A Brief History On December 14, 2017, we would like to take a moment to discuss the new feature film, The Shape of Water, a science fiction Cold War based movie that is hard to fit into a particular movie genre. Featuring spies, mad scientists, cold blooded bureaucrats, artists and other sensitive people, race and class struggle, and of course, love, and the lack of love. Oh, and it also features a Creature From the Black Lagoon type character as well! Digging Deeper Guillermo del Toro, horror and sci-fi maven, wrote and directed the film, and his vision for this movie…
Read More
A Brief History On December 15, 2017, the blockbuster major motion picture, Star Wars: The Last Jedi (also known as Star Wars: Episode VIII) will premier across the United States, having already premiered in the Los Angeles area on December 9th. We watched a press screening of the film on December 11, 2017 and were quite happy with the latest installment of the Star Wars saga. Digging Deeper Set after 2015’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi features familiar characters Princess Leia (in Carrie Fisher’s last movie role), Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill as an old, retired recluse), Chewbacca…
A Brief History On December 13, 2017, our Jewish friends celebrate the Festival of Lights and the Feast of Dedication, known better as Hanukkah. Right off the bat, the confusion starts with the spelling of “Hanukkah!” You may find this word spelled several different ways, so just pick the one you like. No matter how you spell it, Hanukkah adds up to 8 Crazy Nights! Digging Deeper Celebrated to commemorate the founding of the Second Temple, Hanukkah rites center around an 8 candle candelabrum called a menorah, with a ninth candle holder holding a candle called a Shamash, usually in…
A Brief History On December 12, 1862, the United States ship, USS Cairo, an iron-clad gunboat of the City-class, was sunk in the Yazoo River by a remotely detonated Confederate “torpedo,” what naval mines were called back then. The Cairo became the first ship ever sunk by a remote control mine. (The Cairo was named after the city of Cairo, Illinois.) Digging Deeper Commissioned on January 25, 1862, Cairo was at first an Army gunboat, 175 feet long and 51 feet wide, protected by 2 ½ inches of plate armor, with a maximum thickness of 3 ½ inches of railway…
A Brief History On December 11, 2005, racial tensions exploded into violence in the Sidney suburb of Cronulla, New South Wales, Australia, with rioting by White Australians against anyone they perceived to be of Lebanese descent. The riots lasted a few days, and spread to surrounding suburbs. Digging Deeper Australia, not unlike the United States, was originally settled by the people known today as Aborigines. When British explorers (17th Century) and colonists (18th Century) settled the giant island continent, the indigenous people declined from as many as a million people to a fraction of their previous numbers, mostly due to…