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forgottenpnffacts · 5 years

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How many of the shows songs are referenced in other episodes? I know gicci gicci goo is referenced in doofania

“Gitchee Gitchee Goo” gets referenced in “I, Brobot,” “I Scream, You Scream,” “Toy to the World,” “Greece Lightning,” “The Flying Fishmonger,” “Hail Doofania!” “Out of Toon,” “The Chronicles of Meap,” “Tri-Stone Area,” “Oh, There You Are, Perry,” “Isabella and the Temple of Sap,” “Candace’s Big Day,” “I Was a Middle Aged Robot,” “Phineas’ Birthday Clip-O-Rama!” “A Phineas and Ferb Family Christmas,” and “Cranius Maximus.” “I’m Lindana and I Wanna Have Fun” gets referenced in “Rollercoaster” “Are You My Mummy?” “Candace’s Big Day,” “The Magnificent Few,” “Run Away Runway,” “Dude, We’re Getting the Band Back Together,” “Backyard Aquarium,” “Chez Platypus,” “Oh, There You Are, Perry,” “Isabella and the Temple of Sap,” “Finding Mary McGuffin,” “The Secret of Success,” “Sleepwalk Surprise,” “Druselsteinoween,” “Return Policy,” and “The Klimpaloon Ultimatum.“ "Perry the Platypus" gets referenced in “Rollercoaster,” “Lawn Gnome Beach Party of Terror,” “Flop Starz,” “The Fast and the Phineas,” “Lights, Candace, Action!” “Candace Loses Her Head,” “Run Away Runway,” “Jerk De Soleil,” “Ready for the Bettys,” “I Scream, You Scream,” “Toy to the World,” “Tree to Get Ready,” “The Best Lazy Day Ever,” “Boyfriend from 27,000 B.C.,” “Voyage to the Bottom of Buford,” “A Hard Day’s Knight,” “Bowl-R-Rama Drama,” “Got Game?” “Put That Putter Away,” “Does This Duckbill Make Me Look Fat?” “One Good Scare Ought to Do It!” “The Monster of Phineas-n-Ferbenstein,” “Unfair Science Fair Redux (Another Story),” “The Lake Nose Monster,” “Day of the Living Gelatin,” “Elementary My Dear Stacy,” “Perry Lays an Egg,” “Let’s Take a Quiz,” “Oh, There You Are, Perry,” “Phineas and Ferb’s Quantum Boogaloo,” “Bubble Boys,” “Fireside Girl Jamboree,” “Atlantis,” “Phineas and Ferb Christmas Vacation!” “Just Passing Through,” “The Beak,” “Rollercoaster: The Musical!” “Moon Farm,” “Misperceived Monotreme,” “Phineas and Ferb Interrupted,” Phineas and Ferb The Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension, “Skiddley Whiffers,” “Bully Bromance Breakup,” “Quietest Day Ever,” “Sleepwalk Surprise,” “Sci-Fi Pie Fly,” “Tri-State Treasure: Boot of Secrets,” “Doofapus,” “Where’s Perry?” “When Worlds Collide,” “This is Your Backstory,” “Happy New Year!” “Fly on the Wall,” “Bully Bust,” “My Sweet Ride,” “Der Kinderlumper,” “Sidetracked,” “Bee Day,” “Great Balls of Water,” “Knot My Problem,” “Just Desserts,” “La Candace-Cabra,” “Phineas and Ferb: Mission Marvel,” “Thanks But No Thanks,” “Face Your Fear,” “Just Our Luck,” “ Return Policy,” “Imperfect Storm,” “It’s No Picnic,” “The Klimpaloon Ultimatum,” “Operation Crumb Cake,” “The Inator Method,” “Night of the Living Pharmacists,” and “Last Day of Summer.“ "Fireside Girls Anthem" is referenced in “Bubble Boys,” “Fireside Girl Jamboree,” “Where’s Perry?” and “Just Desserts.” “Skiddley Whiffers” is referenced in “The Inator Method.” “Summer (Where Do We Begin?)“ is referenced in “Fly on the Wall.” “J-Pop (Welcome to Tokyo)“ is referenced in “Phineas and Ferb: Mission Marvel.” “Rubber Bands, Rubber Balls” is referenced in “Tour de Ferb.” “Mexican-Jewish Cultural Festival” is referenced in “Phineas and Ferb Save Summer.” “Disco Miniature Golfing Queen” is referenced in “Night of the Living Pharmacists.” “Leave the Busting to Us!” is referenced in “Mandace.“ “Ducky Momo Theme Song” is referenced in “Ferb TV,” “The Inator Method,” and “It’s No Picnic.” “Alien Heart” is referenced in “The Klimpaloon Ultimatum.” “The Ballad of Klimpaloon” is referenced in “Bullseye!” “Yippy Ki Yi Yay!“ is referenced in “Phineas’ Birthday Clip-O-Rama!” “Ordinary Day” is referenced in “Lost in Danville.” “Baliwood” gets referenced in “Not Phineas and Ferb.” "S'Winter” is referenced in “Journey to the Center of Candace,” “Phineas and Ferb Christmas Vacation!” and “For Your Ice Only.” “Alabama Bound” is referenced in “Road Trip.” "He’s a Bully” is referenced in “Bully Bromance Breakup.” “If Summer Only Lasted One Day” is referenced in “The Fast and the Phineas.“ "Go, Go, Phineas” is referenced in “Fireside Girl Jamboree,” “It’s About Time!” and “Tour de Ferb.“ "F-Games” is referenced in “For Your Ice Only.” “Hockey Z-9” is referenced in “The Klimpaloon Ultimatum.” “History of Rock” is referenced in “My Sweet Ride.” “Danville for Niceness” is referenced in “Act Your Age.” “Aren’t You a Little Young” is referenced in “The Inator Method.” “My Undead Mummy” is referenced in “Sidetracked” and “Primal Perry.” “Lady Song” is referenced in “Backyard Hodge Podge.” “Forever Summer” is referenced in “The Klimpaloon Ultimatum.” “Busted” gets referenced in “Hail Doofania!” and “Wizard of Odd.” "Bigfoot” is referenced in “Last Train to Bustville.“ “You Snuck Your Way Right Into My Heart” is referenced in ”Thanks But No Thanks” and “Thaddeus and Thor.” “Ain’t Got Rhythm” is referenced in “Where’s Pinky?” and “Druselsteinween.” “Ballad of Badbeard” gets referenced in “Act Your Age.” "Paul Bunyan” is referenced in “Leave the Busting to Us!” "Gotta Make Summer Last” is referenced in “Leave the Busting to Us!” “That Sinking Feeling,” “Phineas’ Birthday Clip-O-Rama!” “Phineas and Ferb Interrupted,” and “Buford Confidential.” “Do Nothing Day” is referenced in “Chez Platypus,” “The Bully Code,” and “Make Play.” “Happy Sandwich Man” is referenced in “The Fast and the Phineas.” “Lookin’ So Fly” is referenced in “Tip of the Day.” "It’s Candace” is referenced in “One Good Scare Ought to Do It!” “S.I.M.P. (Squirrels In My Pants)” is referenced in “Wizard of Odd,” “Monster From the ID,” and “Druselsteinoween.” “Impress My Professor” is referenced in “Where’s Pinky?” “Pinhead Pierre” is referenced in “Magic Carpet Ride.” “Yodel Odel Obey Me” is referenced in “Road Trip.” “Doof ‘N Puss” is referenced in “Isabella and the Temple of Sap,” “Finding Mary McGuffin,” Phineas and Ferb The Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension, “Ferb TV,” “Phineas and Ferb Save Summer,” and “The Return of the Rogue Rabbit.” “Let’s Go Digital” was referenced in “Out of Toon,” “Knot My Problem,” and “Toy to the World.” “That’s Wings You Turkey” is referenced in “Druselsteinoween.” “Hail Doofania!” was referenced in “The Beak,” “Phineas’ Birthday Clip-O-Rama!” “Perry the Actorpus,” “For Your Ice Only,” and “Der Kinderlumper.” "Spa Day” is referenced in “Nerdy Dancin’” and “Druselsteinoween.” “Let’s Take a Rocketship to Space” is referenced in “Vanessassary Roughness” and “Phineas and Ferb: Star Wars.” “The Good Life” is referenced in “Just Our Luck.” “My Wettest Friend” is referenced in “The Remains of the Platypus” and “Meapless in Seattle.” “Watchin’ and Waitin’” is referenced in “Unfair Science Fair Redux (Another Story),” “That Sinking Feeling,” “Phineas and Ferb-Busters!” “Make Play,” “Run, Candace, Run,” “Misperceived Monotreme,” “My Sweet Ride,” “Where’s Pinky?” “Cheers for Fears,” and “Mandace.” “Horse in a Bookcase” is referenced in “Phineas and Ferb: Mission Marvel” and “Steampunx.” "Follow the Sun” is referenced in “Great Balls of Water.” “Weaponry” is referenced in “Just Desserts.” “Fletcher Flying Family Circus” is referenced in “Thanks But No Thanks.” “Jetpack Volleyball” is referenced in “One Good Turn.” “Carl the Intern” is referenced in “Undercover Carl,” “I Was a Middle Aged Robot” and “Tri-State Treasure: Boot of Secrets.” "This is Your Backstory” references “Evil Tonight,” “Kick My Way Into Her Heart,” “Not So Bad a Dad,” “That’s Wings, You Turkey,” “What Do It Do?” “Happy Evil Love Song,” and “My Nemesis.“ “Phineas and Ferb’s Musical Cliptastic Countdown” references “Ready for the Bettys,” “Queen of Mars,” “Ain’t Got Rhythm,” “I Love You Mom,” “E.V.I.L. B.O.Y.S.,” “S.I.M.P. (Squirrels In My Pants),” “Little Brothers,” “Busted,” “Backyard Beach,” “My Name is Doof,” “Gitchee Gitchee Goo.“ “Phineas and Ferb’s Musical Cliptastic Countdown Hosted by Kelly Osbourne” references “A-G-L-E-T,” “So Peanutty,” “Snacks,” "Fabulous,“ “Everything’s Better With Perry,” “Summer Belongs to You,” “There’s a Platypus Controlling Me,” “Brand New Best Friend,” “Summer (Where Do We Begin?),” “City of Love,” “I’m Me,” “Candace Party,” and “Come Home Perry.”

