Pattie Boyd and Rod Weston; and Jane Asher and Gerald Scarfe attend the launch of Louise Fennell's debut novel "Dead Rich" at White Cube on February 8, 2012 in London, England. (Photos by Dave M. Benett/Getty Images).

felt like trying to give her more fitting outfits for the late 00s/early 2010s

Patti Smith visiting Sylvia Plath's grave in Hepstonstall, West Yorkshire — 2012

Lecture 16: PUNK!: Although it’s not as relevant to this particular lecture as some of the other clips I’m posting for the lecture on Punk, this 2012 interview with singer, poet and author Patti Smith – nicknamed the “Godmother of Punk” – is so inspiring that I just had to include it here. Smith is brilliant at everything she does: poetry, singing, prose, spoken word, and she shines in this clip about the challenges and joys of being an artist in our modern age. Smith’s message is always positive, hopeful and brimming with humanity. Also, if you get a chance, please check out her magnificent books, including Just Kids, M Train, Year of the Monkey and Devotion. They’re all modern classics. They’re available through Words Worth Books in Waterloo and other fine booksellers. 

Niche Girl Movies

Buffalo ‘66 (1998) - dir. Vincent Gallo

The Love Witch (2006) - dir. Anna Biller

Belle De Jour (1967) - dir. Luis Buñuel

Valerie and Her Week of Wonders (1970) - dir. Jaromil Jireš

How To Marry A Millionaire (1953) - dir. Jean Negulesco

Gia (1998) - dir. Michael Cristofer

Pretty Baby (1978) - dir. Louis Malle

Monster (2003) - dir. Patty Jenkins

The Virgin Suicides (1999) - dir. Sofia Coppola

Pearl (2022) - dir. Ti West

Lolita (1997) - dir. Adrian Lyne

Girl, Interrupted (1999) - dir. James Mangold

The Lure (2015) - dir. Agnieszka Smoczynska

All About Eve (1950) - dir. Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Silver Linings Playbook (2012) dir. David O. Russell

But I'm a Cheerleader (1999) - dir. Jamie Babbit

The Craft (1996) - dir. Andrew Fleming

The Cory Doctorow Humble Bundle

I'm on tour with my new, nationally bestselling novel The Bezzle! Catch me in TUCSON (Mar 9-10), then San Francisco (Mar 13), Anaheim, and more!

It's been 21 years and 29 days since Tor Books published my first novel, Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom. In the years since, Tor has published every one of my novels, sending me around the USA and Canada to talk about them. Now, they've teamed up with Humble Bundle to sell 18 of my ebooks on a name-your-price basis, with part of the proceeds going to benefit EFF:

https://www.humblebundle.com/books/cory-doctorow-novel-collection-tor-books-books

I've been associated with EFF even longer than I've been published by Tor! My first novel came out while I was working EFF's first-ever booth at CES. I split my time between the booth and my motel room, where I paid $0.25/call to dial up to Earthlink's local number and manage the launch-day publicity. Over the years, I've benefited immensely from Tor's editorial and publicity departments, working with brilliant publishing people like Patrick Nielsen Hayden, Patty Garcia, Dot Lin, Laura Etzkorn, Elena Stokes, Sarah Reidy, Lucille Rettino, and of course, Tor founder Tom Doherty.

But I like to think that it was a two-way street. Tor and I have come a long way together on ebooks: most visibly, they allowed me to publish several novels under Creative Commons licenses (my first book was the first ever CC book, coming out just weeks after the licenses themselves launched). As my editor Patrick Nielsen Hayden said at the time, "Ebooks have the worst hours-in-meeting-to-dollars-in-revenue ratio of anything in my publishing career. Why not?"

https://craphound.com/down/download/

Just as important – but less visible – was Tor's willingness to let me insist that all my books be published without DRM, meaning that anything you buy on say, Amazon, can be moved to any reader program if you decide to start getting your ebooks elsewhere. This worked so well that in 2012, Tor became the first major publisher in the world to ban DRM on all its ebooks, flying me, John Scalzi and Charlie Stross to New York City to announce it this at a big, splashy event at Book Expo America:

https://web.archive.org/web/20130512022634/https://tor.com/blogs/2012/06/tor-books-announces-e-book-store-doctorow-scalzi-a-stross-talk-drm-free

Tor's unique status as the sole major DRM-free publisher in the world was well timed! That same year, I curated the very first Humble Ebook Bundle, which was very top-heavy with Tor titles, and raised more than $1,000,000 for the writers, publishers and charities associated with it:

https://web.archive.org/web/20121017215636/http://www.humblebundle.com/

That opened the floodgates to a series of Humble Bundles, tempting other major publishers to dabble with DRM-free, including Simon and Schuster:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-I5QyAfglU

And Harpercollins:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHMLfeCrCrE

Now, 12 years after that inaugural Humble Ebook Bundle, I find myself honored by being the subject of a bundle of my own (it helps that I've written a hell of a lot of books in the intervening years). Included in the bundle are (nearly) all of my Tor novels and novellas: The Lost Cause; "The Canadian Miracle" (a Lost Cause story); Red Team Blues; Radicalized; Walkaway; "Party Discipline" (a Walkaway story); Pirate Cinema; Rapture of the Nerds (with Charlie Stross); For The Win; Makers; Someone Comes to Town, Someone Leaves Town; Eastern Standard Tribe, Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom, Little Brother, Homeland, Attack Surface, and "Lawful Interception" (a Little Brother story).

