#The Life and Times of David Lloyd George
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Ruth Madoc (born Ruth Llewellyn; April 16, 1943 – December 9, 2022) Actress and singer who had a career on stage and screen spanning over 60 years. She was best known for her role as Gladys Pugh in the BBC television comedy Hi-de-Hi! (1980–1988), for which she received a BAFTA TV award nomination for Best Light Entertainment Performance. She later appeared as Daffyd Thomas's mother in the second series of Little Britain.
Her television credits include:
Hunter’s Walk (1973 - 1976)
The Life and Times of David Lloyd George (1981)
The Adventure Game (1986)
The Pale Horse (1986)
Big Top (2009)
Doctors (2014, 2018)
Benidorm (2015)
Get Your Act Together (2015)
Tinga Tinga Tales (2015)
Stella (2016)
Casualty (2016)
(Wikipedia)
#Ruth Madoc#TV#Obit#Obituary#O2022#Hunter's Walk#Hi-de-Hi!#The Life and Times of David Lloyd George#Little Britain
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"Throughout much of the nineteenth and the first half of the twentieth centuries the terms Zionist ‘colonisation’ and Jewish ‘colonies’ in Palestine were proudly proclaimed and universally used by Zionist leaders and writers. Benjamin Lee Gordon’s New
Judea: Jewish Life in Modern Palestine and Egypt, published in Philadelphia in 1919, a typical Zionist publication of the period,
uses terms such as ‘Jewish colonies’ and ‘Jewish colonists’ in Palestine dozens of times throughout the book, systematically and as a term of endearment. The same colonialist methodology and terminology are found in the 1950s in the publications of Israeli diplomat Yaakov Morris — the father of Israeli historian Benny Morris — including his 1953 book Pioneers from the West: History of Colonization in Israel by Settlers from the English-speaking Countries, just one example of this proudly colonialist Zionist tradition. In Zionist writings the Hebrew words for Moshava and (plural) Moshavot were synonymous with Jewish ‘colony’/‘colonies’ and Jewish colonists. Indeed ‘Moshava’ and ‘Moshavot’ were coined as a literal translation of the English terms ‘colony’ and ‘colonies’. This proudly trumpeted colonial legacy of early Zionist colonists and pioneers has been suppressed or deleted from memory in recent Zionist historiography, including the writings of the Israeli revisionist historians.
... The first Zionist colonies ... were universally described as ‘colonies’ in both Zionist and professional literature of the time. Their economy was based on agriculture, and, like all European colonies, they exploited cheap indigenous labour. ... Also, crucially, these early Jewish colonies were preceded by and modelled on the German Christian Templer colonies established in Palestine in the middle to late nineteenth century — with farmhouses of one or two storeys and with slanting tiled roofs and shuttered windows. Interestingly even today the ‘German Colony’ south-west of the Old City of Jerusalem, established in 1878 by members of the German Templer Society (Tempelgesellschaft), is known in Hebrew as Hamoshava Hagermanit. Earlier in 1868 the ‘German Colony’ in Haifa was set up by the Templers. This was followed by another six German colonies. ... For the Templers colonising Palestine was part of their faith: the Holy Land had to be prepared for the Second Coming of Christ. Secular Zionist historiography depicts mid-nineteenth-century German colonists as forerunners of the Zionist movement, and early Zionists themselves adopted them as a ‘model to be emulated.’ In Zionist writings the Templers were considered to be responsible for bringing technology to Palestine, in architecture, agriculture and industry, and as a symbol of progress and modernity. In Yehuda ve-Yerushalayim, the newspaper of Yoel Moshe Salomon, he himself wrote about the Templer colonies:
‘We have also noticed the colonies established over the past few years by the Germans from Wittenburg (not of our people) and their homes are built in good order, as in all the cities of Europe, with wide streets and magnificent buildings, so that anyone who walks along their streets will forget that he is walking in the country of the soul, and will feel as though he is in one of the populated cities of Europe.’
... Following in the footsteps of the German Templer colonists, the ‘American Colony’ was established in Jerusalem in 1881 by members of a Christian messianic society. A neighbourhood and a famous hotel in East Jerusalem are still known by that name. Today the side streets of the former ‘German Colony’ are named by Israel after Christian Zionists and European imperialists, including South African prime minister Jan Smuts, British prime minister David Lloyd George, British Labour Party leader Josiah Wedgewood, and Sir Wyndham Henry Deedes, a Christian Zionist British general,
who was also the chief secretary to British High Commissioner of Palestine Sir Herbert Samuel from 1920 to 1922. Deedes represented a British Christian Zionism which was deeply entwined with Western Christian imperialism in the Middle East. This Christian Zionism, represented then by the British Empire and now by the American empire, is deeply rooted in the politics of uniqueness and exceptionalism and the supremacist biblical theology of the
people of God, ‘elect nations’ and ‘chosen peoples’, nations which are the heirs of God’s election of the biblical Israelites. This Christian Zionist imperialist mission includes a duty to patronise the ‘Jewish people’ by ‘restoring’ them to their ‘ancestral homeland’ in Palestine, backed by a global Christian empire, then British and now American."
Nur Masalha, The Palestine Nakba: Decolonising History, Narrating the Subaltern, Reclaiming Memory (2012)
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William Hootkins in the 1980s (1 of 5)
William Hootkins appeared in an episode of Tales of the Unexpected, originating in the United Kingdom. This show featured short dramas with a twist ending most written by Raold Dahl. Hootkins had his beard at this time but would have to shave it off for a later role.
The above photos are from Tales of the Unexpected, episode entitled Taste in 1980 about a wine expert.
He also had a small role in Hussy with Helen Mirren. And yes there was a sex scene but so tastefully done that photos were pointless.
In December, 1980 Flash Gordon was released. Hootkins played Munson, Dr. Zarkov's loyal assistant, but he did have his limits.
In March of 1981, Hootkins played Winston Churchill in the UK mini-series The Life and Times of David Lloyd George, about the controversial liberal Prime Minister. This is the role that required Hoot to shave off his facial hair.
He also appeared as a Tour Guide in the movie Sphinx in 1981.
He also appeared in another Tales of the Unexpected in the episode entitled The Boy Who Talked with Animals.
In the summer of 1981 is when Raiders of the Lost Ark was released. Hootkins played in 2 scenes, probably the least memorable, although I do recall that they had "Top Men" working on what to do with the Arc.
In January of 1982, Hootkins guest starred as Teddy Roosevelt in American TV series, Bret Maverick. I hear Teddy traveled with his own portable bathtub.
In December of 1982, Hootkins played a cab driver in Trail of the Pink Panther with David Niven and Herbert Lom. He probably never met them, but he did share his scene with Joanna Lumley.
In the first half of 1983, Hootkins appeared on 3 American TV shows. One was Cagney & Lacey in February, where he played a not very cooperative and frustrating theater manager.
Another was Taxi. He played a sneaky Liquor Authority Agent who attempted to fail Jim, the bar owner and make him lose his license.
The next will have to wait til the next Hootkins post, probably tomorrow.
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BBC Ghosts Season 2 : Life references
After months of putting it off, Season 2 is finally finished!
Episode 1 - The Grey Lady
Captain’s “For King and Country” is in reference to George VI
Thomas references Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare
Julian plays ping pong and says it takes him back to the David Lloyd in Chelsea
Julian spoils the World Cup quarterfinals for Pat, implying he watched it when alive
Mary was mostly illiterate
A 14th century grindstone is found in the cellar
Captain unsurprisingly mentions the war again
Julian thinks he can do an impression of Nelson Mandela
Thomas does an impression of an earl, but I couldn’t find anything on them so please excuse my lack of British know how
Fanny appears in photos
Julian didn’t believe in ghosts when he was alive
Pat lists his skills in life: knot-tying, tent-pitching, archery
Julian references Newsnight
Fanny has been to a sideshow
I’m assuming Pat and Julian are referencing Bruce Forsyth, which Julian has before
Not a life thing, but I find it interesting that both Robin and Captain have said ghosts can’t feel the cold, only for Captain to question it
Side note: Thomas’ cheese commercial made me hungry
Fanny’s dress is made of silk
I like to think Captain talking to Dante’s taxidermy means he likes dogs
Pat likes pop quizzes
Captain likes running, a no brainer
Captain remarks that he’s in his prime and that’s he’s still got it, implying that he at least believed he was in good health when alive
Episode 2 - About Last Night
Mick the plague ghost comes back the village they’ll eventually die in
Mick claims to have had an orange, have seen a bear kill a man, and met the king and went fishing
He brought salt and clothes for the other plague ghosts, which led to their deaths
Side note: Mick coughing up the blood was so scary to me, dying from a sickness
Thomas may be able to cook, since he says he wished he could make Alison breakfast - lamb’s kidney and onion- before being cut off. I wonder if Thomas learned or liked to cook
Thomas acknowledges he wasn’t formally invited to the party, a custom he’s used to
None of the surrounding villages were struck with plague
Captain asks to watch a war documentary while Pat wants to watch football
Julian believed that you should drink more alcohol when hung over
Mary offers a remedy: mushrooms soaked in goats milk and vinegar till it’s warm
Pat says that cola is good for a hang over
Side note again: Thomas is really sweet when he informs Alison of Dante’s disappearance, or the multiple times he’s wished to help her with things like cooking and cleaning. We love a helpful king
Fanny loved Dante like her own child according to Thomas, and she once told Julian she loved Dante more anything else in the world. If she did have kids, I wonder if the relationship was strained. Also, it’s such a notable fact that everyone knows it, including ghosts that weren’t around for Fanny’s life
I know he’s easily coerced into not doing it, but the fact that Captain wanted to tell Fanny immediately that Dante was missing is very sweet
Julian has extensive experience in public inquiries, specifically being the one getting asked the questions
Julian describes how it make an alcoholic drink to Alison
Kitty’s heard white wine helps with stains
Fanny is not fond of mice
Mary thinks Veronica, Clive and Annie are nice names. I won’t include Daniel because it was her having a close call with Daniel
Dante used to like sitting by the fire
Episode 3 - Redding Weddy
Captain’s soldiers at Button House were apparently prone to giggling and horseplay
Introduction of Captain’s Lieutenant, Havers
We see Captain being informed that France has surrendered, which occurred in June 1940
Captain requested a service revolver
Lieutenant Havers had an emergency lockdown initiated shortly after
Havers informs Captain he wants to be involved in fighting, and has put in a transfer for the North Africa front
Pat is, unsurprisingly, well versed in activity badges, and everyone else can recite them
Robin knows how to skin a mammoth
Julian, my dear, you are way off. It took Mary more than 300 years to talk about the witch trial if she did indeed die in the 1610s
Pat likes Top Gun
Julian references Chariots of Fire from 1981, Mississippi Burning from 1988 and The Towering Inferno from 1974
Little reference to the next episode when Thomas says he would show Julian his glove if he had one. Also, the wedding guy says the backyard looks like a bomb site, when it literally is one. Stuff like that make the show so much cooler
Julian used to do boxing for Cambridge
Pat says s'il vous plaît
Fanny and Kitty read Lady Chatterley’s Lover by D. H. Lawrence
Julian references the Suez crisis
Thomas references Jack and the Beanstalk
Pat calls the laptop the computer that folds
Pat was with Carol at her parents’ house when the moon landing happened, eating fish and chips and trying a jumbo battered sausage for the first time
Julian was a student at Cambridge when the moon landing happened and having his first threesome
Captain claims that his dog Barry is buried where the bomb is, which is obviously untrue, but he also says that where they buried their pets, plural. I like to think Cap’s soldiers had a few dogs about
Captain has a letter with William written on it, which he tucks into his clothes. Captain says he was just thinking about Havers, which would later link to how they both knew about operation William
Havers gets a new service revolver
Captain has poster in his office about men wanted in the army, and also a wall full of books
Captain and his soldiers played cricket
Julian references 9 1/2 weeks, a 1986 erotic movie
Thomas always chooses pistol
Julian sold 50 crates of AK-47 assault rifles to the Libyans in 1983 to pay for his orangery
Julian uses a grenade and a flamethrower on Thomas, I don’t know if his “I’m melting” line is meant to reference the Wizard of Oz or not
The statue outside, Florence, was one of Kitty’s best friends
Kitty’s sister would pretend to not be able to find her when playing hide and seek
Kitty once hid for a whole day and night, and got so hungry she had to eat a bit of her purse
I mean it’s just meant to look funny and be a reference but Julian can canonically spin a ball on one finger
Nobody has ever found Kitty during hide and seek
Nice canon Cap in a coat, love a bit of that
He also smokes, or at least fiddles the occasional pipe
Oh and he threw that envelope into the hole with the bomb
Captain buried a prototype limpet mine, which was so secret only he and Havers knew about it, along with the blueprints
Captain talks bomb mechanics with Robin, the cutest thing I’ve ever seen
Pat knows about 2001: A Space Odyssey
