• 25Nov 09

  Happy Thanksgiving (2009)!

  I just want to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. I have to work until 4:30 PM (then back at 6 the next morning). When I get home I'll eat a Sara Lee pumpkin pie, some turkey breast I bought at the deli, Stove Top instant stuffing, and some walnuts. Then maybe watch a little TV. In spite of the dissatisfaction I sometimes express, Ihave a lot to be thankful for, not the least of which is the fact that I'm still working through the holidays. I think most of us have more to be thankful for than we realize.

  Here are the answers (no one got all five correct, but thanks to everyone who participated)) to the Ben-Hur quiz, in bold:

  1. What movie won the most Oscars before Ben-Hur?

  a) Gone With The Wind

  b) All About Eve

  c) From Here To Eternity

  d) Gigi

  From 1958. It won 9 Oscars, a record that lasted all of one year.

  2. What 19th Century novelist wrote the novel?

  a) Herman Melville

  b) Charles Dickens

  c) Alexander Dumas

  d) Lew Wallace

  A Civil War hero from Indiana. Quite an interesting life.

  3. What 20th Century novelist was an uncredited contributor to the script?

  a) Irving Wallace

  b) Gore Vidal

  c) Irwin Shaw

  d) Pearl S. Buck

  He claimed that he inserted subtle homosexuality between Ben-Hur and Messala, without telling Charlton Heston, but that may just be braggadocio on Vidal's part. Who knows the truth, besides Vidal?

  4. Who played the lead in the 1926 version?

  a) Ramon Navarro

  b) Rudolph Valentino

  c) Harry Houdini

  d) Douglas Fairbanks

  Francis X. Bushman, who guest starred in a few classic TV episodes, played Messala.

  5. Cathy O'Donnell, who played Ben-Hur's mother, also played Charlton Heston's mother in what other movie?

  a) The Greatest Show Show On Earth

  b) The Ten Commandments

  c) A Touch Of Evil

  d) Will Penny

  She played Yochabel, Moses' birth mother.

  Again, Happy Thanksgiving, and please don't forget those who can't be home, especially those who are abroad defending our rights. Also those who are sick inthe hospital.

  • Posted Nov 25, 2009 8:05 pm PT
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• 20Nov 09

  Ben-Hur turns 50 (and a Ben-Hur quiz)

  Thanks to those of you who kept me and my co-workers in your thoughts and prayers. Now that I no longer have to worry about a strike (not that I like my job, it's just that I'm glad to have it) and the holidays are coming up, I can blog about a subject that's more enjoyable. One of my favorite movies is Ben-Hur, which turns 50 soon. I think at one time I memorized every scene in sequence and much of the dialog, though I'm a little rusty on it now. It won 11 Academy Awards, a record that lasted 38 years before being equaled by Titanic, and later by Return of the King. My mom had told me that she and my dad went to see it in its initial release. My dad wanted to see it largely because of the chariot race scene, which is considered one of the classic action scenes in cinema. I remember when it made its television debut in, I think, 1971 on CBS, though I don't remember much about it at the time and hadn't heard of it before. There have been rumors circulating for years that a stunt man was killed while filming the chariot race scene, but they have been discounted. I have the 4 disc DVD set, which includes as a feature the 1925 or 1926 (depending on the source; it's usually listed as 1926) silent version, one of the biggest blockbusters of the silent era, if not the biggest. Several actors were considered for the title role in the 1959 version before Charlton Heston won it. Among them were Rock Hudson Paul Newman, Marlon Brando, Kirk Douglas, and others. It's a little difficult to imagine Brando in that role, but then it would have been difficult to imagine him as Julius Caesar. It's difficult to imagine anyone giving a better performance than Heston, or even equalling it. My only peeve, if you can call it that, with the movie is that the ending, while glorious, was a little predictable. A movie sequel could be made out of the epilog in the novel upon which it was based. I wish someone would.

  Here's a relevant quiz:

  1. What movie won the most Oscars before Ben-Hur?

  a) Gone With The Wind

  b) All About Eve

  c) From Here To Eternity

  d) Gigi

  2. What 19th Century novelist wrote the novel?

  a) Herman Melville

  b) Charles Dickens

  c) Alexander Dumas

  d) Lew Wallace

  3. What 20th Century novelist was an uncredited contributor to the script?

  a) Irving Wallace

  b) Gore Vidal

  c) Irwin Shaw

  d) Pearl S. Buck

  4. Who played the lead in the 1926 version?

  a) Ramon Navarro

  b) Rudolph Valentino

  c) Harry Houdini

  d) Douglas Fairbanks

  5. Cathy O'Donnell, who played Ben-Hur's mother, also played Charlton Heston's mother in what other movie?

  a) The Greatest Show Show On Earth

  b) The Ten Commandments

  c) A Touch Of Evil

  d) Will Penny

  As always, I look forward to your answers and comments. If my PC permits, I'll try and blog again before Thanksgiving.

  • Posted Nov 20, 2009 4:16 pm PT
  • Category: Movies
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• 13Nov 09

  Strike Averted! Hallelujah!

  http://www.ufcw99.com/negotiations.html

  I went to work this morning feeling very upset, thinking today would be my last full day of work for a long time, but moments after I arrived, I was informed that the union and the company had reached an agreement. It was a huge sigh of relief on the part of every employee. Exactly what happened that made them reach this agreement remains to be seen. I tend to believe both sides blinked. The company, which is the Number 1 supermarket chain in Arizona knew their reign would be in severe jeopardy in the event of a strike during the holiday season, and the union knew that many of their members were extremely disenchanted at the prospect of being forced by them to strike at such a time without a vote, and already saw a loss in membership, with many more threatening to quit. This agreement still has to be voted on, but there is little doubt that it will pass overwhelmingly. Life still has its problems, but this was a ton of bricks that has just been lifted from my shoulders. It's been a very tense week, and now it's time to give thanks to God and St. Jude.

  In a few days, again if my PC allows it, I'll blog again, and maybe throw in a quiz. Thanks for your comments and prayers (is anyone else having trouble posting comments?).

  • Posted Nov 13, 2009 3:33 pm PT
  • Category: Opinion
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