Garrison Keollor: The need to replace bad tenants with better
A day of spring appeared out of nowhere Monday, trees blooming in the park, a troop of tiny kiddos roped together with teachers fore and aft, sociable dogs, and yellow daffodils in bloom, though I'm not a botanist, and maybe they were begonias but to me they're daffodils because begonias sound like pneumonia and so Wordsworth and Herrick wrote poems about daffodils. Let's just assume that's true
The first liquid laundry detergent was widely known for its successful (and annoying) "Ring Around The Collar" campaign introduced in 1968. What is the name of this product?
Winning the Oscar for Best Original Song at the 32nd Academy Awards, it was introduced by Frank Sinatra in a 1959 film, and describes animals doing seemingly impossible acts. With altered lyrics, it also served as the theme song for the 1960 Presidential Campaign of John Kennedy. What is the title of this song?
"High Hopes" is a popular song first popularized by Frank Sinatra, with music written by James Van Heusen and lyrics by Sammy Cahn. It was introduced by Sinatra and child actor Eddie Hodges in the 1959 film A Hole in the Head, nominated for a Grammy and won an Oscar for Best Original Song at the 32nd Academy Awards.
The song describes two scenarios where animals do seemingly impossible acts. First, an ant moves a rubber tree plant by itself, then a ram single-handedly destroys a "billion kilowatt dam." The desires of these animals are described as "pie in the sky," although the song implies they ultimately accomplish them. The song finishes comparing troubles and hardships and sorrows to balloons; the problem has gone away when the balloon is popped.
"High Hopes" was originally recorded by American singer Frank Sinatra in 1959 in a hit version featuring a children's chorus, which was later included in his 1961 album All the Way (this version is not the version that appeared in the film, as the film version paired Sinatra with Eddie Hodges rather than with a children's chorus, and also, the lyrics were slightly different). The tune reached #30 on the Billboard Hot 100. Sinatra also recorded a version of the tune with different lyrics which was used as the theme song for the 1960 Presidential Campaign of John Kennedy.
Source
Roy, Retired Enemy of the People, in Tyler, TX replied:
Had to start singing it in my head for a minute or two before I got to what "That little old ant" had. He had "High Hopes." I wonder if he did ever manage to move that rubber tree plant.
Dave responded:
High Hopes. Sinatra was a supporter of Senator Kennedy's campaign and helped out by singing the campaign song to the music of High Hopes.
Kenn B
High Hopes
Dave in Tucson wrote:
The song was "High Hopes".
John I from Hawai`i says,
Hi Hopes
Daniel in The City answered:
High Hopes
Jim from CA, retired to ID, replied:
High Hopes
Billy in Cypress U$A responded:
High Hopes or the theme song for Bernie. Although I voted for Bernie because I agree with his policies and I figured this would be the last time that I would have the chance to vote for him, I did not feel that he had a chance. The policies that he presented need more that a president, they need a supportove congress and supportive national electorate. .
Deborah wrote:
I don't remember what JFK's campaign music was, but from the rest of the clue, I'm going with "High Hopes." We taught our kids to sing it when they were young and we'd sing along on car trips (when we weren't playing "I Spy").
Pleasant-enough spring-like weather, but not rainy. Enjoy the liquid sky, Marty.
Michelle in AZ said:
High Hopes
David of Moon Valley answered:
uh-huh
…and as soon as i strike a match and light this one up i'll have me some High Hopes, too…..
Joe ( -- Vote Blue, No Matter Who -- ) said:
"High Hopes" which I still have for Bernie. It ain't over 'til it's over.
Harry M. took the day off.
Rosemary in Columbus took the day off.
Micki took the day off.
DJ Useo took the day off.
Stephen F took the day off.
Barbara, of Peppy Tech fame took the day off.
Ed K took the day off.
Steve in Wonderful Sacramento, CA, took the day off.
Gary K took the day off.
Jon L took the day off.
Saskplanner took the day off.
Leo in Boise took the day off.
PGW. 94087 took the day off.
MarilynofTC took the day off.
George M. took the day off.
Gateway Mike took the day off.
Paul of Seattle took the day off.
Doug in Albuquerque took the day off.
Peter W took the day off.
