from Bruce
Anecdotes
Children and Teenagers
• The family life of a minister can be hectic. In one such family, the father had to travel to preach in a different city, the mother had to drive the older daughter to college in a different state, and only their seven-year-old daughter would be at home, in the company of a babysitter. Contemplating the not-at-all-unusual activity as various family members prepared for their trips, the seven-year-old asked, “Daddy, how did a family like us ever get together in the first place?”
• Fanny Brice was famous as a comedian (one of her most famous characters was Baby Snooks) and singer (one of her most famous songs was “My Man”). Although she had no need to steal when she was a youngster, she often stole—but was generous with her spoils. Fanny sometimes stole money to buy gifts for neighborhood children. Once, Fanny even used her mother’s charge account at a shoe store to buy five pairs of shoes for needy neighborhood children.
• Humorist H. Allen Smith’s wife was not above trying to get a good deal. She and her son once took a train trip. Although her son was seven years old, she was determined to pass him off as five in order to get the lower fare. Unfortunately, when the train conductor came to get their tickets, her son was reading the front page of The New York Times. As instructed, he looked at the train conductor and asked in baby talk, “Is ooo duh tun-dutt-er?”
• Yoki, Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.’s daughter, wanted to go to an amusement park called Funtown, but she was turned away because of her race. At the time, her father was in prison because he was fighting for civil rights. Yoki asked why he was in prison, and her mother replied that he was fighting for the right of people to go wherever they pleased. Yoki said, “Good. Tell him to stay in jail until I can go to Funtown.” Hearing this, Reverend King laughed.
• Because of her job, Beth Joiner, a children’s dance teacher in Georgia, is very aware of the romantic lives of her young pupils. For example, whenever there is a movie Friday afternoon at school, her students tell her with whom they will be going. Once, a long succession of students told her about the boys they were going with, and the last student said, “I’m going with Edwin. I don’t really like him, but he’s the only one left.”
• Sometimes life is like a cartoon. When he was a youngster, Peanuts creator Charles M. Schultz stood in line at a movie theater which had advertised that the first 500 children buying a ticket would get a free Butterfingers candy bar. When he arrived at the ticket booth, he was informed that the theater had run out of candy bars. Mr. Schultz figures that he must have been the 501st child in line.
• When movie director Alfred Hitchcock was six years old, he was naughty, so his parents sent him to the local jail with a note for the police officer in charge. The officer took the note, read it, then locked young Alfred in a cell. After five minutes had passed, the officer released young Alfred and said, “This is what we do to naughty boys.” For the rest of his life, Mr. Hitchcock was terrified of the police.
• A small child attended a tea party at which G.K. Chesterton, author of the Father Brown stories, was present. Her parents were excited that their daughter would meet the great man and told her that she could learn something from him. After the tea party was over, they asked their daughter what she had learned. She said, “He taught me how to throw buns into the air and catch them in my mouth.”
• When she was seven years old, Sammy Fancher Thurman rode a pony that decided to run away. It galloped, lost its footing, and fell and rolled over on top of her. Sammy’s father ran over to her and asked, “Are you all right?” She answered, “I’m OK, but my pony isn’t. He’s got to learn some manners.” She then started training the pony to obey her. Later, she became a star rodeo competitor.
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© Copyright Bruce D. Bruce; All Rights Reserved
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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
Track: "Hitch Hike Home"
Album: RUMOURS OF LIGHT 3: A 60 SONG DIGITAL BOXSET IN SUPPORT OF THE DISASTERS EMERGENCY COMMITTEE AND THE PEOPLE OF UKRAINE
Artist: Arroyo Rogers
Artist Location: Joshua Tree, California
Record Company: Aldora Britain Records (“The worldwide hub of independent and underground music since 2013.”)
Record Company Location: Rothley, UK
Info:
“Arroyo Rogers is a country band steeped in the classic C&W sound of the sixties and seventies. Founded by Kip Powell and Lisa Mednick Powell, the band continues to perform classic covers and original Americana in and around Joshua Tree, California.”
“Aldora Britain Records proudly presents the third installment of 'Rumours Of Light', our fundraiser compilations for the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) and the people of Ukraine.
“Through the power of music, we are aiming to raise as much money as possible to benefit innocent men, women and children who are fleeing the conflict. The main areas that the DEC help with are food, water, shelter, healthcare and protection.
Price: £9.15 (GBP) for 60-track charity-appeal album.
“Hitch Hike Home” is also on Arroyo Rogers’ album SINGLE WIDE. Price: $7 (USD) for seven-track album.
Genre: Folk. Country Blues. Various.
Links:
RUMOURS OF LIGHT 3: A 60 SONG DIGITAL BOXSET IN SUPPORT OF THE DISASTERS EMERGENCY COMMITTEE AND THE PEOPLE OF UKRAINE
SINGLE WIDE
Arroyo Rogerson on Bandcamp
Arroyo Rogers on YouTube
Arroyo Rogers Official Website
Aldora Britain Records on Bandcamp
Aldora Britain Records on YouTube
Other Links:
Bruce’s Music Recommendations: FREE pdfs
David Bruce's Smashwords Page
David Bruce's Blog #1
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David Bruce's Blog #3
David Bruce's Apple iBookstore
Reader Suggestion
Michelle in AZ
Stephen Suggests
Fishing
Can you imagine fishing with NiKKKson?