Overall, PnF has hundreds of songs and the PnF crew really loved reusing them (especially as short sound bites/instrumentals).

#i hope you guys are putting these mass summation answers to good use because i don't even really count them as facts (more like details)#i mean if i know a production/esque fact and it's relevant to an answer i'll pepper it in but you won't catch me straight up #posting stuff like 'Crumpets have been mentioned 4 times' or 'Doof and Perry have willingly held hands 4 times' as my daily facts #................odd that both of those things happened exactly 4 times each though.....hmmmmmmm.....#*X-Files theme plays*#nah i'm just jesting pbfffft #asks #anon #long post

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teriwrites · 4 years

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Playlist Tag

I love this tag so much just to see what pops up on my hodge podge playlist lmao.

Thanks for the tag @notwritinganyflufftoday!

The Star of Bethnal Green | Bear’s Den

Mamma Mia | ABBA

Hey Ya! | Outkast

Can’t Buy Me Love | The Beatles

A Hard Day’s Night | The Beatles

The Lazy Song | Bruno Mars

Victory Celebration | John Williams (from Return of the Jedi)

Catch My Breath | Kelly Clarkson

Someone Anyone | Anberlin

Conversations with Ghosts | Bear’s Den

I’m working on catching up with tags today, so I’m gonna hold off on tagging people in this one!

#tag game #gotta say i wasn't expecting two songs off the same beatles album to pop up back to back #still wish my saxophone rep would actually make an appearance #bring on the demersseman!

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userlarri · 4 years

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50 questions 💜 tagged by renee/ @louvegoods 🥰

under the cut bc this is long lol

tagging @greatbigstorm @jacobperaltaz @smilecapsules @jakeperalta @nessa007 @montygreen + anyone who happens to see this and wants to do it

what color is your hairbrush? the one i use every day is purple, but i have a small black one i carry in my purse

name a food you never eat: fish. in any form

are you typically too warm or too cold? too warm

what were you doing 45 minutes ago? giffing

what’s your favorite candy bar? 100 grand

have you ever been to a professional sports game? negative. i want to!

what’s the last you thing you said out loud? i’m just kidding, i do have to pee (lmao i was brushing my teeth and realized i had to go as i was walking out of the bathroom)

what’s your favorite ice cream? birthday cake

what was the last thing you had to drink? water

do you like your wallet? yes! my best friend got it for my birthday last year. i love that it has a long strap so i can wear it like a crossbody

what’s the last thing you ate? orange chicken from panda

did you buy any new clothes last weekend? nope, two weekends ago i bought this cute flowy tank while i was grocery shopping

what’s the last sporting even you watched? oh man, i really don’t know. it’s been a minute

what is your favorite favorite flavor of popcorn? i like cheesy popcorn. i also went grocery shopping today and got one of those flavor shaker things in garlic parmesan... VERY excited about that

who’s the last person you sent a text to? my best friend kelly. i need an update on some drama going down 👀

ever go camping? yes but it’s been a good long while. i’d like to go again

do you take vitamins? no, but lord knows i should

do you go to church every sunday? i used to... fell out of that habit

do you have a tan? i did, but it faded

do you prefer chinese or pizza? it honestly depends on what day of the week it is..... generally probably pizza

do you drink soda through a straw? only in a restaurant

what color socks do you usually wear? my socks are all different colors, but also i rarely wear them. it’s whatever pair i pull out

do you ever drive above the speed limit? only always. oops 🤷🏻‍♀️

what terrifies you? the unknown, my anxiety is not okay with not knowing. but also snakes and spiders

look to your left, what do you see? a wall, my nightstand

what chore do you hate the most? DISHES

what do you think of when you hear an australian accent? my siri lol. steve irwin. the wiggles

what’s your favorite soda? sprite

do you go in fast food places or just hit the drive thru? drive thru

what’s your favorite number? 4 or 7

who’s the last person you talked to? my friend justin

favorite cut of beef? idk i just like beef?

last song you listened to? bad boys for life by p diddy lmaooo

last book you read? *crickets*..... i haven’t read for pleasure in soooo long

favorite day of the week? saturday

can you say the alphabet backwards? yep

how do you like your coffee? iced. vanilla syrup. cream and sugar. or if i’m at home, funfetti creamer, no sugar

favorite pair of shoes? probably my leopard flats

time you normally get up? through the week, 8 am. weekends, i sleep in

sunrise or sunsets? sunset. sunrise involves getting up early and i’m extremely against that

how many blankets on your bed? one comforter, but i have a fleece throw at the foot in case

describe your kitchen plates? a hodge podge lol nothing matches, we’ve just obtained random pieces. when i get my own place i have some pretty flowery ones i want to get

describe your kitchen at the moment? clean. it normally stays together

do you have a favorite alcoholic drink? margaritas

do you play cards? yep! when i visit home, i go see one of my best friend’s family (even if she’s not there, bc that’s the level of friendship we’re on) and we play a few different games

what color is your car? silver

can you change a tire? sure can

your favorite state/province/county/etc? obviously i have to say my old kentucky home

favorite job you’ve had? orientation leader! highlight of college

how did you get your biggest scar? fell off my bike when i was 7, 8?

#as usual no pressure to do it if you don't want!!#feel free to ignore me #about me #tag games

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keeroo92 · 5 years

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Be My Nightmare Ch8

Consequences

TW for gore, enjoy!

