WA2K Radio is now on the air

Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad
Meat Loaf

Baby we can talk all night
But that ain't getting us nowhere
I told you everything I possibly can
There's nothing left inside of here
And maybe you can cry all night
But that'll never change the way that I feel
The snow is really piling up outside
I wish you wouldn't make me leave here
I poured it on and I poured it out
I tried to show you just how much I care
I'm tired of words and I'm too hoarse to shout
But you've been cold to me so long
I'm crying icicles instead of tears
And all I can do is keep on telling you

I want you, I need you
But there ain't no way I'm ever gonna love you
Now don't be sad
'Cause two out of three ain't bad
Now don't be sad
'Cause two out of three ain't bad

You'll never find your gold on a sandy beach
You'll never drill for oil on a city street
I know you're looking for a ruby in a mountain of rocks
But there ain't no Coup de Ville
Hiding at the bottom of a Cracker Jack box

I can't lie
I can't tell you that I'm something I'm not
No matter how I try
I'll never be able
To give you something
Something that I just haven't got
Well there's only one girl that I will ever love
And that was so many years ago
And though I know I'll never get her out of my heart
She never loved me back
Ooh, I know

Well I remember how she left me on a stormy night
Ah, she kissed me and got out of our bed
And though I pleaded and I begged her not to walk out that door
She packed her bags and turned right away
And she kept on telling me
She kept on telling me
She kept on telling me

I want you, I need you
But there ain't no way I'm ever gonna love you
Now don't be sad
'Cause two out of three ain't bad

I want you, I need you
But there ain't no way I'm ever gonna love you
Now don't be sad
'Cause two out of three ain't bad
Now don't be sad
'Cause two out of three ain't bad

Baby we can talk all night
But that ain't getting us nowhere

edgar, I focused on your meat loaf song, because I think that is really the crux of human relationships.

"I want you, I need you
But there ain't no way I'm ever gonna love you
Now don't be sad
'Cause two out of three ain't bad
Now don't be sad
'Cause two out of three ain't bad"

Often, listeners, we want it all and that's just too much to handle.

My sister and I were discussing via electronic mail how often songs say more than history; philosophy; despots; or other orators.

For instance, this oldie:

All or nothin' at all
Half a love never appealed to me
If your heart, it never could yield to me
Then I'd rather, rather have nothin' at all

I said all, nothin' at all
If it's love, there ain't no in-between
Why begin then cry for somethin' that might have been
No I'd rather, rather have nothin' at all

Hey, please don't bring your lips close to my cheek
Don't you smile or I'll be lost beyond recall
The kiss in your eyes, the touch of your hand makes me weak
And my heart, it may grow very dizzy and fall

And if I fell under the spell of your call
I would be, be caught in the undertow
Well, you see, I've got to say "No, no, no"
All or nothin' at all

The golden fleece, once attained lost it's sheen.

Yes, Crutch, I agree, I think too much.

Sorry, listeners. As often happens, at the end of the day, I meander. <smile>

how about a little cheese with your meatloaf

The Cheese Shop

About the Sketch:

This sketch not only appeared in the Flying Circus TV Show - Episode 24, it was also featured on their albums - 'The Monty Python Matching Tie and Handkerchief', 'The Monty Python Instant Record Collection' (UK version), 'The Monty Python Instant Record Collection' (US version) and ''Monty Python's The Final Ripoff'.



The cast:

CUSTOMER
John Cleese
WENSLYDALE
Michael Palin

The sketch:

Customer walks in the Henry Wenslydale's Cheese shop and walks past the bazouki player.

Customer: Good Morning.

Wenslydale: Good morning, Sir. Welcome to the National Cheese Emporium!

Customer: Ah, thank you, my good man.

Wenslydale: What can I do for you, Sir?

Customer: Well, I was, uh, sitting in the public library on Thurmon Street just now, skimming through "Rogue Herrys" by Hugh Walpole, and I suddenly came over all peckish.

Wenslydale: Peckish, sir?

Customer: Esuriant.

Wenslydale: Eh?

Customer: 'Ee, Ah wor 'ungry-loike!

Wenslydale: Ah, hungry!

Customer: In a nutshell. And I thought to myself, "a little fermented curd will do the trick," so, I curtailed my Walpoling activites, sallied forth, and infiltrated your place of purveyance to negotiate the vending of some cheesy comestibles!

Wenslydale: Come again?

Customer: I want to buy some cheese.

Wenslydale: Oh, I thought you were complaining about the bazouki player!

Customer: Oh, heaven forbid: I am one who delights in all manifestations of the Terpsichorean muse!

Wenslydale: Sorry?

Customer: 'Ooo, Ah lahk a nice tuune, 'yer forced too!

Wenslydale: So he can go on playing, can he?

Customer: Most certainly! Now then, some cheese please, my good man.

Wenslydale: (lustily) Certainly, sir. What would you like?

Customer: Well, eh, how about a little red Leicester.

Wenslydale: I'm, a-fraid we're fresh out of red Leicester, sir.

Customer: Oh, never mind, how are you on Tilsit?

Wenslydale: I'm afraid we never have that at the end of the week, sir, we get it fresh on Monday.

Customer: Tish tish. No matter. Well, stout yeoman, four ounces of Caerphilly, if you please.

Wenslydale: Ah! It's beeeen on order, sir, for two weeks. Was expecting it this morning.

Customer: 'T's Not my lucky day, is it? Aah, Bel Paese?

Wenslydale: Sorry, sir.

Customer: Red Windsor?

Wenslydale: Normally, sir, yes. Today the van broke down.

Customer: Ah. Stilton?

Wenslydale: Sorry.

Customer: Ementhal? Gruyere?

Wenslydale: No.

Customer: Any Norweigan Jarlsburg, per chance.

Wenslydale: No.

Customer: Lipta?

Wenslydale: No.

Customer: Lancashire?

Wenslydale: No.

Customer: White Stilton?

Wenslydale: No.

Customer: Danish Brew?

Wenslydale: No.

Customer: Double Goucester?

Wenslydale: (pause) No.

Customer: Cheshire?

Wenslydale: No.

Customer: Dorset Bluveny?

Wenslydale: No.

Customer: Brie, Roquefort, Pol le Veq, Port Salut, Savoy Aire, Saint Paulin, Carrier de lest, Bres Bleu, Bruson?

Wenslydale: No.

Customer: Camenbert, perhaps?

Wenslydale: Ah! We have Camenbert, yessir.

Customer: (surprised) You do! Excellent.

Wenslydale: Yessir. It's..ah,.....it's a bit runny...

Customer: Oh, I like it runny.

Wenslydale: Well,.. It's very runny, actually, sir.

Customer: No matter. Fetch hither the fromage de la Belle France! Mmmwah!

Wenslydale: I...think it's a bit runnier than you'll like it, sir.

Customer: I don't care how ******* runny it is. Hand it over with all speed.

Wenslydale: Oooooooooohhh........!

Customer: What now?

Wenslydale: The cat's eaten it.

Customer: (pause) Has he.

Wenslydale: She, sir.

(pause)

Customer: Gouda?

Wenslydale: No.

Customer: Edam?

Wenslydale: No.

Customer: Case Ness?

Wenslydale: No.

Customer: Smoked Austrian?

Wenslydale: No.

Customer: Japanese Sage Darby?

Wenslydale: No, sir.

Customer: You...do *have* some cheese, don't you?

Wenslydale: (brightly) Of course, sir. It's a cheese shop, sir. We've got--

Customer: No no... don't tell me. I'm keen to guess.

Wenslydale: Fair enough.

Customer: Uuuuuh, Wensleydale.

Wenslydale: Yes?

Customer: Ah, well, I'll have some of that!

Wenslydale: Oh! I thought you were talking to me, sir. Mister Wensleydale, that's my name.

(pause)

Customer: Greek Feta?

Wenslydale: Uh, not as such.

Customer: Uuh, Gorgonzola?

Wenslydale: no

Customer: Parmesan,

Wenslydale: no

Customer: Mozarella,

Wenslydale: no

Customer: Paper Cramer,

Wenslydale: no

Customer: Danish Bimbo,

Wenslydale: no

Customer: Czech sheep's milk,

Wenslydale: no

Customer: Venezuelan Beaver Cheese?