Stephen F
Thanks, Steve!
New Venture
Michael Egan
BRUCE'S RECOMMENDATION
Mrs. Betty Bowers
Mrs. Betty Bowers: Is America Really a Christian Nation? (YouTube)
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
Not as many residual fireworks as past years - oops spoke too soon.
Sues Pandora
Lewis Black
Pandora has been hit with another lawsuit by a comedian accusing the streamer of shortchanging artists by neglecting to obtain the proper copyrights to stream their works — this time by Lewis Black. According to a complaint filed Thursday in California federal court, Pandora “took and exploited his works solely to make themselves money while knowing it had no license and had not paid, and would not be paying, royalties.”
The lawsuit is the latest in an escalating feud between streamers and comedians pushing to change the landscape of compensation amid a boom in popularity for spoken-word content. They raise novel licensing theories arguing that they should be paid for writing their jokes, much in the same way that musicians are paid royalties for composing song lyrics.
The lawsuit filed by Black accuses Pandora of knowingly flouting its obligation to secure the proper copyrights. “Pandora did what most goliaths do: it decided it would infringe now to ensure it had this very valuable intellectual property on its platform to remain competitive, and deal with the consequences later,” writes Richard Busch, a partner at King & Ballow representing Black, in the complaint. “Later is now.”
Pandora conceded in financial filings to the Security and Exchange Commission from 2011 to 2017 that it was at risk of losing its comedy content because it doesn’t have the proper licenses to stream the works, according to the suit. Pandora admitted that it “could be subject to significant liability for copyright infringement and may no longer be able to operate under [their] existing licensing regime.” The concession was removed after Pandora was acquired in 2019 by SiriusXM.
Lewis Black
Batman Nipple Suit
George Clooney
George Clooney’s Batman costume from Joel Schumacher’s 1997 “Batman & Robin” might be the most ridiculed get-up in superhero movie history thanks to its pronounced plastic nipples, and now the suit can be yours thanks to Heritage Auctions. Clooney’s infamous Batman nipple suit is up for auction with an opening bid set at $40,000. The sale is part of Heritage’s Hollywood & Entertainment Signature Auction, taking place July 22-23.
“This is easily the most famous – and infamous – Batman costume ever designed, as evidenced by the fact that all these years later, it continues to make headlines every time Tim Burton and George Clooney get asked about it,” Heritage Auction’s executive vice president Joe Maddalena said in a statement. “But to his credit, Joel Schumacher never apologized for the ‘Bat-nipples.’ In fact, he once told Vice, ‘I’m still glad we did it.’ And I am just as glad we have the chance now to offer this piece of cinema history to someone who can appreciate the costume as much as Schumacher clearly did.”
The Batman nipple suit is one of several props coming to auction from the Caped Crusader’s history on the big screen. Jim Carrey’s Riddler walking cane from “Batman Forever” is also up for grabs (with an opening bid set at $8,000), as is Jack Nicholson’s iconic purple Joker suit from Tim Burton’s original “Batman” (with an opening bid set at a whopping $65,000).
According to Heritage Auctions, Clooney’s Batman suit is “constructed of cast foam latex, vinyl, resin components, leather, and other mixed media elements all expertly painted, finished and assembled on a life-size pose-able mannequin with a hyper-realistic George Clooney head with prosthetic grade false eyes. Costume pieces include hero signature cowl, full length superhero cape with 2-cape clips, muscle tunic with signature ‘Batman’ icon on the chest, muscled tights, peaked and finned gauntlet gloves, and knee-high character boots.”
George Clooney
Will Run for Mayor
Anson Williams
Anson Williams is embarking on a new career path.
The former star of the beloved sitcom Happy Days announced that he will run for mayor in Ojai, California, the Ojai Valley News reports.
During the city council meeting that was open to the public on June 28, Williams, 72, noted that Ojai needs "leadership that inspires a collaborative team."
The newspaper also shared that candidates for all offices can formally declare candidacy on July 18 by "pulling papers at the City Clerk's Office for city races, or with the county clerk for races outside the city."
According to the Los Angeles Times, Williams would compete against Ojai Mayor Betsy Stix, who is running for reelection.
Anson Williams
Defamation Suit Rejected
Sacha Baron Cohen
An appeals court on Thursday rejected a $95 million defamation lawsuit against Comedian Sacha Baron Cohen filed by former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore, who said he was tricked into a television appearance that lampooned sexual misconduct accusations against him.
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan, upholding a lower court’s ruling in favor of Baron Cohen, said Moore signed a disclosure agreement that prohibited any legal claims over the appearance.
The three judges also found it was “clearly comedy” when Baron Cohen demonstrated a so-called pedophile detector that beeped when it got near Moore and no viewer would think the comedian was making factual allegations against Moore.
