August 15, 2011

The King's Speech was quite good. Liked Timothy Spall's Churchill. Now, I will attempt The Last Lion.



I had read Manchester's The Glory and the Dream: A Narrative History of America, 1932–1972 and American Caesar: Douglas MacArthur 1880–1964. He was a good writer and biographer.



Running The Books by Avi Steinberg looks real interesting. Harvard Grad works as a Prison Librarian. The opening: "Pimps make the best librarians. Psycho killers, the worst. Ditto con men. Gangsters, gunrunners, bank robbers - adept at crowd control, at collaborating with a small staff, at planning with deliberation and executing with contained fury - all possess the librarian's basic skill set. Scalpers and loan sharks certainly have a role to play. But even they lack that something, the je ne sais quoi, the elusive it. What would a pimp call it? Yes: the love."



Will be reading this for the ideas presented.



A well-executed movie and the view is Mattie Ross not Rooster Cogburn. I have to say that Wayne is better than Bridges. This movie is truer to the book. Mattie Ross ends up with an arm missing and LaBoeuf doesn't die.
Great Line:
[after older Mattie enters The tents of the The Wild West Show]
Cole Younger: Yes’m, I am Cole Younger. This is Mr. James. It grieves me to tell you that you have missed Rooster. He passed away, what, three days ago, when the show was in Jonesboro Arkansas. Buried him there in the confederate cemetery. Reuben had a complaint what he referred to as "night hoss" and I believe the warm weather was too much for him. We had some lively times. What was the nature of your acquaintance?
40-Year-Old Mattie: I knew the marshal long ago. We too had lively times. Thank you, Mr. Younger.
[as she turns to go she addresses Frank James who's been staring at her]
40-Year-Old Mattie: Keep your seat, trash.



John Brown Smokehouse: 25-08 37 AVE, Long Island City, NY 11101. The Pulled Pork Sandwich and Beans were great. Smoky and Tasty.Will try the brisket next.

August 14, 2011

Scheduling had the 1969 True Grit on first. Wayne is actually quite good. Campbell and Darby not so good. Jeff Corey is a little too old for the villain, but still good. Can't believe a set with Robert Duvall, Dennis Hopper and the Duke. Reports from the shoot say they did not get along.



Well, it was a while ago.



Saw this set. Thought Alvin Lee was destined for Superstardom.

August 13, 2011

Summer Streets continues. A little more crowded this week.



The free stuff at 24th Street is worth a visit. Today they had Ciao Bella Lemon Sorbet cups, yogurt, Tea, Apple Sauce Squeeze Packs and Cheese. Sponsored by Whole Foods.



I have heard good things about Chipolte Mexican Grill. Mmm, tasty.



Interesting piece in front of Barbounia.



Andy in the sun.



Just finished the Novel True Grit. I will watch the Coen Brothers version first.



Someone had given me the John Wayne version several Christmases ago. Never watched it, now I will.



I now know why Blockbuster went out of business. Forget about Netflix, a supermarket Kiosk gave me three DVDs for $2.50. Hear this flick is GrerrrGerrate.



Horror is a big staple in this house. Never heard of this movie but will give it a try.



$11.99 a twelve-Pak, Official start of vacation beer. No travel: Movies, Books, BBQ and NYC Restaurant Week ,extended version, on the agenda.



This is where my nineteen year-old will be tomorrow: Shwayze at Governor's Island. I console myself with the fact that at seventeen I attended Woodstock.

January 23, 2011

Man it is cold, "The Hawk is out", watch it!



CBS Sunday Morning did a nice piece on Pianist Simone Dinnerstein this morning. Will have to try her Goldberg Variations.



Today's Frank Rich column has a real good riff on old fashioned American Values contrasting True Grit of 1969, and present with The Social Network.

January 15, 2011

My new wallpaper, a picture found on the net, in honor of 4d in today's NYT Crossword.



Found this too, a good thought.



Found this great recipe in Serious Eats. A real nice BBQ Sauce. I will , of course, make my own additions and subtractions. Also, since it does not use much Guinness, the rest can be had while watching Football.

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 medium onion, finely diced
• 1 15oz can tomato sauce
• 8 oz stout beer
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Since this is BBQ, BEER and BOOKS,let's get to what is important. Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA is the weekend beer via a Growler. Guinness Stout Drought will also be consumed after the BBQ Sauce is made. I returned Voltaire to the Queens Library. It was an interesting read, did not know he was sleeping with his niece. The later years involving his fighting intolerance and injustice was quite interesting. Will have to read some more of his output, having only read Candide.



I tend to favor Biographies and this one was available from the Queens Library. I had read Ron Chernow's previous biography of Alexander Hamilton and enjoyed it. This one should be good, Washington is often not given the credit he deserves.



Also on the reading list, True Grit by Charles Portis. I will eventually see the Coen Brothers Movie, but everything I've read talks about how good the novel is to read.



Abita tasting at the local Beer Distributor, a flight convinced me to get the Party Pack. It came with a complimentary T-Shirt. This is a three-day weekend, after all.