Bridget or Elizabeth

Byrd: Old English, originally given as a nickname to one thought to bear a fancied resemblance to a bird

Cairina: a genus of ducks

Callum: Scottish, means “dove”

Chelidon: Greek name for a swallow

Claravis: a genus of neotropical doves

Corvus: means “crow”

Covey: a little group of birds, especially partridges

Crane: from the name of the long-legged bird

Cygnet: a baby swan

Dacelo: a kookaburra

Dove: lovely, simple bird name

Eagle: a strong name, this refers to the bird of prey

Efron: Hebrew, means “singing bird”

Evelyn: means “beautiful bird”

Falcon: another cool bird of prey name

Faulkner: means “falcon trainer”

Feather: if you want to go a bit literal

Finch: little birds found all over the world

Fowler: means “bird trapper”

Hawk: another cool bird of prey

Heron: long-legged freshwater and coastal birds

Jay: a nickname, but also a cute bird

Jena: Sanskrit/Arabic, means “little bird”

Kanara: Hebrew for “canary”

Kestrel: a type of falcon

Kirk: from the Greek for bird

Laraline: Latin, meaning “seagull”

Lark: a playful songbird

Linette: a ‘linnet’ is a tiny bird from the finch family

Loa: the name of a bird in the Icelandic language

Lonan: blackbird

Loriini: a tribe of Australasian parrots

Manu: Polynesian, “bird of the night”

Melidora: a hook-billed kingfisher

Merula: blackbird

Minerva: an extinct genus of owls

Nesta: a variation of Agnes

Nydia: Latin, means “nest”

Palila: Hawaiian singing forest bird

Paloma: Spanish, means “dove”

Peregrine: a type of falcon

Phoenix: from Greek myth, this bird dies and then rises from its own ashes

Raven: a large black bird, used as the gods’ messengers in mythology

Rhea: an ostrich-like bird

Robin: a pretty spring bird, also Batman’s bestie

Salvadorina: a type of duck from New Guinea

Sarika: a cuckoo bird, also means “princess”

Starling: a pretty bird with iridescent feathers

Talon: badass name referring to the claw of a bird of prey

Torio: Japanese, means “bird’s tail”

Trugon: a thick-billed ground pigeon

Vireo: a green-yellow bird, but also a medical marijuana company, so use with discretion

Weaver: a bird found in Asia and India

Whistler: an Australian songbird

Wren: the cutest little bird you ever saw, I promise

Zenaida: a species of American doves

Zipporah: Hebrew, means “bird”. Sephora is another version of this name

#rph #baby names #character names #name help #masterlist #character development #nature

148 notes · View notes

vietnambirds · 4 years ago

Photo

Best Bird Watching Trail in Vietnam

Birding tours to Vietnam – Day 1 : Ho Chi Minh City – Cat tien National Park

Guide will meet you at the hotel at 6:00 am (you will confirm exactly hotel name) then go directly to Cat Tien National Park, arrive to Cat Tien after 3.5 hour on car, after check-in time, we will go to find some birds along the main road in side Cat tien NP.

With the main roads 3km, you can see some kind of bird Cat Tien: Drongos, leafbird, tailorbird, warbler, Grey-faced Tit-babbler, Pin-striped Tit-babbler, Sunbirds, Banded kingfisher, Square-taied Drongo-cuckoo, Thick-billed Green-pigeon, Orange-breasted trogon, Woodpeckers,…

Accommodation: The Guess house inside of National park with the best room (Double room with air-condition, hot shower, free WIFI), as pictures attach below.

Meals: Breakfast on the way to Cat Tien, you will surprise about “Pho” (Vietnamese noodle with beef or chicken ), Lunch and dinner at the Tre vang restaurant inside of National park. That restaurant have menu open with Europian style or Asia style.

Day 2: Cat Tien National park – First Ideal Location for Birding Tours to Vietnam

We start at 6:00 to the restaurant for breakfast and then go to birding for highlight targets in Cat Tien : Bar-bellied Pitta, Blue-rumped Pitta, Germain’s peacock pheasant, Siamese fireback, Green-legged Partridge… in the bird-hide tent. More ever you can see some kinds of bulbul group, babbler group, warbler group, woodpeckers group …

After Dinner , we go to find some Owls : Asian barred Owlet, Brown hawk owl, Collared Scops Owl, Large-tailed nighjar.

Accommodation: At the same room

Meals: B/L/D : at the restaurant same with the first day.

Day 3: Cat Tien to Da lat City

We will leave at 6:00 am to be the first to arrive in the grasslands. This short tour will give you the experience of seeing and photographing Green peafowl, Red junglefowl, Imperial pigeon and many beautiful birds that appear early in the morning in the grasslands.

Moreover, there are many species of herbivores that also appear: sambar deer, red muntjak, wild boar, … if lucky, you can meet Gaurs.

After lunch , check out at 1:00 and moving to Da lat City, we arrive after 3 hours transport (after 17:00pm).

Accommodation in Dream Hotel – Phan Dinh Phung Street, Dalat City.

Dream Hotel is a mid-range hotel (2 stars) in Dalat. However, this is a hotel with more than 20 years serving birds, very experienced senior understand and serve the discerning birder. They have a breakfast from 5:00 am serving a variety of European and Asian styles.

There are many other accommodation options, in the more luxurious and central hotels, but serving breakfast at 5:00 am is not possible, which is very inconvenient for birders.

Day 4: Da Lat City – Bidoup Nuiba National Park

Breakfast at 5:30 and then we go directly to Bidoup Nuiba National park. Full-day for bird watching in Giang Ly and Hon Giao area. In this place, we have 3 bird-hide for us with some high-light target : Collared laughingthrush (endemic), Black-hooded laughingthrush, White-cheeked Laughingthrush, Grey-bellied Tesia, White-browed Scimitar Babbler, Rufous-throated Partridge, Black-crowned Fulvetta (endemic), Pygmy Cupwing, Large Niltava, White-tailed Robin, Snowy-browed Flycatcher, Orange-headed Thrush…

In addition, We will follow the streams along the stream, there will be many moments when there will be many birds living along the stream to take pictures: Spotted Forktail, Slaty-backed Forktail,Plumbeus Water Redstar, Blyth’s Kingfisher, Common Kingfisher.

