Today’s Google doodle is in honor of Popeye’s creator, E.C. Segar, born this day in 1894. Are even commemorative postage stamps destined to be replaced by the Net?
Category: All Posts
Eye’m all right…
If not for modern medical science, I would be blind. Ten years ago today, the retina in my left eye detached. A piece of plastic was sewn onto the top of that eye, and the vitreous was removed.
Within a few months, both of my eyes developed cataracts, and I now wear the ultimate contact lenses — internal ones. They’re fixed focus, with one eye better for close-up sight and the other optimized for long distance vision.
But now there’s a promising new cataract replacement technology under development. It’s coming too late for me, but for those of you who have yet to experience the world in amber, you’re in luck.
[flv:http://www.dograt.com/Video/2009/DEC/HDvision.flv 512 288]
Retro Rock-it Xmas
Lia Pamina recommends this great retro Christmas song, harkening back to 1964, the year “Rudolph the Rednose Reindeer” first appeared on American TV. Although miniskirts and go-go boots didn’t really make the scene until ’65.
[flv:http://www.dograt.com/Video/2010/DEC/MariahCareyChristmas.flv 480 360]
I’ve heard this recording quite a few times on the radio, but not once did I ever happen to hear an announcer say who sings it. Sincerely! Everybody else will immediately recognize Mariah Carey, who I’ve never knowingly listened to, before now.
The second Black cartoon princess
Hearing that Disney is introducing a black princess character called Tiana, animation fans can’t help but recall the most notorious of all mainstream cartoons, “Coal Black and de Sebben Dwarfs.” Click here to see an article I wrote about it way back in 2002. (It’s funny now to see that I considered 20 MB to be a huge file, but at the time I had only 100 MB available for the entire site.)
It’s interesting to see how the imagery has been updated, and toned down, from 60+ years ago.
If you have never seen “Coal Black and de Sebben Dwarfs,” here it is. Keep in mind that when this cartoon was released in 1943, “Amos and Andy” was one of the most popular shows on radio; which explains, but doesn’t justify, the depiction of black people. Also, WWII was in high gear, and movie censorship regarding the, uh, earthier side of human nature was relaxed a bit for the duration.
Merrie Melodies “Coal Black and de Sebben Dwarfs” (1943)
by 100X
Also of interest on that old pre-YouTube DogRat web page is this video that I spliced together from “Bugs Bunny, Superstar.” The quality is barely passable, and the material is worthy of a fresh transfer, so I’ll add it to my to-do list.
[flv:http://www.dograt.com/Video/2009/DEC/TermiteTerrace.flv 320 236]
Obama deploys troops to stop Charlie Brown
What a shame that “A Charlie Brown Christmas” was preempted this week by President Obama’s speech at West Point, announcing the deployment of 30,000 additional troops in Afghanistan.
[flv:http://www.dograt.com/Video/2009/DEC/ColbertCharlieBrownXmas.flv 512 384]
Russell Wiseman, the mayor of Arlington, Tennessee, was apoplectic about “A Charlie Brown Christmas” not being shown Tuesday night.
“Ok, so, this is total crap, we sit the kids down to watch ‘The Charlie Brown Christmas Special’ and our muslim president is there, what a load…..try to convince me that wasn’t done on purpose. Ask the man if he believes that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and he will give you a 10 minute disertation (sic) about it….w…hen the answer should simply be ‘yes’….”
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2009/dec/04/mayor-fires-at-obama-online/
But if Russell were a wise man, he would have checked the TV listings and seen that “A Charlie Brown Christmas” was already scheduled to be repeated this coming Tuesday night. Not only that, a second showing has been added for December 15th to make up for the one missed this past week.
The ABC Television Network will celebrate the joy of the holidays with the classic animated Christmas-themed PEANUTS special, A Charlie Brown Christmas, created by late cartoonist Charles M. Schulz, airing TUESDAY, DECEMBER 8 (8:00-8:30 p.m., ET) and TUESDAY, DECEMBER 15 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET).
“It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” was aired twice in October by ABC. I wonder what Mayor Wiseman thinks of Linus’ singular belief in the Great Pumpkin?
Costello croaks, Colbert croons
Two of my all-time favorite entertainers, Elvis Costello and Stephen Colbert, together again (extra credit if you know the lyric in this song that Costello first used on his second album)…
[flv:http://www.dograt.com/Video/2009/NOV/ColbertCostello.flv 512 384]
..and here they are last year in “A Colbert Christmas.”
| The Colbert Report | Mon – Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| A Colbert Christmas: Colbert/Costello Duet | ||||
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