Word count - 3,257

~~~~Previous Chapter~~~~

__________

---Reader---

This is so not what I studied…

“God damnit, Ken.”

Hideous burns extended almost to his elbows. The scorched tapestry of red and black tissue oozed yellowish goo where the deep fatty layer had melted, filling the room with a putrid scent. His hands resembled overdone steak and you cringed at the comparison.

You knew the basics of first aid; everyone you worked with took the same introductory class before their first day. CPR, bandaging wounds, checking the airway… Somehow, you didn’t think the basics covered this level of injury.

But everyone else was outside.

It was up to you.

Plastic squealed under your legs as you shifted to kneel by his head. Foamy blobs dotted the mat where you’d sprayed, but there was enough clear space to position Ken without touching the harsh chemicals. A soft moan slipped through his lips as you moved him, despite your best efforts to keep him comfortable.

What now? What do I do next?

His raspy breathing didn’t bode well. Probably inhaled too much smoke, the idiot. You pursed your lips and scanned the room, blocking out the foul aroma as you searched for the familiar red cube present in every communal room of the facility. Maybe you’d get lucky, maybe it would have step-by-step instructions on how to treat a burn.

Since when has luck been on my side?

By the time you returned to Ken with the first aid kit in hand, soft grunts of agony accompanied his every exhale. The box opened with little complaint to reveal a hodge-podge of bandages and creams, gloves and tweezers and all manner of useless paraphernalia. How long had it been now? It must be close to the cutoff; someone must’ve noticed your absence by now.

Doesn’t matter. He can’t wait that long.

You glanced back at the poor man to find his eyes fluttering open. Whimpers of piteous suffering slipped from his cracked lips as he stared at you, panic taking over as the pain set in. No time to waste.

As if there ever is.

“Hey, hey! Ken, it’s gonna be okay!”

His desecrated arms rose as if to fend off an attack, held defensively between you and him. The huff of his breathing quickened into harsh pants, interrupted by a cough every few seconds. If he didn’t calm down, he risked going into shock. You ignored the alarm bells jangling in your head, the pounding of your heart and the dryness in your mouth. Emotions were useless in emergencies, compromising judgement and ruining rational thought in even the most well-trained individuals. Panic and fear were more dangerous than any weapon on the planet.

And Ken was succumbing to it, far too quickly. Tears leaked from his dilated eyes, his arms thrashing as he searched for an escape. You waited for an opening and seized his biceps, forcing his arms to still.

“N- no! Not you! Anyone but you!”

Why was he scared of you? After all the energy you invested in gaining his trust, what happened to the fragile bond you’d built?

This is not the time.

You leaned back, raising your hands into his view in a blatantly submissive pose and you held as still as you could while he calmed. His brows furrowed in a classic expression of confusion, his mouth gaping like a fish. What a waste of time; you still needed to find V.

“I’m here to help. I know it’s hard, but you need to try and stay calm.”

The same tone honed through years of dealing with your father forced its way through your lips. Placating, calm and reassuring. The voice of someone who meant no harm and only wanted to help. The tension on his face eased another fraction; you were on the right track.

But it was taking too long. How many rooms remained unchecked? Five? Ten?

Too many.

You lowered your hands and surreptitiously retrieved your phone. Time to call for backup. Screw protocol, you needed help. Damn Kotomi…

“Where the hell are you?!”

Aaron’s tinny voice answered after a single ring. You ignored the flare of terror on Ken’s face, if he was in his right mind, he’d be thanking you.

“I found Ken, he’s badly burned! I need you to send help.”

“God damnit! Is Mark with him? Where are you?”

You shuddered in revulsion at the realization of the nearby corpse’s identity. Poor Mark, he just got married. “In the gym. Mark is… he’s dead.”

“WHAT!?”

You flinched away from the speaker. A rapid stream of curses followed Aaron’s shocked cry, but dead was dead. Mark wasn’t your primary concern, or even your secondary. Tertiary, at best.

“Is anyone else still missing?”

This is already a catastrophe. If V got loose…

The thought didn’t bear dwelling on. It wasn’t in your control, none of it was. Even after years of education and hard work, you still weren’t holding the reins. Disaster still struck; people still died. Maybe you were wrong, maybe you couldn’t alter fate.

Maybe fighting destiny was a fool’s errand.

“No, got em all. Hang on a sec.”

His voice shouted orders, muffled as something covered the microphone. Your shoulders slumped in relief at his words. No other casualties, thank the damned stars. Assuming Ken made it, only one person paid the price today.

You could live with that.

“Right, I just sent in some EMT’s. Stay where- what the fuck?!”

“Aaron? What happened? What’s going on?”

Far-off screams echoed through the small speaker. A chill of foreboding toyed across your spine, teasing you with all manner of possible horrors. It wasn’t over.

---V---

He may as well have been a ghost, for all the attention he received. Not that he minded; the solitude allowed him to observe every second of wonderful chaos. The staff focused on others in more immediate need, comforting the criers and calming the panicked. What a delightful display of agony; each face inspired a slough of new ideas in his mind. The next group session couldn’t come fast enough.

Yet one especially tortured face stood out.

Kelly.

He resisted the urge to sneer at her blank expression, as if she simply lacked the capacity to acknowledge reality. Such docility disgusted him. Truly, the woman had no purpose. A wasted life, contributing nothing to society. A leech on severely limited resources. Undeserving of the air in her lungs.

You could fix that.

The artist’s lips twisted into a feral smirk, his emerald eyes glittering with glee. What a lovely idea… It had been so long since he indulged himself. Considering the situation, the risk was low. The closest staff member stood over a dozen steps away, struggling to reassure an incoherent young woman.

“Thank you, Vergil.”

He sidled closer to his target until less than a foot of empty air remained between them. She never shifted her eyes, didn’t bother to notice the predator closing in. His fingers itched as static bloomed in his nerves, the small hairs on his arms standing at attention. Some might call his plan a barbaric form of mercy.

He called it mastery.

“Yours is a cruel fate,” he began.

The merest twitch of her shoulders revealed her perception of him. He tracked the movements of the closest orderly, but the fool was still too far away to change anything. Goosebumps erupted on his skin, an anticipatory shiver running up his spine and rattling the loops of metal around his wrists. It’d been so long since he last saw that delightful crimson splash.

The artist licked his lips and continued, choosing his words with the utmost care. “I see your pain. It never gets lighter, does it?”

He paused, letting his seemingly sympathetic words sink in. No need to rush, not with the glaring incompetence of the staff. He could afford to savor the moment.

“The only peace you’ll ever find is in death. I know it. You know it. Even the doctors know it.”

Another pause as Kevin glanced their way, his attention divided between the artist and several others. Buffoon. Images of the man’s imminent death brought coils of heat to the artist’s gut. Long fingers twitched by his groin but a shouted word restrained him.

Focus!

Right. Kevin’s turn drew near, but today it was Kelly’s moment to shine.

“This might be the only chance you ever get,” he murmured, injecting every word with his own conviction and belief.

This may be my only chance, as well.

She jolted like she’d been electrocuted. Every change in her posture revealed his success; the slumping shoulders, the bowed head, the trembling legs. Any second now… the only question was how she’d do it.

Kelly’s mournful eyes met his, the normal weariness replaced by resigned acceptance. Her lips curled into a faint smile as she released a deep breath and surrendered.

“Thank you,” was all she said.

Then she crumpled to her knees and slammed her forehead into the pavement.

Shocked gasps echoed from mouths in the vicinity, but the effect was localized. Ripples of awareness would inevitably reach the staff, but not in time to change her fate. The artist smirked and edged away, blending into the bewildered crowd to enjoy the show. He was just a face in a crowd, a bystander to such madness. A fly on the wall.

The thought almost made him laugh.

Kelly lifted her bloody face and cracked it against the asphalt again. Stray droplets of crimson splattered those closest to her, staining their white clothing with beautiful crimson. The contrast was as awe-inspiring as ever, evoking ethereal voices to sing their rapture in his mind. He stepped further into the horde, barely maintaining his view as he neared the outer edge.

“Fuck!”

Kevin. He’d do his best, the fool always did, but nothing could stop Kelly now. She rose once more, grinning wider than ever before. It may have eased the ugliness of her face if not for the shattered teeth, broken nose and scarlet lips.

A final lunge. A sickening crunch, more cast off blood splattering the masses. A hint of grey mixed in as her body went limp, limbs twitching in the last throes of her tortured life just as Kevin skidded to her side.

Beautiful.

Horrified screams spoiled the solemn perfection. Perhaps it was for the best, otherwise someone would’ve heard the drawn-out groan vibrating from his lips. He could taste the coppery tang of blood, smell the moment her bowels released. His lids fluttered closed for a single heartbeat to revel in the pulsing joy radiating from his chest down to his cock.

“What the hell happened?” someone cried.

“Jesus…” another murmured.

Just to his left, someone lost their lunch and added another facet of visceral truth to the scene. Kevin’s meaty hands wrapped around Kelly’s shoulders and turned her faceup, revealing an image too grotesque to forget. Few among the horde knew what brain matter looked like before, yet now they all possessed the macabre knowledge.

Well done, Kelly. You had a purpose after all…

Still. If he’d been directly involved, the final view may have achieved magnificence. As it was, her corpse barely qualified as art. Crude, rushed and desperate. The act of a woman without hope.

But it was enough to bring a hum of satisfaction from his throat and a thrill of joy to his deranged soul.

Several staff members rushed toward the fresh corpse. Patients screamed and cried, lost in their own personal lunacy and delusions. Pandemonium and confusion reigned supreme over the crowd.

Weaklings. Now is the time.

A pulse of searing agony accompanied the rumbling voice’s words. He hissed and rubbed at his temples, instinctively trying to ease the pain. A powerful roar followed in its wake as Shadow expressed her displeasure, curses from Vergil and Griffon a beat behind. What new fiend was this, that so eloquently stated the truth?

“Who are you?” he murmured. It wouldn’t do to draw attention to himself now, not when he was so exposed.

I am Urizen, accursed vessel.

Foreboding laughter filled his mind as his blood turned to lava, boiling him alive. Stones pelted every inch of his skin and every nerve howled its suffering. He bit his tongue to keep from screaming, yet a muffled whimper slipped through.

And then, in a flash the torturous pain vanished.

For several seconds, V didn’t dare to move. His breath came in sharp pants, a sheen of sweat shimmering on his skin. There was something different about this newcomer, a form of strength he never imagined and was powerless to resist.

Not that he tried very hard.

Seize the opportunity you created. Let fear not guide your steps, but purpose.

The artist swallowed, twinges of pain still swirling through his muscles. He knew the voice was right, but what shreds of his conscience that remained screamed for him to stay. A strange thing; that side of him hadn’t made itself known in years. Why it spoke now, he didn’t understand.

No matter. Urizen was right. He must make his move now, before freedom danced from his grasp again. It was a shame you weren’t there with him, but he couldn’t waste the chance Ken so kindly provided.

He did not run; the less attention he drew, the more likely his success. The cuffs chafed at his bony wrists and he clutched the chain connecting them to keep it silent as the shadows of branches welcomed him home. For the first time in months, where he went and what he did was his choice to make.

I am free.

But I will return.

---Reader---

Malphas sat in the usual spot at the head of the conference table. Various staff flooded the room, far too many people for the number of seats available. As with most meetings, it was first come first serve so you ended up standing near the door. Not the most powerful position, but it made for a decent view.

“Okay, everyone. Let’s get started. Aaron?” Malphas began.

The head of security stood and sighed. The weight of responsibility colored his voice as he recapped the events of three days past, the ensuing manhunt and emergency medical treatments. By the time he was done, you couldn’t help but count the numerous faces staring at you with anger. It didn’t make any sense, it’s not like you told Ken to murder Mark and start a fire.

Yet somehow, your peers thought something along those lines.

Assholes.

“Two dead, one escaped and one injured... I don’t need to tell you all how bad this looks.”

Your eyes darted to Kotomi. Her catastrophic failure mystified you; it likely always would. To break down just when people were counting on you to stand tall and keep them safe was unforgivable. What might have happened had she held it together, you’d never know.

I can damn well guess.

You would’ve made it outside in time to keep an eye on V. He’d still be here and Kevin wouldn’t be blaming himself for the first escaped patient in over fifty years. Maybe Kelly would still be alive, too.

It would’ve changed everything.

“First off, we’re going to review our safety protocols in depth. This cannot happen again,” Malphas broke in.

He paused to meet every eye in the room, the authority of his bug-like gaze driving home how serious he was.

“Second, Dr. Ishida will no longer be involved with emergency procedures. Would anyone like to volunteer to take over her role?”

Kotomi bowed her head in shame, hiding behind her silken hair as a meager few hands rose. You couldn’t tear your eyes away from her pathetic form. Why did she even work here? It clearly didn’t suit her skills or preferences. Curiosity tugged at you, but the time to ask her was long gone.

“Until the inquiry has been resolved, Dr. Waras will be suspended from any activities on site. Dr. Waras’ cases will be reassigned to Dr. Ishida for the time being.”

The hum of the ventilation system faded away as static fizzled in your mind. Someone shifted their weight, another coughed. This couldn’t be happening, you refused to believe it.

He can’t be serious!

You’d done everything right, followed protocol to the letter and taken on more than you were supposed to because Kotomi broke under pressure. What happened in the parking lot had nothing to do with you, and Ken never showed any inclinations toward wreaking havoc. How the hell were you taking the fall for this?

“Everyone, stay vigilant. If anything further is required of you, I’ll be in touch.”

As the staff filtered out the door, whispering and averting their eyes from you, pure rage battled for control within you. After all your hard work, all your dedication and sacrifice, they were taking it all away. It didn’t matter if you weren’t found at fault, this would follow you for the rest of your career. If only Kotomi wasn’t such a damned coward, if only she’d done her fucking job...

How could she do this to me? She could’ve said something to defend me, don’t I deserve that much after listening to her stupid stories?

Only Malphas and Aaron stayed behind. Kotomi shot a piteous look at you as she left, but you only glared back. Hurt flashed in her pretty eyes and a small flame of victory danced in your chest, but it didn’t matter.

You spoke the moment the door clicked shut. “You know this wasn’t my fault.”

“That remains to be determined,” Aaron replied coolly.

“But what about Kotomi? She was supposed to do half the floor but she left with the patients! She’s the one who failed, not me.”

Malphas pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. He looked so old, like he’d aged a decade in the last few days. “Y/N, I’m sorry. Kelly’s family is demanding answers and there’s an uproar in legal. It was your patients who were involved, your patients who died and got injured. I know you did your best, but until I can prove it my hands are tied.”

Even through the sting of your embarrassed rage, you felt sorry for him. Being in charge at a time like this had to suck.

But still.

“Can’t you just stick me with the lower risk patients instead?”

Aaron snorted, crossing his thick arms derisively. “Not a chance. The press would have a field day, not to mention you’d get so bored you’d start the next fire.”

You pursed your lips. He had a point.

“The moment I have an alternative, you’ll know.”

Years of practice helped you stifle the urge to cry and lash out. Nothing good came from emotional outbursts, especially not in the workplace. You had to stay coolheaded and behave.

At the end of the day, the only thing in yourcontrol was yourself.

You took one last look at the flimsy conference table, the plain beige walls and inoffensive wall art. It was funny, even though the fire was on a different floor, you still smelled smoke and burning flesh. It permeated the stale recycled air like perfume, yet only you seemed to notice.

And blood, that metallic scent followed you everywhere. No matter how hard you scrubbed your skin, imagined ichor stained your hands. You couldn’t escape the fragmented reminders.

But to be cast out, like garbage?

Nothing is more foolish than to expect the world to treat you fairly.

The artist was unhinged, but maybe he had a point.

