Kudos to Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred for the suspension of Astros manager A.J. Hinch and general manager Jeff Luhnow for their involvement in electronic sign stealing during the team’s 2017 World Series winning season.
Those weren’t the only penalty for the team and the manager and the g.m. The team was fined $5 million and lost its 2020 and 2021 first and second round draft choices.
One of our favorite things about the holiday season is that each December the Library of Congress announces the addition of 25 films to the National Film Registry.
In its announcement this year, Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden stated that the film were selected because of their cultural, historic and aesthetic importance to the nation’s film heritage. The films in the class of 2019 range from Prince’s 1984 autobiographical hit “Purple Rain” and Spike Lee’s 1986 breakout movie “She’s Gotta Have It” to Disney’s 1959 timeless fairy tale “Sleeping Beauty” and this year’s biggest public vote getter, Kevin Smith’s 1994 “Clerks.”
“The National Film Registry has become an important record of American history, culture and creativity,” said Hayden. “Unlike many other honors, the registry is not restricted to a time, place or genre. It encompasses 130 years of the full American cinematic experience – a virtual Olympiad of motion pictures. With the support of Congress, the studios and other archives, we are ensuring that the nation’s cinematic history will be around for generations to come.”
A musical biopic, a heartwarming tale about man’s best friend, early black cinema, a notorious real-life crime drama and the anatomy of war represent the diversity of the 2019 registry. They include blockbusters, documentaries, silent movies, animation and independent films. The 2019 selections bring the number of films in the registry to 775, which is a small fraction of the Library’s vast moving-image collection of more than 1.6 million items.
The list of 25 includes:
Amadeus (1984)
Becky Sharp (1935)
Before Stonewall (1984)
Body and Soul (1925)
Boys Don’t Cry (1999)
Clerks (1994)
Coal Miner’s Daughter (1980)
Emigrants Landing at Ellis Island (1903)
Employees Entrance (1933)
Fog of War (2003)
Gaslight (1944)
George Washington Carver at Tuskegee Institute (1937)
For nearly 40 years, writer Jeff Swiatek and Ronald Hawkins have shared competing picks regarding the upcoming Major League Baseball season. The person with the most correct picks is the beneficiary of a dinner from his opponent.
An opening day in Cincinnati. Photo by Ronald Hawkins.
This tradition began when the writers were working at a daily newspaper in Carlisle, Pa. Hawkins has moved many times and Swiatek a few times with both somehow ending up in Indiana. Despite the moves, the competition has continued unabated.
Hawkins has completed his 2019 predictions and has agreed to post them here. He confesses to being a lifelong Cincinnati Reds fan, but isn’t blinded to the challenges the team faces in the 150 anniversary of Cincinnati claiming the first all-professional team.
The predictions:
2019
Major League Baseball Predictions
Division/Pennant/world series winners
National League
East: Philadelphia Phillies
Central: Milwaukee Brewers
West: Los Angeles Dodgers
Wild Card: St. Louis Cardinals
Wild Card: Atlanta Braves
Playoffs
National League
Braves over Cardinals
Dodgers over Braves
Phillies over Brewers
Phillies over Dodgers
American League
East: New York Yankees
Central: Cleveland Indians
West: Houston Astros
Wild Card: Boston Red Sox
Wild Card: Tampa Bay Rays
Playoffs
Red Sox over Rays
Houston over Red Sox
Yankees over Cleveland
Houston over Yankees
World Series
Phillies
over Astros
Individual
Honors
National League
Average: Jesse Winker
Home Runs: Christian Yelich
Wins: Max Scherzer
American League
Average: Mookie Betts
Home Runs: Aaron Judge
Wins: Corey Kluber
ODDITIES
Reds
win 87 games and barely miss the playoffs
Bryce
Harper and Manny Machado each miss 26 games
Machado
benched for failing to hustle.
Christian
Yelich hits for the cycle again, the third time in two years, but this time it
isn’t against the Reds.
Winker
has a six hit game.
Harper
hits six homers over two games.