Wenslydale: Not *today*, sir, no.

(pause)

Customer: Aah, how about Cheddar?

Wenslydale: Well, we don't get much call for it around here, sir.

Customer: Not much ca--It's the single most popular cheese in the world!

Wenslydale: Not 'round here, sir.

Customer: {pause}and what IS the most popular cheese 'round hyah?

Wenslydale: 'Illchester, sir.

Customer: IS it.

Wenslydale: Oh, yes, it's staggeringly popular in this manor, squire.

Customer: Is it.

Wenslydale: It's our number one best seller, sir!

Customer: I see. Uuh...'Illchester, eh?

Wenslydale: Right, sir.

Customer: All right. Okay. 'Have you got any?' he asked, expecting the answer 'no'.

Wenslydale: I'll have a look, sir... nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnno.

Customer: It's not much of a cheese shop, is it?

Wenslydale: Finest in the district!

Customer: (annoyed) Explain the logic underlying that conclusion, please.

Wenslydale: Well, it's so clean, sir!

Customer: It's certainly uncontaminated by cheese....

Wenslydale: (brightly) You haven't asked me about Limburger, sir.

Customer: Would it be worth it?

Wenslydale: Could be....

Customer: Have you --SHUT THAT BLOODY BAZOUKI OFF!

Wenslydale: Told you sir....

Customer: (slowly) Have you got any Limburger?

Wenslydale: No.

Customer: Figures. Predictable, really I suppose. It was an act of purest optimism to have posed the question in the first place. Tell me

Wenslydale: Yessir?

Customer: Have you in fact got any cheese here at all.

Wenslydale: Yes,sir.

Customer: Really?

(pause) Wenslydale: No. Not really, sir.

Customer: You haven't.

Wenslydale: Nosir. Not a scrap. I was deliberately wasting your time,sir.

Customer: Well I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to shoot you.

Wenslydale: Right-0, sir.

The customer takes out a gun and shoots the owner.

Customer: What a *senseless* waste of human life.

or some spam

The Spam Sketch

As featured in the Flying Circus TV Show - Episode 25

About the Sketch:

This sketch Not only appeared in the Flying Circus TV Show - Episode 25, it was also performed on their Albums - Another Monty Python Record' ''Monty Python's The Final Ripoff' and 'Lust for Glory'..

The cast:

MAN
Eric Idle
WIFE
Graham Chapman
WAITRESS
Terry Jones

The sketch:

Scene: A cafe. One table is occupied by a group of Vikings with horned helmets on. A man and his wife enter.

Man: You sit here, dear.

Wife: All right.

Man: (to Waitress) Morning!

Waitress: Morning!

Man: Well, what've you got?

Waitress: Well, there's egg and bacon; egg sausage and bacon; egg and spam; egg bacon and spam; egg bacon sausage and spam; spam bacon sausage and spam; spam egg spam spam bacon and spam; spam sausage spam spam bacon spam tomato and spam;

Vikings: (starting to chant) Spam spam spam spam...

Waitress: ...spam spam spam egg and spam; spam spam spam spam spam spam baked beans spam spam spam...

Vikings: (singing) Spam! Lovely spam! Lovely spam!

Waitress: ...or Lobster Thermidor au Crevettes with a mornay sauce served in a Provencale manner with shallots and aubergines garnished with truffle pate, brandy and with a fried egg on top and spam.

Wife: Have you got anything without spam?

Waitress: Well, there's spam egg sausage and spam, that's not got much spam in it.

Wife: I don't want ANY spam!

Man: Why can't she have egg bacon spam and sausage?

Wife: THAT'S got spam in it!

Man: Hasn't got as much spam in it as spam egg sausage and spam, has it?

Vikings: Spam spam spam spam (crescendo through next few lines)

Wife: Could you do the egg bacon spam and sausage without the spam then?

Waitress: Urgghh!

Wife: What do you mean 'Urgghh'? I don't like spam!

Vikings: Lovely spam! Wonderful spam!

Waitress: Shut up!

Vikings: Lovely spam! Wonderful spam!

Waitress: Shut up! (Vikings stop) Bloody Vikings! You can't have egg bacon spam and sausage without the spam.

Wife: (shrieks) I don't like spam!

Man: Sshh, dear, don't cause a fuss. I'll have your spam. I love it. I'm having spam spam spam spam spam spam spam beaked beans spam spam spam and spam!

Vikings: (singing) Spam spam spam spam. Lovely spam! Wonderful spam!

Waitress: Shut up!! Baked beans are off.

Man: Well could I have her spam instead of the baked beans then?

Waitress: You mean spam spam spam spam spam spam... (but it is too late and the Vikings drown her words)

Vikings: (singing elaborately) Spam, spam, spam, spam. Lovely spam! Wonderful spaaam! Lovely spam! Wonderful spam. Spa-a-a-a-a-a-a-am! Spa-a-a-a-a-a-a-am! Spa-a-a-a-a-a-a-am! Spa-a-a-a-a-a-a-am! Lovely spam! (Lovely spam!) Lovely spam! (Lovely spam!) Lovely spaaam! Spam, spam, spam, spaaaaam!

Audie Murphy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Audie Leon Murphy (June 20, 1924 - May 28, 1971) was an American soldier in World War II, and later a successful actor. In 27 months of combat action, he became the most decorated soldier in the history of the U.S. Army. Murphy received the Medal of Honor, the military's highest award for valor, along with 32 additional medals awarded for bravery and service. In the later part of his life, he went on to have a successful movie career, including the extremely popular To Hell and Back. He died in an airplane crash in May, 1971.




Audie Leon Murphy

Most decorated combat soldier of World War II
Born
June 20, 1924
Kingston, Texas, USA
Died
May 28, 1971
Brush Mountain near Catawba, Virginia, USA

Early life

Audie Leon Murphy was born to Emmett and Josie Bell Murphy (nee Killian), two poor sharecroppers. He grew-up near nearby Celeste, Texas (Hunt County). Murphy went to school in Celeste until the eighth grade, when he dropped out to work and help support his family. He also lived in the rural area of Farmersville and in Greenville, Texas. Murphy was the sixth of twelve children, only nine of whom survived to see their eighteenth birthday.

Before his ninth birthday, he had become an expert with a .22-caliber rifle, hunting rabbits and squirrels to help put food on the family table. This skill would serve him well during his later Army service. At twelve years of age, Murphy was hired as a farmer's helper, plowing and picking cotton at a dollar a day to help make ends meet. During the 1930's, Murphy also worked in a combination general store, garage, and filling station in Greenville, Texas. In 1936, his father deserted the family and never returned. At age sixteen, while working in a radio repair shop, tragedy struck when his mother died. In accordance with Mrs. Murphy's last wish, Murphy put his three youngest siblings into an orphanage to ensure their care.

Military career

Murphy --- then just seventeen years old --- tried to enlist in the military in order to fight back. But the services rejected him because he had not yet reached the required 18 years of age. Shortly after turning 18 in June of 1942, Murphy was finally accepted into the United States Army, after first being turned down by the Marines and the paratroopers for being underweight and of slight build. He was sent to Camp Wolters, Texas, for basic training. During a session of close order drill, he passed out. His company commander then tried to have him transferred to a cook and bakers' school because of his baby-faced youthfulness and apparent physical weaknesses, but Murphy insisted on becoming a combat soldier. His wish was granted; after thirteen weeks of basic training, he was sent to Fort Meade, Maryland for advanced infantry training.