(The sole exclusion is The Bezzle, which came out two weeks ago and is already a USA Today national bestseller!)

https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250865878/thebezzle

Also included in the bundle is Poesy the Monster Slayer, my 2020 picture book for the littlies:

https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781626723627/poesythemonsterslayer

All these books are delivered as DRM-free epub files. The Bundle runs for the next three weeks, and the minimum buy-in is $18 – that's just $1/book (full retail value is $187). Of course, you can name a higher price, and, as with all Humble Bundles, you can adjust the final split to share out the money between me, EFF, and the Humble folks.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/03/03/humbly-bundled/#eff-too

Trading Site Reopening and Gifting Spree!

So. After weeks of work (*insert alpaca scream here*), my trading site is open for trading! To celebrate, I decided to gift a few audios and videos from Phantom of the Opera, a few audios from Les Misérables, two cast recordings from Elisabeth das Musical, and a cast recording for Sweeney Todd. Enjoy!

(If you're the master of a listed audio/video, please don't hesitate to reach out to me if you want me to remove your stuff from the list.)

POTO audios

Michael Crawford, Rebecca Caine (alt.), Steve Barton October 10, 1987; London Michael Crawford and Steve Barton's last in London. Soundboard, very good quality, and this one is complete. And Rebecca Caine sounds amazing in it (as she always does). https://www.mediafire.com/file/pttrjfqzb84gatm/POTO_West_End_10-10-1987_-_Crawford%252C_Caine%252C_Barton.rar/file Steve Barton, Rebecca Luker, Gary Lindemenn (u/s),  Marilyn Caskey, Jeff Keller, George Lee Andrews, Leila Martin September 26, 1990; Broadway Soundboard audio. Because Steve Barton was almost as good of a Phantom as he was as Raoul, and Rebecca Luker is a legend (RIP). https://www.mediafire.com/file/xc9ywojtdesptje/POTO_Broadway_26-09-1990_-_Barton%252C_Luker%252C_Lindemenn.rar/file Davis Gaines, Tracy Shayne, Matthew R. Jones, George Lee Andrews, Jeff Keller, Lelia Martin October 5, 1996; Broadway Davis Gaines's last performance. Because Davis Gaines has one of the best voices I've heard in the role. https://www.mediafire.com/file/w1ybvl8v6e4ex6r/POTO_Broadway_05-01-1996_-_Gaines%252C_Shayne%252C_Little.rar/file Brad Little, Lisa Vroman, Tim Martin Gleason, Kim Stengel, DC Anderson, David Cryer, Patti  Davidson-Gorbea, Kate Wray, Jimmy Smagula December 5, 2003; Los Angeles Lisa Vroman’s second-to-last performance as Christine. Both she and Brad Little are glorious vocal-wise. https://www.mediafire.com/file/muavx4ocvs62eav/POTO_US_Tour_05-12-2003_-_Little%252C_Vroman%252C_Gleason.rar/file Anthony Warlow, Julie Goodwin, John Bowles, Andrea Creighton, John O'May, Derek Taylor, Jackie Rees, Nadia Komazec, David Rogers-Smith August 15, 2007; Melbourne Not the biggest fan of Anthony Warlow acting-wise, but he does not disappoint on the vocals - and neither does Julie Goodwin. https://www.mediafire.com/file/3pm0ksips30n3it/POTO_Melbourne_15-08-2007_-_Warlow%252C_Goodwin%252C_Bowles.rar/file John Owen-Jones, Katie Hall, Simon Bailey, Angela M. Caesar, Andy Hockley, Simon Green, Elizabeth Mars, Hannah Cadec, Vincent Pirillo September 29, 2012; Edinburgh Not the biggest fan of the restaged tour, but... Katie Hall's "Tears of HAAAAAATE" is pretty great. And John Owen-Jones! https://www.mediafire.com/file/00vtvziy172lpkv/POTO_UK_Tour_29-09-2012_-_Owen-Jones%252C_Hall%252C_Bailey.rar/file Hugh Panaro, Elizabeth Welch (u/s), Jeremy Hays March 3, 2014; Broadway Great trio overall, but Elizabeth Welch is a standout (to me at least). https://www.mediafire.com/file/1hc1ozi96vok5pd/POTO_Broadway_03-03-2014_-_Panaro%252C_Welch%252C_Hays.rar/file Dmitry Ermak, Tamara Kotova, Eugeny Zaytsev, Irina Samoylova, Alexei Bobrov, Yuri Mazihin, Elena Charkviani, Valeria Migalina, Rustim Bahtiyarov (u/s) July 16, 2015; Moscow A lovely production that I miss - Tamara Kotova in particular is great. https://www.mediafire.com/file/w56tx5d7fkh4kse/POTO_Moscow_16-07-2015_-_Ermak%252C_Kotova%252C_Zaytsev.rar/file John Owen-Jones, Celinde Schoenmaker, Nadim Naaman, Megan Llewellyn, Michael Matus, Christopher Dickens, Jacinta Mulcahy, Alicia Beck, John Ellis September 7, 2015; London First performance of the 2015-2016 cast. https://www.mediafire.com/file/5hswf44ldku6ngm/POTO_West_End_07-09-2015_-_Owen-Jones%252C_Schoenmaker%252C_Naaman.rar/file Peter Jöback, Emmi Christensson, Anton Zetterholm, Karolina Andresson, Glenn Kjellberg, Rolf Lydhal, Sanna Martin, Tehilla Blad, Sindre Postholm March 19, 2017; Stockholm Given Christine is from Sweden, it's only fair to include the recent Stockholm production. https://www.mediafire.com/file/zkl38t9388gcvh7/POTO_Sweden_2017-03-19_PJ_EC_AZ.wav/file Tim Howar, Amy Manford, Jeremy Taylor, Kimberly Blake, Ross Dawes, Alan Vicary, Jacinta Mulcahy, Georgia Ware, Paul Ettore Tabone September 7, 2019; London This one is different from the one listed as NFT (so don't get mad at me, haha). Last performance for Amy Manford in the West End production. https://www.mediafire.com/file/vf60ie1er18rkon/POTO_West_End_07-09-2019_-_Howar%252C_Manford%252C_Taylor.rar/file Ben Crawford, Meghan Picerno, John Riddle October 26, 2019 Because we all love a Christine with opera chops. https://www.mediafire.com/file/9gji0khgfoazjqd/POTO_Broadway_26-10-2019_-_Crawford%252C_Picerno%252C_Riddle.rar/file 

