Happy 400th Shakespeare Day...........

Today we honor the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare's birth and/or death with six images of theatrical productions and filmed version of his fabled plays; somehow, we didn't find any room for "Romeo and Juliet."

The six images are of: 1) The Merchant of Venice; 2) Hamlet; 3) Othello; 4) MacBeth; 5) Akira Kurosawa's "Throne of Blood" (based on Shakespeare's "King Lear," the Japanese film starred Toshiro Mifune, pict) and 6) "Much Ado About Nothing."

http://www.americanshakespearecenter.com/

http://www.folger.edu/

https://www.ncshakes.org/

Happy Valentine's Day (4 of 4): Cute Annoying Young Couples

10 for 10: The Nine Countries Outside of America Where This Blog Is Most Popular..........

On Sept. 21st, this blog will be celebrating its tenth anniversary, and while we are not completely sure how to celebrate, we have chosen to start by acknowledging our blog readers around the world. Though this following list consists of large countries, we want to also thank blog readers from smaller nations like Malta, Slovenia, and Jordan, who have the time to check us out.

The images above are in conjunction with three of the countries on this list, the Russian dolls are for (of course) Russia, the Hindu love god Shiva is for India, and the women at the bottom associated with a bossa nova song about a beach we can't spell represent Brazil (yeah, that was a bit awkward).....

Here is the list, that we dedicate to Bill Griffith, the artist who draws up "Zippy the Pinhead,"our folk singer friend Bruce Piephoff from Greensboro, NC, and the late, great Japanese actor Toshiro Mifune:

1) Russia 34, 974

2) Germany 11,421

3) United Kingdom 10,612

4) Canada 10, 085

5) France 6,320

6) Ukraine 4,407

7) India 3,256

8) Australia 2,467

9) Brazil 1,971

Our sister blog is The Daily Vampire: http://www.nocturnalguy38.blogspot.com

Quotes from The Little Thinkers (1 of 16): William Shakespeare

We gather that the Bard is known as Willie Shakespeare in Johnson City, Tenn., and today our first quote in this 16-entry series with quotes from historical figures begins with a quip from William Shakespeare.

The American Shakespeare Center in Staunton, Va., is currently performing the Shakespeare play "As You Like It," which has a performance on Friday night at 7:30 p.m.

And, Criterion Classics posted a promotion today for the late Japanese cinematic master Akira Kurosawa's "Throne of Blood," which is based on the Bard's "King Lear."

Here is a quote from Shakespeare:

"A fool thinks himself to be wise, but a wise man knows himself to be a fool."


http://www.americanshakespearecenter.org

http://www.visitstaunton.com

20 Things To Do List for September- Read the Sunday Comics

Here is our 20 Things To List for September:

1) Listen to "The Turkish Music Hour" on WUVT (90.7-Blacksburg, Va.; the image above is of Turkish pop diva Sertab Erener)

2) Get the Sunday edition of "The Washington Post" (hence the reason for the "Blondie" image as Sunday papers here in America generally have comic strips in them; "The New York Times" is one of the exceptions).

3) Use LinkedIn more often

4) Wear the Spiderman tie more often

5) Watch "Nature" on PBS

6) See an art exhibit at a museum or gallery

7) Read the novel "The Rum Diary" by the late Hunter S. Thompson

8) Watch the Washington Nationals on tv

9) Call Mike

10) Get an Obama/Biden 2012 bumper sticker

11) Pay bills

12) Take photos

13) Read magazines

14) Watch Japanese movies you ordered from Netflix (hence the reason for the image of the late, great Japanese actor Toshiro Mifune)

15) See if family cat needs to have a check-up at the vet

16) Join local athletic club/gym

17) Drink coffee some place besides Dunkin Donuts

18) Fix/ update resume

19) Go see an art-house film

20) Look into joining an online dating services besides E-Harmony


http://www.wuvt.vt.edu

http://www.washingtonpost.com

http://www.neckties.com

http://www.toshiromifune.org

http://www.pbs/wnet/nature

UPDATE (Sept. 2nd): In amazing coincidence, I learned that a song from Turkish pop singer Sertap Erener was actually played during the "Turkish Music Hour." Alas, I was unable to listen to the show because the Internet was down; it airs from 1:00-2:30 p.m. on Saturdays on WUVT (90.7 FM_Blacksburg, Va.).

Quote of the Week- Kabo Abe

Today, we quote the late Japanese novelist Kobo Abe (1924-1993) who penned an erotic masterpiece "The Woman in the Dunes" (1962) which was made into an excellent film in 1964. I had a chance to find it in the Hollins University library in Roanoke, Va., some years ago.

