Thank you Raggedy my sweet. I can't remember feeling so euphoric (hah, look that one up). My daughter Nina confessed it's the most she's cried in her life for being so happy.
Bob: Thanks, Letty, for alerting our audience to your engagement.
Letty: It was my pleasure, hawman.
Hey, hawk. I know what euphoric means; it's sorta like being on cloud nine.
Cloud 9
Have my love
It fits you like a glove
Join my dream, tell me yes
Bail out should there be a mess
The pieces you don't need are mine
Take my time
I'll show you cloud nine
Take my smile and my heart
They were yours from the start
The pieces to omit are mine
Have my love
Use it while it does you good
Share my highs but the times
That it hurts pay no mind
The pieces you don't need are mine
I'll see you there on cloud nine
Take my hope
Maybe even share a joke
If there's good to be shown
You may make it all your own
And if you want to quit that's fine
While you're out looking for cloud nine
George Harrison.
etymology for today:
Cloud nine
Another comment: Cloud nine is an easy one. It is of relatively recent origin. The US weather bureau listed the different cloud formations and assigned them numbers. Cumulous clouds are #9.
Harry Belafonte
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Background information
Birth name Harold George Belafonte
Born March 1, 1927
Harlem, New York, USA
Genre(s) Calypso
Folk
Pop
Years active 1949 - 2003
Label(s) RCA Victor
CBS
EMI
Island
Harold George Belafonte, Jr. (born March 1, 1927 in New York, New York, United States) is an African-American musician, actor and radical social activist of Jamaican ancestry. One of the most successful Jamaican musicians in history, he was dubbed the "King of Calypso" for popularizing the Caribbean musical style in the 1950s. Belafonte is perhaps best known for singing the "Banana Boat Song", with its signature lyric "Day-O". Throughout his career, he has been an advocate for civil rights and humanitarian causes. In recent years he has been a vocal critic of the policies of the Bush Administration.
Youth and early career
Harry Belafonte was born in Harlem, New York. From 1935 to 1939, he lived with his mother in the village of Aboukir in her native country of Jamaica. When he returned to New York he attended George Washington High School after which he joined the Navy and served during World War II. At the end of the 1940s, he took classes in acting along side Marlon Brando, Tony Curtis, Walter Matthau, and Sidney Poitier, while performing with the American Negro Theatre. He subsequently received a Tony Award for his participation in the Broadway revue John Murray Anderson's Almanac.
Music career
Belafonte started his career in music as a club singer in New York, to pay for his acting classes. At first he was a pop singer, launching his recording career on the Jubilee label in 1949, but later he developed a keen interest in folk music, learning material through the Library of Congress' American folk songs archives. With guitarist and friend Millard Thomas, Belafonte soon made his debut at the legendary jazz club The Village Vanguard.
In 1952 he received a contract with RCA Victor. His breakthrough album Calypso (1956) became the first LP to sell over 1 million copies (Bing Crosby's White Christmas and Tennessee Ernie Ford's Sixteen Tons, both singles, had previously surpassed the 1 million mark). The album is number four on Billboard's "Top 100 Album" list for having spent 31 weeks at number 1, 58 weeks in the top ten, and 99 weeks on the U.S. charts. The album introduced American audiences to Calypso music and Belafonte was dubbed the "King of Calypso", a title he wore with some reservations. One of the songs included in the album is the now famous "Banana Boat Song," with its signature lyric "Day-O". While primarily known for his Calypso songs, Belafonte has recorded in many genres, including blues, folk, gospel, show tunes, and American standards.
Belafonte continued to record for RCA through the 1950s to the 1970s. Two live albums, both recorded at Carnegie Hall in 1959 and 1960, enjoyed critical and commercial success. He was one of many entertainers recruited by Frank Sinatra to perform at the Inaugural gala of President John F. Kennedy in 1961. That same year he released his second Calypso album, Jump Up Calypso, which went on to become another million seller.
During the 1960s he introduced a number of artists to American audiences, most notably African singer Miriam Makeba and Greek singer Nana Mouskouri. His album Midnight Special (1962) featured the first-ever recorded appearance by a then young harmonica player named Bob Dylan. As The Beatles and other stars from Britain began to dominate the U.S. pop charts, Belafonte's impact as a commercial force diminished; 1964's Belafonte At The Greek Theatre was his last album to appear in Billboard's Top 40.
Belafonte has received a Grammy Award for the albums Swing That Hammer (1960) and An Evening With Belafonte/Makeba (1965). The latter album dealt with the political plight of black South Africans under apartheid. He has been awarded six Gold Records.[1]
Belafonte's album output in the 1970s slowed after leaving RCA. He released only one album of original material in the 1980s, coinciding with a stronger focus on politics and activism. A soundtrack and video of a televised concert were released in 1997 by Island Records. The Long Road to Freedom, An Anthology of Black Music, a huge multi-artist project recorded during the 1960s and 1970s while he was still with RCA, was finally released by the label in 2001.