The lawsuit centered on Moore’s unwitting appearance on the comic’s “Who is America?” show. The segment ran after Moore faced misconduct accusations during Alabama’s 2017 U.S. Senate race that he had pursued sexual and romantic relationships with teens when he was a man in his 30s. He denied the allegations.
Sacha Baron Cohen
Background Music
“Yakety Sax”
U.K. activists celebrated the resignation of Prime Minister Boris Johnson in perhaps the most British way possible: By hijacking live televised interviews with Conservative Party members with the Benny Hill theme song.
The shenanigans started, British-ly enough, after actor Hugh Grant tweeted to activist Steve Bray in the aftermath of Johnson’s resignation, “Glad you have your speakers back. Do you by any chance have the Benny Hill music to hand?”
Bray, who descended on the park outside the British Parliament in anticipation of Johnson’s last day as Prime Minister with portable speakers in hand, eagerly obliged:
Bray was in close enough proximity to Parliament that the sound of the Benny Hill theme — a.k.a. “Yakety Sax,” a novelty pop song that remains synonymous with bumbling antics even decades after the sketch comedy show last aired — permeated into news programs’ interviews with Tory members laying the groundwork for the post-Johnson government. The results were hilarious and damning:
Bray did not escape the clever protest unscathed, later tweeting that the police had confiscated two of the offending speakers. However, reinforcements — three more speakers — were due Friday, ensuring the troll would continue.
“Yakety Sax”
End Mass Shootings
Exorcists
Exorcisms are the new gun control — at least according to Fox News contributor Bill Bennett. During the conservative network’s coverage of the mass shooting at a 4th of July in a Chicago suburb, the former secretary of education suggested exorcists as the solution to ending gun violence. And he wasn’t joking.
“You need police. You need parents for sure. You need schools… But you know, you may need an exorcist, too,” Bennett, who served in the Reagan administration, said. “Before your audience shakes its head on that: If you look at these young men, they have deeply spiritual problems. Deeply.”
He added, “If you go into the labyrinthine caves of the internet — way down and I don’t recommend it — it’s ugly stuff. These guys dwell there. They live there. They drench themselves in it. And it’s as ugly and evil as it gets. Where are the ministers? The rabbis? The priests?”
“Look, I don’t want to suggest something that would seem farcical to a lot of your audience,” continued Bennett on Fox News. “It’s a deeply spiritual void that I think that the semen have in their hearts and their souls. And I think it needs to be addressed.”
He ended his rant by saying, “We need to do it all but we need to do more.” What?
Exorcists
Mummified Mystery Pup
"Dogor"
A mummified pup discovered in Siberia is not a dog, new research finds. Rather, the cute-and-cuddly canine is actually a young wolf.
In a new study aimed at understanding dog domestication, researchers analyzed the genome of the puppy, along with the genomes of 72 ancient wolves. The pup, which was found in the Siberian permafrost in 2018 and whose lineage has been debated ever since, was nicknamed "Dogor" and was fully intact, with pettable fur and unbroken whiskers. At first, scientists couldn't tell if the 18,000-year-old pup was a wolf or a dog, but the new analysis revealed that it was a wolf — and that it was not very closely related to the earliest dogs.
Dogor's genome was one of 66 never-before-sequenced ancient wolf genomes studied by Bergström and his colleagues, who also looked at the genomes of five previously sequenced ancient wolves and one ancient dhole, another type of wild dog that is still found today in parts of Asia.
The researchers were looking for hints as to where domesticated dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) came from. Clearly, dogs were domesticated from wolves (Canis lupus), but the genes of modern wolves have shifted too much over the ages to reveal which wolves dropped their wild ways to team up with humans. To pinpoint the closest wolf ancestors of the first dogs, Bergström said, it's important to look at wolves from the time when dogs were being domesticated — between about 30,000 years ago and 14,000 years ago.
The 72 samples covered 100,000 years of prehistory in Europe, Siberia and northwestern North America. The genomes revealed that wolves thrived throughout the ice age, with a globally connected population. The most intriguing results, however, had to do with the transition from wolf to dog. The researchers found that dogs are more closely related to ancient wolves from eastern Eurasia than to ancient wolves from western Eurasia.
"Dogor"
Picky Penguins
Japan
Rising prices and inflation are impacting people around the world, but when a Japanese aquarium moved to save money by changing the fish its penguins were fed, the animals made it clear they were displeased with the change.
The Hakone-en Aquarium, an hour southwest of Tokyo, started feeding the penguins “saba,” or mackerel, to cut costs, CNN reported. Previously, the animals were fed “aji,” or Japanese horse mackerel, which they very much enjoyed. The price of aji has climbed 20-30% in the last year, the aquarium told CNN.
Video from Japan’s All-Nippon News Network shows the penguins turning up their beaks at the offered food, refusing to eat the saba.
“They take it into their mouths at first, but then they decide they don’t like it and drop it,” Hiroki Shimamoto, the head of the aquarium, told AFP. “They sense something is off.”
Japan
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