Ten
games are showed out in March and the first week of April
At long last, The Beatles have announced plans for a release of Let It Be and a new film to be put together by the great Peter Jackson. Here’s the Apple Corps. announcement:
London – January 30, 2019 – Apple Corps Ltd. and WingNut Films Ltd. are proud to announce an exciting new collaboration between The Beatles and the acclaimed Academy Award winning director Sir Peter Jackson.
The new film will be based around 55 hours of never-released footage of The Beatles in the studio, shot between January 2nd and January 31st, 1969. These studio sessions produced The Beatles’ Grammy Award winning album Let It Be, with its Academy Award winning title song. The album was eventually released 18 months later in May 1970, several months after the band had broken up.
The filming was originally intended for a planned TV special, but organically turned into something completely different, climaxing with The Beatles’ legendary performance on the roof of Apple’s Savile Row London office — which took place exactly 50 years ago today.Peter Jackson said, “The 55 hours of never-before-seen footage and 140 hours of audio made available to us, ensures this movie will be the ultimate ‘fly on the wall’ experience that Beatles fans have long dreamt about – it’s like a time machine transports us back to 1969, and we get to sit in the studio watching these four friends make great music together.” Although The Beatles were filmed extensively during the 1960s – in concerts, interviews and movies – this is the only footage of any note that documents them at work in the studio.The Let It Be album and movie, having been released in the months following The Beatles’ breakup, have often been viewed in the context of the struggle the band was going through at that time.
“I was relieved to discover the reality is very different to the myth,” continues Jackson, “After reviewing all the footage and audio that Michael Lindsay-Hogg shot 18 months before they broke up, it’s simply an amazing historical treasure-trove. Sure, there’s moments of drama – but none of the discord this project has long been associated with.
“Watching John, Paul, George, and Ringo work together, creating now-classic songs from scratch, is not only fascinating – it’s funny, uplifting and surprisingly intimate. …I’m thrilled and honored to have been entrusted with this remarkable footage – making the movie will be a sheer joy.”
Jackson will be working with his They Shall Not Grow Old partners, Producer Clare Olssen and Editor Jabez Olssen. The footage will be restored by Park Road Post of Wellington, New Zealand, to a pristine standard, using techniques developed for the WW1 documentary film which has been nominated for a BAFTA for best documentary.
A RDH Great Stories Beatles exhibit.
The untitled film is currently in production and the release date will be announced in due course. This film is being made with the full co-operation of Sir Paul McCartney, Sir Ringo Starr, Yoko Ono Lennon, and Olivia Harrison. The Executive Producers are Ken Kamins for WingNut Films and Jeff Jones and Jonathan Clyde for Apple Corps.
Following the release of this new film, a restored version of the original Let It Be movie directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg will also be made available.
(Editor’s note: In the recent https://rdhgreatstories.com/2019/01/19/authors-books-differ-on-top-sf-film post, the picks of outstanding SF films by the authors of “Must-See Sci-Fi: 50 Movies That Are Out of This World,” “Top l00 Sci-Fi Movies” and “101 Sci-Movies You Must See Before You Die” and this writer were listed.)
Following the posting of a story about three books authors’ choices for the outstanding/best/favorite science fiction movies of all time, we asked a couple dozen people what they thought about the lists and what they might add or subtract.
We received some fascinating responses:
Joel Zakem, a currently retired attorney, is a longtime SF enthusiast who has been attending conventions for more than 50 years.
“Even though I have not seen any of the books, I will make a few observations. None of the lists appear to have mentioned ‘Bride of Frankenstein’ which, in many ways, is a stronger film than the original,” Zakem said. “On the TCM list, I would not included ‘Barbarella’ and I thought ‘Terminator 2’ (mentioned in both other books) is a better film than the first one.
“Other than that, I have no real problem with what TCM included, but I would have added ‘Quartermass and the Pit’ and ‘The Road Warrior.'”
Zakem said that he would not have included Star Trek and isn’t sure he would have included any Star Wars movies, even though he says they are important.
Keith Bradbury, owner of the Who North America store in Camby, Indiana, said he was disappointed that “Tron” wasn’t included in the TCM book. “I consider it to be one of the best Sci Fi movies because it contrasted faith vs. statism in a computer context,” he said.
