Illustration by Michael DiMilo ★★★★1/2 Musical History: Review of The Umbrellas of Cherbourg By Geoff Carter The big-budget Hollywood movie musical, probably the gold standard by which the genre is measured, was notoriously and unabashedly larger than life. An American in Paris, Singin’ in the Rain, Gigi, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, and of course The Wizard …
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Month:January 2025
Kickass and Blame
Attribution: Vector Portal, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports that the keeper is admittedly slow to catch on, but is finally recognizing the importance of “blame” in maintaining relevance in today’s Land of Oz. Under the precepts of the “blame” culture when something bad happens, such as an …
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Registered Offenders
Illustration by Michael DiMilo By Geoff Carter They are living amongst us. They might be your co-worker, your neighbor, your teammate in the volleyball league, or the housewife standing in line at the grocery store staring at the tabloid headlines. Hundreds—more than a thousand—of them were just released from their prisons and are once again …
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Kickass and Old Haircuts
Attribution: François GOGLINS, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, was not involved as the keeper and Phyllis both visited Cheryl at the Vista West hair salon for the usual professional treatment that made them both young and beautiful, more so perhaps in Phyllis’s case. But as it happens with …
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Kickass and Wisconsin Name
Attribution: USFWS Mountain-Prairie, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, cautions the keeper to remain calm in the face of rumors that the MEGA efforts to rename things includes an attempt to rename WISCONSIN to eliminate the last three letters “sin” in its name. A POTUS staffer told the Fox …
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Kickass and Sarah/Boo Visit
Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joined the keeper and Phyllis in hosting the keeper’s granddaughter Sarah and Boo, the small schnauzer that once ruled the keeper’s Mazo house where she played her own piano, did an impressive routine of tricks and expressed a barking opinion on all things great …
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Kickass and River’s Birthday
Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports from the birthday party for the keeper’s great grandson “River” which was held in the house the keeper built 25 years ago on a Mazomanie hilltop and where River now lives with his family. The following is the keeper’s birthday message to River: …
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The Pen in Hand Guide to the Movies: Review of “A Complete Unknown”
Illustration by Michael DiMilo ★★★★☆ No Direction Home: Film Review of A Complete Unknown By Geoff Carter Musical biopics never quite seem to hit the right note. While the trials and tribulations of musicians like Johnny Cash, Charlie Parker, and Freddie Mercury might be compelling stories in themselves, the film narratives based on their lives …
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Kickass and Deadlines
Attribution: Cbaile19, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, acknowledges the keeper noting that for most of his long column-writing life he has been burdened with coming up with subject matter for a message to readers. There were many close calls when failure seemed inevitable, and then something would occur to …
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Kickass and Last POTUS
Attribution: NASA/ESA and The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, joins the keeper as he tries to claim privilege by noting that given his age, odds are that the recently elected POTUS will be the last one the keeper experiences before his little pile of …
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Kickass and Eight-Year-Old Repeat
Photo by Bill Stokes By Bill Stokes Incredibly, Kickass gets the morning off by using a post from eight years ago exactly as it appeared then: Kickass, the doorstop dog, with his fathomless array of information sources recently hacked into an exchange between Russia and the Trump Camp.RUSS: We’re thinking of decriminalizing domestic abuse, do …
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Kickass and Billionaires
Attribution: StanCoFair, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Bill Stokes Kickass, the doorstop dog, reports on the keeper’s efforts to identify with the billionaires who recently bought the universe and reinstalled the formerly discredited Pluto at its center. In terms of relating to such things as Elon’s big space rocket exploding and falling into the …
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