POTO videos

Earl Carpenter, Rachel Barrell, David Shannon, Wendy Ferguson, David Lawrence (u/s), Sam Hiller, Emily Harvey (u/s), Heidi Ann O'Brien, Rohan Tickell January 2006 VOB format.  If you want to see Earl in London right now but can't... this video is the best quality overall that features him, and Rachel Barrell is a fantastic Christine - one of my favorites in the role. https://mega.nz/folder/u09GQKyR#gjNHj4Letd9YInTsuLowjA Gary Mauer, Elizabeth Southard, Jim Weitzer, Kim Stengel, John Jellison, DC Anderson, Patti Davidson-Gorbea, Kate Wray, John Whitney April 6, 2006; Dallas VOB format.  For my Eristine moots (I see you!): Gary Mauer and Elizabeth Southard were (and as far as I know, still are) married while performing as the Phantom and Christine, and you thought Ramin and Sierra's chemistry was off the charts, think again. https://mega.nz/folder/PtExxS5A#D4yyf2g_lXoN-cIDPkMU2Q Anthony Crivello, Kristi Holden, Andrew Ragone, Geena Jeffries Mattox, John Leslie Wolfe, Lawson Skala, Tina Walsh, Brianne Kelly Morgan, Larry Wayne Morbitt August 8, 2008; Las Vegas VOB format. This is the Las Vegas Spectacular production, which is abriged compared to the original but totally worth seeing. If you want to understand why I love Meg Giry so much, Brianne Kelly Morgan is one of the best I've ever seen in the role. Also, if you’re meh about Raoul... with Andrew Ragone, think again. He’s one of the most Superman/Clark Kent Raouls I’ve seen. And I really like Kristi Holden’s Leroux-esque Christine too.  https://mega.nz/folder/Sh1zxSAB#twtXau8Y8pd_L9tMQLa4Mg Jeremy Stolle (u/s), Samantha Hill, Greg Mills (u/s), Michele McConnell, Tim Jerome, Richard Poole (u/s), Ellen Harvey, Kara Klein, Christian Sebek March 9, 2013 VOB format. Missing part of Act 1 (‘Stranger Than You Dreamt It’ to Il Muto), but otherwise complete. This is one of the best trios I've seen on Broadway, and Samantha Hill is just a fantastic Christine overall. https://mega.nz/folder/y1slyJRD#OP1Tp5Cj_fMk9LbAWJMqAA Tomas Ambt Kofod, Sibylle Glosted, Christian Lund, Louise Fribo, Carl Christian Rasmussen, Sebastian Harris, Elisabeth Halling, Imogen-Lilly Ash, Rasmus Jupin March 2019; Copenhagen VOB format. This one is more recent, but given it's been uploaded on YouTube, I guess it's fine to gift it (again, if you’re the master and you want me to remove this, please let me know).This one has one of the best casts ever caught on tape. Seriously. Everyone in this is a star. https://mega.nz/folder/q40hTagI#Zui14MWo-F2YSQ0gNdaL6Q



Les Mis Audios

Colm Wilkinson, Roger Allam, Patti LuPone, Alun Armstrong, Sue Jane Tanner, Michael Ball, Frances Ruffele, Rebecca Caine, David Burt 1985; London Preview at the Barbican Centre. This is interesting since it includes Cosette's song "I Saw Him Once", which has been cut later.  https://www.mediafire.com/file/jbedqiemuk9qnd1/Les_Mis_West_End_1985_-_Wilkinson%252C_Allam.rar/file Symphonic recording (1989)  Gary Morris, Philip Quast, Debra Byrne, Michael Ball, Tracy Shayne, Kaho Shimada, Anthony Warlow, Barry James, Gay Soper https://www.mediafire.com/file/n7gp30jcpnjfkf7/Les_Miserables_Symphonic_Recording.rar/file Kyle Jean-Baptiste (u/s), Earl Carpenter, Erika Henningsen, Chris McCarrell, Samantha Hill, Brennyn Lark, Max Quinlan (u/s), Gavin Lee, Rachel Izen August 13, 2015; Broadway For Kyle Jean-Baptiste, who was an amazing performer gone way too soon. RIP. https://www.mediafire.com/file/fzj2qubunkrrfhc/Les_Mis_Broadway_13-08-2015_-_Jean-Baptiste%252C_Carpenter.rar/file John Owen-Jones, Michael Ball, Carrie Hope Fletcher, Craig Mather (u/s), Lily Kerhoas, Shan Ako, Bradley Jaden, Matt Lucas, Katy Secombe, Earl Carpenter October 16, 2019; London All-star concert! https://www.mediafire.com/file/nh28zdry93vhry2/Les_Mis_London_Concert_16-10-2019_-_Owen-Jones%252C_Ball.rar/file