We will move back to the hotel in Dalat city at 17:30pm.

Accommodation: at the Dream Hotel.

Meals: B at the Dream hotel restaurant

L at the restaurant near birding hide

D: Restaurant in Da lat City.

Day 5: Bidoup Nui ba National Park – Second Ideal Location for Birding Tours to Vietnam

We continute birding in Bidoup Nui Ba national park in another place with some special birds : Rusty-naped Pitta, Orange-breasted laughingthrush,

Vietnamese Greenfinch, Red-crossbill, Vietnamese Cutia, Yellow-cheeked Tit, Green-backed Tit, Chestnut vented Nuthatch…

Nigh time for: Going to Da Lat night market.

Day 6: Dalat City – Di Linh Plateau

Early morning to go to Hoa Son Dien Trang for endemic : Grey-crowned Crocias, and more rare birds : Rufous-backed Sibia, Black-headed Sibia, Bay Woodpecker, Speckled Piculet…

Then enjoy lunch time in Datanla Water Fall for: Vietnamese Cutia, Annam Barbets, Mrs Gould’s Sunbird, Langbian Sunbirds…

We will leave Da Lat at 17:00 and go to Di Linh, to Di Linh at 18:30 and stay at Thuy Duong hotel.

Day 7 : Di Linh Plateau: Deo Nui San – Third Ideal Location for Birding Tours to Vietnam

Full-day birding in Deo Nui San hot-spot, with 2 bird-hide, we can enjoy with more than 25 birds species in nice picture :

Target birds: Indochinese Green-magpie, Black-headed Parrotbill, Silver-breasted Broadbill, Bar-backed Partridge, Large Scimitar Babbler, Red-billed Scimitar Babbler.

Other birds: White-throated Rock-thrush, Siberian Thrush, Blue-throated Blue-flycatcher, Orange-headed Thrush, Buff-breasted Babbler, Grey-throated Babbler, Puff-throated Bulbul, Ashy Bulbul, White-bellied Erpornis,…

Day 8: Di Linh – Ho Chi Minh City – Flight to Pleiku City

The morning bird photography at Nui San Pass. Another bird-hide for : Blue Pitta, bar-backed patridge, Streak-wren Babbler…

We will leave Di Linh to return to Ho Chi Minh City after lunch. We will fly straight from Ho Chi Minh City to Pleiku City in the evening flight, to Pleiku City and travel by car at night in Kontum City, 40km from the airport.

Day 9: Kontum province – Mang Den town – Forth Ideal Location for Birding Tours to Vietnam

Departing at 6:00 from Kontum to Mang Den town, With 60km road we will take an hour by car. The whole day will be looking for birds in Mang Mang, the goal is : Chestnut-eared Laugingthrush.

More : Sultant Tits, Racket-tailed Treepie, Long-tailed Shrike, Crested Serpent Eagle, Stripe-breasted Woodpecker, Grey-cheeked Warbler…

Day 10: Mang Den town to Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve

Continue a full morning for bird watching in Mang Den. We will leave Mang Den after to move to Tumorong town, Arrive at hotel at 19:00. Tumorong is a very remote town in the northern highlands of Vietnam, bordering Laos and Cambodia.

Day 11: Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve – Fifth Ideal Location for Birding Tours to Vietnam

We will birding and bird photography at Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, After more than 1 hour moving from the hotel to the core of the Nature Reserve, where there are bird-hide we have set. You will find it interesting because the birds are so beautiful, many species come to bird-hide so you can take photos of the day. Some goals such as: Red-tailed Laughingthrush, Golden-winged Laughingthrush (endemic), Coral-billed Scimitar-babbler, Rufous-winged Fulvetta, Rusty-capped Fulvetta, Grey-bellied Tesia, …

Day 12: Ngoc Linh NR to Da Nang City

Continue a full morning watching and taking photos of birds at Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve, with the goals not to be missed such as: Black-crowned Barwing, Black-headed Sibia, Golden-breasted Fulvetta, Indochinese Fulvetta, Green-tailed Sunbirds …

We will leave Ngoc Linh Nature Reserve after lunch time, and travel by car to Da Nang city, the 230km square will take 5 hours to move. Overnight at Brilliant Majectic Hotel Danang.

Day 13: Da Nang city – Bach Ma National Park – Sixth Ideal Location for Birding Tours to Vietnam

We start early at 5:30am and arrive to Bach Ma NP at 7:30am for birding allday in Bach Ma, that place have no bird hide so we only walk along the main road and some trails in the park. We rest in Phong Lan villa on the top of Bach Ma NP. After dinner, we will herping and spotlighting mammals to 23:00pm., Special we will discover some “Vietcong tunnel” on the top of Bach Ma in nighttime, have Bats insite !

Accommodation : B at Da Nang city; L, D at Phong Lan restaurant.

Day 14: Bach Ma National Park to Khe Sanh town

Birding all day and herping in nocturnal ,

Accommodation : B, L, D at Phong Lan restaurant.

Room : Phong Lan Villa on the top of Bach Ma

Day 15: Birding in Sa Mu Pass and go to PhongNha KeBang National Park

After birding and breakfast on the top of Bach Ma, we check-out at 11:00 am and go to Phong Nha Ke Bang National park , On the way, we have 1 day in Sa Mu Pass, the new destination in the Middle of Viet Nam, for some rare birds : Collared Babbler, Rufous cheeked Laughingthrush , and on the trails we can fine some diurnal snakes…

We arrive Khe Sanh town at 16:00 pm and check in

Day 16: PhongNha KeBang National Park

In the afternoon we will go to Phong Nha Ke Bang National park ,

We will checkin the Park’s hotel at 18:00pm and prepare for Herping to 23:00pm

Birding tours to Vietnam – Last day – Day 17: PhongNha KeBang National Park to Dong Hoi Airport, Back to Hochiminh City

In this park we can see Ha tinh Langur (one of the rarest primates in Vietnam and on the world ) , Anyway we can see some interesting birds : Red-collared Woodpecker , Sooty babbler, Red-headed Trogonand on the trails we can fine some diurnal snakes in the morning and check out, we will go to Dong Hoi airport (60km from the park) and fly to Ho chi minh City (Fly Depart at 20:00 pm)Arrive to your hotel in HCM City at the midnight.

