#Stephen Mark Rainey

[morbidloren]

Death's Garden contributor: Stephen Mark Rainey

Stephen Mark Rainey in Bonaventure Cemetery, Savannah, Georgia. Stephen Mark Rainey filled in for me one month when I needed to step away from the cemetery column I was writing for the Horror Writers Association newsletter. He wrote a great piece about geocaching in cemeteries, something that I knew absolutely nothing about. I asked if I could reprint the piece in Death’s Garden Revisited so it…

[sights9]

It’s throwing me for a loop that I didn’t know about this novel from 1999 until yesterday, but then I learn that it was supposed to be the start of a series and when that fell through the author already had another one finished and just. Put it online for free?

[kristipetersenschoonover]

Announcing 34 ORCHARD’s Debut Issue Table of Contents!

The cover of the Spring, 2020 issue of 34 ORCHARD. Cover art: “Lost and Found,” by Brandon Kawashima.

On April 25, artists from all over the globe deliver visceral work that unpacks the things we don’t want to admit are in our basements. Announcing the Table of Contents for 34 Orchard’s Inaugural issue!

Cover Art: Lost and Found, Brandon Kawashima

Trenchman – John Wayne Comunale

Madame Rosio…

[docrotten]

HALLOWEEN II (1981) - Episode 205 - Decades of Horror 1980s

“He was my patient for fifteen years. He became an obsession with me until I realized that there was nothing within him, neither conscious nor reason that was… even remotely human. An hour ago, I stood up and fired six shots into him, and then, he just got up and walked away. ” He shot him! Six times! …or was it seven? Join your faithful Grue-Crew – Chad Hunt, Bill Mulligan, Crystal Cleveland, and Jeff Mohr  – as they count the shots The Shape takes from Dr. Loomis in Halloween II (1981).

Decades of Horror 1980s Episode 205 – Halloween II (1981)

Join the Crew on the Gruesome Magazine YouTube channel! Subscribe today! And click the alert to get notified of new content! https://youtube.com/gruesomemagazine

While Dr. Loomis hunts for Michael Myers, a traumatized Laurie is rushed to Haddonfield Memorial Hospital, and The Shape is not far behind her.

Director: Rick Rosenthal

Writers: John Carpenter, Debra Hill

Music by: John Carpenter, Alan Howarth

Cinematography by: Dean Cundey (director of photography)

Film Editing by: Mark Goldblatt, Skip Schoolnik

Selected Cast:

Jamie Lee Curtis as Laurie Strode

Nichole Drucker as Young Laurie Strode

Donald Pleasence as Dr. Sam Loomis

Dick Warlock as Michael Myers / The Shape / Patrolman #3

Adam Gunn as Young Michael Myers

Nick Castle and Tony Moran as Michael Myers (archive footage)

Charles Cyphers as Sheriff Leigh Brackett

Lance Guest as Jimmy

Pamela Susan Shoop as Nurse Karen Bailey

Hunter von Leer as Deputy Gary Hunt

Tawny Moyer as Nurse Jill Franco

Ana Alicia as Nurse Janet Marshall

Nancy Stephens as Marion Chambers

Gloria Gifford as Nurse Virginia Alves

Leo Rossi as Budd Scarlotti

Ford Rainey as Dr. Frederick Mixter

Jeffrey Kramer as Graham

Cliff Emmich as Bernard Garrett

John Zenda as Marshal Terrence Gummell

Anne Bruner as Alice Martin

Lucille Benson as Mrs Elrod

Catherine Bergstrom as Debra Lane

Anne-Marie Martin as Darcy Essmont

Dana Carvey as Barry McNichol

Billy Warlock as Craig Levant

Nancy Loomis as Annie Brackett (corpse cameo)

Brian Andrews as Tommy Doyle (archive footage)

Kyle Richards as Lindsey Wallace (archive footage)

Jonathan Prince as Randy Lohnner

Jack Verbois as Ben Tramer

Halloween II, the sometimes denigrated sequel to the original, is Jeff’s pick. The film picks up right where Halloween (1978) left off but with much more of an 80s slasher feel than the first entry in the franchise. Jeff laments the “apparent” loss of Dr. Loomis and thinks Laurie Strode is more of a target than an active participant. Crystal advises viewers that if they watch Halloween II without thinking too much, they’ll have a good time. She doesn’t care one way or the other about the reveal that Laurie is Michael’s sister and points out Michael’s move into the realm of the supernatural with his ability to survive umpteen point-blank gunshots.

Chad is glad Halloween II is different from the first entry in the franchise. To his mind, it would have failed if the filmmakers had tried to copy John Carpenter’s seminal work. He agrees that the filmmakers beefed up the gore and the violence to compete with early 80s slashers. He liked it coming out of the theater in 1981 and he still likes it. Though admittedly not fond of the Halloween franchise, Bill enjoys Halloween II more now than when he first saw it. He still doesn’t care for the Laurie-is-Michael’s-sister twist, pointing out that the idea doesn’t really go anywhere in this specific movie.

Collectively, your 1980s Grue-Crew enjoy Halloween II and though admitting it doesn’t reach the heights of its predecessor, give it a hearty recommendation. Hey! It’s Halloween! At the time of this writing, Halloween II can be streamed from Shudder and Tubi (w/ads) and is available on physical media as a SHOUT! Factory Collector’s Edition [4K UHD] and on Blu-ray as a stand-alone or in a variety of box set combinations from multiple companies.

For more Halloween franchise-related podcasts, check out these episodes from the Gruesome Magazine family of podcasts:

Halloween (1978) — Episode 82 — Decades Of Horror 1970s

HALLOWEEN III: SEASON OF THE WITCH (1982) – Episode 198 – Decades Of Horror 1980s

Monster Movie Podcast – Episode 63 – Halloween III

Halloween – The Haunting Of Hill House – Episode 295 – Horror News Radio

HALLOWEEN KILLS (2021) Spoiler Review | A Brutal Sequel to the 2018 Reboot – HNR 471

[Interview] HALLOWEEN KILLS – Jamie Lee Curtis and Andi Matichak

[Interview] HALLOWEEN KILLS (2021) – MALEK AKKAD, Producer

[Interview] – David Gordon Green and Jason Blum – HALLOWEEN KILLS

Every two weeks, Gruesome Magazine’s Decades of Horror 1980s podcast will cover another horror film from the 1980s. The next episode’s film, chosen by Bill will be Tobe Hooper’s Lifeforce (1985). 

Please let them know how they’re doing! They want to hear from you – the coolest, grooviest fans:  leave them a message or leave a comment on the gruesome Magazine Youtube channel, on the website or email the Decades of Horror 1980s podcast hosts at feedback@gruesomemagazine.com

Check out this episode!

[fuckyeahtx]

Letters From An American

Today in Fuck Abbott and the GQP Harder Than Ever Before Welcome to Fucking Gilead Edition

September 1, 2021

Heather Cox Richardson

Last night at midnight, a new law went into effect in Texas. House Bill 1927 permits people to carry handguns without a permit, unless they have been convicted of a felony or domestic violence. This measure was not popular in the state. Fifty-nine percent of Texans—including law enforcement officers—opposed it. But 56% of Republicans supported it. “I don’t know what it’s a solution to,” James McLaughlin, executive director of the Texas Police Chiefs Association, said to Heidi Pérez-Moreno of the Texas Tribune when Republican governor Greg Abbott signed the bill in mid-August. “I don’t know what the problem was to start with.”