~~~~Next Chapter~~~~

#Be My Nightmare #my writing #fanfic #v x reader #reader insert #devil may cry #dmc #dmcv #tw: gore #tw: mental health #tw: suicide

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daggerzine · 4 years

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Jeff Kelly- WHEN THE WORLD WAS YOUNGER (GREEN MONKEY RECORDS)

The longtime Green Pajamas leader is back with round 2 as this record is a bit of a continuation from last year’s Beneath the Skies, Under the River. Again, like that record, both Spain and Portugal are the main inspiration here, but this 12-song set it a bit of a hodge podge (not in a bad way, though). There’s four new songs as well as a few remakes of older songs and four singles, too. First cut “Of Missingness” has some of that wonderful flamenco -style guitar while the dusty “Black Eyes” has a bit of a Southwestern Giant Sand/Calexico feel to it. There a new version of an old song called “Autumn in Lisbon” which has swaying beat to it while things get smoky on the mysterious “Only Endless Tomorrows” and the record ends with a lovely, acoustic version of “Christina Dancing”, Kelly’s tribute to flamenco dancer Christina Hoyos. As Kelly himself said, “The album is very nostalgic and about “missingness” and of longing for another place and time when the world was younger. Said by the man himself (and something that we can all agree with). www.greenmonkeyrecords.com

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ginbrucobooks · 3 months

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Flashbacks

Maeve's Point of View

The bus was pretty empty, probably because it was Sunday morning and most people were sleeping in. Having nothing else to do, considering I didn't think to bring my earphones with me yesterday, I just stared out the window the whole ride from Aoife's house to my cousins'. Since I had nothing to distract me, my mind kept going back to my earlier argument with Aoife and Casey. They're right.

