The Zelenskyy Method

Last week, I wrote about the impending Russian invasion of Ukraine.

This week, I am writing about the actual Russian invasion of Ukraine. 

Last week's post about Putin's motivations for invading Ukraine was a bit tongue in cheek: 

1. Ukraine is right there next to Russia.
2. Vladimir Putin wants to invade it.
3. There is no point three.

It is astonishing how many things I've read from people who are presumably knowledgeable about such things and are paid to write about them have reach the same conclusion: it's there and Putin wants to.

This is a serious as shit full on military invasion of a sovereign nation by an aggressor with tanks, soldiers and aerial bombings from planes and rockets. Hundreds have been killed, thousands have been injured, there are burning buildings with holes in the side of them. 

Vladimir Putin is not fucking around.

The main objective seems to be to close in on the capital city of Kyiv, depose the Ukrainian president so Putin can install a puppet leader to do his bidding.

Which means out of this massive invasion, one person in particular had a target on his back: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

When given an opportunity by the United States to be safely extricated from Ukraine, Zelenskyy turned the offer down, saying “The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride."

Damn, that's ballsy. 

Zelenskyy is facing a very real threat to his personal safety even as he remains defiant of Russian aggression.

“I am here. We are not putting down arms. We will be defending our country, because our weapon is truth, and our truth is that this is our land, our country, our children, and we will defend all of this."  

The political journey of Volodymyr Zelenskyy is a bit unusual.

 Like most politicians, he studied law in college. 

Unlike most politicians, he went from law school to a career as an actor and a comedian.  

Zelenskyy became one of Ukraine’s top entertainers with the TV series “Servant of the People" about a lovable high school teacher fed up with corruption and accidentally becomes president.

Fast forward just a few years, and Zelenskyy is the president of Ukraine for real.

And now he's engaged in guerrilla warfare against the Russian invasion, exhibiting courage, good humor and grace under fire that has rallied his people and impressed his Western counterparts.  

Most of the world is outraged over Putin's actions and see his act of war against a democratic nation as an affront to civilized society. 

Well, except Donald Trump who still stands by his assertion that Putin is a genius and his snivelling sycophants on Fox News like Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity who twist their messaging to Trump's whims. 

To anyone else with a shred of decency and a conscience, Putin is the bad guy here and Zelenskyy is the good guy, representing his nation as resilient and unbowed in the face of Russian aggression. 

Under the heading of "It's the least we can do",  some stores in the United States and Canada will not be selling Russian-made liquor in response to Putin's invasion of Ukraine.  

And the Simpson are showing their support by displaying Ukraine's flag.

Cinema Sunday: My Cousin Rachel

 

Today's Cinema Sunday involves a bit of an experiment and it's about the way I see a lot of movies.

Over my life, I've seen a lot of movies, hence this weekly feature on my blog wherein I talk about them.

I would like to say that I approach movie watching with a planned reverence as I retire to the drawing room of my Fortress of Ineptitude, comfortable in my dressing gown and my favorite pair of slippers with a hot cup of tea and some buttered scones to enjoy a movie uninterrupted from beginning to end.

I would like to say that... but I can't.  

Most movies I watch as I can and frequently not in the right order.  

For example, while I have seen Apollo 13 a half dozen times, I have never seen Apollo 13 at one time from beginning to end in order. In bits and pieces, here and there over the years, I have managed to see the whole movie. 

Unlike the movie for today's post.  

Today I am going to write about a movie that I've seen only the last 8 minutes of.  

It was during my lunch break and I was flipping around the channels and landed on TCM or FXM which was showing a movie called My Cousin Rachel, a black and white film set in the Victorian era. The channel guide timer said there was 8 minutes to go so why the hell not? 

Here is the cast:

• Some Dude
• Some Woman 
• Some Other Woman 

Everyone is all properly dressed for the era in a backyard garden patio for tea. Some Woman is really working hard to get Some Dude to drink a cup of tea she just poured and Some Dude is not having it. He's genre savvy enough to realize that no one ever pushes you that hard to drink a cup of tea unless it's poisoned. 

Some Woman decides now would be a good time to promenade about the grounds. After she leaves, Some Dude tells Some Other Woman to go inside the house to look for shit that will prove Some Woman is a stone cold killer bitch. 

While Some Woman wonders about her garden on a path that takes her by a cliff side overlooking a rocky gorge, Some Dude and Some Other Woman are tossing the house when they find something that shows Some Woman is NOT a stone cold killer bitch but may be in trouble. 