The "Turn the World Around" number on The Muppet Show.Belafonte was the first African-American man to win an Emmy, with his first solo TV special Tonight with Belafonte (1959). During the 1960s he appeared in a number of TV specials, alongside such artists as Julie Andrews, Petula Clark, Lena Horne, and Nana Mouskouri. He was also a guest star on a memorable episode of The Muppet Show in 1978, in which he sang his signature song "Day-O" on television for the very first time. However, the episode is best known for Belafonte singing the spiritual song, "Turn the World Around", that is performed with Muppets designed like African tribal masks. It has become one of the most famous performances in the series. It was reported to be Jim Henson's favorite episode, and Belafonte did a reprise of the song at Henson's funeral in 1990.
Harry Belafonte received the Kennedy Center Honors in 1989. He was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 1994 and he won a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2000.
Belafonte has been a major concert draw since his first world tour in 1956. He has continued to perform before audiences globally through the 1950s to the 2000s. He gave his last concerts in 2003, and in a recent interview stated that he has since retired from performing.
Film career
Harry Belafonte has starred in several films. His first major film role was in Bright Road (1953), in which he appeared alongside Dorothy Dandridge. The two subsequently starred in Otto Preminger's hit musical Carmen Jones (1954). Ironically Belafonte's lyrics in the film were dubbed by an Opera singer, as Belafonte's own singing voice was seen as unsuitable for the role. Using his star clout, Belafonte was subsequently able to realize several then controversial film roles. In 1957's Island in the Sun there are hints of an affair between Belafonte's character and white Joan Fontaine. In 1959 he starred in and produced Robert Wise's Odds Against Tomorrow, in which he plays a bank robber, uncomfortably teamed with a racist partner played by Robert Ryan.
Belafonte was offered the role of Porgy in Otto Preminger's Porgy and Bess, but refused the role, because he objected to the racial stereotyping of African Americans in the story. Feeling dissatisfied with the film roles available to him, he abandoned film in favour of his music career during the 1960s.
In the early 1970s Belafonte briefly resurfaced in a number of films including two films in which he starred alongside Sidney Poitier, Buck and the Preacher (1972) and Uptown Saturday Night (1974).
In 1984, Belafonte produced and scored the musical film Beat Street, dealing with the rise of hip-hop culture.
Belafonte would not star in a major film again until the mid-1990s, when he appeared alongside John Travolta in the race-reverse drama White Man's Burden (1995) and in Robert Altman's Jazz inspired film Kansas City (1996). He also starred as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States in the TV drama Swing Vote (1999).
In late 2006, Belafonte appeared in the role of Nelson, an employee of the Ambassador Hotel, in Bobby, Emilio Estevez's highly-anticipated ensemble drama about the assassination of Robert Kennedy.
Political and humanitarian activism
Belafonte's political beliefs are greatly inspired by the man that he still views to this day as his mentor, singer and activist Paul Robeson.[2] Paul Robeson was in his time a controversial figure for strongly supporting the Soviet Union throughout the Cold War. After living as a second-class citizen under Jim Crow laws in the United States, and spending some time in the Soviet Union, Robeson felt strongly that racial prejudice was being eradicated in the Soviet Union. He strongly opposed racial prejudice in the United States, and western colonialism in Africa.
Like Robeson and other African-American entertainers, Belafonte's success in the arts did not protect him from racial discrimination, particulary in the South of the United States. As a result, he refused to perform in the South of the U.S. from 1954 until 1961. In 1960, President John F. Kennedy named Belafonte as cultural advisor to the Peace Corps. Belafonte was an early supporter of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950s and one of Martin Luther King's confidants. Like many Civil Rights activists he was blacklisted during the McCarthy era. He bailed Martin Luther King out of the Birmingham City Jail and raised thousands of dollars to release other imprisoned Civil Rights protesters. He financed the Freedom Rides, supported voter-registration drives, and helped to organize the March on Washington in 1963.
In 1968, Belafonte appeared on a Petula Clark primetime television special on NBC. In the middle of a song, Clark smiled and briefly touched Belafonte's arm, which made the show's sponsor, Plymouth Motors, nervous. Plymouth wanted to cut out the segment, but Clark, who had ownership of the special, told NBC that the performance would be shown intact or she would not allow the special to be aired. American newspapers published articles reporting the controversy and, when the special aired, it grabbed high viewing figures. Clark's gesture marked the first time in which two people of different races made friendly bodily contact on U.S. television.