Here is the quote from Abe (from the novel):

"Defeat begins with the fear that one has lost."

http://www.hollins.edu

The Rabbit Ears Quiz- (Entry 4 of 12) Godzilla the Cartoon

The Japanes monster Godzilla first started out as well a giant, mean man-eating reptile of gigantic proportions who terrified the citizens of Tokyo. But, since kids thought he was cool that almost 25 years after he first set Japan on fire, he was a more mild-mannered good lizard in his animated form.

The animated cartoon version of "Godzilla" was a joint Japanese and American venture, which aired on Saturday mornings here in the United States, from 1978-1981. The show ran for 26 episodes.

It was produced by Toho, the Japanese company that brought the world Godzilla in film form, and produced many off-shots, featuring other popular characters, such as Mothra.

According to Wikipedia, there were many tech glitches on the cartoon version of "Godzilla," including a variation in his size. To make Godzilla more kid-friendly, there was also the character of Godzuki, Godzilla's slightly mischievous, but friendly son_ kind of a Scrappy Doo in lizard form.

The show also featured a great roar by a tv character actor named Ted Cassidy (1932-1979) who died while "Godzilla" was on the air from complications due to Acromegaly, at age 46. The disease which triggers excessive groth hormones in adults also claimed the life of pro wrestler Andre the Giant, when he was also 46.

Cassidy became a known figure for being on a tv show with a large cult following.

So, today, we are simply asking what that particular show was; is the answer:

A) The Addams Family

B) The Munsters

C) Lost in Space

D) Star Trek

E) The Six Million Dollar Man

Happy Apocalypse Not Day

Yeah, we don't think volcanic eruptions and nuclear warfare is going to be happening today, either and we would love to make more fun of Harold Camping, the radical extreme evangelists who started this 'the world is going to end on May 21, 2011,' campaign, but frnakly, we've got to start watching a Japanese horror film double-header on TCM Underground here in (yikes!) three minutes.

Unless, the world does start coming to an abrupt end tomorrow, we expect that the University of Virginia's NCAA quarter-final men's lacrosse game against Cornell, which will be played in Long Island at noon, will go on as scheduled. The game will be broadcast on ESPN-2, unless they have to break away to coverage of aliens invading Baltimore.

Quote of the Week- Martin Scorsese

We thought it might actually be cooled to link this week's Quote of the Week to last week's Quote of the Week, especially since this blog is moving very slower (we should blame Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, but he seems to have other concerns at the moment) than normal.

So, here is our quote from Martin Scorsese, whose brilliant cinematic letter to the late iconic film director Elia Kazan was broadcast on PBS last week:

"The term 'giant' is used too often to describe artists. But, in the case of Akira Kurosawa, we have one of the rare instances where the term fits."

SIDEBAR: For those of you following us in Armenia, Bulgaria and Paraguay, who may have been wondering, it appears we did misspell actress/Revlon spokeswoman Halle Berry's name in our previous entry. We will blame that on Mark Zuckerberg* too, regardless if we spelled his name right or not!

*- Hey, it appears we got it right. Maybe, we can go ahead and fire our interns now....

Quote of the Week_ Akira Kurosawa

This month we are featuring quotes from famous film directors, and we start with the late Japanese master Akira Kurosawa:

"Man is a genius when he is dreaming."

SIDEBAR: We will miss Tony Curtis. As mentioned in my last entry, I had just seen his 1958 film "The Vikings" earlier in the week. I did not mention that I had also seen his 1968 film "The Boston Strangler," both films were directed by the late Richard Fleischer, in which Curtis played the dubious title role. He gave an excellent performance in the later film, which also featured Henry Fonda, which surprisingly did not garner Curtis an Oscar nomination. We are certainly sad that he had died, and our thoughts go out to Jamie Lee Curtis.

SIDEBAR TWO: Our favorite high school in North Carolina, Ragsdale HS from Jamestown, NC, once again won a big game last night as they triumphed over Eastern Forsyth 10-7.

Silly Photo to Fill Space- Pilates

Today, we continue our summer jobs series with a look at the field of yoga/pilates instructors (well, I suppose one would be quite talented to be able to do both!).

Our feature city is Trenton, NJ, and as it happens the suburb of Medford, NJ, which we hope is a Trenton 'burb, offers both yoga and pilates classes at The Yoga Center of Medford, including a pilates mat class from 8-9:00 a.m. on Saturday.

Those of you residing in that area can call the center at 609-654-9400 for more info than what we can provide here.

But, we can tell you that pilates was developed by Joseph Pilates of Germany around World War I. 11 million Americans practice pilates, which is usually done barefoot or with special pilates shoes (we can not make this stuff up!).

The aim of the exercise is to strengthen and develop torso muscles and breathing techniques. It is said to be a great exercise for pregnant women.

UPDATE: Ay Karumba! We forgot to mention our High School of the Week when we posted this a few hours ago. The school is Belgrade High School in Belgrade, Mont. We choose Belgrade because we chose a Serbian beer (Belgrade is the Serbian capital) for our 50 Beers Around the World entry on Sunday.