Some Dude rushes out of the house calling "Darling!" 

What the hell? Just 2 damn minutes ago, Some Dude thought Some Woman was a stone cold killer bitch poisoning his tea and now... "Darling"?   

Some Dude finds Some Woman at the bottom of the cliff, all banged up on the rocks. He rushes down only for her to say "How... could you" and dies.

"How could you"? How could he what? 

Next we see Some Dude sitting on a rock by the ocean, bundled up in a cape like he's frigging Batman brooding on a rooftop and we reach.... "THE END". 

Which is what I get for watching only the last 8 damn minutes of a movie. 

To the Wikipedia?

TO THE WIKIPEDIA!!!!

My Cousin Rachel is a 1952 American mystery romance film directed by Henry Koster and starring Olivia de Havilland, Richard Burton and Audrey Dalton.. The film is based on the 1951 novel of the same name by Daphne du Maurier.

A Daphne du Maurier novel? Well, that explains all the angst and drama going on.  

After the death of some rich dude named Ambrose, Philip (Some Dude) suspects Rachel (Some Woman) of murder and vows revenge. Per the plot synopsis, Phillip and Rachel spend the bulk of the movie fucking each other over through various mind screws, just being selfish loathsome people and general fuckery. 

Which brings us to the last 8 minutes of the movie where I came in.  Philip is convinced Rachel is attempting to poison him and that she murdered Ambrose.  He is so pissed at  Rachel that he neglects to warn her about a foot bridge in need of repair at the edge of the estate. Which is how she fell into the rocky gorge and her dying "How could you" was condemnation of Philip's poor foot bridge maintenance? 

OK, so do I care enough about this movie enough to actually find it again somewhere and watch the other parts? 

Probably out of morbid curiosity I suppose. It would be frustrating to watch it from the beginning knowing there is an unrepaired foot bridge in Rachel's future. 

Andrea likes Daphne du Maurier novels so that might be an excuse.  

Watching movies in bits and pieces and not in the right order is a very odd way of watching movies. 

Watching only the last 8 minutes of My Cousin Rachel made for a odd experience but based on my research, I think I may have caught the best part of the movie. 

Songs For Satuday: Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Girl Blue and ELO

 

Today the theme for Songs For Saturday is "blue".

Starting off the play list this week is "Jackie Blue" by the Ozark Mountain Daredevils.

That's Larry Lee drumming and singing lead on this track.

After listening to this song for many, many years, I'm only now finding out the lead vocalist on "Jackie Blue" is not a woman.

OK, the blue theme continues but we move from song title to group name. Here is Girl Blue with "Fire Under Water".    

Finishing things off is my favoritest live version of "Mr. Blue Sky' by ELO.

I hope you enjoyed today's play list. 

Unless I completely "blue" it.

...

Sorry about that.

 

Until next time, remember to be good to another and to always keep the music alive.    

FLASHBACK FRIDAY: No Vaccine For Stupidity or Fear

My recent test for COVID-19 is a cogent reminder that the pandemic is still a thing. The reason it is still a thing is resistance to certain steps to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus and it's variants such as social distancing, wearing masks and taking the damn vaccine.

Not wanting to take vaccines is not a new problem and even before the current pandemic was an issue of some contention.

This week's Flashback Friday takes us back to Friday, February 6, 2015 to a post called.....

No Vaccine For Stupidity or Fear

So here we are in the 21st century and there appears to be a debate about vaccines. It seems the stupidity of the few is causing headaches for the many as the paranoia about vaccinating our children has caused not unexpectedly dire results. An outbreak of measles at Disneyland in California is an example of the negative side of not getting children their vaccinations. 

I'm not saying we should all be in blind lockstep behind whatever the government would have us do with no questions at all. But vaccines have been proven to work. Childhood diseases that used to kill children were at least contained or all but eliminated thanks to the development of vaccines and the effective schedules for providing those vaccines. 

What has not been proven is the fear that vaccines cause other problems in children such as autism. This is fear mongering promulgated by the internet and endorsed by celebrities and politicians. Any links between vaccines and the impairment of childhood development is at best circumstantial. 

Medical practitioners are pretty much in agreement that vaccines work. Most regular people are of a similar mindset. But enough of a subset of people who are slaves to stupidity and fear are jeopardizing everybody else. And if that doesn't sound familiar, let me point you in the direction of politics for the last 15 years or so. 