Brian S. took the day off.
Gene took the day off.
Tony K. took the day off.
Noel S. took the day off.
James of Alhambra took the day off.
BttbBob has returned to semi-retired status.
~~~~~
• As a sometimes traveler, Peg Bracken occasionally ran across interesting signs. In Manhattan, she saw trashcans bearing this sign: LITTERING IS FILTHY AND SELFISH SO DON'T DO IT. And she once saw a shop that displayed this sign: SHOPLIFTERS WILL BE HAPPILY BEATEN TO A PULP. By the way, when Peg was a kid, her mother found this note in her pocket (and saved it and showed it to her when Peg was an adult): LUCILE IS A DOP
• Composer Johannes Brahms had a big ego. While walking with his friend George Henschel, he saw a building bearing a commemorative plaque. Mr. Brahms said to Mr. Henschel, "The day after I die, they'll put up a sign on my house, too." Mr. Henschel joked, "Of course they will. It'll say, 'House to Rent.'"
Thanksgiving
• When Sarah Dash was in the 2nd or 3rd grade, she sang for the first time in front of people: a Thanksgiving song. She had been ordered not to scratch, but little Sarah was itchy, so before singing, she told her audience, "They told me not to scratch, but before I start to sing, I'm gonna scratch." Her audience laughed, and she says, "I've been a clown ever since." Later, she sang in the group LaBelle.
Travel
• Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach was on an airplane about to depart when an airline representative announced that two people with medical emergencies needed to be on the airplane. The airline representative then asked if anyone would voluntarily give up their seats and take a later flight: "Is there anyone here who is willing to extend themselves to help out these people?" Immediately, Rabbi Shlomo said, "I'm ready!" He said this even though he was probably more booked and busier than anyone else on the flight.
• On a British airplane about to take off, a steward announced, "Passengers are warned to keep their safety belts fastened throughout the flight until otherwise advised, as the trip is likely to be bumpy." A worried elderly woman asked, "Is it going to be very bumpy?" The steward - who was very dignified - replied, "Madam, I said bumpy, not very bumpy."
War
• At the 1936 Olympics, Jesse Owens failed twice to qualify for the finals in the long jump. He should have qualified easily, but he was now in the position of not making the finals if he were to fault one more time. Fortunately, his German competitor, Lutz Long, helped him by advising him by start his jump about a foot before the fault line - that way, he would not fault and should easily qualify. The advice worked, and Mr. Owens made the finals, where he and Mr. Long competed for the gold medal, with Mr. Owens finally winning while Mr. Long won the silver medal. The two men became friends, and they stayed friends, although Mr. Long fought for the Germans in World War II. On a battlefield, Mr. Long wrote Mr. Owens, "I hope we can always remain best of friends despite the differences between our countries." Not long after, Mr. Long died in battle. After the war was over, Mr. Long's son, 22-year-old Peter, wrote Mr. Owens to ask him to be his best man at his wedding: "Even though my father can't be here to be my best man, I know who he would want in his place. He would want you to take his place. And I do, too." Mr. Owens flew to Germany, and was Peter's best man.
Was supposed to be gray and rainy, but turned out to be sunny and warm.
Tonight, Thursday:
CBS opens the night with a FRESH'Young Sheldon', followed by a FRESH'The Unicorn', then a FRESH'Mom', followed by a FRESH'Carol's Second Act', then a FRESH'Tommy'.
Scheduled on a FRESHStephen Colbert are Dixie Chicks and Michael Pollan.
Scheduled on a FRESHJames Corden, OBE, are Niall Horan, Vin Diesel, and Eiza González.
NBC begins the night with a RERUN'Superstore', followed by a FRESH'Brooklyn Nine-Nine', then a FRESH'Will & Grace', followed by a FRESH'Indebted', then a RERUN'L&O: SVU'.
Scheduled on a FRESHJimmy Fallon are Mandy Moore and Dane DeHaan.
Scheduled on a FRESHSeth Meyers are John Krasinski, Regina Hall, Bones UK, and Steve Ferrone.
Scheduled on a FRESHLilly Singh is Tan France.
ABC starts the night with a FRESH'Station 19', followed by a FRESH'Grey's Anatomy', then a FRESH'A Million Little Things'.
