from Bruce
Anecdotes
Theater
• A reporter once asked Irish playwright Brendan Behan, “What is the message of your play?” Mr. Behan replied, “Message? What do you think I am … a bloody telegram boy?” And when someone asked him if he had read a particular book, he replied, “I need sympathy. I only went to school half time—when they were teaching the writing. I missed the reading.”
• Judi Dench once performed in a production of Macbeth that was played straight through without an intermission. Marie Kean, who was playing the First Witch, once noticed that some schoolboys were hiding out in the boys’ restroom instead of watching the play, so she scared them back into the theater by marching into the restroom in full makeup and hissing at them, “Get back in there!”
• Sir Henry Irving once sat through an amateur production of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night—a production that had no intermissions. Immediately following the play, he was asked his opinion of the production. He replied, “Capital! Capital! Where’s the lavatory?”
War
• Themistocles was the ancient Athenian leader who advocated the building of a navy that was responsible for winning the battle of Salamis in 480 B.C.E., thus preserving Greek independence. A man from the island of Seriphus insulted Themistocles by saying that Athens, not himself, was responsible for his fame. Themistocles replied, “Quite right. No one would have heard of me if I were from Seriphus. No one would have heard of you if you were from Athens.”
• General Israel Putnam once told his troops during the Revolutionary War that he wanted only willing soldiers: “If there are any of you who are dissatisfied and who want to return home, they can step six paces out in front of the line.” General Putnam then added, “But I’ll shoot the first man that does step out.”
Wit
• Here are some examples of wit: 1) Sports writers Joe Williams and Heywood Broun were watching the Max Baer-Primo Carnera fight, in which Mr. Baer knocked Mr. Carnera down several times, yet Mr. Carnera kept getting up. Mr. Williams said, “Gosh, but the big fellow certainly can take it.” Mr. Broun replied, “Yes, but he doesn’t seem to know what to do with it.” 2) Douglas Jerrold disliked bores. While walking along the street one day, he met a bore who asked him, “Well, Jerrold, what’s going on?” Mr. Jerrold replied, “I am,” and he did. 3) Harry Hershfield once passed the gloomy building that housed the Union League Club in New York City. Because an important member had died, black crepe had been hung on the windows. Looking at the black crepe, Mr. Hershfield said, “It does liven up the old place, doesn’t it?” 4) Judge Kelly of Chicago told a jury in the early 20th century: “My friends, money is not all. It is not money that will mend a broken heart or reassemble the fragments of a dream. Money cannot brighten the hearth nor repair the portals of a broken home. I refer, of course, to Confederate money.”
• During the Jim Crow days, Pierre Monteux and Sir Rudolf Bing were riding in the Georgia countryside when they stopped to have tea. However, a black woman told them, “We only served colored.” Mr. Monteux replied, “But we are colored—we are pink.” By the way, during the Jim Crow days, Sir Rudolf Bing took African-American diva Leontyne Price to dinner in an Atlanta hotel’s restaurant. In his 5000 Nights at the Opera, an autobiography, he writes, “As we walked in, there was a sudden hush, which I greatly enjoyed.” Also by the way, Sir Rudolf did much to integrate the Metropolitan Opera, but at least once he denied a black child a job. The opera was Rosenkavalier, and Sir Rudolf decided against portraying a Viennese widow as having three children—two white and one black. And in Aida he was shocked to see that two Nubian slaves looked white. On being told that the two men were actually African-American, he replied, “I don’t care what they are—they can wear dark makeup like everyone else.”
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Presenting
Michael Egan
has returned to semi-retired status.
In memory.
BRUCE'S RECOMMENDATION
BANDCAMP MUSIC
BRUCE'S RECOMMENDATION OF BANDCAMP MUSIC
Music: "Katy Shaw"
Album: TILL DEATH DOO US PART
Artist: Arfur Doo & the Toerags
Artist Location: Essex, England, UK
Info:
“The second album from Arfur Doo and the Toerags, brings you another collection of traditional folk tunes and songs from England and Ireland, rocked up to the max, but in an acoustic style.”
Tim Bennett - guitars, doozouki and vocals.
Judy Bennett - fiddle, recorder, guitar and vocals.
Fran Foote - flute, whistle, recorder, guitar and vocals.
Simon Foote - cajon, percussion and vocals.
Wayne Hunt - bass and vocals
Arfur Doo - shruti box and worm-handling
Price: £1 (GBP) for track; £8 (GBP) for 12-track album
Genre: English and Irish Folk.
Links:
TILL DEATH DOO US PART
Arfur Doo & the Toerags on Bandcamp
Arfur Doo & the Toerags on YouTube
Other Links:
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Reader Suggestion
Michelle in AZ
David E Suggests
Mean Jean
Meet Ohioville's Neanderthal Mean Jean Schmidt
New Venture
Michael Egan
BRUCE'S RECOMMENDATION
Today
Heart Donation Reunion, 20 Years in the Making (YouTube)
Andrew Tobias: Have a Heart!
