dimland radio 3-5-16 show notes

An Original Pic Of Re-Enactors

Are these the actual Earp brothers and Doc Holliday?

A Facebook friend shared a photo (above) that was said to be an original pic of Doc Holliday, Wyatt, Morgan and Virgil Earp. Weeeeellll. Not so fast there, Spanky.

 

To my somewhat trained eye, the photo looked too modern. It didn't look like the kind of photographs taken in the late 19th century. In fact, it looked more like a color photo that had been grey scaled. I was skeptical.

 

The real Wyatt, Morgan, and Virgil Earp.

 

 

 

The real Doc Holliday.

I looked for what I could be reasonably certain were actual photos (above) of the four men in question. Those men didn't quite match up with the four fellows that my friend shared. And the photographs look much more as though they were taken in the late 19th or early 20th centuries. In fact, Wyatt's and Morgan's photos appear to have been taken earlier than Virgil's.

 

I continued my search and found a color photograph of four re-enactors from present day Tombstone, AZ. Surprise! Surprise! Two of the men in the color photo are also present in that "original pic of Doc, Wyatt, and his brothers".

 

Compare the two on the left in this modern image to the two of the left in the picture of the alleged real lawmen.

That sealed it. However, my FB friend didn't care, because the image was romantic. Well, she should care. The internet is full enough of misinformation. She and the rest of us should all do our best to not add to the bullshit.

Abe Vigoda's Oscar Snub

His daughter called it an injustice. I don't think it's quite that, but I was disappointed to find out the producers of this year's Oscar ceremony didn't think to include Abe Vigoda in its In Memoriam segment. I guess they must have thought Vigoda was more TV than movie. More Fish, less Tessio.

 

Perhaps. That was the same reasoning when Farrah Fawcett wasn't remembered after she had died. But both Farrah and Abe had made movies. And Abe was in The Godfather and The Godfather Part II, for crying out loud! I mentioned it would have been very poignant to show the scene in which Tessio realizes he won't be returning from the ride he's about to take. "Tell Mike it was just business." How great would that have been?

 

Vigoda wasn't enough of a movie guy, eh? How much of a movie guy was David Bowie? Do you think of Bowie as a movie guy? He does have more than 20 films to his credit, but so does Vigoda.

 

I looked back at past In Memoriam segments. I was looking to see of Johnny Carson had been included after he died. I looked for Carson because someone on Facebook suggested Vigoda might be like Carson - too TV. But Carson had hosted several Oscar ceremonies, so I thought it might be possible he was included. He wasn't. But! I saw that Jerry Orbach was.

 

Jerry Orbach had made some movies. He was the voice of the candelabra in Beauty and the Beast and he did put Baby in the corner in Dirty Dancing. But, come on! Most everyone who remembers who he was identifies him as Lenny Brisco, the police detective on TV's Law & Order.

 

Well, someone always gets missed. Abe Vigoda should have been included. The Emmys will likely remember him, but I don't ever watch the Emmys.

 

Maddy Love Talks About Being A Skeptic

 

I have been trying to listen to more of the local skeptical podcasts lately. One of which is the MN Trans-Atheist Podcast hosted by Maddy Love. I haven't gotten to listen to much but on a recent show Maddy gives a six minute talk addressing what it means to be a skeptic. She uses some ideas gotten from the awesome Carl Sagan, but she weaves in plenty of her well-focused ideas. She says in six minutes what I've been trying to impart in six years of doing Dimland Radio.

She graciously gave me permission to use her talk on my show. She even linked me to a nicely set-up mp3 version that I could easily play for my listeners.

 

Thanks, Maddy!

The Return Of Never Found Live Bonus Week

My Never Found in the 80s segments on the Stuck in the 80s blog had been dormant since last September. So, with Steve Spears and Brad Williams (hosts of the Stuck in the 80s podcast) heading out on the 80s Cruise, I thought I'd help Steve out with the blog by providing five more live clips of 80s alternative bands.

 

The acts I covered were: The Replacements, Let's Active, Cocteau Twins, Killing Joke, and Robyn Hitchcock & the Egyptians.

 

I talked about how the song by Let's Active (Blue Line) had an opening that was very similar to an REM song. I told how I had difficulty figuring out which REM song it was. Finally, I figured it out. It was Kohoutek from their album Fables of the Reconstruction. Phew! You can compare the songs using the links. Let me know if you think I'm right... or wrong.

