Remembering: Big Fish
Feb 07, 2013
Written by
Live Music Head
Remembering: Big Fish
American fantasy-adventure directed by Tim Burton
Starring Ewan McGregor, Albert Finney, Billy Crudup,
Jessica Lange and Loudon Wainwright III
Released December 10, 2003
by Lisa McDonald
Live Music Head
It’s a story about a storyteller.
It’s a story about the importance of telling stories.
From the imagination of Tim Burton, it’s also a heartwarming story about a father and a son.
Albert Finney is absolutely adorable as Edward Bloom, the flamboyant travelling salesman who tells incredibly outrageous tales to anyone who will listen, much to the embarrassment of his son Will (Billy Crudup). Will grows up to be a storyteller himself, albeit a journalist more interested in truth. Jessica Lange plays the love of Bloom’s life and Will’s mother, and with such a lovely presence in the film, Lange brought more than a few tears to my eye. Circus life is also depicted in the film, with oh-so many colourful characters, such as Danny DeVito as the ringmaster; a ringmaster who Bloom would have you believe also turns into a wolf.
Set in Alabama, this really is an enjoyable story of tall tales; a film I may never have got round to watching if not for the cameo appearance by singer-songwriter Loudon Wainwright III. I seek out anything and everything ol' Loudo's involved in. And in this film, Wainwright plays Beamen, the barefoot Mayor of Spectre. And he’s a might bit creepy at it too, what with that big toothy grin he wears while leading his flock of perfectly behaved little towns folk in a hoe-down of ring-around-the-rosy. Steve Buscemi plays his poet pal Winslow. And with the banjo player sitting on a porch rocking chair, plucking, brings both Deliverance and The Stepford Wives to mind.
The trailer for Big Fish...
American fantasy-adventure directed by Tim Burton
Starring Ewan McGregor, Albert Finney, Billy Crudup,
Jessica Lange and Loudon Wainwright III
Released December 10, 2003
by Lisa McDonald
Live Music Head
It’s a story about a storyteller.
It’s a story about the importance of telling stories.
From the imagination of Tim Burton, it’s also a heartwarming story about a father and a son.
Albert Finney is absolutely adorable as Edward Bloom, the flamboyant travelling salesman who tells incredibly outrageous tales to anyone who will listen, much to the embarrassment of his son Will (Billy Crudup). Will grows up to be a storyteller himself, albeit a journalist more interested in truth. Jessica Lange plays the love of Bloom’s life and Will’s mother, and with such a lovely presence in the film, Lange brought more than a few tears to my eye. Circus life is also depicted in the film, with oh-so many colourful characters, such as Danny DeVito as the ringmaster; a ringmaster who Bloom would have you believe also turns into a wolf.
Set in Alabama, this really is an enjoyable story of tall tales; a film I may never have got round to watching if not for the cameo appearance by singer-songwriter Loudon Wainwright III. I seek out anything and everything ol' Loudo's involved in. And in this film, Wainwright plays Beamen, the barefoot Mayor of Spectre. And he’s a might bit creepy at it too, what with that big toothy grin he wears while leading his flock of perfectly behaved little towns folk in a hoe-down of ring-around-the-rosy. Steve Buscemi plays his poet pal Winslow. And with the banjo player sitting on a porch rocking chair, plucking, brings both Deliverance and The Stepford Wives to mind.
The trailer for Big Fish...
Remembering: Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore
Feb 05, 2013
Written by
Live Music Head
Remembering: Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore
American drama directed by Martin Scorsese
Starring Ellen Burstyn, Alfred Lutter
Kris Kristofferson, Harvey Keitel and Jodie Foster
Released December 9, 1974
by Lisa McDonald
Live Music Head
American drama directed by Martin Scorsese
Starring Ellen Burstyn, Alfred Lutter
Kris Kristofferson, Harvey Keitel and Jodie Foster
Released December 9, 1974
by Lisa McDonald
Live Music Head
Remembering: Scarface
Jan 23, 2013
Written by
Live Music Head
Remembering: Scarface
American crime drama directed by Brian De Palma
Starring Al Pacino, Michelle Pfeiffer,
Steven Bauer, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio
Released December 9, 1983
by Lisa McDonald
Live Music Head
American crime drama directed by Brian De Palma
Starring Al Pacino, Michelle Pfeiffer,
Steven Bauer, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio
Released December 9, 1983
by Lisa McDonald
Live Music Head
Remembering: Shadows and Fog
Jan 22, 2013
Written by
Live Music Head
Remembering: Shadows and Fog
American comedy directed by Woody Allen
Starring Woody Allen, Mia Farrow,
John Malkovich, and Julie Kavner
Released on December 5, 1991
by Lisa McDonald
Live Music Head
American comedy directed by Woody Allen
Starring Woody Allen, Mia Farrow,
John Malkovich, and Julie Kavner
Released on December 5, 1991
by Lisa McDonald
Live Music Head
Remembering: Frances
Jan 22, 2013
Written by
Live Music Head
Remembering: Frances
American drama based on the life of movie actress Frances Farmer
Directed by Graeme Clifford
Starring Jessica Lange and Sam Shepard
Released on December 3, 1982
by Lisa McDonald
Live Music Head
American drama based on the life of movie actress Frances Farmer
Directed by Graeme Clifford
Starring Jessica Lange and Sam Shepard
Released on December 3, 1982
by Lisa McDonald
Live Music Head
Remembering: Network
Jan 21, 2013
Written by
Live Music Head
Remembering: Network
American satirical film directed by Sidney Lumet
Starring Peter Finch, Faye Dunaway,
William Holden and Robert Duvall
Released November 27, 1976
by Lisa McDonald
Live Music Head
American satirical film directed by Sidney Lumet
Starring Peter Finch, Faye Dunaway,
William Holden and Robert Duvall
Released November 27, 1976
by Lisa McDonald
Live Music Head
IF I HAD A VOTE IN THE 2015 BASEBALL HALL OF FAME ELECTION
Dec 28, 2014
Written by
Darryl Tahirali
Ten years. That is the new maximum length of time a player can remain on the Baseball Hall of Fame ballot, effective for the current (2015) ballot and for future ballots, a one-third reduction in eligibility length from the previous maximum of 15 years.
