Profile of a Virginia War Fatality in Iraq

This will mark the first of some 8-10 journal entries (not consecutive) that I will be devouting to the War in Iraq. I fully think it is time for those of us who are opposed to the war to speak out even more vocally than we have before.

At the outset of the war in 2003, I wrote a letter-to-the-editor of "The Roanoke Times" stating that there was no way an outside force could unite major ethnic divisions between the Shiia, Sunni and Kurdish sectors of Iraq. I also pointed out there were many geopolitical problems in pre-Saddam Iraq.

The instance I used was an incident my late uncle Ilhan Gokbudak, who served as a Turkish diplomat in Iraq circa 1968. He witnessed a mass hanging of individuals who were accused of spying for the American government. The hangings took place somewhere in the middle of Baghdad, and they were a public event meant to deter anyone from undertaking such activities.

I strongly feel that virtually all of my concerns have come true in some form or another. The only exception is the Kurdish province which has remained relatively stable, but I also feel that is subject to change. And, when it does, Kirkuk could become the next Sarajevo.

Additionally, Turkey is becoming concerned over the increase in Kurdish separatist PKK militias in southeast Turkey. These incidents have made Ankara chose the controversial course of sending in troops over the Iraqi border.

In the hamlet of Brookneal, Va.,some 30 miles south of Lynchburg, the family of Christopher Edward Murphy, 21, buried their son recently. Murphy died in Iraq on May 12. He was one of four U.S. soldiers who were killed when their convoy came under fire in an area south of Baghdad.

Murphy's funeral was held at William Campbell High School, and it was covered by the area's local weekly newspaper "The AltaVista Journal." In his article about the funeral, Martin Fisher wrote that Murphy graduated from WCHS in 2004 and he played on the school's state champion football team.

His mother Rosemary Balium told the paper that Murphy freely chose army life:

"He was very proud to serve in the U.S. Armed Forces and he chose a military career."

Murphy was buried in his #75 football jersey.

His sister, Shawnee Murphy, told the Journal about how her brother liked to play with Star Trek action figures as a child, especially his Enterprise spaceship.

Murphy was on his second tour of duty in Iraq.

He was buried at Arlington National Cemetary.

While assuredly Murphy's family feels differently about the war than I do, I respect the pain they are going through and his service in the military.

But, there will likely be even higher number of U.S. casualties in the coming months, and the hollow Fox News commentary that this war is somehow protecting us from terrorism is going to grow increasingly tiresome as the days, months and years go by.

Links:

http://www.altavistajournal.com

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice

 

Duran Duran Concert in NY This Weekend....

Personally, I am hoping to see the Red Elvises in Winston-Salem, NC, this weekend but that is because that show is more georgraphically feasible for me since I live in the Greensboro area.

But, for those of you who live closer to the Big Apple and can't get "The Reflex" out of your head (actually now that I mention it, I can't either), Duran Duran will be at The Hammerstein Ballroom on June 17. According the the Duran Duran fan site, there are still balcony and floor seats available.

I must say growing up in the '80s, I came to both like and despise Duran Duran many, many times over. Today, I think one has to give them credit for capitalizing on the MTV music video trend regardless of what one thinks of their music, which to be honest with everyone I like more now than I did in 1985! The band's videos were eye-catching and hip, and helped bring  the '45s on our turn tables to life long before any of us heard of virtual reality.

While researching this entry, I found that Duran Duran was actually classified as a member of the New Romantic subgenre of pop music, which also include Spandau Ballet. Duran Duran was also one of the earliest bands ever to remix their own albums. And, astonisingly enough, they have never officially broken up though original guitar player Andy Taylor is no longer with the band.

DuranDuran was named for the villain in the 1968 Roger Vadim sci film "Barbarella, "which starred a very sexy young Jane Fonda. 

From 1982 to 1986, Duran Duran's massive string of hits included "Girls on Film," "Rio," "Hungry Like the Wolf," "Save a Prayer," "Union of the Snake," and my personal favorite "New Moon on Monday."

Duran Duran was created by keyboardist Nick Taylor. The lead vocals were provided by Simon Le Bon. The band's drummer was Roger Taylor while John Taylor provided bass. None of the Taylors are related.