Due to his fragile physical appearance, Murphy still had to "fight the system" to get overseas and into combat. His persistence paid off, and in early 1943 he was shipped out to Casablanca, Morocco (North Africa) as a replacement in Company B, First Battalion, Fifteenth Infantry Regiment, Third Infantry Division. Murphy saw no action in Africa, but instead participated in extensive training maneuvers along with the rest of the Third Division. His combat initiation finally came when he took part in the liberation of Sicily in July 1943. Shortly after arriving there, he experienced his first encounter with death by killing two Italian officers as they tried to escape on horseback. Murphy contracted malaria while in Sicily, and this illness put him in the hospital several times during his Army years. After Sicily was secured from the Germans, the Third Division invaded the Italian mainland, landing near Salerno in September 1943. Murphy distinguished himself in combat on many occasions while in Italy, fighting at the Volturno River, at the Anzio beachhead, and in the cold, wet, desolate Italian mountains. While in Italy, his instinctive skills as a combat infantryman began to earn him promotions, increased responsibilities, and decorations for valor.

Following its participation in the Italian campaign, the Third Division invaded Southern France on August 15, 1944. Shortly thereafter, Murphy's best friend, Lattie Tipton (referred to as "Brandon" in Murphy's book "To Hell and Back"), was killed while approaching some German troops feigning surrender. Murphy then went into a rage, and single-handedly wiped out the German machine gun crew which had just killed his friend. He used their gun to destroy several other nearby enemy positions. For this act he received the Distinguished Service Cross (second only to the Medal of Honor). Just weeks later, he received Silver Stars for two more heroic actions. Murphy, by now a staff sergeant and holding the position of Platoon Sergeant, was eventually awarded a battlefield commission to second lieutenant, which elevated him to the Platoon Leader position. He was later wounded in the hip by a sniper's bullet, and spent three months recuperating. After returning to his unit, he led his men in many more battles, including one that would earn him the Medal of Honor near Holzwihr, France, in January 1945.

Lifted to "Living Legend" status

Audie Murphy was credited with killing over 240 German soldiers during World War II, plus wounding and capturing many others. By the end of the war he was a legend within the Third Infantry Division as a result of his heroism and battlefield leadership. His principal U.S. decorations included the Medal of Honor, Distinguished Service Cross, two Silver Star Medals, the Legion of Merit, two Bronze Star Medals with Valor device, and three Purple Hearts (for the three wounds he received in combat). Murphy participated in many official campaigns in North Africa, Sicily, Italy, France and Germany, as denoted by his European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with one silver battle star (denoting five campaigns), four bronze battle stars, plus a bronze arrowhead representing his two amphibious assault landings at Sicily and southern France. The French government awarded Murphy their highest award, the Legion of Honor (Grade of Chevalier). He also received two Croix de Guerre from France and one from Belgium. In addition, Murphy was awarded the Combat Infantryman's Badge (a complete list of Murphy's awards and decorations appears later in this article). Murphy spent 29 months overseas and just under two years in combat with the Third Infantry Division, all before he turned 21 years of age. In early June 1945, one month after Germany's surrender, Murphy returned from Europe to a hero's welcome in his home state of Texas, where he was showered with parades, banquets, and speeches. Murphy was discharged from active duty with the U.S. Army as a first lieutenant in September, 1945.

After the Korean War broke out in June 1950, Murphy joined the 36th Infantry Division of the Texas National Guard. However, that division was not called up for combat duty, and Murphy remained in the United States during all his National Guard service. By the time he left the Guard in the 1960's, he had attained the rank of major.

Medal of Honor citation

Below is the official U.S. Army citation for Audie Murphy's Medal of Honor:

Rank and organization: Second Lieutenant, U.S. Army, Company B 15th Infantry, 3rd Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Holtzwihr France, 26 January, 1945. Entered service at: Dallas, Texas. Birth: Hunt County, near Kingston, Texas, G.O. No. 65, 9 August 1944. Citation: Second Lt. Murphy commanded Company B, which was attacked by six tanks and waves of infantry. Lt. Murphy ordered his men to withdraw to prepared positions in a woods, while he remained forward at his command post and continued to give fire directions to the artillery by telephone. Behind him, to his right, one of our tank destroyers received a direct hit and began to burn. Its crew withdrew to the woods. Lt. Murphy continued to direct artillery fire, which killed large numbers of the advancing enemy infantry. With the enemy tanks abreast of his position, Lt. Murphy climbed on the burning tank destroyer, which was in danger of blowing up at any moment, and employed its .50 caliber machine gun against the enemy. He was alone and exposed to German fire from three sides, but his deadly fire killed dozens of Germans and caused their infantry attack to waver. The enemy tanks, losing infantry support, began to fall back. For an hour the Germans tried every available weapon to eliminate Lt. Murphy, but he continued to hold his position and wiped out a squad which was trying to creep up unnoticed on his right flank. Germans reached as close as 10 yards, only to be mowed down by his fire. He received a leg wound, but ignored it and continued his single-handed fight until his ammunition was exhausted. He then made his way back to his company, refused medical attention, and organized the company in a counterattack which forced the Germans to withdraw. His directing of artillery fire wiped out many of the enemy; he killed or wounded about 50. Lt. Murphy's indomitable courage and his refusal to give an inch of ground saved his company from possible encirclement and destruction, and enabled it to hold the woods which had been the enemy's objective.

Personal life

Audie Murphy and his sons, Terry Michael Murphy and James Shannon Murphy.Murphy married actress Wanda Hendrix in 1949. They were divorced in 1951, having produced no children. He then married former airline stewardess Pamela Archer, with whom he had two children: Terry Michael Murphy (born 1952) and James Shannon Murphy (born 1954). Murphy eventually became a successful actor, rancher, and businessman. He also bred and raised thoroughbred horses and owned ranches in Texas, Tucson, Arizona and Perris, California.

In 1955 Murphy became interested in Freemasonry. He was encouraged by his close friend, Texas theater owner Skipper Cherry, to petition and join the Masonic Order in California. He returned to Texas to conduct his Thirty Two Degree work and to join the Shriners. He was active in various masonic events, and was a member in good standing at the time of his death in 1971.

Post war illness

Sadly, Murphy suffered from Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after his return from the war. He was plagued by insomnia, bouts of depression, and nightmares related to his countless bloody battles. His first wife, Wanda Hendrix, often talked of his struggle with this condition, even claiming that he had at one time held her at gunpoint. For a time during the mid-1960s, Murphy became dependent on doctor-prescribed sleeping pills called Placidyl. When he recognized that he had become addicted to the drug, he locked himself in a motel room, where he forced himself to stop taking the pills, and went through withdrawal symptoms for a week.

Always an advocate of the needs of America's military veterans, Murphy eventually broke the taboo about publicly discussing war-related mental conditions. In an effort to draw attention to the problems of returning Korean and Vietnam War veterans, Murphy spoke out candidly about his own problems with PTSD, known during World War II as "Battle fatigue" and commonly known as "Shell Shock". He called on the United States government to give increased consideration and study to the emotional impact that combat experiences have on veterans, and to extend health care benefits to address PTSD and the other mental health problems of returning war veterans.

Movie career

Audie Murphy in 1967 Western movie, 40 Guns to Apache Pass.Actor James Cagney invited Murphy to Hollywood in September 1945 after seeing the young hero's photo on the cover of the July 16 edition of Life Magazine. But the next few years in California were difficult for Murphy as he trained to become an actor. He became disillusioned from lack of work, was broke financially, and slept on the floor of a gymnasium owned by his friend Terry Hunt (Murphy would later name one of his sons Terry out of respect for his friend). But he eventually received token acting parts in the films Beyond Glory and Texas, Brooklyn and Heaven. Murphy's third movie, Bad Boy, gave him his first leading role.

First starring role

After returning home from World War II, Murphy bought a house in Farmersville, Texas for his oldest sister Corinne, her husband Poland Burns, and their three children. The idea was that Audie's three siblings, Nadine, Billie, and Joe, who had been living in an orphanage since Murphy's mother's death, would also be able to live with Corinne and Poland and would become part of a family again. Unfortunately, six children under one roof created too much stress on everyone. The arrangement didn't work out as smoothly as expected, particularly with Nadine and Joe, so Murphy came and picked them up.

Joe and Nadine wanted to stay with Murphy, but he was having a hard time surviving. Despite a lot of post war publicity and James Cagney's help, Murphy's acting career had gone nowhere. Murphy's oldest brother Buck and his wife agreed to take in Nadine, but Murphy didn't know what to do with Joe.

