Be loyal, patriotic, and faithful

 

John Wayne was a fervent patriot. He wanted to join up for WW2, but was rejected as being too old. But, the military wanted him to act in patriotic films. He was active in helping veterans and  supporting the military.

A list of some of his military movies:  

The Flying Leathernecks (1951) ...
Operation Pacific (1951) ...
The Fighting Seabees. ...
The Green Berets (1968) ...
In Harm's Way (1965) ...
The Longest Day (1962) ...
The Flying Tigers (1942) ...
Back to Bataan (1945)

The one that always pops up in my brain is "The Longest Day".

 

I have seen all of these once and then twice. Now that I am older and have a better understanding of that horrible war, I appreciate what John Wayne portrayed. War is hell.

John Wayne, May 26 1907-1979

For those who want to watch "Saving Private Ryan", it is a profound experience, in that It was not bloody enough. Veterans of this day said that the assault on June 6 was bloodier. 

Niland brothers on Normandy Beach

Interview with D-Day veteran:

Ever Faithful

 

I wish John Wayne had lived longer. 

John Wayne was a fervent patriot. He wanted to join up for WW2, but was rejected as being too old. The military wanted him to act in patriotic films. He was active in helping veterans and  supporting the military. He was faithful to this country.

A list of some of his military movies:  

The Flying Leathernecks (1951) ...
Operation Pacific (1951) ...
The Fighting Seabees. ...
The Green Berets (1968) ...
In Harm's Way (1965) ...
The Longest Day (1962) ...
The Flying Tigers (1942) ...
Back to Bataan (1945)

I have seen all of these once and then twice. Now that I am older and have a better understanding of that horrible war, I appreciate what he portrayed. 

 

War is hell.

 

A brave man like John Wayne is often few and far apart.

John Wayne, May 26 1907-1979

 

God Bless America

 

I wish John Wayne had lived longer. 

John Wayne was a fervent patriot. He wanted to join up for WW2, but was rejected as being too old. But, the military wanted him to act in patriotic films. He was active in helping veterans and  supporting the military.

A list of some of his military movies:  

The Flying Leathernecks (1951) ...
Operation Pacific (1951) ...
The Fighting Seabees. ...
The Green Berets (1968) ...
In Harm's Way (1965) ...
The Longest Day (1962) ...
The Flying Tigers (1942) ...
Back to Bataan (1945)

I have seen all of these once and then twice. Now that I am older and have a better understanding of that horrible war, I appreciate what he portrayed. War is hell.

John Wayne, May 26 1907-1979

And the Award Goes

1938

Here they are again: Hollywood Self-Aggrandizement Award Ceremony Fests. Oh, how I hate them.  

There will be some great nominations this year, much to my surprise. These movies I rate by my accurate system: How many times do I have to go to the bathroom?

My bladder is almost always correct. What measures the excellence of the movie is how and what I experience throughout the movie and its conclusion. 

Was I emotionally engaged? Did the plot have me traveling with it? Were the characters actors portraying some other person other than themselves? The ending does not have to be fairy tale happily ever after, but it does have to be make some kind of sense. 

The movie must, absolutely must keep me enthralled. Go to the toilet during the previews, yes. But stay to catch every other scene.

Movies that have a clear "And then... where the sequel is in your face" will lead me to question Why? Is a sequel needed? Or does the film holds it own without further travel?

We had no expectations about any movies at any point. The following two movies surprised us. 

Go see this entertaining movie which received excellent reviews. "Uplifting, refreshing" are the reviewer comments: Knives Out. Top notch actors and script appeared. Very much on the lines of Agatha Christie, this movie kept us both in our seats.

4.5 stars out of 5

Another worthwhile movie is "1917". History of WW1 and WW2 always catches and amazes me. The How and Why of those time periods and of the young soldiers fills me with both anger and sorrow. In this movie, two young men have to carry orders to the front, telling to postpone a large offensive. 

No bathroom breaks with these two, I can tell you. None whatsoever.

Why do we go to movies? Why do you go to movies, if you do go? 

YouTube 1970

True Grit Oscar Award

John Wayne  

Okay, what did you see when you read his name?  Did you picture him in some favorite movie?  Which one?  True Grit?  The Shootist?  Or, The Quiet Man?

We all have an image we form when we hear names, especially if the names are well-known and famous.  James Bond, Dirty Harry, Quickdraw McGraw…the list is endless.

Recently, the movie Rio Bravo was on a cable channel.  The cast was as follows:

John Wayne ... Sheriff John T. Chance

Dean Martin ... Dude ('Borachón')
Ricky Nelson ... Colorado Ryan
Angie Dickinson ... Feathers

Walter Brennan ... Stumpy

The summary of the movie:

“A small-town sheriff in the American West enlists the help of a cripple, a drunk, and a young gunfighter in his efforts to hold in jail the brother of the local bad guy.”

As I watched it once more, this time I paid attention to the monikers. Dude.  Colorado.  Feathers.  Stumpy.  Life had to be interesting if those were one’s names.

Ricky Nelson’s character ‘Colorado’ had no life skills.  Not really good with a gun, he was ‘the kid’ who wanted to be bigger than life, as ‘Sheriff John T. Chance’ was huge.   He chose the name ‘Colorado’. 

This set me to wonder what name I would chose given the fact that I am a 60 yr. old retired school teacher with some extra pounds.

These were some choices:

Des Moines           Boise          Newark            Dubuque     or instead of cities,

Sourdough            Limburger   Blumenthal    Lentil        or, how about,

Lancet                   Boil             Incontinent    Salivate

Silly, I know.  But, what made me think is that the character’s names pre-established my perceptions of them.  Angie wouldn’t have come across well if her name was ‘Stumpy’, and Walter Brennan became ‘Dude’.  The character’s name is all important. 

Something to keep in mind in the crafting of a character in my writing.