It's no coincidence that it's GOP politicians who are stumbling over this issue. Why? Because there are enough of these nut cases back in their home districts that put them into power in the first place who will eat up yet another message of liberal government overreach. It's another grab at your freedom by a US government out of control. You should have the freedom to decide if your kids get vaccinated or not. The government shouldn't be telling you what to do. 

The problem of playing the "get government off your back" card on this issue is that the lives of children are at stake as well as the health and safety of the general public. Protecting health and safety is something the government is supposed to be there for. You know, it's right there in the preamble to Constitution: "promote the general welfare".  

Off the subject of the vaccines but in sort of the same vein, the junior Senator from North Carolina, Thom Tillis, used the requirement in restaurants that all employees must wash their hands as an example of government overregulation and overreach. Really! Thom's bright idea is to only require restaurants to post signs if they don't require employees to wash their hands and the market place will take care of the rest. Really really! 

I'm not sure how the regulation of requiring employees to wash their hands is hampering American business other than it costs money for soap, paper towels, water and whatever cost there is for printing a flyer that says all employees must wash their hands. It seems to me that whatever costs or inconveniences that are caused by such a regulation are greatly outweighed by the greater mission of protecting the health of restaurant patrons and employees. And what about the lost revenue when a restaurant has to shut down due to an outbreak of Hepatitis B and the subsequent damage to that establishment's reputation and further lost revenues as a result?  

Bringing this back around to vaccines, I think part of the problem is we've become so myopic to our own needs that we forget there is a world around us that can be affected by what we do or say. Sometimes there are things we do that don't help us individually as much as it protects others in our communities. 

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush who may be running for the GOP's presidential nomination told a gathering in Detroit that people should get vaccinated. No further discussion, no elaboration. To Bush, it was a simple answer to a needlessly complex problem. But for those who feel otherwise, small in number but virulent in nature, further discussion would be a waste of time. After all, there is no vaccine for stupidity or fear. 

Y'all be good to one another. 

The Uncle From Nowhere

 As we found out yesterday, I do not have COVID but I'm still not feeling well so I'm chilling at the Fortress of Ineptitude instead of going to work here at the Fortress of Ineptitude. It marks the first time I've called in sick since I've started this new job in January 2021.

I mentioned I took the COVID test although I have had both doses of the vaccine and the booster shot and I stay the hell away from people and when I can't I wear a mask. 

I understand that all of the above does not make me invulnerable to COVID, it just mitigates my risks for getting it.

But recently there was an odd and most unexpected event here are the Fortress of Ineptitude that punched a hole in my defenses.  

A visit from my Uncle John.

On my dad's side of the family, everyone is dead except John.  

One weekday morning there was a ring of the doorbell and a persistent knock at the front door. I was at work on the phone with a client.  Andrea just happened to be on a break and answered the door.

I could hear from outside a man's voice saying my full name and asking if I lived here. 

Side note: Jeez! Are the cops after me?

Side note to the side note:  Why would cops be after me?

I asked my client to hold a moment and I went to see what this was about and there was my Uncle John.

Some family history. 

I am not the first person in my family to go to college and graduate. That honor belongs to Uncle John. 

I am the first person in my family to go to college, graduate and stay the hell out of college. 

John went back several times, always in pursuit of some new goal or scheme. He was like Homer Simpson with a new "life long dream" every dozen episodes or so. 

And now there he was inexplicably standing on the doorstep of my Fortress of Ineptitude.

Apparently he had been searching for me for nearly a year.

Side note: I am not hiding. 

Now the whole situation is awkward as hell and there's nothing in my brain that's telling me how to deal with this. It was one of those days when were in the middle of a bitter cold snap and I couldn't very well just leave his goofy smiling maskless face in the freezing winter air.  

Side note: all the men in my dad's side of the family look goofy when they smile.  

But he didn't just find me at my home but at my place of employment. I had a client to get back to and Andrea had to get back to work. 

I invited him in as I got back to my work while he stood awkwardly in the entry way.  I finished up the call I was on and took a moment to speak with uncle. 

He explained after the recent death of his sister, my Aunt Laura, he decided he would renew his efforts to find me, to reconnect with what's left of the family. 

Side note: maybe I should've been hiding.  I'm not big on reconnecting with my dad's side of the family.  It's a long story and not one I'm inclined to go into here. 

I explained I had to get back to work so we exchanged contact info and promised to keep in touch. 

Then my maskless uncle shook my hand like 2020 never happened and left.