A voice in the back of my head that sounded suspiciously like my mom's said. They're not safe in that house. You are not safe in that house I brushed it off. At least if they were with me, I could protect them. Who knew what would happen to them if we called the authorities. Who knew what would happen to me.

Just like the previous moments when I had been in doubt, I clang to the last memory I had of my eldest cousin, Darren. The last request he made to me before he abandoned us and never looked back, when I was only eleven.

"Hey there, Mae-Mae." My cousin smiled at me.

"Hey Dar-Dar." I beamed back.

Today was my first day at the last year of primary school, and Joey's first day of secondary school. Lately life wasn't so bad. Uncle Teddy said he would try to get sober. Aunt Marie had bought me a brand new diary to use for school. Darren told me he was going to a college near us. Joey said that he is probably going to get the call up for hurling in the next few months. Tadhg was more upbeat than usual and Ollie looked more relaxed. I was still sad when I thought of my family, especially Clara, but Darren said that was fine, that it was okay to miss them.

"Are you going to bring me to school today?" I asked. "I thought you were going to accompany Joey and show him the ropes."

"I am, I just wanted to talk to you a second before I left." He responded.

"Are you going to show me the ropes too?" I wondered.

"No, don't worry Joey will do that for you next year." He answered.

"What do you mean, aren't you going to accompany me too next year?" I inquired. I wanted Darren to accompany me. He was my special person. Just like Shannon was Joey's and Ollie was Tadhg's.

I loved all my cousins, but I had a soft spot for Dar-Dar and I knew he had one for me. He was the only one who got to call me by a nickname. No one else got that privilege.

"Of course." Darren spoke looking nervous.

"Are you okay?" I grilled him.

"Yes. I just have something to ask you." He added.

"Okay, shoot." I grinned.

"I need you to never abandon them." He told me.

"Abandon who?" I was perplexed.

"This family. You're their protector now." He declared.

"Me? But I'm not strong like Joey or you." I pointed out. If uncle Teddy decided to be bad again and turn to the drink, there was very little I could do to defend Shannon and the boys. I wasn't brave like Joey nor resilient like Shannon.

"Not like that, you have to make sure they never get separated." He tried to make me understand.

"By who?" I looked at him weirdly.

"The Gardaí." He closed his eyes and sighed. "Promise me you'll do whatever is necessary to keep them together, so that what happened to me never happens to them."

"Alright." I said to try and calm him down. He looked agitated. "I will." No one had yet told me what had happened to him. When my cousins were little and they were taken into foster care for a while I was still living with my parents. But he looked so panicked that to calm him down I would have said anything.

"You promise?" He sounded like Shannon.

"Yes, I promise." I concluded.

I was sent back to the present when the bus got near the house, and I realised I had to get up and hop off the bus unless I wanted to get off on the wrong stop.

Since I was pretty near the house, I took out my phone and texted my Aoife that I got there.

I was about to call Joey to have him open the door – I wouldn't risk ringing the doorbell and possibly waking up Teddy – when I noticed two lads waiting on my front door.

Oh come on.

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intimacyissues · 4 years

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Annual Check In?

So I have been thinking about like making an annual birthday check in thing - because obviously i suck at writing about my birthday.

Which i’m gonna make sure my kid does every year, just to have a record because so much changes in a year.

So why not put together a hoge podge of questions from myspace surveys.

1 - What was the last item you received in the mail? Kelly just brought home a bunch of packages - pants and mask from costco, motrin pm from amazon, kristen ess flat hair barettes.

2 - Are you watching anything on TV at the moment, or are you listening to music while you fill this out? i’m listening to a youtube video of alison r-something(?) cooking short rib

3 - What was the last thing you cooked in the oven? cookies for dad (literally big puppy eye emoji bc how cute)

4 - Who was the last person you spoke to? What was it about? My mom, asking me to order sugar on Costco

5 - Would you leave the house in what you’re wearing at the moment? no, because i’m in my pajamas (yellow oversized shirt & navy knit shorts) and there’s at least a foot of snow outside

6 - What was the last thing that made you sad? thinking about how long it’s going to be until i see jonathan

7 - What was the last thing that made you happy? my dad coming to my room and asking me to make him cookies

8 - What is your current favorite photo of yourself and describe it? My hair is straight, dark at the top, and light at the bottom but you can’t really tell. I have eyeliner one and a pink lip. I have a closed mouth smile and am looking right at the camera, my arms are leaned over the chair you can see my tattoo of my family and my mango necklace.

9 - What did you get yourself for your birthday this year? A google nest - it was so much larger than i thought it would.

10 - What’s something that’s trending right now? Meme/fashion? Meme, Girlfirend by Gym Class Hero’s is trending rn - people are posting cute pictures of their SO - or a new transistion where the girl looks normal then it switchs to only being lite by a lighter but she’s all glam - and the freaking coach pillow-y purse is everywhere rn i feel.

11 - What are you dreading right now? the next 45 days and finding a new job

12 - What’s the last huge *revelation* you connected the dots on? Carly telling me how your self sabotage tendencies correlate directly with your love language - ie for me acts of service, not wanting to do things for myself. For carly it’s the picking at her cuticles because she is physical tough

12 - What are you doing tomorrow? Working - and getting a tattoo!! :)

13 - Is there anything annoying you right now? my hair being wet

14 - Are you looking forward to anything? Yes! I am hoping to get my vaccine soon!

15 - Where are you finishing this right now? I am in my bedroom in my childhood home in bed nearly completely vertical sunken into my mattress.

16 - Current favorite podcast? This is Actually Happening, Bachelor Party, and a new one Just Break Up

17 - What song are you currently playing when you get in the car? Right now I love pop smoke’s “what you know about love”

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dubsism · 4 years

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Today’s Movie: Take Me Out To The Ball Game

Year of Release: 1949

Stars: Frank Sinatra, Esther Williams, Gene Kelly

Director: Busby Berkeley

This movie is not on my list of essential films.

NOTE: This installment of Sports Analogies Hidden In Classic Movies is being done as part of something called the Esther Williams Blog-A-Thon being hosted by Love Letters To Old Hollywood. I’ve been fortunate enough to have been included in several of her events…frankly, she had me at Van Johnson. Speaking of which, there’s another event coming for him soon as well.

The Story:

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“Take Me Out To The Ball Game” takes place in 1908 and centers on a baseball team known as the Chicago Wolves (not to be confused with the current non-fictional minor-league hockey team of the same name). Ostensibly, this is supposed to be the actual Chicago White Sox because they play all American League opponents, but the producers don’t want to say that as there’s a not-so-subtle reference to gambling and the whole 1919 “Black Sox” scandal later in the film.

Right off the bat, most will notice this movie is a bit thin on plot. That’s why it works as a musical; a genre where the story-line really only serves to stitch the “song-and-dance” numbers together. To that end, two of the Wolves are also part-time Vaudevillians; Eddie O’Brien (played by Gene Kelly) and Dennis Ryan (played by Frank Sinatra). Obviously, those two are the engine for the “song-and-dance” part of this film (along with Betty Garrett and Jules Munshin).