Elisabeth das Musical

Original Cast Recording (1992) Pia Douwes, Uwe Kroeger, Ethan Freeman, Andreas Bieber, Viktor Gernot, Else Ludwig https://www.mediafire.com/file/fagi9ctooeq2y11/Elisabeth-Original_German_Cast.rar/file Vienna revival cast recording (2006)  Maya Hakvoort, Mate Kamaras, Serkan Kaya, André Bauer, Fritz Schmid, Else Ludwig https://www.mediafire.com/file/7wpqbotp8oszzz3/Elisabeth_-_2006_Vienna_Cast.rar/file



Sweeney Todd

2000 Concert Cast Recording George Hearn, Patti LuPone, Davis Gaines, Heidi Grant Murphy, Paul Plishka, Audra McDonald, Standford Olsen, Neil Patrick Harris, John Aler Pretty sure this isn't on Spotify, which is a real shame given its cast. So enjoy! EDIT: Someone pointed out to me that the recording is incomplete - probably a result of the Great Hardware Crash of 2016, so until I get the full version, this will probably stay incomplete. Sorry about that! https://www.mediafire.com/file/ywoiqe5bnlzr7bs/Sweeney_Todd_2000_New_York_Concert_Cast.rar/file

The hills, 2012 - by Patty Maher (1964), Canadian

The former Yale student who was acquitted of rape in 2018 — but later ousted from the Ivy League institution — can sue his accuser for defamation over statements she made during a school hearing, the Connecticut Supreme Court ruled this summer.

Saifullah Khan, 30, has had a $110 million defamation lawsuit pending against the Ivy League institution since 2019. Khan has been fighting to bring his accuser, a fellow student, into the suit over a 2018 university hearing that eventually resulted in his expulsion.

Connecticut’s high court granted Khan’s request in June. The court ruled that the accuser shouldn’t receive “qualified immunity” from her school testimony that Khan raped her following a Halloween party in 2015.

Qualified immunity protects people from being sued for statements they make in judicial cases or “quasi judicial” cases. But the high court said the university hearing wasn’t a stand-in court proceeding, since Khan wasn’t given the opportunity to cross-examine the accuser.

“For absolute immunity to apply under Connecticut law,” the June decision says, “fundamental fairness requires meaningful cross-examination in proceedings like the one at issue.”

During the hearing, Khan’s team listened to the woman’s testimony from a separate room and never got the opportunity to question her. The court ruling said this left his defense attorney to act as a “potted plant.”

The court also said the Yale hearing couldn’t be considered quasi-judicial because it didn’t make the woman testify under oath and didn’t provide Khan’s side with a transcript of the testimony.

Khan, a native of Afghanistan, started attending the school on a full scholarship in 2012 and majored in neuroscience.

His education was completely derailed after the rape allegations in which the 21-year-old acquaintance claimed that he took advantage of her when she was extremely drunk following an off-campus Halloween costume party.

At trial, Khan’s lawyers argued the encounter was consensual.

Khan was suspended from classes amid the allegations and then returned to school after his 2018 acquittal — despite widespread opposition to his return, including a petition with 78,000 signatures.

He was ultimately kicked out of the school in 2019.

Khan’s lawyer Norm Pattis said: “We are delighted and look forward to trial.”

The accuser’s lawyers didn’t immediately return a request for comment Sunday.

"Never to Be" Part 2

images are not mine (Also,I know I suck at this, so bare with me)

Pairings: Dean Winchester x Reader(unrequited), Reader X ???

Summary: Dean left you for Lisa and Ben after Sam fell into the pit, told you to never contact him again, among other cruel remarks on his part. Years later you moved on, starting your own life and finally meeting a man who truly loves and cares for you. What happens when your past comes back to invade your present and tries to jeopardize your future.

warnings: fluff, angst, meeting a cute stranger, rude customer. a little boring.😅

2012, April 2nd… Two years later

“Hey, order up!” One of the cooks of the café you worked called and you came rolling to grab the food and thanked him. With grace and speed, you dashed to your table with the cute couple were sitting at. 

“Here you go! One New York melt patty and a Philly cheesesteak with onion rings!” You chirped as you placed the food on the table. The couple thanked you for bringing their order and walked back behind the counter. Soon, your coworker and roommate comes back from her table that had just left and placed her tips back into her apron pocket. “Hey, Babes! How was your last table?”

“The jerk kept on flirting with me in front of his wife, but he gave me a good tip as least.” She said as she patted her side where she kept all of her tips.

“At least there’s that.” You shrugged off as you looked over you notebook. Your roommate, katie, turn to leave and hop out of the kitchen. 

It had been almost two years since Dean made you leave Kansas and head for the east coast. You kept on going until you got to the largest city in America.

 New York City. 

When you first set foot in this viscous concrete jungle, you had not idea about what you were going to do. You took on a few hunts here or there, hoping it would make you feel a little better. Unfortunately, without money, you had to resort to sleeping outside of what is now yours and Katie’s apartment building. She found you on the side of the road freezing to death in the middle of winter and offered you to staying her apartment. She then later told you about a job opening at the Big Apple Café you both now work at now. She said you could pay rent and work together.