Scheduled on a FRESHJimmy Kimmel, with guest host Pete Buttigieg, are Patrick Stewart, Tony Hale, and Jhene Aiko featuring Miguel.
The CW offers a FRESH'Katy Keene', followed by a FRESH'Legacies'.
Faux has a FRESH'Last Man Standing', followed by a FRESH'Outmatched', then a FRESH'Deputy'.
MY recycles an old 'L&O: CI', followed by another old 'L&O: CI'.
A&E has 'The First 48', followed by a FRESH'The First 48', then a FRESH'Live PD: Wanted', followed by a FRESH'60 Days In'.
AMC offers the movie 'Speed', followed by the movie 'Hacksaw Ridge'.
BBC -
[6:00AM] MAN VS. WILD - Texas
[7:00AM] MAN VS. WILD - Alaska
[8:00AM] MAN VS. WILD - Pacific Island
[9:00AM] MAN VS. WILD - Big Sky Country
[10:00AM] WEIRD WONDERS
[11:00AM] WEIRD WONDERS
[12:00PM] WEIRD WONDERS
[1:00PM] WEIRD WONDERS
[2:00PM] WEIRD WONDERS
[3:00PM] WEIRD WONDERS
[4:00PM] PLANET EARTH - From Pole To Pole
[5:00PM] PLANET EARTH - Mountains
[6:00PM] PLANET EARTH - Fresh Water
[7:00PM] PLANET EARTH - Caves
[8:00PM] PLANET EARTH - Deserts
[9:00PM] SEVEN WORLDS, ONE PLANET - The Making of Seven Worlds, One Planet
[10:00PM] PLANET EARTH - From Pole To Pole
[11:00PM] PLANET EARTH - Mountains
[12:00AM] SEVEN WORLDS, ONE PLANET - The Making of Seven Worlds, One Planet
[1:00AM] PLANET EARTH - Fresh Water
[2:00AM] PLANET EARTH - Caves
[3:00AM] PLANET EARTH - Deserts
[4:00AM] PLANET EARTH: THE BEST OF THE HUNT (ALL TIMES EST)
Bravo has 'Project Runway', another 'Project Runway', followed by a FRESH'Project Runway', then a FRESH'Watch What Happens: Live'.
FX has the movie 'Baby Driver', followed by the movie 'Jummanji: Welcome To The Jungle', then a FRESH'Better Things', and another 'Better Things'.
History has 'Swamp People', another 'Swamp People', followed by a FRESH'Swamp People'.
IFC -
[6:00A] Planet Terror
[8:15A] Mission: Impossible II
[11:15A] Mission: Impossible III
[2:15P] We Were Soldiers
[5:15P] Argo
[8:00P] American Sniper
[11:00P] Full Metal Jacket
[1:45A] We Were Soldiers
[4:45A] Year of the Rabbit - Sniper
[5:17A] The Three Stooges - Mummy's Dummies
[5:30A] Argo (ALL TIMES EST)
Sundance -
[6:00am] The Andy Griffith Show
[6:30am] The Andy Griffith Show
[7:00am] The Andy Griffith Show
[7:30am] The Andy Griffith Show
[8:00am] The Andy Griffith Show
[8:30am] The Andy Griffith Show
[9:00am] The Andy Griffith Show
[9:30am] The Andy Griffith Show
[10:00am] The Andy Griffith Show
[10:30am] Along Came a Spider
[1:00pm] Law & Order
[2:00pm] Law & Order
[3:00pm] Law & Order
[4:00pm] Law & Order
[5:00pm] Law & Order
[6:00pm] Law & Order
[7:00pm] Law & Order
[8:00pm] Law & Order
[9:00pm] Law & Order
[10:00pm] Law & Order
[11:00pm] Law & Order
[12:00am] Law & Order
[1:00am] Law & Order
[2:00am] Along Came a Spider
[4:30am] The Andy Griffith Show
[5:00am] The Andy Griffith Show
[5:30am] The Andy Griffith Show (ALL TIMES EST)
SyFy has the movie 'After Earth', followed by the movie 'Underworld: Blood Wars', then the movie 'The Purge'.
