Partly Cloudy - Hi 69 Lo 48 for Baghdad, Iraq Rain - Hi 65 Lo 37 for Qandahar, Afghanistan Flurries - Hi 26 Lo 21 for Northern KY, USA
Song of the week: Marshmallow World, Music by Peter DeRose, Lyrics by Carl Sigman and Performed by Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra
Ramble:
Saturday morning we woke up to see our first real snow of the season. It took us by surprise as snow wasn't in the forecast. And as usual... folks here in the tri-state area forget how to drive on the white stuff so needless to say there were countless accidents.
Seeing the snow made me think of the song, Marshmallow World--- which made me think of Mark Steyn. Mark Steyn was on Bill Bennett's Morning in America plugging his single (OK... talking politics)... it's too much fun. You can buy the CD here. It is currently sold out at Amazon.com. Anyway, thinking of Mark Steyn singing Marshmallow World made me think of the Rat Pack version... There is no one more cool than Dean Martin--- except of course Frank Sinatra-- The Chairman of the Board. In the video you can see Dean is escorting Frank down the piano keyboard stairs. Then the two men get to there marks in front of the camera and you can see Frank pulling up his socks.... Dean glances down with a "do what you gotta do" look... cracks me up... they make even the mundane look cool.
Sinatra sounds like an American man, or the way American men used to sound, anyway, back in the days when men wore suits and hats, before presidential candidates danced on ladies’ talk shows, before baseball players talked about psychotherapy and—well, you get the idea. In his famous 1966 Esquire piece, Gay Talese wrote that Sinatra was “the embodiment of the fully emancipated male, perhaps the only one in America.” Forty years on, that’s an enviable title indeed. Younger American men know that this older time existed, and though they mock it easily, their mockery is not always easy to distinguish from envy. Especially when they hear something like “Luck Be a Lady,” in which Sinatra sings, with joyfulness but also a hint of threat:
Let’s keep this party polite Never get out of my sight Stick with me baby, I’m the guy that you came in with
They might be reminded of how constricted they are in their dealings with the fairer sex, even as, it seems, all the barriers have come down. Part of Sinatra’s old-style manliness was also about sophistication and knowingness, of course; his up-tempo music (always played by the top hands in the business) exudes a class and refinement that rock, devoted to spirit over craft and rooted despite its best efforts in the adolescent, simply does not possess.
For the November 16 concert all the film stars were there: Frank’s friends: Gregory Peck, Roger Moore, Kirk Douglas, you name them, they were all sitting there, row after row. The most outstanding film stars in the world, all keen to partake in this exciting concert. The lights went down, and in walked her serene highness Grace Kelly, the Grace Kelly from High Society and all the great Hitchcock films. She was a very longtime friend of Frank Sinatra. She came on and began to tell the story of the time when Frank Sinatra visited the set of Mogambo, which was being made in West Africa with Clark Gable and Ava Gardner. She told the story of how, on Christmas Day, Frank came out of the jungle with a cake and a bottle of champagne, singing White Christmas to cheer the crew up. He had gone to West Africa to be near to Ava Gardner; they were having a big romance at the time.
Indeed...
To your health, may you live to be 400 years old, and may the last voice you ever hear be mine! -Frank Sinatra
Sunny - Hi 75 Lo 58 for Baghdad, Iraq Sunny - Hi 81 Lo 45 for Qandahar, Afghanistan Mostly Sunny - Hi 60 Lo 46 for Northern KY, USA
Song of the week: Pretty Vacant, Sex Pistols
Michael was going through some of his old American Spectator magazines and asked me to read an interview Greg Gutfeld had with Johnny Rotten from the Sex Pistols last October. Michael is a good man and knows that I liked them a lot once upon a time... For the music? Yeah... but probably more for the attitude. Rebellion against the establishment? I was 13! Of course not! Rebellion against my mom? Maybe... a little... No it was rebellion because I wanted to be different... unique... blah blah blah... I wanted to stand out... Again, I was a kid... and kids are narcissitic. Listening to this kind of music in my suburban little piece of the world would certainly stir things up. I was 13 when I bought this album (along with the soundtrack to Grease.... shh... don't tell anyone.)
The Sex Pistols only released this one album... I still have it on vinyl, but never replaced it on CD. I'm not sure why... I really should... I need to share it with my oldest niece... She'll hate it... but that's the point. Their music is intended to be repulsive, vulgar, and yes a little frightening. I suppose, like Johnny Rotten, I've also grown up... grown older... wiser (maybe) and I'm not angry like that any longer. When I think of Johnny Rotten, I actually think of him when he was with Public Image, Ltd.... One of my favorite songs when I was an angry teenager was a song called Rise--- the mantra--- "Anger is an energy."
Greg Gutfeld writes,
"When I got the Sex Pistols' debut album nearly 30 years ago, I was only 15 or so, and the LP scared the hell out of me. Johnny Rotten, the lead singer, seemed a street urchin shot straight out of hell's inner circle, and the enormously untalented Sid Vicious appeared nothing more than walking sewage. But that amazing rock record, in a matter of months, changed the way I looked at the world, the notion of "phoniness" or more importantly hippies -- the phoniest people on earth."