Belafonte appeared on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour and performed a controversial "Mardi Gras" number with footage intercut from the 1968 Democratic National Convention riots. CBS censors deleted the entire segment from the program.
In 1985, he was one of the organizers behind the Grammy Award winning song "We Are The World," a multi-artist effort to raise funds for Africa, and performed in the Live Aid concert that same year.
In 1987, he received an appointment to UNICEF as a goodwill ambassador. Following his appointment Belafonte travelled to Dakar and Senegal, where he served as chairman of the International Symposium of Artists and Intellectuals for African Children. He also helped to raise funds, alongside more than 20 other artists, in the largest concert ever held in sub-Saharan Africa. In 1994 he went on a mission to Rwanda, and launched a media campaign to raise awareness of the needs of Rwandan children. In 2001 he went to South Africa to support the campaign against HIV/AIDS. In 2002, Africare awarded him the Bishop John T. Walker Distinguished Humanitarian Service Award for his efforts to assist Africa. In 2004 Belafonte went to Kenya to stress the importance of educating children in the region.
Belafonte has been involved in prostate cancer advocacy since 1996, when he was diagnosed and successfully treated for the disease.[3]
In 2006, on June 27, Belafonte was the recipient of the BET Humanitarian Award at the 2006 BET Awards. He was named one of nine 2006 Impact Award recipients by AARP The Magazine.
Belafonte has been a longtime critic of U.S. foreign policy. He began making controversial political statements on this subject in the early 1980s. He has, at various times, made statements opposing the U.S. embargo on Cuba, praising Soviet peace initiatives, attacking the U.S. invasion of Grenada, praising the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, honoring Ethel and Julius Rosenberg and praising Fidel Castro.[4]
Opposition to the Bush Administration
Belafonte achieved widespread attention for his political views in 2002 when he began making a series of comments about President George W. Bush and his Administration, catalyzed by his disapproval of the Iraq War.
During an interview with Ted Leitner for San Diego's 760 KFMB, in October 2002, Belafonte referenced a quote made by the American civil rights era icon Malcolm X [5]:
There was two kinds of slaves. There was the house Negro and the field Negro. The house Negroes, they lived in the house with master, they dressed pretty good, they ate good 'cause they ate his food and what he left... In those days he was called a 'house nigger.' And that's what we call him today, because we've still got some house niggers running around here.
Belafonte used the quote to characterize both former and current United States Secretary of State Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice, both African-Americans, as "house slaves" for serving in Bush's cabinet, which he implied was racist, and for their refusal to stand against the 2003 invasion of Iraq. He was implying that, by going along with Bush's plans, the two were only serving the cause of their "master". He repeated the charge on an interview on Larry King Live. Powell and Rice both responded, with Powell calling the remarks "unfortunate" [23] and Rice saying "I don't need Harry Belafonte to tell me what it means to be black." [24] The comment was brought back up in an interview with Amy Goodman for Democracy Now! in 2006. [6]
In August 2005, Belafonte made a similar analogy by saying "Hitler had a lot of Jews high up in the hierarchy of the Third Reich."[7] Belafonte's statement was demonstrably false.
In January of 2006, Belafonte led a delegation of activists including actor Danny Glover and activist/professor Cornel West which met with President of Venezuela Hugo Chávez. In 2005, President Chávez, an outspoken critic of President George W. Bush, initiated a program to provide cheaper heating fuel for poor people in several areas of the United States, an initiative strongly supported by Belafonte.[8] During the meeting with Chávez, Belafonte was quoted as saying, "No matter what the greatest tyrant in the world, the greatest terrorist in the world, George W. Bush says, we're here to tell you: Not hundreds, not thousands, but millions of the American people... support your revolution."[9]
The comment ignited a great deal of controversy. Hillary Clinton refused to acknowledge his presence at an awards ceremony that featured both of them.[10] AARP, which had just named him one of their 10 Impact Award honorees 2006, released a statement following the remarks, saying, "AARP does not condone the manner and tone which he has chosen and finds his comments completely unacceptable."[11]
On a Martin Luther King Day speech at Duke University in 2006, Belafonte compared the American government to the hijackers of 9/11, saying, "What is the difference between that terrorist and other terrorists?"[12]