Texas Gun Rights executive director Chris McNutt had a different view. He said in a statement: “Texas is finally a pro-gun state despite years of foot-dragging, roadblocks, and excuses from the spineless political class.”

The bill had failed in 2019 after McNutt showed up at the home of the Texas House Speaker, Republican Dennis Bonnen, to demand its passage. Bonnen said McNutt’s “overzealous” visit exhibited “insanity.” "Threats and intimidation will never advance your issue. Their issue is dead," he told McNutt. McNutt told the Dallas Morning News: "If politicians like Speaker Dennis Bonnen think they can show up at the doorsteps of Second Amendment supporters and make promises to earn votes in the election season, they shouldn't be surprised when we show up in their neighborhoods to insist they simply keep their promises in the legislative session.”

That was not the only bill that went into effect at midnight last night in Texas. In May, Governor Abbott signed the strongest anti-abortion law in the country, Senate Bill 8, which went into effect on September 1. It bans abortion after 6 weeks—when many women don’t even know they’re pregnant—thus automatically stopping about 85% of abortions in Texas. There are no exceptions for rape or incest. Opponents of the bill had asked the Supreme Court to stop the law from taking effect. It declined to do so.

The law avoided the 1973 Supreme Court Roe v. Wade decision protecting the right to abortion before fetal viability at about 22 to 24 weeks by leaving the enforcement of the law not up to the state, but rather up to private citizens. This was deliberate. As Dahlia Lithwick and Mark Joseph Stern explained in an article in Slate: “Typically, when a state restricts abortion, providers file a lawsuit in federal court against the state officials responsible for enforcing the new law. Here, however, there are no such officials: The law is enforced by individual anti-abortion activists.” With this law, there’s no one to stop from enforcing it.

S.B. 8 puts ordinary people in charge of law enforcement. Anyone—at all—can sue any individual who “aids or abets,” or even intends to abet, an abortion in Texas after six weeks. Women seeking abortion themselves are exempt, but anyone who advises them (including a spouse), gives them a ride, provides counseling, staffs a clinic, and so on, can be sued by any random stranger. If the plaintiff wins, they pocket $10,000 plus court costs, and the clinic that provided the procedure is closed down. If the defendant doesn’t defend themselves, the court must find them guilty. And if the defendant wins, they get…nothing. Not even attorney’s fees.

So, nuisance lawsuits will ruin abortion providers, along with anyone accused of aiding and abetting—or intending to abet—an abortion. And the enforcers will be ordinary citizens.

Texas has also just passed new voting restrictions that allow partisan poll watchers to have “free movement” in polling places, enabling them to intimidate voters. Texas governor Greg Abbott is expected to sign that bill in the next few days.

Taken together with the vigilantism running wild in school board meetings and attacks on election officials, the Texas legislation is a top red flag in the red flag factory. The Republican Party is empowering vigilantes to enforce their beliefs against their neighbors.

The law, which should keep us all on a level playing field, has been abandoned by our Supreme Court. Last night, it refused to stop the new Texas abortion law from going into effect, and tonight, just before midnight, by a 5–4 vote, it issued an opinion refusing to block the law. Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s dissent read: “The court’s order is stunning. Presented with an application to enjoin a flagrantly unconstitutional law engineered to prohibit women from exercising their constitutional rights and evade judicial scrutiny, a majority of Justices have opted to bury their heads in the sand.”

Texas’s law flouts nearly 50 years of federal precedents, she points out, but the Supreme Court has looked the other way. ”The State’s gambit worked,” Sotomayor wrote. She continued: “This is untenable. It cannot be the case that a state can evade federal judicial scrutiny by outsourcing the enforcement of unconstitutional laws to its citizenry."

The Supreme Court has essentially blessed the efforts of Texas legislators to prevent the enforcement of federal law by using citizen vigilantes to get their way. The court decided the case on its increasingly active “shadow docket,” a series of cases decided without full briefings or oral argument, often in the dead of night, without signed opinions. In the past, such emergency decisions were rare and used to issue uncontroversial decisions or address irreparable immediate harm (like the death penalty). Since the beginning of the Trump administration, they have come to make up the majority of the court’s business.

Since 2017, the court has used the shadow docket to advance right-wing goals. It has handed down brief, unsigned decisions after a party asks for emergency relief from a lower court order, siding first with Trump, and now with state Republicans, at a high rate. As University of Texas law professor Stephen Vladeck noted: “In less than three years, [Trump’s] Solicitor General has filed at least twenty-one applications for stays in the Supreme Court (including ten during the October 2018 Term alone).” In comparison, “during the sixteen years of the George W. Bush and Obama Administrations, the Solicitor General filed a total of eight such applications—averaging one every other Term.”

So, operating without open arguments or opinions, the Supreme Court has shown that it will not enforce federal law, leaving state legislatures to do as they will. This, after all, was the whole point of the “originalism” that Republicans embraced under President Ronald Reagan. Originalists wanted to erase the legal justification of the post–World War II years that used the “due process” and “equal protection” clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment to apply the protections of the Bill of Rights to the states. It was that concept that protected civil rights for people of color and for women, by using the federal government to prohibit states from enforcing discriminatory laws.

Since the 1980s, Republicans have sought to hamstring federal power and return power to the states, which have neither the power nor the inclination to regulate businesses effectively, and which can discriminate against minorities and get away with it, so long as the federal government doesn’t enforce equal protection.

Today’s events make that a reality.

Worse, though, the mechanisms of the Texas law officially turn a discriminatory law over to state-level vigilantes to enforce. The wedge to establish this mechanism is abortion, but the door is now open for extremist state legislatures to turn to private citizens to enforce any law that takes away an individual’s legal right…like, say, the right to vote. And in Texas, now, a vigilante doesn't even have to have a permit to carry the gun that will back up his threats.

During Reconstruction, vigilantes also carried guns. They enforced state customs that reestablished white supremacy after the federal government had tried to defend equality before the law. It took only a decade for former Confederates who had tried to destroy the government to strip voting rights, and civil rights, from the southern Black men who had defended the United States government during the Civil War. For the next eighty years, the South was a one-party state where enforcement of the laws depended on your skin color, your gender, and whom you knew.

Opponents have compared those who backed the Texas anti-abortion law to the Taliban, the Islamic extremists in Afghanistan whose harsh interpretation of Islamic Sharia law strips women of virtually all rights. But the impulse behind the Texas law, the drive to replace the federal protection of civil rights with state vigilantes enforcing their will, is homegrown. It is a reflection of the position that Republicans would like women to have in our society, for sure, but it is also written in the laughing faces of Mississippi law enforcement officers Lawrence Rainey and Cecil Ray Price in 1967, certain even as they were arraigned for the 1964 murders of James Earl Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Henry Schwerner, that the system was so rigged in their favor that they would literally get away with murder.

When they were killed, Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner were trying to register Black people to vote.

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

September 1, 2021

Heather Cox Richardson

Last night at midnight, a new law went into effect in Texas. House Bill 1927 permits people to carry handguns without a permit, unless they have been convicted of a felony or domestic violence. This measure was not popular in the state. Fifty-nine percent of Texans—including law enforcement officers—opposed it. But 56% of Republicans supported it. “I don’t know what it’s a solution to,” James McLaughlin, executive director of the Texas Police Chiefs Association, said to Heidi Pérez-Moreno of the Texas Tribune when Republican governor Greg Abbott signed the bill in mid-August. “I don’t know what the problem was to start with.”