More Bird Watching Trails in Vietnam: https://vietnambirds.net/top-bird-watching-trails-in-vietnam-you-should-spend-your-holiday/

9 notes · View notes

a-dinosaur-a-day · 5 years ago

Text

Lioptilus nigricapillus

By Alan D. Manson, CC BY 4.0

Etymology: Smooth Feather

First Described By: Bonaparte, 1850

Classification: Dinosauromorpha, Dinosauriformes, Dracohors, Dinosauria, Saurischia, Eusaurischia, Theropoda, Neotheropoda, Averostra, Tetanurae, Orionides, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Tyrannoraptora, Maniraptoromorpha, Maniraptoriformes, Maniraptora, Pennaraptora, Paraves, Eumaniraptora, Averaptora, Avialae, Euavialae, Avebrevicauda, Pygostaylia, Ornithothoraces, Euornithes, Ornithuromorpha, Ornithurae, Neornithes, Neognathae, Neoaves, Inopinaves, Telluraves, Australaves, Eufalconimorphae, Psittacopasserae, Passeriformes, Eupasseres, Passeri, Euoscines, Passerides, Core Passerides, Sylviida, Sylviodiea, Sylviidae

Status: Extant, Vulnerable

Time and Place: Within the last 10,000 years, in the Holocene of the Quaternary

The Bush Blackcap is known from South Africa and Swaziland

Physical Description: Bush Blackcaps are small passerines with distinctive orange-pink bills, somewhat thick and slightly curved. They have black caps to their heads - hence the name - and white chins. These white feathers extend to the belly region, while the back of the bird is brown. The tail is somewhat long and also brown. They have small pink legs and feet. The sexes are all similar, and the juveniles are in general just a bit more dull than the parents.

Diet: Bush Blackcaps feed mainly on berries, other fruit, and small invertebrates.

By Alan Manson, CC BY 4.0

Behavior: These songbirds will forage alone, in mated pairs, and in small groups, usually moving quietly and carefully through the middle layer of the forest or in the scrub to grab food from off of foliage. They will also congregate around fishponds in the winter to gather water and food near the water’s edge. During the breeding season in the late spring and early summer, the males will make very beautiful complex songs with a variety of notes and tones. Both parents will build the nest out of twigs and grass, placed safely in a tree fork. They tend to lay between two and three eggs per season. They do not migrate much, but do move up and down the mountain level in response to the breeding seasons and food availability.

By Alan Manson, CC BY-SA 2.0

Ecosystem: Bush Blackcaps live in temperate and mountain evergreen forests on slopes and near ravines and on the forest edge. They will occasionally go out into the bush, but not as much as their name would suggest! Their nests are parasitized by cuckoos.

Other: These are vulnerable birds, due to extreme habitat loss - the forests are slowly decreasing in spread, and it is predicted that with the arrival of more extensive climate change, they will decrease in spread more. It seems as though the range of the Bush Blackcaps has already decreased by 30% by 2014, with more destruction of the habitat having occurred in recent years as well. Currently, there seem to only be a few thousand individuals of this species left.

~ By Meig Dickson

Sources under the Cut

Collar, N., Robson, C. & Sharpe, C.J. (2019). Bush Blackcap (Sylvia nigricapillus). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.

Jobling, J. A. 2010. The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. Christopher Helm Publishing, A&C Black Publishers Ltd, London.

130 notes · View notes

dansnaturepictures · 5 years ago

Photo

Martin Down: My Special Place

Last year I entered the writing competition with the wonderful magazine New Nature https://www.newnature.co.uk/ which is written and produced by young naturalists, the theme last year was one’s special place. After much deliberation due to so much inspiration in the south and elsewhere for me I chose to write it about one of my favourite birdwatching, butterflies, other wildlife and beauty spots especially in spring and summer Martin Down. I thought its high time I posted it on Tumblr so below is the short piece of writing I put together for the competition. I have to say its exactly the same as when I entered it apart from three words as one of my favourite bits to write was the alliteration at the end of one of the paragraphs with three bird species including Whitethroat. I went on to see a Lesser Whitethroat there last June so I just wanted to add an affectionate mention of it. In this photoset are 10 of my favourite pictures I’ve taken at Martin Down, all taken between 2017 and 2020 in fact and organised in order of the date they were taken, showing the beautiful landscape and some of the key species I have been so lucky to see here.

The first thing that hits me when I arrive at this site in springtime is the sound, the wall of skylark song, the most beautiful and intense chorus. The symphony is harmoniously added to by a chiffchaff or two announcing themselves. And “a little bit of bread and no cheese”, a reserve specialty the yellowhammer too. Further glory is added to this band of birds by the cuckoo’s echoing call. Any land is my heaven when greeted by this inter-continental migrant. Also at home is the distant purr of the turtle dove. Then a buzzard might chip in soaring against the bright blue sky above without a care in the world. A state it would be hard not to drift into myself.

At this reserve it is always worth looking up, kestrels hovering it’s easy to see. Red kite, peregrine and hobby are other rulers of the skies.

But in spring and summer one must also look down, the biodiversity of butterflies is like a circus before the eyes. The exotic glow of the many marsh fritillaries, the bright green hairstreaks that could be part of the grass or a leaf and the miniature skipper species you almost have to be looking for to spot. Also of the smaller variety are some of the blue butterflies small blue and brown argus. A bigger one is also often seen, the common blue.