    That was around eighteen months ago, now you were starting course sat the community college to start a career in nursing. While you may not be much of a hunter now adays, you kept going to the gun range on your days off and shoot to keep your gun skills in check. Not to mention staying in shape and keeping your hand-to-hand combat skills at a high level. There was no way you were going to be a defenseless with what you know what’s out there. To protect you and Katie from monsters, you placed protection charms around the apartment with invisible paint. Despite Dean Winchester cutting all ties with you, the monsters would still know who you are. Taking precautions seemed like a safe bet and Katie would be less likely to ask questions.

 As you looked through your notes, another waitress comes in the kitchen. You turned to the red- headed woman as she looked at you.

“(Name), you have a new table. He’s outside at table 12, and just so you know…He’s a real looker.” she cooed teasingly at you and rubbed your shoulder as you shrugged her off while rolling your eyes. 

“Alright, I’ll be out there.” You replied as you walk past her and out to the front of the café and looked to find a man with sandy blonde hair with a brown leather jacket. I looked like the man was looking down at the table. He then suddenly looked up and then back down again. Feeling curious, you walked up behind and then took a peek at what the man was doing. He was drawing from a view perspective picture of the building, and it was good. Whoever this man was, he had some real talent. Wanting to introduce yourself, you cleared your throat and then the man looked up at you. 

“Hi, sorry to disturb you, sir. I know you must be busy.” You said in a sweet and gentle voice as he looked up at you. 

“No, it’s okay. I was bored and wanted to do some sketching, doll. I didn’t mean to be so spaced out.” He said in a deep, smooth voice that would make any girl’s knees shake. When your coworker told you the new customer was a looker, she was most certainly not egging on. This man was gorgeous beyond belief. Clear, fair skin that would make a supermodel sneer in envy. baby blue eyes that light a like a light house. Soft, thick blonde hair that was slicked back in an old-fashioned style that he seemed way too young for. Broad shoulders that was being hidden underneath his leather jacket. There was also that smile. That gorgeous pearly white smile that was hidden behind pink plump lips.  And the way he called you doll was just icing on top of the cake. If all angels had a natural human form, this adonis would be it. You stood there in silence for almost a minute when the said man lifted his hand and patted you on the shoulder, trying to get you attention. “Miss, are you okay?” He asked you again with a soft voice, making you shut out of your trance. 

“Yes, I’m fine. I was just looking at your drawings, they’re very good.” You said trying not to sound awkward and that weren’t gawking at him like some prepubescent girl in high school. Never in your life you had felt so embarrassed.

“Oh thanks. They are just doodles. I was just passing time and needed some fresh air, you know. Drawing and painting had been one the best things for me to just express myself.” He admitted with boyish charm that made your knees want to give out just hearing him speak. 

‘Oh, God! (Name)! keep your head together! He’s not that cute! Remember the last time you fell for a man like this? He broke your heart in two and forced you to leave everything you knew behind! You will not do this to yourself again, so be professional!’

It’s true. After Dean had abandoned you, never had you looked at another man. Hence forward, you had backed off from dating anyone with the fear of your heart breaking again. You never realized how much influence Dean’s words and actions had you after coming to New York and starting a new life. Multiple men had given you not only large tips but also their phone numbers as well. Katie, being the pushy but caring friend that she is, tried to get you to go out with a few of the guys that had given you their numbers. Unfortunately, she was not super successful at trying to get you to go out with anyone. You heart was still hurting, and you believed it would forever remain that way.

“Yeah, I hear ya. I do a little drawing myself sometimes, but there not that good.” You said thinking back to the times that you kept a sketch diary and Sam had made compliments on how good of an artist you were. You remember as a child you used to make drawings for everyone. Your parents, Sam, Castiel, Bobby, Rufus, Jo and even John, Dean and Sam’s father. You drew him a picture of the Impala one time and was very impressed on how you talented you were. After he died, you found out he kept it in his journal. You ounce made one for Dean, a very special one of him and the rest of his family from a photo he had from when he was four years old. At first, you thought Dean would be happy about it, but instead he was livid at you for touching his stuff and took the drawing and crumbled it all up in front of you. You cried the whole night in your room and never told anyone what had happened. After that, you never draw anything for him again.

“Well, I beg to differ, doll. Sometimes I don’t think my drawings are that good, but people still like them anyway.” The blonde-haired man said and stuck his hand out to you. “Names Steve Rogers, doll face.” He greeted and you took his large hand into yours and shook it.

“(Full name), it’s nice to meet you.” You as you let go of the man’s hand and he smiled showing off his perfect smile.

“(Name), what a pretty name.” He said before a man called to you from behind.

“Hey, toots! Stop flirting with pretty boy there, get me some more coffee!” the customer in the Yankee ball cap yelled rudely to you, making your face turn a bright red out of embarrassment. Steve, feeling annoyed by the man behind you, turned his baby blue eyes to him.

“Is that how you talk to a lady, pal? If you wanted her attention, you could at least ask politely and wait for her to serve you. I don’t know how they do things in the twenty-first century, but back where I am from, we have something called manners. Don't speak to her unless you are ready to show some respect and ask nicely, Am I clear?” He sternly spoke as he looked at the man directly in the eye and he immediately turned away from the both of you with fear in his eyes as Steve staired down at him.