Texas Gun Rights executive director Chris McNutt had a different view. He said in a statement: “Texas is finally a pro-gun state despite years of foot-dragging, roadblocks, and excuses from the spineless political class.”

The bill had failed in 2019 after McNutt showed up at the home of the Texas House Speaker, Republican Dennis Bonnen, to demand its passage. Bonnen said McNutt’s “overzealous” visit exhibited “insanity.” "Threats and intimidation will never advance your issue. Their issue is dead," he told McNutt. McNutt told the Dallas Morning News: "If politicians like Speaker Dennis Bonnen think they can show up at the doorsteps of Second Amendment supporters and make promises to earn votes in the election season, they shouldn't be surprised when we show up in their neighborhoods to insist they simply keep their promises in the legislative session.”

That was not the only bill that went into effect at midnight last night in Texas. In May, Governor Abbott signed the strongest anti-abortion law in the country, Senate Bill 8, which went into effect on September 1. It bans abortion after 6 weeks—when many women don’t even know they’re pregnant—thus automatically stopping about 85% of abortions in Texas. There are no exceptions for rape or incest. Opponents of the bill had asked the Supreme Court to stop the law from taking effect. It declined to do so.

The law avoided the 1973 Supreme Court Roe v. Wade decision protecting the right to abortion before fetal viability at about 22 to 24 weeks by leaving the enforcement of the law not up to the state, but rather up to private citizens. This was deliberate. As Dahlia Lithwick and Mark Joseph Stern explained in an article in Slate: “Typically, when a state restricts abortion, providers file a lawsuit in federal court against the state officials responsible for enforcing the new law. Here, however, there are no such officials: The law is enforced by individual anti-abortion activists.” With this law, there’s no one to stop from enforcing it.  

S.B. 8 puts ordinary people in charge of law enforcement. Anyone—at all—can sue any individual who “aids or abets,” or even intends to abet, an abortion in Texas after six weeks. Women seeking abortion themselves are exempt, but anyone who advises them (including a spouse), gives them a ride, provides counseling, staffs a clinic, and so on, can be sued by any random stranger. If the plaintiff wins, they pocket $10,000 plus court costs, and the clinic that provided the procedure is closed down. If the defendant doesn’t defend themselves, the court must find them guilty. And if the defendant wins, they get…nothing. Not even attorney’s fees.

So, nuisance lawsuits will ruin abortion providers, along with anyone accused of aiding and abetting—or intending to abet—an abortion. And the enforcers will be ordinary citizens.

Texas has also just passed new voting restrictions that allow partisan poll watchers to have “free movement” in polling places, enabling them to intimidate voters. Texas governor Greg Abbott is expected to sign that bill in the next few days.

Taken together with the vigilantism running wild in school board meetings and attacks on election officials, the Texas legislation is a top red flag in the red flag factory. The Republican Party is empowering vigilantes to enforce their beliefs against their neighbors.

The law, which should keep us all on a level playing field, has been abandoned by our Supreme Court. Last night, it refused to stop the new Texas abortion law from going into effect, and tonight, just before midnight, by a 5–4 vote, it issued an opinion refusing to block the law. Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s dissent read: “The court’s order is stunning. Presented with an application to enjoin a flagrantly unconstitutional law engineered to prohibit women from exercising their constitutional rights and evade judicial scrutiny, a majority of Justices have opted to bury their heads in the sand.”

Texas’s law flouts nearly 50 years of federal precedents, she points out, but the Supreme Court has looked the other way. ”The State’s gambit worked,” Sotomayor wrote. She continued:  “This is untenable. It cannot be the case that a state can evade federal judicial scrutiny by outsourcing the enforcement of unconstitutional laws to its citizenry."

The Supreme Court has essentially blessed the efforts of Texas legislators to prevent the enforcement of federal law by using citizen vigilantes to get their way. The court decided the case on its increasingly active “shadow docket,” a series of cases decided without full briefings or oral argument, often in the dead of night, without signed opinions. In the past, such emergency decisions were rare and used to issue uncontroversial decisions or address irreparable immediate harm (like the death penalty). Since the beginning of the Trump administration, they have come to make up the majority of the court’s business.

Since 2017, the court has used the shadow docket to advance right-wing goals. It has handed down brief, unsigned decisions after a party asks for emergency relief from a lower court order, siding first with Trump, and now with state Republicans, at a high rate. As University of Texas law professor Stephen Vladeck noted: “In less than three years, [Trump’s] Solicitor General has filed at least twenty-one applications for stays in the Supreme Court (including ten during the October 2018 Term alone).” In comparison, “during the sixteen years of the George W. Bush and Obama Administrations, the Solicitor General filed a total of eight such applications—averaging one every other Term.”

So, operating without open arguments or opinions, the Supreme Court has shown that it will not enforce federal law, leaving state legislatures to do as they will. This, after all, was the whole point of the “originalism” that Republicans embraced under President Ronald Reagan. Originalists wanted to erase the legal justification of the post–World War II years that used the “due process” and “equal protection” clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment to apply the protections of the Bill of Rights to the states. It was that concept that protected civil rights for people of color and for women, by using the federal government to prohibit states from enforcing discriminatory laws.

Since the 1980s, Republicans have sought to hamstring federal power and return power to the states, which have neither the power nor the inclination to regulate businesses effectively, and which can discriminate against minorities and get away with it, so long as the federal government doesn’t enforce equal protection.

Today’s events make that a reality.

Worse, though, the mechanisms of the Texas law officially turn a discriminatory law over to state-level vigilantes to enforce. The wedge to establish this mechanism is abortion, but the door is now open for extremist state legislatures to turn to private citizens to enforce any law that takes away an individual’s legal right…like, say, the right to vote. And in Texas, now, a vigilante doesn't even have to have a permit to carry the gun that will back up his threats.

During Reconstruction, vigilantes also carried guns. They enforced state customs that reestablished white supremacy after the federal government had tried to defend equality before the law. It took only a decade for former Confederates who had tried to destroy the government to strip voting rights, and civil rights, from the southern Black men who had defended the United States government during the Civil War. For the next eighty years, the South was a one-party state where enforcement of the laws depended on your skin color, your gender, and whom you knew.

Opponents have compared those who backed the Texas anti-abortion law to the Taliban, the Islamic extremists in Afghanistan whose harsh interpretation of Islamic Sharia law strips women of virtually all rights. But the impulse behind the Texas law, the drive to replace the federal protection of civil rights with state vigilantes enforcing their will, is homegrown. It is a reflection of the position that Republicans would like women to have in our society, for sure, but it is also written in the laughing faces of Mississippi law enforcement officers Lawrence Rainey and Cecil Ray Price in 1967, certain even as they were arraigned for the 1964 murders of James Earl Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Henry Schwerner, that the system was so rigged in their favor that they would literally get away with murder.

When they were killed, Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner were trying to register Black people to vote.