But here my heart leaps at the moment of getting an enthralling open wing glimpse of the most eye catching shade of blue. The adonis. One of my favourite butterflies, with its stunning colour it looks more as though it should be found in a distant rainforest than a Hampshire field.

Many more butterfly species such as small copper and painted lady dart across the fields here, where the hares and both species of partridges also run.

This place is equally so strong for seeing birds. The corn buntings should be looked for high on bushes and trees, the likeness of their beaks to their name a little identification key of mine. So many more I could list throughout the year, wheatear, whinchat, whitethroat (common and lesser) just to name a few.

A big group of birds is also something that stands out here, many rook and jackdaw creating a rock concert in the sky.

But this divine location has another side, an extension across the road. Here there is a thick wood, where white admiral butterflies dance along the tall tree tops. Down below silver-washed fritillaries glide beside the vegetation, they could go on forever. The valezina variety a surprise. On the way to the woods this habitat mixes nicely with the precious grassland, the image of a scarlet tiger moth here one day gave me a delicious feeling and will always be synonymous with the ripe days of summer.

This quintessential English countryside paradise is a snippet of yesteryear. A special place, where many struggling species dare to thrive.

I hope you enjoyed reading this its something a bit different to my sort of factual report type descriptions of my trips which I enjoy writing just as much. It harped back to the A Level and GCSE days and my English classes. I may enter if New Nature do another writing competition on whatever theme and share once the competition is over, but I would like to when I find time also do more pieces like this for this blog perhaps about my many other special places. I wanted to post this piece as I think or hope I have put a message in there about these types of species and how their habitats are getting reduced and pressured so much and what precious species they are that we must protect because British wildlife is so amazing. I was in an inspired mood as earlier I looked over a letter I received from my MP this week in response to thoughts I sent to him about the Environment Bill and it was so nice that my thoughts and passion for wildlife and the environment were listened to I felt so I just felt in a mood to put something creative out there but didn’t feel I quite had the time so thought I’d revisit this bit of writing.

2 notes · View notes

proton-wobbler · 1 year ago

Text

BRACKET A: FAVES

Pinyon Jay, Bridled Titmouse, Kirtland's Warbler, Dusky Seaside Sparrow, Gray Catbird, Gray Vireo, Rook, Smooth-billed Ani, Toulouse Goose, Pygmy Nuthatch, Blue Nuthatch, Rufous-collared Sparrow, Prothonotary Warbler, Channel-billed Cuckoo, Short-eared Owl, Whiskered Treeswift, Green Catbird, American Dipper, Common Ground Dove, Oilbird, Yellow-billed Magpie, Ferruginous Hawk, Grey warbler [Riroriro], African Penguin, Blakiston’s Fish Owl, Lesser Roadrunner, Great Bustard, European Pied Flycatcher, Bonin Petrel, Band-tailed Manakin, Pallas Sandgrouse, White-throated Magpie-Jay

BRACKET B: TRUE

Regent Honeyeater, Invisible Rail, Palawan Peacock-pheasant, Bald Parrot, Kagu, Azores Bullfinch, Capuchinbird, Zigzag Heron, Writhe-billed Hornbill, Blue-Capped Ifrita, Delalande's coua, Madagascar Ibis, Blue-headed Racquet-tail, Eurasian Three-toed Woodpecker, Glaucous Macaw, Goldie's Bird-of-Paradise, Red-Crested Turaco, Palau Kingfisher, Ribbon-tailed Astrapia, Great Argus, Kaua'i Mole Duck, Whiskered Auklet, Dulit Frogmouth, Naked-faced Barbet, Pink-throated Twinspot, Water Thick-Knee, Cabot's Tragopan, White-tailed Ptarmigan, Collared Nightjar, Sickle-winged Nightjar, Emerald Starling, Starry Owlet-nightjar

BRACKET C: PRETTY

Gouldian Finch, Violet Turaco, Red-tailed Black Cockatoo, Pompadour Cotinga, Pheasant-tailed Jacana, Wilson's Bird-of-Paradise, Purple-crowned Fairy, Painted Redstart, Western Bluebird, Golden Pheasant, Beautiful Nuthatch, Ochre-backed Woodpecker, Chucao Tapaculo, Bohemian Waxwing, Plumed Whistling-Duck, Lady Amherst's Pheasant, Bluethroat, Southern Emuwren, Shaft-tailed Whydah, Green Wood-Hoopoe, Plumbeous Redstart, Long-tailed Minivet, Japanese Paradise flycatcher, Purple Glossy Starling, Willie-Wagtail, Pink-necked Green Pigeon, Purple Honeycreeper, Red-cheeked Cordonbleu, Varied Bunting, Bearded Mountaineer, Scaled Fruiteater, Pink Robin

BRACKET D: FOUR

Hamerkop, Malayan Night-heron, Common Nighthawk, Powerful Owl, Short-tailed Pygmy-tyrant, Black-necked Grebe, Javan Myna, Dickcissel, Silver Teal, Streaked Weaver, Speckled Mousebird, Wedge-tailed Eagle, Jackal Buzzard, Bat Hawk, White-bellied Chachalaca, Bell Miner, Oriental Bay-Owl, European Shag, White-winged Tern, Ancient Murrelet, Helmeted Hornbill, Arabian Babbler, Oriental Stork, Bearded Bellbird, Seaside Cinclodes, Groove-billed Ani, Marvelous Spatuletail, Yellow-collared Macaw, Spotted Forktail, Hairy Hermit Hummingbird, White-tailed Trogon, Fiery-billed Aracari

Main Brackets!

There are four brackets [Fave, Pretty, True, Four] comprising of 32 birds, for a total of 128 birds in this poll! I will reblog a version of this post with every bird listed via text within their bracket, so it is easier to find for those with image issues. It's gonna take a while to actually put the posts together for the first round, seeing as there are 64 battles happening, so expect the polls to go up around July 12th.