Then this weekend when my sinus infection symptoms were mirroring COVID symptoms, I was not as inclined to dismiss it as a coincidence when the possibility occurred to me that my sonuvabitch uncle gave me COVID.

No, he did not. 

Nonetheless...

That whole visit was just weird. Or is it just me?

Uncle Fester from the Addams Family 
and NOT my Uncle John
But add some white hair and it would come close

Yes We Have No COVID Today!

 Yes, we have no COVID today! 

And I know this because I was tested and the test came back negative.

Yes, we have no COVID today! 

So why pray tell did I get a COVID test?

Because I was coming down with a sinus infection.

I am no stranger to the sinus infection with its onset of aches, fever, chills, coughs, sore throat ad nauseum.

And if those symptoms of a sinus infection seem familiar, well they are on the same list of symptoms for COVID-19.

I tried to push through work on Tuesday but the litany of aches, fever, chills, coughs, sore throat etc etc etc  kept screaming at me that this just wasn't happening. 

I conferred with my boss who told me to get tested.

I conferred with my wife Andrea who is afraid of everything and told me to get tested.

I conferred with myself and after nearly 6 decades on this friggin' mudball, I damn well know a sinus infection when I feel it coming on but damn, even after getting both doses of the vaccine and the booster shot and never going anywhere without a mask, it would be my luck this would something else so I told myself to get tested. 

I scheduled a test with a local pharmacy for Tuesday afternoon and less than 2 hours later, I got a text that my results were... negative.

Negative? Negative is bad, right? 

I'm gonna die from COVID! 

No, negative is good and that means...

Yes, we have no COVID today! 

Wrapping up today's post is Spike Jonze with "Yes, We Have No Bananas".

Tuesday TV Touchbase Part 2: Peacemaker and Justified

 

Trying to define what kind of show Peacemaker is makes for an nigh impossible task. Peacemaker is at one time a show that is funny, sad, stupid, tragic.

Or to put it in the language of the show, "You can't put Peacemaker in a motherfuckin' box!" 

The iconic opening credit sequence with the absurd dance number suggests a broad satire. 

Then over the course of the series, characters in that dance number die.  

Going into the 8th and final episode of the season, I wondered how many of them would still be alive when all this was over.

Show creator and writer James Gunn is not known for playing by the rules and so no one should expect to be safe just because they're in the opening credits dance number. 

The final battle of Peacemaker and his team against the alien butterflies and their cow is epic, bloody, profane, obscene and so on and so on and so on.  

Much to my surprise, the season ends on a rather hopeful note with more people alive that I anticipated. 

I just knew Harcourt, Economos and Chase were going to die but although they got hurt real bad, they do survive even as Harcourt has to undergo grueling physical therapy to walk again.  

Leota Adebayo make amends with Peacemaker and then puts the screws to her mom Amanda Waller by exposing Project Butterfly, Task Force X, and Waller's role in both to the press, clearing Peacemaker's name.  Leota started off the series so uncertain of herself but she now knows what she is capable of and is a force not to be fucked with.

Peacemaker killed his racist and abusive father Auggie last episode but is hanging around a ghost haunting Peacemaker's psyche. 

Peacemaker has been renewed for a 2nd season with James Gunn at the helm.

______________________________________

This past Sunday, I watched the series finale of Justified.  

Here is some of what I wrote on this blog on November 10, 2020 after I watched my first episode of Justified.

"Timothy Olyphant portrays Raylan Givens, a deputy U.S. Marshal with a laconic, tough demeanor. Givens is a throwback to an earlier era, a dispenser of 19th-century-style, Old West justice.  It is a style that makes him a pain in the ass to his superiors in U.S. Marshals Service... Reassigned to the Eastern District of Kentucky Marshal's Office based in Lexington and Givens is not all that happy about the move as it sends him back to Harlan County where Raylan grew up and hoped to hell he would  never have to go back. 

Givens immediately has work to do, running to ground one Boyd Crowder, a former acquaintance of Raylan's youth and now a local criminal."  

From day one of Given's reluctant return to Harlan County, Kentucky, it was a matter of destiny that the interaction between the US Marshall and his would be criminal mastermind adversary would end in tragedy and blood shed. 

Surprisingly, there is less death than anticipated. Despite putting herself in the crosshairs of Boyd Crowder, crime boss Avery Markham and the entire US Marshal Service AND the FBI, Ava Crowder survives the end of the series.

I just knew Boyd was going to end his criminal career bleeding out on the cold hard ground after being shot by Raylan Givens. Nope, Raylan has a chance to put a bullet in him but arrests him instead. Well, they did dig coal together when they were younger men and that's gotta count for something. 