The band was the personal favorite of the late Princess Diana, and Duran Duran performed at a memorial concert in her honor shortly after her untimely death in 1998.

After performing in New York, Duran Duran will play in Cork, Ireland on June 29_ if you really need an excuse to go to Europe.

Duran Duran is also politically active. Their web site features considerable info on climate control, and they will perform at a Live Earth concert in London on July 7.

For more info:

http://duranduran.com

http://duranduranfans.com

http://duranduranmusic.com

 

James Bond fans: Yes, I suppose I did overlook "A View to a Kill."

"Grease 2" is 25....and a Friend of Mine is Celebrating

For starters, I want to say that this entry is for the sole purpose of endorsing my friend Jim's blogathon on "Grease 2," which was theatrically released on June 11, 1982, not the movie itself!

Jim, who lives in Springfield, Mass., has been running a very succesful blog which unlike this one only focues on movies. And, his blog has recieved the endorsement of the official "Grease 2" fans site!

Today, Jim is indeed blogging continously throughout the day about this sequel which starred Michelle Pfeiffer in her screen debut (oooops! It has happened again! According to a Leonard Maltin guide that distinction belongs to a 1980 film called "Falling in Love Again" with Elliott Gould. I made this same exact mistake in Sat.'s entry regarding Janet Leigh's film debut, which was not "The Naked Spur"....oh well).

The sequel which Maltin calls clumsy and pedestrian also starred Maxwell Caulfield, Adrian Zmed and Tab Hunter.

"Grease 2" was directed by Tony Award-winning Broadway choreographer Patricia Birch, who choreographed the original film with John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John.

Jim pointed out that June 11, 1982 was a busy time for moviegoers. I was 12 at the time, and later that summer our family would travel to Turkey where I saw my first European topless woman on a beach (correction, that was the summer of '85). Along with "Grease 2," screens were also showing (and this is all according to Jim!): "E.T.," "Firefox," "Blade Runner," "Road Warrior" "Rocky III," "Diner" and "Porky's," which lost out to "Gandhi" in the Oscar race for Best Picture:)

I recall that "Grease 2" was showing at the Salem Valley Cinema. According to Jim, "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" also opened that very same weekend, and it did much better at the box office. 

"Khan" showed at the Towers Theatre across town in Roanoke. It is a theatre which was sadly replaced by a shoe store. I went to Towers to see that film in the summer of '82.

My friend Jason Garnett brought "Khan" to the Grandin Theatre in Roanoke for a midnight screening in 2005 (there is an early blog entry about that). 

To my knowledge, he has never made such efforts for "Grease 2." And, hopefully, the Grandin will NEVER be replaced by a shoe store.

I waited to see "Grease 2" on cable. I saw it once and that was enough for me. But, Jim says that he watched it countless times.

Even though the film has a 3.3 rating on the Internet Movies Database, apparently Jim is not alone. The "Grease 2" fan site (link below) has a staggering 294, 523 hits! The film is apparently shown on VH-1 fairly often. There was no "Grease 3!"

Useful links:

Jim's moviezzz blog:

http://talkingmoviezzz.blogspot.com

Grease 2 fan site:

www.grease2.net

Grandin Theatre site:

http://www.grandintheatre.com

 

 

 

 

 

Death Penalty Opponents Schedule Protests in VA

The State of Virginia is scheduled to execute Danville resident Christopher Scott Emett on Wed., June 13 for the Apr. 27, 2001 murder of John Fenton Langley. The murder occured at a hotel in Danville. Virginians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (VADP) has scheduled protests in both Richmond and the community of Jarratt, where the state killing will take place, on June 13.

As many of you know, I am highly opposed to capital punishment as I think it serves no community purpose for crime protection/prevention whatsoever and that it's only real purpose is to elect individuals who continously refuse to perform the leg work needed in theis country to combat violent crime.

I also think it is a heinous sin to take another person's life, especially if they have not committed the act they are accused of_ something which has occured so many times in this country that even death penalty proponents acknowledge this as fact. However, I have some differing opinions with those who share my views, mainly on the grounds that communication with death row inmates should be limited to clergy and legal counsel.