Others he felt worthy of inclusion were “The Island” and “They Live.”
Bradbury said, “I do agree with much of the list. If I were going to do a rundown of my favorites (skipping the Flash Gordon serial), I would go: Metropolis, Things to Come, Forbidden Planet, Star Wars, Empire Strikes Back, Tron, They Live, The Island, Blade Runner, The Fifth Element, Logan’s Run, Planet of the Apes (original ONLY), Interstellar, 2001 (off the top of my head).”
Leanna Rogers, a nurse, said, “I really enjoyed your writing on this. I especially enjoyed that you included a lot more modern Sci-Fi films as well.
“I feel like the two lists that are compared really glossed over sci-fi films from 2000-present. I also really enjoyed the segment about era specific sci-fi and how the films’ themes reflect the fears/concerns of the times in which they were made, especially for young(ish) fans like myself who didn’t experience those eras firsthand.”
Rogers said if she were adding films one would be “Battle Royale” and a “Scanner Darkly. “I believe it wasn’t very well received so it might not be as iconic as the other films on this list … I’m biased because I love Philip K. Dick.”
Brian Culp, longtime SF enthusiast and former newspaper editor, questioned the way “The Matrix” was listed.
Culp said, “I have a hard time with the TCM people including ‘The Matrix,’ but not the full Matrix series (assuming that is the case). The first one can stand alone, but it is really helped along by the other two installments.”
Mike Rittenhouse, a musician in the band Five Year Mission and the owner of Hero House, said, “I believe I have the ‘101 Sci Fi’ book. And I agree that there are many films that are included/not included that I disagree with.
“But, in the end, it is just an opinion by the author. Not a definitive list. I find it interesting that the first book you mention completely overlooked Star Trek. Seems like a blatant use of author’s opinion vs. common opinion. Overall, an interesting article about the difference in books and opinions.”
Tracy Canfield, a published science fiction author and linguist capable of translating and speaking Klingon, said, “I’m glad Schneider mentioned ‘Primer’ – it’s rare to see hard SF in movies, and Primer is a great film from beginning to end. I’d also include Shane Carruth’s second film, ‘Upstream Color,’ on my list of great SF movies. … I recommend Upstream Color, but I have to warn you, it’s a lot of work.”
“Gattaca” is a great science fiction film too, she said.
” I wonder, though, if I’m thinking about this a little differently than De Forest (author of the TCM book) – if I were making a list of great science fiction films, I’d be thinking of films where the science fiction is great and not necessarily great movies where the science is just there to make exciting things happen (‘Jurassic Park,’ for example). …
“At the risk of contradicting myself, I might include ‘The World’s End’ on my own personal list. It’s a science fiction film by Edgar Wright and Sean Pegg, who are better known for movies like Shaun of the Dead. …’Dark City’ is a wonderful movie that didn’t seem to make anyone’s list. It would certainly make mine, though.”
Canfield said she would pick “Looper” over “Arrival,” which she says “has an equally implausible premise, and a distractingly weird idea of what linguistics is. …
“If I were making a list, I’d include a movie none of the other authors did: ‘Being John Malkovich.'”
Dr. Robert Pyatt, a college professor in South Dakota and presenter of fascinating science-related programs at science fiction gatherings, said, “I think the TCM book needs to define science fiction. Is Frankenstein sci-fi? The horror crowd would disagree.”
Wendy Carson and John Belden, co-hosts of PlaysWithJohnAndWendy.com, issued a combined response to the lists.
“I agree that it is incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to come up with a top-100 science fiction films of all time list,” they said. “All I can do, in seeing the attempts cited, is list some ‘what-abouts.’
“If we can list Charlton Heston’s ‘Planet of the Apes’ and ‘Soylent Green,’ what about “Marathon Man,” the original film version of “I Am Legend.”…
“The ’80s had more than just Star Wars knockoffs. ‘Enemy Mine’ should be counted among the greatest SF films of all time — two excellent actors at the top of their game, and a timeless message. If you looked beyond the comicbook-pulp fun of the original ‘RoboCop,’ there was timely and biting social satire that elevated the whole work. ‘Alien Nation’ was such a great allegory that it was spun off into a TV series.