Watching it [the Heart Donation Reunion video], I found myself wondering what Putin would think if he watched it?
Would he tear up?
Would he order the bombing of a few more children’s hospitals?
Maybe we could get Putin a new heart, as he clearly lacks one.
Other Links:
David Bruce's Smashwords Page
David Bruce's Blog #1
David Bruce's Blog #2
David Bruce's Blog #3
davidbrucebooks: EDUCATE YOURSELF - Free PDFs
David Bruce's Apple iBookstore
Bonus Links
Jeannie the Teed-Off Temp
Reader Comment
Current Events
Linda >^..^<
We are all only temporarily able bodied.
Thanks, Linda!
that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
My ISP had issues today - all their services went down - TV, phone & internet - outage lasted nearly 10 hours.
Had just fired up the old dial-up modem when service was restored.
Must See TV
Public Hearings
The committee investigating the 2021 US Capitol assault plans to stage public hearings in June, it said Thursday, and release its findings at the height of the midterm election campaign later this year.
Across eight hearings, key witnesses interviewed by the congressional probe will testify publicly for the first time on the alleged plot that led to the January 6 insurrection as well as the events of the day itself.
"We'll tell the story about what happened," Bennie Thompson, the chairman of the House select committee probing the violence, told reporters.
"We will use a combination of witnesses, exhibits, things that we have through the tens of thousands of exhibits... as well as the hundreds of witnesses we deposed or just talked to in general."
The hearings are expected to make for blockbuster television -- potentially on a par with the Watergate hearings or Donald Trump's two impeachments -- as America relives minute by minute the day a mob of the defeated president's supporters stormed Congress to prevent the peaceful transfer of power to 2020 election winner Joe Biden.
Public Hearings
Leaving Late-Night Show
James Corden
James Corden said he will be bowing out of his late-night CBS TV show next year, calling it a “good time to move on and see what else might be out there.”
Corden announced his decision during the taping of Thursday’s “The Late Late Show,” which he began hosting in 2015.
Corden, who didn’t offer details on what course his career might take next, said the late-night show “has changed my life. ... I am so proud of what we’ve achieved. It’s been beyond my wildest, wildest dreams.”
He’ll remain with the show for another year, he said, promising that it will “go out with a bang” and, he predicted, with “so many tears.”
Corden’s contract was to expire this August, but the London-born actor and writer extended the agreement for another season. He will leave the show that airs weeknights at 12:37 a.m. Eastern in spring 2023.
James Corden
New England Institute of Tech
Henry Winkler
Aaaaaaaay! The Fonz is heading to Rhode Island to deliver the commencement address at the New England Institute of Technology.
Henry Winkler, 76, an Emmy-winning actor, director, producer and children’s author known for his portrayal of Arthur “Fonzie” Fonzarelli in the 1970s and ’80s television show “Happy Days” is scheduled to address graduates of the private university in East Greenwich on Sunday, the school announced Thursday.
The school will also bestow on honorary degree on real estate entrepreneur, community leader, and philanthropist Elizabeth Z. Chace at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence.
Winkler’s professional acting career dates back to 1964, but he became a household name for playing the leather jacket-clad, motorcycle-riding Fonz from 1974 until 1984. He earned two Golden Globes and three Emmy nominations for the role.
The New York City native finally won his first Emmy in 2018 for his role as Gene Cousineau on HBO’s dark comedy “Barry.”
Henry Winkler
Offering $10,000 Reward
Alan Cumming
Alan Cumming is offering a $10,000 reward for anyone who has information about Tonka, the missing chimpanzee who starred with him and Rene Russo in the 1997 family comedy “Buddy.” Tonka was last seen in a cage at the now-defunct chimpanzee breeding facility Missouri Primate Foundation in Festus, Mo. Chimpanzees were bred at the location and then rented out for movies and parties or sold to private owners. PETA has put up its own $10,000 reward for information about Tonka’s whereabouts, bringing the total reward to $20,000.
“During the months we filmed together, baby Tonka and I became good friends, playing and grooming each other and just generally larking about,” Cumming said in a statement. “It’s horrible to think he might in a cage in a dark basement somewhere or have met some other fate, so I’m appealing to whoever knows what has become of him to please come forward claim the reward.”
PETA originally sued the Missouri Primate Foundation over the chimpanzee’s living conditions, noting the animals “had been warehoused in often filthy, virtually barren enclosures.” The animal rights group got permission to move Tonka and six other chimpanzees to an accredited sanctuary, but Tonka was missing when PETA arrived to make the transfer in July 2021.
According to PETA: “Owner Tonia Haddix claimed that [Tonka] had ‘died,’ but told various stories that didn’t add up and failed to prove that this was the case. She had previously stated that PETA would never get him. In January, a judge found that mystery surrounds the primate’s disappearance and that Haddix’s testimony was not credible, leaving PETA and Cumming to try to determine his whereabouts or perhaps his final resting place.”
