The Greatest Movie Ever Made

Ward Bird Goes Free

From The Associated Press.

A New Hampshire farmer who became a folk hero to gun rights activists after he was imprisoned for brandishing a handgun at a trespasser on his property won early release Wednesday.

The New Hampshire Executive Council voted unanimously to free Ward Bird, just two months into his three-year sentence.

His wife, Ginny, said he would come home to "lots of tears, lots of hugs and a big celebration."

Bird, 49, of Moultonborough, had sought a full pardon to clear his name. The council voted in his favor, but Gov. John Lynch vetoed the pardon, saying the judicial system had given Bird's case a thorough review and he would not undermine that. The council then immediately voted to commute his sentence, and Lynch let that vote stand.

"I, like the (sentencing) judge, have concerns the punishment does not fit the crime," Lynch said.

Bird's felony conviction for criminal threatening with a firearm remains on his record. He can no longer possess guns. Attorney General Michael Delaney said a full pardon would have restored Bird's right to own and carry guns.

I think the governor should have said to him like Michael said to Carlo, "Only don't tell me that you're innocent, because it insults my intelligence and it makes me very angry."

Another Las Vegas Wal Mart Incident

All right, the other incident was in a Costco, but it's still Las Vegas, well actually Henderson, but there were guns, bad guys and in this case a hand grenade. What a town it's become.  What would Moe Green think.

Act Like a Man

H/T Bluegal

"You can act like a man! (slap) What's the matter with you?!"

You can act like a man! sound bite Marlon Brando sound bites

R.I.P. Al Martino

For me he'll always be Johnny Fontaine, but did you know he was wounded in action on Iwo Jima?

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

What Makes a Real Man?

Leave the gun; take the cannoli

Traditional criminal wisdom says you should never keep the murder weapon with you after the job. The same goes for guns used in crimes other than murder, I suppose. Many are left for the police to collect, others are permanently disposed of in sewers or rivers or the ocean. They must add up, which means that in addition to the "flow" that I'm always talking about from the good guys to the bad guys, there's another one which is out of circulation completely.

How does this impact on the statistics? Does it mean that a large number of new guns must be produced each year just to make up for the loss to attrition?

What do you think?

The Making of The Godfather

Via Jason Kottke's wonderful site, I discovered the article The Godfather Wars, written by Mark Seal for this month's edition of Vanity Fair. It chronicles the real-life struggle which took place behind the scenes between Hollywood and the New York Mob during the making of the famous film.

In many ways, the men who made The Godfather—director Francis Ford Coppola, producer Al Ruddy, Paramount executives Robert Evans and Peter Bart, and Gulf & Western boss Charles Bluhdorn—were as ruthless as the gangsters in Mario Puzo’s blockbuster. After violent disputes over the casting of Marlon Brando and Al Pacino, they tangled with the real-life Mob, which didn’t want the movie made at all. The author recalls how the clash of Hollywood sharks, Mafia kingpins, and cinematic geniuses shaped a Hollywood masterpiece.

Fans of The Godfather movies will love this article. For us any background is anxiously gobbled up, especially a story which contains a glimpse into the family of Al Lettieri who played the unforgettable Virgil "The Turk" Sollozzo. Al died much too young of a heart attack, just a few years after this.

The best part happened after the story was published in Vanity Fair. Described here, entitled Meadow Soprano is on the Line, it's almost too good to be true. Lettieri's niece contacted the magazine and agreed to be interviewed in order to flesh out the story, as it were.

The real Mafia played a significant—if hidden—role in the creation of Francis Ford Coppola’s masterpiece The Godfather, and Mark Seal’s story in the 2009 Hollywood Issue (“The Godfather Wars”) detailed most of it. But one of the most remarkable anecdotes came to light only after the magazine was published, when the daughter of a reputed mobster told V.F. how her family befriended, tutored, and overfed the Corleones.

Here's the video of the author, followed by one of the greatest scenes ever. The Italian which Al Pacino is supposed to have learned in the Lettieri family home in Fort Lee served him well. He sounds exactly like a first-generation Italian American more comfortable with English. Their conversation, by the way, is actually more Sicilian than Italian.

Blood Oranges

Our friend and frequent commenter, Il Principe, has posted a most delightful piece about living in Rome. This post could easily follow my own What I love about Rome (part I).

Here's what the Grand Prince has to say about the blood orange:

Intrigued by the name of the variety when I first heard about it, I was curious as how they tasted compared to Florida oranges. Pleasantly surprised, the blood orange has a mild sweet flavor. It is fun to eat the oranges, look down at your hands, and see the red juice that looks like blood dripping from your fingers.

The witty title of his post is The Godfather, Berlusconi and oranges in Italy. In describing shopping in the outdoor fruit markets of Rome, here's how he ties it in.

Although I am never worried about getting shot at like Don Corleone did when he was picking out some oranges in the movie, I am however always on the lookout for the old ladies and those hand trolleys. Then again, if I keep on writing the truth about Berlusconi, some of his friends from Cosa Nostra in Sicily may make a trip up north and look me up.

Because I like to focus more on The Godfather than either the blood oranges or Berlusconi, I leave you with this. Check out the acting brilliance of the late great John Cazale.

Marlon Brando

Marlon Brando was nominated for eight Academy Awards and won two.

There's something about this scene that gets me every time. The written dialogue is unforgettable and the delivery by Brando is searing.



It's hard to pick a scene from the Godfather because every word Brando uttered in that film was genius. But, here's one I love.



What about you? Any favorites?

Favorite Movie: The Big Lebowski

You know what I do? I gravitate towards a favorite movie and stick with it for a year or two. Every two or three months during that period, I watch it. In recent years it's been Pulp Fiction, The Godfather and The Godfather Part II. The reigning film right now, and for the past year or so, is The Big Lebowski. I wrote about it before. (Big hat tip to Weer'd for suggesting how I might lighten up the blog).

One time a friend told me she never would read a book a second time or see a movie a second time, since there are so many not yet read or seen. That impressed me, but I do it differently. Books, I read three or four times if I really like them. That's over decades. Movies I can see between 10 and 20 times if they're favorites.

How about you? How do you do it?