The plot comes when the team finds out they are getting a new owner. In and of itself, that would upset the club house of any team, but matters intensify when it is discovered the new owner is a woman who intended to take an active interest in running the team. The team envisions the new owner to be some frumpy dowager, but the reality proves to be the exact opposite.

If I were an umpire, Esther Williams could kick dirt on me anytime.

K.C. Higgins (played by Esther Williams) is not only improbably gorgeous, she just so happens to know baseball. After the expected period of adjustment beginning in spring training and stretching into the season, the novelty of having a woman as the owner wears off and the “love interest” complications set in.

First, Dennis has eyes for K.C., but all the while he’s the target of the affections of a “Baseball Annie” Shirley Delwyn (played by Betty Garrett). Eddie eventually falls for K.C. as well, and this “J. Geils-esque ‘Love Stinks'” motif teams with the musical numbers carrying the movie until we get to the real “hook” in the plot.

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As far as the songs go, they are standard fare for an MGM musical; light and meant to drive the pace of the movie. Highlights include the require d title track performed by Kelly and Sinatra when they meet the other players in Florida. They also pair for an “All The Girls We’ve Loved Before“-type number called, “Yes, Indeedy.” There’s no way you’re getting an MGM musical starring Frank Sinatra without “Ol’ Blue Eyes” doing what he does best, crooning a love song titled “The Right Girl for Me.” Betty Garrett provides a major dose of comic relief with “It’s Fate Baby, It’s Fate;” sung while she seems to be seriously considering jumping Sinatra’s bones.

Interwoven through the messiness of the love interests is the fact that there’s a lot gangsters around this story, the head thug being Joe Lorgan (played by Edward Arnold). This brings us to the aforementioned allusion of the Wolves as the Chicago White Sox as Lorgan is a thinly-disguised Arnold Rothstein, the man who was indicted but never convicted of conspiring to “fix” the 1919 World Series. Vaudevillian Eddie gets tangled up with Lorgan when he performs in a show bank-rolled by Lorgan and his cohorts who are betting on the Wolves to lose the World Series. Eventually, this leads to a series of events which result in Eddie being kicked off the team.

The Hidden Sports Analogy:

Much like the Wolves had a incorrect assumption about what K.C. Williams was going to be, if you think the hidden sports analogy here is about baseball, you would be mistaken. Today’s episode is a tale of a real-life K.C. Williams three-quarters of a century after the setting of “Take Me Out To The Ball Game.” It’s also a story as interwoven as the love interests in that film…come along on a journey which will take us through Hollywood, the National Football League (NFL), and straight-up sexism.

ACT I – Bob & Carroll & Ted & Alice & Baltimore & Los Angeles

The story starts in 1972 when a businessman named Robert Irsay purchased the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams. At the same time, another business giant named Carroll Rosenbloom owned the Baltimore Colts. Rosenbloom amassed his fortune with the Blue Ridge Clothing Company; by 1959, Blue Ridge had grown to include almost a dozen shirt and overall companies and had over 7,000 employees. This led to Rosenbloom being known “America’s Overalls King.”

While Rosenbloom was born and raised in Baltimore, he fancied himself being part of the glamour of Hollywood…and he fit the part as well. An athletic, dashing figure, Rosenbloom cut a larger-than-life presence…he always reminded me of Lorne Greene, and I think Rosenbloom would have been right at home as the patriarch of a TV western family. To that end, he was was one of the largest share holders in Seven Arts Productions Limited, which backed the Broadway musical “Funny Girl,” and the films “Lolita,” “What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?” and “The Night of the Iguana.”

Rosenbloom also had the pedigree for a perfect NFL owner. He had an “Ivy League” education having studied at the University of Pennsylvania and playing halfback on the football team. This is also where his connections to the NFL began; his backfield coach for the Penn Quakers was future NFL Commissioner Bert Bell.

Carroll Rosenbloom and Robert Irsay

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Robert Irsay was bombastic and a heavy drinker who cared little for the glitz of Hollywood. So, in 1972, he and Rosenbloom swapped franchises. Irsay got the Colts and Baltimore, at the time a tough, blue-collar seaport city much more befitting Irsay’s persona…and Rosenbloom got “the team of the stars.”

Carroll Rosenbloom quickly became entrenched in the milieu of Hollywood, and the Rams enjoyed tremendous success during his ownership. The Rams won their division (NFC West) for a then-NFL record seven straight seasons between 1973 and 1979. They even earned the franchise’s first trip to the Super Bowl after the 1979 season. However, the relationship between Rosenbloom and the city of Los Angeles was less than rosy.

The home of the Rams, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum was 50 years old at the time Rosenbloom bought the team. The aging venue not only lacked modern amenities like luxury boxes, but it cavernous capacity of over 90,000 seats created problems with the NFL’s “black-out” policy of the era. In order to protect ticket sales, games in which all the tickets were not sold 72 hours prior to kick-off were not broadcast in the local market. The reality was it proved difficult to sell that many ticket when even the closest seats were close to 30 yards from the playing field.

The inability to sell-out and the resultant lack of the Rams on Los Angeles television proved to be a vicious cycle with one feeding the other. Without TV, the Rams struggled to keep drawing fan interest, which drove down ticket sales, et cetera…The continual sag in attendance drove Rosenbloom to cut a deal with the city of Anaheim in burgeoning suburban Orange County. The deal involved Rosenbloom agreeing to hold Rams’ home games in the city-owned Anaheim Stadium once it was expanded to approximately 65,000. “The Big A” was located right off a major freeway, was literally in the shadow of Disneyland, and was already home to baseball’s California Angels.

The future looked bright for both sides. Rosenbloom got a newly-remodeled venue for his football team and the more reasonable capacity likely meant the end of television black-outs. For Anaheim, it meant adding another major attraction to it’s growing list to compete with its gargantuan neighbor 30 miles up the Golden State Freeway.

But Rosenbloom would never see his Rams play football in Orange County. In April of 1979 while the deal was still being brought to fruition, Rosenbloom suffered a heart attack and drowned while swimming in the ocean off Golden Beach, Florida.

Act II – Georgia On My Mind

Rosenbloom’s memorial at his mansion in Bel-Air was attended by nearly 1,000 wishing to pay their respects. The group was an eclectic hodge-podge of NFL owners and dignitaries, the entire Los Angeles Rams organization, and a solid representative sample of Rosenbloom Hollywood connections. Comedian Jonathan Winters was the Master of Ceremonies. Howard Cosell, Ricardo Montalbán, and Ross Martin were among those who delivered eulogies. In a salute to Rosenbloom’s legendary “raucous” sense of humor, Don Rickles did what Don Rickles does. Warren Beatty made an appearance, having just played a Ram in the previous year’s “Heaven Can Wait.” Other attendees included Kirk Douglas, Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart, Rod Steiger, and Henry Mancini.

But it didn’t take long for the details of Rosenbloom’s will to emerge. His son Steve had been left with the “managerial and operational” duties for the Rams, and Steve his two siblings, Daniel and Suzanne, and half-siblings, Chip and Lucia each received equal shares in ownership of the franchise, totaling 30%. But it was Rosenbloom’s widow Georgia who inherited a controlling 70% stake in the team. Another clause in the will stipulated that the ultimate decision as to who ran the day-to-day operations of the team was entirely a matter of “as long as the successor trustee, in his discretion shall determine.”

In other words, the ultimate control of the Los Angeles Rams was now in the hands of Georgia Frontiere. Would she flex her new organizational muscle, or would she let Steve Rosenbloom run the Rams?

It took less than three months for Frontiere to assume control of the Los Angeles Rams. Frontiere was not the first female owner in the history of the NFL. When Charlie Bidwell, the owner of the then-Chicago Cardinals, died in 1947, the team was left to his widow Violet. In the 1950s, the controlling interest of the San Francisco 49ers was held by two brothers, Tony and Vic Morabito. When they died in 1957 and 1964 respectively, control of the team passed to their widows Jo and Jane Morabito. But none of them ever took over the day-to-day operations of their teams. In other words, Frontiere took the NFL into new territory.

