A prominent Rio Grande Valley businessman was shot dead Saturday afternoon in McAllen, authorities said. Eddy Betancourt, 61, was president of a home renovation company and sat on the board of directors of the Hidalgo County Appraisal District. He also s
Tech billionaires threaten to flee California over proposed 5% wealth tax
Birthright Citizenship: Interpreting The Phrase "Subject To The Jurisdiction Thereof"
See Pocketful of Miracles (1961), by Damon Runyan, Robert Riskin, and Frank Capra, Fully Restored, for Free, Unabridged, and with No Commercial Interruptions, at WEJB/NSU
Robert Riskin (1897-1955) and Frank Capra (1897-1991) first made this as Lady for a Day in 1933, based on a Damon Runyan (1880-1946) story. It was up for four Oscars, all majors, and Riskin and Capra were off to the races, making their biggest hit, and the greatest romantic comedy of all time, It Happened One Night (1934), the following year. I found Lady good but not great. Conversely, I rank It Happened One Night as the fourth greatest masterpiece of all time, after The Best Years of Our Lives (1946), Citizen Kane, and The Wizard of Oz.
See Pocketful of Miracles (1961), Fully Restored, by Robert Riskin and Frank Capra, for Free, Unabridged, and with No Commercial Interruptions, at WEJB/NSU
vanity fair's secret weapon for hurting women associated with the President (brief video)
vanity fair's secret weapon for hurting women associated with the President (brief video)
"'it's worse than a mugshot': Megyn Kelly slams vanity fair's extreme close ups of wh officials"
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/JMK77ACPbDE
Prepare to be Overwhelmed! See Carol Reed's First Masterpiece, Odd Man Out (1947), Free, Uncut, and Without Commercial Interruption, at the WEJB/NSU Theater, Plus Four-Minute and 26-Minute Suites of William Alwyn's Powerful Score
Re-posted by Nicholas Stix
James Mason is Johnny McQueen, the leader of the Belfast chapter of the IRA. He broke out of prison eight months ago, and spent the past six months holed up in the house of a aged widow supporter, whose pretty daughter has fallen in love with him, planning a payroll heist, to refill the IRA's supplies. But he has not so much as touched the girl's hand. And things are not right with Johnny, which he has been unable to hide from his younger gangmates. And yet, he feels obliged to lead the robbery.
essx22: 5,568 views May 22, 2012
"To celebrate the release of Odd Man Out on 18th June on Blu-Ray (Carol Reed's underrated masterpiece), here is William Alwyns magnificent opening score. This is a re-recording of the score as the original was destroyed in a fire. This version is available on Chandos movie records ref CHAN9243 (London Philharmonic with Richard Hickox conducting)
"A haunting yet lyrical masterpiece about a doomed fugitive, Odd Man Out is Carol Reed's breakthrough film as a director after a long, somehow undistinguished career. He followed this success with two other classics in British cinema, The Fallen Idol, and arguably his greatest film, The Third Man.
"In one of his greatest performance of a long and illustrious career, James Mason plays Johnny McQueen, an IRA leader who breaks out of jail and plans a payroll holdup of a mill in Belfast to fund his underground operations.
"Though no commercially popular at the box office, the film quickly won worldwide plaudits and established Reed as an internationally renowned filmmaker. Reed followed this picture with two other masterpieces, The Fallen Idol, in 1948, and The Third Man with Orson Welles in 1949.
Odd Man Out - opening score (with maybe a little Carmina Burana)
Odd Man Out - A Suite (William Alwyn - 1946)
""@grega7323 I first saw this movie on Turner Classics Movies. For me, it was this movie that gave me my introduction to William Alwyn's music. I love this score and it prompted me to seek out more of his music and I have NOT been disappointed."
N.S.: I had the identical experience tonight. Red Eddie Muller broadcast the movie tonight on Noir Alley. I had seen it over 50 years ago on local TV, and had very fond memories of it, and I'd seen Reed's other masterpieces (The Fallen Idol, also 50-odd years ago, and The Third Man, which I've since seen a number of times, including only a year or two ago).
It turned out that my fond memories were inaccurate, but that's fine, because I got to experience the picture anew. During the last 15-20 minutes, I started to notice Alwyn's moving score, and by the end, I was overwhelmed, though not simply by his music.
I have seen many brilliant, moving pictures in my life, but I can't recall feeling so emotionally overwhelmed at the end of any others. And despite James Mason's brilliance, [deleted for surprise] stole the picture.