Murphy went to James "Skipper" Cherry, a Dallas theater owner whom he had previously befriended, and sought his advice. Cherry was a member of a consortium of Texas theater owners who were part of Variety Clubs International and was involved with the Variety Clubs International Boy's Ranch a 4,800 acre (19 km²) ranch near Copperas Cove, Texas. Cherry arranged for the Boy's Ranch to take Joe in. Joe loved it there and Murphy was able to visit him, as well as Skipper Cherry frequently.

During one of these visits, Murphy confided to Cherry that even with Cagney's help and acting lessons, he wasn't getting anywhere in Hollywood. In a 1973 interview, Cherry recalled, "He was discouraged and somewhat despondent concerning his movie career." Variety Clubs was financing a film called Bad Boy to help promote the organization's work with troubled children.

Cherry called Texas theater executive Paul Short, who was producing the film, and suggested they considered giving Murphy a significant role in the movie. Murphy looked good in the screen test, but the president of Allied Artists did not want to cast someone with so little acting experience as a major character. However, by this time, Cherry, Short, and the other Texas theater owners had decided that Audie Murphy was going to play the lead or they weren't financing the film. Their money talked and Murphy was cast as the lead. He turned in such a fine performance that the Hollywood powers that be finally recognized his talent. As a direct result of this film, Universal Studios signed Murphy to his first seven year studio contract.

Autobiography

Murphy's 1949 autobiography To Hell and Back became a national bestseller. In this book, which Murphy wrote with the assistance of his writer friend "Specs" McClure, Murphy modestly describes some of his most heroic actions --- without portraying himself as a hero. Not once does he mention any of the many decorations he received for his incredible combat exploits. Instead, he chooses to praise the skills, bravery, and dedication of the other soldiers in his platoon. The 1955 Universal movie of the same name, in which Murphy played himself, was based on this book. The film grossed almost ten million dollars during its initial theatrical release, and at the time became Universal's biggest hit of the studio's entire 43-year history. This movie held the record as the company's highest-grossing motion picture until 1975, when it was finally surpassed by Steven Spielberg's Jaws. Universal gave Murphy latitude in choosing the various roles, as long as plenty of action was included. Terry Murphy, who played Joe Preston Murphy (at age 4), is in fact Murphy's oldest son (in real life, Murphy's brothers and sisters included Corinne, Charles Emmett (Buck), Vernon, June, Oneta, J.W., Richard, Eugene, Nadine, Billie, and Joseph).

Another excellent book, this one covering Murphy's entire life, is "Audie Murphy, American Soldier", by Harold B. Simpson (published in 1975). The book emphasizes Murphy's military exploits, and includes photos, maps, and battle maneuver diagrams. Murphy's post-war career is also well-documented in this comprehensive biography.

Hollywood Walk of Fame

For his contribution to the motion picture industry, Audie Murphy has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1601 Vine Street. In the twenty five years Murphy spent in Hollywood, he made a total of 44 feature films, most of them Westerns.

Music career

In addition to motion picture acting, Audie Murphy also became successful as a country music songwriter. He teamed up with talented artists and composers such as Guy Mitchell, Jimmy Bryant, Scott Turner, Coy Ziegler, Terri Eddleman. Many of Murphy's songs were recorded and released by such great performers as Dean Martin, Eddy Arnold, Charley Pride, Jimmy Bryant, Porter Waggoner, Jerry Wallace, Roy Clark, Harry Nilsson. His two biggest hits were Shutters and Boards and When the Wind Blows in Chicago. Eddy Arnold recorded the latter for his 1983 album, Last of the Love Song Singers, which is currently in release by RCA.

Death

While flying on a business trip on May 28, 1971, (Memorial Day Weekend), Murphy was killed in an air crash. Flying in bad weather with a pilot unqualified to fly on instruments, Murphy's private plane crashed into Brush Mountain, near Catawba, Virginia, some 20 miles west of Roanoke. He was just 46 years old. The pilot and the other four passengers were also killed. In 1974, a large granite memorial marker was erected near the crash site.

On June 7, 1971, Audie Murphy was buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery. His final place of rest, located near the Amphitheater, is one of the cemetery's most visited gravesites (President John F. Kennedy's grave is the most visited).

The tombstones of Arlington's Medal of Honor recipients are normally decorated in gold leaf, but Murphy had requested that his stone remain plain and inconspicous, as would be the case with an ordinary soldier. His engraved Government-issue headstone reads as follows:

Audie L. Murphy, Texas. Major, Infantry, World War II. June 20, 1924 to May 28, 1971. Medal of Honor, DSC, SS & OLC, LM, BSM & OLC, PH & two OLC.

(Key to abbreviations: DSC = Distinguished Service Cross; SS = Silver Star; LM = Legion of Merit; BSM = Bronze Star Medal; PH = Purple Heart; OLC = Oak Leaf Cluster.)

An Oak Leaf Cluster signifies a subsequent award of the same decoration. Interestingly, First Lieutenant Audie Murphy was one of very few company-grade officers ever to be awarded the Legion of Merit. That decoration is usually awarded only to officers in the rank of lieutenant colonel and above.

Other honors

An Audie Murphy National Fan Club was established in the 1950s. Headed by various fans over the years, the club still exists today with over 400 fans in 9 countries.
On November 17, 1973, the Audie L. Murphy Memorial Veterans Hospital in San Antonio, Texas was dedicated to Murphy. It is a one-ton bronze, eight-foot statue of Murphy by the sculptress, Jimilu Mason. He is dressed in battle fatigues holding a rifle with bayonet. Inside the hospital, is a museum that depicts Murphy's life and has items including a uniform, other clothing, books and pictures.
In early 1986, the U.S. Army established the Sergeant Audie Murphy Club at Fort Hood, Texas. Several key people at Fort Hood (officer, enlisted, civil service and a Killeen civilian) were instrumental in getting the club up and running. Leading the effort was Lieutenant General Crosbie Saint, then the Army's III Corps Commander; his Command Sergeant Major, George L. Horvath; III Corp Awards Clerk Jean Crisp, and Don Moore, a Killeen artist who assisted with designing the club's logo and awards. In 1991, then III Corps Commander Lieutenant General Pete Taylor and Command Sergeant Major Richard B. Cayton expanded the Fort Hood installation club to include all of III Corps. This included Fort Riley, Kansas; Fort Sill, Oklahoma; Fort Bliss, Texas; Fort Polk, Louisiana, and Fort Carson, Colorado.
In 1993, CSM Cayton was voted into the Sergeant Audie Murphy Club by the membership, then became the Forces Command Command Sergeant Major. Soon thereafter, the club became FORSCOM-wide, including the Reserves and National Guard.
In 1994 at a Sergeant Major of the Army conference, the Sergeant Audie Murphy Club spread Army-wide, to all commands with installations retaining the selection process for their own NCOs. Many other installations, like Fort Sill, Oklahoma and Fort Riley, Kansas created chapters of the club and began the process of selecting qualified candidates for induction. Professionalism, Loyalty, Caring, Discipline. These are still the watchwords for this group of modern day warriors. Taking care of their soldiers while accomplishing the mission has always been their duty. These SGT Audie Murphy(s) are the leaders we want guiding our soldiers into the 21st century....and beyond.
In 1996 the Texas Legislature officially declared his birthdate, June 20, as "Audie Murphy Day". U.S. Highway 69 North, from North Greenville city limits to Fannin County line was renamed "The Audie Murphy Memorial Highway". In 1996, he was inducted posthumously into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
From the mid-90s through the present, there has been an annual celebration of Audie and other veterans in all branches of service held at the American Cotton Museum in Greenville (held on the weekend closest to Murphy's birthday) and in Farmersville (held on his birthday of June 20th). The neighboring towns of Celeste and Kingston also hold annual celebrations or ceremonies. The events in Greenville and Farmersville have been attended by Active Duty soldiers who are members of the Sergeant Audie Murphy Club . (This is an elite membership group recognizing noncommissioned officers (sergeants) who have displayed the integrity, professionalism, commitment to mentoring subordinate soldiers, leadership abilities and personal ethics as exemplified by Audie L. Murphy. Usually, just 1% of the top 5% of the best sergeants in the Army are invited to try out for membership in this club.) In 2002, an eleven foot tall bronze statue of Audie was unveiled in front of the Greenville museum. Created by local sculturer, Thomas Gibson, the statue was the centerpiece for a memorial to honor veterans from all branches of the service, from all the major conflicts. Soldiers from the Fort Sill, Oklahoma and Fort Hood, Texas Sergeant Audie Murphy Clubs assisted with the ceremonies and unveiling.
In 1999, Governor George W. Bush, also made the same proclamation declaring June 20 to officially be "Audie Murphy Day" in the state of Texas.
In 2000, Audie Murphy was honored with his portrait on a thirty three cent United States postage stamp. There is also an Audie Murphy Middle School in Fort Hood, Texas, named in his honor.
The American Cotton Museum in Greenville (Hunt County), Texas is located just off Interstate 30 East. Recently renamed the Audie Murphy/American Cotton Museum, it houses the largest collection of Audie Murphy memorabilia and personal items. Many of these were donated by Murphy family members or by Audie's many worldwide fans.

