101,384,263

It was reported in my last foray into the mercantile, er, infantile that Post Secret had accrued over one million hits, but unless there's a decimal point I'm missing, the blog has received a hundred million hits. Is that even possible?

Shirley not. Care to weigh in on this one, Hoots.

Tree falling in the woods making a....sound? v.c.

P.S. The soap opera known as the Falcons plays on MNF tomorrow. Do the Birds rise to the occasion, or will they be like lambs to the slaughter.

"Post Secret Blog"

Some guy just reached 1 million hits on his site. Which means GP has only 900,000 plus hits to go to catch him. Here's the link. And he has just written a book with all this crap, er, scintillating stuff in it. I guess?

Hoots, eat your heart out, v.c.

"Pix"

 

 

 

 

"Pix of My Niece and her Two Kids"

Pix from the family, who live out in Orange County, and we all know who resides there. The dreaded right-wing conservatives of California.

My niece was in a few movies-as chronicled in past forays-including "Mrs. Doubtfire"; "Getting Even With Dad"; and "So I Married an Axe Murderer." Her silhouette once adorned the cover of TV Guide.

We in the family-or maybe it was just me-who said: "Who'd a thunk it?"

The older daughter is named Faith Haley, whilst the younger daughter is named Summer Skye. I once recommended some names to Amber, my niece, who rejected "Winter Solstice;" "Fall Back;" and "Spring Forward."

Ah, adolescence, v.c.

P.S. I once knew the real father of Rusty in "European Vacation" with Chevy Chase. He worked for Sears here in Atlanta. He had the same bug-eyes as his son. Or vice-versa. His daughter played the lead role in either "Karate Kid 3 or 4."

McDonald's Worker Wins Strip-Search Suit

SHEPHERDSVILLE, Ky. - A jury awarded $6.1 million Friday to a woman who said she was forced to strip in a McDonald's back office after someone called the restaurant posing as a police officer....

A former assistant manager, Donna Summers, was placed on probation for a misdemeanor conviction in relation to the incident. Her former fiance, Walter Nix Jr., is serving five years in prison for sexually abusing Ogborn during the 3 1/2-hour search.

Topps Calls It Quits After Beef Recall

Topps Meat Co. on Friday said it was closing its business, six days after it was forced to issue the second-largest beef recall in U.S. history and 67 years after it first opened its doors.The decision will cost 87 people their jobs, Topps said.

On Sept. 25 Topps began recalling frozen hamburger patties that may have been contaminated with the E. coli bacteria strain O157:H7. The recall eventually ballooned to 21.7 million pounds of ground beef.

Thirty people in eight states had E. coli infections matching the strain found in the Topps patties, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported. None have died.

"This is tragic for all concerned," said Topps chief operating officer Anthony D'Urso, a member of the family that founded the company in 1940.

"The Long and Winding Road"

 

"One After 909"

The original concept for the film project called for the documentary to end with a live show, the first live public performance by the band since the end of their last tour, on August 29, 1966, at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. However, agreeing on a format for the live show proved problematic. Paul McCartney suggested playing a small club, like the Beatles had in the early days. John Lennon suggested an overseas location such as Africa (although he also expressed a sarcastic desire to perform the show in an asylum). Ringo Starr held out for staying home in England. George Harrison showed little enthusiasm for any live performance at all.

After failing to agree on any other venue, the band settled for an unannounced concert atop their own building, Apple's headquarters. The Beatles, accompanied by Preston, performed on January 30, 1969 — intercut in the film with interviews of some rather surprised Londoners near the Apple headquarters as the music blasts out from the roof. The performance and the film close with the police arriving and shutting the concert down. The rooftop concert has been a popular bootleg ever since....

The following song was written when the collaborators were young teens. One of their first. And is sung on said rooftop in downtown London, ol' chum.

And the end of the tune-if you listen intently-you can hear someone say: "who'd a thunk it?" Not sure which member of the band uttered these words.

"Move over once; move over twice; c'mon, baby, don't be cold as ice, v.c.

P.S. The link courtesy of hoots' suggestion.

"Long Time Gone" Apologies to Crosby, Stills, and Nash

You have to wonder about a world in which people are herded up like cattle and taken to ovens; a world in which a group of people was sold into slavery; a world in which there is so much suffering. From death, disease, and addictions.