Below is a link for submitting any cool facts or info about the birds you want to win. It's not necessary to send info here, but I like to give the option to infodump about birds, and it helps with keeping things organized. As a heads up, the submission box is capped at one response only (with up to three birds in said response) just to keep things from getting cluttered.

As per tumblr etiquette, you are totally free to reblog the polls themselves with as much propoganda as you want. These submissions are just to help me fill the poll post with some cool facts.

#heres the birds written out #information

54 notes · View notes

liodork · 6 years ago

Text

September Event Currency Guide

Who’s ready to get their hands on some gmoos and salty rocks? I know I am! September has a single event currency, the Jewel Beetle (JB), which can be obtained through two main ways: other players’ dens, and explore. Additionally, this month’s event tiers are all opened by killing locusts, so you can unlock while you grind!

Method 1: Stomp/Chase

The first method of getting JB’s involves going to other peoples’ dens and choosing to either Stomp or Chase the locusts you find there though the text box at the top of their den. This can be done once every 30 minutes, and can only be done to online users, so the easiest way to find someone is to just open up main chat and pick someone at random.

Both Stomp and Chase give you +1 JB; the only difference between them for you is good or evil karma. Stomping makes a mess and gives -1 karma, while Chasing cleans the place out and gives +1 karma. Note that this difference is really only on your end - while the player whose den you visited will get some flavor text based on your choice, choosing to stomp won’t give them anything bad, so evil kings can stomp away guilt-free.

Method 2: Event Explore Encounters

This will probably be your primary method of collecting event currency, and for best results I suggest only choosing options that net you the most possible JB. Below are all of the event encounters for this month nd their outcomes - the bolded options give the most JB, the italicized options offer the most locusts killed if you’re looking to open shop tiers, and anything bolded and italicized gives both the most JB AND locusts killed.

Encounters are listed by JB payout (highest to lowest), with all encounters that give no JB listed at the end. Keep in mind locusts killed are estimates as the actual amounts are semi-randomized.

A flock of Golden Orioles feeds on a few insects among the dirt. Advise - +2 JB, +100 Locusts Killed Chase - +4 JB, +100 Locusts Killed

[Night only encounter] A swarm of bats is enjoying a midnight snack. Lead - +3 JB, +1000 Locusts Killed

A group of Grivet Monkeys is playing around. Offer A New Game - +3 JB, +500 Locusts Killed Advise - Leads to two new options. Fight - Starts a battle with a Leopard Roar - +2 JB

A loud croak tears through the air as a Fan-Tailed Raven lands on the ground in front of you. It seems this loyal liege that usually feeds on your leftovers has brought some gifts to thank you! Take - +3 JB Refuse - +2% imp, +1000 Locusts Killed

Oh no! If the locusts devour the trees, the gerenuk and giraffes will suffer from famine! Climb - +2 JB, +150 Locusts Killed Headbutt - +1 JB, +600 Locusts Killed

A flock of Piapiacs have swarmed on the ground, feeding on some leftover locust! Rile Up - +2 JB, +100 Locusts Killed

It’s a brownish Striped Polecat hunting something! You remember they like eating insects. So What? - +1 JB, +1 Zorilla Carcass Tip Off - +2 JB, +100 Locusts Killed

Lilac-Breasted Roller birds are trying to catch some jumping locust. Join - +2 JB, +200 EXP, -10% Energy, +400 Locusts Killed Advise - +2 JB, +200 Locusts Killed

A Little Bustard bird passes you by Catch - +5% IMP, +100 Locusts Killed Roar - +2 JB, +50 Locusts Killed

There’s a few Hoopoes nomming on the grasshoppers. Instruct - +1 JB, +100 Locusts Killed, +4 Hoopoe Feathers Charge - +2 JB, -20% Hunger, +1 Hoopoe Feather

With terror shooting through your veins, you hold your breath as the sky becomes dark from millions of locusts swarming in the air. Roar - +200 Locusts Killed, +1 Locust Wing Cover - +2 JB, +1 Locust Wing

A tiny leopard cub is trying to hide from the swarms under a log. Protect - +2 JB Roar - +4% imp

You notice a tree stump with Jewel Beetles crawling all over! Grab! - Two outcomes. +2 JB if successful, no reward if unsuccessful

On a dried up tree trunk, lizards are enjoying african heat. Grab One! - 2 outcomes. +1 Juicy Lizard Carcass if successful, no reward if unsuccessful Whisper - +1 JB, +400 Locusts Killed

A Banded Mongoose is sliding on a twisted branch with a locust in its mouth! Smack! - +1 Mongoose Carcass, +1 JB Snort! - +1 JB, +200 Locusts Killed

A swarm of locusts! Roar - +200 Locusts Killed, +1 Locust Wing Chase - +1 JB, +100 Locusts Killed, +1 Locust Wing

Taita Fiscals are bathing in the sand. Give Orders - +1 JB, +100 Locusts Killed

This mare is wandering by herself, looking for her foal. Attack - +1 JB, -2 Karma, +1 Abyssinian Horse Carcass Help - +1 JB, +2 Karma, +2% IMP

It looks like this Arabian Horse foal can’t find its mom. Pounce - +1 JB, -1 Karma, +1 Horse Foal Carcass Help - +1 JB, +1 Karma, +1% IMP

A herd of horses from a nearby farm is spooked by locust swarms! Chase - 3 outcomes. +1 Arabian Horse Carcass, +1 JB, or +1 Black Stallion

[Wet Season encounter only] The swarm is breeding like crazy in these wet conditions! Call for help - +3000 Locusts Killed

[Wet Season encounter only] The frogs are as numerous as the locust! This is good, though. They eat the locust. They are eaten by birds. Oh crap, will the birds turn into plague too? Just in case, you pounce around and kill some of the frogs. Who knows. +50 exp, +2000 Locusts Killed awarded automatically

This odd lion is roaring at the sky, and with each roar nearby locust drop to the ground! Leave him be - +1000 Locusts Killed Attack! - Battle with a prophet lion