Robin thinks the earth is flat
There’s a bit of speculation here: I can’t actually say with absolute certainty that Captain really saw Havers go. Maybe it’s wishful thinking that Havers would turn back and salute one last time, maybe it did happen, maybe it didn’t
Episode 4 - The Thomas Thorne Affair
Robin would wear a space suit, Mary a seashell dress, Tom double denim with aviators, Julian misses pants, Pat’s wearing his lovely gist, Kitty wears the same as Alison, and Captain would wear his uniform
Julian is unsurprisingly well versed in political tactics like the spin
Captain identifies a musket ball
It’s the one that made Thomas very dead
This is another thing I’m uncertain about: whether Thomas feels pain or just does it for dramatic affect
Quick side note before sad Thomas lore, I think I forgot to mention last time that Julian mentioned Great Expectations
Thomas died October 10th, 1824
Thomas came to Button House when it was owned by the Highams’, Thomas and Francis were invited
They can both ride horses
Thomas had stated the house was pleasant to look at, but he wouldn’t want to live there (rippppp)
Thomas was in love with Isabelle Higham
Thomas wrote a poem called Hermione and Roger and recited in front of everyone ( turns out he always sucked, but his poetry didn’t really sound that bad to me in this episode )
Isabelle played the harpsichord
I always wonder during this episode how Thomas remembers his death so wrongly, whether he’s lying about it or simply so horrified he forgot I don’t know
Even so, I think Thomas genuinely was in love and didn’t misinterpret as much before Isabelle
Thomas challenged some guy to a duel, we love a gun brandishing king
Francis is a bitch- anyway back to Thomas
Thomas went twenty paces instead of ten, should’ve listened to ten duel commandments Thomas
The first animation with the spinning paper thing was shown
Monster munch, no words
Julian with his bloody playboy magazine, I’m not surprised
First mention of Annie, Mary’s bestie
Humphrey is such a lovely soul, learning to admire the little things like shoes
Okay wait, Alison says “you’ve literally got forever” which parallels Captain’s “we’ve got forever”
HOLD UP THAT DUEL GUY WAS INSULTING MARY SHELLEY
HOW DARE HE
Thomas shot a bird and apologised before he died
Isabelle never came to see Thomas before he passed, he was left alone to die
Julian cried at Thomas’ death
Francis rigged the whole thing to trick Thomas and Isabelle in order to get Higham House
Francis and Isabelle’s son was George’s grandfather
Everyone is related through Robin and his sister
Poor Tom, you stay how you die and that letter isn’t going anywhere
Episode 5 - Bump in the Night
Cap likes to count with Humphrey’s hands
Captain tells Alison of life from the knees “Trust me, you don’t want a hernia” either he had one or knew someone who did
Humphrey knows that hedgehogs will leave flees in the rug
Also Captain and Humphrey’s exchange “Pick me up at six. Literally” “Very good” is so cute
Fanny references oyster forks
She assumes they’re eating oysters at the wedding
Julian sings “I’ll make love to you” by Boyz II Men
Humphrey on guard is cute
Captain does his own little vocalisation of what I’m assuming is a long way to Tipperary
Kitty assumes the intruders are there for a masked ball
Julian references the Bramptons and assumes it’s insurance fraud
Captain knows it’s a burglary
Pat tries to put them under a citizens arrest, so cute
Pat references Borstal
Alison taught Kitty acronyms - Richard Of York Gave Battle In Vain
Captain calls the police the constabulary
“Burglary in process”
Captain - “why is no one ever alive when you need them?” Very telling, Cap
Julian gets worried Margaret Thatcher is dead. Too late Julian
Fanny admires the brushwork of her portrait
Cap and Pat watched Star Wars
Julian worries about getting RSI
Pat, Cap and Julian know Morse code
Julian lobbied against an animal welfare bill
Robin always gets excited by fire
Captain says he could have Robin shot off desertion, scaring Thomas
Alison meets a ghost who died hitchhiking. I find that to be an interesting concept, as the ghost is more based on the archetype. Makes me think about if Robin’s ability or character was created first
Robin howls for the dogs
Uh, Pat talks about drugs going in unsavoury places
Fanny would make a good criminal
Captain says he fought in an actual battle, it’s difficult to hear but it’s there
Julian loves a good sauna
Episode 6 - Perfect Day
Mary believes that bad weather means bad tidings for the wedding
Fanny believes marriages should be at churches
Pat’s wedding day was the best day of his life, Carol wore velvet and he wore a brown three piece
Julian was drunk on his wedding day
Fanny’s wedding day was at Winchester Cathedral and she was given away by the Marquis of Granby
Robin had at least thirty children
Kitty can throw up, and had food in her stomach when she died
Robin says that’s never happened before
Captain is very good at decorating, no surprise
Pat recognises the kid who killed him
Mary and her wedding superstitious
Both Pat and Julian talk about Dennis Waterman
Robin and Julian talk about Mick Hucknall
Kitty’s dress is burgundy
Captain has great fashion sense
Thomas references Whitechapel
You know, Thomas’ explanation of how Clare looked was pretty accurate, he’s quite aware of emotions
Fanny stops in front of George’s portrait, just an interesting detail
Fanny had high expectations placed on her since she was a child
Alison and Mike got married young
Alison had second thoughts on their wedding day
Mary had a husband, who was crushed underneath a plough three years after their marriage
The man Pat recognises is Keith Darren Dean
First time hearing about Humphrey’s marriage: it was arranged, they were both from noble families, he was fourteen she was twelve
They didn’t love each other, and Humphrey believed she didn’t like him, they couldn’t understand each other because she was French
Course later we find out she thought highly of him
Keith has guilt that has lasted decades, that sounds so painful
Fanny and Thomas exchange a look when she finally comes around to the wedding, it’s just so sweet I had to mention it
Keith remembers the knot tying Pat taught him
Episode 7 - The Ghost of Christmas
Julian is giving a speech for a bill at the start of the episode, referencing saying goodbye to Margot the day before
He refers to her as ‘this woman from my wedding’ and implies he’s about to sleep with another woman by the end of the scene
Nickname count: Dearest, darling and dear
The baby, Rachel, is heard crying on the phone
Margot asks when Julian is coming home, so he lies to her and says he won’t be back for days
Pat loves Christmas cooking, such a dear
Captain wishes he had a whiteboard
Julian points out the humbugs, and says he hates Christmas
Captain misses hearing the King’s speech on Christmas
Pat liked playing games with his nephew and his son, Daley
Games like Buckaroo, Boggle, Yahtzee and KerPlunk
Thomas misses the mistletoe, implying he’s been kissed before
Kitty used to open presents in the morning and then after lunch Eleanor would pick the ones she wanted
Mary says that some babies can see ghosts until they start walking
Julian is in the warmest room in the house due to his legs
Julian was in Brussels once at a strip club, but he tells Margot he’s at a restaurant eating moules-frites and drinking a Sancerre
Margot seems at least skeptical of him
This is one of the Christmases he misses, the last four of his life that involve Rachel
Julian references the European Union
Fanny convinced Alison to follow the tradition of chopping a tree down and bringing it on for Christmas
Fanny planted at least fifty saplings in her time
It’s kind of funny that Julian is horrified by Mary getting naked
Thomas’ Christmas recital thing wasn’t that bad
From inference, it’s implied that Julian believes Margot wanted the baby, and that he had it thrust upon him
And if “I know, darling, I know” represents Margot, and Julian thinks that’s a reaction she would have, damn is that sad
She’s practically taking the blame for his misery
Julian would go for a drive if the baby got too irritating to him
It appears that out of the four Christmases away from Rachel, one was to do oil deals, one was to be in Brussels, one at Colonel Gaddafi’s palace, and possibly another in Brussels
Pat loves Twister
Thomas and Cap have physical discipline
Pat would go to the shed to drink a Watney’s
Julian being considerate of Angela sleeping is either a new development, or something he was never pushed to do in life
The PC brigade may have interrogated Julian
Fanny seems to hold her Christmases in a high regard, despite George. Maybe it wasn’t always bad
Julian has kissed the wrong people under the mistletoe
Alison plays In the Bleak Midwinter on the piano
Rachel Fawcett is an MP for the Green Party, she’s a Major Leader of it
#bbc ghosts#mike cooper#alison cooper#the captain#julian fawcett#pat butcher#margot fawcett#rachel fawcett#humphrey bone#mary bbc ghosts#kitty bbc ghosts#robin bbc ghosts#thomas thorne#fanny button#george button
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Mr. Trump once claimed to be “the least antisemitic person that you’ve ever seen in your entire life,” but he has a history of trafficking in antisemitic tropes.
During the 2016 campaign, he tweeted a photo of Hillary Clinton against a backdrop of $100 bills and a Star of David. His closing campaign ad featured Mr. Soros — along with Janet L. Yellen, then chairwoman of the Federal Reserve, and Lloyd Blankfein, then the chief executive of Goldman Sachs, both of whom are Jewish — as examples of “global special interests” enriching themselves on the backs of working Americans.
In 2018, he helped popularize the unfounded conspiracy theory that Mr. Soros was financing a caravan of Central American migrants, a view shared by the gunman who killed 11 congregants at a Pittsburgh synagogue.
Mr. Trump’s targeting of Mr. Soros escalated in the run-up to his indictment last April in Manhattan on charges related to hush-money payments to a porn star who claimed they had had a sexual encounter. Mr. Trump said the Manhattan district attorney, Alvin L. Bragg, had been “handpicked and funded by George Soros,” an allegation then amplified by Trump acolytes.
In fact, Mr. Soros’s involvement was indirect: In 2021, the political arm of a racial-justice organization called Color of Change pledged $1 million to the Bragg campaign; shortly afterward, the group received $1 million from Mr. Soros, one of several donations, totaling about $4 million, since 2016. Color of Change eventually spent about $425,000 in support of Mr. Bragg; a spokesman for Mr. Soros said none of his contributions had been earmarked for the candidate.
Since then, Mr. Trump’s attacks have only intensified and widened — blaming Mr. Soros or globalists, for example, for letting “violent criminals” go free, “buying the White House” and turning America into a “Marxist Third World nation.”
– Karen Yourish, Danielle Ivory, Jennifer Valentino-DeVries, and Alex Lemonides, "How Republicans Echo Antisemitic Tropes Despite Declaring Support for Israel," The New York Times, May 9, 2024
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Looking back at the careers of two talented actors actors and writers, both born this month (August) : Peter Denyer (left), born August 20th, and Ed Devereaux (right) born August 27th.
Peter Denyer (1947-2009) gained lifelong fame as Dennis Dunstable in the LWT sitcoms Please Sir and Fenn Street Gang.
He built a solid career in British television, including an ongoing role in the sitcom Dear John, written by John Sullivan (Only Fools and Horses), appeared in The Bill and On the Up, and is credited with co-writing one episode of the LWT sitcom, Romany Jones.
He also acted, wrote and directed for the stage, including collaborations with his Please Sir/ Fenn Street co-stars, and had a brief but fascinating recording career, which included Beggar Boy and Skid Row Romeo, a foray into disco (Just Another Minute) and a cracking love song called Sadie.
In later years, he became a prolific writer of pantomime - his scripts used in over 200 productions each year.
Ed Devereaux (1925-2003), whose career spanned almost 50 years, had over 100 credits in British and Australian film and television. One of the finest and most consistently successful of his generation of Australian actors, he had a major role in the 1966 Australian immigrant comedy They’re a Weird Mob (directed by Michael Powell and co-written by Emeric Pressberger), and achieved international stardom as Head Ranger Matt Hammond in Skippy (1968-70), some episodes of which he also wrote.
His versatility enabled him to move seamlessly from comedy, featuring in several of the earlier Carry On movies, to period drama like The Onedin Line and Fall of Eagles. He starred as Lord Beaverbrook in two productions, the award-winning Thames drama Edward and Mrs Simpson (1978) and The Life and Times of David Lloyd George in 1981.
In 1975 he gave one of his standout performances, a dark and intense portrayal of an armed blagger, Biggleswade, in an episode of The Sweeney (Jackpot).
Peter Denyer passed away in 2009, aged 62. According to David Barry's memoir, Please Sir: The Official History, he collapsed while walking to Cheltenham railway station, not far from his home.
Ed Devereaux passed away at home in Hampstead (UK), in 2003, aged 78.
#peter denyer#social history#british television#british actors#australian actors#the sweeney#british tv writers#pantomime#australian television#australian cinema#british cinema#british culture#british comedy#ed devereaux#skippy#Youtube
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The Meghan Markle/Wallis Simpson Connection
Despite my best efforts, I can't seem to leave history alone. It's become a bit of a habit to look up the people I watch in true stories. Yesterday, it was The King's Speech starring Geoffrey Rush and Colin Firth as King George VI. I realized I was watching the same approximate time period as on Downton Abbey and was trying to keep all of the royals straight. I put on the episode of Downton that's actually a bit of a favorite, where a private letter between Prince Edward and a lover goes missing and the Granthams engage in a little mischief to get it back. Even after having seen this episode several times, I suddenly decided to learn more about King Edward's 'intimate friend', Freda Dudley Ward, and...
...Guess who this woman is?