Now, everyone, watch and/or download this masterpiece before the KK come for it. I know, there are several downloads of the entire picture presently at youtube, but they could all be gone in a whisper. A few years ago, someone put up a download, and a few months later, it, too, was gone. The KK (Kopyright Kops) had struck!
Odd Man Out (1947): The Entire Picture: 1:51
The WEJB/NSU Theater, 1896-1981:
The Haunted Castle: George Melies (1896);
Georges Méliès’ A Trip to the Moon (1902);
The Great Train Robbery (1903);
The Wizard of Oz (1910);
C.B. DeMille’s The Squaw Man (1914);
D.W. Griffith’s The Birth of a Nation (1915);
D.W. Griffith’s Intolerance: Love’s Struggle Through the Ages (1916);
Charlie Chaplin’s Shoulder Arms (1918);
The Outlaw and His Wife (1918), Starring and Directed by Victor Sjöström (Seastrom);
Starring “Jack”: See the 1920 Silent Picture Classic of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde;Robert Wiene’s The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920);
Buster Keaton’s One Week (1920);
D. W. Griffith’s Way Down East (1920);
F.W. Murnau’s Nosferatu (1921);
The Kid (1921), Charlie Chaplin’s First Feature as Director;
Fritz Lang and Thea von Harbou’s First Pictures Featuring the Evil Genius, Dr. Mabuse: Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler, Teil I (Dr. Mabuse, the Player, Part I); and
Dr. Mabuse, Teil II: Inferno (Dr. Mabuse, Inferno, Part II, both 1922, released one month apart) with English subtitles;
James Cruze’s The Covered Wagon (1923);
John Ford’s The Iron Horse (1924);
Charlie, in The Gold Rush (1925);
Lon Chaney, in The Phantom of the Opera (1925);
King Vidor, Laurence Stallings, and Harry Behn’s The Big Parade (1925), Starring Gilbert and Adore!
Buster Keaton’s The General (1926);
John Ford’s 1926 Western, 3 Bad Men;
Barrymore and Astor in Don Juan (1926);
When a Man Loves (1927), Starring “Jack” and Dolores Costello;
Josef von Sternberg and Ben Hecht’s Underworld (1927), the First American Gangster Picture;
Alfred Hitchcock’s The Lodger (1927);
“Wild Bill” Wellman’s Restored, Classic Silent Picture, Wings (1927), One of the First Two Best Picture Oscar Winners;
F.W. Murnau’s Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927, One of the First Two Best Picture Oscar Winners);
Fritz Lang and Thea von Harbou’s Dystopian Science Fiction Epic, Metropolis (1927), the Greatest S/F Picture Ever, Plus Its Soundtrack Suite;
Frank Borzage and Austin Strong’s Seventh Heaven (1927);
Garbo and Gilbert in Love (1927);
Samson Raphaelson, Alfred A. Cohn, Jack Jarmuth and Alan Crosland’s The Jazz Singer (1927), the First-Ever Talkie, Starring Al Jolson, by Warner Brothers;
King Vidor’s The Crowd 1928;
Carl Theodor Dreyer's silent, The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928);
Dorothy Scarborough, Frances Marion, and Victor Sjöström's ("Seastrom") 1928 silent, The Wind (with additional videos showing Miss Gish's introduction, Robert Osborne's intro and outro, and visual highlights)
Bessie Smith in St. Louis Blues (talkie, short, 1929);
See Louise Brooks in G.W. Pabst’s world-famous silent, Pandora’s Box (1929);
See Louise Brooks in Pabst's Das Tagebuch einer Verlorenen (Diary of a Lost Girl, 1929);
See John Wayne, in His First Starring Role in an “A” Picture, Raoul Walsh’s Western Epic Talky, The Big Trail (1930)”;
Fritz Lang & Thea von Harbou’s First Talkie: M: Eine Stadt sucht einen Mörder (1931) (M: A City Searches for a Murderer);
Paul Robeson in Eugene O’Neill’s The Emperor Jones (talkie, 1933);
"John Wayne Movie: See over 3 Hours of Foreign Legion Action! Classic Early 1930s Serial, The Three Musketeers;
The Man Who Knew too Much (1934): The Original Version of the Early Hitchcock Classic;
John Ford’s Judge Priest (1934), Starring Will Rogers, with Hattie McDaniel;
The Fighting Westerner (1935);
Kate Hepburn in the Super Chief’s Quality Street (1937);
Cary Grant and Roz Russell in Ben Hecht, Charles MacArthur, and Howard Hawks’ His Girl Friday (1940);
Zero’s Since You Went Away (1944);
Orson Welles’ The Stranger (1946);
The Lethal Lure (1946);
Carol Reed's Odd Man Out (1947);
William Dieterle’s A Portrait of Jennie (1948);
Jules Dassin, Albert Malz, and Malvin Wald’s The Naked City (1948), Plus Music;
Pierre Chenal and Richard Wright's Native Son (1951);
Sam Fuller’s Pickup on South Street (1953);
Budd Schulberg and Elia Kazan's On the Waterfront (1954);
R.G. Springsteen and Montgomery Pittman’s Come Next Spring (1956);
Robert Wise and Abraham Polonsky’s Odds against Tomorrow (1959);
Capra's Pocketful of Miracles (1961);
Antonioni’s Blow-Up (1966);
See Geraldine Page in Truman Capote’s A Christmas Memory (1966, TV movie);
Lee Marvin as Sergeant Ryker (1963/1968); and
Paul Newman, in Fort Apache, the Bronx (1981) (exclusive review); The movie.