Military awards

Medal of Honor
Distinguished Service Cross
Silver Star with First Oak Leaf Cluster
Legion of Merit
Bronze Star Medal with "V" Device and First Oak Leaf Cluster
Purple Heart with Second Oak Leaf Cluster
U.S. Army Outstanding Civilian Service Medal
Good Conduct Medal
Presidential Unit Citation (US) with First Oak Leaf Cluster
European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with One Silver Star, Four Bronze Service Stars (representing nine campaigns) and one Bronze Arrowhead (representing assault landings at Sicily and Southern France)
American Campaign Medal
World War II Victory Medal
Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp
Armed Forces Reserve Medal
Combat Infantryman Badge
Expert Badge with Bayonet Bar
Marksman Badge with Rifle Bar
French Fourragère in Colors of the Croix de guerre
French Legion of Honor
French Croix de guerre with Silver Star
French Croix de guerre with Palm
French Liberation Medal
Belgian Croix de guerre with Palm
Badge of the 159th French Alpine Infantry Regiment (Honorary award for Heroic Action in the Colmar Campaign)

Trivia

Audie Murphy's height and weight at his enlistment was 5 ft 5 in and 110 lb. After a three year enlistment, he grew to 5 ft 7 in and 145 lb.
Was the original choice to play the Scorpio Killer in Dirty Harry.
Had horrible nightmares due to post traumatic stress disorder, and sometimes slept with a gun under his pillow.
Purchased a Middle Eastern oil field in the 60's which was blown up during the Six Day War, causing him to file for bankruptcy.
His highest grossing film was the autobiographical To Hell and Back.
Would often say he had "no talent."
His films earned him close to 3 million dollars in his 24 years as an actor.
Former WWII General and President Dwight Eisenhower did not enjoy Murphy's films, saying his combat scenes were unbelievable due to his small stature. However, Murphy's relatively short height is not particularly noticeable in "To Hell and Back" or in his other action movies.
He was a life member of the National Rifle Association.
Was reluctant to star in "To Hell and Back" fearing that he was cashing in on his war experience. He even suggested that his role be played by Tony Curtis.
Always a modest hero, Murphy gave away his awards and decorations to friends. When these were replaced by family members, he again gave them to those closest to him.
In the PlayStation version of Medal of Honor, there´s a cheat called Audie Murphy mode (activated by the password 'Mostmedals'), in which the player becomes invulnerable and with an infinite ammo supply.

A song by Kazantzides, considered by many people the best male Greek singer ever. He is resting in peace now since a few years ago.


Music: Christos Nikolopoulos
Lyrics: Pythagoras
Singer: Stelios Kazantzides

The wild flower

Don't feel sorry about me, send me away today,
and "cut" my life as I was a wild flower.

CHORUS
I started empty, and I head alone,
The road is my house and the pain is my song.
Send me away, and don't feel sorry,
Don't worry about me,
Even if it is raining, even if it is snowing,
The Wild Flower can survive.

Don't keep me with you, just because of compassion,
I got used with the cold; I can even survive the snow,

CHORUS

Martin Landau
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Martin Landau (born June 20, 1931) is an Academy Award-winning American film and television actor. He is perhaps most well known for his roles in the television series Mission: Impossible (1966 - 1969) and Space: 1999 (1975 - 1977).


Biography

Landau was born to a Jewish family in Brooklyn, New York, and at the age of 17 began working as a cartoonist for the New York Daily News, but influenced by Charlie Chaplin and the escapism of the cinema, he pursued becoming an actor. He attended the Actors Studio in the same class with Steve McQueen and in 1957, Landau made his Broadway debut in Middle of the Night. Encouraged by his mentor Lee Strasberg, Landau also taught acting. Some of the actors he has coached include Jack Nicholson and Anjelica Huston.


In 1959, Landau made his first major film appearance in Alfred Hitchcock's, North by Northwest. A few years later, after turning down the role of Spock in Star Trek, Landau took the role of master of disguise Rollin Hand in Mission: Impossible, becoming one of that show's best-known stars. He co-starred in the series with his then-wife, Barbara Bain, and the two left after the third season due to a salary dispute.

In the mid-1970s, Landau and Barbara Bain, teamed with Barry Morse, returned to television in the British science fiction series, Space: 1999. Although it remains a cult classic, the series was critically derided during its run and was cancelled after two seasons; Landau himself became very critical of the show's scripts and storylines near the end, but praised the cast and crew. He wrote the Foreword for Barry Morse's 2006 theatrical memoir Remember With Advantages.

After Space: 1999, Landau appeared in supporting roles in a number of films and TV shows of varying quality, including The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island (which again co-starred Bain).

In the late 1980s, Landau staged a major career comeback by winning an Academy Award nomination for his role in Tucker: The Man and His Dream. He later received a second nomination for Crimes and Misdemeanors and won the Best Supporting Actor award in 1994 for his uncanny portrayal of Bela Lugosi in Ed Wood. Upon accepting the award he was visibly frustrated by the orchestra's attempt to cut short his speech. When the music level raised, he pounded his fist on the podium and yelled "No!"

He has two daughters, Susan and Juliet, from his marriage to Barbara Bain. Landau and Bain married in 1957 and divorced in 1993.

For his contribution to the motion picture industry, Martin Landau has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6841 Hollywood Blvd.

Anne Murray
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Anne Murray CC, ONS (born Morna Anne Murray June 20, 1945), is a Canadian singer born in Springhill, Nova Scotia, known for her rich alto voice and her taste in choosing songs that appeal to pop, country and adult contemporary listeners alike. For many, her fame as the representative Canadian singer is rivaled only by Gordon Lightfoot. Unlike many internationally-renowned Canadian singers, she has always resided in Canada and now lives in Toronto, but spends most summers in Nova Scotia.

Murray was the first Canadian singer to reach #1 on the US charts. She is often cited as the Canadian woman who paved the way for other international success stories such as Céline Dion, Sarah McLachlan and Shania Twain. So far, her albums have sold over 54 million copies worldwide. She is the most successful crossover female artist in music history, as well as one of the most successful Christmas artists of all time with her Christmas albums selling in the millions. (In fact her album "Christmas Wishes" is one of the Top 5 selling female holiday albums in history and her "Greatest Hits" album has sold over 7 million copies worldwide). Her single "A Little Good News" has sold over 12 million copies.

TV work

She has also been a staple on TV with 4 highly-rated US specials on CBS (over 40 million viewers each), countless Canadian specials on CBC and has appeared on Solid Gold, Sesame Street, The Muppet Show, Saturday Night Live, Johnny Carson, Dean Martin Summer Show, Singalong Jubilee, Dinah!, The Mike Douglas Show, Oprah, 20/20, CNN, Smothers Brothers, The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour, Regis and Kathy Lee, The Pat Sajak Show etc...The 2005 CBC special " Anne Murray-The Music of my Life" broke ratings records for a Thursday night, with over 1 million viewers tuned in. She has also had several high-profile commercials for her albums in the US and Canada. She is the first female artist to receive a CMA award for "Album of the year", and she has both hosted the Junos in Canada as well as the CMA's in the USA.