"Born Winifred May Birkin, she was the second child and eldest of three daughters of British Colonel Charles Wilfred Birkin (fourth son of a lace embroidery and tableware magnate of Nottingham, Sir Thomas Birkin, 1st Baronet),[1] and his American wife, Claire Lloyd Howe."
Winifred Dudley Ward was the granddaughter to Sir Thomas Birkin...ancestor to Andrew and David Birkin!
That's when I recalled the picture above I'd recently found online. It seems to depict Markle dressing like Wallis Simpson, the woman that Edward, Duke of Windsor dropped Dudley Ward for, after 16 years together. M has copied others like Kate and even Angelina Jolie, so dressing as a woman who was famous for coming between a past royal and his family was indeed an odd choice...until you look closer at Simpson and her life with Edward.
Wallis was Married twice, rumored to have had a secret pregnancy while in China but aborted the child I'm a botched operation that rendered her unable to have anymore. M is now known to have not just been married once but twice.
There were rumors that Elizabeth I was secretly in love with Edward first and chose Albert as consolation. Articles in recent years seemed to hint that Kate had a thing for Harry.
Edward was assigned to the Bahamas after abdicating.
It's odd that there were so many suggestions that Harry go to the Bahamas. Why?
Oh..and there have been persistent rumors Wallis Simpson was Intersex. This article details that theory and also that Prince Edward was Autistic.
When is a coincidence not a coincidence? If it's extremely well-planned. The public story widely known for 100 years is that Wallis Simpson lured Edward away from the throne, even as he frequently expressed not wanting to rule. But according to accounts in the above article, it was Edward who was the persistent one in the relationship.
There are other persistent similarities, such as Wallis being hounded by press and getting death threats. There also continues to be confusion on just HOW sympathetic Edward was to Nazi Germany but his role as traitor has been making a sudden resurgence, starting with the Netflix series The Crown. But if the Prince indeed was on the spectrum, not only is his deliberate involvement not clear, it IS quite possible his exile had more to do with the BRF not trusting him to be discreet on national affairs. He had infrequently revealed such things as military secrets in past love letters to lovers. In short, Edward was not manageable.
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"V for Vendetta" is Still Relevant Today
After just a few pages of reading "V for Vendetta" I had to stop to remind myself this book was written in 1982. Well, 41 years ago Alan Moore imagined a fascist Government in England whose motto was “Make Britain Great Again”. Doesn't it ring any bells?
This is not the first time a dystopian book written decades ago seems still so bloody relevant today. If you ever read 1984 by George Orwell, you probably know what I’m talking about.
As I said, the story is set in a dystopian future version of the United Kingdom, where a fascist government has taken over and imposed its will on the people. The story follows a masked vigilante known only as "V," who seeks to overthrow the government and bring freedom back to the people. V is a mysterious character with a complex backstory, and his actions and motivations are gradually revealed throughout the course of the story.
I was hooked from the first page to the very end. Moore uses the story to explore themes of fascism, anarchy, and totalitarianism, and the dangers of government overreach. The novel also touches on issues such as censorship, propaganda, and the power of symbols. And the story comes to life through David Lloyd's striking illustrations.
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Herbert Mundin, Diana Wynyard, Clive Brook, and Una O'Connor in Cavalcade (Frank Lloyd, 1933)
Cast: Diana Wynyard, Clive Brook, Una O'Connor, Herbert Mundin, Beryl Mercer, Irene Browne, Tempe Pigott, Merle Tottenham, Frank Lawton, Ursula Jeans. Screenplay: Reginald Berkeley, based on a play by Noël Coward. Cinematography: John F. Seitz. Art direction: William S. Darling. Film editing: Margaret Clancey.
There are lots of forgettable best picture Oscar winners: Who today watches The Great Ziegfeld (Robert Z. Leonard, 1936), The Life of Emile Zola (William Dieterle, 1937), or Gentleman's Agreement (Elia Kazan, 1947)? But Cavalcade may be the most forgettable (and forgotten) of them all. Based on a play by Noël Coward adapted by Reginald Berkeley and Sonya Levien, it's the saga of 33 years in the lives of a wealthy London couple, Robert (Clive Brook) and Jane Marryot (Diana Wynyard). Its portrait of their lives and the lives of their servants may have inspired the popular British TV series Upstairs Downstairs, and through it the even more popular Downton Abbey, both of which cover pretty much the same time period. In Cavalcade, as in the two TV series, the families suffer losses from the sinking of the Titanic and from World War I, and experience the social upheaval of a changing class system. But Cavalcade tries to cram it all into less than two hours, and tends to be more blatantly nostalgic about the passing scene. Unlike the creators of the later TV series, Coward and his adapters didn't have the benefit in 1933 of seeing what effect the events of the first third of the twentieth century would have on Britain and the world. It settles for a bit of prophecy in the form of a montage in which various talking heads rant about disarmament, communism, atheism, Christianity, and other ideologies, including a rather corny scene in a louche night club where same-sex couples seem to be on the verge of making out. (The film is pre-Code, so the strictures against depicting homosexuality haven't kicked in yet, though it's clear that the film -- despite Coward's own sexual orientation -- disapproves of it.) In addition to the best picture Oscar, Cavalcade also won a second Oscar for its director, Frank Lloyd, who had been the first director to be so honored, for The Divine Lady (1929). Wynyard also received a nomination for best actress, losing to a newcomer, Katharine Hepburn in Morning Glory (Lowell Sherman, 1933). Wynyard had a more successful career on stage than in movies. In Cavalcade she tries to register emotion by staring meditatively into the middle distance, often seeming like she has spotted something troubling on the wallpaper. The rest of the cast includes Herbert Mundin and Una O'Connor as the Marryots' servants, and Frank Lawton as Joe Marryot, the younger son, all three of whom would be reunited in a much better movie, David Copperfield (George Cukor, 1935). For the record, some of the films that Cavalcade beat for best picture include 42nd Street (Lloyd Bacon), I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang (Mervyn LeRoy), and Little Women (Cukor), all of which are more highly watchable today.
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Little Homeworld Life chapter 26: Hostile Takeover (originally posted on June 19, 2023)
AN: It has all come to this. The end begins here. The final episode of Little Homeworld Life is here at last, and after that will be Steven Universe: Snake Eyes. It has been an honor delivering such consistent quality writing to this fandom, and I'll be damned if I don't enjoy doing it again one last time before I finally decide to move onto other stories I've left to dry for too long.
Synopsis: Connie returns home from college just as Black Rutile takes over Little Homeworld and holds the Crystal Gems captive. With their alien friends in danger, the people of Beach City decide to repay the Crystal Gems by joining together to save them from Black Rutile.
Cast:
Grace Rolek as Connie
Noël Wells as Black Rutile
Kimberly Brooks as Jasper, Skinny Jasper, Carnelian, Superfan Rose, Hippie Rose, Shy Rose, Cherry Quartz, Biggs Jasper
Lauren Ash as White Topaz
Amy Sedaris as Teal Zircon
Martha Higerada as Topaz
Della Saba as Aquamarine
Charlyne Yi as Eyeball, Doc, Navy, Leggy, Army
Christine Pedi as Holly Blue Agate
Casey Lee Williams as Cat's Eye
Hayley Kiyoko as Morganite
Jinkx Monsoon as Emerald, Chest Emerald
Melissa Fahn as Demantoid, Eyeball Demantoid
Kari Wahlgren as Pyrope
Jon Wurster as Marty
Shanelle Grey as Sally Grove
Larissa Gallagher as Bluebird Azurite
May Calamawy as Chrome Chalcedony
Susanne Blakeslee as Pietersite
Estelle as Garnet
Michaela Dietz as Amethyst, Famethyst, Tiger's Eye
Deedee Magno-Hall as Pearl, Yellow Pearl, Blue Pearl, Volleyball, Black Pearl Brigade
Shelby Rabara as Peridot, Squaridot
Jennifer Paz as Lapis, Laz, Zuli, Phoenix Lapis
Uzo Aduba as Bismuth
Dee Bradley Baker as Lion, Concretes
Tom Scharpling as Greg
Matthew Moy as Lars, Dante
Kate Micucci as Sadie
Indya Moore as Shep
Enuka Okuma as Rhodonite
Kathleen Fisher as Fluorite
Ashly Burch as Rutile Twins
Erica Luttrell as Padparadscha Sapphire
Mary Elizabeth McGlynn as Priyanka
Crispin Freeman as Doug
Andrew Kishino as Kevin
Reagan Gomez Preston as Jenny, Kiki
Godfrey as Kofi
Zach Steel as Ronaldo
Brian Posehn as Sour Cream
Lamar Abrams as Buck Dewey
Colton Dunn as Mr. Smiley
Toks Olagundoye as Mayor Nanafua
Joel Hodgson as Bill Dewey
Eugene Cordero as Jamie
Atticus Shaffer as Peedee
Billy Merritt as Mr. Fryman
Kristin Chenoweth as Sheena Synstylae
Nancy Linari as Martha
Brian George as Mr. Frowney
Jackie Buscarino as Vidalia
Aparna Nancherla as Nephrite, Lemon Jade
Ian Jones Quartey as Snowflake Obsidian, Bixbite
Michelle Maryk as Larimar
Auli'i Cravalho as Orange Spodumene
Kimiko Glenn as Blue Chalcedony
Tara Platt as Heaven Cubic Zirconia, Earth Cubic Zirconia
Tara Strong as Grossular Diopside
Phillipa Soo as Chrysocolla
Anika Noni Rose as Watermelon Tourmaline (fusion), Watermelon Tourmaline
Aimee Carrero as Moonstone
Gal Gadot as Desert Glass
Willa Holland as Albite
Maddie Ziegler as Serpentine
Courtenay Taylor as Beryl
Sarah Jessica Parker as Dumortierite
Cavetown as Diaspore
Emily King as Kunzite
Alex Newell as Monazite
Alyson Hannigan as Lavenderine
Avi Roque as Cinnabar
Gina Torres as Andesine
Awkwafina as Kyanite
Allison Janney as Pyrite
Zehra Fazal as Zoisite
Lena Hall as Bloodstone
Jodie Whittaker as Xenotime
Idina Menzel as Amazonite
Halsey as Tanzanite
Mia Barron as Apatite
Sarah Stiles as Spinel
Christine Baranski as Hessonite
Olivia Olson as Citrine, Citrine Twins
Lin-Manuel Miranda as President Eduardo Suarez
Wendie Malick as Vice President Theresa Maxwell
GZA as Major General Wade Grant
Tim Curry as General Lloyd Waller
John Kassir as Reginald Johnson
Stephanie Beatriz as Arleen Suarez
Xolo Mariduena as Huey Suarez
Leslie Grace as Riley Suarez
Pierce Brosnan as Bane Jones
Hugh Jackman as Beckham Jordan
James Monroe Iglehart as Coach Matt Monroe
Karen Fukuhara as Makoto Fuji
Matthew Rhys as Dr. James Brenner
T-Pain as Sam Galley
Christoph Waltz as Francis von Bowling
Rob Paulsen as Mr. Shreds
David Kaye as Collar
Roger Craig Smith as Tank
Alex Hirsch as Lawrence Abrams
Zach Callison as Steven, Onion, Cactus Stevens, Topiary Stevens
Featuring Christopher McDonald as Carl Grove
And Betsy Sodaro as Maureen Grove
--
"It just feels so good to be bad." Black Rutile gloated to the Crystal Gems as she held them prisoner in a makeshift prison. Today had quite possibly been the best day she has ever had on Earth. Black Rutile had now converted multiple Gems to her coalition of rebels, whether by force or through coercion, her enemies were now hers to torment, and their precious Little Homeworld into her newest evil lair. "I haven't felt this utterly delighted to be victorious since the siege of Tweenis 12, I feel like singing! Maestro?"
Amazonite turned on a music player at her master's command, causing Black Rutile to sing a reprise of a familiar song. "Wither the rose! Growing shadows! Sow a world of chaos! Wither the rose! Only highs, no lows! In a world of chaos!"
"Is this really the time to be singing?" Pearl muttered as she tried to break free from her chains.
"Ha!" Black Rutile laughed in response before looking out at her various enforcers. "Come on minions, hurry along! Soon, Beach City will be gone! I could squeeze myself with glee, first the Diamonds and then this galaxy! I really stopped at nothing, gaslighting, terrorism, and lying!" she declared. "Whatever it takes to get revenge, you really can't blame me for trying."
Little Homeworld soon began hovering over Beach City, casting a dark shadow over a large portion of the town while the townies had no idea what was going on. Suddenly, the water holding the Gem village in the air began firing at the humans, making them scurry in fear as Black Rutile finished her song. "Wither the rose! Growing shadows! Sow a world of chaos! Wither the rose! Don't you doze!"
"This planet is basically ours!" Aquamarine sang along.
"We have control over its superpowers!" Eyeball added triumphantly.
"You are helpless to resist!" Holly Blue proclaimed.
"There's no way for you to persist!" Cat's Eye declared.
"Saying sorry just won't cut it!" Cinnabar boomed.
"This universe will be ours, bit by bit!" Andesine stated.
"You thought you could contain us," Black Rutile sang out in victory. "but you can no longer discuss!"