All that being said: I came across this article today in the AJC fishwrapper. Reminds me of a time long gone. Long before phrases like "moving forward," "modules of training," and "engaged" dotted the landscapes of business. It's all so homogenous these days. And, for that, I am sad. The following article reminds me of my early life in the 50's and 60's and 70's.

Last month, Holiday Inn announced it is phasing out its motor lodges —- they're called "exterior corridor" designs in the trade. Some corporate type, with the title of "vice president for worldwide brand management," justified the decision thusly: "These hotels are usually considered old. Consumers say they do not match up to expectations."

Braves on TBS, old-style hotel made life seem better

By Mike King
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 10/04/07

I rise today to testify on behalf of two bygone institutions: the classic Holiday Inn motor lodge, and Braves baseball on TBS.

"Can we stay there?"

When we were young children, my mother would load the three of us kids every summer into the family car and make a 1,000-mile trip from southern Indiana to her hometown of Galveston, Texas. The trip, at least in the days before the interstate highway system was completed, required an overnight stay.

Along the way we'd pass interesting places like the Wigwam Village, a motel in Kentucky where all the units looked like teepees, or the Alamo Plaza Hotel Courts in Memphis, where the units were shaped like the famous Texas landmark.

"Please, mom, let's stay there," we'd beg. No dice.

We almost always wound up in one of those roadside motor courts, nondescript places where each unit had a kitchenette (really just a glorified hot plate and an old Norge) and a window-unit air conditioner that usually didn't work. No TV and certainly no swimming pool. Basic lodging. Cheap.

But one year, making our way through Texarkana, Texas, on U.S. 59, we saw a green and gold sign with synchronized blinking lights and a bright white star pointing to something called a Holiday Inn. There was a restaurant attached to the motel. And a swimming pool, with a diving board, and an underwater light that just beckoned you to jump in, if you were lucky enough to stay there.

We didn't stay there that year, but on another trip, Dad came with us. About Little Rock we began making a strong, persistent case —- basically we whined —- pleading to stay at the Holiday Inn we knew was down the road in Texarkana. He relented.

We ate a glorious, sit-down meal at the restaurant and our parents went back to the air-conditioned room to watch TV, where they quickly fell asleep. We headed for the pool. About 11:30 p.m. my parents were awakened by a call from the front desk asking them to please go to the pool and retrieve their children.

My dad still loves to tell that story.

Last month, Holiday Inn announced it is phasing out its motor lodges —- they're called "exterior corridor" designs in the trade. Some corporate type, with the title of "vice president for worldwide brand management," justified the decision thusly: "These hotels are usually considered old. Consumers say they do not match up to expectations."

Cable comes to Indiana

In the mid-1970s, cable television arrived in our small Indiana hometown, and I bought my parents a six-month subscription. (I was living across the river, in cable-deprived Louisville, Ky.) The local cable company included two independent channels as part of its package: WTBS from Atlanta and WTTV out of Indianapolis and Bloomington.

WTBS had the Braves, which were about to become America's team because of their presence on cable systems nationwide. WTTV had Indiana University basketball —- every game, home and away, during the Bobby Knight-before-he-was-crazy era.

The affinity for the Braves grew so strong that when they played at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati against the Reds, we'd organize day trips to see them. And when we moved their grandchildren here 20 years ago, the first place my parents wanted to go with them was to Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium to see the Braves. Many Sunday afternoons since he's been unable to travel, I've called my father to see if he was watching the game on TBS. Now, with TBS going out of the Braves business, he'll see fewer still. Until basketball season starts, we'll have to find other topics in our Sunday talks.

I know. I know. The world, and consumer expectations, are different now. But there were times —- as kids at the Holiday Inn pool or as adults with our parents in front of the TV watching the Braves —- when the world was pretty darn good and may have actually exceeded our expectations without us ever knowing it.

> Mike King is a member of the editorial board. His column appears Thursdays.

P.S. Hoots, I've been a little lazy these days, but I will take your suggestion to heart.... in the next foray.

"As long as this exists, I thought, and I may live to see it, this sunshine, the cloudless skies, while this lasts I cannot be unhappy."

 

 

 

 

"Freedom Tree Gets Reprieve"

"Nearly every morning I go to the attic to blow the stuffy air out of my lungs," she wrote on Feb. 23, 1944. "From my favorite spot on the floor I look up at the blue sky and the bare chestnut tree, on whose branches little raindrops shine, appearing like silver, and at the seagulls and other birds as they glide on the wind. ...

