GARY LEWIS & THIS DIAMOND RING

I learned just tonight that Jerry Lewis's son, Gary Lewis, is the lead singer and drummer in this great tune, "This Diamond Ring."  The song was made famous by Gary Lewis and The Playboys.

Here is a song where Jerry Lewis, the dad, introduces his son.  Not sure that his son enjoyed the tone. 

MOVIES
Excalibur, 1981.
RoboCop, 1987.
Matewan, 1987.
Unbearable Lightness of Being, 1988. 
Glory, 1989.
Dances with Wolves, 1990.
Total Recall, 1990.
The Last of the Mohicans, 1992. 
Malcolm X, 1992.
In the Name of the Father, 1993.
The Secret of Roan Inish, 1994.
Pharoah's Army, 1995. 
The Bourne Identity, 2002.
The Bourne Supremacy, 2004.
No Country for Old Men, 2007.
The Bourne Legacy, 2012.

WARREN ZEVON

Warren Zevon had plenty of influence.  "Zevon's work has often been praised by well-known musicians, including Jackson Browne, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, and Neil Young. His best-known compositions include "Werewolves of London", "Lawyers, Guns and Money", "Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner" and "Johnny Strikes Up the Band", all of which are featured on his third album, Excitable Boy (1978). Other well-known songs written by Zevon have been recorded by other artists, including "Poor Poor Pitiful Me" (a huge hit for Linda Ronstadt), "Accidentally Like a Martyr", "Mohammed's Radio", "Carmelita", and "Hasten Down the Wind."

I loved his song "Werewolves of London" that plays in the movie, American Werewolf in London.  The song was released in 1978 as part of the "Excitable Boy" album.  The movie came out in 1981.  I thought it was much later, say, around 1984.

And then there is Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner."

Another song that got a lot of playing time back in the late 1970s, the favorite time of my life, was Zevon's song "Excitable Boy."

MOVIES WORTH SHOWING TO STUDENTS

1.  The Lego Movie with Will Ferrell, 2014. 

2.  

Eva Marie Saint.  One of my favorite actresses when growing up was Eva Marie Saint.  I loved her look.  I loved her voice.  I loved the empathy in her voice.  I loved her in On the Water Front, 1954, and I loved her in the How the West Was Won, 1977.

GRACE KELLY
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Grace Kelly, 1929-1982, certainly was beautiful. I mean she was unattainable, so it is fitting that she was made a princess of Monaco to affirm the fact.

Of course, my all-time favorite movie of hers is Dial M for Murder, 1954, directed by Alfred Hitchcock. It was a high school teacher who showed his class the movie.  It was stunning.  Hitchcock was very popular in the 60s and 70s.  Another teacher showed 39 Steps, 1935.

BOBBY VAN
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I totally mistook the dancer in the clip above for Ray Bolger, who played the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz, 1939.  But Ray Bolger, having played the Scarecrow in 1939, would have been much older in 1953, a full 14 years after The Wizard of Oz.  Anyway, the dancer's name is Bobby Van, 1928-1980, best known for his musical and dancing careers on Broadway.   . . .

Bobby Van from Small Town Girl, 1953.

Bobby Van hosted Make Me Laugh, a comedy half hour that appeared late at night. Robert Q. Lewis was the original host prior to Bobby Van.  The show was funny.  Interesting to see and hear the references to Nixon in those days and the politically incorrect jokes.

LOW-KEY, INTRODUCTORY MUSIC FOR VIDEO PROJECTS

. . . from Digital Juice
1.  Adminisphere-full.
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