[Wet Season encounter only] Toads are crawling around, ready to devour the locust. You poke them around, leading to proper direction. +1000 Locusts Killed awarded automatically

A Blue-Bellied Roller bird is leading a family flock somewhere. Inform - 2 outcomes. +600 Locusts Killed if successful, no rewards if you're ignored

This tiny curious weasel is climbing on your fur, neck, and face Play - +2 Karma, +200 Locusts Killed Snarl - -1 Karma, +1 Weasel Pelt

Tchagra birds are flying around, chirping. Growl - +200 Locusts Killed

You jump into the air, surprised by a dashing King Cheetah Cub! It's chasing the locusts with so much focus it didn't even notice you. Chase - +100 Locusts Killed, +200 EXP, -10% Energy Raise Paw - +3% imp Find the Mom - Battle with a cheetah

A Thick-Billed Cuckoo is trying to catch a caterpillar. Bring News - +100 Locusts Killed

This Black Panther, or rather Melanistic Leopard Cub, is pouncing at the jumping locusts. You're not sure if it's alone or if its mother is watching. Join - +100 Locusts Killed Chase - Battle with a black panther

There’s a few locust gathering here. Stomp! - +50 Locusts Killed, +1 Locust Wing

A horde of frogs is also breeding in these optimal conditions. You immediately notice they are thriving on the locust waves. With not much to do, you practice pouncing. +50 EXP awarded automatically

[Wet Season only encounter] It’s raining frogs! The plague is real! TESTIFY! No rewards

[Wet Season only encounter] The locust plague is swarming into your eyes, ears, mouth, nose! This is insane, you roar and run away! No rewards

#lioden #lioden september #pet sim #long post #sorry D:

140 notes · View notes

magnumversum · 3 years ago

Text

Do Unto Others... Season 1 Episode 4: Dirty little secrets cannot be kept well.

Lesson of The Day #1: Do not deceive the foolish.

I said, “I’ve never seen a wolf like you.”

“You haven’t,” Basura replied. “I’m one of a kind.”

“Your name means trash in Tagalog,” I stated. I was somewhat joking, of course. He didn’t seem to understand my sarcastic intonation as well as I did my own. “I know. I’m Filipino.”

“Shut up!” he shouted back. “Just- shut up! Let me think for a moment!”

“Okay,” I muttered. “Okay- I’ll give you space.” Basura wasn’t getting space. I said, “I’ll give you some time,” Basura surely wasn’t getting time. “I’ll give you- whatever you need, really.” He certainly wasn’t getting that from me.

“The wolf clan Dmarani is in shambles- their leader- sorta cuckoo at the moment,” he mumbled, seemingly out of nowhere. “I don’t know exactly what’s going on. Whatever it is- it doesn’t involve me.” For the uninitiated, Basura was an ex-member of the pack. He went cannibalistic a month ago, now barred from entering any wolf pack by The Lupus Evermore Foundation of Trust (LEFT) Pact. Eventually, more and more allegations went out against him, resulting in a one-hundred-and-two hour long trial. Countless witnesses took to the stands against him. His defense attorney, a man named Bill Stafson, was only on the job for a business day at the time. He wasn’t too experienced, and Basura was incarcerated, thrown into human prison. A wolf with human prisoners.

A prisoner shouted, “Look at the little puppy! Welcome home little puppy!” Basura wasn’t welcome. “Look at how cute and tiny and weak he is!”

He muttered, “Weak fool,” Basura looked at the prisoner, then looked at the guard following him closely, then looked back at the prisoner, and said, “Compared to me, you are insignificant,” The prisoner staggered to the floor, the guard crawling away, as Basura shouted, “Compared to me, you are a thick-minded ingrate. Compared to me, you have no worth- no purpose- no meaning- nothing. You are worth nothing in my presence- human. You are a fool- and that’s all you will ever be.” I could hear the emotion draining from his voice. I was the policeman assigned to his cell.

I barked, “Alright you two. Break it up.”

“You cannot tell me what to do,” the prisoner said to me.

I repeated indignantly, “I told you to beat it- scamp.”

The prisoner asked me, “What’re you calling me?” I looked at Basura, then at the prisoner.

“I called you a scamp,” I repeated. “I said, ‘I told you to beat it- scamp.’ That’s what I said.” I stumbled to the ground before him. Looking up at him, I noticed the scars on his leg and across his chest. I saw his eyes, the color of flames, looking down upon me. I saw the tattoo on his palm, as his arm was raised aloft. My eyes shut then, as his clenched fist heaved. My eyes shut tight, as pain jolted up my body then. I was bleeding hurricanes, the intensity of the beating spiraling out of control as he struck me again and again. He struck me again and again. I curled up, as he struck me again and again. He slashed my shoulder, before gutting my side with his fist, and throwing me aside. I couldn’t spar back. I was too numb to even stand. I couldn’t throw my fist, nor raise it for a throw. I felt the blood run down my shoulder like a toxic viper snake. I felt something I hadn’t felt in a long time. I felt weak. I felt stupid.

He whispered, “Fight me you runt,” He nudged my shoulder with his velvet leather boot, saying again, “Fight me.” He knelt. He shouted, “Fight me.”

I mumbled, “I will not fight you,” I looked to Basura, who looked at me as sure as ever. “He will though.” He gave me one final kick.

“This fight is between us,” Basura said to me. “Stay out of it.”

“Yeah,” the man repeated, then looking at Basura. “Stay out of it.” Basura’s tail swept the concrete. The room went as cold as winter. The silence is what I remember past then. The eerie deafening silence. The silence was louder than it ever had been before. Then I remember the two charging violently at each other, the silence broken, the prison erupting in cheers.

The prisoners shouting, “Fight! Fight! Fight!”

The guards shouting, “Fight! Fight! Fight!” And there I was, lying on the floor, pain reeking, emanating inside me. I held back a deafening, piercing shriek. As Basura and the prisoner rolled around in the damp cell, I watched. Bars separated us. I still watched. Then I made a connection. To the prisoner, and to a key character: Keshin De Brosse.