Emmett is unfortunately not one of those individuals who stands falsely accused. He indeed committed a terrible, bloody murder while he was under the influence of crack cocaine. I think he should serve the rest of his life in prison to pay for the completely senseless taking of Langley's life. But, the death penalty crosses a clear, ethical line which our government continues to blatantly cross despite growing public opposition to the death penalty in the wake of many botched executions nationwide.

The VADP, the Charlottesville-based group headed by Jack Payden-Travers, is taking issue with the fact that Emmett was represented by very bad counsel during his murder trial. The public defender in the case failed to perform the standard procedure of requesting both mental health and social service records.

The organization is asking Virginia residents to contact Gov. Tim Kaine's office at (804) 786-2211 to prevent this injustice from occuring. Kaine (D)  himself opposes the death penalty, and has been grilled by the likes of Del. Todd Gilbert (R-Woodstock)_ ironically a friend of mine, for his views. Gilbert was a solid assistant Commonwealth's Attorney in Shenandoah County, and I respect him for that. But, on this issue he is both morally and intellectually on the wrong side of the fence as I firmlybelieve all capital punishment propoents are. Unfortunately, due to political and legal constraints, Kaine in spite of his infiinite wisdom and moral clarity has chosen to prevent only one execution from going through.

The protests will take place in front of Gov. Kaine's main office in Richmond at 4 p.m. The VADP will also gather in the field of the Greensville Correctional Center in Jarratt at 8:30 p.m. The remote, isolated hamlet of Jarrett is approximately 90 miles south of Richmond.

For more info:

http://www.vadp.org

Update: Gov. Kaine made the courageous decision to delay the execution until the U.S. Supreme Court has fully reviewed it. He has been grilled by the local conservative-slanted media, but he made the right choice and he has my full support.

 

With the Tonys in Mind...."Facing East" in San Fran

While I was in Salt Lake City a few weeks ago, I had a chance to see a unique, startling play from Carol Lynn Pearson entitled "Facing East," a story about a middle-age Mormon couple coming to terms with the suicide of their gay son.

The play, which I saw at the Plan B Theatre in Utah, is wrapping up an off-Broadway run on June 17, but for those of you who might be in California, "Facing East" will premiere at the Theatre Rhinoceros in San Francisco with a run from Aug. 10-26, phone (415) 861-5079.

According to Wikipedia, the Theatre Rhinoceros was founded in 1977 and it is a theatre which produces plays with gay and lesbian themes.

The play takes a dramatic turn when the couple is confronted with a surprise encounter from their son's lover Marcus, played by Jay Perry.

I was really struck with the performances from Charles Lynn Frost who plays the father character Alex with dynamic intensity. Frost was named Best Actor by "Salt Lake City Weekly" in 2001 for his performance in "The Laramie Project."

Jayne Luke, who appeared in the independent film "Brigham City," was equally compelling as the cold mother character Ruth, who has an even harder time coming to grips with the reality in front of her than her husband.

"Facing East" was directed by Jerry Rapier.

I was hoping to meet Jerry after the performance I saw in SLC in late April, but alas I was absolutely starving when the play ended.....I ended driving all over town to eat at a Chinese restaurant called The Golden Phoenix. I sure hope I didn't order moo goo gaipan....

Hopefully, this blog entry can make up for that social faux pas.

Though I am not gay or Mormon myself, I really connected with the cultural tension in the play. As someone who is half-Turkish and from Roanoke, Va., I fully understand how such confrontations can occur in proverbial awkward moments even amongst family and friends.

One such moment happened to me when I attended a Muslim funeral for a family member (long story) in Salem, Va., in January of 2000 and a teenage boy with a NASCAR t-shirt peaked in as the imam was reciting passages from the Koran to see what the heck was going on. I almost burst into laughter even though it was the somberest of occasions. I suppose, looking back at the moment, I could have just as easily have cried. We would later pass a fundamentalist Southern Baptist sign as we carried the family member's coffin down Peters Creek Road in Roanoke.

There are certainly such awkward moments in "Facing East." One of the most poignant comes when Marcus reveals that he met their son as he 'knocked on his door.'

In other theatre news: Mill Mountain Theatre in Roanoke is currently performing "Big River," a musical take on Huck Finn's journey. My friend Chris Tilley from the Greensboro (NC) Playwrighters Forum is the musicl director of the show. Another Virginia theatre, Live Arts in Charlottesville is performing the Harold Pinter play "Old Times." And, lastly, here in this area, Triad Stage of Greensboro is producing a play called _appropriately enough_ "Tobbaco Road."