I knew Raylan would be OK since Timothy Olyphant is bringing back the character for a sequel series but I was a little worried when Markham's hired gun Boon actually gets the drop on Raylan. Thankfully, it's just a head wound that was hindered by Raylan's hat.  

Boon and Markham do die so there's that.  

So I'm done with Justified after a year and half and I'm not sure what I'm going to do without my Timothy Olyphant fix. 

I should point out that my interest in watching Justified began with The Good Place and Judge Hydrogen's obsession with watching this show and Olyphant's guest appearance as a hybrid version of himself and of his Raylan Givens character.

When some things end, other things begin.  Next week, the Touchbase looks at the debut of the new season of the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and the debut of the return of the original Law & Order.

Until next time, remember to be good to one another and try to keep it down in there, would ya? I'm trying to watch TV over here. 

Tuesday TV Touchbase Part 1: Jeopardy National College Championship

The original intent of today's Tuesday TV Touchbase was to focus on Peacemaker and Justified as they both reached the end of their respective journeys but I feel compelled to address the Jeopardy National College Championship and the unfortunate end of another television journey.

Alas and farewell to Isaac Applebaum.

In the past, the syndicated version of Jeopardy has represented tournaments with the following format:

• 5 quarter final games with 15 players with 5 winners and 4 wild cards (the highest earning non-winners) advancing to...
• 3 semi final games with 3 winners advancing to...
• 2 final game to produce 1 champion.

It was a format developed in part by former host Alex Trebek.

The format for the primetime Jeopardy college tournament was a monument to bloated excess. 

• 12 (yes, twelve) quarter final games with 36 players with 12 winners advancing to....
• 4 semi final games with 3 winners advancing to...
• 2 final games to produce 1 champion.

Have you spotted the flaw in the math?

Someone who actually won a semi final game would not get to advance to the finals. The lowest earner of the 4 semi-final winners would not get to advance to the finals.  

Isaac Applebaum, semi final Jeopardy champion, did not advance to the finals.

I think I detect the lingering stench of disgraced former producer and erstwhile host Mike Richards who probably participated in the negotiation with ABC to deliver X amount of hours of prime time programming.  

Leaving the gang left behind to sort through this mess as best they can.  

The Jeopardy National College Championship was too long and was a slog to get through which Mayam Bialik's normally joyous charms did little to mitigate.

Andrea and I are big fans of Jeopardy and we never miss an episode. But at the end of this tournament, damn! We were exhausted.  

Speaking of Mayam, while I've been on team Ken Jennings from day one to take on the hosting gig, I've also been on board if Mayim Bialik got the host job on the regular.

But with Ken's return to the podium on the regular show and with Mayim hosting the prime time show at the same time, seeing the two immediately contrasted, I in the camp that Ken's easy going manner is more consistent with the whole Jeopardy vibe as opposed to Mayim's overly enthusiastic energy.  

OK, coming up later today is Tuesday TV Touchbase Part 2 where I will pontificate on the end of Peacemaker season 1 and the long awaited conclusion of my Justified watch project.  

Insane in the Ukraine or Russian To Judgement

There are various complex geo-political reasons why Russia is threatening to invade Ukraine but I'm going to give it a go by distilling the whole matter down to 3 salient points.

1. Ukraine is right there next to Russia.
2. Vladimir Putin wants to invade it.
3. There is no point three.

OK, that's maybe a bit too simplistic but not by much.

Putin wants power for power's sake. He holds on to that power by being a tough ass son of a bitch and not by actually doing anything for the Russian people.

Life in Russia sucks. It's always cold, everything is a muted grey tone. The only thing to eat are beets and beets suck and are only good for making vodka.

Putin can't do anything about the cold and the grey and the beets. He can't make life better so he can only resort to be a tough ass son of a bitch to hold on to power. 

One great way to be a tough ass son of a bitch is to invade another country. And Ukraine is just right there. 

And Putin's in the mind set that technically Ukraine is not really another country but a part of Russia that wandered off.  Ukraine used to be part of the old Soviet Union. 

Putin also likes to think that Russia is still a major player in the world like in the old Soviet Union days.  

Putin would like to make this Simpsons clip come to life.

So Putin wants to look like a tough ass son of a bitch by threatening to invade another country. Which would be Ukraine. Which is just right there.

To be fair, Putin has given the United States and NATO a way to keep Russia from invading Ukraine.