I hate hippies... so does Greg... so does Johnny... so there. The entire article can be read here -- A Rotten Affair by Greg Gutfeld
Ramble:
** Ohio's Primary is this Tuesday, so local television and radio have been inundated with commercials... Rush Limbaugh has sent out a request to all Ohioans and Texans to vote for Hillary. And I guess it is now old news but Cincinnati Radio Talk Show host on 700 WLW , Bill Cunningham also made news when he made comments about Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton at a rally for John McCain. John McCain redpudiated and apologized for Willy's comments. Willy Cunningham has been part of Cincinnati radio since I was a little girl... He is an attorney and my earliest memories of him were on Friday nights at my grandparent's home listening to his radio show called Desperate and Dateless... He would take calls from single men and women and play match maker... the show was a scream. Very very funny.
Mr. Cunningham is still on 700 WLW and he is a conservative talk show radio host. He is intelligent and passionate, but first and foremost he is an entertainer-- he will say outrageous things. . that is what some talk radio is about... His ratings drop... WLW drops him...
Understand... we in Cincinnati are used to him... He is like the uncle everyone has. At Thanksgiving, he does something embarassing... and everyone just dismisses it... and says... "oh... that's just Uncle Charlie..." And despite the "hey pull my finger" antics, we still love him...
With that said, Willy was asked to warm up a crowd for John McCain-- he was asked to "give 'em some red meat... . He says the same sort of things on his radio show. Willy is not racist. He is not a bigot. Never has been... never will be. Willy always refers to folks using their full name. Always.
That is where I stop defending him. I am a believer in decorum and pomp and circumstance. For instance, I believe one should dress in a shirt and tie for church, for a wedding, a funeral, a graduation out of respect for the person, for the ceremony. Despite being told to give the crowd "red meat" Willy should have thought about his choice of words. Words do matter. On his radio program the words he chose would have been and are fine. However, this past week, he was asked to warm up a crowd for a man who could one day be the President of the United States. The President of the United States... Every four years we as Americans make a decision and PEACEFULLY turn over keys to someone different... This office has been held by a small fraternity of only 43 men... men such as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, and our beloved Ronald Reagan. The Office of the Presidency is the highest in our land... We didn't like it when it was defiled by Richard Nixon or Bill Clinton- but the office prevails... our government works... John McCain wants to run his campaign in a respectful manner (not to be confused with consistent-- I.E. McCain's treatment of Donald Rumsfeld). Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton also have the same chance of winning the highest office in the land and despite the vast differences in politics, philosophy and moral standards, they too are entitled to the same respect. To be disrespectful is inexcusable....
Yes, of course John McCain's handlers should have been more cognizant of the what Bill Cunningham was all about... but ultimately, Willy should have known better... and truth be told... his reaction to the criticism shows that it was never about McCain. It has been about Willy and his ego... the fact that he is now going to vote for Hillary... well... that confirms my point.
** Shame on Matt Drudge for leaking the story about Prince Harry.... Had it been a liberal media leak... conservatives would have beeen outraged... Prince Harry follows a long tradition in British Royalty. He loves his country and wants to serve her. Leaking this story, put his life at risk as well as the men serving with and for him...
** We lost an incredible mind this week with the passing of William F. Buckley Jr. Michael has subscribed to National Review for nearly 20 years… For the longest time NR was the sole source for conservative thought and reason… I actually learned of his passing when I visited Laura. Reading her brief post literally knocked the wind out of me. More from Laura here and here.
*** interviews below include profane language. View at your discretion.
Johnny Rotten interview 1977
Johnny Lydon & Steve Jones 2006 - Craig Ferguson -- always a fun interview
Johnny Lydon interview 2007
Pretty Vacant
There's no point in asking you'll get no reply Oh just remember I don't decide I got no reason it's too all much You'll always find us out to lunch
Oh we're so pretty Oh so pretty we're vacant Oh we're so pretty Oh so pretty A vacant
Don't ask us to attend 'cos we're not all there Oh don't pretend 'cos I don't care I don't believe illusions 'cos too much is real So stop you're cheap comment 'cos we know what we feel
Oh we're so pretty Oh so pretty we're vacant Oh we're so pretty Oh so pretty we're vacant Ah but now and we don't care
There's no point in asking you'll get no reply Oh just remember a don't decide I got no reason it's too all much You'll always find me out to lunch We're out on lunch
Oh we're so pretty Oh so pretty we're vacant Oh we're so pretty Oh so pretty we're vacant Oh we're so pretty Oh so pretty ah But now and we don't care
We're pretty A pretty vacant We're pretty A pretty vacant We're pretty A pretty vacant We're pretty A pretty vacant
Saturday morning we woke up to see our first real snow of the season. It took us by surprise as snow wasn't in the forecast. And as usual... folks here in the tri-state area forget how to drive on the white stuff so needless to say there were countless accidents.
Oh how the world has changed...