Saturday, December 27, 2025
bLACK father released after murder charges dropped in kentucky shooting a few weeks ago; turns out, bLACK "students" threatened and beat two brothers at bLACK school in kentucky,
Happy Kwanzaa!
thursday, december 25, 2025 at 8:12:00 a.m. est
Happy Kwanzaa Eve, and to all a good night!
A quick stop in chicago this morning, by "bLACK Santa," results in four shot, with one bLACK vic "taking a long winter's nig nap"
wednesday, december 24, 2025 at 9:48:00 p.m. est
A quick stop in chicago this morning, by "bLACK Santa," results in four shot, with one bLACK vic "taking a long winter's nig nap"
"chicago (wls) -- four men were shot, one fatally, early wednesday morning on chicago's south side, chicago police said.
"the men were outside in the 7000-block of south Halsted street in the city's Englewood neighborhood just after midnight, when two unknown male suspects approached them and opened fire, police said.
"one man was shot in the head and was pronounced dead on the scene, cpd said.
"a 27-year-old man was shot in the leg, and was taken to university of chicago medical center in good condition.
"full story: suspect with knife takes gun from cta train passenger in the loop, shoots two men, killing one: cpd
"a 38-year-old man suffered a graze wound to the arm, and was taken to uchicago in good condition.
"a 33-year-old man also suffered a graze wound to his arm, and refused medical attention.
"video of the scene showed a large police response in the parking lot of a convenience store.
"No one is in custody [GRA: You can't catch "black Santa" on Christmas Eve] and area one detectives are investigating."
--GRA
N.S.: I'm pretty sure the second crime was a duplicate I'd previously posted.
Numbers matter
wednesday, december 24, 2025 at 7:29:00 p.m. est
Numbers matter
Sally Forth comic from 2005. I can't find the original one online and this platform only lets me paste text, sorry. The dialog goes like this:
Sally: "But we have to remember that birthdays are just numbers. Numbers we can prescribe any value to that we see fit."
Ted: "But I thought numbers had a definite value."
Sally: "Work with me here, Ted."
"bLACK Santa" travels to detroit to shoot a woman and one-year-old infant, early on Christmas Eve
wednesday, december 24, 2025 at 6:01:00 p.m. est
GRA: He's zigzagging across the country, providing lead gifts to as many blacks as possible.
"detroit: (Fox 2) - a woman and 1-year-old baby are both recovering at a hospital after someone opened fire on an east side detroit home early Christmas Eve.
"police said a shotspotter alert around 3:30 a.m. wednesday led them to a home in the 19000 block of Binder near outer drive and seven mile. when officers arrived, they found a house with multiple bullet holes, but no one was inside.
"shortly after, police were called to nearby concord street about two shooting victims - a baby who had been shot in the leg and a 24-year-old woman who suffered a gunshot wound to her hand.
"police went to the home and learned that the victims had fled the shooting scene and gone to a family's home on concord after they were shot.
"'the last thing we want on Christmas Eve is a 1-year-old shot. a 1-year-old should be waiting for Christmas to happen, so this is a very sad thing to happen," dpd deputy chief Arnold Williams said.
"no one is in custody, and an investigation is ongoing.
GRA: "Who shot you," asked the cops.
"black Santa," said the woman.
"Whatchoo talkin' about, lady?
"She's not telling who did it," said another cop.
"IT WAS "bLACK SANTA--DAMMIT," the negress yelled.
"B.S." replied the other cop.
"That's RIGHT--B.S.--bLACK SANTA!"
And off B.S. went--to his next stop.