"Genocide, slaughtering, jingoism, in enemy blood, we shall wade!" the seven Gems joined together in harmony. "Rutile Rebels come celebrate, as we make these foolish Crystal Gems fade!" By the time the song ended, Black Rutile looked out at the destruction below her and began making a speech. "People of Beach City, do not look away!" she bellowed to the humans below. "You witness a Rutile's revival, and the birth of her new empire!"
"What do you want now, Black Rutile?!" Lars yelled from below.
"What I want is recognition!" Black Rutile responded. "As you can see, I have officially conquered Little Homeworld and taken the Crystal Gems as my prisoners. The means as to how it can fly can all be blamed on their dear friend, Lapis Lazuli." She looked over at Lapis, who was sitting on the Warp Pad with a blank look on her face. "Despite what the Crystal Gems believed, Little Homeworld was the aspiration of idiots and dreamers! A mere tool to indoctrinate poor, unfortunate Gems who were living lives free of their tyranny. But unfortunately for them, I am far smarter than the average Gem, so I continued planning my revenge for months on end, which leads me today." She then sent out her drones, ready to attack at any moment. "Either surrender to me at once or else your pathetic little town will go bye-bye! Bye-bye."
Down below, Jasper and White Topaz were watching the carnage the entire time, lying in wait for an opportunity to strike back at Black Rutile and save their friends. "So, any idea on how to stop her?" Jasper asked her girlfriend. "I mean, it's just a bunch of us Gems that she could convert at any moment with those Blasters."
"Well, one thing's for certain, Black Rutile has gone too far this time." White Topaz declared. "We kept giving her second chance after second chance, but she always used them to try and destroy us! I've had enough of this! Once we defeat her, she's going straight to Revanche 666 where she belongs!"
"Someone's got leftover issues they need resolving." Teal Zircon added as she popped up behind the two big Gems. "Okay, Topaz and I have spent the last few minutes coming up with a plan."
"If it involves doing something astronomically stupid, then I don't want in." Jasper stopped Teal before she could finish. "What makes you think you could come up with an intelligent plan?"
"Because outside of being the obnoxious but lovable comic relief, I am actually far more observant than you think I am." TZ declared. "Which is why I am 10,000,000,000% certain that my plan will work."
"I'd like to see you try." Jasper scoffed before White Topaz placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Come on honey, just hear her out." White Topaz suggested. Jasper knew she couldn't disappoint her lover, so she relented with a sigh.
"Okay, proceed." Jasper groaned and let Teal explain.
"I say instead of just saving the day ourselves, we team up with the humans to save the world from Black Rutile!" Teal declared proudly. "The people of Beach City have been around us long enough to know what to do in situations like this, and we've gained a few allies over the years to back us up."
"I get what you're saying now." Jasper nodded proudly. "Like him for example!" As if on cue, Dr. James Brenner walked up to the three Gems. "I found him falling to his doom when Black Rutile threw him out. He's her psychologist, ergo, he should know exactly what she's thinking!"
"You are indeed correct, Jasper." Brenner declared. "I have been forced to watch as Black Rutile's schemes took shape, hoping that maybe my advice would get through to her, but alas, my words fell on deaf ears. Perhaps joining forces with all of you can help me redeem myself for being so powerless to help her."
"Great, we have our first recruit!" Teal Zircon cheered while giving the psychologist a hearty slap on the back. "Okay guys, I'll go gather the troops! You two on the other hand will have to find a very special someone."
"Are you pondering what I'm pondering?" Jasper then asked White Topaz.
"I think so Jasp, but Pete Rose?" White Topaz replied oddly, making Jasper raise an eyebrow at such a non-sequitur. "I mean, can we trust him?"
"No, I think Teal means we should fetch Connie!" Jasper yelled. "You and I both know she's been throwing a wrench in Black Rutile's plans multiple times! Her first invasion of Earth, the Steven monster crisis, and the alternate universe business, all of them had Connie involved and she played some role in stopping them all! You see what I'm getting at here?"
"Yeah, I get it now!" White Topaz exclaimed. "To Connie's house!" Just as the two raced off, a small black spy drone was watching the pair and quickly began following them.
--
"Breaking news all the way from Beach City!" Lawrence Abrams announced on the news. "The alien terrorist Black Rutile is once again laying waste to Beach City, and at the same time, our beloved president has been subject to a violent uprising against legions of angry Arnold Clump supporters led by the alt-right Internet personality Reginald Johnson. Are these two events connected? We'll be back after the break with more updates."
"Sweet Manila in the claws of light." Doug Maheswaran gasped in shock as he and Connie watched Black Rutile's invasion on the news. "This is probably something Steven should take care of, right?"
"Hopefully he at least knows what's going on," Connie added as she prepared to reach for her phone, only to hear a knock on the door. "Can someone get that?"
"Don't worry Connie, I'll get it," Priyanka said to her daughter as she opened the door to find Jasper and White Topaz waiting for her outside. "Oh, you must be that Jasper and Topaz who tore apart Beach City."
"You are never going to let go of that." Jasper declared. "Anyways, we need to see your daughter. The world is in danger and we need everyone we can get to save it."
"Right here!" Connie exclaimed while she raced up to the front door with her sword at the ready. "Come on guys, the Crystal Gems need us!"
"Yeah, about that." White Topaz stated nervously. "They kind of broke up because Black Rutile exposed Bismuth for poofing Lapis and is now holding them all hostage at Little Homeworld. Plus, Lapis officially betrayed them to Black Rutile and is helping make Little Homeworld fly. You know what, I think I know of a way to explain this better."
White Topaz then turned her fingers into puppet versions of the Crystal Gems to further go in depth about their situation. "Hey, what's this I hear about Bismuth poofing me and setting me on this path of torment and betrayal?!" her imitation of Lapis complained. "Oh no, the jig is up!" an imitation of Bismuth exclaimed. "Okay, I did poof you, Lapis, but I didn't mean to!"
"Saying you didn't mean it won't save you from me!" the shadow puppet of Lapis yelled before lunging at Bismuth, only for Garnet and Pearl to stop her.
"Top thirty reasons why Bismuth is sorry." The puppet version of Pearl stated. "Number 5 will surprise you."
"Top thirty anime deaths," puppet Lapis continued. "number one: YOUR BUTT RIGHT NOW!"
"I'm just here to be supportive!" a shadow puppet of Amethyst said as she took Lapis and Peridot's side in the tussle, ending with White Topaz making "whoop whoop whoop" sounds as she started twiddling her fingers into a big clump. "And scene!"
"Okay, I'm going to need a refresher here." Priyanka said, shocked at the bizarreness of White Topaz's show. "What does this all mean?"
"Look, the point is that Teal Zircon and all the Gems Black Rutile didn't convert are gathering everyone in Beach City to fight back against Black Rutile, and we believe Connie is the best possible candidate to lead them all." Jasper explained in brief. "If anyone else wishes to join, you're free to come along."
"But what about Steven?" Connie asked. "Surely he'd know what to do in this situation." Suddenly, the tracking drone from earlier emerged from Jasper's hair, making her and White Topaz wonder if it was following them the whole time, and dropped into Connie's hands to deliver a message from Black Rutile.
"Ah, Connie Meka-Leka-Hi-Meka-Hiney-Ho-Swanson, we meet again." The hologram of Black Rutile smirked at her message's intended recipient. "If you are seeing this message, then you're already well aware of my latest revenge scheme and how frequently you've been playing a part in my constant failures. I would kill you and your parents right here and now, but I believe that would be too easy." The very thought of being killed by such a madman unnerved the Maheswarans. "Which is I offer you this challenge! Meet me at the flying Little Homeworld in ninety minutes to face me for the fate of your wretched world, and bring company too. And for an extra challenge, Steven must not get involved in the slightest. Lose, I will kill each and every single one of you. Win?" She let out an evil chuckle. "The only winner will be me, no matter what. Allons-y!"
The drone then shut down and crumbled to pieces of metal in Connie's hand. Despite the threat to her life, it only made her more determined. "Take us to Beach City."
--
Later at Beach City, Teal Zircon was true to her word and had assembled the entirety of its citizens and then some to discuss their plans to stop Black Rutile. Along with all the Gems that escaped Black Rutile's earlier assault, there was the Barriga family and the Off-Colors, Sadie & Shep, the former Cool Kids, the Pizza and Fryman families, Mr. Smiley and Mr. Frowney, Jamie, Kevin, Onion and his friends, Vidalia, Yellowtail, and Sheena Synstylae. In addition, Teal had also managed to get into contact with Bane Jones, Beckham Jordan, Matt Monroe, Makoto Fuji, and Sam Galley. Now, all that was left was Connie and her parents to make their makeshift army complete.
"My my Teal Zircon, you assembled quite an assortment of characters here." Brenner nodded at all the humans and Gems gathered together to stop Black Rutile. "But do you think this will be enough to stop her?"
"Oh, I know so!" Teal yelled excitedly. "You know those kinds of movies and TV shows where there's a team of people who cannot function together, but they pull through regardless? That's what I'm going for here. On our own, we're just a bunch of misfits. But when we're together, now that's something special." Just then, Connie, her parents, Jasper, and White Topaz appeared behind her from a portal created by Lion. "And there's our girl of the hour! Let's give her a hand!"
Everyone began applauding as Connie walked up to Teal Zircon. "Uh, hello everybody, thank you for inviting me to your little get-together. I'm afraid I'm going to need some catching up to do on what's been going on. I don't think a funny little puppet show is enough."
"Then allow me," Brenner said before he spoke to the audience. "As some of you may not know, our 'dear friend' Black Rutile", He put "dear friend" in air-quotes. "has enacted quite possibly her greatest revenge plot yet, and I bore witness to the fruits of her labor overtime as I was assigned to be her criminal psychologist. She has assembled criminal masterminds, bigoted online personalities, more old enemies of the Gems, and forlorn Gems looking for a place to belong. I have tried multiple times to convince her that she wasn't doing the right thing, but she kept ignoring me at every turn."
"Online personalities like who?" Ronaldo raised his hand, making the rest of the crowd turn to him. "You mean Sally Grove? I've had tons of arguments with her about the Gems before."
"Precisely that," James explained. "I have no idea why she is so cruel, but she seemed perfect as one of Black Rutile's top lieutenants, using her social media influence to gather more human followers through the Internet. There is also Francis von Bowling and his cohorts from P.H.A.N.T.O.M, no doubt brought in for their vendetta against the Gems too."
"Well, I'll be." Bane Jones muttered in bemusement while preparing a technologically advanced shotgun.
"In addition, Black Rutile is now joined by this Marty fellow, who claims to have his own grudge because Steven took his son away from him." James continued, giving him strained looks from Greg and Vidalia. "Together, these scoundrels have converted multiple Gems through these strange blasters built to brainwash anyone hit by them!"
"It's because of those blasters Black Rutile took away my crew!" Nephrite sobbed into Biggs Jasper's arms.
"She took out almost the entire Famethyst!" Carnelian added.
"And like, tons of other quartz Gems too." Chest Rose stated. "Me, my sibs, Biggs, Tiger's Eye, and Cherry are the only ones left."
"Hopefully what the Black Pearls said about finding a way to restore them is true." Cherry Quartz nervously said, looking over at the Black Pearl Brigade.
"So, what can we all do?" Beckham Jordan asked. "We're all just a bunch of humans and Gems who have no idea how unprepared we are for this! Heck, I'm just a star basketball player who knows more about how to score a point than fighting battles! What would happen if one of us were to die today? Besides, Steven won't be here to help us!"
"I promise you all, I won't let that happen." Connie declared before unsheathing her sword and holding it to the sky. "The Crystal Temps will defend this planet to the end!"
"Wait, is that what we're calling ourselves?!" Kevin yelled from afar. "Why not something cooler like the Substitute Crystal Gems, or something?!"
"It's very sentimental!" Connie hurriedly replied. "Now who's with me?!"
"I am!" Orange Spodumene yelled while raising her hand.
"I am!" Kofi Pizza and Mr. Fryman shouted in unison.
"And me too!" Sam Galley added excitedly. "Also, just want to get this outta the way, but I have a bit of a crush on Amethyst."
"Me three!" Lavenderine shouted, followed by a wave of excitement from the gathered New Crystal Temps.
"Aw, what the heck, I haven't got that long a lifespan anyways." Kevin resigned himself to the cause. While Connie proudly looked over at the crowd united for a singular purpose, she felt a familiar hand touching her shoulder.
"I'm in too." Priyanka proclaimed, much to her daughter's surprise. "After that hospital incident, I feel like it's time for me to get involved in your Crystal Gem business and be on the frontlines."
"Well, someone's a little eager." Brenner smiled at Priyanka before looking over at Doug. "And what shall you do for this, sir?"
"I think I'll go look into the Sally Grove situation." Doug answered. "Her parents deserve to know that their daughter is basically selling out the human race to Black Rutile. But be sure to call me so I can still join in."
"Black Rutile told me that I have to meet her in ninety minutes," Connie announced while looking at her watch. "Well, this announcement went by quicker than expected. Anyways, let's save the world!" The New Crystal Temps then began cheering for their grand leader.