Carson and Belden said the “Rocky Horror Picture Show,” “Rock and Rules,” “Heavy Metal” and “The Black Hole” deserve consideration.
“And despite SF gadetry, no one is mentioning ‘Ghostbusters’ or ‘Honey, I Shrunk the Kids.’ And let’s also note that if it weren’t for its MCU ties, ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ would definitely be on the lists. “
Dan Carroll, director of media engagement at Dragon Con, said, “I am not one to impose my views on someone else’s list. I mean…lists should always be about favorites…not ‘best'”
Martin Ross, a retired journalist, said, “I liked the Gerani/Schneider list better, but then I’m a big fan of ‘50s-60s British sci-fi/horror, especially the Quatermass films, Five Million Years to Earth, and the original Village of the Damned (TMC’s preference for the sequel was a head-scratcher).
“I’m glad they also added more obscure oddballs like ‘Primer’ (I’m a sucker for time travel, though not always a found footage fan — the Statue of Liberty scene in ‘Cloverdale’ being an exception). …One of my personal favorites, though a bit slow in places, is ‘The Medusa Touch’ with Richard Burton, which leans toward horror but that offers a couple of semi-blower apocalyptic sci-fi touches.”
David Ross, actor, movie maker and former library director, said, “Some of my favorites are usually not the most popular or acknowledged, but I have no real argument with those chosen since Sci-fi has such wide fringe areas and people’s opinions may differ from mine, but I don’t care enough to argue. …
” I do think that George RR’s ‘Nightflyers’ movie was not as bad as the critics said. I actually found it more engaging than the Sy-Fy channel’s big budget interpretation.”
John T. Adams, a longtime association executive and former newpaper editor, said, “I haven’t seen all the films you mention, but I agree with you about the omissions of some of the more recent films. But maybe they’re too recent to make any of the published lists.
“I think one of the landmark films, since you mentioned the Cold War, is ‘The Day the Earth Stood Still,’ which is forward looking for its time. The alien is a good guy (not a space invader), and after failing to detain him the Americans mount a chase through D.C. and try to kill him. That’s not a typical Cold War plot. …
“If a flying saucer arrived today, would we try to shoot it down? Of course, there’s always ‘Men in Black’ and ‘Independence Day,’ where the aliens ARE the bad guys. And don’t leave out the zombie movies. Instead of the undead running down the streets, think of a horde of Mexican rapists, murderers and gang members. One could argue the zombie movies are inherently racist because we demonize The Other. “
Author John F. Allen said, “I think the choices are appropriate for their eras, although, I agree with certain ones you mentioned, which were excluded.”
Randy Porter works at IUPUI and has been very involved in SF-related events for decades including Gen Con.
Porter says he thinks a film has to be at least 20-years old to be considered a classic.
One of the films on the lists that caught his attention was “The Forbin Project.”
Porter said, “I haven’t seen it in forever. I love it. It would be worth a remake.”
“La jetee,” a short film that chiefly uses still images and narration to tell its story, is listed in two of the three books.
“It’s better than the ’12 Monkees’ remake,” Porter said.
Other films that Porter might put on his favorites list include “2001: A Space Odyssey,” “Buckaroo Bonzai,” “Demolition Man,” Ghost in the Shell” (Japanese/UK verion), and “Dune.”
“My favorite right now is ‘The Fifth Element,” Porter said.
“Delicattessen” and “Zog” also are worthy of attention, he said.
Porter would like to see more movies where science isn’t the bad guy.
“There are few movies where science isn’t the bad guy,” he said. “In Hollywood, the idea seems to be that technology is bad. Most people writing movies in Hollywood have no experience in technology.”
For many people, SF films, however, have been increasingly impressive.
Canfield said, “Even if I disagree with some of their picks, I think we’re living through a wonderful time for science fiction movies. When I was a kid, science fiction movies were rare – and, looking back, a lot of them were terrible.”