Of course, high school students shouldn't drink beer, but they probably couldn't find that brew anywhere in Montana any how!

The nickname for Belgrade High School is the Panthers. It was 74 degrees in Belgrade, Mont., yesterday. We have no idea what the weather is like there today.

We would like to blame the oversight on Joe Murphy, the intern for "Yes Weekly" in Greensboro, NC, but he not only does nothing for us, but he also has no idea who we are!

SIDEBAR: My good friend Jason Garnett is showing several cool movies at The Shadowbox Cinema, his micro-cinema in downtown Roanoke, Va., this month. They include the vintage French New Wave musical "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg" (1966) with a very young and very hot Catherine Denevue. She once said that women who kill have issues with their fathers. Hmmmmm.......?! That screening takes place on Aug. 25, and admission is five dollars.

Additionally, The Shadowbox will screen the 1931 Charlie Chaplin classic "City Light" on Aug. 27. "Caddyshack," a movie celebrating its 30th anniversary, on Aug. 28 and the ever demented Japanese shock horror film "Audition" on Aug. 30. Bring your kimonos!

Prices and showtimes vary. Check the cinema's web site theshadowboxcinema.com for more info.

Friday GeoQuiz- Tokyo Calling....

Today, we ask you the blog-reader to guess which year the Summer Olympics were held in Tokyo, Japan. I am now in the process of finally seeing the Yasujiro Ozu cinematic masterpiece "Tokyo Story" on dvd, hence the reason for this image above.

Was the year?:

A) 1988
B) 1956
C) 1964
D) 1968

The answer to last week's quiz was "B."

SIDEBAR: I imagine if tickets remain they may be very limited by the Canadian band Arcade Fire which is apparently now hotter than Shakira dancing barefoot in a low-cut dress is performing this weekend in Montreal, Boston and Philadelphia (that's actually a Monday concert). The band will also be profiled in this week's edition of "Sound Opinions," an NPR series which airs at 3:00 p.m. on Saturdays in the Greensboro and Raleigh markets on 91.5 (WUNC-FM, Chapel Hill).

Things We Learned on Twitter Today- Ozu Film @ IFC Center

Those interested in seeing the little-screened 1937 Yasujiro Ozu film "What Did the Lady Forget?" who live in the New York City area can see the film at the IFC Center located at 323 Sixth Avenue according to the cinema's Twitter page.

The IFC Center tweeted that they have added screenings at 11:00 a.m. and 12:25 p.m. from Friday-Sunday to accomodate demands to see the gem.

Ozu (1903-1963) who directed "Tokyo Story" is considered to be one of Japan's best filmmakers along with the late Akira Kurosawa. The film at the IFC Center is about an affluent medical professor and his bossy wife. Like most Ozu films, it deals with contemporary life in urban Japan.

SIDEBAR: The Russians Are Coming to Montana?! Well, the Russian-emigre rock band The Red Elvises (based in Santa Monica, Calif.), perhaps best known for their song "I Am a Closet Disco Dancer" will be playing many dates around Montana (yes, we're very jealous!). The tour de Montana starts with a show at the Machinery Row in Great Falls on July 29. It concludes with a show at Montana John's in Phillipsburg on Aug. 9.

The Red Elvises also play at the Silver Dollar Saloon in Butte on Aug. 1 before heading to Bozeman to play at the Zebra Cocktail Lounge on Aug. 3. Currently, the band is getting to play in Seattle at The Tractor Tavern on Saturday.

Quote of the Week- Akira Kurosawa

Today's quote of the week is from the late, freat Japanese film director Akira Kurosawa (1910-1998). "Rashomon," which many consider to be his best film is celebrating its 60th anniversary. Kurosawa was also known for "The Seven Samurai," "Ikiru," "Ran" and "The Throne of Blood" among many others.

We are quoting 32 people from the 32 countries in the World Cup on both of our blogs. At last report, Japan was beating Cameroon 1-0 in their game today (we are 90 percent sure they won, but we don't want to offend anyone blogging in from central Africa in case we are wrong!).

Here is the quote from Kurosawa:

"In a mad world, only the mad are sane."

Quote of the Week_ Akira Kurosawa

This is meant to complement my quip from another film director John Ford on my other blog "The Daily Vampire."

Both quotes were supposed to run yesterday, which was Pearl Harbor Day, but perhaps it is just as well that I am posting them today.

Akira Kurosawa is considered by many to be Japan's best film director of all time though Ozu and Oshima* fans might dispute that!:

"Japan does not understand very well that one of its proudest cultural achievements is in film."

*- We believe Nagisha Oshima is the only one of these three Japanese directors mentioned here to still be alive.