Peter Jackson's upcoming Beatles documentary, which includes a slew of unseen footage of the "Let It Be" rockers, is coming to theaters in September.
The Beatles: Get Back includes footage from studio sessions that have never been seen or heard before as well as their final live performance on a rooftop in London. Iger said the restored footage was "spectacular" and "it looks like it was shot yesterday."
Paul McCartney said: "I am really happy that Peter has delved into our archives to make a film that shows the truth about The Beatles recording together. The friendship and love between us comes over and reminds me of what a crazily beautiful time we had."
Ringo Starr added: "I'm really looking forward to this film. Peter is great and it was so cool looking at all this footage. There was hours and hours of us just laughing and playing music, not at all like the version that came out. There was a lot of joy and I think Peter will show that. I think this version will be a lot more peace and loving, like we really were."
The Beatles: Get Back is also being made with the enthusiastic support of Yoko Ono Lennon and Olivia Harrison. A fully restored version of the original Let It Be film will be made available at a later date.
We have just received word that Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson have tested positive for the coronavirus. Both have been down in Australia for the pre-production of Baz Luhrmann's untitled Elvis Presley film from Warner Bros. The two-time Oscar winner Hanks is set to play Presley's longtime manager Colonel Tom Parker in the project.
"Hello, folks. Rita and I are down here in Australia. We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches. Rita had some chills that came and went. Slight fevers too. To play things right, as is needed in the world right now, we were tested for the Coronavirus, and were found to be positive.
Well, now. What to do next? The Medical Officials have protocols that must be followed. We Hanks' will be tested, observed, and isolated for as long as public health and safety requires. Not much more to it than a one-day-at-a-time approach, no?
Warner Bros.' untitled Elvis Presley movie is scheduled to open on Oct. 1, 2021. That date is a long way off, however, Hanks has a film that's opening much sooner on the schedule: Sony's Greyhound which just got moved to Father's Day weekend, June 12 from its May 8 release last week. Hanks also has two more movies scheduled for 2020: Amblin/Universal's sci-fi movie BIOS and Uni's News of the World on Dec. 25, both shot in New Mexico.
Jimmy Fallon, Stephen Colbert, Seth Meyers, Trevor Noah, Samantha Bee, John Oliver and Andy Cohen will soon be playing to empty houses.
Several New York-based late night shows are suspending live audiences starting Monday in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. NBC's The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and Late Night With Seth Meyers, CBS' The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, Comedy Central's The Daily Show With Trevor Noah, TBS' Full Frontal With Samantha Bee, HBO's Last Week Tonight and Bravo's Watch What Happens Live will all continue to tape new episodes next week but will do so without in-studio viewers.
Full Frontal is going without an audience for Wednesday's show as well.
The Los Angeles-based Late Late Show With James Corden is still allowing audiences for the time being, sources tell The Hollywood Reporter, but CBS is continuing to monitor the situation and will make changes as necessary. NBC's A Little Late With Lilly Singh, which also shoots in Los Angeles, has wrapped production for the season.
TBS' Conan pretaped its Wednesday and Thursday shows and is going on a preplanned, two-week hiatus starting Monday. NBC's Saturday Night Live is also on hiatus; its next episode is scheduled for March 27.
The 1946 Disney pic Song of the South will not be appearing on the Disney+ streaming service, even with an "outdated cultural depictions" disclaimer, Disney executive chairman Bob Iger confirmed Wednesday.
Speaking at Disney's annual shareholders meeting, Iger responded to an audience question about whether the full Disney library one day will appear on the service by affirming that particular movie is "not appropriate in today's world" and won't be rereleased.
The live-action/animated musical film, set on a plantation in Georgia after the Civil War, is considered extremely controversial for its depiction of black people.
A debate swirled late last year over the use of a disclaimer tag on some Disney+ catalog titles, including Dumbo. The tag reads, "This program is presented as originally created. It may contain outdated cultural depictions.'
Greenland and Antarctica are shedding six times more ice than during the 1990s, driving sea level rise that could see annual flooding by 2100 in regions home today to some 400 million people, scientists have warned.
The kilometres-thick ice sheets atop land masses at the planet's extremities sloughed off 6.4 trillion tonnes of mass from 1992 through 2017, adding nearly two centimetres (an inch) to the global watermark, according to an assessment by 89 researchers, the most comprehensive to date.