In reaction to criticism about his remarks Belafonte said: "I called Bush a terrorist. Let us examine the case; let's take a look." He first discussed the wrongs of the terrorists who perpetrated the 9/11 attacks. "Justice should be done. There was no question that precision should have been used to hunt down those who plotted the attacks," Belafonte said. Next he turned to the subject of comparing Bush to the terrorists. He said: "What do you call Bush after he tricked us into going to war against an enemy because of imaginary weapons of mass destruction? What do you call Bush when the war he put us in to date has killed almost as many Americans as died on 9/11 and the number of Americans wounded in war is almost triple? What do you call a man who invades a country and helps cause the deaths of countless civilians in an attempt to create a government that he feels is just? By most definitions Bush can be considered a terrorist." When he was asked about his expectation of criticism for his remarks on the war in Iraq, Belafonte responded: "Bring it on. Dissent is central to any democracy."[13][14]
In another interview, Belafonte, asked about calling Bush the greatest tyrant, remarked: "Well, I think I was a little bit hasty in calling him the greatest tyrant. I make that observation only because I have not met all the tyrants; I was a little bit off the mark in describing him as the greatest. But in the face of not having met all the tyrants, he is certainly the primary candidate. I think the worst of all bedfellows is arrogance wedded to ignorance, and I think that Bush, like most Americans, blurred the villainy that we have put on so many hundreds of thousands of people in the Middle East and other parts of the world with our military interventions and how we use words like "collateral damage" and all these soft words to blur the moral bankruptcy that is central to our political values, foreign and domestic."[15]
In January 2006, in a speech to the annual meeting of the Arts Presenters Members Conference, Belafonte said, "We've come to this dark time in which the new Gestapo of Homeland Security lurks here, where citizens are having their rights suspended. You can be arrested and not charged. You can be arrested and have no right to counsel!" [16] Belafonte's remarks, part of a 45-minute speech on the role of the arts in a politically changing world, were greeted with a roaring standing ovation from an audience which included singer Peter Yarrow of the folk group Peter, Paul and Mary, and members of the arts community from several dozen countries.
He recently signed a public statement comparing George W. Bush to Hitler and calling for his "regime" to be driven from power.[17]
On September 20, 2006, Belafonte and Danny Glover introduced leftist Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez to a charity event in Harlem the day after Chávez addressed the United Nations. At the charity Chávez repeated his 'Devil' reference hurled a day earlier at President George W. Bush during his U.N. speech.[18]
Despite being heavily criticized for his remarks, and being called a traitor by some, Belafonte still believes he is doing his civic duty.[19] During the Martin Luther King Day speech at the Duke University in January 2006, Belafonte said that if he could choose his epitaph, it would be, "Harry Belafonte, Patriot."[20]
Family
Harry Belafonte is married to Julie Robinson-Belafonte. They have two children, David Belafonte and Gina Belafonte. Belafonte also has two children from a previous marriage, Shari Belafonte and Adrienne Biesemeyer.
His daughter, Shari Belafonte, is a photographer, model, singer and actress.
His older daughter, Adrienne Biesemeyer, is a child/family Licensed Professional Counselor and Executive Director of the Anir Foundation/Anir Experience which focuses on humanitarian work in Southern Africa.
Quotes
My social and political interests are part of my career. I cannot separate them. My songs reflect the human condition. The role of art isn't just to show life as it is, but to show life as it should be. [21]
I work for the United Nations. I go to places where enormous upheaval and pain and anguish exist. And a lot of it exists based upon American policy. Whom we support, whom we support as heads of state, what countries we've helped to overthrow, what leaders we've helped to diminish because they did not fit the mold we think they should fit, no matter how ill advised that thought may be. - Harry Belafonte interview on CNN Larry King Live, October 15, 2002 [22]
Robert Conrad
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Birth name Conrad Robert Falk or Konrad Robert Falkowski
Born March 1, 1935 (age 72)
Chicago, Illinois, USA
Spouse(s) LaVelda
Notable roles James West in
The Wild Wild West
Pappy Boyington in
Baa Baa Black Sheep
Tom Lopaka in
Hawaiian Eye
Robert Conrad (born either Conrad Robert Falk or Konrad Robert Falkowski on March 1, 1935 in Chicago, Illinois, although the year is still subject to question), is an American film and TV actor and director. He is primarily known for the 1965-1970 television series The Wild Wild West, in which he played the title character, James West. The movie remake starring Will Smith was based on this series, and Conrad was openly critical of the film.
Before The Wild Wild West, Conrad played Tom Lopaka in Hawaiian Eye. In the mid-1970s he played World War II fighter ace Pappy Boyington in Baa Baa Black Sheep. His half-brother, Larry Manetti, also appeared in this series.
In the late 1970s, Conrad served as the captain of the NBC team for six editions of Battle of the Network Stars. He also played a modern day variation of James West in the short-lived secret agent series A Man Called Sloane in 1979, around the same time he reprised the role of West in a pair of made-for-TV films.