Do not make Ukraine a member of NATO.

Now here is an interesting point: guess who else does NOT want Ukraine joining NATO?

The United States and NATO!

There are various complex geo-political reasons why the United States and NATO do not want Ukraine to join NATO but I'm going to give it a go by distilling the whole matter down to 3 salient points.

1. Ukraine is right there next to Russia.
2. Vladimir Putin wants to invade it.
3. There is no point three.

Maybe I do need to elaborate a bit.

Member nations of NATO have a pact that an attack on any one nation in NATO is an attack on all of them. Ukraine is trying really hard to be a good little nation but damn, Russia is always in the neighborhood causing trouble and NATO don't have time for that bullshit. 

BUT...

The United States and NATO can't have Putin dictating terms on whether or not Ukraine can play or not. Forcing NATO to stand up and fight for the right to not do what Russia wants us to not do and not do it because Russia is telling us to not do it.

So have we got this straight yet?

United States: We don't want Ukraine to join NATO.

Russia: We will invade Ukraine if you do not agree that Ukraine cannot join NATO.

Ukraine: Can't we just be left the fuck alone already?

Just a couple of years ago, Ukraine had to deal with Rudy Giuliani poking around looking for dirt on Hunter Biden and Hillary Clinton's emails and some shit. Hasn't Ukraine suffered enough?

Speaking of right wing nut jobs, guess where the right wing media pundits are falling in this whole Russia/Ukraine dust up?

Tucker Carlson wonders what the big deal is and why we can't just see Russia's side of this.  

Other pundits seen the consternation of Russia invading a country with a democracy has just a lot of hoo-hah being stirred by President Joe Biden to distract us from inflation and high gas prices. 

What ever happened to trying to support democracies who are under attack from aggressor nations?

Anyway, the people in Ukraine are scared to death of what is going to happen next as Russia keeps tightening the noose around Ukraine's borders. 

And as far as Ulkrainians who are just trying to mind their own damn business and just live their lives, it's a threat that has nothing to do with them and yet their very lives are on the line.

By the time this posts, Russians tanks and soldiers may pouring over the border in Ukraine, ostensibly only because Putin wants to. 

Cinema Sunday: Rock 'n' Roll High School

 

Today's Cinema Sunday takes a look at movie that I happened to catch one very late weekend night a few months back. 

It was 2:00 AM and trust me, Rock 'n' Roll High School should not be viewed any earlier than that. 

Made in 1979, Rock 'n' Roll High School is Vince Lombardi High School which keeps losing principals to nervous breakdowns because of the kids don't need no education when it's all about the rock 'n' roll, man! 

Yes, rock 'n' roll is destroying America's youth! Will someone please think about the children?!?!

Yes, this movie was made in 1979 and not 1959.  

The rebellious leader of the rebellious students is rebellious Riff Randell (P. J. Soles) who likes the Ramones. 

Like really, really, really likes the Ramones. 

These Ramones. 

Riff eats, breathes and sweats through her pores the Ramones.

She's written a song for the Ramones.

Riff wants....nay, NEEDS to get this song to the Ramones! 

Meanwhile, Principal Togar has other ideas. No mental breakdowns for her. She's going to show this so-called "Rock 'n' Roll High School" who's boss! Rock 'n' roll is a poison and Togar is going to beat this rock 'n' roll poison out of these rock 'n' roll rascals until morale improves. 

Riff and the students have their own plans 'cause rock 'n' roll is where it's at man and rock 'n' roll will live forever at Rock 'n' Roll High School.

At least until the rebellious rock 'n' roll rebels with help from the Ramones blow up the damn school and Togar descends into a burbling puddle of madness.

Oh hell! Another principal lost to mental breakdown thanks to the pernicious poison of rock 'n' roll!!!

 

The old school, Z-grade quality of this film is no accident.  Roger Corman, schlockmeister of the 1950's and '60's was looking to make a throw back to his classic films of teenage rebellion. 

Originally, the movie was going to be called "Disco High" but wiser and groovier heads prevailed and Rock 'n' Roll High School was born.  

Fun fact: the burning down of the school in the finale is an actual burning down of a school.  The actual scheduled demolition of Mount Carmel High School in South Central Los Angeles is used as the destruction of Vince Lombardi High. 

The "Are You a Narc? You Have To Tell Me If You're a Cop" Dept:

In the role of rebellious Ramone lovin' rocker Riff Randell, actor P J Soles was just under 30 years old when she made Rock 'n' Roll High School.  