—-

Notes:

https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/437665-texas-gop-leaders-drop-constitutional-carry-bill-after-gun-rights

https://www.texastribune.org/2021/08/16/texas-permitless-carry-gun-law/

https://www.npr.org/2021/08/31/1033068542/texas-voting-restrictions-bill-abbott-republicans

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/08/texas-abortion-supreme-court-roe-wade.html

Mark Joseph Stern @mjs_DCBREAKING: By a 5–4 vote, with Roberts joining the liberals, the Supreme Court REFUSES to block Texas' six-week abortion ban. Opinions here:

s3.amazonaws.com/s3.documentclo…

3,936 Retweets5,180 Likes

September 2nd 2021

https://www.vox.com/2020/8/1/21350679/supreme-court-border-wall-trump-sierra-club-stay-stephen-breyer

https://www.vox.com/2020/8/11/21356913/supreme-court-shadow-docket-jail-asylum-covid-immigrants-sonia-sotomayor-barnes-ahlman

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

[awardseason]

8th Annual Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild Awards — Film Winners

BEST CONTEMPORARY MAKE-UP

“Bill & Ted Face the Music” Bill Corso, Dennis Liddiard, Stephen Kelley

“Birds of Prey” — WINNER Deborah Lamia Denaver, Sabrina Wilson, Miho Suzuki, Cale Thomas

“Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” Katy Fray, Lisa Layman, Thomas Kolarek

“The Prom” Eryn Krueger Mekash, J. Roy Helland, Kyra Panchenko, Donald McInnes

“Promising Young Woman” Angela Wells, Brigitte Hennech, Adam Christopher

BEST PERIOD AND/OR CHARACTER MAKE-UP

“Bill & Ted Face the Music” Bill Corso, Dennis Liddiard, Stephen Kelley, Bianca Appice

“Hillbilly Elegy” Eryn Krueger Mekash, Jamie Hess, Devin Morales, Jessica Gambardella

“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” — WINNER Matiki Anoff, Sergio Lopez-Rivera, Carl Fullerton, Debi Young

“Mank” Gigi Williams, Michelle Audrina Kim

“Mulan” Denise Kum, Rick Findlater, Georgia Lockhart-Adams, James Mackinnon

BEST SPECIAL MAKE-UP EFFECTS

“Bill & Ted Face the Music” Bill Corso, Kevin Yagher, Steve Wang, Stephen Kelley

“Hillbilly Elegy” Eryn Krueger Mekash, Matthew Mungle, Jamie Hess

“Mulan” Denise Kum, Chris Fitzpatrick

“Pinocchio” — WINNER Mark Coulier

“The United States vs. Billie Holiday” Adrian Morot

“Wonder Woman 1984” Jan Sewell, Mark Coulier

BEST CONTEMPORARY HAIR STYLING

“Bill & Ted Face the Music” Donna Spahn-Jones, Budd Bird, Jeri Baker, Ulla Gaudin  

“Birds of Prey” — WINNER Adruitha Lee, Cassie Russek, Margarita Pidgeon, Nikki Nelms

“Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” Kimberly Boyenger, Tyler Ely

“The Prom” Chris Clark, Natalie Driscoll, Ka’Maura Eley, J. Roy Helland

“Promising Young Woman” Daniel Curet, Bryson Conley, Lee Ann Brittenham

BEST PERIOD AND/OR CHARACTER HAIR STYLING

“Hillbilly Elegy” Patricia Dehaney, Tony Ward, Martial Corneville, Stacey Butterworth

“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” — WINNER Mia Neal, Larry Cherry, Leah Loukas, Tywan Williams

“Mank” Kimberley Spiteri, Colleen LaBaff

“Mulan” Denise Kum, Rick Findlater, Georgia Lockhart-Adams, Terry Baliel

“Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey” Sharon Martin, Kat Fa

[insidethegiftbasket]

Nationals (12-15) at Yankees (16-15)

Note From Evan: Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, jabronis and jabronettes, and Yankee fans of all ilk, Sam and I are here to let you know that we now have a third contributor here at Inside the Gift Basket, and this is his first post. Everyone say hi to Julio and from now on you’ll have to bring on more cupcake to class to share with everyone. And with that, onto the good stuff.

Game 1: Friday at 7:05pm EDT on YES and MLBN – Jameson Taillon (1-2, 5.24 ERA) vs. Patrick Corbin (1-3, 8.10 ERA)

Game 2: Saturday at 1:05pm EDT on YES and MLBN – Corey Kluber (2-2, 3.03 ERA) vs. Max Scherzer (2-2, 2.54 ERA)

Game 3: Sunday at 1:05pm EDT on YES and MLBN – Domingo German (2-2, 4.32 ERA) vs. Joe Ross (2-2, 4.39 ERA)

Nationals Injury Report

SP Stephen Strasburg: 10-day IL (shoulder inflammation) – will miss series

RP Wander Suero: 10-day IL (oblique strain) – both he and Strasburg will throw in a simulated game Friday

RP Seth Romero: day-to-day (ribs) – will begin throwing next week

LF Juan Soto: day-to-day (shoulder strain) – should get some at-bats this series, may start at DH

Nationals Pitching

Strong starting pitching was a hallmark of the Nationals during their run of eight straight winning seasons from 2012 to 2019, culminating in a World Series victory the final year of the streak. While their core ace trio of Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, and Patrick Corbin remains intact, only Scherzer of the three has continued to see success in 2020 and 2021, and the starting rotation as a whole has struggled, posting a 4.67 ERA (23rd in MLB). Strasburg has barely pitched as he has been plagued by injuries over the last year and a half.

Clay, NY native and childhood Yankees fan Patrick Corbin will pitch the opener opposite Taillon. In 2018 and 2019 Corbin was one of the better pitchers in baseball, finishing 5th and 11th respectively in the NL Cy Young Award race those years while frustrating batters with his trademark tailing-away slider. To say he suffered a World Series hangover may be an understatement:

What has gone wrong for Corbin? Even he and Nationals manager Davey Martinez aren’t sure as it doesn’t appear to be a physical or mechanical issue, and his velocity is close to the same as in his 2018-2019 peak.

There are a few possible explanations. One is that he’s lost some spin on his slider (from 2398 rpm in 2019 to 2218 rpm in 2021), and it has gone from one of the best single pitches in the game to basically league average, with opposing batters just not chasing it like they used to:

This means that Corbin has fallen behind on counts more than in the past, forcing him to go over the heart of the plate with his sinker to get strikes, and that pitch has been absolutely destroyed this year. It wasn’t a particularly great pitch for him in the past, either, but this year hitters are just teeing off on it (1.091 SLG).

Corbin is not striking guys out like he used to and is giving up hard-hit fly balls at an alarming rate. The average launch angle against his pitches has risen to a career-high 14.7° in 2021, and subsequently he has already allowed 7 home runs in just 23.1 IP. For the sake of comparison, he allowed 15 HR in all of 2018 (200 IP).

There are some encouraging signs as he has looked better lately after a cataclysmic start. He allowed 16 ER in 6.1 IP to the Dodgers and Diamondbacks in his first two starts of the season but has pitched to a 3.18 ERA in three starts (17 IP) since. He hasn’t exactly faced red-hot offenses in that span (Mets, Cardinals, Marlins), and the underlying numbers are still not all that great, but it’s progress.

Max Scherzer will pitch the second game in what could be a very good duel with the surging Corey Kluber. Now in his age 36 season, Scherzer is continuing to put up excellent numbers, and like in recent years, the key to beating him is the long ball. He has allowed a measly 27 hits all year in 39 innings pitched, but 7 of the hits have been homers. He doesn’t walk guys, so the Yankees’ best bet against him is to try to barrel up his occasional mistakes and knock them out of the park.