Conrad was also widely identified in the late 1970s for his television commercials for Eveready batteries, particularly his challenge to the viewer to "knock the battery off my shoulder". The commercial was frequently parodied on Johnny Carson's The Tonight Show and The Carol Burnett Show.
In 1988, Conrad starred in a short lived TV series called High Mountain Rangers with two of his sons. He also starred in that show's one season spin-off Jesse Hawkes.
Conrad took over hosting The History Channel's Weapons At War (later Tech Force) in 2000 following George C. Scott's 1999 death.
In 2006, Conrad recorded special audio introductions for every episode of the first season of The Wild Wild West for its North American DVD release on June 6. The DVD set also included one of Conrad's Eveready battery commercials; in his introduction, Conrad stated that he was flattered to be parodied by Carson.
Personal life
Conrad is the father of eight children by two marriages. He lives in Bear Valley, California in the High Sierras with his current wife, LaVelda, and their children.
In the early 1950s he was graduated from Delbarton School, a college preparatory school in Morristown, New Jersey.
At the beginning of his career, one of his best friends was actor Nick Adams. In an interview, Red West, member of Elvis Presley's Memphis Mafia, says that in Hollywood Adams helped Conrad, who did Hawaiian Eye and Wild Wild West, "get into the first door." According to West, he, Adams, Presley and Conrad "played football every Sunday". (See RED WEST INTERVIEW.) Conrad was also good friends with Michael Spilotro, who was an associate of the Chicago Mafia Family, "The Outfit."
Conrad has been out of the public eye since 2003, when he was involved in a devastating car crash. Conrad was driving his Jaguar drunk on Highway 4 in the California Sierra foothills near his Calaveras County home when he crossed over the center median and slammed head-on into a Subaru being driven by 26-year-old Kevin Burnett who suffered serious injuries. [1] Conrad was convicted of drunk driving and was sentenced to six months of house arrest, five year's probation and alcohol counseling. He also lost his drivers license for one year.[2]
Politically, Conrad is a fiscally conservative Republican.[3]
Trivia
Conrad speaks Spanish.
He is the only actor to be inducted into the Stuntman's Hall of Fame.
In 1986, Conrad made a special appearance at the WWF's WrestleMania 2 event. Conrad was the special referee in the main event, a steel cage match for the WWF Championship between Hulk Hogan and King Kong Bundy.
In the 1998 PC game Jane's WWII Fighters, Robert Conrad's voice has a cameo. This can be heard in the opening movie. The line is "Alright Jerry it's your turn!"
Ron Howard
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Birth name Ronald William Howard
Born March 1, 1954 (age 52)
Duncan, Oklahoma, USA
Spouse(s) Cheryl Howard (1975-)
Academy Awards
Best Director
2001 A Beautiful Mind
Ronald William Howard (born March 1, 1954) is a two-time Academy Award-winning American actor, film director, and producer.
Biography
Early life
Howard was born in Duncan, Oklahoma, to actors Rance Howard and Jean F. Speegle. He has Dutch, Scottish, English, Irish, German and Cherokee Indian ancestry. His younger brother, Clint Howard, is a well-known character actor. Howard attended the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts but did not graduate.
Career
Howard first earned recognition for playing Winthrop Paroo, the child with the lisp in the film version of The Music Man with Robert Preston and Shirley Jones. After The Music Man, he appeared in the role of Opie Taylor in the television series The Andy Griffith Show. There he portrayed the son of the local sheriff in the fictional town of Mayberry, North Carolina. The credits referred to him as "Ronny Howard".
Howard is also well known for his role as Richie Cunningham in television's Happy Days on which, beginning in 1974, he played the likable "buttoned down" boy, in contrast to Henry Winkler's Fonz. He attained film success with his role as Steve Bollander in George Lucas' teen movie American Graffiti. In 1977, while still starring on Happy Days, he directed his first film, a low-budget comedy/action film called Grand Theft Auto. After leaving Happy Days in 1980, he directed several TV movies. His big theatrical directing break came in 1982 when he directed the bigger budget film Night Shift featuring soon-to-be well-known actors such as Michael Keaton and Shelley Long, and reuniting Howard with his Happy Days co-star Henry Winkler.
He has since directed a number of high-visibility films, the most acclaimed of which include Splash, Cocoon, Apollo 13 (nominated for several Academy Awards), A Beautiful Mind, for which he won the Oscar for Best Director, and Cinderella Man. His latest film, The Da Vinci Code, reteaming Howard with Splash and Apollo 13 star Tom Hanks, has been a box office hit earning more than $700 million at the box office. Howard is the co-chairman, with Brian Grazer, of Imagine Entertainment, a major film and television production company, which has produced notable projects like Friday Night Lights, 8 Mile, Inside Deep Throat, and the television series 24 and Felicity. His last significant on-screen role was when he reprised his famous role as Opie Taylor in the 1986 TV reunion movie Return to Mayberry reuniting him with Andy Griffith, the now late Don Knotts, and most of the old cast.