 The "It's That Person Who Was In That Thing" Dept:  

• As Eaglebauer, yep, that's Clint Howard, brother of Ron Howard and character actor with a crap ton of "that guy who was in that thing" roles such as Star Trek, Apollo 13, Austin Powers and many, many more.   
• The police chief is Dick Miller who has a lot of "that guy who was in that thing" roles in Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Police Squad!, The Terminator, It Conquered the World, The Little Shop of Horrors (the original Roger Corman version), Amazon Women on the Moon and  Gremlins.

Also disc jockey Screamin' Steve Stevens is actual legendary Los Angeles DJ "The Real Don Steele". 

Rock 'n' Roll High School is a strange fever dream of a movie, unmoored from any semblance of coherence and logic. 

In other words, perfect for Friday night at 2:00 AM. 

Songs For Saturday: The Presidents of the United States of America and a Special Guest Star!

 

Monday is President's Day so here on Songs For Saturday, we're turning today's play list over to the band The Presidents of the United States of America.

Starting things off is their ode to classic canned fruit, "Peaches".

This song contains one of favorite music lyrics ever:

"peaches come in a can

they were put there by a man

in a factory

downtown!"  

Pure poetry, my friends.

Up next is the most well known song by the Presidents of the United States of America called "Lump".  

And now our special guest star, here is "Weird Al" Yankovic with this parody of "Lump" called "Gump".

And that is that for today's playlist.

Until next time, remember

1) to be good to one another

2) always keep the music alive

3) peaches come in a can.  

FLASHBACK FRIDAY: Adventures of the Fightin' Five!

Today's FLASHBACK FRIDAY jumps back in time to Tuesday, January 27, 2015 for this totally random post:

Adventures of the Fightin' Five!

The following is the fault of Aaron Meyers because....well, he started it with this post: 

Which prompted these tweets from your's truly:  

Dave-El ‏@DayWayLo 2h2 hours ago
@AaronMeyers "The Monster From the Abyss" Thrill to the adventure as the Fightin' Five battles James Cameron!"

Dave-El ‏@DayWayLo 2h2 hours ago

@AaronMeyers "Hey can I join?" "No we're the Fightin' Five" "But I have ninja skills, a laser gun, I can lift 10 times-" "I said FIVE kid!"

Since I am known never to let a good idea go to waste...or a bad idea for that matter....

_____________________________________________

Fate has brought together FIVE extraordinary men! 

• Hank Hennesey
• Tom-Tom
• Irv the Nerve Haganah
• Frenchy the Fox
• Granite Gallero

Combined they form the heart of America's Super Squad! They are...

THE FIGHTIN' FIVE! 

THE FIGHTIN' FIVE! 

THE FIGHTIN' FIVE! 

THE FIGHTIN' FIVE! 

THE FIGHTIN' FIVE! 

_________________________________________

 

One day at the world famous HQ of the Fightin’ Five, a young man approaches the desk of Hank Hennesey who looks up to greet this visitor.

 

Hank: Yes, young man, how may I help you?

Bruce: Hello, Mr. Hennesey. My name is Bruce and I would like to join the Fightin’ Five!

Hank: You would like to join the Fightin’ Five?

Bruce: Yes, sir!

Hank: But you can’t join the Fightin’ Five!

Bruce: But I have considerable skills that I believe would aid you in your fight against injustice & evil!

Hank: It doesn’t matter. You can’t join the Fightin’ Five!

Bruce: Why not, sir?

Hank: Because we are the Fightin’ Five!

Bruce: And…?

Hank: So you understand why you can’t join the Fighin’ Five!

Bruce: No, sir, I don’t.

Hank: Sigh! Look, there are FIVE of us!

Bruce: And…?

Hank: And if we let you join, there would be SIX!

Bruce: But…

Hank: We can’t be the Fightin’ Five if there are SIX of us, now can we?

Bruce: But…

Hank: I mean, if we call ourselves the Fightin’ Five and there’s SIX of us, we would have no credibility.

Bruce: So call yourselves the Fightin’ Six.

Hank: The FIGHTIN’ SIX?! What sort of nonsense is that, the Fightin’ Six!

Bruce: Well…

Hank: You lose the whole alliterative quality of the Fightin’ Five!

Irv: Hey, Hank! What’s up?

Hank: This kid wants to join the Fightin’ Five!

Irv: WHAT? He can’t join the Fightin’ Five!

Hank: I know!