If anyone knows of any other plays between here and Juneau, Alaska, please let me know. I'll be happy to post a future entry about them.

Of course, by the time many of you read this, the Tony Awards will have been given out. I gather from what I read in "The New York Times" that the best dramatic actor category is being touted as the closest competition since Jason Robards Jr. acted on Broadway some 30-35 years ago.

Useful links:

http://www.theplanbtheatrecompany.org

http://therhino.org

http://www.millmountain.org

http://www.livearts.org

http://www.triadstage.org

 

More Movies-Anthony Mann's Western "The Naked Spur"

Whew! It sure is hot as %$&# here on the NC side of the NC-Va. border. There are literally 35 things I want to blog about but since I'm baking faster than a lobster in a pot, I'll stick with my favorite subject_ the cinema.

In the summer of 2002, I began to take film studies classes at Hollins University in my hometown of Roanoke, Va. One of the classes I was in was a Study of the Western Genre. It was taught by renown westerns expert Ed Buscombe from the UK, who has worked with the British Film Institute and has recently published a new book about 'the greatest westerns of all time.'

Anthony Mann is one of Buscombe's favorite film directors. Mann was a man of many genres, but he is most regarded as being a director of westerns. His credits include the classic films, "Winchester '73," "Bend of the River" and "The Man from Laramie."

But, my personal favorite Mann western is  the 1953 film "The Naked Spur," which also stars Janet Leigh**. The film also features Robert Ryan as a bounty-hunter.It was released on dvd last year.

In the July/August 2006 issue of "Film Comment," Kent Jones cited "The Naked Spur" as his 'vintage pick' choice. The film was yet another collaboration between Mann and Jimmy Stewart, who showcased his dark side in many of Mann's film (Stewart was also working on his Hitchcock collaborations_ "Rear Window" and "Vertigo" in the mid-50s)

Jones said the following about Stewart's performance: "Stewart's hair-raising struggle to contain his own lust for vengance is directly keyed to a perilious trek up, down, and around the rocky terrain- every twist and turn adds to another knot to his character's already taut and frayed psyche."

Jones goes on to call "The Naked Spur" an amazing film experience in which the California and Colorado landscape adds to the emotional terrain that each character faces in this magnificent gem.

"The Naked Spur" also appears on TCM from time-to-time. There was also a more recent profile of Mann in the current issue of "Film Comment." Mann's last film was the epic "El Cid" (1961) with Charlton Heston and Sophia Loren.

http://www.filmlinc.com

** Upon entering this entry earlier, I stated that "The Naked Spur" was Janet Leigh's debut. But, that distinction belongs to "The Romance of Rosy Ridge" (1947). Fortunately, I looked Leigh's filmography up in Epharim Katz's "Film Encyclopedia" before any of my loyal readers caught it.........!

Back to Movies- Albert Brooks' "Modern Romance"

Wow, it appears that my ratings are actually lower than the last CMT broadcast of the Miss America Pageant! Perhaps, I will get more hits by coming back to film_ which is my suppose topic of expertise.

I saw the new film "Knocked Up" yesterday, and I found it a tad bit disappointing.

All of this reminded me of a nobler film about modern romance, and that film is "Modern Romance," Albert Brooks' vintage 1981 comedy about a neurotic b-movie editor who tries to maintain an off-again, on-again relationship with his beloved Mary (Kathryn Harrold).

The film was released by Sony on dvd last year, and it was the May/June 2006 "Film Comment" recommendation by the magazine's editor Gavin Smith.

In his comments, Smith said: "It's hard to imagine a more quietly terrifying comedy about relationships, or a less romantic one- no wonder (Stanley) Kubrick was such an ardent fan."

I saw this film a few years ago on cable, and I think it is perhaps the funniest film that Brooks wrote and directed with "Lost in America" (1985) being a close second.

Alas, Brooks' most recent effort is the flat, boring film "Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World" which does for some odd reason have a few admirers.

Nevertheless, one can see Brooks at his best here. He also stars in the film.

Well, worth a look..............Judd Apatow, the director of "Knocked Up" may want to take note.....

Film Comment's web site:

http://www.filmlinc.com