Through his company Imagine Television, Howard continues to have a presence in television, most recently as the executive producer and uncredited narrator of the critically acclaimed FOX sitcom Arrested Development. The show, despite having won six Emmy awards and near-unanimous praise from critics, did not enjoy high ratings and was limited by Fox Television in 2006. A series finale took place in February, but Howard, on-screen for the first time in the show, suggested a movie version may be in the works.
Howard often casts his younger brother Clint with a minor role in most of his movies.
Personal life
Howard wed his high-school sweetheart, Cheryl, a writer, and they have been married for more than 30 years, they have four children and two of their daughters Bryce Dallas Howard and Paige Howard are both actresses. They live on a 35-acre estate in the exclusive gated community of Conyers Farm in Greenwich, Connecticut.
Howard in popular culture
In the The Simpsons episode When You Dish Upon a Star, Homer meets and befriends Alec Baldwin, Kim Basinger and Ron Howard. Later in the episode Ron Howard is injured when trying to jump from a truck to the RV that Homer was driving. In the end, he pitches Homer's movie idea and gets it greenlit.
When he hosted Saturday Night Live in the 1980s, Eddie Murphy called him "Opie Cunningham".
In an episode of South Park, when Cartman "turns ginger" he asks a crowd of fellow ginger haired people to name great Americans with the hair color, the first named is "Ron Howard", when asked to name a second, after a short silence from the crowd, one responds "Ron Howard".
On a VH1 special about the 100 greatest child stars, many of the interviewees considered Ron Howard to be the most successful child star of all time, considering his two major television acting roles and his directing career.
Quotes
"As a young adult trying to make the transition from sitcom actor to motion picture director, I was getting a lot of patronizing pats on the head. 'Hey, hang in there. In another ten or 15 years, I'm sure somebody will give you a chance to direct.' That's not what I wanted to hear at all."
"I really believe that great creative ideas will find their way to the surface."
A cocky Department of Agriculture representative stopped at a
farm and talked with the old farmer; "I need to inspect your farm."
The old farmer said, "You better not go in that field."
The Agriculture representative said in a "wise" tone, "I have
the authority of the U. S. Government with me. See this card, I am
allowed to go wherever I wish on agricultural land."
So the old farmer went about his farm chores.
Later, the farmer heard loud screams and saw the Department of
Agriculture rep running for the fence; close behind was the farmer's
prize bull. The bull was madder than a nest full of hornets, and the
bull was gaining at every step.
"Help," the rep shouted to the farmer, "what should I do?" he
screamed helplessly.
The old farmer, hooking his thumbs in his overalls, called out:
"Show him your card!"
That's a lotta bull, Bob.
Ah, folks, but then some are put out to pasture.
The Bull
See an old unhappy bull,
Sick in soul and body both,
Slouching in the undergrowth
Of the forest beautiful,
Banished from the herd he led,
Bulls and cows a thousand head.
Cranes and gaudy parrots go
Up and down the burning sky;
Tree-top cats purr drowsily
In the dim-day green below;
And troops of monkeys, nutting, some,
All disputing, go and come;
And things abominable sit
Picking offal buck or swine,
On the mess and over it
Burnished flies and beetles shine,
And spiders big as bladders lie
Under hemlocks ten foot high;
And a dotted serpent curled
Round and round and round a tree,
Yellowing its greenery,
Keeps a watch on all the world,
All the world and this old bull
In the forest beautiful.
Bravely by his fall he came:
One he led, a bull of blood
Newly come to lustihood,
Fought and put his prince to shame,
Snuffed and pawed the prostrate head
Tameless even while it bled.
There they left him, every one,
Left him there without a lick,
Left him for the birds to pick,
Left him there for carrion,
Vilely from their bosom cast
Wisdom, worth and love at last.
When the lion left his lair
And roared his beauty through the hills,
And the vultures pecked their quills
And flew into the middle air,
Then this prince no more to reign
El Matador
The Kingston Trio
Aye, To-re-ro, she is here,
Aye, Matador.
I feel her eyes;
They are wide with excitement and fear.
I feel her heart
For it cries when the horns are too near,
I will be bold;
Brave and swift will I be,
And I will be nu-mer-o u-no.
To-re-ro fi-no.
She'll dream tonight of me.
(chorus)
O-le,o-le,o-le!
Viva El Matador!
O-le,o-le,o-le!
Viva El Matador!
Aye,To-re-ro, she is here,
Aye, Matador.