"As long as this exists, I thought, and I may live to see it, this sunshine, the cloudless skies, while this lasts I cannot be unhappy."

Anne Frank's Ailing Tree Gets a Reprieve
By TOBY STERLING

Associated Press Writer

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands — The diseased chestnut tree that comforted Anne Frank while she hid from the Nazis during World War II has been granted a reprieve.

The 150-year-old tree was due to be chopped down after experts determined it could not be rescued from the fungus and moths that caused more than half its trunk to rot.

This Nov. 15, 2006 photo shows the diseased chestnut tree, right, that comforted Anne Frank while she hid from the Nazis during World War II, which has now been granted a reprieve. The 150-year-old tree was due to be chopped down after experts determined it could not be rescued from the fungus and moths that caused more than half its trunk to rot. The tree is familiar to millions of readers of 'The Diary of Anne Frank.' It stands behind the 'secret annex' atop the canal-side warehouse where her family hid during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands, and its crown was just visible through the attic skylight, left, the only window that was not blacked out. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
The tree is familiar to millions of readers of "The Diary of Anne Frank." It stands behind the "secret annex" atop the canal-side warehouse where her family hid during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands, and its crown was just visible through the attic skylight — the only window that was not blacked out.

An appeals panel made two separate decisions last week: one upholding the right of the tree's owner to have it cut down any time in the next two years, and another granting a request by the country's Trees Institute to investigate the possibility of saving it, said Ton Boon, a spokesman for Amsterdam's Central borough.

The tree is on the property of Keizersgracht 188, adjacent to the building that is now the Anne Frank Museum. Property owner Henric Pomes has agreed for the time being to wait for the institute's proposal, due before Jan. 1, Boon said.

The Utrecht-based Trees Institute said its salvage plan would likely involve a combination of treatments and supports for its trunk and limbs.

"Safety must come first," said spokesman Edwin Koot. "It's dangerous for people, and you don't even want to think about what could happen if it were to fall into the Anne Frank house."

The Jewish teenager made several references to the tree in the diary that she kept during the 25 months she remained indoors until the family was arrested in August 1944.

"Nearly every morning I go to the attic to blow the stuffy air out of my lungs," she wrote on Feb. 23, 1944. "From my favorite spot on the floor I look up at the blue sky and the bare chestnut tree, on whose branches little raindrops shine, appearing like silver, and at the seagulls and other birds as they glide on the wind. ...

"As long as this exists, I thought, and I may live to see it, this sunshine, the cloudless skies, while this lasts I cannot be unhappy."

In May 2005, much of the tree's crown was trimmed in an effort to stabilize it, but in November 2006, the city council ruled it was a hazard. In March, the council granted a license to have it cut down — prompting protests by the Tree Institute and others.

"The tree represented freedom and playing outside to Anne Frank," Koot said. "Primarily because of its historical significance, we must go the extra mile to try to save it."

The Anne Frank Museum, where the tiny apartment has been preserved, said grafts already have been taken and a sapling from the original chestnut will eventually replace it.

Anne Frank died of typhus in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in March 1945.

___

"Monster on the Campus!"

 

"Troy and Me" or "The Grassy Knoll!"

Tonite's foray into the infantile is a conversation between yours truly and Troy Donahue, who now resides among the stars.

v.c.: What was it like working with Sandra Dee? Were you two intimate?

Troy: There wasn't anything to it. She was hot for Bobby Darin; I couldn't get to second base with her tho' I tried. Great l'il actress.

v.c.: You two were the perfect 50's lovesick couple. I loved the theme song, "A Summer Place."

Troy: Why'd you mention that song, man. It still chokes me up.

v.c.: Sorry! Did you really live under a bridge after your flame fleeted like a ....

Troy: Candle in the wind. Yeah! That song gets me all misty-eyed, too. It's true. I had me a cardboard box-had it set up kinda neat, really. But when it rained-those southern California rain showers can be like monsoons.

v.c.: Did you know Marilyn-hang out with her?

Troy: She was too enamored with JFK to give me a look twice. She's been magnanimous here, but nothing during my brief time on the planet, vee.

v.c.: Speaking of which, what really happened on the grassy noll.

Troy: J. Edgar Hoover's up here and he could make things tough for me-I already owe him two cartons of cigarettes. He said Dallas would be 4-0 to start the season. "Cowboys? Tony Romo? No way," I said.

