Artwork by Michael DiMilo Volume III Over the course of the last two and one-half years, The Pen in Hand Blog has been lucky enough to have obtained the services of free-lance artist Michael DiMilo as a contributor. While his unique style has provided a provocative and edgy feel to the blog, DiMilo’s pieces–obviously–stand alone as works …
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Category:Michael DiMilo
Resignation Spring
Artwork by Michael DiMilo During the height of the COVID quarantine, over 9.6 million Americans lost their jobs (Pew Research Center). Restaurants, theaters, and other public venues were forced to close immediately, but every sector of the economy was eventually affected—and still is. After schools closed, many working parents had to stay home to care …
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The Couch Potato’s Guide to Living the High Life
Greg Hume, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons Review of The White Lotus on HBO In the Buddhist religion, a white lotus is a symbol of mental purity found in the state of bodhi, or awakening. It is also linked to a state of enlightenment and strength. In Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey, the lotus-eaters were a society of …
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Murder by Numbers
Artwork by Michael DiMilo We’ve watched statistics spill off television screens and scroll across newsfeeds each and every day—for months. Milestones have been acknowledged, marked, and noted. One hundred thousand Americans dead in May. One hundred and fifty thousand in July. Four hundred and five hundred thousand, then six hundred thousand. And yet we still …
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Highlights of The Pen in Hand Graphics: The Michael DiMilo Gallery
Volume II RBG by Michael DiMilo Over the past two and one-half years, The Pen in Hand Blog has been lucky enough to have obtained the services of free-lance artist Michael DiMilo as a contributor. While his unique style has provided a provocative and edgy feel to the blog, DiMilo’s pieces–obviously–stand alone as works in …
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The Couch Potato’s Guide to the Swamps of Jersey
Not the Way it Used to Be: Review of The Many Saints of Newark Stephen Hanafin, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons By Geoff Carter After watching The Many Saints of Newark, HBO’s celebrated prequel to its blockbuster series, The Sopranos, I can only imagine how much more disappointed the average fan is with this production than with …
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Sick and Tired
Artwork by Michael DiMilo By Geoff Carter People are tired. Exhausted. They’re tired of COVID-19. They’re tired of masks and distancing and washing hands and being careful. They’re tired of other people not wearing masks—and screaming about it. They’re tired of schools closing and having their kids home all the time. They’re tired of not …
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The Couch Potato’s Guide to Old Hollywood: The Legacy of Jack Lemmon
Wire photo, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Geoff Carter Jack Lemmon really wasn’t one of your cool, macho sort of leading man actors. Instead, he typically played the everyday, normal, and, well, goofy kind of guy. Even though he was sometimes impatient, sometimes short-tempered (sort of a human Daffy Duck), he was usually a …
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Highlights of The Pen in Hand Graphics: The Michael DiMilo Gallery
Volume I Artwork by Michael DiMilo Over the course of the last two and one-half years, The Pen in Hand Blog has been lucky enough to have obtained the services of free-lance artist Michael DiMilo as a contributor. While his unique style has provided a provocative and edgy feel to the blog, DiMilo’s pieces–obviously–stand alone …
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Look Up in Anger
Artwork by Michael DiMilo By Geoff Carter Last week, a New York City restaurant hostess was physically assaulted by guests when she informed them that masks were required to enter the restaurant. On a recent weekend flight from Philadelphia to Miami, a Frontier Airlines passenger had to be taped to his seat after assaulting one …
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The Couch Potato’s Guide to Old Hollywood: The Legacy of Kirk Douglas
Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Geoff Carter Known for his distinctive cleft chin, stony-edged stare, devil-may-care grin, gruff voice, and rough-edged demeanor, Kirk Douglas was often cast as a tough guy—sometimes bad, but mostly good. From his role as Jonathan, the ruthless movie producer in The Bad and the Beautiful to Jack Burns, …
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The Couch Potato’s Guide to Old and New Hollywood: The Legacy of Clint Eastwood
English: “Copyright © by Warner Bros. Inc.” Photographer unknown., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons By Geoff Carter Clint Eastwood has been a screen icon for the past sixty-six years. He’s acted in over seventy-two films, directed forty-five, and produced more than fifty, sometimes wearing all three hats during a single project. He has been responsible …
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