The finale pits RHP Joe Ross against Domingo German, with both pitchers posting remarkably similar numbers so far this season:

Rather like Corbin, however, Ross’ numbers are inflated by one very bad performance (10 ER allowed to the Cardinals on April 19), and he has pitched well outside of that game. Ross has been a mediocre pitcher most of his career, though, so it’s not like these numbers aren’t indicative of what to expect from him. His slider is his definitive put-away pitch (responsible for 15 of his 21 strikeouts), but his other offerings have been hit hard. He also has a strong platoon split (vs RHH: .241/.287/.394, vs. LHH: .297/.376/.474), so expect the Yankees to give most of their available lefty hitters a start in the series finale.

While the rotation has been disappointing, the Nationals’ pen has been a strength for the team in the early going. Washington relievers own a league-best .185 batting average against, admittedly aided by one of the better defenses in the league (league-leading 24 DRS), and offseason acquisition Brad Hand has been a stabilizing force at the back of games, having yet to allow an earned run this year.

Daniel Hudson, Austin Voth, Sam Clay, and Wander Suero (who is likely going to miss this series) have all posted solid numbers behind him, and their most-used reliever, Kyle Finnegan, threw an immaculate inning in their just-completed series with the Braves. Ex-Astro Will Harris was recently activated off the IL and has very good career numbers, though the Yankees have hit him well historically.

The one major blip is Tanner Rainey, who was one of their most important relievers the last two years but has struggled mightily so far this season. He is likely to be limited to low-leverage action until he gets his act together.

Nationals Lineup

A consistently strong offensive team during their 2010’s run, peaking in 2017 when they led the NL in team OPS, the Nationals have had to weather the departure of important contributors like Bryce Harper and Anthony Rendon in recent years. While they still have a few dependably great hitters in the lineup, their offensive output in 2021 has been, at best, mediocre:

As a team they get a lot of hits (for 2021 standards, anyway), as their .247 batting average somehow actually leads the National League. However, they rarely draw walks and have not hit for power so far this year (outside of Trea Turner), resulting in a poor .696 team OPS and a marked difficulty putting up runs – they have yet to score more than 7 runs in any game this season and have been shut out five times. They are coming off a three-game sweep at home at the hands of the Braves in which they only scored six runs.

With Juan Soto battling a shoulder injury, Trea Turner has been their most important and all-around best position player:

While his numbers are a bit down from an outstanding 2020 (163 OPS+) that saw him finish 7th in the NL MVP race, he hits the ball hard to all fields, runs like the wind, and is a plus defender at shortstop. He has been a top 20 player in baseball this year in both bWAR and fWAR.

Antoher bright spot has been Josh Harrison, who signed with the Nationals as a reclamation project after seemingly forgetting how to hit sometime between 2018 and 2019; he has just about revived his career and been one of the team’s best hitters. The same cannot be said for his longtime Pirates teammate Josh Bell, who has been a nonfactor at the plate. While the Nats have been giving him (and the also-struggling Kyle Schwarber) plenty of opportunities to snap out of it, expect them to give more playing time to the hot-hitting Ryan Zimmerman at first base moving forward.

Lastly, keep an eye out for young phenom Juan Soto – he just came off the IL from a shoulder injury and pinch-hit a few times in the Braves series. According to the Nationals, he is ready to start hitting every day, but they are reluctant to let him play the field as his shoulder is not yet fully recovered and he should not be making throws. Luckily for them they are playing in an AL park this weekend, so he may get some starts at DH against the Yankees (which is, of course, bad news for us).

Yankees focus on: Wandy Peralta

LHP “Magic” Wandy Peralta came over from San Francisco (along with a PTBNL) in exchange for beloved backup OF Mike Tauchman, much to the chagrin of certain Yankees fans. Now in his 6th season, the 29 year-old Peralta has, on the surface, been largely unremarkable as a major leaguer to date, with a career 4.66 ERA and 1.477 WHIP. While he is coming off a solid 2020 in which he posted a career-best 3.29 ERA, he struggled to start this season in San Francisco and fell out of Gabe Kapler’s Circle of Trust™.

The raw numbers don’t jump out at you, but clearly the Yankees viewed Peralta as an interesting piece if they were willing to go so far as to part with Tauchman for him. After a bit of digging, it’s not hard to see why they found him appealing:

The underlying metrics have been impressive. In fact, his stuff has looked much better so far this year than it did in 2020, despite posting better standard stats last year.

It may be a microscopic sample size, but Peralta has looked promising in his first few appearances with the Yankees. The coaching staff has encouraged him to spam his wipeout changeup, to great effect:

While he has lost command of the changeup at times earlier in his career, it’s an incredible pitch when he’s throwing it well. So far this season: xBA of .109, xSLG of .133, and a -3 launch angle.

Last year his slider was a very good pitch, but this year it hasn’t been as effective, thus the Yankees have responded by ramping up his changeup usage and cutting back on the slider. In an ideal world, Peralta can learn to use them both effectively to pair with his plus heater. The raw stuff is there, and it always has been; the hope is that the Yankees’ coaching staff can get Peralta to harness his talent and potential.

With Tauchman playing well in San Francisco to this point and providing much-needed support for their banged-up outfield, this could be a trade that proves to be a win-win for both teams involved.

[therebelwrites]

The City, the County and the State each add a tax to the sale of most items. The City will retain its portion of those revenues as usual. New in FY20 will be a 3% tax on the sales of recreational marijuana, and revenues from that tax only will go into the Reparations Fund.  

Projected revenues for 2020 from the tax on sales of recreational marijuana are $250,000. All such tax revenues will go to the Reparations Fund until the City has contributed $10 million to the fund.

Reparations 2019

Several speakers during public comment voiced support for the measure.

Evanston resident and local historian Morris “Dino” Robinson recounted the history of discrimination in Illinois and Evanston, where, he said, “residents had to abide by ‘Black Codes.’” He added that Edwin Jourdain [Evanston’s first black alderman] ran for office for the sole purpose of defeating the Jim Crow laws and attitudes here.

Doug Sharp of Reclaim Evanston said, “We are pleased with and support the City’s intention to begin to address the longstanding theft of wealth and opportunity that has been committed against the African American residents of Evanston.

“We feel that the use of the cannabis tax as a funding source for reparations is a proper and fitting first step in righting the wrongs of past decades, especially when we consider how the arrests for possession of marijuana have been disproportionately used to incarcerate young African Americans.

Fifth Ward Alderman Robin Rue Simmons, along with Eighth Ward Alderman Ann Rainey have been the drivers of this move.

Ald. Simmons reported at the Nov. 25 City Council meeting that she had attended the National League of Cities convention earlier this month and found that many representatives of other municipalities were “in awe” of Evanston’s move toward reparations.

She also said there would be a community town hall meeting – the date as yet unscheduled – co-hosted by the National African American Reparations Commission, at which the “extensive feedback” from reparations meetings held over the summer would be incorporated.

Alderman Peter Braithwaite, 2nd Ward, recalled that his predecessor, Lionel Jean-Baptiste “had wanted to get this thing going. This is a good thing. I want to acknowledge Judge Jean-Baptiste and many other people who attempted to do this. Judge Jean-Baptiste said he’d like to support it now.”

