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My summer trip to France was a great success, visiting many sites connected with Operation Dragoon, Napoleon's return, Burgundy, and Paris with friends. US War Memorials Overseas was one of the main research sites I used to map out my trip. France is notable in that the country as a

I’m planning a trip to the South of France to visit the Operation Dragoon landings (Aug 1944) and up the Rhone valley, misc. Roman and Medieval sights to see, and continuing to the Côtes-du-Beaune to check out the Burgundy wine region. As usual, I’m searching for any and

I've started following  @jfkenney who has an interesting film career but also posts odd, old, or otherwise obscure movies that are freely available on YouTube or other platforms. Hoping he won't mind this (probably not) regular roundup of his recent finds. Obscure YT of the day: 1968s caper at an

Oppenheimer - As always, my notes are more than a bit late. Anyway.... Loved it. Epic, energetic, grandest scale, overflowing riches, multiple viewings required. That said, some of this reaction is just the gratitude in not seeing another superhero movie, though at times the characters do seem to each have

Air is another masterclass from director/writer Ben Affleck - a thin, hackneyed story, but written, edited, and acted at the highest level. The subject is how back in the '80s, Nike got Michael Jordan's endorsement for a new basketball shoe, but the real story is how we need heroes

Had two nice random Patricia Highsmith sightings in the past month or so. Put on Deep Water a while ago and missed the opening credits. Nice, well-paced murder mystery – but hey, main guy is more anti-hero than usual. Oh, right (after checking IMDB), based on a book by her. Last

spoilers ahead... I never watched original Top Gun in theaters (not even this one), and have only caught enough pieces of it on TV over the years to piece together the general story. Seemed ok enough, especially back in the day. The sequel, Top Gun: Maverick, has had boffo B.

Chariots of Fire and Vangelis' score were both serendipitous events with little chance for success. There's a two-hour video showcasing many of the highlights of the great composer's creations; the (much shorter) story of the movie is in that video starting here. Vangelis was an improvisational symphonic master, well known

Just an odd story.... Saw notice of new book Girls of Flight City concerning R.A.F. pilots that were trained in the U.S.A. during WWII. Quite the opposite of the usual yank soldiers in England story that's been told too much, e.g. in film. Turns out