I'm in the Army Now

Oh how the times have changed. Check out this classic popeye cartoon, I'm in the Army Now, which takes place at the army recruiting headquarters. Bluto and Popeye are fighting tooth and nail, vying for the last open slot as a recruit. Why are they so enthused? Because Olive wants to go out with a military man.

Another Army related classic toon - Rookie Review, which features a bunch of green recruits and a pun every 20 seconds or so. Quite entertaining for a classic cartoon.

And finally, for some entertaining light comedy related to the Army, check out Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin in At War With the Army. Loads of laughs, plus it features Polly Bergen, no relation to legendary ventriloquist Edgar Bergen, operator of Charlie McCarthy and father to Candace Bergen. Polly Bergen was born in Knoxville, Tennessee nee Nellie Paulina Burgin, on July 14, 1930. But back in the day, Polly Bergen was a big deal and a hard working actress. One of her most notable performances was in the original Cape Fear from 1962. She played Gregory Peck's wife, and was stalked by a maniacal Robert Mitchum.

But I digress, let's get back to the army. Our final suggestion today for a fun Hollywood treatment of being a soldier comes from Laurel and Hardy. Ollie gets his heart broken and decides to join the French Foreign Legion with his good buddy Stan. Trouble follows in their wake. Very funny stuff. Check out Flying Deuces. This movie also is available as a DVD iso download.

Okay... one more. This is hilarious. George Gobel remembers his time spent in military service, stationed in Oklahoma during World War II.

Simone Signoret Rocks

Simone Signoret was born today March 25th in Wiesbaden, Germany, way back in 1921. Her acting career spanned four decades and she spent most of that time working hard. Simone Signoret won an Oscar for Best Actress in 1960 for Room at the Top. (sorry, I wish we had that movie too, but no). A few years before she played an amazing nasty mean girl in Les Diaboliques. Her acting range in this movie is scary. So good that you'll be very careful to ever trust a woman again.

Simone Signoret was married twice, the first lasted 4 years, but her second marriage to Yves Montand lasted till her death on September 30, 1985. And who is Yves Montand you ask. He was a very slick singer and was included in the first Europe to US satellite transmission via Telstar. He also starred with Marilyn Monroe in Let's Make Love in 1961. Rumor has it the two followed through on the title and had an affair during production. Forgive and forget, his marriage to Simone Signoret lasted till her death in 1985. Montand died November 9, 1991. In any event, Happy Birthday to Simone Signoret, a remarkable actress. Don't believe me? watch the movie Les Diaboliques and see for yourself.

Baseball Season 2008

Though the weather is still cold and while old Jack Frost the meanie of winter does his best to hold on, spring is on the way. Hooray! My favorite spring video on the site is a tough call. Either this amazing psychodelic cartoon, To Spring. Hyperactive elves work an amazing underground color paint pump to paint all the flowers and changing colors of spring. Got a techno Metropolis thing going on as well. Also big on the spring best of list, is Granny's Spring Tonic. There's just nothing like the first good batch of moonshine in the spring.

And spring means spring training, which means the baseball season is just around the corner. Grab a bag of peanuts, a cold beer and put those steroid pills away please. We have a ton of terrific baseball clips we thought we'd highlight to get you in the mood for Baseball. The Jackie Robinson Story, Paul Newman in Bang the Drum Slowly, and The Lou Gehrig Story. A nice walk down a lane of legends. For some fun - check out the Clampetts vs. The Dodgers. Leo Durocher of the L.A. Dodgers plays himself, and he's very impressed with Jethro's throwing arm. Why, he could be a pitcher in the majors right? A bunch more shorties too. Just search for Baseball. And don't miss the one with Max Patkin, the clown prince of baseball.

Oil Discovered in Saudi Arabia

On March 15, 1938 oil was discovered in Saudi Arabia, by the Aramco Company. Who is Aramco you ask? At the time, Aramco consisted of three big boys - Standard Oil, Texaco and Mobil. And they found the mother of all oil deposits in Saudi Arabia. Check out this newsreel from This Day in History and languish in the irony. The clip made in 1990 or 1991 - back when oil was around $20-$25 bucks a barrel.

Having encoded 50 plus episodes of the Beverly Hillbillies, and heard the theme song so many times i knew it backwards, it seemed impossible for my mind not to wonder how the reworked song would go?

Come and listen to a story 'bout a man named Ahmed, a poor bedouin barely kept his family fed... and then on day he was shooting at some Kurd, when up from the sand shot a bubbling... ??? Well, there's a million variations to explore over the weekend, or the next time you are filling up the tank. If time is not at a premium, search for Saudi Arabia. Or some laughs, check out Jed Clampett in Jed Strikes Oil, the episode where Jed learns his land is worth a fortune.

Charles Van Doren Loses

On March 11, 1957 Charles Van Doren ends his amazing win streak and loses to Vivienne Nearing on the super popular game show Twenty One, hosted by Jack Berry. In the early days of TV, people were shocked and mortified that TV games shows were not entirely fair. In fact some were even rigged. The big shoe ready to drop? Twenty One. It was learned that the show producers gave Van Doren the correct answers in an effort to beat the unstoppable Herb Stempel. While Stempel was a great player, he was bad for demographics or something. Who knows?

Fifty-one years ago today, Van Doren's winning ways came to an end and one of TV's first cheaters lost to Vivienne Nearing.

Do we really need any more videos of New York political corruption? Well, today we suggest Corrupt NY Governor, v. 1.0. As we heard the sad news about Eliot Spitzer, we were reminded of a movie that features a corrupt NY Governor named Angel on My Shoulder. No, it doesn't involve a prostitution ring, though the title sounds like it might. But it does involve the criminal underworld. Claude Rains in terrific in the role of Satan, and Paul Muni stars as Eddy Kagel, the hardened criminal who is tempted by Satan to sell his soul. The film also stars Anne Baxter the fetching nice girl that Eddy learns to love.

D.O.A. Edmond O'Brien Rocks

D.O.A. provides a terrific sense of urgency. Frank went out to jazz joint to get a drink while on a business trip. But somebody poisoned him, and he only has 24 to live. He must find out what happened and get the people responsible for his impending death. Because like it or not, Frank, played by Edmond O'Brien is going to be D.O.A. when he gets to the hospital. Great movie, very interesting and intense.

If you enjoyed Edmond O'Brien's performance, you can see him again in The Bigamist, co-starring Edmund Gwenn. Yes, that's right - he's the guy who plays Santa from Miracle on 34th Street.

Oscar Night Feb. 24 2008

Time again for Oscar Night, and all the beautiful people will be there. But part of what makes the Academy Award night so interesting, is all the previous years that went before.

LikeTelevision™ has a bunch of terrific former Oscar winners and nominees. For Best actor - check out Gregory Peck in To Kill A Mockingbird or Jose Ferrer in Cyrano de Bergerac. Plus great Oscar moments in time - 1956 when Ernest Borgnine in Marty beats our Frank Sinatra, Spencer Tracy, and James Dean. You can watch Sinatra in Man with the Golden Arm - great movie.

And who could ever forget Sacheen Littlefeather accepting for Marlon Brando. And Frank Capra, William Wyler and Orson Welles. Frankly - there's too many to mention. You might try searching for Oscar in the media library, or try this - a quick quiz... okay who's the lady in the first picture? She's an incredible costume designer. Here's a hint, Archie wife. Need more help? Here's the answer.