I see her smile
And I see there the reason she came,
To-ro, come closer,
Come here and I'll whisper her name.
You may be brave,
And as bold as you're black
But I will be nu-mer-o u-no,
To-re-ro fi-no,
To--ro, come back.
(end song with repeat of chorus)
THE 1st of MARCH - ST. DAVID'S DAY - or more properly DEWI SANT !
kingston has a strong historical connection to the welsh and DEWI SANT
since the 23rd regiment of foot , the royal welch fusiliers arrived in kingston and took up duty in FORT HENRY in 1842 .
fort henry overlooks the city of kingston and was built to defend the naval ship-yard against any "marauders" :wink: .
they brought with them "DAFYDD" , the mascot goat .
ever since , a goat and a GOAT MAJOR have been part of the FORT HENRY GUARD .
four years ago , david VIII passed on into goat heaven and the kingston welsh society (who meets regularly at the KINGSTON PILOT HOUSE - a local pub and fish and chip shop :wink: ) arranged for DAVID IX to be presented to the guard .
i drink to that !
hbg
young DAVID IX becoming a member of the guard - attented by his goat major - a very important position with the guard !
Wow, hbg. We're moving on from bulls to dragons and goats? Love it!
Ring out the bells for Dewi
Brave and wise was our Dewi
His hands were healing hands
Small deeds were full of goodness
Spread his fame through our lands
(So) Lift up your voices for Dewi
Shout his name loud and clear
Hero of Welsh men and women
Our Dewi had no fear
Chorus
Ring out the bells for Dewi
Ring out across the land
Ring out for Dewi
Let them ring, ring, ring
Ring out over sea and sand
Lightning flashed, hot like wild knives
Did split the rock in two
Clear sign to mark the birthplace
Of Dewi, healer true
(So) Lift up your voices for Dewi
Shout his name loud and clear
Hero of Welsh men and women
Our Dewi had no fear
Thousands came to Llanddewi
Like bees, homeward to hive
His voice rang out like Bangu
The ground arose, alive
(So) Lift up your voices for Dewi
Shout his name loud and clear
Hero of Welsh men and women
Our Dewi had no fear
and here a short welsh song :
Get Welshmen to Break the Stone
(Dafydd Jones)
Os bydd eisiau cael swyddogion,
Danfon ffwrdd a wneir yn union,
Un ai Gwyddel, Sais neu Scotsman,
Sydd mewn swyddau braidd ymhobman.
Mewn gweithfeydd sydd yma'n Nghymru,
Gwelir Saeson yn busnesu;
Rhaid cael Cymry i dorri'r garreg,
Nid yw'r graig yn deall Saesneg.
(If officials are needed,
They are at once sent for from afar,
Either Irishmen, English or Scots,
Are in jobs almost everywhere.
In works here in Wales,
Englishmen can be seen interfering;
You must get Welshmen to break the stone,
For the rock does not understand English.
to be sung after having had a taste of welsh whiskey from the barrel !
hbg, I think I have just come full circle, Canada. My mother's side of the family goes back to Ragland/Raglan castle, and I discovered something new. (sorry, I cannot translate your welsh song.)
Led Zepplin
Their song, Stairway to Heaven, alludes to that castle.
There's a lady who's sure all that glitters is gold
And she's buying a stairway to heaven.
When she gets there she knows, if the stores are all closed
With a word she can get what she came for.
Ooh, ooh, and she's buying a stairway to heaven.
There's a sign on the wall but she wants to be sure
'Cause you know sometimes words have two meanings.
In a tree by the brook, there's a songbird who sings,
Sometimes all of our thoughts are misgiven.
Ooh, it makes me wonder,
Ooh, it makes me wonder.
There's a feeling I get when I look to the west,
And my spirit is crying for leaving.
In my thoughts I have seen rings of smoke through the trees,
And the voices of those who standing looking.
Ooh, it makes me wonder,
Ooh, it really makes me wonder.
And it's whispered that soon if we all call the tune
Then the piper will lead us to reason.
And a new day will dawn for those who stand long
And the forests will echo with laughter.
If there's a bustle in your hedgerow, don't be alarmed now,
It's just a spring clean for the May queen.
Yes, there are two paths you can go by, but in the long run
There's still time to change the road you're on.
And it makes me wonder.
Your head is humming and it won't go, in case you don't know,
The piper's calling you to join him,
Dear lady, can you hear the wind blow, and did you know
Your stairway lies on the whispering wind.
And as we wind on down the road
Our shadows taller than our soul.
There walks a lady we all know
Who shines white light and wants to show
How everything still turns to gold.
And if you listen very hard
The tune will come to you at last.