“If you know where Cumming’s former co-star may have been shipped, sold or hidden away, PETA wants to hear from you,” PETA Foundation Deputy General Counsel for Captive Animal Law Enforcement Brittany Peet said. “If he’s still alive, Tonka deserves to live out the rest of his days surrounded by chimpanzee friends at a lush sanctuary, as ordered by the court, and someone out there might be able to help PETA get him there.”
Alan Cumming
Law Enforcement
California
A state audit of five law enforcement agencies in California found bias among officers toward people of color, immigrants, women and LGBTQ people, as well as a smattering of support for far-right extremist organizations such as the Proud Boys and Three Percenters.
The audit also found the agencies had insufficient policies in place to safeguard against such attitudes within their ranks, to investigate them when they are alleged or to address them once identified, according to a report issued by the state auditor's office this week.
The audit was conducted at the request of state lawmakers. It comes amid rising concerns nationally about far-right extremism among police and other law enforcement officers, as well as evidence that bias complaints against California officers are overwhelmingly dismissed after internal investigations.
The Los Angeles Police Department has been accused of showing sympathy to far-right protesters at demonstrations in L.A., and L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva recently said 80% of his workforce was "conservative and far right."
The new audit, requested by the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, assessed bias within the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and the San Bernardino, San José and Stockton police departments.
California
One-Fifth Worldwide Face Extinction
Reptiles
Even the king cobra is “vulnerable.” More than 1 in 5 species of reptiles worldwide are threatened with extinction, according to a comprehensive new assessment of thousands of species published Wednesday in the journal Nature.
Of 10,196 reptile species analyzed, 21% percent were classified as endangered, critically endangered or vulnerable to extinction — including the iconic hooded snakes of South and Southeast Asia.
Similar prior assessments had been conducted for mammals, birds and amphibians, informing government decisions about how to draw boundaries of national parks and allocate environmental funds.
Work on the reptile study – which involved nearly 1,000 scientists and 52 co-authors – started in 2005. The project was slowed by challenges in fundraising, said co-author Bruce Young, a zoologist at the nonprofit science organization NatureServe.
Worldwide, the greatest threat to reptile life is habitat destruction. Hunting, invasive species and climate change also pose threats, said co-author Neil Cox, a manager at the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s biodiversity assessment unit.
Reptiles
To Develope A Vaccine
Dysentery Smoothie
A man has documented, in glorious detail, how he drank a dysentery smoothie as part of a human challenge trial for a potential vaccine.
Shigella bacteria causes around 80–165 million cases of Shigellosis per year, and of these, it goes on to kill around 600,000 people annually, largely in areas with temperate or tropical climates. The infection lurks in the intestine, causing symptoms including watery, bloody, or mucusy diarrhea, as well as fever, nausea, and stomach cramps. A subtype of shigella – S. dysenteriae – causes epidemic dysentery, or infectious gastroenteritis that brings about bloody diarrhea. It is largely contracted through the "fecal-oral" route, through consuming contaminated water and food, contact with surfaces containing the bacteria, or sexual contact.
Several teams – one in the US and one in France – are currently attempting to create a vaccine for the disease, but for this they need volunteers who are willing to participate in "human challenge" trials, where people will be infected with bacteria in order to test the vaccine's efficacy. Fortunately, there are such heroes willing to undertake the ordeal, knowing that they could be one of the unlucky participants who are given a placebo vaccine and will spend a number of days experiencing quite unpleasant diarrhea under close supervision.
One such hero is Jake Eberts, who took part in a phase two trial taking place at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Jake took part in the trial, which pays $3,150 to $7,350, partly for the money and partly for the good of humanity. It also helped his Twitter feed, as he detailed the experience in excruciating detail. First Eberts was given shots back in February and March before his inpatient stay, not knowing whether he was receiving the vaccine or a placebo.
Then came the icky part – drinking a shot of "Shigella smoothie" (as he puts it) in order to induce infection.
Dysentery Smoothie
Seven Hours Is ‘Optimal’
Sleep
Seven hours of sleep per night is the optimum amount for people in middle to older age, a study has found.
Researchers from the University of Cambridge and Fudan University in China examined data from nearly 500,000 adults aged between 38 and 73-years-old in an effort to establish the ideal amount of sleep the average person in this age category should have.
Participants were asked about their sleeping patterns, mental health and wellbeing, and underwent a series of cognitive tests.
Researchers found that seven hours was the ideal amount of time for cognitive performance, such as visual attention, memory, problem-solving skills and processing speed.
They also concluded that this was optimal for mental health, with people experiencing more symptoms of anxiety and depression, and poorer wellbeing, if they slept for longer or shorter amounts of time.
Sleep
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