But the main-stream sports media didn’t wait that long to create a demonstrably false narrative about her. Born Violet Frances Irwin to a beauty queen mother and businessman father in 1927 in St. Louis, Frontiere grew up to be a voluptuous blond who aspired to be an actress and singer. Her career started performing alongside her mother in various dinner theaters. She worked her way up through small theater productions, eventually landing on television. She became a local celebrity in Miami in the 1950s as the host of her own interview show, a gig which landed her several appearances on NBC’s “Today” show. It was through television that she met her future husband Carroll Rosenbloom.

In other words, Frontiere was “tailor-made” to have the narrative hung on her about being little more than being the rich, old guy’s younger “trophy wife.” Nothing says part of that couldn’t be true, but the hypocritical ass-loafs in the media never even bothered to discover the reality.

That became clear from the first time Georgia stepped onto the field at the Rams training camp as majority owner and team president. From that moment, it was clear she didn’t give a frog’s fat ass what people thought of her. She gave the tobacco-chewing head coach Ray Malavasi an “air-kiss” greeting and played catch with starting quarterback Pat Haden. The New York Times treated this spectacle with it’s usual pseudo-intellectual hypocrisy, quipping that Frontiere “took Haden’s spirals on the edge of her fingertips in a way indicating that she happened to be a woman who’d been catching passes all her life.” The Baltimore Sun referred to Frontiere as “a rather shapely blonde.” But it was the Orlando Sentinel who cut right to the chase by calling her “a bosomy blonde who jiggles.”

Forget about her gender for a minute. There was hardly a mention of the fact that here was an NFL owner despite being well into their 50s could still throw a football and hang with the players on some calisthenics. While it shouldn’t shock anybody the American media would do a trash-job on somebody; be it 1979 or today, it’s what they do.

To understand why, you need to remember two things about the American media, sports or otherwise. The first is that any semblance of journalistic integrity died with Walter Cronkite, and the second is that no major story in America in the last 50 years has been reported without being shackled to a political agenda of one sort or another.

In Frontiere’s case, this is critical to understanding why the media savaged her as they did. She ascended to the presidency of NFL franchise precisely at the time the deadline had passed for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Upon the failure of that amendment, the American media immediately began beating a drum decrying the “oppression and second-class status” of American women. The problem was that by her very existence, Frontiere was illustrating that much of the media narrative was at the very least conflated.

She made matters worse by not trumpeting herself as some sort of feminist icon; she just wanted to run a football team; the idea being that she wanted to stay busy during her period of grief and believed that is what her late husband would have wanted. That’s also why her successes were downplayed, if not straight-up ignored.

While the media portrayed her as a meddling dowager of questionable competence and limited intellect, Frontiere in fact proved early on to be a decisive and gutsy leader. In the first instance of Frontiere being treated unfairly by the media, there was a portrayal of her as some sort wallet-driver power monger. The headlines were splashed about with a tale of Frontiere storming into the Rams’ offices in July of 1979 and summarily firing Steve Rosenbloom from his inherited duties running the team.

What was overlooked in that narrative was that Rosenbloom had stripped power from his father’s “right-hand man,” Don Klosterman, who Carroll Rosenbloom and many others in the NFL believed to one of the best general managers in football. Rosenbloom did this without telling Klosterman, instead he sent a message to the rest of the league stating that all business dealings with the Rams should be addressed to Dick Steinberg, the Rams’ new director of player personnel.

Naturally, this created a bit of consternation within the Rams’ organization and confusion outside. Frontiere was surprised by the move and when she came to the to the Rams’ training camp to deal with the discord it caused, the media came in sporting dorsal fins. Doing what she normally did, she spent time with the players during which she kicked some footballs off a tee. This was characterized by The Baltimore Sun as “posing for publicity shots with her well-shaped legs.” This ignored the fact Frontiere tried extending the proverbial olive branch to all parties by offering to create a position of “chief advisor,” thus freeing him from many managerial duties to focus on executive-level decisions. But a month later, Rosenbloom fired Klosterman and Frontiere fired Rosenbloom that same day.

Don’t tell me it doesn’t take guts to fire your own step-son…especially knowing what the media is going to say about you..

A week later, Frontiere held a press conference which was attended by more than 20 reporters along with camera crews from ABC, CBS, and NBC. Unfortunately, Frontiere arrived late causing a reporter to state “she must have been out shopping.”

Act III – Meet Me In St. Louis

Another shaft-job Frontiere got from the media was her being blamed for the Rams move to Anaheim starting with the 1980 season. Everybody conveniently forgot that move was set in place by Carroll Rosenbloom. But the move was terribly unpopular with the Rams fan base, and it was easier to blame “the woman” than the beloved late owner.

It didn’t help matters that Anaheim Stadium proved to be a horrible venue for football. It was originally built to host baseball, and as we’ve learned time and time again, baseball and football do not fit well into the same stadium. In the case of the Big A,” the sight-lines were awful and many of the seats forced fans to sit at awkward angles to view the field. But the worst part (and I can tell you this first-hand as a California Angels fan) was the stadium being further inland meant the late summer and early fall heat caused by the Santa Ana winds coming off the desert made the “Big A” a 60,000-seat blast furnace.

The “Big A” got an “F” for football.

The awful stadium, the less-than-ideal conditions, and the 30-mile commute from Los Angeles meant the fan base didn’t follow the Rams to Anaheim. The Rams’ years in Orange County were nearly a decade-and-a-half of declining attendance, running gun battles with both the Angels and the city of Anaheim…and Frontiere taking sniper-fire from the media.

Part of the deal between Carroll Rosenbloom and the City of Anaheim was a partnership in land development around the stadium, which in the late 1970s was surrounded by orange groves and other underdeveloped properties. But the California Angels’ owner Gene “The Singing Cowboy” Autry wasn’t about to let that happen. While to this day Autry is the only person to have a star on the Hollywood in all five disciplines (Motion Pictures, Television, Radio, Recording, and Live Performance/Theater), he became a billionaire by investing in real estate. As such, he became one of the most powerful people in Southern California, which meant there was no way he was letting somebody else get rich building hotels next to “his” ballpark. In other words, Autry and the California Angels successfully sued the city of Anaheim and the Rams to kill those development deals.

Eventually, things got so bad in Orange County that Frontiere entered discussions in 1989 to move the Rams back to the Los Angeles Coliseum. That died a quick death because of the 1983 move of the Oakland Raiders into that venue, and they weren’t keen to have “roommates.” That refusal by Raiders’ owner Al Davis, plus his demands for a new taxpayer-funded stadium would lead to both the Rams and the Raiders leaving Southern California within five years.

Naturally, the media blamed Georgia Frontiere for all this.

Maybe that played a role in the next move she made…maybe it didn’t. But what surely did was she couldn’t take the Rams back to the Coliseum, and life in Orange County wasn’t the cornucopia it was supposed to be.

During the transition of moving the team to Anaheim, Frontiere gave herself an insurance policy by acquiring the 30% of the team she didn’t own which was held by Carroll Rosenbloom’s children. With 100% ownership, she was free to do whatever she wished with the Rams, and once it was clear she wanted out of Orange County, the suitors for a NFL franchise beat a path to Frontiere’s door. Cities like Oakland, Las Vegas, Nashville, and San Antonio all showed some level of interest, but in the in the end, it was Frontiere’s home town which became the new home of the Rams.

The city of St. Louis was building a brand new domed-stadium perfectly suited for football. The city sweetened the deal with incentives like $20 million in annual profits from guaranteed season-ticket sales, personal seat licenses, and a favorable lease. However, the NFL tried to stop the move, noting that St. Louis had been abandoned by another NFL franchise just a few years earlier when the Cardinals left for Arizona. As a result, Frontiere filed an anti-trust lawsuit against the NFL, and she won.

That meant 1995 saw the birth of the St. Louis Rams.