Then I said, “It makes sense now- how the IPBC and Man’s Grudge connect.”

Lesson of The Day #2: Make the connection. It could save your life.

Basura said, “The wolf clan Dmarani is in shambles- their leader- sorta cuckoo at the moment. I don’t know exactly what’s going on. Whatever it is- it doesn’t involve me.”

“I called you here today because I need your help,” I told him. “I’ve gotten into a scuffle with my brother and you might be able to do something about it.”

Basura replied, “I can’t kill him. You know that.”

“You don’t need to kill him,” I explained. “You just have to tell me his secret.”

“Blackmail?” he asked.

“I was thinking of that,” I replied. “But how to threaten if there is no stakes?”

“I see your point,” Basura agreed. “I know a thing or two about his young days. I think he’d sell his company just to make sure this little secret doesn’t get out to the public.”

“What is this little secret?” I questioned.

Basura said quietly, “If I told you, you’d tell everyone else. It wouldn’t be a secret anymore.”

I realized, “You’re trying to anger me. You’re trying to make me mad.” Then I said more. “It’s not working right now. You can’t test me. I know a thing or two about you.”

“Like what-” Basura hissed. “You know nothing.”

I stated, “I know about your previous involvement with my mafia. You worked extensively with my mother in my father’s killing. You sold the wolf skin and ate the meat. Trust me: you have many more dirty little secrets you think you’ve hidden well. Trust me on this too: I know all of them.” I curled back his ear. “Tell me his, or I tell them yours, kapeesh?”

“Yeah, no,” he said reluctantly. “I won’t tell you a damn. What secrets do you know anyway?”

Lesson of The Day #3: Don’t keep a dirty little secret.

0 notes

christiansperka · 3 years ago

Photo

Relax ... ... at the waterhole! Last night I spent two hours bird watching at one of our waterholes. This Warthog was relaxing at the same time while a Red-billed Oxpecker was looking for food on the pig's back. And for the birder's among you here is a list of all the bird species I spotted: Hadeda Ibis, Yellow-fronted Canary, Spotted Thick-knee, Wattled Lapwing, African Pipit, Buchell's Coucal, Pin-tailed Whydah, Croaking Cisticola, Jacobin Cuckoo, Three-banded Plover, Red-billed Oxpecker, Blue Waxbill, Egyptian Goose, Cape Turtle Dove, Cape Glossy Starling, Water Thick-knee, Senegal Lapwing and Barn Swallows. #Christiansperkaphotography @christiansperkaphotography #thandasafari @thandasafari (at Thanda Safari) https://www.instagram.com/p/CXYIJwQqW7g/?utm_medium=tumblr

#christiansperkaphotography #thandasafari

0 notes

perfectirishgifts · 4 years ago

Text

How This Visionary Producer Is Transforming The Theater Podcast Landscape

New Post has been published on https://perfectirishgifts.com/how-this-visionary-producer-is-transforming-the-theater-podcast-landscape/

How This Visionary Producer Is Transforming The Theater Podcast Landscape

“You can’t use up creativity,” said Maya Angelou. “The more you use, the more you have.” Early in her life, someone must have told that to Dori Berinstein. This unstoppable theater, film and TV maker appears to embody creativity. She is an endless font.

Dori Berinstein

Berinstein is a four-time Tony-winning Broadway producer whose credits include The Prom, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Legally Blonde: The Musical, The Crucible, One Flue Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, Fool Moon, Flower Drum Song, Enchanted April and Golden Child.

Oh, and Berinstein is also an Emmy-award-winning director, producer and film and television writer. Most recently, she and Bill Damaschke, who produced The Prom on Broadway, collaborated with Ryan Murphy to adapt the show into a Netflix feature film starring Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, James Cordon, Keegan-Michael Key, Andrew Rannells and Kerry Washington. She also co-produced the Sony Masterworks cast album of the musical Half Time. The show was inspired by her documentary, Gotta Dance, about a group of seniors who make up a hip-hop dance troupe who perform for The New Jersey Nets.

“I love the art of storytelling and believe it’s all about a good story. Whether you’re telling it on stage or screen or in an audio drama or soap opera, I like moving between different worlds and sometimes moving a project throughout different worlds,” says Berinstein who has degrees from Smith, the Kennedy School at Harvard and the Yale School of Drama where she was a visiting scholar focusing on the business of Broadway. After working in strategic planning at Paramount Pictures she joined a tiny emerging independent film company, Vestron Pictures. Within a year, she became head of physical production and ultimately supervised production on the film Dirty Dancing. “What keeps me very excited is being able to collaborate with wonderful people,” she adds.

But if all this isn’t enough, Berinstein is also the co-founder and CEO of the The Broadway Podcast Network which produces over 100 theater podcasts, dramas, musicals and miniseries, like As The Curtain Rises, the delicious new digital soap opera that Berinstein co-wrote with Mark Peikert.

As The Curtain Rises is a dishy comedy that offers listeners a glimpse of the behind the scenes mayhem trying to birth a Broadway show. In this case there’s the challenge of getting Avvatar: The Musical to The Great White Way. Producing shows for 25 years, the drama is inspired by things Berinstein has witnessed along the way. “Our As The Curtain Rises characters are certainly “inspired” by our theater colleagues. In some cases, characteristics are exaggerated. In other instances….not so much!,” says Berinstein. “The behind-the-curtain Broadway world is definitely the perfect setting for a soap opera.”

The multi-part series features a riveting cast including Alex Brightman, Ariana Debose, Andrew Barth Feldman, James Monroe Iglehart, Ramin Karimloo, Ilana Levine, Lesli Margherita, Mauricio Martinez, Bonnie Milligan, Ashley Park, George Salazar, Sarah Stiles and Lillias White. The priceless cameos from Lynn Nottage, Alex Lacamoire, David Korins, Natasha Katz, Matt Britten and Jordan Roth are worth the listen.