“Thank you for that.” Acknowledging the handsome man’s actions as you looked back him.

“No problem, honey. Do you get that often?” Steve asked you with raised eyebrow to you with a caring look on his perfect face. As you look down, your head nod with a frown.

“Yeah, but I mean it’s New York. People are just looking to stomp on you whenever they get the chance. This town isn’t known for it to being the most friendly or polite.” You said as you fiddled with your notebook. “Besides, I have been through worse. I can handle it.” Steve’s caring stare became more distressed by what you had admitted to him. His face read that he wanted to know about what you had gone through. The blonde-haired man sighed and nodded without saying anything else. “So, is there anything that I can get for you?”

“Oh! Umm…what would you recommend?” He asked realized that he was so emersed in your conversation that he almost lost his appetite. You thought for a moment of what he would like and decided on what to recommend for lunch.

“The Brooklyn burger is good. One of our most popular things on the menu.” You suggested to Steve and he nodded with a smile.

“Brooklyn Burger it is then. Can I get a beer with that as well?” He asked and you nodded and walked away to get his order started. When you got into the kitchen to get Steve’s lunch order ready, Katie ran to you in a franctic state as she grabbed your arms.

“(Name)! I can’t believe how lucky you are! I’m so jealous that you got to have him at your table!” She shouted excitedly shaking you in a crazy fashion.

“Who? Steve? The guy that was outside?” You asked feeling confused as you looked out the kitchen doors. Katie scoffed while she rolled her eyes and pulled out one for her textbooks from school and opened a page from the World War 11 era. She pointed at the Photo of Captain America and examined the photo of him without his mask closely and your eyes grew wide astonishment. The resemblance was That was him, Steve Rogers the man that you were talking to just now. You were just serving Captain America and you had no idea. Stepping back, you were shocked and amazed a the fact that he was alive this whole time.

“How is he here now? I thought he died back in 1944 when he crashed that plane into the ice?!” You exclaimed with frantic excitement. 

“S.H.E.I.L.D apparently found the plane he was in and found him alive frozen in time in the Artic.  They found him almost a year ago. As it turned it out, the serum he was given had kept him alive in that ice. How crazy is that?!” She questioned and you continued to stare at the picture of Steve in her textbook, mauling over the information she had given you.

“Yeah, crazy.” You muttered as you placed your hands on the page with Steve’s face on it and stroked the picture. Never in your wildest dreams you have ever meet Captain America. 

Please like comment and share! thanks for reading!

Part 3

Shalom Harlow for i-D x Comme des Garçons s/s 2012 rtw Photographer Daniele + Lango Fashion Editor/Stylist Patti Wilson Makeup Artist Stephane Marais Hair Stylist Luigi Murenu  Newest Cool on Instagram

Doris Troy

R&B Singer Doris Troy was born Doris Elaine Higginsen in Bronx, New York, on January 6, 1937. Both a singer and a songwriter, her biggest hit, “Just One Look,” was released in 1963 and peaked at no. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Troy’s father was a Barbadian Pentecostal minister, and she began singing in the church choir.  Her parents disapproved of R&B and rock ‘n’roll music and forbade their four children to listen to it. Despite their ban on that music, she became an usherette at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem where she heard and met many of the performers including James Brown, who was credited with “discovering” her.

In 1957, Troy formed a three-girl group named the Halos and began writing songs. A publisher paid her $100 for her song “How About That,” which became a hit for Dee Clark. To earn a steady income, Troy began singing backup and teamed with Cissy Houston and her cousins Dionne and Dee Dee Warrick for Atlantic Records in 1963. Calling themselves the Sweet Inspirations, they sang backup for The Drifters, Solomon Burke, and other established artists.

After writing “Just One Look” with Gregory Carroll in 1963, the couple took the demo to Jerry Wexler of Atlantic Records who immediately signed them. The record was released under the name Doris Troy, as Higginsen changed her name to Troy after the legendary heroine, Helen of Troy.  “Just One Look” was a smash success and was later recorded by The Hollies and Linda Ronstadt. Unfortunately, Doris Troy was never able to match her first hit.

In 1964, Troy visited London and became enamored with the British music scene. She moved to the United Kingdom in 1969 and signed with Apple Records, owned by the Beatles. Throughout the 1970s, she collaborated with British artists and developed a loyal following. She once did a live show backed on piano by Elton John, who at the time was not well-known. Troy sang backup on George Harrison’s hit, “My Sweet Lord,” Carly Simon’s “You’re So Vain,” and Billy Preston’s album That’s the Way God Planned It. Returning to the U.S. in 1974, she shared the stage with Otis Redding, Rufus Thomas, and other noted artists.

Perhaps her most memorable stage performance was in Mama, I Want to Sing, a musical she wrote along with her younger sister, Vy Higginsen, and her husband, Ken Wydro. Based on Troy’s life, the musical featured Troy playing her mother, Geraldine. When it opened at the Heckschers Theatre in Spanish Harlem on March 23, 1983, it ran for 1,500 performances before going on a national and international tour. From 1986 to 1999 the musical toured Germany, Italy and Japan, and was performed at the West End Theatre in the UK. The musical was made into a motion picture titled Mama, I Want to Sing starring Ciara, Patti LaBelle, and Hill Harper and released on DVD in 2012.

Respiratory problems forced Troy to move from New York to Las Vegas, Nevada, for the dry desert climate. She continued to perform in supper clubs and casinos. Doris Troy died of emphysema on February 16, 2004, at the age of 67 in Las Vegas.