--
Meanwhile, in the dark void of space, Revanche 666 was now completely abandoned following Cinnabar and Andesine's escape from the prison. Black Pearl guards, Bismuths, and Peridots were locked in cells formerly occupied by members of the Rutile Rebels, surviving on a false hope that someone would come to save them. However, two particular prisoners weren't meant to be there. They just wanted to get in, stop a prison riot, and get out. But fate had other plans.
"How long has it been since we were trapped here by Cinnabar's plotting and my own recklessness?" Hessonite muttered to Citrine as the two languished in their prison cells. "Feels like we've been stranded here for eons."
"It's only been a few weeks, Hessonite." Citrine stated. "But yeah, it really has felt like forever. I mean, it would take a miracle for someone to notice that we're stuck here!" Suddenly, the two heard something crash through the walls. "Well, what do you know?"
"Hey, anybody here?!" Spinel yelled as she and Lemon Jade emerged from a spaceship they just crashed into the prison. "The Diamonds were getting worried that something bad happened!"
"Over here Spinel, over here!" Hessonite yelled to Spinel. "Hello, it's me, Hessonite, and yes, I am exactly who you're looking for."
"Yeah, we haven't seen you guys since you went to stop that prison breakout," Spinel answered while turning her hand into a ventriloquist dummy resembling Yellow Diamond. "Old Yeller was like 'I fear something might've gone horribly wrong on Revanche 666. I need someone to volunteer to investigate.' Luckily, I was there to oblige."
"And I simply got dragged along." Lemon Jade added. "So what did happen?"
"We thought Andesine and her entourage had surrendered, but it was all a ruse she and Cinnabar set up to escape," Citrine explained to the visitors. "Now we're all stuck behind bars with no way to leave, no way of contacting anyone outside this prison, and no way to deactivate our cells. Do either of you have any bright ideas?"
"I got one! I saw this on a TV show once." Spinel replied before she leaned on the wall between Hessonite and Citrine's cells and gave it a hard knock, which somehow forced the destabilizing fields guarding the two to deactivate. "Ey!" she added with two thumbs up. "You can thank me later."
"Finally!" Hessonite sighed with relief while shaking Spinel's hand as she emerged from her cell. "But what about everyone else?"
"Don't worry, I got this," Citrine said as she walked out of her cell and straight to the control room.
"So, where are Cinnabar and Andesine now?" Lemon Jade asked Hessonite.
"The two of them are currently on Earth aiding Black Rutile in whatever harebrained scheme she has now planned," Hessonite stated while the prison staff was released from their cells. "We need to act quickly if we want to stop all of them in their tracks."
"Roger roger, live long and prosper and all that!" Spinel exclaimed. "Come on Jade, let's chew bubblegum and kick some butt! And I'm all out of bubblegum."
"I'm not sure if I'm equipped for a fight, but whatever you say, I'll follow," Lemon said as she, Spinel, Hessonite, and Citrine boarded the ship Spinel crashed earlier and took off for Earth to bring Cinnabar & Andesine to justice.
--
"Ocean Town." Doug muttered to himself as he pulled into Beach City's sister town, easily identified by a sign declaring "STILL NOT ON FIRE." His journey ended at a shabby but homely-looking one-story house where he pulled into the driveway before getting out and knocking on the front door. An overweight, middle-aged fellow with a receding hairline, a barely shaved mustache, and clothes that looked like they haven't been washed in days soon answered. "Hello, is this the Grove residence?"
"What's it to ya?" the fat man said while pulling a half-eaten hot dog out of his pocket to shove in his mouth.
"Doug Maheswaran from Beach City." Doug introduced himself to the man while pulling out his ID. "I'm here to speak about your daughter, Sally."
"Oh good, I thought you were here about the body we found on the train tracks." The man sighed in relief before turning his head to call for someone. "Maureen!"
"What?!" what Doug assumed to be the man's wife hollered back.
"We got a cop here to talk about Sally!" the man replied before letting Doug inside and sitting him down and offering him a drink. "Here, have a shot on me."
"No thanks, I'm good." Doug rejected the offer before a skinny woman hiding her bleached blonde hair in a bandana walked into the living room. "Hello there miss, I'm here to talk to you about your daughter's recent activities."
"Ah yeah, Sally." The woman said as she and her husband sat down on the couch. "I always kept hearing her talk with that alien woman on her whatchacallit….computer. Anyways, my name's Maureen Grove and this is my husband Carl."
"Well, that alien woman is a known bigoted criminal who is plotting to destroy the world." Doug revealed, making Carl and Maureen blankly stare at each other in silence. "Something the matter, you two?"
"Shoulda known our girl would do something like this." Maureen Grove shook her head in shame. "If you think Sally's views were a product of an abusive upbringing or some kind of trauma, I'm afraid you're mistaken, officer. She was diagnosed with kajigger disorder or something."
"Antisocial personality disorder." Carl Grove corrected his wife. "What we're saying is that Sally is just not a pleasant person to be around, especially in this current era of that danged Internet. She thrives on being so smug & self-righteous and making people hate her, yet at the same time she wonders why everyone hates her. And we've tried our best to help her, but she always kept picking on us for stupid reasons! It's absurd, I tells ya!"
"So, she brought this upon herself," Doug said while writing down in his notepad. "Would you care to further elaborate on her behavior?"
"She also had this TubeTube channel that barely had any subscribers because people would rather watch cat videos, let's plays, and those creepy kids' videos," Maureen answered. "But then came that weird monster attack last year, where everything changed forever."
--
"Sally honey, time for dinner!" Carl called for his daughter while knocking on the door. "Mama's making chili cheese dogs tonight!"
"I can buy and sell you, old man!" Sally insulted her father from behind her bedroom door.
"Fair enough, just starve then because I'm a man." Carl casually replied as he walked away. "I swear, we have got to get her a therapist soon." He muttered to himself. "Dropping out of college I can understand, but she desperately needs to do something with her life."
"CARL, GET DOWN HERE!" Maureen shrieked for her husband. "SOMEONE'S INTERRUPTED AMERICAN IDOL!"
"They WHAT?!" Carl bellowed as he charged down the stairs to see what was going on. To his alarm, their TV show was cut off by the sudden appearance of Black Rutile on their television screen as she made a speech.
"Greetings to the civilians of this backwater planet. I am Black Rutile, soon to be supreme ruler of the Gem race." Black Rutile introduced herself to audiences around the world. "I come to you today because you are faced with a crisis that has been right under your noses for thousands of years now, and it can all be blamed on the Crystal Gems."
"Nothing that changing the channel won't fix." Carl declared as he picked up the remote and tried switching to another channel. Unfortunately, Black Rutile was interrupting the programming there, and on every other channel too. "What the Sam Hill is going on here?! Who would believe such malarkey?!"
"They have been living among your people since the dawn of man, and have brought numerous world-ending threats along with." Black Rutile's speech continued on Sally's computer, much to her curiosity. "From loads of monsters that were formerly members of their kind, to insane terraformers that stole the ocean for selfish purposes followed by nearly drowning thousands once they returned the water to Earth, a superweapon made from the remains of their own kind that remains buried under the Earth as we speak, repeated counts of abductions and the near-genocide of all organic life." Despite Black Rutile clearly spreading lies about the Crystal Gems, the desperate TubeTube user felt a special sort of parasocial connection to her. "But now we are faced with a new problem, and it's all thanks to one Gem: Pink Diamond. It's because of her that this monstrosity plaguing the Earth at this moment is running amok and the Crystal Gems have done nothing to stop it, or her for that matter. Should you believe this planet is worth saving, something must be done about the Crystal Gems, or you will suffer the consequences. That will be all."
With the end of Black Rutile's warning, Sally's life was changed forever. Her TubeTube channel was then completely overhauled to benefit from her newfound hatred of the Crystal Gems. They caused so much chaos and destruction, yet they're celebrated as heroes. Sally simply gives her opinion, and she's constantly villainized for it. To her, that simply wasn't fair. But what no one realized about Sally was terrified of growing past her bigoted, misanthropic mindset and becoming a better person because she believed kindness and compassion were signs of weakness. And she despised being weak.
--
"Ever since then, that Black Rutile yutz has been a bad influence on our girl." Carl finished his story. "Sally's been completely off her rocker because of her. Every time we tried setting her up with various lovers, she just kept abusing them. Especially this one feller named Fred who she kept saying had a small di-"
"Anything else I should know before I leave?" Doug asked, cutting off Carl before he could finish. "What other crimes has she committed?"
"What hasn't she committed?" Maureen replied. "Thankfully, she hasn't done anything super serious, but she's also formed lynch mobs online against random people she hates, and cyberbullied her so-called friends away. And let's not forget that she wrote some really disturbing fanfiction!" She cringed in disgust at the thought.
"Right, thank you for your time, Mr. and Mrs. Grove, I promise I'll have your daughter returned home so she can get the help she deserves," Doug said as he got up and prepared to leave, only for Carl to stop him.
"Hey, before you go, officer," Carl said before presenting Doug with a chili cheese dog. "care for a chili cheese dog? Can't save the world on an empty stomach."
"You know what? I'll take it." Doug accepted the dog before pulling out his phone. "Connie, I'll be coming back soon. Is everything ready?"
"Almost, Dad," Connie responded. "Bane Jones helped us get everybody weapons for the big fight. We just need to wait on you now."
--
Elsewhere in Washington D.C., President Eduardo Suarez, his vice president Theresa Maxwell, Wade Grant, Lloyd Waller, and his presidential cabinet remained in hiding from the forces of Reginald Anderson. Having just witnessed his family being held hostage, the White House being overtaken, and one of the secret service agents under his employment brutally beaten to near death, the president was naturally anxious about what to do next. What's more, there's no way he can contact the Crystal Gems at the moment. He was at an utter loss at what to do.
"Never seen Eddy this worked up in ages," Theresa muttered in wonder at her president's nervous pacing. "Last time I've seen him like this was when Clump seemed to have beat him in the polls."
"I wouldn't blame him," Lloyd replied. "Country's in crisis again, plus his family is in grave danger. Poor thing looks like he'll have a panic attack at any moment."
"I'll go have a talk with him," Wade said as he walked over to his chief and put a hand on his shoulder. "Mr. President, are you feeling alright? Do you need anything before we make our decision?"
"No, I'm perfectly fine!" Eduardo exclaimed bravely, a far cry from the nervous front he was just putting up. "I'm willing to give everything for this country, as a good president should!" However, his courageous smile was quickly replaced with an insecure frown. "But what can I do when my family's lives are at stake here? One wrong move and I could lose everything."
"You're right, he's giving us a very tough choice here." Wade nodded when he suddenly got an idea. "Wait, I know!" Whatever he whispered into the president's ear, Eduardo was liking what he was hearing. "You got that?"
"I like what you're saying." Eduardo nodded. "Let's do it." Just then, three men opened the doors to One Observatory Drive and walked in. The first man wore a nice suit and was balding, while his two associates were dressed in a tank top and a collared shirt respectively. "Hello there."
"Greetings Mr. President, my name is Mr. Shreds." Mr. Shreds introduced himself to the president. "These are my two associates, Tank and Collar, and we are here to deliver you to Reginald Johnson so you can relinquish your presidency."
"Just move along now and don't keep us waiting!" Collar said as he and Tank took Eduardo by the arms and guided him to their limo. "Any last words, sir?"
"Yes, I'd like to make a personal request to Reginald." Eduardo nodded. "I'd like to have a public debate with him, face to face."
"As absurd as your request is, I shall grant it," Tank replied begrudgingly, not knowing what he was in for as the limousine drove away.
"So what did you tell him?" Theresa asked Wade as the two worriedly watched Eduardo be taken away.
"You'll see." Wade gave the vice president a knowing smirk.
--
"Making yourselves comfortable, Crystal Gems?" Black Rutile asked her prisoners while paying them one last visit to their cell. "Doesn't matter to me, because I got special plans for you."
"What is it now?" Peridot muttered disdainfully. "Is it about how you're so much better than us because you're not us?"
"Whatever it is, just get it over with already," Bismuth added sadly. "I deserve it for what I put Lapis through."
"Yes, yes you did." Lapis harshly agreed. "You poofed me and then forced me to be the dumb little plaything that you'll always throw away when you don't need me."
"You're still depressed about that?!" Black Rutile groaned in irritation as the brainwashed Emerald pulled up a throne for Black Rutile to sit on. "I'm saying that this could all be avoided if you joined me! Over time, I began to realize that the Rutile Rebels aren't as different from the Crystal Gems as I thought. We all started out as nobodies, did something extraordinary that made us different from the rest of our kin, rose to the top, and earned the respect of the Diamonds, only to have all torn down by a person who didn't even care about them." She declared. "I'll admit, when I first heard about Little Homeworld, I wanted to destroy it so bad, especially when you locked me up here. But after spending some time trapped here, I, ever the opportunist, decided that I could make it into something better!"
"Like turning it into our new secret lair for example!" Aquamarine added.