Ald. Braithwaite added, “I think it’s going to be very special for Evanston, and I think it’s going to have one of those ripple effects that create a change in our nation. This is a special moment in the City of Evanston and in the country.”

Ald. Rainey said, “Judge Jean-Baptiste began this in 2002.” She added, “We’ve had offers of counsel as late as Saturday [Nov. 23] from national leaders of the ACLU.”

Ald. Rue Simmons read a statement about the damage done to the black community by institutional racism. “We acknowledge history wrongs in our City are directly responsible for our segregation, wealth divide and overall lesser quality of life. On June 10, we passed a resolution to end structural racism and achieve racial equality.”

She said racist practices have excluded black residents from housing, employment and education, and she noted that the black population of Evanston has “declined to a historical low of 16%.”

Comparing one of the wealthiest census tracts in the City with one of the poorest, she said there is a disparity of about $46,000 in median income and a lowered life expectancy of 13 years between the two.

“It is important that the income from marijuana sales be used toward repairing the community it unfairly policed and damaged,” she said.

Sixth Ward Alderman Thomas Suffredin was the sole “No” vote on creating the Reparations Fund. Although he did not explain his vote at the meeting, he did so in a newsletter to his constituents the next day: “Any revenue that the City of Evanston realizes from recreational cannabis sales will go to the City of Evanston Reparations Fund until funding from that source has reached $10 million. The Reparations Subcommittee is currently working to determine how the Reparations Fund dollars will be utilized in the future.

“I voted no on this, because in a town full of financial needs and obligations, I believe it is bad policy to dedicate tax revenue from a particular source, in unknown annual amounts, to a purpose that has yet to be determined.  

“Individuals and institutions who wish to make contributions to the City of Evanston Reparations Fund may do so. I voted no to funding reparations with recreational cannabis revenue not because I don’t support the City taking responsibility for the role it played in disadvantaging our African American residents, but because it is bad policy.”

Larry Gavin’s article “Developing a Segregated Town, 1900-1960,” which was published in the RoundTable’s November magazine, will soon be posted on this website.

Reparations 2002

The idea of reparations is not a new one to the City Council. The minutes of the May 20, 2002, City Council meeting reflect that during the Call of the Wards, “Alderman Jean-Baptiste reported that on June 3 and June 10, he intended to put before Council a resolution on reparations. He would first go through the Human Services Committee and then come before the Council. He hoped to get information to them in the short term, did not want them to be surprised and that they would approach it with an open mind. He referred to the UN Conference Against Racism, which he had attended in South Africa, where the slave trade and colonialism were declared as crimes against humanity. He noted that the declaration stated as well that it should always have been so. He reported that the declaration further stated that former slave-owning states ought to take up reparations and that it would be on the agenda.”

Ald. Jean-Baptiste brought a resolution, 43-R-02, to the June 10, 2002, City Council meeting, supporting U.S. House of Representatives 40, proposed by Representative John Conyers of Michigan. That resolution called for the establishment of a federal commission to study slavery and its consequences and make recommendations for compensation to black people.

Rep. Conyers first introduced that resolution in the House of Representatives in 1989. On June 19 of this year – Juneteenth – Congress held hearings on reparations for the first time in a decade.

The Evanston City Council unanimously approved Ald. Jean-Baptiste’s resolution, 7-0; the two aldermen who were absent from the meeting had indicated their support for the measure.

RoundTable reporter Mark Berry wrote in the June 19, 2002, edition that Northwestern University Professor Martha Biondi spoke at the Council meeting. She said the failure of civil rights remedies has resulted in greater socio-economic disparities between African Americans and the majority of the population. She said, Mr. Berry wrote, “Eighty percent of African American males will be arrested in their lifetimes, and 13% of African American men have lost the right to vote.

Prof. Biondi attributed the increased push for reconciliation and compensation to the treatment of other groups that sought reparations. “In 1988, Congress apologized and paid $1.2 billion to the relatives of Japanese Americans detained in camps in World War II. The German government and private corporations have paid $65.2 billion to Israel in reparations. In September, 2001, the United Nations World Conference declared slavery a crime against humanity and that reparations be made,” Mr. Berry quoted Prof. Biondi as saying.

Mr. Berry also reported comments from three of the aldermen. He wrote, “Alderman Stephen Engelman, 7th Ward, stated his support of the resolution but hoped that it was not ‘solely about money.’ … I do not believe a social compact can be founded on collective guilt or collective entitlement.’

Alderman Edmund Moran, 6th Ward, reportedly said the “aim of the resolution is to achieve reconciliation and that to some extent it can be accomplished through the means of government, but ultimately it will rest with each of us – individually and collectively – to answer the question, ‘Will we be friends?’”

Fifth Ward Alderman Joseph Kent said, according to Mr. Berry’s article, “The best thing that can happen out of this is education, so we can change some of the old curriculum. Children can’t really achieve if they don’t know who they are.”

During public comment at that June 10, 2002, meeting, several speakers said they supported then- Alderman Jean-Baptiste’s resolution on reparations, which Council approved on the consent agenda that evening.

Below are excerpts of some of the comments from the public, as reflected in the minutes of that meeting.

“Rev. Mark Adams, Hillside Free Methodist Church pastor, spoke on behalf of the Evanston Ecumenical Action Council in support of Resolution 43-R-02; said that support of House Resolution 40 allows the nation to ask questions about reparations. The recommendation is that the U.S. government begin to investigate the issue of reparations by asking the question nationally and getting the facts. He did not know what reparations would look like. ... He suggested they would never know or do the right thing until the nation no longer prohibits them from asking the question. He said if reparations were ever adopted, all would pay. Reparations are not an individual concept, rather national restitution and would be dealt with nationally. He could imagine a nation where brotherhood is a reality. He said it was time to ask the question and engage in the debate that can bring about the American dream for everyone. He hoped Evanston could help encourage the nation to ask questions to start healing.

“Neta Jackson and her husband are authors and recently wrote ‘No Random Act: Behind the Murder of Ricky Byrdsong.’ She stated it was important to stand up and be counted on the issue of reparations. In trying to understand racism, one stumbling block stands out. As a white person she does not have to face the consequences of racism daily, but black people do. She is not always aware of lingering racism because it does not directly affect her choices, but African Americans who are descendants of slaves don’t have that choice. She said the racism that lingers, affects attitudes and practices and, in spite of strides of civil rights laws, is the legacy that affects their lives. She noted that some will say their ancestors were not slave owners so why should they make reparations for something they had nothing to do with. She said the opposite is true and that all living in this country reap the benefit of living in the greatest democracy in the world with benefits provided by people who lived, worked, died and fought for freedom built on the backs of people enslaved for over 246 years.

“Ra Joy, suburban director for U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky and lifelong resident, read a letter from Congresswoman Schakowsky on Resolution 43-R-02 to Alderman Jean-Baptiste: ‘I was pleased to learn about the resolution you introduced at the City of Evanston Human Services Committee on Monday June 3. The proposed City Council resolution would call attention to the injustice of slavery and urge our federal government to investigate its negative effects. It has always been difficult for our country to come to grips with the unspeakable cruelty and massive human suffering resulting from slavery. It is estimated that more than four million Africans and their descendants were enslaved in the United States and its colonies from 1619 to 1865. I believe we must acknowledge this terrible chapter in American history and, where possible, make amends. I am proud to co-sponsor H.R. 40, a bill introduced by Representative John Conyers of Michigan. This bill would establish a commission to examine the institution of slavery and subsequent discrimination against African-Americans, study the impact of these forces on living African-Americans and make recommendations on appropriate remedies to Congress. I believe this study will help stimulate public dialogue of significant importance and assist our nation in coming to terms with this unprecedented tragedy. … I wish you much success in moving this resolution forward.”  