Irv: We can’t have six of us if we’re the Fighin’ Five!

Bruce: What’s wrong with the Fightin’ Six?

Irv: Of all the stupid…

Hank: He says he has certain skills.

Irv: Understanding the importance of alliteration is not one of them.

Tom-Tom: Hello, everybody!

Frenchy: Bonjour!

Granite: Uh, hi.

Tom-Tom: Who’s the kid?

Bruce: My name is Bruce.

Tom-Tom: Bruce, huh?

Hank: He wants to join the Fightin’ Five!

Tom-Tom: No way!

Frenchy: Non!

Granite: Uh, how come he can’t?

Irv: If we let him join, there would be six of us.

Tom-Tom: That would undermine our credibility.

Hank: Not to mention ruin that whole alliterative image we’ve established.

Frenchy: Oui!

Granite: Uh, but what can he do?

Irv: Does it matter?

Tom-Tom: Well, maybe we should hear him out.

Hank: Sigh! OK, fine! Kid, what can you do?

Bruce: I have mastered all fighting styles from boxing to the martial arts.

Irv: OK, what else?

Bruce: I am also an accomplished aerialist. I can traverse great distances and heights using a wide range of acrobatic skills.

Tom-Tom: That’s kind of cool.

Bruce: I also have developed and conditioned my mind to make me a top flight scientist, detective and engineer!

Granite: Uh, that’s pretty smart.

Bruce: I have created an armory of non-lethal but very effective weaponry.

Frenchy: Mon dieu!

Bruce: And whatever I can’t handle with my physical or mental abilities, I have an absurd amount of wealth to buy whatever I need.

Tom-Tom: Whew! I have to admit, that’s pretty amazing!

Irv: I gotta say, Hank, he would make a very valuable asset to the team.

Hank: Yeah, a team that is, if you will recall, is called the Fightin’ FIVE!

Tom-Tom: Yeah.

Frenchy: Oui!

Irv: Well, I guess we could…let someone go?

Hank & Tom-Tom: No!

Frenchy: Non!

Granite: Uh, what?

Irv: OK, OK, I’m not a big fan of the idea but…geez! This guy is really good!

Hank: Well…I suppose he is.

Granite: Uh, so…uh, who do we…let go?

Hank, Irv & Tom-Tom: Frenchy!

Frenchy: Sacre bleu!

Granite: Uh, what?

Bruce: Wait a minute, guys!

Tom-Tom: No offense, Frenchy!

Irv: You know, we’ve needed to shake this team up for a while now!

Hank: This is going to be great!

Frenchy: NON!

Bruce: Hold up, everybody!

Tom-Tom: What? You’re in, kid! You’re in the Fightin’ Five!

Hank: Well, as soon as we clear out Frenchy’s locker…

Frenchy: Mon dieu!

Bruce: No, no! Look I don’t want to break up the Fightin’ Five!

Irv: You’re not breaking up the Fightin’ Five. We’ll still be the Fightin’ Five!

Bruce: But a Fightin’ Five without Frenchy? That would be unheard of. 

Frenchy: Qui!

Hank: We’re willing to give it a shot.

Frenchy: Non!

Bruce: No, I think my path is taking me elsewhere. I need to go back home.

Hank: But kid…

Bruce: Think about my future. Maybe take care of that problem with the bats flitting all over the place.

Irv: C’mon, Bruce!

Bruce: No, I must go! Thank you, Fightin’ Five, and good luck.

Tom-Tom: Kid, wait…

Granite: Uh, he’s gone now.

Hank: Yeah. Yeah, he’s gone now.

Irv: So what now?

Hank: We go back to work, fightin’ the forces of evil as…

Hank, Irv, Tom-Tom & Granite: THE FIGHTIN’ FIVE!!

Tom-Tom: Hey, where did Frenchy go?

Irv: You don’t think he’s mad at us, do you?

Tom-Tom: Nah. But just in case…

Granite: Uh, what?

Tom-Tom: How do you all feel about… the Fightin’ FOUR?

Hank: The Fightin' FOUR?!? Are you crazy? 

 

---the end---

And so ends today's tale of suspense and adventure! But don't despair, more adventures are coming. We have not seen the last of...

THE FIGHTIN' FIVE! 

THE FIGHTIN' FIVE! 

THE FIGHTIN' FIVE! 

THE FIGHTIN' FIVE! 

THE FIGHTIN' FIVE! 

Until next time, be good to one another. 

Dave-El

I'm So Glad My Suffering Amuses You