Creating and producing As The Curtain Rises during the pandemic was particularly meaningful to Berinstein. “We haven’t been able to produce live theater. Even though it’s tremendously goofy and fun, this took on a whole other level of urgency,” says Berinstein. “It’s important to keep theater alive during this time. And it’s thrilling to work with and pay actors, make people laugh and try to provide some joy.”

Jeryl Brunner: What inspired you to create The Broadway Podcast Network?

Dori Berinstein: I live in Northern Westchester. Pre-Covid-19, I spent a lot of time commuting to and from New York City. I would find myself driving home after seeing theater and would be sitting in my driveway at 1:30am, listening to podcasts because the episode wasn’t over. I was so caught up in it and loved the medium, but having trouble finding theater podcasts. There was no real destination for theater podcasts. Then when I brought the company of The Prom to Google, I met Alan Seales who runs Google Talks. He then invited me to be a guest on his theater podcast. We talked afterward and shared the frustration that we couldn’t find a lot of theater podcasts. We agreed that we had to do something about it and said, “Let’s do it.” We spent ten months building and partnering with a lot of wonderful podcasters who were out there before anyone else like The Ensemblist, The Fabulous Invalid and Broadwaysted.

Brunner: How has the platform gown?

Berinstein: We launched in October, 2019 with 15 podcasts. And here we are, a little over a year later, with almost 100 podcasts. Since the beginning it was very much the plan to have podcasts and record plays, musicals, audio dramas, and soap operas. It was never to replace theater and we certainly never anticipated the pandemic. When you see a show, you want to know more. What is happening behind the curtain? There is so much additive information that we are excited to bring to life. We are in a community filled with amazing storytellers and wanted to help support and give them a voice.

Brunner: What do you hope to offer listeners?

Berinstein: It was very important from the get-go that we create a network that is representative and has many different people from all different aspects of our community. That includes onstage, behind the curtain, looking back in history and education. Having all these different artists and voices is essential, because our community is made up of so many different voices.

There is also a lot of hunger from people interested in getting into the business. So we have podcasts about breaking in and auditioning. We also have podcasts from established producers like Hal Luftig and Eva Price. Kerry Butler has one on breaking into Broadway. Justin Guarini has a podcast about auditioning. They are educational and informative. Then there are pure, goofy, fun, joyous podcasts. It’s exciting to have a lot of star power on the network with podcasts from Tonya Pinkins, Sir Tim Rice and Donna McKechnie. I love hearing those behind-the-curtain stories. It was also important for us to partner with many different regional and international theater companies and the Dramatists Guild, Variety and Playbill. We really want to be a home for everyone.

Brunner: Did you always know this was your path?

Berinstein: From a very early age, I was completely captivated by theater. I saw Carol Channing in Hello Dolly! at the Dorothy Chandler pavilion when I was five years old. And that was it. I was so just transported by that show and the whole experience of live theater. [Berinstein ultimately directed, produced and co-wrote the documentary Carol Channing: Larger Than Life.] My parents would take me to theater all the time. It was just the most thrilling thing. I had no talent. I could not sing. Even though I tried, I never got cast in anything. But I wanted so badly to be part of the world. At my school they didn’t have a student director or even backstage crew. But I still was very captivated by how things came together. In college I triple majored in economics, history and theater and created a special studies program on the business of Broadway. I became voracious about reading absolutely everything I could. So much that I learned about life and important issues came from theater and its power to enlighten and make me think.

Brunner: How did you become a theater producer?

Berinstein: I really wanted to be part of that world, but had no idea how. I didn’t know anybody. Coming from Los Angeles, I was established in film before finding my way into theater. Finally I was introduced to James Freydberg who was producing Broadway shows. We went to the Serious Fun Festival to see a short piece that Bill Irwin and David Shiner put together. I flipped over it. The show was the early stage evolution of Fool Moon. If I knew anything about producing at that point, I probably would have been nervous about producing a show with two guys who don’t speak and a ragtag band, [The Red Clay Ramblers]. It just doesn’t scream hit. But I loved everything about it.

I got thrown into the thick of it right away as a general partner producer. I didn’t even know what that meant. It was an amazing experience in every way. In previews the audience was maybe at 50% capacity. At opening night we had our associate producer stationed at The New York Times a few blocks away. This was before the paper was digital. We were in the Richard Rodgers theater where Hamilton is. At intermission he came running into the house, waiving the newspaper with the most magnificent review by Frank Rich. He wrote, “To that short list of unbeatable combinations that includes bacon and eggs, bourbon and soda, and Laurel and Hardy, you can now add Shiner and Irwin.” From that point on, the show was sold out every night and standing room only. How can you not throw your entire career in that direction after that? I loved standing in the back, listening to the audience laugh so hard and lose themselves in the show.

Brunner: Is there something you look for in a story?

Berinstein: I believe deeply in theater activism and have had the opportunity to lean into and be part of shows that say something important. I have been so fortunate to tell stories that mean something to me and I believe help make the world a better place. It takes years of your life and it’s hard to do. So you better believe in what you’re doing. With Legally Blonde, my daughter was seven. I loved the idea of telling a story that it is very cool to be smart. That message was really important to me to put out there and help inspire young women.

The Prom and Half Time all have messages that are also really important to me. When people experience these shows or listen to the cast album or watch the film adaptation, I hope they can evolve and embrace the message. In the case of The Prom it’s all about acceptance and tolerance. With Half Time, which is a Jerry Mitchell musical that was adapted from a film I made, it is taking on ageism. They also say go for your dreams, no matter what.

Dori Berinstein directed, produced and co-wrote the documentary Carol Channing: Larger Than Life. … [] After Berinstein, as a little girl, saw Channing perform live, Berinstein knew that had to work in theater.

Dori Berinstein interviews Terre Blair Hamslich for the Emmy-award-winning documentary celebrating … [] the life of Marvin Hamlisch.