Appreciating all that makes America special

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Nothing unites Americans in quite the same way as standing around the water cooler, saying, “Did you see Lost last night? That was so cool.” Or debating whether Adam Sandler can actually, you know, act. (Our conclusion: not much.)


Director: Ken Burns

Posted by on May 18, 2010 in Director | Comments Off on Director: Ken Burns

It’s not as if Ken Burns invented the long-form, multi-part documentary. What he did was to bring a sense of style to archive...

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Film: The Lion King

Posted by on May 14, 2010 in Film | 1 comment

Walt Disney Studios was on quite a roll, with each feature becoming more sophisticated in its animation, themes, and music. The Little...

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TV Show: American Idol

Posted by on May 13, 2010 in Music, TV Show | 1 comment

It’s trendy for people to turn their noses up at this show, it’s somehow beneath them. But American Idol’s overpowering...

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Actor: Dustin Hoffman

Posted by on May 12, 2010 in Actor | Comments Off on Actor: Dustin Hoffman

The first film I saw with Dustin Hoffman in the lead was The Graduate, and I completely believed him. The next role I saw him handle was...

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TV Show: Austin City Limits

Posted by on May 1, 2010 in Music, TV Show | Comments Off on TV Show: Austin City Limits

If Austin is indeed the “live music capital of the world” as it proclaims itself, much of the credit has to go to Austin City...

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Film: The Thin Man

Posted by on Apr 29, 2010 in Film | 1 comment

I owe a lot of my love for classic films to my wife, and one of the treasures that she helped me to discover was The Thin Man. Based on a...

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Actor: Gary Cooper

Posted by on Apr 28, 2010 in Actor | 1 comment

Imagine a continuum that defines acting styles. On the one side, you’d have the histrionic, almost melodramatic actors. William...

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Music: Great Movie Songs

Posted by on Apr 25, 2010 in Film, Music | 1 comment

This recognition isn’t for songs that were incorporated into a movie’s soundtrack, but for songs that made their debut in a...

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TV Show: Roots

Posted by on Apr 16, 2010 in TV Show | Comments Off on TV Show: Roots

It’s hard for contemporary television watchers to grasp what happened to America when Roots premiered on ABC in 1977. Rather than...

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Film: The Sting

Posted by on Apr 14, 2010 in Film | Comments Off on Film: The Sting

Paul Newman (Great American Things, May 17, 2009) and Robert Redford co-starred in two blockbuster movies, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance...

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