Music

Her music has wide appeal and she is popular with very young children (her commercials were in heavy rotation on cartoon networks and she has a children's album), country and pop fans, the older generation, ballroom dancers and newlyweds (especially due to "Could I Have this Dance"), lovers of Christian music ("What a Wonderful World", 'Robbie's Song for Jesus") and easy listening music, and on the other side of the spectrum, even had dance singles (i.e. "Who's Leaving Who") which appealed to a strong gay following. The song was later covered by dance queen Hazell Dean. Anne's music has been pigeonholed ( wrongly a lot might say) in the Country category even though she has touched many music styles. Her voice is often compared to that of Karen Carpenter, and country singer Kathy Mattea has had trouble getting over the constant comparison of her voice to Anne's. She is known as "The Lady," and is sometimes referred to as the "Singing Sweetheart of Canada." Her fame has been a boon to her home province of Nova Scotia, where the "Anne Murray Centre" is located.

Early career

Murray first came to the public eye in Canada as a cast member on the 1960's CBC music/comedy television show Singalong Jubilee. (She would later marry the show's host, Bill Langstroth.) She had a Canadian hit with the song "What About Me," the title track for her first album release. Her later live recording of the song, with a faster arrangement, would become the version heard in America.

Her first hit, "Snowbird" (1970), reached the top ten on the US Pop charts, but was a surprise country hit, as well, and a number of her subsequent singles have charted both pop and country simultaneously. During 1970s and early 1980s, her hits included "Danny's Song" (1972), "A Love Song" (1973), a remake of the Beatles' "You Won't See Me" (1974), "The Call" (1976), "You Needed Me" (1978) (an American #1 single), "I Just Fall In Love Again," "Shadows in the Moonlight" and "Broken-Hearted Me" (all 1979), a remake of The Monkees' "Daydream Believer" (1979), "Could I have this Dance" (from the movie Urban Cowboy, 1980), "Blessed Are the Believers" (1981), "A Little Good News" (1983), and "Time Don't Run Out on Me" (1985).. Her hits started to taper off into the mid '80s, and her last top 100 charting pop hit was "Now and Forever (You and Me)" from 1986 (it hit the country charts at #1-she has 11 #1 country songs in all). Murray was a fixture for a while in Vegas, famous for signing million-dollar deals and even had a casino chip featuring her likeness. Earlier in her career, she had a famous gig at the Troubador, where the now famous picture of her, John Lennon, Mickey Dolenz, Harry Nilson and Alice Cooper was taken.

Later career

Though her singles continued to make the country charts for a few more years, by the early '90s, in the wake of country's neotraditionalist movement, her smooth, polished sound fell out of favour with country radio, as well. She still remains a top concert draw, and performs regularly in the US, Canada, and occasionally in Australia. Though they yielded no chart singles, recent albums, including a 1993 album of standards, "Croonin'", a 1999 collection of quasi-inspirational songs, "What a Wonderful World", and a 2002 album of country standards, "Country Croonin'", have all made the country, pop, and/or adult contemporary charts. Her 1999 album "What a Wonderful World", for example, sold over 1 million copies in the US alone. It peaked in the US Billboard charts at #4 Country, #38 Pop and #1 Contemporary Christian. Her 2001 album "Country Croonin'" sold over 500,000 copies in the US alone and was a top-ten US country album. Her music has been featured on "The Sopranos", the movie "Urban Cowboy", the Burt Reynolds film "Stick", the "Convoy" movie, on "That 70's Show" and on "Ellen" amongst others. Her span on the US Billboard charts started in 1970 and her latest entry was in 2005.

Personal life

Murray has always staunchly kept her personal life as private as possible. Thus, she has been called "Garbo-esque" in certain media circles.

She wed Bill Langstroth in the 1970s, with Ruth Buzzi participating in the ceremony, and that union produced two children, Dawn (an aspiring singer-songwriter) and William (a computer programmer for the Government of Ontario).

In recent years, she has faced many personal challenges: her departure from Capitol Records after some 25 years; the apparent suicide of the author of her first hit "Snowbird" Gene McLellan; the death of her beloved manager Leonard T. Rambeau of cancer; her separation and divorce from her husband; her daughter's battle with anorexia (they reluctantly did the US talk-show circuit to raise awareness); and most recently, the loss of her best friend to cancer (she recorded her album "All of Me" as a tribute to her). She has overcome all of these obstacles, and emerged in 1999 with her best selling album in 20 years "What a Wonderful World"-and has followed up with three subsequent albums.

Anne has always kept strong ties to her hometown, Springhill, Nova Scotia, located about an hour south of Moncton, N.B. and two and a half hours north of Halifax, N.S. She has a museum there which houses her memorabilia and employs local people. She has been instrumental in the construction of the local arena, and has been a spokeswoman for many charities.

She has been a victim of a relentless stalker (see "other trivia"), received a diamond in the mail from another admirer, and rumours about her sexuality (despite having been married with two children, perhaps a result of her physical education background) reached its climax when Joan Rivers confronted her about it on her now-defunct talk show in the US.

She supported Dusty Springfield when Springfield's personal and professional life was in turmoil. She featured Springfield as a backup vocalist on several albums and offered a spot on one of her CBS TV specials.

She donated a generous amount to the tsunami relief fund, among others.

She was a celebrity corporate spokeswoman for The Bay, Canada's oldest company, along with Celine Dion, and sang a catchy jingle for the CIBC bank ("You can count on the Commerce").

She founded a successful publishing and entertainment company called Balmur Ltd.

She is an avid golfer and her first hole-in-one was covered prominently in North America.

Most recently, she has been touted as a possible candidate for future Governor General of Canada.

Her mother, Marion, with whom Anne was very close, died April 10, 2006.

Could I Have This Dance - Song Lyrics
As performed by Anne Murray
Words and Music by Wayland Holyfield and Bob House
Reached #1 on the Country Music charts in October, 1980
From the movie Urban Cowboy
A wonderful first dance waltz at a wedding or anniversary party

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


I'll always remember the song they were playin',
The first time we danced and I knew,
As we swayed to the music and held to each other,
I fell in love with you.

Could I have this dance for the rest of my life?
Would you be my partner every night?
When we're together, it feels so right.
Could I have this dance for the rest of my life?

I'll always remember that magic moment,
When I held you close to me.
'Cause we moved together, I knew forever,
You're all I'll ever need

Could I have this dance for the rest of my life?
Would you be my partner every night?
When we're together, it feels so right.
Could I have this dance for the rest of my life?

Could I have this dance for the rest of my life?
Would you be my partner every night?
When we're together, it feels so right.
Could I have this dance for the rest of my life?

Lionel Richie
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Lionel Brockman Richie, Jr. (born June 20, 1949) is an American R&B singer, songwriter, composer, and occasional actor. His fame began when he was the front man for the Commodores, a nationally popular Motown band during the 1970s. They had several hits such as "Easy", "Three Times A Lady", and "Brick House". Richie departed the Commodores in 1981 for a solo career. He released his self-titled debut in 1982. The album hit #3 on the music charts and sold over 4 million copies. His 1983 follow up album, Can't Slow Down, sold over twice as many copies and won the Grammy Award for the Album of the Year in 1984. His third album, 1986's Dancing on the Ceiling spawned such hits as "Say You, Say Me," "Dancing on the Ceiling," and "Se La", but it would be the end of his large commercial success. His albums in the '90s such as Back to Front, Louder Than Words, and Time all failed to achieve the previous decade's commercial success. Some of his recent work, such as the album Renaissance, has returned to his older style, hoping to achieve more success.

Biography

Born in Tuskegee, Alabama, Lionel Richie grew up on the campus of the Tuskegee Institute. His grandmother's house was across the street from the home of the president of the Institute. His family moved to Illinois, where he graduated from high school in Joliet. A star tennis player in Joliet, he accepted a tennis scholarship back at Tuskegee Institute.