Oh, sure, there were other changes announced by the Hall on July 26 of this year: The voting members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA), those who are actually eligible to vote for the candidates on the ballot, must complete a registration form and sign a code of conduct before they can receive a ballot, with the code of conduct stating explicitly that the member will not transfer the ballot to another person or entity, and with the penalty for doing so being a lifetime ban from voting on a Hall of Fame ballot.
Oh, sure, there were other changes announced by the Hall on July 26 of this year: The voting members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA), those who are actually eligible to vote for the candidates on the ballot, must complete a registration form and sign a code of conduct before they can receive a ballot, with the code of conduct stating explicitly that the member will not transfer the ballot to another person or entity, and with the penalty for doing so being a lifetime ban from voting on a Hall of Fame ballot.
BASEBALL HALL OF FAME: UPCOMING BORDERLINE CANDIDATES, PART 1
Dec 18, 2014
Written by
Darryl Tahirali
You know how hard it is to get into the Baseball Hall of Fame? In 2013, with a ballot brimming with qualified candidates, not one player received the 75 percent of the votes needed for admission. (I identified 14 likely Hall of Famers on the 2013 ballot.)
Granted, 2013 was the first year of eligibility for Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens, both poster boys for performance-enhancing drugs (PED), bringing to a head the contentious debate about "cheaters" and their admission into the Hall. But there were certainly several "clean" players on that ballot, and a few of those, such as 3000-hit-club member Craig Biggio, would have been uncontroversial picks in any previous year.
And although 2014 saw the election of three players—Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux, and Frank Thomas—it was merely the tip of a talent-heavy iceberg (I identified 18 likely Hall of Famers for that ballot), while providing a burn to Biggio yet again as not only did he miss election by one vote (he garnered 74.8 percent of the vote), but three first-time candidates leapfrogged him into Cooperstown.
Granted, 2013 was the first year of eligibility for Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens, both poster boys for performance-enhancing drugs (PED), bringing to a head the contentious debate about "cheaters" and their admission into the Hall. But there were certainly several "clean" players on that ballot, and a few of those, such as 3000-hit-club member Craig Biggio, would have been uncontroversial picks in any previous year.
And although 2014 saw the election of three players—Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux, and Frank Thomas—it was merely the tip of a talent-heavy iceberg (I identified 18 likely Hall of Famers for that ballot), while providing a burn to Biggio yet again as not only did he miss election by one vote (he garnered 74.8 percent of the vote), but three first-time candidates leapfrogged him into Cooperstown.
- Carlos Delgado
- Nomar Garciaparra
- Gary Sheffield
- garret anderson
- Jim Edmonds
- Trevor Hoffman
- Billy Wagner
- Vladimir Guerrero
- Magglio Ordonez
- Edgar Renteria
- Jorge Posada
- Johnny Damon
- Scott Rolen
- Andruw Jones
- Jamie Moyer
- Omar Vizquel
- lance berkman
- todd helton
- roy oswalt
- andy pettitte
- michael young
- 2017 baseball hall of fame
- 2018 baseball hall of fame
- 2015 baseball hall of fame
- 2016 baseball hall of fame
- 2019 baseball hall of fame
BASEBALL'S 2015 GOLDEN ERA COMMITTEE BALLOT: ARE THERE ANY HALL OF FAME PLAYERS LEFT?
Nov 30, 2014
Written by
Darryl Tahirali
F. Scott Fitzgerald may have said that American lives had no second acts, but some former baseball players can get a second chance: Even if a player finds no success for the Baseball Hall of Fame on the ballot voted on by the members of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA), he may get a second look from the Veterans Committee to see if he had been unfairly passed over previously. But do any of the candidates on this year's ballot deserve that second chance?
(And if the reference to novelist Fitzgerald sounds like irrelevant pretense, recall that in The Great Gatsby he alluded to the gambler who put in the fix for the 1919 World Series and thus destroyed "the faith of fifty million people," while that phrase became the title of the third "inning," or episode, of Ken Burns's celebrated documentary series Baseball.)
(And if the reference to novelist Fitzgerald sounds like irrelevant pretense, recall that in The Great Gatsby he alluded to the gambler who put in the fix for the 1919 World Series and thus destroyed "the faith of fifty million people," while that phrase became the title of the third "inning," or episode, of Ken Burns's celebrated documentary series Baseball.)
IF I HAD A BALLOT FOR THE 2015 ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME NOMINATIONS
Nov 04, 2014
Written by
Darryl Tahirali
In the words of Baseball Hall of Fame catcher Yogi Berra, it's déjà vu all over again because it seems as if I was doing this exercise only a year ago. That exercise is evaluating the fifteen nominees for the 2015 class of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced on October 9, 2014. (And just to clarify, the inductees will be announced later in 2014 for the induction ceremony in Cleveland, Ohio, on April 18, 2015.)
As I did for the 2013 ballot and again for the 2014 ballot, I profile these fifteen nominees and indicate whether I think the Hall voters will vote for them, and whether I would vote for them were I issued that precious ballot as a voting member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
As I did for the 2013 ballot and again for the 2014 ballot, I profile these fifteen nominees and indicate whether I think the Hall voters will vote for them, and whether I would vote for them were I issued that precious ballot as a voting member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.