But I can tell you this. Oswald wasn't alone. It would blow your mind, if I told you who was in on it. "The Warren Report" was a freakin' joke-I kid you not.

v.c.: Do you ever get to see John and George?

Troy: They never hung out with me in the beginning. They thought I was too much of an apple pie and chevrolet kind of guy, but when John found out my last address was an underpass and I had all these addictions, well, he kinda warmed up to me.

v.c.: Is Jimmy Hoffa buried in "Giants Stadium?" In the end zone?

Troy: Man, you don't let up. Nah, he ain't buried there, but he swims with the fishes allah Lucca Brazzi. It wasn't the Union. Somebody said Danny de Vito was involved. Just rumors. They have 'em here, too.

v.c.: Did George W. know ahead of time that the Twin Towers were going down?

Troy: They don't talk about it much. Too sensitive a subject....for Heaven. We like to chill, mellow-out up here-it's not like on Earth, where it's am I gonna get this part? Am I no longer a teenage heartthrob? Where's my next meal gonna come from? Is the cardboard gonna hold out this winter? It's different. But we're waiting on Karl Rove to get here. To find out the skinny, if you know what I mean?

v.c.: How's the "King?" You know, Elvis?

Troy: He's a cool cat, vee. Last night he sang "In the Ghetto" with Ray Charles and Louie Armstrong. Satchmo can still bring it, but I can't understand a thing he says.

v.c.: Why are we hear? Shirley not to live in pain and fear?

Troy: John sang that one with Duane Allman a fortnight ago. Don't start getting philosophical on me, v.c.? Have you found a job, btw?

v.c.: News travels fast, eh?

Troy: At least you aren't living under a collosal cement block. I see things are gonna start looking-up for you. You've been througha lot of shit, dude!

v.c.: Thanks, Troy.

Before I could say my goodbyes I woke up! Was it a dream? Only the Shadow knows!

"troy Donahue"

 

"Sandra Dee and Tippi [ Hedren ] Canoe And Tyler, Too? Eh?

After the release of My Blood Runs Cold (1965), Donahue's contract with Warner Bros. ended. He later struggled to find new roles and had problems with drug addiction and alcoholism. He was married again in 1966, to actress Valerie Allen, but they divorced in 1968. In 1970 he appeared in the daytime drama The Secret Storm. In 1974 he was cast in his most high profile role, in The Godfather Part II as the new fiancé of Connie Corleone. His character was called Merle Johnson, Donahue's real name.

For those of you who didn't take the time to look it up. And who in their right mind would have?v.c.

P.S. At a packed house in Lancaster, California's Antelope Valley Independent Film Festival Cinema Series screening of The Birds on September 28, 2004, Hedren recalled how she was mysteriously selected for a lead role: "I said, 'Well, who is this person? Who is interested?'... Nobody would tell me who it was." It was Alfred Hitchcock, who soon announced his choice of Hedren for The Birds.

Hitchcock put Hedren through a then-costly $25,000 screen test, doing scenes from previous Hitchcock classics such as Rebecca, Notorious and To Catch a Thief with actor Martin Balsam. He signed her to a multi-year exclusive personal contract, something he had earlier done in the 1950s with Vera Miles. Hitchcock's plan to mold Hedren's public image went so far as to carefully control her style of dressing and grooming. Hitchcock, ever the showman, insisted for publicity purposes that her name should be printed only in single quotes -- 'Tippi'. The press mostly ignored this directive from the director, who felt that the single quotes added distinction and mystery to Hedren's name. In interviews, Hitchcock compared his newcomer not only to her predecessor Grace Kelly but also to what he referred to as such "ladylike", intelligent, and stylish stars of more glamorous eras as Irene Dunne and Jean Arthur. Later, Hedren indicated that she didn't want to be known as the next Grace Kelly but rather as the first Tippi Hedren.

"Monster on Campus"

If you look closely at the credits, you'll notice Troy Donahue is the co-star. Last I recall, his career took a turn for the worst, and he was living under bridges somewhere out west. Presumably, Hollywood. I believe he is now courting Sandra Dee in Hollywood. - Heaven style. Say hello to Bobby Darin for us.

"M.F.-er. I Want More Iced Tea!"

Bill O'Reilly Surprised Blacks Are Civilized!?!?