Last summer's Arctic heatwave will likely top the 2011 record for polar ice sheet loss of 552 billion tonnes, they reported in a pair of studies, published Wednesday in Nature.
That is roughly the equivalent of eight Olympic pools draining into the ocean every second.
Almost all of the ice lost from Antarctica, and half of that from Greenland, has been triggered by warming ocean water speeding the movement of glaciers toward the sea.
A watchdog group has asked Congress to investigate Betsy DeVos as to whether she knew about her brother's plans after it was claimed he hired spies to infiltrate a teachers' union.
The New York Times reported on Saturday that Ms DeVos' brother Erik Prince, hired an ex-spy to help him infiltrate a Michigan-based office of the union, the American Federation of Teachers.
Accountable.US wrote to the US House committee on oversight and reform on Tuesday and asked them to investigate the claims.
In their letter, Accountable.US requested that the committee investigate whether Ms DeVos was involved "in efforts to recruit former intelligence officers to spy on the activities of the American Federation of Teachers".
The watchdog group went on to accuse Ms DeVos and her husband of having previously funded an organisation attempting to discredit teachers' unions.
Paleontologists working on the Isle of Skye in Scotland have uncovered around 50 dinosaur footprints, including track marks compatible with Stegosaurus. The discovery points to the tremendous ecological diversity of the region some 170 million years ago.
That Scotland once hosted a wide assortment of dinosaurs during the Jurassic period may come as a surprise, given the region's temperate climate today.
Back then, Scotland was still part of an island, but the region was hot and humid, with a subtropical climate similar to Florida or Spain today, said Brusatte. Dinosaurs walked along beaches and lagoons, leaving behind footprints that became fossilized over time. Today, rocks carved by ancient rivers are slowly revealing these hidden fossilized treasures, thanks to the slow and steady processes of erosion.
In general, fossils from the Middle Jurassic (164 million to 174 million years ago) are rare, which is a shame given how dinosaurs spread and diversified during this critical time period. Indeed, this period witnessed the first birds, the earliest tyrannosaurs and stegosaurs, and the rise of gigantic sauropods, with their long neck and tails.
The new research, led by Paige dePolo from the University of Edinburgh and published today in PLOS One, describes two new dinosaur trackways containing around 50 prints, exposing a diverse Middle Jurassic ecosystem as it existed 170 million years ago. The trackways were found at a location called Brothers' Point, which has previously produced other dino prints. Brusatte said the new sites are below the tide line on a promontory of rock that sticks out into the Atlantic, and waves lap across them each day, which made them difficult to detect.
The graduate student who named a new species of bug after Lady Gaga deserves a round of "Applause." The creature dubbed Kaikaia gaga is a new species of treehopper - a group of insects that rival the pop star's famed sense of style with their "wacky" appearance, according to a press release on Tuesday.
"If there is going to be a Lady Gaga bug, it's going to be a treehopper, because they've got these crazy horns, they have this wacky fashion sense about them," said Brendan Morris, a graduate student at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, who named the insect."They're unlike anything you've ever seen before."
Morris, who studies entomology, named the species after the pop diva in an attempt to highlight treehoppers. The creatures are "morphological wonders," with "bizarre protuberances" that can resemble anything from horns to dead plant leaves. To communicate, the insects sing to one another by vibrating plant stems, according to the release from the university.
"I love outrageous forms and colors," said Morris. "It blows my mind that a group that is roughly 40 million years old has so much diversity of form - diversity, I would argue, that we don't see in any other family of insects."
Kaikaia gaga also represents a new genus of treehopper, Morris and his coauthor, entomologist Christopher Dietrich said in the peer-reviewed journal Zootaxa.
You have reached the Home page of BartCop Entertainment.
Do you have something to say?
Anything that increased your blood pressure, or, even better, amused or entertained?
Do you have a great album no one's heard?
How about a favorite TV show, movie, book, play, cartoon, or legal amusement?
A popular artist that just plain pisses you off?
A box set the whole world should own?
Vile, filthy rumors about Republican hypocrites?
has returned to semi-retired status.
In memory.