 

I also noted the fan made video for REM's song Green Grow The Rushes was nothing but anti-capitalism images. I found it ironic as REM has made millions and millions of dollars through the capitalist system. I guess it's OK for your favorite band profits from capitalism, but not Coca-Cola.

And speaking of Robyn Hitchcock, I told the story of when Amy (my wife) and I were dating. We both had tickets to see shows on the same night. She had tickets for Joe Strummer, I had tickets for Robyn Hitchcock. We saw Hitchcock. Amy had never seen Strummer, I had. Amy would never see him. Joe Strummer died not long after that show.

I have regretted not going with Amy's tickets, instead of mine.

Someone Send Megan Fox The Demon-Haunted World!

 

 

Megan Fox has once again been photographed in public carrying a book written by my friend Scott Roberts. Scott is pretty much at the opposite end of the skeptical scale from me. Oh, he has his moments, but overall he tends toward the paranormal. I don't.

 

There's his name: Scott Alan Roberts!

In May 2015, Ms Fox was seen with Scott's book about giant angels. This past February, she had Scott and his co-writer's book on the Exodus (which didn't happen). Jeepers! It's good for Scott. I'm happy for him. It's just not so good for rational thought.

 

I wonder if I can figure out how to send her Carl Sagan's The Demon-Haunted World.

 

Movie Recommendation: Breaking Away (1979)

 

20th Century Fox

A little sleeper hit from 1979 about four young men coming of age. They are called "Cutters" by the college students after what used to be the main industry of the town: Stone-cutting. "Cutters" is meant to be an insult when used by the students. Our four friends don't much care for those college kids.

 

There's Dave. He is the focus of the film. He is adrift like his friends, but he has cycling. And he's very good at it. He fancies himself Italian because he so admires the Italians' cycling skills. But reality hits him hard.

 

The conflict with the college students leads to the college allowing a team from the town to compete in the big cycling race to be held on campus. Dave and his friends enter that race to prove "cutters" are just as good as any college kid.

 

If you haven't seen this, put it in your queue!

 

Music heard on the show...

Dimland Radio opening theme song: 'Ram' by The Yoleus 
First ad break bumpers: 'Blue Bell Knoll' By Cocteau Twins & 'Every Word Means No' byLet's Active

Second ad break bumpers: 'The Wait' by Killing Joke & 'The Man With The Lightbulb Head' by Robyn Hitchcock & the Egyptians

Closing song: 'Angler's Treble Hook' by $5 Fiddle

That's it! See you next Saturday night for Dimland Radio 11 Central, midnight Eastern on www.ztalkradio.com you can also download my show from the z talk show archives page. You can email your questions and comments to drdim@dimland.com
 
You can also go to my CafePress store and buy stuff with my artwork on it and have me do a portrait for you if you like. Find out more here and here.

dimland radio 2-27-16 show notes

It's Not True: Detroit Woman Did Not Have 14th Child By 14th Different Man

This is going to come a shock to some of you, but there are sites on the internet that make stuff up. World News Daily Report is one of them. If people knew that, they wouldn't have credulously shared the story of a Detroit woman giving birth to her 14th child by a 14th father. The article makes up the idea that she now holds the world's record for having the most children each by a different father.

The picture of the happy parents is actually the proud parents of the first child born in a Connecticut town in 2015. Snopes.com sniffed this one out.

Snopes has done the internet further great service by providing a list of websites whose "news" articles everyone should be wary of. So has Doubtful News.

I Bought A Suit

I have reached the ripe old age of 51 without having ever owned a suit. Well, there was that one a friend give me, but it didn't fit, so I never wore it. That makes the suit I bought a couple weeks ago my first official suit.

I was asked what was the occasion. No, occasion. I just thought it was time. We had money from the tax refund, so I bought one. A little more expensive than I had hoped, but what are ya gonna do?

I went over to my folks' house to show it off. I told Mom and Dad, since I figured they wouldn't see it at their funerals, I had better show them now.

Such a good son.

 

And, no, it's not one of those fashion forward suits. This one fits.

 

Almost lifelike!

Let's Talk About Teeth

 

There's a TV ad for a clinic that does dental implants. I have nothing against the idea of dental implants. I know they are spendy, but for some they are a better solution than dentures.