Back as a student in Tuskeegee, he formed a succession of R&B groups in the mid-'60s. In 1968, he became the lead singer and saxophonist with the Commodores. They signed a recording contract with Atlantic Records in 1968 for one record before moving to on Motown Records, being schooled as support act to the Jackson Five. The Commodores became established as one of America's most popular soul groups of the '70s, and Richie was responsible for writing and singing many of their biggest hits, specializing in romantic, easy-listening ballads such as "Three Times A Lady" and "Still".


His pleasing vocal tones established him as the most prominent member of the group, and by the late '70s he had begun to accept songwriting commissions from other artists. He composed "Lady" for his friend Kenny Rogers (which hit #1 in 1980), and he produced Rogers' Share Your Love album the following year. Also in 1981, Richie sang a duet with Diana Ross in the theme song for the film Endless Love. Issued as a single, the song topped the UK and US pop music charts, and it became one of Motown's biggest hits. Its success encouraged Richie to branch out into a full-fledged solo career in 1982. His debut album, Lionel Richie, produced another chart-topping single, "Truly", which continued the style of his ballads with the Commodores.

In 1983, he released Can't Slow Down, which shot him into the first rank of international superstars. The album also won two Grammy Awards, including Album Of The Year. It spawned the #1 hit "All Night Long", a rock 'n' roll dance number that was promoted by a startling music video produced by former Monkee, Michael Nesmith.

Several more Top 10 hits followed, the most successful of which was "Hello", a sentimental love song that showed how far Richie had moved from his R&B roots. Now described by one critic as 'the black Barry Manilow', Richie wrote and performed a suitably soothing theme song, "Say You, Say Me", for the film White Nights, winning an Oscar for his efforts. He also collaborated with Michael Jackson on the charity single "We Are the World" by USA For Africa.

In about 1984, Lionel and his wife Brenda Richie informally adopted the three-year-old daughter of people associated with Lionel's band. They raised her as their daughter, Nicole Richie. In about 1990, they went through the legal formalities of adopting her. Brenda and Lionel divorced after a 16-year marriage, and then Lionel immediately married Diane Alexander. Lionel and Diane have borne two children, but they are no longer married.

In 1986, he released Dancing On The Ceiling, another widely popular album that produced a run of US and UK hits. The title track, which revived the lively dance sound of "All Night Long", was accompanied by another striking video, a feature that played an increasingly important role in Richie's solo career. The critical consensus was that this album represented nothing more than a consolidation of his previous work, though Richie's collaboration with the country group Alabama on "Deep River Woman" did break new ground.

Since then, his ever-more relaxed schedule has kept his recording and live work to a minimum. He broke the silence in 1996 with Louder Than Words, on which he resisted any change of style or the musical fashion-hopping of the past decade. Instead, he stayed with his chosen path of well-crafted soul music, which in the intervening years has become known as Urban R&B.

In November 2005, Lionel Richie performed with Kenny Rogers on a CMT Crossroads special. The show (a concert/documentary) gave an informative insight into their friendship both in and out of the music world.

LIONEL RICHIE - Three Times A Lady


Album: Truly The Love Songs (1997)


Thanks for the times
That you've given me
The memories are all in my mind
And now that we've come
To the end of our rainbow
There's something
I must say out loud
You're once, twice
Three times a lady
Yes you're once twice
Three times a lady

And I love you
When we are together
The moments I cherish
With every beat of my heart
To touch you to hold you
To feel you to need you
There's nothing to keep us apart
You're once twice
Three times a lady
And I love you
I love you

John Goodman
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

John Stephen Goodman (born June 20, 1952 in Affton, Missouri) is an American actor.

Goodman went to Affton High School. He won an athletics scholarship to play football at Southwest Missouri State University as a teenager, but subsequently decided to become an actor, leaving Missouri for New York in 1975. He then appeared on stage off-Broadway, in dinner theatres and on TV advertisements before playing character parts in movies in the early 1980s.

Goodman is best known for comic roles, including Roseanne Barr's husband in the TV sitcom Roseanne, the voice of Sulley in Monsters, Inc., and Fred Flintstone in the movie The Flintstones. He has appeared in many roles in movies by The Coen Brothers. Goodman is frequently cast as blue-collar characters or as the main character's sidekick, for example in Sea of Love, as Al Pacino's police partner, in The Big Lebowski as Jeff "The Dude" Lebowski's best friend Walter Sobchak, and Fallen, as police partner to Denzel Washington. Standing 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) and weighing nearly 400 lb (180 kg), Goodman had to lose weight in order to play Babe Ruth in the 1992 movie The Babe.

In 2000, Goodman had his own short-lived sitcom called Normal, Ohio, in which he played a gay man who returns to his small hometown to start a new life. Viewers did not respond well and critics panned the show. In 2004, he starred alongside Jean Smart in the CBS sitcom Center of the Universe; it, too, was critically panned and quickly cancelled.

Goodman has also been a popular guest host on NBC's Saturday Night Live. Ironically, Goodman auditioned to be a castmember in 1980, but was rejected. Goodman also had a recurring role on The West Wing, as fictional former House Speaker Glen Allen Walken, briefly becoming President when President of the United States Josiah Bartlet yielded power temporarily under the terms of the 25th Amendment to the United States Constitution. He also played someone who unexpectedly became a head of state in the film King Ralph, after the ruling family of the United Kingdom dies in a freak electrical accident.

John Goodman has a star on the St. Louis Walk of Fame and is part-owner of O'Leary's, an Irish pub restaurant in South St. Louis County.

John Goodman temporarily replaced the late John Belushi (Jake Blues) as Dan Aykroyd's partner in the latter's popular Blues Brothers Band. He first appeared as "Mighty" Mack Blues on Saturday Night Live on March 25, 1995 and went on to star in the film Blues Brothers 2000. He continued to perform alongside Aykroyd (Elwood Blues) and Jim Belushi (Zee Blues) through 2001. Soon after that, health problems forced him to shelve the character.

Nicole Kidman
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Nicole Mary Kidman, AC (born June 20, 1967) is an Academy Award-winning actress, and one of Hollywood's leading actresses. She has also ventured into singing. Kidman holds dual citizenship as both an Australian and an American.

Biography

Early life and career

Nicole Kidman was born in Honolulu, Hawaii to Dr. Anthony David Kidman and Janelle Ann (nee MacNeille), who were of Scottish and Irish descent respectively, and were both born in Australia. At the time, her father was a cancer research specialist in Washington, D.C. The family returned to Australia when Nicole was four years old, when her father took on a lectureship at the University of Technology, Sydney.


Nicole Kidman as Powder Puff in the 1983 film BMX BanditsKidman started taking ballet lessons when she was four. This led to studies at Sydney's Australian Theatre for Young People, where she is now Patron, and then at the Philip Street Theatre, where she majored in voice production and theatre history. Living in Longueville, NSW, she studied at North Sydney Girls High School, but dropped out when her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer; Kidman concentrated on her family responsibilities until her mother's recovery.

Her first appearance on film came in 1983 when, as a 15 year-old, she appeared in the Pat Wilson music video for the song "Bop Girl". By the end of the year she had secured a supporting role in the television series Five Mile Creek, and four film roles, including BMX Bandits and Bush Christmas. During the 1980s she appeared in several Australian movies and TV series, notably including the soap opera A Country Practice, the mini-series Vietnam (1986), Emerald City (1988), and Bangkok Hilton (1989). In 1989 she appeared in the successful thriller Dead Calm as Rae, the wife of naval officer John Ingram (Sam Neill), held captive on a Pacific yacht trip by the psychotic Hughie Warriner (Billy Zane). The role gained her considerable notice in the United States.

Personal life

Her American debut was in Days of Thunder (1990), a stock-car racing movie, in which she played opposite Tom Cruise. Although Cruise was married to actress Mimi Rogers at the time, he and Kidman began an affair. Cruise divorced Rogers and the couple married on Christmas Eve 1990 in Telluride, Colorado. They adopted two children, Isabella and Connor, and lived in Los Angeles, California, Australia, Colorado, and New York City.