Birthday audio/video gifts!

It is my hecking birthday this month, y’all! To celebrate I am giving away videos and audios from Phantom of the Opera that positively ruined me (AKA some of my faves) !

NOTE: the links will work until November 6th, 10 AM CEST! After that they won’t work anymore :) If any of the masters want me to remove their master, let me know and I will!

Everything, including cast info, is under the cut!

Video

US Tour - Dallas, April 6, 2006 Evening Gary Mauer, Elizabeth Southard, Jim Weitzer, Kim Stengel, John Jellison, DC Anderson, Patti Davidson-Gorbea, John Whitney, Kate Wray https://ln5.sync.com/dl/b833dd740/gvnusjtv-a7wywsjy-98mvkiid-nsa6ksqp

Las Vegas Spectacular - August 8, 2008 (SunsetBlvd79) Anthony Crivello, Kristi Holden, Andrew Ragone, Geena Jeffries Mattox, John Leslie Wolfe, Lawson Skala, Tina Walsh, Larry Wayne Morbitt, Brianne Kelly Morgan https://ln5.sync.com/dl/f4b151790/79fc7xe8-emk99ug5-va2ndite-vrapb47x

Broadway - May 12, 2014 (inallyorufantasies, turnofthescorpion) Norm Lewis, Sierra Boggess, Jeremy Hays, Michele McConnell, Tim Jerome, Laird Mackintosh, Ellen Harvey, Christian Šebek https://ln5.sync.com/dl/9dbe75640/89h6694u-db6i4y53-ker76kab-xtm9qbj3

Boadway - May 20, 2003 Hugh Panaro, Lisa Vroman, John Cudia, Julie Schmidt (u/s), Jeff Keller, George Lee Andrews , Marilyn Caskey, Larry Wayne Morbitt, Joelle Gates https://ln5.sync.com/dl/04cef73f0/watx9j5t-s2amh9zy-hmxqchav-2h2sf3ra

West End - August, 2018 Ben Lewis, Amy Manford, Jeremy Taylor https://ln5.sync.com/dl/8a1ae4700/ys5mbar9-yas2ewaq-rrnk4sye-wt5pgdtb

Trieste, Italy - July 15, 2023 (Filthybonnet) Ramin Karimloo, Amelia Milo, Bradley Jaden, Earl Carpenter, Ian Mowat, Anna Corvino, Gian Luca Pasolini, Alice Mistroni, Zoe Nochi https://ln5.sync.com/dl/f916fe200/6dw52cqj-usu7pimm-zbgk2gdg-9qixj3d4

Audios

Broadway - September 26, 1990 Steve Barton, Rebecca Luker, Gary Lindemenn (u/s), Marilyn Caskey, Jeff Keller, George Lee Andrews, Leila Martin https://ln5.sync.com/dl/21e8e2db0/wsqmti8i-4d4vukku-xs8fvh3y-85kjak3h

Broadway - May 10, 2003 Hugh Panaro, Lisa Vroman, John Cudia, Patricia Phillips, Jeff Keller, George Lee Andrews (u/s), Marilyn Caskey, Joelle Gates, Larry Wayne Morbitt https://ln5.sync.com/dl/5640398d0/3d5axeix-ie6cpr3t-4j7fbew7-5q8mjcqq

Broadway - August 19, 2014 (Oogie Boogie) Norm Lewis, Sierra Boggess, Jeremy Hays https://ln5.sync.com/dl/59b8c8720/hzpmzgq7-5hx5xqx9-4e6h4qt2-ynn5dmw6

Broadway - April 6, 2023 (phantomygoodness) Jeremy Stolle (u/s), Julia Udine (alt.), John Riddle, Nehal Joshi, Craig Bennett, Raquel Suarez Groen, Maree Johnson, Carlton Moe, Sara Etsy https://ln5.sync.com/dl/dfa420090/i2m495z9-zwdgyka9-r2k9njdn-tu9hwt9m

Las Vegas Spectacular - September 2, 2012 Anthony Crivello, Kristi Holden, Andrew Ragone, Joan Sobel, Lawson Skala, John Leslie Wolfe, Tina Walsh, Larry Wayne Morbitt, Brianne Kelly Morgan https://ln5.sync.com/dl/882621a90/2kz2ajn8-nkre4uhw-5y7vesm6-gmk3pv7v

West End- October 27, 2017 Ben Lewis, Amy Manford (alt), Jeremy Taylor, Una Reynolds (u/s), Siôn Lloyd, Mark Oxtoby, Jacinta Mulcahy, Paul Ettore Tabone, Lily Howes (u/s) https://ln5.sync.com/dl/d6fa41cb0/axfwkn8z-66dpfim8-7uekxefw-aahsqs8x

West End - September 1, 2018 Evening (Winschi) Ben Lewis, Kelly Mathieson, Jeremy Taylor, Lara Martins, Siôn Lloyd, Mark Oxtoby, Jacinta Mulcahy, Paul Ettore Tabone, Georgia Ware https://ln5.sync.com/dl/99b982430/9dpb2hez-rex5y3nn-z9e963m3-wm57qfu2

West End - November 13, 2021 Evening (starprincess) Killian Donnelly, Lucy St Louis, Rhys Whitfield, Saori Oda, Tim Morgan, Adam Linstead, Francesca Ellis, Greg Castiglioni, Ellie Young https://ln5.sync.com/dl/fcffc67e0/7362xu65-tefiqt8x-9z3njksk-353iuqjk