What I noticed about this ad, and I'm sorry I couldn't find a clip of it to link to, was 1) the late 50s/early 60s aged woman looked as though teeth weren't her only implants (ahem). 2) She had just a hint of a lisp. And 3) the teeth were unnaturally white.

I know it's just me, but there is something wrong with teeth being that white.

I also told a couple of tales about my mother and her dentures. Both might be embarrassing for her, especially the story about my friend mishearing what Mom said about when her teeth went bad, so don't tell her I told you. Let's keep it just between us.

Raven Symone Might Be Unclear On Something

Raven Symone, one of the hosts of The View, is holding up a long standing tradition of celebrities threatening to leave the country if the wrong person becomes President. However, she didn't quite get it right. She's threatened to move to Canada if a Republican gets nominated.

Uhh, Raven? There will be a Republican nominated. That's what happens in the Presidential election process. I guess Canada better make some room.

However, I'm going to assume Raven meant she'd leave if a Republican gets elected.

Couldn't one of the other hosts have corrected her on this? Sure they could, but none did.

 

Movie Recommendation: Bone Tomahawk (2015)

 

Caliber Media Company

This Western slash Horror film slipped by barely noticed last year. It should have been noticed, I think. It's pretty good. It stars Kurt Russell as the aged, but still sharp sheriff of the small town of Bright Hope from which three people had been abducted by a very secretive, primal, brutal clan of Native Americans. This clan had been content to keep to themselves when two bandits stumbled through their sacred burial land.

One of the bandits (David Arquette) escaped to Bright Hope and ends up in a jail cell with one of the sheriff's bullets in his leg. He and two others are abducted. The sheriff heads after accompanied by his back-up deputy (Richard Jenkins), the husband (Patrick Wilson) of a woman who had been taken, and the town's wealthiest and best educated man (Matthew Fox).

Be warned there are moments of brutal violence. Some is off camera, but the sounds almost make it worse than what we do see. It's still worth a watch.

 

Music heard on the show...

Dimland Radio opening theme song: 'Ram' by The Yoleus 
First ad break bumpers: 'Gardening At Night' & 'Can't Get There From Here' by REM

Second ad break bumpers: 'Harborcoat' & 'Fall On Me' by The Replacements

Closing song: 'Angler's Treble Hook' by $5 Fiddle

That's it! See you next Saturday night for Dimland Radio 11 Central, midnight Eastern on www.ztalkradio.com you can also download my show from the z talk show archives page. You can email your questions and comments to drdim@dimland.com
 
You can also go to my CafePress store and buy stuff with my artwork on it and have me do a portrait for you if you like. Find out more here and here.

dimland radio 2-20-16 show notes

Amy's Jury Duty And Hayden's Step Into More Independence

So, Amy had jury duty for the first time this past week. She got on a jury and deliberated on a civil case making the determination of the amount of damages to award a fellow injured in a car accident. I won't go into all the details, but the fellow was asking for half a million in addition to the medical costs of $23,000.

 

I think the best way to say whose side the jury was more sympathetic to will be to tell you what they decided to award the plaintiff. He was asking for $523,000, they awarded him $43,000. The plaintiff really didn't establish he deserved much more. Amy didn't want to give him anything, but agreed with the other jurors that $20,000 in addition to the $23,000 in medical costs was fair. Even the defendant's lawyer suggested they thought an additional $25,000 would have been fair. The jury came in under that, so you know for whom they felt more sympathy.

 

Our dilemma was that we have a 12 year-old son. Amy meets him at the bus stop each day and walks him home. Perhaps we are over-protective. We decided to give Hayden the chance to get himself from the bus to and in the house on his own. He would also call me at work to let me know he made it.

 

He did fine. But I was pretty anxious up until I got his call.

Shame On You Celebrators Of Scalia's Death

Justice Antonin Scalia died unexpectedly, leaving a vacancy on the US Supreme Court. Many have stated how shocked and saddened they are by his death. However, his death was also greeted by more than a few of my Facebook friends' expressions of joy. Shame on them!

 

This is all part of that tribalism that disgusts me so. Scalia was conservative. His opinions were conservative. So, of course, some of my FB friends who tend to be very liberal couldn't stand him. They painted him as one of the worst people ever. And they were relieved when he died.

