Jeep, Popeye's Alien Pal

One of my favorite Popeye cartoons in the cartoon library at LikeTelevision is titled Eugene The Jeep. In case you are a babe in the woods - Eugene the Jeep was some kind of sweet alien creature who appeared on Popeye's front porch one day, arriving in a package with the Jeep inside. Lots of folks felt this was Popeye's dog or something... but Eugene was much cooler than that... he was able to appear, re-appear... and bi-locate.... a very cool alien lifeform indeed. This toon was created during WWII (1940)... so we are not sure that the Jeep name was some kind of tribute to the funky new army vehicle introduced during the war.... called a Willy, now better known as a Jeep. We'll let you make the call... do a search on google.

Max Kolby - August 14, 1941

Max Kolbe died today on August 14, 1941. While most people are remembered for their life, Max Kolbe is remembered mostly for the heroic nature of his death. He was a Polish Catholic priest sent to Auschwitz by the Nazis for trying to secretly hide several thousand Jews. Back in those dark days, just being a Catholic priest was reason enough to get sent to the camps - so Max's "crime" was even more severe. A Catholic priest trying to harbor Jews made him a huge target.

In late July 1941 Max Kolbe asked to take the place of a man with a family who had been condemned to death. A prisoner had escaped in his cell block and so, people were randomly chosen to die by starvation for this transgression. Max said - take me instead. His story is quite remarkable and I suggest you learn more about Maximilian Kolbe if you are unfamiliar with the man.

In honor of Max Kolbe, we recommend two movies. First - Escape from Sobibor starring Alan Arkin and Rutger Hauer. Sobibor was a concentration camp in Poland and unfortunately, not enough people have ever heard of what transpired there. It is an amazing movie about one of the greatest prisoner escapes in WWII. Just watch it. It's an A+ film of a heroic story, just like Max Kolbe's life. Second - we suggest Roberto Rossellini's Open City, which is another powerful World War II story, this time set in Rome. In this movie, Aldo Fabrizi plays a heroic Catholic priest. It also Anna Magnani.

Alfred Hitchcock's Cameo Appearances

On the anniversary of Alfred Hitchcock's birthday (born August 13,1899), I thought of an interesting exercise for all you film lover's out there in net land. Similar to Where's Waldo... the test is to find Sir Alfred where no man has found him before. Hitchcock was known for his many cameo appearances in his films, and yes indeed - these cameos are explored in some depth on the net. (try here for almost a google of pages on the subject). But to find Alfred where he has already been found, is easy. Fun yes.. but easy. Want something harder? Find him in films where he has not been found. As far as i know... he has not been found in a few dozen of his films. And guess what... you can find a bunch of those films right here at LikeTelevision. The original Man Who Knew Too Much(1936), Sabotage(1936), The Secret Agent(1936) or Number Seventeen(1932). Can you find Sir Alfred where no man has found him before?

Have fun... if you can find Sir Alfred in the films listed above, send us an email and we'll post it in our blog. (the story will get picked up by AP and we'll make you a star - a virtual guarantee of your 15 minutes of fame. (please provide a time and a sceen grab for verification). Or - you can also rediscover Hitch in The Lady Vanishes. Need a hint?

Ingmar Bergman Dies at 89

Ingmar Bergman, one of THE greatest directors died today at the age of 89. (NYT obit) I will never forget my first encounter with a Bergman film. That scene from Wild Strawberies, where the funeral procession just drolls on and on as it moves slowly down the street. Horses... clip clop.... And then... bada AHHHH ! If you've seen it, you know. if not - i couldn't spoil it for you. It's too much fun. Later, I watched the Seventh Seal - so creepy and ethereal. And saw a bunch more too.... with still so many more to see. (I am not even a quarter of the way thru all his films). Ingmar Bergman changed the course of film. He made it some kind of spiritual and heightened experience. On so many levels and layers. He was a true artist. A ground breaker. May God bless Ingmar Bergman and all the great works he made in the course of his long and fruitful lifetime. We'll miss him.

Here's one of my favorites, The Brink of Life, lesser known but really terrific.

Benefit Concert For Doug - July 22

If you are a regular at LikeTelevision - you know him as Frank Random, the creative mind, artistic genius, suave silky voiced funny guy, and LT's chief creative officer. (learn more bout Frank - Zim Zum, Shameless 1, 2 or singing so sweet) Frank is amazing!

Well in the real world, his name is Doug Hawthorn. Earlier this year, Doug sustained serious injuries in a car accident. After that, he got a bad bacterial infection while at the hospital. Many operations, and procedures later, he now resides in a rehabilitation facility. Doug will probably have to stay there for a while.

Being a professional musician for most of life - 3 decades plus, Doug made a lot of friends who were fellow musicians and on Sunday July 22, 2 PM till ? at the Double Door at the Lake, there's gonna be a whopper of a benefit concert for Doug (poster). With Bob Margolin, Jim Brock, Lenny Federal and lots more great music all Sunday long.

Live Aid - July 13th Friday 07 Irony

On July 13, 1985 Live Aid debuts with a great deal of excitement and money to burn. This newsreel - made in 1990 tells us with a touch of glee, that Phil Collins was able to play in London and Philadelphia by riding the Concorde. Zoom, Zoom. Kind of ironic given the spirit and tone of the latest Live (put Cause Here) sequel - Live Earth. Now sure, I am all for a green style of living, which means have a low consumption level. Drive less, walk more. Ride the motorcycle - save gas. But watching the Live Earth show was pretty weak. Musically limp. Now I did learn a few things about saving energy. Like not leaving your cell phone charger plugged in the wall because it uses energy even when it is not plugged into your phone. Ok, cool. But the music was lame to way too tame to all the same. Shakira rocked, but most of it ..zzzzzzz. Now if Shakira could have flown in a private jet and moved her hips on a few continents that would have been cool. The stars can't do that anymore. Bummer. (c)Hips don't lie.


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Gerald McBoing Boing's Symphony

One of the greatest characters in cartoon history is Gerald McBoing Boing - who was thsi little kid, so skilled at sound effects, he could pretty much do anything. And in fact - he was often asked to do the most crazy and impossible tasks. Like this cartoon - Gerald McBoing Boing's Symphony - it seems the orchestra is nowhere near the studio so they give Gerald the musical score and off he goes, reproducing the entire musical piece. And a bunch of very funny musical playfulness when the sheet music falls off the stand & Gerald has trouble reading it.