"And we have your stupid bickering to thank for it!" Eyeball said as all the other Rutile Rebels threw their heads back and laughed.
"What I'm trying to say is that there are special people like us who should run the world, and then there are the disgusting humans who deliver our food and fight our wars." Black Rutile continued. "Which is why I'm offering you this one-time opportunity. Let us work together for once so we can truly bring Gems and humans together in peace and harmony!" To emphasize her point, she turned on a news report documenting the attack on the White House. "Refuse, and I shall make you pay with your lives! Bring out the Disintegrator!"
"Wait, the Disintegrator?!" Bismuth shrieked in terror as Sally walked in with a small, glowing boxlike device in her hands that she set on the table. "I thought that was outlawed eons ago! How did you get one?!"
"You'd be surprised what I can accomplish through mixing Gem technology with human garbage." Black Rutile stated while presenting the device. "For those uninformed, most likely you Amethyst, this was an ancient torture device built to execute criminal Gems by grinding them up into dust and dispersing them in the air in a beautiful yet morbid fashion."
"Curious, most curious." Francis von Bowling nodded with intrigue. "And how does it work exactly?"
"Allow me to demonstrate." Black Rutile responded before presenting a small rock she placed in the Disintegrator. She then turned it on, and the rock was instantly ground up into dust in a terrifying show of the machine's power, leaving the Gems horrified yet not surprised she would use something like that. "That oughta show you for brainwashing us all!"
"You're kidding me?" Pearl scoffed. "You claim we're brainwashing Gems against their and forcing them to join our side when that's literally what you are doing with those devices! Those aren't rejuvenating blasters, they're inculcating blasters! All these new Gems of yours say: "All hail Black Rutile! All hail Black Rutile!", but the Gems we teach would never say anything like that. We didn't force them to come here, they made that choice willingly."
"Kind of like how Lapis willingly joined me after I convinced her of how alone we were in the universe?" Black Rutile retorted, pointing to a sullen Lapis in the darkness. "Or how I convinced Sally Grove here to be a kindred spirit?"
"Yeah, that reminds me," Amethyst asked. "How could you team up with someone that obviously evil? Surely, you must have some tragic reason for doing so, right?"
"No, no tragic reason at all," Sally admitted without a single ounce of empathy in her voice. "I just like being hated. It makes me feel powerful."
"Hatred makes all of us powerful." Holly Blue agreed with Sally, with Cat's Eye by her side with her cat Blake in her arms.
"Very powerful." Cat's Eye agreed.
"Okay, we've had enough taunting, let's get to executing!" Black Rutile declared eagerly as she began choosing which Crystal Gem to disintegrate. However, her choice was pretty easy. "Bismuth, do you volunteer as tribute?"
"Wait, what?!" Bismuth muttered as the brainwashed Demantoid and Pyrope freed her from her shackles to be executed. "You won't get away with this, Black Rutile!"
"As a matter of fact, I've gotten away with it months ago." Black Rutile cruelly sneered while shoving the Disintegrator towards Bismuth. "Now, you might feel a little tingle."
"Lapis, please, I'm sorry!" Bismuth cried out for possibly the last time to Lapis, but she didn't seem to listen. All Lapis could do was turn away in shame. As Bismuth was about to be thrown into the machine and the other Crystal Gems cried for Black Rutile not to do it, the Disintegrator was suddenly stabbed with an epee, causing it to shut down. "What?"
"You!" Black Rutile yelled at Tanzanite for destroying her machine. "I have put hours upon hours into building that, and you made it all for nothing!"
"That's because you've gone too far this time, and I can't do this anymore!" Tanzanite yelled angrily while proceeding to free Bismuth, Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl, and Peridot from their restraints. "Brainwashing is one thing, but executing too?"
"Are you seriously trying to talk back to your master?" Black Rutile growled angrily. "You know how Rose lied to you, you know how she left you to die and become part of a planet-destroying abomination against your will! I was there for you, and this is how you repay me?!"
"Yes, the Crystal Gems aren't honest, but their intentions are definitely real." Tanzanite declared firmly, bringing a tear to Pearl's eye before her former student was threatened with Black Rutile's bowie knife.
"Take that back and fight for me, or pay the price." Black Rutile ordered Tanzanite to stand down, and the punk purple Gem meekly did as she was told while Navy raced up to her master's side. "Yes, Ruby?"
"We got humans and enemy Gems at 12:00!" Navy yelled hurriedly.
"Did you tell them I hate them?" Black Rutile asked while turning her bowie knife into her sword. "No matter." With a superhuman leap, Black Rutile bounded out of her lair and landed in front of the New Crystal Temps before striking a pose as she drew her sword. "Well, don't stop on my account."
"Black Rutile, we've come to finally bring you to justice!" Connie declared while raising her sword in the air. "In the name of the Crystal Gems, the planet Earth, and the entire universe, we'll punish you for your crimes. And this time, we'll make it permanent. Do you yield?"
Black Rutile just sneered at Connie's bold declaration and responded with simply "I do not." With a snap of her fingers, the other Rutile Rebels, including a reluctant Tanzanite and Lapis, soon gathered behind her to counter Connie's forces. Just then, however, the Crystal Gems leaped out from behind the Rutile Rebels to join Connie and the others, followed by Spinel, Hessonite, Citrine, and Lemon Jade crashing into Little Homeworld on their ship.
"CRYSTAL GEMS!" Garnet roared while summoning her gauntlets. "Assemble." With that, everyone behind Connie roared as they charged into battle against Black Rutile and her enforcers, along with legions of brainwashed Gems, Concrete warriors, and Cactus & Topiary Stevens once again forced to serve Black Rutile. This was a day unlike any other when humans and Gems alike found themselves united against a common foe for the first time in thousands of years. On that day, everyone in Beach City became a Crystal Gem.
--
"Of course, you would find a way to ruin my plans!" Black Rutile said as she got into an intense swordfight with Connie. The battle for Earth had already gotten off to a rousing start. Bane Jones and Beckham Jordan fought side by side against von Bowling and his men, Kevin and Vidalia were up against Marty in a mechanical war suit, and Lars had a rematch with Emerald, among many other battles. "For too long now, you've always been interfering and you didn't even know it!"
"It's called loyalty Black Rutile, something you would probably never know!" Connie retorted before going in for a stab, only to be blocked by Sally Grove fighting back with a laser sword. "And as for you!"
"Don't even try to preach to me, little girl." Sally taunted in her usual high and mighty fashion. "We all know you would've found a way to call your white savior because you have no other personality outside of being his protector! You're a disgrace to your ethnicity, brat!"
"That's what you think, bullying my daughter like that!" Priyanka retorted with a sword of her own to fight Sally and Black Rutile with. "Apologize to her at once or I will reveal everything your parents told my husband!"
"What do you mean I have to apologize?! She attacked me!" Sally said before she realized what the doctor meant. "Wait, really? Oh no, no no no no!"
"Yeah, they told me some pretty messed up stuff about you," Doug said while putting out his notepad and reading what he had written earlier, making Sally writhe in agony while Black Rutile looked disdainfully at her human charge. "Let's see, abusing everyone around you, including your own parents, refusing to grow beyond your toxic personality while also blaming it on everyone around you, that disturbing fanfiction-"
"It's only disturbing from a certain point of view, having sexual relationships with your family members is perfectly normal in some parts of the world!" Sally only kept digging herself deeper into insanity in her attempts to preserve her image, unaware that Ronaldo had been live-streaming her this entire time, and her reputation was falling apart by the second. "Hey, turn that camera off!"
"No way, this is going to make a killing on Keep Beach City Weird!" Ronaldo laughed mischievously. "Wow, these negative comments expressing how betrayed your viewers must be for how much of a hypocrite you're being are coming in by the dozens."
"It's the same story I've seen so many times." Doug shook his head in disgust as Sally had an utter breakdown in front of the Maheswarans and Black Rutile, who was just as disgusted at how pathetic her partner was. "A fine, upstanding bigot. Your nose is so close to the grindstone, you can't see anything else. Meanwhile, the world changes and grows, and you're blind to it! Ignorant and proud of it too."
"Am I glad that's not me!" Black Rutile scoffed hypocritically as Sally was handcuffed and taken somewhere safe until the battle was over. "Now where were we? Oh yes!" She immediately got right back to her clash with Connie.
--
"So, calming down Lapis." Peridot muttered as she, Jasper, and White Topaz stood in front of Lapis and Phoenix Lapis fighting Laz and Zuli. "Got any ideas?"
"You're her life partner, you should know!" Jasper exclaimed while Laz and Zuli fought for their lives. "Paz, got any bright ideas?"
"I think I might have a good idea of what to do." White Topaz declared. "Bismuth, we need your help!"
"I'm in the middle of something here!" Bismuth replied while she was fighting Andesine and Cinnabar. "Oh, you want me to make up with Lapis, right?"
"Hopefully having her back on our side will turn the tide of battle!" White Topaz suggested, causing Bismuth to knock her two opponents out and walk up to her. "Just say what you need to say and hopefully she'll listen."
"This had better work." Bismuth took a deep breath and yelled "HEY LAPIS, OVER HERE!" The four Lapises then turned to see Bismuth below. "No, not you, the one who hates me!" she corrected herself.
"What do you want now?" Lapis angrily asked as she hovered on the ground.
"Listen Lapis, I know you won't ever forgive me and the other Crystal Gems for what we did to you," Bismuth said. "but I swear, if you listen and understand we didn't know what we did, maybe we can finally start making amends."
"Wait, you mean it?" Lapis's face softened in surprise.
"Yeah, we're still your friends!" White Topaz declared happily.
"And besides, I'm the only one who gets to be all sullen and betrayed here!" Jasper added before reaching her hand out. "Just take my hand."
Lapis started smiling again, bringing smiles to Peridot and White Topaz's faces as well, and began to reach out to Jasper. However, she was quickly interrupted by Cinnabar and Andesine's groups pointing their Rejuvenation Blasters at the Crystal Gems.
"Make another move, and we'll have to reset all of you." Cinnabar declared coldly.
"Now then, any last words?" Andesine smirked.
"I got one," Bismuth stated before raising her fist at Lapis's gem. "Please don't hate me for this again!" With a single punch, Lapis was poofed yet again, this time to save her from being shot with the Rejuvenation Blaster as the Rutile Rebels began opening fire, prompting Bismuth, Jasper, White Topaz, and Peridot to scatter.
"I'll be taking this to reverse-engineer, thank you very much!" Peridot snickered as she robbed Howlite of her Blaster to experiment on and ran away with a maniacal "NYEH-HAHAHAHAHA!"
"After her!" Howlite commanded and raced after Peridot with Dalmatian Jasper, Zoisite, Amber, and Xenotime behind her.
"Check it out, I got a Rejuvenation Blaster!" Peridot said to Squaridot and IQ while presenting the stolen blaster to them. "Maybe we can work together to find a way to use it to get everyone back to normal!"
"That's some good thinking, Peridot." Squaridot complimented the other Peridot's idea before the three geniuses snuck off to get to work.
--
"So it's come to this, Tanzanite, the student versus the master," Pearl said as she took a battle stance, and Tanzanite did the same. "Tell me Tanzanite, why did you join Black Rutile instead of accepting everything as it was? I understand if you felt betrayed by Rose, but this is not a healthy way of coping."
"It's because I just wanted to save everyone from what I suffered," Tanzanite revealed sadly as she clashed with her former mentor. "My friends! My family! Everything I did was for the galaxy, for the Crystal Gems! But it was all for nothing, Pink Diamond used all of us to avoid the consequences of her actions." Despite how much Pearl tried to speak up, Tanzanite kept ranting. "I had to use my skills on friends; on family; Gems that I knew. She controlled us through lies." She then let out a strained and tearful laugh. "Homeworld, no better than the rebels Rose created. I helped terrorize my people! I wanted you to stop it, I had to stop it. I spoke out. I spoke out to Black Rutile, to save everyone from you! But when I did, I only stood with a monster. You chose Pink Diamond." Now, Tanzanite was on the verge of tears as she sobbed into Pearl's chest. "You left me, gave me no choice! The Diamonds wanted to destroy worlds, and they did. Pink destroyed mine."
"Oh, poor dear," Pearl muttered sorrowfully while holding her old student close. "But do you still believe Black Rutile is good for you?"
"I'm not sure if anyone is good for me." Tanzanite sobbed. "I don't know if Black Rutile really cares for me or if she just saw me as a tool."
"Black Rutile never cared for anyone to begin with." Pearl declared before she held Tanzanite's head in her hands. "I'm truly sorry that I made you choose this path, and I promise that there will be no more secrets between us from now on. Is that good?"
"Yeah, but I'm not sure if I can forgive myself for this." Tanzanite agreed just as she felt the business end of a Rejuvenation Blaster pressing the back of her head.
"Another last-minute betrayal, I see." Andesine grinned while preparing to pull the trigger, only for Tanzanite to smack it out of Andesine's hands with her epee before stabbing her in the chest.
"Now look what you made ME do," Tanzanite smirked as she threw what Andesine said when she shattered her back in the red Gem's face before she poofed.