When all are one and one is all
To be a rock and not to roll.
And she's buying a stairway to heaven.
here is the welsh song in english translation :
If officials are needed,
They are at once sent for from afar,
Either Irishmen, English or Scots,
Are in jobs almost everywhere.
In works here in Wales,
Englishmen can be seen interfering;
You must get Welshmen to break the stone,
For the rock does not understand English.
(all one needs to do for a perfect translation is to "have a taste of the barrel"
- the translation actually follows the welsh text
) .
hbg
Green Door
Jim Lowe
[Words by Marvin Moore and Music by Bob Davie]
*Music includes constant "tick-tock" clock sound*
(Midnight, one more night without sleepin')
(Watchin' till the mornin' comes creepin')
(Green door, what's that secret you're keepin')
There's an old piano
And they play it hot behind the green door
Don't know what they're doin'
But they laugh a lot behind the green door
Wish they'd let me in
So I could find out what's behind the green door
(Knocked once, tried to tell them I'd been there)
(Door slammed, hospitality's thin there)
(Wonder just what's goin' on in there)
Saw an eyeball peepin'
Through a smoky cloud behind the green door
When I said, Joe sent me
Someone laughed out loud behind the green door
All I want to do is join the happy crowd behind the green door
---- Instrumental interlude ----
(Midnight, one more night without sleepin')
(Watchin' till the mornin' comes creepin')
(Green door, what's that secret you're keepin')
(Green door, what's that secret you're keepin')
Green door
Good morning, WA2K listeners and contributors.
First, your PD would like to recognize hbg for that delightful and brief translation of the welsh song. Thanks, Canada.
Ah, edgar, the Green Door. I have a friend who believes that one should paint the front door red so as to insure harmony and peace. I have forgotten, at the moment, exactly what the practice is called, however.
What a wonderful surprise to find out that the broadway play, The Fantasticks , was adapted for broadway from Edmond Rostand's The Romancers.
A song from the musical comedy that all of us may know is one called "Try to Remember."
Try to remember the kind of September
when life was slow and oh, so mellow.
Try to remember the kind of September
when grass was green and grain was yellow.
Try to remember the kind of September
when you were a tender and callow fellow,
Try to remember and if you remember the follow.
Try to remember when life was so tender
that no one wept except the willow.
Try to remember when life was so tender that
dreams were kept beside your pillow.
Try to remember when life was so tender that
love was an ember about to billow.
Try to remember and if you remember then follow.
Deep in December it's nice to remember
altho you know the snow will follow.
Deep in December it's nice to remember
without the hurt the heart is hollow.
Deep in December it's nice to remember
the fire of September that made us mellow.
Deep in December our hearts should remember and follow.
On this date in 1807 The U.S. Congress passes an act to "prohibit the importation of slaves into any port or place within the jurisdiction of the United States...from any foreign kingdom, place, or country."
Good morning, dys. " a little bit of history makes the medicine go down"
Many coded songs were done by the slaves, but some are rather arcane, such as this one:
Bob Dylan version
Wade in the water
Wade in the water, children
Wade in the water
God's a-gonna trouble the water
God's a-gonna trouble the water.
Well, who are these children all dressed in red?
God's a-gonna trouble the water
Must-a-be the children that Moses lead
God's a-gonna trouble the water.
Wade in the water
Wade in the water, children
Wade in the water
God's a-gonna trouble the water
God's a-gonna trouble the water.
Well out of the mountain come fire an' smoke
God's a-gonna trouble the water
Jehovah nobody be he could've spoke
God's a-gonna trouble the water.
Wade in the water
Wade in the water, children
Wade in the water
God's a-gonna trouble the water
God's a-gonna trouble the water.
Well, I'm walkin' down the highway an' the water's gettin' low
God's a-gonna trouble the water.
Walkin' down the highway, nowhere to go
God's a-gonna trouble the water.
But it's wade in the water
Wade in the water, children
Wade in the water
God's a-gonna trouble the water
God's a-gonna trouble the water.
God's a-gonna trouble the water.
Perhaps it is a reference to the parting of the Red Sea.
hello , listeners !
here is a song to "celebrate"
today's weather : freezing rain overnight followed by rain and turning to snow !
(mrs h told me NOT TO GO OUT :wink: , but i went against "strict orders" to put some icemelter on the driveway - i survived ).
hbg
Cold Rain and Snow
------------------------
Well I married me a wife, she's been trouble all my life
Run me out in the cold rain and snow
Rain and snow, run me out in the cold rain and snow
Well she's coming down the stairs, combin' back her yellow hair
And I ain't goin be treated this ol' way
Well she went up to her room where she sang her faithful tune
Well I'm goin where those chilly winds don't blow