“Ayinde Jean-Baptiste, stated that Resolution 43-R-02 represents all movements for social justice in world history. Universally, it will send a message to state and federal governments and communities throughout the nation, including Evanston. Evanston is an inclusive, diverse and welcoming community committed to equity in America and the world. He said in communities such as Evanston, that real people are concerned about justice in America and making amends for the pitfalls of the past.

“Mary Goering said that while reparations may deal with monetary reparations, she thought equally important was the development of a good understanding of the effects of slavery on American society. … Her ancestors are the people who shaped the nation and that means ancestors who were slave traders and slave owners. She suggested that whole history needs to be dealt with. … She suggested this resolution calls national attention to focus on that to come to a fuller understanding.

“Bennett Johnson, president, Evanston branch NAACP, stated national NAACP has a policy supporting reparations. … He stated that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Harold Washington, Elijah Mohammed and Mohammed Ali among others supported reparations in principle. He did not think it was a matter of guilt. He stated there is a social dysfunction in this nation – a cancer on the body politic. Reparations will help heal that wound, help everybody because this is one people and one country. If there is a problem in one section it needs to be taken care of. “

***************

[weirdletter]

Summer of Lovecraft: Cosmic Horror in the 1960s, edited by Brian M. Sammons and Glynn Owen Barrass, The Dark Regions Press, 2019. Info: darkregions.com.

A new Lovecraftian anthology based in the 1960s from the editors behind World War Cthulhu: A Collection of Lovecraftian War Stories!

Contents: Night Trippers by Lois H. Gresh Being for the Benefit of Mr. Sullivan by Lee Clark Zumpe Dreamland by David Dunwoody Lost In the Poppy-Fields of Flesh by Konstantine Paradias Five To One by Edward M. Erdelac Keeping the Faith by Sam Stone Mud Men by Sean Hoade Misconception by Jamie D. Jenkins No Colors Anymore by Joe L. Murr Operation Alice by Pete Rawlik Shimmer and Sway by Jayaprakash Satyamurthy Short Wave by Stephen Mark Rainey The Song that Crystal Sang by Tom Lynch Through a Looking Glass Darkly by Glynn Owen Barrass and Brian M. Sammons The Color from the Deep by William Meikle The Long Fine Flash by Edward Morris The Summer of Love by C.J. Henderson Just Another Afternoon in Arkham, Brought to You in Living Color by Mark McLaughlin and Michael Sheehan, Jr. Crystal Blue Persuasion by Jeffrey Thomas

[afrohouseking]

BET Awards 2019: Complete List Of Winners

BET Awards 2019: Complete List Of Winners

Afro House King

Jun 24

The 2019 BET Awards kicked off with a performance by Cardi B, who came into the night leading with 7 nominations and, not surprisingly, picked up the award for album of the year for her “Invasion of Privacy.” Other top nominees included Drake with 5, and Beyonce, Travis Scott and J. Cole, each with four. Bruno Mars, 21 Savage, Childish Gambino, H.E.R. and Ella Mai also received multiple nominations. The show, which is in its 19th year, aired live from downtown Los Angeles’ Microsoft Theater .

The BET Awards recognize winners across 20 categories in a “celebration of black culture.” Connie Orlando serves as executive producer along with Jesse Collins, CEO of Jesse Collins Entertainment.

Picking up the first award from best New artist, Lil Baby said, “It’s an amazing feeling. I can’t even believe it.”

His win was followed by one from the “youngest baller in the game” — 14-year-old “Black-ish” star and entrepreneur Marsai Martin, who picked up the Young Stars Award. The late Nipsey Hussle received a posthumous award for best male hip-hop artist and ShoMadjozi (South Africa) for Best New International Act.

afrohouseking.com New Afro House, Gqom, Deep House & Soulful House Music

See the full list of winners below (marked with *):

Album of the Year

Travis Scott, “Astroworld”

Meek Mill, “Championships”

Ella Mai, “Ella Mai”

The Carters, “Everything Is Love”

* Cardi B, “Invasion Of Privacy”

Best Female R&B/Pop Artist

* Beyoncé

Ella Mai

H.E.R.

Solange

Sza

Teyana Taylor

Best Male R&B/Pop Artist

Anderson .Paak

* Bruno Mars

Childish Gambino

Chris Brown

John Legend

Khalid

Best Group

Chloe X Halle

City Girls

Lil Baby & Gunna

* Migos

The Carters

Best Collaboration

21 Savage Ft. J. Cole “A Lot”

Cardi B & Bruno Mars “Please Me”

Cardi B Ft. Bad Bunny & J Balvin “I Like It”

H.E.R. Ft. Bryson Tiller “Could’ve Been”

* Travis Scott Ft. Drake “Sicko Mode”

Tyga Ft. Offset “Taste”

Best Male Hip Hop Artist

21 Savage

Drake

J. Cole

Meek Mill

* Nipsey Hussle

Travis Scott

Best Female Hip Hop Artist

* Cardi B

Kash Doll

Lizzo

Megan Thee Stallion

Nicki Minaj

Remy Ma

Video Of The Year

21 Savage “A Lot Ft. J. Cole”

Cardi B “Money”

Cardi B & Bruno Mars “Please Me”

* Childish Gambino “This Is America”

Drake “Nice For What”

The Carters “Apes**T”

Video Director of the Year

Benny Boom

Colin Tilley

Dave Meyers

Hype Williams

* Karena Evans

Best New Artist

Blueface

City Girls

Juice Wrld

* Lil Baby

Queen Naija

Dr. Bobby Jones Best Gospel/Inspirational Award

Erica Campbell Ft. Warryn Campbell “All Of My Life”

Fred Hammond “Tell Me Where It Hurts”

Kirk Franklin “Love Theory”

* Snoop Dogg Ft. Rance Allen “Blessing Me Again”

Tori Kelly Ft. Kirk Franklin “Never Alone”

Best International Act

Aka (South Africa)

Aya Nakamura (France)

* Burna Boy (Nigeria)

Dave (Uk)

Dosseh (France)

Giggs (Uk)

Mr. Eazi (Nigeria)

Best New International Act

Headie One (Uk)

Jokair (France)

Nesly (France)

Octavian (Uk)

* ShoMadjozi (South Africa)

Teni (Nigeria)

Best Actress

Issa Rae

Regina Hall

* Regina King

Taraji P. Henson

Tiffany Haddish

Viola Davis

Best Actor

Anthony Anderson

Chadwick Boseman

Denzel Washington

Mahershala Ali

* Michael B. Jordan

Omari Hardwick

Young Stars Award

Caleb Mclaughlin

Lyric Ross

* Marsai Martin

Michael Rainey Jr.