--
"Okay Mr. S, here we are." Mr. Shreds said as he pulled the limo up to the White House and let Eduardo out. "Just make it quick, I'm on a tight schedule here," Eduardo said nothing as he saw his family surrounded by terrorists and Reginald smugly standing by a video camera and a podium.
"Go on Mr. Prez, don't be shy." Reginald mockingly urged Eduardo. "Just say what you need to say."
"That's exactly what I was going to say to you." Eduardo declared before trapping Reginald in a headlock. "NOW!" The SWAT team immediately overwhelmed Reginald's enforcers while Reginald tried his best to fight back, only to be met with a krav maga kick from Theresa, coming straight out of nowhere.
"Did you plan all this?!" Reginald shouted.
"Well, not necessarily," Eduardo replied as Wade and Lloyd came to handcuff Reginald. "It's just that I'm far more quick on my feet than you'll ever be."
"Dad!" Huey and Riley Suarez cried as Theresa freed them from their restraints and hugged their father.
"Oh, mi preciosos, I was so worried," Eduardo said as he hugged them back before seeing Arlene walk towards them as well. "And I surely didn't forget you, my love."
"And you never will," Arleen replied before kissing her husband. And so, the White House was saved, thanks to the president and his quick thinking. Now all he had to do was hope that the Crystal Gems were doing alright.
--
"Must I remind you of my superiority, pretty boy?" Marty taunted Kevin while showing off the capabilities of his war suit. "Face it, hiding behind all these beautiful women won't get you anywhere in life!"
"Yeah, I'm absolutely unequipped for this, but that won't stop me from trying!" Kevin exclaimed before beginning to fight back.
"How could you, Marty?" Vidalia asked her ex-husband. "I knew you were a dirtbag, but selling out the entire human race for what? Just because you're mad we disowned you!"
"Oh yeah, I'm absolutely livid," Marty agreed. "but I'm mostly just here to get even with you guys. I don't give a damn about Black Rutile's whole rebellion business!"
Meanwhile, Bane Jones, Beckham, Makoto, and Matt were all standing back-to-back against Francis von Bowling's men. "So, when this is all over, could I perhaps get an autograph?" Bane asked Beckham. "I'm a huge fan, and I consider it an honor to be fighting for Earth with you."
"I'd be more than happy to." Beckham smiled at the offer.
"Hey boys, can we pick up the pace a bit?!" Makoto said while delivering an upside-down spinning kick to Konstantin, Pavel, and Leo at once.
Above the chaos going on in Little Homeworld, Black Rutile stood atop the whirlybird tower and was not happy with how her forces were losing. "STOOOOOP THEM!" she shrieked angrily while pulling at her hair just as she turned to see Connie, Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl, Peridot, Bismuth, Jasper, White Topaz, Spinel, Hessonite, and now Tanzanite standing behind her. "You! You ruined everything again! I could've made everything perfect!"
"You didn't want to make things perfect." Tanzanite declared to Black Rutile. "You just hated things the way they are."
"This is your final warning, Black Rutile." Garnet declared. "And this time, we won't be giving you a second chance. You and your minions are headed straight for Revanche 666 after this!"
"Fine, if I can never win, then neither should you!" Black Rutile completely snapped. "Aquamarine, Eyeball, Chrome Chalcedony, to me!"
"Ready as always, Black Rutile!" Aquamarine said as she and Eyeball fused into Bluebird Azurite, while Holly Blue and Cat's Eye arrived to make Chrome Chalcedony.
"And now, for a little surprise!" Bluebird proclaimed.
"I have a little joke for you all." Black Rutile smiled dementedly while grabbing Bluebird's hand. "What do you get when you cross a depressed loner with a society that abandons her and treats her like trash?!"
"That's not a very good joke!" Amethyst replied.
"I'll tell you what you get, you get what you deserve!" Black Rutile shrieked before she and Bluebird merged to form Pietersite, now sporting Black Rutile's new pink cape and red visor in addition to her outfit now looking different to fit Aquamarine's regeneration.
"PIETERSITE LIVES!" Pietersite bellowed loudly for all to hear and cringe in fear. "AND NOW CRYSTAL GEMS, IT IS TIME FOR THE FINAL CURTAIN CALL!"
"I don't think so!" Peridot said as she fired a Rejuvenation Blaster at the two fusions, which they dodged only for the blast to hit one of Nephrite's crew and revert her to normal. "I stole one of those blasters from Howlite and reverse-engineered them to change everyone hit by them back to normal."
"I'm free, I've been freed!" the Nephrite cheered at finally being brought back to her old self.
"What?" Pietersite muttered in horror as the Crystal Gems immediately understood what was going to happen and raced down to solid ground so they can do the same for all the other Gems Black Rutile converted. "No! No no no! Don't do that, I worked so hard!"
"Stop them!" Chrome Chalcedony added as she and Pietersite tried fighting back against the enemy, but as the Crystal Gems' forces grew with every Gem turned back to normal, they were quickly outnumbered.
"Well, we're boned," Apatite muttered as she and Amazonite prepared to leave. "Let's skedaddle!"
"I don't think that'll be necessary," Amazonite replied as she and Apatite found themselves confronted by the entirety of Beach City's population, and they weren't happy.
"Goin' somewhere?" Sheena Synstylae cracked her neck and her knuckles.
"Don't worry, you're not the only ones we'll be punishing," Lars added.
"We'll finally gain an advantage over Black Rutile!" Padparadscha Sapphire exclaimed happily.
Pietersite could barely comprehend what happened, and it was so anticlimactic too. Her forces were subdued, her weapons seized and modified to fix what she had done, and now all that was left of the Rutile Rebels was her, Aquamarine, and Eyeball once again. "Please no, just give me a second chance!"
"Not likely," Lapis said as she summoned a sawblade made of water that sliced Pietersite in half, barely giving her a chance to fight because the Crystal Gems now considered Black Rutile to be that pathetic to not even consider a grander defeat. To seal the deal, Little Homeworld was returned to its rightful place outside of Beach City with help from the Lapis Lazulis.
Black Rutile, Aquamarine, and Eyeball all fell to the ground in defeat, while the rest of the Rutile Rebels were brought together in chains. "I hate happy endings."
"Well, that should about wrap everything up!" Pearl sighed in relief once the dust settled. "Now then, it's off to Revanche 666 you all go!"
"And me too," Tanzanite added, much to Pearl's shock. "Even if I changed my ways, I still need to forgive myself for siding with Black Rutile too."
"Indeed, young Tanzanite." James began one final monologue. "At the end of the day, we are all but individuals crying for fairness in our lives. You won't get everything, but you'll get something. The Crystal Gems finally restore peace, while Black Rutile hopefully realizes how futile her schemes were. In the end, we just need to decide what is fair and what isn't."
"Oh, be quiet!" Black Rutile said as Hessonite and Spinel carted her away to the ship Andesine and Cinnabar hijacked in their prison break, while everyone was left to rejoice.
--
"So, that's all that happened?" Steven asked Connie a few days later over video chat. "Wow, sounds like you had quite the adventure."
"Yeah, and that's not even getting into what happened next," Connie stated. "First, Marty's now on the run from the law and lost everything. Then, Kevin got a key to the city."
"That's a phrase I never expected to hear." Steven laughed. "What else happened?"
"The Crystal Gems have all made up with each other and the Diamonds, and they're getting the therapy they need from Dr. Sucrose, Mr. Ikari, and Dr. Brenner." Connie continued. "Speaking of which, Brenner put Sally Grove under house arrest and is writing a book about the psychology of influencers, Neil Michaels is stuck doing ChikFlix movies to recoup his losses, Francis von Bowling is stuck in prison with Reginald Johnson, the president is still alive, and finally, the Rutile Rebels are all safely behind bars for what they've done. But I kinda doubt they'll stay there for long because evil geniuses are harder to squash than cockroaches."
"Hey, Connie!" Lapis cried while knocking on Connie's window, now back in her Crystal Gem uniform. When Connie peeked her head outside, she could see the other Crystal Gems outside her house. "You got a minute?"
"I'll call you back Steven!" Connie said before hanging up on Steven and racing outside to meet with her alien friends, no doubt to go on another adventure together. In the distance, the Officer was recording everything he saw and sending it to his masters.
--
Meanwhile, on Revanche 666, the prison was restored to order as the Rutile Rebels were locked behind the destabilizing fields in their cells.
"Hey, don't be so bummed out everyone!" Kyanite exclaimed. "We can make prison life fun!"
"Oh be quiet!" Zoisite yelled angrily.
"I did pretend to get sent to prison only to get sent to prison for real!" Amber added. "I'm getting anxious!"
"Hey, is no one going to check up on Black Rutile?" Dalmatian Jasper asked while pointing at Black Rutile sitting calmly in her cell.
"She's looking even mopier than me," Xenotime added worriedly. "I hope she's alright."
Hiding from the endless chatter of Zoisite's team, a restored Emerald, Morganite, Demantoid & Pyrope who were behind bars to repent, Black Rutile gazed emotionlessly at her hand as she wondered how it all came to this. So many months of planning have now gone to waste, once again because of the Gems' human friends. This made her finally ask herself one thing. "Is this still worth it?"
--
This went way longer than I expected, and with way too many characters I put on the cast list that didn't get a line! I've recently found it to be a bad habit of mine, and I hope to remedy that in future stories. I also think I kind of rushed this to be as big as possible while still meeting my deadline. But in the meantime, I hope you all enjoyed these past thirteen weeks and I get to enjoy a break at last and maybe pursuing either a story I haven't written yet or one I still need to finish. But for now, let's see what to come in the finale.
--
"Your Highness, we received another update from Aescul!" a snakelike alien told his master, another snake alien who was far larger and resembled a king cobra, as he received the news from their deep cover agent. "He says now might finally be the time."
"Excellent work, sir." The king cobra alien said to his subordinate while slithering away. "You are dismissed." The cobra then retreated into a mysterious chamber where he met with a shadowy figure towering above him. "It's time for the Gems to enter our contest, great Lapidarist." He declared to the shadow. "Soon, we shall return your children to you."
The shadowy figure began glowing a brilliant white light as it woke up, followed by shimmering with every possible color in existence while laying eyes upon its servant.
--
Featuring Voltaire as King Cobralan Jormagundr
TO BE CONCLUDED IN STEVEN UNIVERSE: SNAKE EYES
A FINALE THREE YEARS IN THE MAKING
#steven universe#steven universe future#fanfiction#steven universe alternate future#little homeworld life#black rutile#connie maheswaran#garnet#amethyst#pearl#peridot#lapis lazuli#bismuth#jasper#white topaz#aquamarine#eyeball ruby#holly blue agate#cat's eye#cinnabar#andesine
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SEE HOW THEY RUN (2022)
Starring Sam Rockwell, Saoirse Ronan, Adrien Brody, Ruth Wilson, Reece Shearsmith, Harris Dickinson, David Oyelowo, Harris Dickinson, Charlie Cooper, Shirley Henderson, Pippa Bennett-Warner, Pearl Chanda, Paul Chahidi, Sian Clifford, Jacob Fortune-Lloyd, Lucian Msamati and Tim Key.
Screenplay by Mark Chappell.
Directed by Tom George.
Distributed by Searchlight Pictures. 98 minutes. Rated PG-13.
There has been a bit of resurgence in the old-fashioned British parlor mystery – not that they ever really went anywhere. A couple of years ago, Rian Johnson’s Knives Out became a smash hit just by taking a comic raised eyebrow look at classic whodunits. To a lesser extent, Kenneth Branagh’s slightly broad remakes of the old Agatha Christie standards Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile also added humor to the classic structure.
Now comes See How They Run – just slightly beating the Knives Out sequel Glass Onion to the people, which was undoubtedly by design. See How They Run is a sweet and funny nostalgic celebration of the genre – I just wish it had a little more to say and a mystery which was a little more intriguing.
Agatha Christie – the godmother of this form – is involved in this film, as well. Of course, it is not anything she wrote, she is more the subject and a character of this film, although a character who is offscreen throughout. See How They Run revolves around the 1953 London production of Christie’s play The Mousetrap, which had become a huge success and was being groomed to be a motion picture.
Christie is not the only real-life character who is part of this fictional murder. Mousetrap actors Richard Attenborough (now possibly best remembered as the creator of Jurassic Park), Edana Romney and Sheila Sim, producer John Wolff and Christie’s husband Max Mallowan all make appearances in the rogue’s gallery.
The story is simple and complex and slightly convoluted in equal measures. Essentially, The Mousetrap is the hit of the West End. Plans for a film adaptation were in the works, with a slimy filmmaker named Leo Kopernick (Adrien Brody) tagged to be the director. However, Kopernick hated mysteries and wanted to change the whole enterprise. Besides, the film becoming a success would undoubtedly capsize the theatrical production.
Kopernick is murdered. (Don’t worry, that’s not a spoiler, it happens in the opening section of the film.) Jaded Scotland Yard detective Inspector Stoppard (Sam Rockwell) and his naïve and trusting Constable Stalker (Saoirse Ronan) are put in charge of bringing the culprit to justice.
