by John Walters
Tweet Me Right
She said…
And then this from her husband…
How are these two still married? Or are they just playing all of us?
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Also, apropos of nothing above or below but something to consider this weekend as the NFL playoffs and CFB championship game come your way: Heisman Trophy winner Joe Burrow is one month older than putative NFL MVP Lamar Jackson.
Starting Five
Bully, Pulpit
We’ll just let Paul Krugman of The New York Times do the talking this morning. His assessment of Trump and the current situation is spot-on.
Two of the essay’s better moments:
From his first days in office, Trump has acted on the apparent belief that he could easily intimidate foreign governments — that they would quickly fold and allow themselves to be humiliated. That is, he imagined that he faced a world of Lindsey Grahams, willing to abandon all dignity at the first hint of a challenge.
And…
“… like all too many Americans, Trump has a hard time grasping the fact that other countries are real — that is, that we’re not the only country whose citizens would rather pay a heavy price, in money and even in blood, than make what they see as humiliating concessions.”
Model U.N.
According to actual reputable news sites, Australian Instagram model Kaylen Ward (above; why else would we have a photo of this woman here?) raised $700,000 for Australia relief efforts by posing nude and sending the pics to donors. Somewhere in this tale there’s a “bush fire” joke that we’re too classy to make.
We’re not sure if this is true—how much money she raised or if there are nude pics. But if so, you’re on the clock, Elle Macpherson.
The Jokic
Denver center/power forward/point guard Nikola Jokic’s line last night: 47 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists and zero turnovers. The seven-footer has the Nuggets with the second-best record in the West, fourth overall in the NBA, and here comes ESPN with another four hours of uninterrupted coverage of the Los Angeles Lakers.
Hey, wanna see an entertaining and competitive All-Star Game? USA versus the World. Here’s your starting five’s:
USA: LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Kawhi Leonard, James Harden, Trae Young
World: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic, Nikola Jokic, Pascal Siakam, Ricky Rubio
Snowballers*
*The judges will also accept “Milwaukee Buckshot” or even “A Song of Ice and Fire”
A passing motorist in Milwaukee did not take kindly to tweens tossing snowballs at his car Saturday night. So what did he do? He fired back…with a gun. Two snowball tossers were shot, one a boy (hit once) and the other a girl (hit twice). The pair suffered non life-threatening injuries and are expecting to return to sleigh riding and perhaps even making snow men once they recover.
The shooter got away and no one seems to have a good description of him, though he probably rants on Twitter a lot.
Five Films: 1988
- Who Framed Roger Rabbit? Is there a film character with whom I identify more than RR? Probably not. “Shave and a haircut…” What a smart and inspired film with no shortage of gags based on the premise that ‘toons are people, too. I’m not bad, I’m just built that way. Love it. 2. Midnight Run: Charles Grodin and Bob DeNiro in a sly, understated road trip. There should be an ’80s/’90s road trip film festival pairing this alongside The Sure Thing and Thelma and Louise. If you ever saw Grodin’s appearances on Letterman in the late ’80s and early ’90s you know that he’s basically playing his own annoying self, but who cares? 3. Die Hard: We’re not into action-adventure films with lots of shooting, but this has just the right amount of humor, a wise-cracking underdog hero and a perfect villain. If the idea behind any good movie is “Save The Cat,” this film takes it straight to the core and is set basically in Century City, home of Creative Artists Agency. There’s something very meta about all of it. 4. Rain Man: In the immortal words of Robert Downey, Jr., never go “full retard.” Come to think of it, this belongs in that aforementioned ’80s road trip film festival 5. Bull Durham: We never liked it as much as the other cool kids who love sports films (call us sappy but we prefer Field Of Dreams), but there’s a lot of good moments here, including the “lollygaggers” scene.
Worth Noting: Cinema Paradiso, Big, Coming To America, The Naked Gun, Beetlejuice, Working Girl, The Vanishing
Haven’t Seen But Would Be Willing: Dangerous Liaisons
I remember fondly as a kid enjoying Who Framed Roger Rabbit?
Not a movie buff, but I’m surprised it was made before 1990. The animation-aspect of the film isn’t that bad. I’m somewhat surprised a remake hasn’t been made with the new state of art technology circulating the industry now.
Cinema Paradiso may be my favorite movie.
It’s a great one. Haven’t seen it in forever. I remember the end making it a little dusty.
During the 15 year period between marriages it seemed Cinema Paradiso for me was a key variable in the compatibility equation. There were 3 partners, one is my wife, who loved the movie and there were wonderful relationships. Others were luke warm or hated it and were dates. I didn’t realize the connection until a recent viewing. As one reaches the point in life where reflection has distance from events it is easier to see the connections even if the why’s are cloudy.