Miles Brown

Best Movie

* Blackkklansman

Creed 2

If Beale Street Could Talk

Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse

The Hate U Give

Sportswoman of the Year

Allyson Felix

Candace Parker

Naomi Osaka

* Serena Williams

Simone Biles

Sportsman of the Year

Kevin Durant

Lebron James

Odell Beckham Jr.

* Stephen Curry

Tiger Woods

2019 Coca-Cola Viewers’ Choice Award

Cardi B, Bad Bunny & J Balvin “I Like It”

Childish Gambino “This Is America”

Drake “In My Feelings”

* Ella Mai “Trip”

J. Cole “Middle Child”

Travis Scott Ft. Drake “Sicko Mode”

BET Her Award

Alicia Keys “Raise A Man”

Ciara “Level Up”

* H.E.R. “Hard Place”

Janelle Monáe “Pynk”

Queen Naija “Mama’s Hand”

Teyana Taylor “Rose In Harlem”

Download the latest Sho Madjozi Music

Africa Express — No Games (feat. Sho Madjozi, Moonchild Sanelly, Muzi, Ghetts, Poté & Radio 123)

Sho Madjozi — If I Die

Sho Madjozi — Limpopo Champions League

Sho Madjozi — Idhom

Sho Madjozi — Kona

[sowderstuff]

Jeffrey Osier

Jeffrey Osier from  Stephen Mark Rainey ‘s horror zine DEATHREALM

[sights9]

Remember how I said I was sorta reading this? No? Me neither. But I picked it up again recently and had to share the fact that Barnabas’s cane has a spring loaded blade like John Yeagers, which is pretty cool.

[elisabethdotsonbradford]

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[awardseason]

8th Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild Awards — Film Nominees

BEST CONTEMPORARY MAKE-UP

“Bill & Ted Face the Music” Bill Corso, Dennis Liddiard, Stephen Kelley

“Birds of Prey” Deborah Lamia Denaver, Sabrina Wilson, Miho Suzuki, Cale Thomas

“Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” Katy Fray, Lisa Layman, Thomas Kolarek

“The Prom” Eryn Krueger Mekash, J. Roy Helland, Kyra Panchenko, Donald McInnes

“Promising Young Woman” Angela Wells, Brigitte Hennech, Adam Christopher

BEST PERIOD AND/OR CHARACTER MAKE-UP

“Bill & Ted Face the Music” Bill Corso, Dennis Liddiard, Stephen Kelley, Bianca Appice

“Hillbilly Elegy” Eryn Krueger Mekash, Jamie Hess, Devin Morales, Jessica Gambardella

“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” Matiki Anoff, Sergio Lopez-Rivera, Carl Fullerton, Debi Young

“Mank” Gigi Williams, Michelle Audrina Kim

“Mulan” Denise Kum, Rick Findlater, Georgia Lockhart-Adams, James Mackinnon

BEST SPECIAL MAKE-UP EFFECTS

“Bill & Ted Face the Music” Bill Corso, Kevin Yagher, Steve Wang, Stephen Kelley

“Hillbilly Elegy” Eryn Krueger Mekash, Matthew Mungle, Jamie Hess

“Mulan” Denise Kum, Chris Fitzpatrick

“Pinocchio” Mark Coulier

“The United States vs. Billie Holiday” Adrian Morot

“Wonder Woman 1984” Jan Sewell, Mark Coulier

BEST CONTEMPORARY HAIR STYLING

“Bill & Ted Face the Music” Donna Spahn-Jones, Budd Bird, Jeri Baker, Ulla Gaudin  

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BEST PERIOD AND/OR CHARACTER HAIR STYLING

“Hillbilly Elegy” Patricia Dehaney, Tony Ward, Martial Corneville, Stacey Butterworth

“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” Mia Neal, Larry Cherry, Leah Loukas, Tywan Williams

“Mank” Kimberley Spiteri, Colleen LaBaff

“Mulan” Denise Kum, Rick Findlater, Georgia Lockhart-Adams, Terry Baliel

“Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey” Sharon Martin, Kat Fa

[popentertainment-moviereviews]

FENCES (2016)

Starring Denzel Washington, Viola Davis, Stephen Henderson, Mykelti Williamson, Jovan Adepo, Russell Hornsby, Saniyya Sidney, Christopher Mele, Leslie Boone, Jason Silvis, Toussaint Raphael Abessolo, John W. Iwanonkiw, Phil Nardozzi, Jeff Smith, Tra’Waan Coles, Benjamin Donlow, Mark Falvo and Malik Abdul Khaaliq.

Screenplay by August Wilson.

Directed by Denzel Washington.

Distributed by Paramount Pictures.  138 minutes.  Rated PG-13.

August Wilson’s The Pittsburgh Cycle – a series of ten plays about black life in America during the 20th Century, with one play covering each decade – was one of the most ambitious and important theatrical accomplishments of our lifetime. The late playwright received accolades (including multiple Tonys and two Pulitzer Prizes for Drama) for the cycle, which includes such plays as Fences, The Piano Lesson, Jitney, Joe Turner’s Come and Gone, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom and Radio Golf, which did not have its Broadway run until a couple of years after Wilson died of liver cancer at the too-young age of 60 in 2005.

However, none of the plays has been made into a movie.  Until now.  (In fairness, The Piano Lesson was made into a TV movie in the 1990s.)  

Fences, which is arguably the most well-known of the plays in the cycle, has been a dream project for actor/director Denzel Washington for years now.  (Washington performed the play on Broadway in 2010 and had been a fan long before.)  It had actually been in various states of production for years before that.  Wilson had written the screenplay for the movie years ago, which Washington has used for this adaptation.  However, various attempts to film the play have fizzled out over the years: partially due to the fact that Wilson insisted on a black director for the film, partially due to the fact that Fences is a very theatrical story with some extremely difficult, bleak themes, all of which hardly screams out Hollywood escapism.

Now that Fences has made it to the big screen, it is hard to imagine what took so long.  It also makes one wish that the entire cycle will eventually be filmed.  (Washington has suggested that doing just that is a fantasy of his, but that would be a huge undertaking for just one filmmaker.)

Fences tells the 1950s story of Troy Maxson (director Washington also plays the lead role), a former Negro Leagues baseball phenom who was injured before the major leagues were integrated.  Now in his 50s and making a living as a garbage man in Pittsburgh, Maxson is an angry, cynical and rather selfish man.

Surrounding Maxson are his long-suffering wife Rose (the astonishing Viola Davis), his brother Gabe, who was brain damaged in the war (Mykelti Williamson), his long-time best friend Bono (Stephen Henderson), his grown son Lyons (Russell Hornsby) who is trying unsuccessfully to make it as a jazz musician, and his youngest son Cory (Jovan Adepo), a star football player who has the opportunity to become the star that Troy never became.

I won’t go into many of the details of what happens during Fences, because that is something best experienced fresh.  Besides, plotline is only part of the story here, for the real strength of Fences is the stunning street-poetic dialogue.

Needless to say the acting here is stellar – Davis won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar, Washington was also nominated for an Oscar, and Williamson, Henderson, Hornsby and Adepo are just as good as their co-stars in their complicated roles.

Fences is not an uplifting film, but it is a very important one.  It is tragic and messy in the ways that life can be, and yet there is transcendent beauty to be found in the rundown alleys and yards of Fences.

Jay S. Jacobs

Copyright ©2017 PopEntertainment.com. All rights reserved. Posted: March 14, 2017.