Act IV – The Sweet Smell of Success

Under the ownership of Carroll Rosenbloom, the Los Angeles Rams were perennial play-off contenders, but to be honest they were consistently winning a weak division. Throughout the 1970’s, the Atlanta Falcons, the New Orleans Saints, and the San Francisco 49ers were never much of a threat to the talent-laden Rams. While they made the play-offs every year from 1973 to 1979, they just couldn’t over the hump that was beating either the Minnesota Vikings or Dallas Cowboys. When Carroll Rosenbloom died before the 1979 season, many thought the Rams would drift off to mediocrity from losing the organizational direction he provided.

During the pre-season of 1979, Frontiere firmly established herself as the organization’s leader. She penned a doctrine in which she made it clear she was the boss…there were literally no “ifs, ands, or buts” about it. To clear up the mess left by Steve Rosenbloom, Frontiere believed that strong leadership would get the Rams over that hump, and in the short-term, she was right. After she posted her paper to the team, she told Sports Illustrated “Right now, we don’t have much leadership. Oh, they played well—they’re trying to earn their positions—and I’m not talking about the coaching. We have good coaching. I’m talking about the top. There are some things that have to be ironed out.”

Whatever she told the team must have worked, because the Rams finally reached Super Bowl XIV after the 1979 season. The Rams lost to the juggernaut Pittsburgh Steelers 31-19. There was no shame in that loss; nobody else could beat the Steelers of that era. But the Rams franchise took the next step, and Frontiere became a bit of celebrity when she appeared in an American Express commercial with the Rams players. and graced the cover Sports Illustrated.

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The 1980s saw a series of ups and downs for Frontiere and the Los Angeles Rams. On the field, The Rams of the 1980s remained a perennial play-off team, reached the playoffs eight times between 1980 and 1989, although they did not return to the Super Bowl as long as they remained in Southern California. Frontiere became less “hands-on” with the organization by passing much of the daily financial and football management responsibilities on to key executives.

Things started going downhill in 1986. Frontiere had remarried after Carroll Rosenbloom’s passing to composer Dominic Frontiere. That year Dominic was arrested for for lying to a government agent as part of a federal investigation that came from allegedly scalping 1,000 Super Bowl tickets. While he ended up being incarcerated for nearly a year, Georgia was not implicated in any wrongdoing, but this didn’t stop the media from trashing her once again.

By the 1990s, matters were getting bleak. Attendance had fallen to 45,000 fans per game; off from a peak of 62,000. Again, this most of the Rams’ home games were blacked out, and the team had been replaced by the new “team of the stars,” the newly-arrived Los Angeles Raiders.

Naturally, the Rams’ financial health was suffering as well. Frontiere’s attempts at having stadium built in Los Angeles garnered no support from local leaders. By the 1990s, the end of the “Cold War” resulted in massive-scale layoffs by defense contractors in Southern California. As a result, by 1994, the Los Angeles Rams claimed to have lost $6 million, and made only $7.6 million during the previous four seasons. Hence the 1995 move to St. Louis.

Naturally, the media fanned the flames in Southern California, making Frontiere out to be public enemy #1 for moving the team. But after having lost the Cardinals to Arizona, the city of St. Louis welcomed with open arms Frontiere and her football team. The city even hosted a rally downtown and thousands of fans chanted “Georgia, Georgia!” Frontiere responded to the cheering crowd with “St. Louis is my home, and I brought my team here to start a new dynasty.”

That’s exactly what she did. The Rams took a few years to recover from 15 years of being the “red-headed step-child” of the Southern California sports world, but once they did, the Rams emerged as one of the best teams in football in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Frontiere had an odd formula for building a winner in St. Louis, but there’s no doubting it worked.

It began with the 1997 hiring of head coach Dick Vermeil, who had been out of football for 15 years (and who has a Dubsy Award named for him). Vermeil’s first player personnel move was to trade up in the draft to pick offensive tackle Orlando Pace…who would become a consistent All-Pro and ended up in the Hall of Fame. The Rams then traded Jerome Bettis (another future Hall of Fame player) to the Pittsburgh Steelers for draft picks.

By 1999, there seemed to be cause for optimism for the Rams. They had acquired quarterback Trent Green and future Hall of Fame running back Marshall Faulk in separate trades, and it looked like offensive coordinator Mike Martz finally had the makings of a winner. That optimism disappeared when Green shredded the anterior cruciate ligament in his knee; an injury which would sideline him for the entire season. A tearful Vermeil (hence the category of his Dubsy award) made a solemn vow the Rams would “play good football” behind Green’s backup, a 28-year-old guy named Kurt Warner.

Not only had nobody ever heard of Warner, and his pedigree for professional football seemed rather suspect. No NFL team drafted him out of the University of Northern Iowa. His only professional experience came from stints with the Amsterdam Admirals of NFL Europe and the Iowa Barnstormers of that now-defunct sideshow known as the Arena Football League. In fact, Warner was making ends meet by bagging groceries and stocking shelves in a supermarket before joining the Rams. Most saw the Rams having yet another losing season, some even going so far as to say they would be the worst team in the league.

But the beauty of sports is that it rivals Hollywood for the ability to produce “fairy tale” stories. Something magic happened, and within weeks Warner and the Rams were the toast of the NFL. Sportscasters dubbed them “the Greatest Show on Turf” because of their high-speed, quick-strike offense which seemed as though it could score at will. The Rams finished the 1999 season with a 13-3 record, and they cruised through the play-offs on the way to a 23-16 victory over the Tennessee Titans in Super Bowl XXXIV.

Frontiere and Vermeil with the Lombardi Trophy

Frontiere, Vermeil, and Kurt Warner after winning the Super Bowl

Hoisting the Lombardi Trophy in Atlanta that night in January 2000 was the vindication of Georgia Frontiere. This was the pinnacle of her 28-year ownership; an era which began with sanctimonious hypocrite New York Daily News columnist Mike Lupica writing bilge like “The board of directors of women’s liberation ought to keep an eye on sweet Georgia… If she continues to run the Rams, pretty soon it is going to be back into the kitchen for every woman.”

How did that Lombardi Trophy feel when she shoved it up your ass, Mike?

ACT V – Epilogue

Georgia Frontiere was the pioneer for women taking an active role heading professional football franchise. In an era of women’s liberation, Frontiere never saw herself as a feminist icon, which is why the “liberal” media trashed her at every opportunity. In fact, one of the only times she ever spoke on the subject her words were taken by some as a “shot” at the feminist movement.

“There are some who feel there are two different kinds of people — human beings and women. As soon as a woman tries to be a human being, people think she’s trying to be a man.”

Taken out of context, you can interpret that statement several ways. What is certain is Frontiere didn’t want be a man; she wanted to run a football team the best way she could. That’s exactly what she did. She may not have been the greatest owner in the history of the game, but she wasn’t the worst either. Her team won a championship, and there’s a lot of owners who can’t say that.

You can say whatever you want about Georgia Frontiere. After her death in 2008, minority owner Stan Kroenke acquired a controlling interest in the St. Louis Rams and moved them back to Los Angeles in 2015. In 1995, Frontiere may have been the most hated woman in Los Angeles, but a quarter-century later her name is headed for the ash-heap of history. But what can’t be argued is her commitment to her team. Throughout her time as the owner of the Rams, it simply was not possible to attend to a Rams game and not see Georgia Frontiere somewhere in the stadium.

But that doesn’t mean she was perched in a luxury suite lording over her subjects fans separated by so much plate glass. Georgia Frontiere preferred to mingle with the players, the fans…the people who she knew made it all possible. On the night of the Rams Super Bowl victory, Frontiere succinctly stated the source of her desire to succeed, “From the time my late husband died, it has been a constant effort to do what he expected me to be able to do. He said ‘If anybody can, you can. You always stick to your ideas, and nobody pushes you around.’”

And nobody did.

The Moral of the Story:

If you’re going to be “the first” at something, you had better be tough.

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Sports Analogies Hidden In Classic Movies – Volume 87: “Take Me Out To The Ball Game” Today's Movie: Take Me Out To The Ball Game Year of Release: 1949 Stars: Frank Sinatra, Esther Williams, Gene Kelly…

#Carroll Rosenbloom #Classic Movies #Georgia Frontiere #Los Angeles Rams #Movies #NFL #Robert Irsay #Sports Analogies Hidden In Classic Movies

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