September 26th, 2007 | Author: Aliya EwingAfter eating dinner with Rev. Al Sharpton at famed Harlem restaurant Sylvia's recently, Fox News Channel's Bill O'Reilly told his radio audience he "couldn't get over the fact" that there was no difference between the black-run Sylvia's and white-run restaurants.

"It was like going into an Italian restaurant in an all-white suburb in the sense of people were sitting there, and they were ordering and having fun," he said. "And there wasn't any kind of craziness at all.... There wasn't one person in Sylvia's who was screaming, 'M.F.-er, I want more iced tea .'"

O'Reilly also said his fellow patrons were 'tremendously respectful' as he ate dinner with Sharpton.

The liberal media watchdog Media Matters for America called attention to the questionable quotes by distributing a transcript and audio clip on the Internet.
Both Fox News and O'Reilly believe O'Reilly is simply a victim of a left-wing smear campaign, and he was misquoted and misunderstood.

Media Matters for America Senior Fellow Paul Waldman appeared this morning (Sept 26 ) on NBC's Today show to discuss the controversy generated by the comments. When asked for his reaction to O'Reilly's defense of being "taken out of context", Waldman replied, "If Bill O'Reilly got caught robbing a bank he would say he was taken out of context".

P.S. Naivete, eh? On Bill's part, that is. I once said "I haven't seen you in a coon's age." at work 20 or so years ago to someone I hadn't seen in a while. Little did I know it carried a racist or bigoted connotation. I remember the baker, who was 15 years or more older than me and who heard me say it, look at me with disdain and said something under her breath. I had heard my Aunt Madeline say it when I was growing up, but I never said it again. Well, at work anyway.

"Coach Goes Ballistic" and "I'm Forty-Come After Me!"

By Jenni Carlson
The Oklahoman
STILLWATER — Bobby Reid stood near the team charters last Friday night, using his cell phone, eating his boxed meal.

It would've been normal post-game activity but for one thing.

His mother was feeding him chicken.

Look at the video to see what the rhubarb is all about. In this case, the coach considers an article by a, uh, female reporter [ Jenni Carlson ] to be unfactual.

P.S. We once served rhubarb pie at my old workplace. I was standing behind the pie section, when a guest pointed to a slice of rhubarb pie. It wasn't a big seller- because who in their right mind would want a piece-so I proudly exclaimed: "Yessir, that's good old rhubarb pie."

"No," he said, "look at it!"

I grabbed the pie and turned it around, and there was a big wad of fungi growing neatly between the rhubarbs.

"Er," I said, and made a hasty retreat outta there.

"Specious Effects"

To those few readers of mine, Shirley, you've been waiting with baited breath on the next installment of Golden Pond. And a round of thanks to those viewers from Ireland, Taiwan, Chile, and Vietnam who drop by occasionally. Even if you don't speak the language, you can still enjoy the goings-on via pictures. Eh?

Sunday afternoon I was watching the Falcons game and noticed that "Plan 9 from Outer Space" was playing on TCM, my favorite channel. Using the clicker, I went to channel 69 and, of course, looked at the synopsis. Very interesting it was:

Arguably, the worst movie ever made. Due to the specious effects, and because Bela Lugosi-he of "I vant to drink your blood" fame-died during the middle of filming. Paraphrasing but you get the gist.

I watched the movie. Well, sort of. Kept flipping back between the Falcons game and "Plan 9." It was the classic b/w thriller of the 50's. Check out the flying saucer pics that account for the specious effects that TCM mentions.

One of the actors, who plays a pilot and hates leaving his wife alone in the house while he's away, because they live in a remote part of town, also starred in one of my favorite movies, "Eiger Sanction." With Clint Eastwood.

Clint, Dr. Hemlock-and you gotta love that name-has to get rough with him, because
he doesn't like the guy addressing him as buddy, pal, or chum. One of my boss' called me buddy a lot, and I disliked it. Very patronizing, if you will.

Yes, it was a BAD movie. But it was a great relic from yesteryear. Circa 1958. And the Falcons blew it, when Deangelo Hall had 62 yards worth of penalties called against him during a drive in the 3rd quarter.

Ya gotta love those old movies from back in the day. And the poor Falcons, who have never had an easy time of winning.

To those with baited breath, v.c.

P.S. The picture of Darth Vader sums up "the dark side of the force." And whatever happened to "synchronicity." May THAT force be with you!+

"Plan 9 From Outer Space"