 

A law professor, Paul Campos, has written a piece for Salon.com voicing his displeasure at people lauding Scalia as a brilliant jurist. Campos disagrees and sites a few examples of what he thinks show Scalia not being so brilliant and having phony principles.

Well, Campos is a law professor and I'm just some ignorant cartoonist with an internet radio show to which no one listens, so what do I know about Scalia and his juristic brilliance?

 

However, the person who wrote the following must certainly know better than I and, maybe, even a law professor writing for Salon.com. She wrote, 

 

"...'We are different, we are one,' different in our interpretation of written texts, one in our reverence for the Constitution and the institution we serve. From our years together at the DC Circuit, we were best buddies. We disagreed now and then, but when I wrote for the Court and received a Scalia dissent, the opinion ultimately released was notably better than my initial circulation. Justice Scalia nailed all the weak spots - the 'applesauce' and the 'argle bargle' - and gave me just what I needed to strengthen the majority opinion. He was a jurist of captivating brilliance [emphasis mine] and wit, with a rare talent to make even the most sober judge laugh. The press referred to his 'energetic fervor,' 'astringent intellect,' 'peppery prose,' 'acumen,' and 'affability,' all apt descriptions. He was eminently quotable, his pungent opinions so clearly stated that his words never slipped from the reader's grasp."

 

I'm sure Prof. Campos disagrees with this statement. Well, he's the law professor who writes for Salon.com and the person who wrote this was Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She's just a US Supreme Court justice who has known and served with Justice Scalia for decades. So,what does she know?

 

Read the statements of the Justices of the US Supreme Court on the death of their colleague here.

 

Jared Allen Rides Off Into The Portrait Format

ARRRGGGGGHH!!!

 

Landscape! Landscape!

 

If you are going to announce your retirement from the NFL by making a video of you riding off into the sunset (or just riding off) as it's done in the Westerns, make god damn certain the person taking the video holds the camera the right way!

 

Westerns are filmed in landscape! Not portrait!

Dawkins Is Re-invited To NECSS And Has A Stroke

No, he didn't have a stroke because of the re-invitation. The stroke did happen after Richard Dawkins received an apology and a re-invitation to appear at NECSS. This has been quite a roller coaster. NECSS seems to have been having difficulty figuring out how to deal with divisive people such as Dawkins. Although, why is he divisive? Is he really divisive?

NECSS, I'm sure, had been getting an earful ever since they first announced Dawkins was a guest speaker.

 

Anyway, he's been re-invited and those who were pissed off by his invitation, but happy with his dis-invitation, are probably pissed off again. Oh, well. I guess they won't be attending NECSS.

 

And neither will Richard Dawkins. He had that stroke.

 

Did I Dream This?

Was it all just a dream? Did I see that Charlie Sheen had returned to the Dr. Oz show to follow up on the whole quack HIV/AIDS cure that snake oil salesman, Samir Chachoua was selling? Did I see Dr. Oz and Sheen's doctor calling out Chachoua for his claims? Did I see Dr. Oz showing and responding to clips from Bill Maher's HBO show Real Time, on which Maher lapped up all of Chachoua's bullshit? Did I see that?

 

Maybe I did. If so, kudos to Dr. Oz. Damn! Did I just say that?

 

Movie Recommendation: Sleuth (1972)

 

2oth Century Fox

I may have recommended this one before, but I blogged about it this week on Warehouse Find, the official blog of Nostalgia Zone, so I'm recommending it again.

 

It's terrifically entertaining. The acting is a treat and the twists and turns are great fun. Watch this movie!

 

Music heard on the show...

Dimland Radio opening theme song: 'Ram' by The Yoleus 
First ad break bumpers: 'Creatures Of Love' by Talking Heads & 'He Stopped Loving Her Today' by George Jones

Second ad break bumpers: 'Lonely Is As Lonely Does' by The dBs &  'Achin' To Be' by The Replacements

Closing song: 'Angler's Treble Hook' by $5 Fiddle

That's it! See you next Saturday night for Dimland Radio 11 Central, midnight Eastern on www.ztalkradio.com you can also download my show from the z talk show archives page. You can email your questions and comments to drdim@dimland.com
 
You can also go to my CafePress store and buy stuff with my artwork on it and have me do a portrait for you if you like. Find out more here and here.