Cruise left Kidman while she was three months pregnant, just shy of their 10 year wedding anniversary. She subsequently suffered a miscarriage. The marriage was dissolved in 2001. Much media speculation came about because of their reasons for this, but both celebrities maintained their privacy and were guarded in their public comments. One persistent rumor claims however that Kidman's desire to bring up their children Catholic, and her critical views of Cruise's belief in Scientology. It is rumored that Kidman never believed in Scientology, but accepted it to appease Cruise. She is now a practicing Catholic.

Since divorcing Cruise, the tabloids have linked her with countless people.

She is rumored to have met singer Lenny Kravitz when she sublet his New York City apartment in 2003, and then dated him into 2004. An engagement was never confirmed or denied, but Kidman was seen wearing a diamond ring on her right and left ring fingers during the later stages of their relationship. Infidelity on his part is speculated to be among the reasons for the breakup.

After meeting country singer Keith Urban at a Hollywood event in January 2005, the pair are said to have started dating shortly after. In late October 2005, the pair was spotted together for the first time, walking hand in hand in Boston. Here, the diamond ring that has been on her left ring finger since made its debut. Paparazzi photographed Kidman, Urban, and both sets of their parents together over Thanksgiving 2005, and Kidman with the Urban family over Christmas 2005. In May 2006, Kidman told People that she and Urban are engaged.

A close religious confidant to the actor - Sydney Jesuit priest Father Paul Coleman - has revealed to the Catholic News Service[1] that Kidman's wedding preparations have helped deepen her Catholic faith. "For Nicole, you know, this is a spiritual homecoming, coming back to the church and her faith in her old parish," Fr Coleman said[2] at Mary Mackillop Chapel in North Sydney, where the wedding is reportedly to be held under the cover of darkness.

Fellow Australian actors Naomi Watts and Russell Crowe are widely known to be two of her best friends.

Hollywood career

After Days of Thunder, Kidman starred with Cruise in Ron Howard's Far and Away (1992).


DVD cover of To Die For depicting Nicole Kidman as Suzanne Stone MarettoIn 1995 Kidman featured in the all-star cast of Batman Forever and later that same year starred in To Die For, a satirical comedy that earned her high praise from critics, and talk of an Academy Award nomination for her performance, although this did not materialize. She did, however, win a Golden Globe award, and five other best actress awards for her comic portrayal of the murderous newscaster Suzanne Stone Maretto.

Kidman and Cruise portrayed a married couple in Eyes Wide Shut in 1999, Stanley Kubrick's final film. It was the third time she had co-starred with Tom Cruise.

Kidman's most professionally successful year thus far is 2001, with her Oscar-nominated performance in Moulin Rouge!, in which she played the beautiful courtesan Satine opposite Ewan McGregor, and a well-received starring role in the horror film The Others. While in Australia filming Moulin Rouge!, Kidman injured her knee, so that Jodie Foster had to replace her in the film Panic Room. The following year Kidman won praise from critics for her portrayal of Virginia Woolf in The Hours. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress for this role, along with Golden Globe, the BAFTA, and numerous critics awards. In the same year she took a hand at production for the film In the Cut.

In 2003, Kidman starred in three very different films. Dogville, by Danish director Lars von Trier, is an experimental film set on a bare soundstage, and hinges almost entirely on Kidman's performance. The film, and especially Kidman achieved critical praise, although the film was never successful commercially. Secondly, she co-starred alongside Anthony Hopkins in the film adaptation of Philip Roth's novel The Human Stain. This film was rather less accepted by critics, many of whom felt that both Kidman and Hopkins were miscast. Cold Mountain, an epic love story of two southerners separated by the Civil War, was her final release that year, and garnered her a Golden Globe nomination. The film was plagued by rumors that an on-set affair between Nicole and co-star Jude Law was responsible for the breakup of his marriage. Both vehemently denied the allegations, and Kidman eventually won an undisclosed sum from the British tabloids that pushed the story. She donated the money to a Romanian orphanage in the town where the movie was filmed.

In 2004, Kidman appeared in the remake of The Stepford Wives alongside Glenn Close, Faith Hill and Bette Midler. In September of the same year, Birth, in which the 37-year-old actress' character has an encounter with a 10-year-old boy (played by Cameron Bright) who attempts to convince her that he is a reincarnation of her dead husband, was met with a mixed reception. Many viewers were disturbed by a scene where the boy strips and joins Kidman in the bathtub. Despite this, the film was nominated for the prestigious Golden Lion Award at the Venice Film Festival, and Kidman was nominated for a Golden Globe.

Kidman's two movies in 2005 received drastically different receptions. The Interpreter, directed by Sydney Pollack, was one of the most popular movies worldwide that year and started a reemergence of the political thriller films such as Syriana. Conversely Bewitched, directed by Nora Ephron and co-starring Will Ferrell, based on the 1960s TV sitcom of the same name, fared abysmally with critics and at the boxoffice.

He said....Do you love me just because my father left me
a fortune?
She said...Not at all honey, I would love you no matter who
left you the money.

She said...What do you mean by coming home half drunk?
He said....It's not my fault...I ran out of money.

He said... Since I first laid eyes on you, I've wanted to
make love to you in the worst way.
She said...Well, you succeeded.

He said... What have you been doing with all the grocery
money I gave you?
She said...Turn sideways and look in the mirror.

He said... Let's go out and have some fun tonight.
She said...Okay, but if you get home before I do, leave
the hallway light on.

He said... Why don't you tell me when you have an orgasm?
She said...I would, but you're never there.

Good morning, WA2K listeners and contributors.

Thanks to our dj for his marvelous reminder of Monty Python and their absolutely hilarious skits. The sense of the ridiculous has always been funny to me, and they were the masters.

Ellinas, We enjoy your lovely translations of music, Greece. Thank you on behalf of all of us here.

Well, folks. Letty has a mountain of paperwork to complete, so I will be back later to review our Bob's wonderful bio's.

Oooh. Thanks Bob, for posting two of my favorite songs performed by Ann Murray (although I like most everything she does) and Lionel Ritchie.

and Good morning WA2K.

Thank you Sweetheart. Those images are wonderful. Don't know where you find them all but I'm certainly glad that you do.

Aaah. No secret, Bob. Try Google Images.

ah, Raggedy. I know every one of your celebs, honey. Marvelous job as usual, PA.

Would you listen to that fickle hawk?

Although I didn't see Lionel among the notables, here is a song from him to all of us:
Dancing on the ceiling:



What is happening here?
Something is going on
That's not quite clear
Somebody turn on the light
We're gonna have a party
It's starting tonight

Oh, what a feeling!
When we're dancing on the ceiling
The room is hot...that's good
some of my friends came
By from the neighbourhood
People were starting
To climb the walls
Ooh, it looks like everbody
Is having a ball

Everybody starts to lose control
When the music is right
If you see somebody hanging around
Don't get upright
The only thing we wanna do tonight
Is go round and round
and turn upside down
Come on, let's get down

So come on, let's get loose
Don't hold back
Because it ain't no use
Hard to keep your feet on the ground
Because when we like to ball it
We only want to get down
what? You say what?
It's love now...
Just get started
Everybody clap your hands, come on
Everybody have sense...

Sorry Lionel. Don't feel like it.

Good morning all.

Status Quo
And It's Better Now Lyrics


Riding along on the words of a song in my head
Thinking all day of the thoughts in my mind never said
I have needed a friend, over and over again
Everyone sings of a God they have known
Now I have a God of my own
And it's better now, been a long, long time
And it's better now that the words can rhyme

Gotta have something to sing about, everyone must have a song
Now I got something to sing about, everyone's singing my song
Gotta have something to sing about, everyone must have a song
Now I got something to sing about, everyone's singing my song

Dreaming away, never wishing to be anyone
Never a question or reason to find right or wrong
When I looked at the end, over and over again
Riding along on the words of a song
Thinking my time had all gone

And it's better now, been a long, long time
And it's better now that the words can rhyme

Gotta have something to sing about, everyone must have a song
Now I got something to sing about, everyone's singing my song
Gotta have something to sing about, everyone must have a song
Now I got something to sing about, everyone's singing my song