Not that the mystery is the main concern in See How They Run. The film is quite markedly a post-modern comedy, a loving lampoon of the style. Thus you have self-aware winks at the audience – like when a playwright (David Oyelewo) suggests that the most cliched thing you can do in a mystery is have a plot flashback take place “Three months earlier…” and the film immediately cuts to a chyron reading that exact thing. Or there is the late chase scene where people are popping in and out of doors and just missing each other like something out of a French bedroom farce.
See How They Run is obviously a labor of love. Therefore, it’s a bit of a shame to point out that while the film is perfectly enjoyable and often lots of fun, it really does not have much to say about the style it is lampooning. Knives Out took a cutting and modern look at old detective fiction tropes, making it intriguing on multiple levels, not just as a parody, or even as a mystery.
This film, on the other hand, is completely retro. It could have just as easily been made in 1953, or most any time between. It feels like an old-fashioned romp of a play, a Noises Off type of confection which moves quickly and agilely, but in the long run has little that sticks to the ribs.
See How They Run will find a pretty appreciative audience in the fans of such mysteries. However, unlike Knives Out, I don’t see it crossing over to a much larger audience.
Jay S. Jacobs
Copyright ©2022 PopEntertainment.com. All rights reserved. Posted: September 16, 2022.
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Marty McFly (Fictional Character) Illness, Health Update, Biography, Parents, Wife & More
Marty McFly Wiki:- Martin Seamus "Marty" McFly is a fictional character and a supporter of the Back to the Future franchise (American science fiction comedy).
Marty is portrayed by Canadian actor Michael J. Fox in all 3 films. Marty also appears in some animated series or films, where he was voiced by David Kaufman.
In this blog, you'll read about Martin Seamus "Marty" McFly's Wiki, Biography, Illness, Age & More Information about this character.
Marty McFly Illness
Marty McFly is a fictional or imaginary character, so he doesn’t have a disease. However, the actor who plays Marty McFly has had Parkinson’s disease for a very long time.
The actor, Michael J. Fox who is best known for playing Marty's role in the movie “Back to the Future,” was diagnosed with a neurodegenerative disease (A type of disease in which cells of the central nervous system stop working) in 1990 and told the public about it in 1998.
How is Marty McFly’s Health and Where Is He Now?
Marty McFly played by Michael J. Fox, was sick when he was young. He had Parkinson’s disease since he was 29 years old. Marty, left the Back to the Future movie series after the last one came out. All 3 Back to the Future movies had Michael J. Fox in them.
It was Michael’s biggest hit movie series because he played the lead character in all 3 films. Michael was in a lot of movies after “Back to the Future".
When Michael and Christopher Lloyd got back together recently, it made their fans cry. Both of them appeared very happy to be on the screen at the same time.
Marty McFly Biography
Marty McFly was born into an Irish-American Family in Hill Valley, California, United States of America. Before the 1st Back to the Future movie, not many people know about Marty’s life.
Marty, being a “red-blooded American teenager,” wanted to see what was going on. He slinked into Doc’s lab and was surprised by everything he had made.
Doc was very happy to find someone who liked him, and that’s how they became friends. In 2019, Marty was selected by the British magazine Empire as the 12th Greatest Movie Character of All Time.
Full Name
Martin Seamus McFly
Nick Name
Marty
Profession
Student, Singer, Musician, and Lab Assistant for Dr. E Brown Enterprises
Birth Place
Hill Valley, California, United States of America
Education Qualification
Pursuing Graduation
Home town
Hill Valley, California, United States of America
Famous As
Fictional Character
Nationality
Irish - American
Portrayed by
Michael J. Fox
First Appearance
Back to the Future (1985)
Last appearance
Back to the Future: The Musical (2020)
Marty McFly Parents, Siblings
Marty McFly's father's name is George McFly and his mother's name is Lorraine Baines-McFly. Marty is the youngest of 3 children, he has a brother, Dave McFly, and a sister, Linda McFly.
Marty McFly Wife, Children
Marty McFly's wife's name is Jennifer Parker McFly. Jennifer and Marty have 2 children Marty McFly Jr. (son) and Marlene McFly (daughter).
Marty McFly Nationality
Marty McFly holds the nationality of Irish American.
Also, Read About:- Diana Zeldin Wiki
Read the full article
#HowisMartyMcFly’sHealthandWhereIsHeNow?#MartyMcFlyBiography#MartyMcFlyChildren#MartyMcFlyIllness#MartyMcFlyNationality#MartyMcFlyWife
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A little over 40 years after the Abdication Crisis that had peaked in December of 1936, Thames Television, holder of the weekday independent TV franchise for London and the Home Counties, commissioned a dramatisation based on the exhaustive Wolfson History Prize winning biography of Edward VIII by Frances Donaldson.
There was great care taken in terms of casting, production design, and location filming that included Fort Belvedere where many of the real events unfolded. Edward and Mrs Simpson seemed to be as close as you could possibly get to 1930s culture, fashion and upper-class society without a time machine. Written for television by Simon Raven and directed by pioneering British-Asian director Waris Hussein, the series was rewarded with an Emmy and multiple BAFTAs.
In retrospect, it appears to be as faithful to real events as a drama could be, including verbatim conversations and parliamentary statements. Edward VIII, formerly the Prince of Wales known as David, then finally the Duke of Windsor, was played by Edward Fox, and Wallis Simpson by Cynthia Harris. Other key castings included Nigel Hawthorne, yet to find stardom as Sir Humphrey Appleby in Yes Minister / Prime Minister, as the King’s friend and advisor Walter Monckton, David Waller as Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin (He reprised this role in 1988 for another adaptation, The Woman He Loved, starring Anthony Andrews, Jane Seymour and Olivia de Havilland), Peggy Ashcroft as Queen Mary, Marius Goring as King George V, and Wensley Pithey as a totally convincing Winston Churchill. Versatile British-Australian actor Ed Deveraux played Tory press baron Lord Beaverbrook, a role he later reprised in The Life and Times of David Lloyd George (BBC 1981).
Other notable players included Andrew Ray (Duke of York / George VI), Charles Keating (Ernest Simpson), Patrick Troughton (Clement Attlee), Patricia Hodge (Lady Diana Cooper), Maurice Denham (Cosmo Lang, Archbishop of Canterbury), Cherie Lunghi (Thelma Furness) and Hugh Fraser (Anthony Eden).
The Duke of Windsor died in 1972, but the Duchess of Windsor, formerly Mrs Simpson, was still alive when the programme was conceived and broadcast. (She died in 1986). She was not best pleased, citing invasion of privacy, and lobbied to have the production stopped. Her opposition was reported in The Sun, and perhaps might have been more newsworthy if not for another significant event in August 1977.
The series ended with the marriage of the Duke and now Duchess of Windsor, some months after the Abdication.
The BFI Screen-Online review stated;
"…The series also carefully juxtaposes Edward’s frequent, and popular, visits to depressed areas with his opulent and carefree private life, and doesn’t shy from showing his admiration for Mussolini in a pair of brief but pointed exchanges with Anthony Eden…Edward Fox gives a fine and charismatic performance as the King, ably suggesting the contradictory impulses that ruled the man. Wallis Simpson, however, is presented rather less sympathetically. In an occasionally heavy-handed performance, Cynthia Harris plays her as a cool and conniving gold-digger, albeit a sometimes naïve and even disarmingly foolish one…"
The portrayal of Edward VIII was a little more sympathetic than in some later productions, including Bertie and Elizabeth (2002). Edward and Mrs Simpson did tend to gloss over the King’s fascist sympathies, although it was at least alluded to as mentioned in the BFI review. Perhaps, in fairness, these along with some alleged shady financial dealings, meddling in Britain’s foreign policy and the cosy relationship with Hitler, didn’t really become apparent until the period after the series ended. Wensley Pithey’s Winston Churchill was accurately shown as a strong and sincere personal friend and advocate for the King and Wallis Simpson, in public and private, to the annoyance of the Baldwin government, but this relationship later soured when Churchill was wartime Prime Minister, over the Duke of Windsor’s behaviour.
#edward and mrs simpson#british royal family#social history#thames television#period drama#duke of windsor#duchess of windsor#abdication crisis#wallis simpson#uk history#royal history#edward viii#british television
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The Undercover Soundtrack - Andrea Darby
The Undercover Soundtrack – Andrea Darby
The Undercover Soundtrack is a series where I host a writer who uses music as part of their creative environment – perhaps to connect with a character, populate a mysterious place, or hold a moment still to explore its depths. This week my guest is journalist and debut novelist Andrea Darby @andreadarby27
Soundtrack by Ennio Morricone, Debussy, Chopin, Tori Amos, Kate Bush, the Beatles, Charles…
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#Andrea Darby#bereavement#Charles Ives#Chopin#cryonic preservation#death#Debussy#Ennio Morricone#family#friendship#grief#Kate Bush#Le Professionnel#Maddalena#music for creative writing#music for writers#music for writing#The Beatles#The Husband Who Refused to Die#The Life and Times of David Lloyd George#The Undercover Soundtrack#Tori Amos
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Favorite Movie and Television Productions About Old Hollywood
Below is a list of my favorite costume movie and television productions about the Golden Age of Hollywood (in chronological order of release):
FAVORITE MOVIE AND TELEVISION PRODUCTIONS ABOUT OLD HOLLYWOOD
"Singin' in the Rain" (1952) - Gene Kelly, Donald O'Connor and Debbie Reynolds starred in this musical classic about Hollywood's transition from silent films to talkies. Kelly co-directed with Stanley Donen.
"Moviola: The Scarlett O'Hara War" (1980) - Tony Curtis starred as producer David O. Selznick in the second episode of the miniseries, "Moviola". The television movie featured Selznick's search for the right actress to portray the leading character in his movie adaptation of "Gone With the Wind".
“Quennie” (1987) - Mia Sara and Kirk Douglas starred in two-part miniseries, which is an adaptation of Michael Korda’s 1985 biography of actress Merle Oberon. Larry Peerce directed.
"Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" (1988) - Robert Zemeckis directed this adaptation of Gary Wolfe's 1981 novel, "Who Censored Roger Rabbit?", in which a 1940s private detective who must exonerate a cartoon star "Toon" for the murder of a wealthy businessman. Bob Hoskins, Charles Fleischer and Christopher Lloyd starred.
"The Rocketeer" (1991) - Joe Johnston directed this adaptation of Dave Stevens’ comic book series about a stunt pilot who stumbles across a prototype jetpack that allows him to become a high-flying masked hero in 1938 Los Angeles. Bill Campbell, Jennifer Connolly, Alan Arkin and Timothy Dalton starred.
"The Cat’s Meow" (2001) - Peter Bogdanovich directed this fictionalized account of William Randolph Hearst’s November 1924 weekend cruise celebrating Thomas Ince’s birthday. The movie starred Kirsten Dunst, Edward Hermann, Eddie Izzard and Cary Elwes.
"The Aviator" (2004) - Martin Scorsese produced and directed this biopic about mogul Howard Hughes' experiences as a filmmaker and aviator between 1927 and 1947. Oscar nominee Leonardo DiCaprio starred.
"Hollywoodland" (2006) - Adrien Brody, Diane Lane and Ben Affleck starred in this intriguing tale about a private detective's investigation into the life and death of actor George Reeves. Allen Coulter directed.
"The Artist" (2011) - Michel Hazanavicius wrote and directed this Academy Award winning movie about a silent screen star and the disruption of his life and career by the emergence of talking pictures. Oscar winner Jean Dujardin and Oscar nominee Bérénice Bejo starred.
"Saving Mr. Banks" (2013) - John Lee Hancock directed this superb and emotional tale about author P.L. Travers and producer Walt Disney’s tug-of-war over the development of the 1964 movie, "Mary Poppins". Emma Thompson and Tom Hanks starred.
"Trumbo" (2015) - Oscar nominee Bryan Cranston starred in this biopic about screenwriter Dalton Trumbo and his troubles after being jailed and blacklisted for being a member of the Communist Party. Directed by Jay Roach, Diane Lane and Helen Mirren co-starred.
"The Last Tycoon" (2016-2017) - Billy Ray created this television adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's unfinished novel about a Hollywood producer during the mid-1930s. Matt Bomer starred.
"Once Upon a Time . . . in Hollywood" (2019) - Quentin Tarantino wrote and directed this excellent tale about a fading actor and his stunt double struggling to regain success in the film industry during the final year of Hollywood’s Golden Age in 1969 Los Angeles. Oscar nominee Leonardo Di Caprio, Oscar winner Brad Pitt and Oscar nominee Margot Robbie starred.
#period drama#period dramas#costume drama#old hollywood#golden age of hollywood#movies#television#singin in the rain#gene kelly#donald o'connor#debbie reynolds#moviola#moviola: the scarlett o'hara war#the scarlett o'hara war#tony curtis#queenie#mia sara#kirk douglas#who framed roger rabbit#walt disney studios#who framed roger rabbit?#Bob Hoskins#charles fleischer#stanley donen#robert zemeckis#the rocketeer#bill campbell#alan arkin#jennifer connelly#timothy dalton
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