--GRA
William "Guillermo" Tell--he shoots an arrow, into the air--another mEX, no longer here; Pablo Criollo harpooned by Oscar Feijoo on saturday
wednesday, december 24, 2025 at 2:27:00 p.m. est
William "Guillermo" Tell--he shoots an arrow, into the air--another mEX, no longer here; Pablo Criollo harpooned by Oscar Feijoo on saturday
"(3 news) Kearny, n.j.--a (mex) never made it home for dinner with his family in new jersey after he was fatally shot with a bow-and-arrow by a manic [loco mex] man, caught on camera.
"Pablo Criollo, 45, was walking home from work when he was shot in the back by an arrow on saturday, around 6.45 p.m. in Kearny, about 11 miles west of new york city.
"Criollo of Harrison was brought to university hospital in Newark, where he was pronounced dead, according to a press release from the Hudson county prosecutor's office.
"surveillance footage from a business near Kearny avenue showed how the tragedy unfolded.
[GRA: Isn't "tragedy" the wrong description? "Premeditated, savage murder" is more accurate.]
"the father-of-two could be seen walking down the street when a snap of the bow is heard. almost instantly, he reaches for the arrow plunged in his back before leaning onto a railing and then collapsing onto the pavement.
"authorities arrested the alleged shooter, Oscar Feijoo, 44, after a chaotic scene at the suspect's home.
"the swat team responded to Feijoo's residence after he barricaded himself inside for hours and set it on fire.
"the alleged killer finally exited the home to stand off with the authorities while he was armed with knives, according to the press release."
GRA: At least, for a change, the media didn't wonder about a "motive."
--GRA
"black Santa" starts off Christmas Eve tradition of murder, in brooklyn, by blasting a 46-year-old (bLACK) in the chest; where "B.S." go to next?
wednesday, december 24, 2025 at 12:45:00 p.m. est
"black Santa" starts off Christmas Eve tradition of murder, in brooklyn, by blasting a 46-year-old (bLACK) in the chest; where "B.S." go to next?
"(amny) detectives are searching for the suspect who left a man dead in brooklyn on Christmas Eve.
"police say that the gun [sic] violence erupted just after 9:45 a.m. at Powell Street and Belmont Avenue. Upon their arrival, officers from the 73rd Precinct found the victim, a 46-year-old man, who was shot in the chest.
"police are looking for a suspect who fatally shot a man in Brooklyn on Christmas Eve.
"he was rushed to brookdale Hospital in critical condition, where he ultimately died of his injuries. no arrests have been made and an investigation remains ongoing.
"though officers are looking for a black man in a yellow and black hoodie. anyone with information is asked to call 1800-577-tips. all tips will remain confidential."
GRA: It's "black Santa"--you morons--spreading lead throughout black cities until Christmas morning, traveling from coast to coast. NORAD updates and crime reports will occur as needed.
--GRA
TCM's Film Noir of the Week: What Got into Red Eddie Muller?! He's Showing a Picture from Carol Reed's Masterpiece Run, at 12:30 and 10 a.m. Sunday Morning: Odd Man Out (1947) with James Mason, Robert Newton, Kathleen Sullivan, Cyril Cusack, P.J. McCormack, Denis O'Dea, W.G. Fay and Dan O'Herlihy
friday, december 26, 2025 at 3:16:00 p.m. est
TCM's Film Noir of the Week at 12:30 and 10 a.m.is Carol Reed's Odd Man Out (1947) with James Mason, Robert Newton, Kathleen Sullivan, Cyril Cusack, P.J. McCormack, Denis O'Dea, W.G. Fay and Dan O'Herlihy
James Mason (in one of the finest performances of his career) is the local IRA leader in Belfast, who has been hiding out in the home of the woman (Sullivan) who loves him ever since his escape from prison six months before. He and his comrades stick up a local mill to obtain funds. The heist went wrong and Mason was wounded.
Carol Reed was criticized by both sides of "favoritism." Politics aside, Reed's film is considered by many a masterpiece of film noir.
N.S.: From 1947-1951, starting with Odd Man Out (1947), Carol Reed went on a masterpiece run. In 1951, Reed continued his trilogy with Ralph Richardson and Bobby Henrey starring in The Fallen Idol, written by Graham Greene. In 1949, Reed and Greene peaked with The Third Man, starring Joseph "King" Cotten, as pulp fiction writer Holly Martins, loose in Vienna shortly after The War, with Orson Welles stealing every scene he was in, as murderous black marketeer Harry Lime.
I rank The Third Man as the 11th-greatest picture ever made, after:
1. The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)
2. Citizen Kane (1941)
3. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
4. It Happened One Night (1934)
5. It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
6. Shane (1953)
7. The Godfather (1972)
7. The Godfather, Part II (1974)
9. The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)
9. Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