West End -March 4, 2023 (verytheatricaltrades) Earl Carpenter (t/r), Holly-Anne Hull, Matt Blaker, Matt Harrop, Adam Linstead, Kelly Glyptis, Greg Castiglioni, Francesca Ellis, Ellie Young https://ln5.sync.com/dl/f142d9230/5ngjfdrx-fhjmc9wf-x2yhme8h-z4exy8cf

Broadway Divas Tournament: Round 1C

Linda Emond (1959) is a three-time Tony-nominee with a long regional and Broadway career. Major roles include Fraulein Schneider in the 2014 revival of Cabaret, which got her a third Tony nomination, Eliza Doolittle in Pygmalion (Chicago), and Abigail Adams in 1776 (1996). You may recognize her voice for her extensive voiceover repertoire, recording audiobooks, commercials, and narration alike. Lately, her screen career has been a lot of fun little murder mystery shows on Hulu, and I support her homicidal tendencies fully.

Jennifer Simard (1970) had her first solo bow only just this past season as Cinderella's Stepmother in Once Upon a One More Time, and that's a crime. She stole the show and our hearts as Sarah in the recent Company revival (and did a temporary stint as Joanne), earning her first Tony nomination. Other work includes Disaster! (2012), Hello, Dolly! (2017), and the pre-Broadway tryout of Death Becomes Her, opening this spring in Chicago.

PROPAGANDA AND MEDIA UNDER CUT: ALL POLLS HERE

"I am firmly in my Linda Emond era, and I spent months scouring the entire internet to find a quality recording of Linda Emond in Cabaret. And a month ago, this appeared. Go to 14:50 for "So What?" and be delighted like I am. You don't know how happy this makes me. As to her playing a lot of murderous mothers recently, I'm a big fan. I could watch her commit felonies all day long. When is she going to bring that to Broadway?"

"I continue to be blown away by Jennifer Simard's vocal eccentricities. How is she screltching like that eight shows a week? Obsessed. Also, I'll say it because I'm not a fucking coward. I think she should have won the Tony for Company over Patti LuPone. I understand why she didn't (Sarah is a less showy role than Joanne), but she deserved it for stealing that show every night. Patti was being her usual Patti self while Jennifer Simard was so outrageously funny it had a thousand people crying with laughter every night."

Happy Birthday to Scottish singer/songwriter Graham Lyle, born March 11th 1944 in Belshill.

There’s nothing I can find about Lyle’s early life, but he is best known for collaboration with fellow Scot Benny Gallagher.

Graham and Benny first teamed up in 1959 as members of a local The Bluefrets, and teamed up again in a band based in Saltcoats called the Tulsans. The Tulsans released two singles in 1965 under the name James Galt these rare tracks are now prized by Northern Soul Collectors.

So after doing their apprenticeship around Ayrshire and Glasgow Graham and Benny headed south to London in the mid 60′s, a rare one-off single, “Trees”, was issued on Polydor UK another very rare song, if you come cross it in amongst an old dusty second hand shop you might get a few quid for it.

In 1968 the pair were signed up to write songs for artists on the Apple record label, mainly for Mary Hopkins. Two years later the pair formed the band McGuinness Flint writing nine of the 11 songs on the group’s eponymous debut album, including their two top five hits, When I’m Dead and Gone and Malt and Barley Blues. A second album followed before the pair left to branch out as duo with Gallagher and Lyle in 1972.

As a duo, Gallagher and Lyle recorded a total of eight albums, while they weren’t all big hits the duo were well respected for there song writing and chemistry between them. Their biggest hits I Wanna Stay With You and Heart on My Sleeve both of which also charted in the US. Gallagher and Lyle ‘s songs both topped the US Billboard Adult Contemporary chart for Art Garfunkel and Don Williams respectively. As session musicians, Gallagher and Lyle also backed numerous big names on disc, including Eric Clapton, Andy Fairweather Low and Fairport Convention amongst others.

In 1981, Graham Lyle formed his own publishing company, Goodsingle Publishing (later to become goodsingle.com), chiefly to administer his own copyrights, and began writing for other artists. These artist included Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross, Patti Labelle, Joe Cocker, Hall & Oates, Jim Diamond, Wet,Wet,Wet, and Wyclef Jean….the list really is endless!

The song that we definitely all know best that was written by Graham Lyle is the Tina Turner smash hit What’s love got to do with it, in which he teamed up with the English-Australian songwriter Terry Britten. It won the Song of the Year Grammy. The song hit the top of the charts in many countries, and was a worldwide hit, in 2012 it was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. He also co-wrote one of my favourite songs from the 80′s I should have known better with Jim Diamond. A little known fact is that the song was offered to Cliff Richard, but was rejected, former Eurovison winners Bucks Fizz are said to have recorded a version that was never released. However, the gifted Largs songwriter insisted that he always wanted Turner to record it, and said in a News interview in 2012: "We sent the demo to the publishers and got at least four people wanting to record it. Tina was one of them. We were given the opportunity as the writers to say which artist we wanted to record it.

“I wanted Tina to do it. She was one of the greats, though she was having a tough time and didn’t even have a record deal.”

I'll end this post much in the same way I started it with no news on Graham's latest activity of late, he was mentioned in numerous articles last May after the passing of Tina Turne, butno news other than that.

Song choicei s Lyle siging What's Love Got To Do With It