Posts Tagged ‘nostalgia’

Thank you Frau Harman…Neighhhhh!

Posted: August 22, 2010 by datechguy in congress, elections, fun, politics
Tags: , , , , , , ,

Even if the Torrance Daily Breeze won’t cover Mattie Fein when she has events, they simply have to give her some copy for a commercial like this:

Regrettably I’ve discovered that there are some young people who may have never seen Young Frankenstein so for there sake here are the relevant clips. The Lab scene:

And of course Frau Bulcher and the horses


Who knew hitting Jane Harmon could be so much fun? If this doesn’t make Willie Geist’s way to early or Morning Joe Tomorrow it’s because they just aren’t paying attention.

Update SISU has the video but it reminds her that she is not amused

Update 2: Who needs the Torrance Daily Breeze when you have Robert Stacy McCain and a Memeorandum thread

In appreciation of William Hartnell: the first Doctor.

Posted: August 21, 2010 by datechguy in doctor who, hobbies
Tags: , , , ,

When you see polls of the most popular doctors William Hartnell seem to be often forgotten, very few of his episodes survive as a whole and although we have seen glimpses of him in the current series he remains largely ignored as the generation that watched his episodes are in their late 50’s or above.

As I discovered the series with Tom Baker I had not seen him period, my first glimpse was an image in The Brain of Morbius, the Five Doctors featured a different actor in the role. It wasn’t until I saw the three doctors on WENH 11 that I actually saw him perform in a limited role.

Every other actor who has been on the show has had the burden of living up to an iconic role, but each one of them also had the advantage of an established franchise. An actor who is cast as a companion of the Doctor has a ready source of income for their entire life, the actors who play the doctor even more so. Doctor Who is a multi million dollar worldwide industry that supports and entertains millions upon millions of people.

None of that would be true without the performance of Hartnell. He had none of the history to carry him nor the existing fan base. Like any actor with a new series it was up to him as the primary star to carry the show. A show totally unique in the history of Television. He needed to carry off the role of an almost all knowing and commanding presence while still being appealing to young children. And all of this is done without the special effects and CGI of the modern days.

The combination of knowledge and courage combined with a fatherly figure made him iconic. It is very true that excellent writing and the creation of the Daleks made a huge difference, but if Hartnell failed this would be at best just another set of $1 DVD in a bin if the episodes were saved at all.

Get your hands on an episode or two if you can. Ignore the limited special effects and lack of CGI look at the performances, and let yourself appreciate the grand bequest given first to the British people and then the world

I was listening/watching The End of Time …

Posted: August 7, 2010 by datechguy in doctor who, internet/free speech, oddities
Tags: , , , , ,

…again this week and remembering what I wrote the day after Christmas last year when I first saw it:

There is every probability that this was written just after his election and that Russell T. Davies was and/or is a member of the hopey-changey Obamacult. I suspect British actors are even farther left than Hollywood so it would be no surprise. It is also possible that he is making fun of said cult but I doubt it.

Alas the shooting schedule and the filming didn’t account for the crash and burn of international opinion of the president, it gives the episode an anachronistic quality will make many conservatives laugh at the reminder of those foolish messianic days.

Wikipedia states that Shooting began in March of 2009 (for non controversial stuff it’s an ok source). That likely means the writing took place right after the election.

It was something to see the change in international opinion since the episode was broadcast, in just 7 months his domestic popularity has also dropped like a rock.

At the time it was on, I was annoyed, couldn’t I escape the Obama Messiah syndrome even in Doctor Who? Today looking back seeing that the nation has been mostly cured of that odd illness it brings a smile, like that of a person remembering a rough patch that is behind him.

The end of the obamacult has been a healthy thing for a society. Let’s hope the media remembers the lessons learned.

Two nasty thoughts…

Posted: July 2, 2010 by datechguy in Afghanistan war, opinion/news, war
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

…one about the past and one about the present.

Nasty Thought #1: All this draft nonsense:

Do you get the feeling that MSNBC and the left are pushing and talking draft right now because they are afraid of Gen Petraeus? Not afraid of him politically but afraid of him as a general. I have the horrible and uncharitable feeling that they are afraid he will actually win this war.

Success in the war would mean a more powerful US. One more likely to act rather than talk. The concept of the US military as a force never to be used is even more sacred to the left than the first black president. They aren’t in a position to attack Petraeus so the only way to counter him is to get the country talking draft. With a high unemployment rate and college so expensive it is a tempting solution to several social/economic problems but it would scare the britches off of many in the ME generation.

The left has never lost their love of 60’s radicalism, it was their greatest moment, it is their dream to bring it back in living color.

Such an appraisal is not very fair to most of the left and is as I said a nasty thought, but right now it is stuck in my head and won’t come out.

Nasty Thought #2 Al Gore

For years I’ve wondered why Al Gore didn’t assert himself during the Clinton Impeachment stuff. It would have been up to Gore to talk to the president and say it was time for him to go. If he had conventional wisdom says he would have easily won election in 2000 and maybe even in 2004. Not only did he not assert himself but he after the impeachment vote made that ludicrous speech calling Mr. Bill “One of our greatest presidents” (talk about grading on a curve)! In my mind the question has always been: Why did he play along?

I have the nasty feeling that question has now been answered. Does anyone believe for one moment that if the Clintons knew Gore had some ahem “interesting diversions” they wouldn’t have held that over him? Al understood that people judge a Rogue differently than a “strait arrow”. It’s the expectations game. People were not surprised that Clinton was messing around and judged him accordingly, but Gore? He would be judged by his strait arrow image.

Again this is a nasty thought and assumes Gore’s guilt but I can’t get it out of my head.

Are these thoughts a sign I am becoming paranoid or am I just becoming more street savvy? What do you think?

Older Entries
Newer Entries