All this talk about the deaths of Ingmar Bergman and Michelangelo Antonioni left me feeling a little bit like, oh, a Buckeye. It’s not that I don’t respect the memories of people whose lives were changed by the work of great directors; when Roger Ebert writes about seeing “Breathless” for the first time, I feel like I’m right there with him, sharing his popcorn.
It’s just that my formative movie experience, the one that blew my hair back and left me stunned in my seat and really — I am totally serious — changed the way I looked at movies forever was somewhat different:
I will always, always, always love you, Billy Jack.
Jeff said on August 9, 2007 at 6:49 am
For all of us who became “The Wire” fans thanks to Nancy, a story to make your flippin’ day:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/09/us/09baltimore.html?hp=&pagewanted=all
p.s. — why would Google ads put “find John Wayne movies” with a post on Billy Jack? That’s one weird algorithm, or some coder has a sneaky sense of humor.
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Dorothy said on August 9, 2007 at 8:30 am
Oh Jeff thank you so much for that link. What a great story!! I bought seasons 1 and 2 of The Wire for my son, and he’s fallen in love with it. He’s so glad I kept insisting he’d like it.
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Jeff said on August 9, 2007 at 8:57 am
Hey, Dorothy, has Kenyon done the smart thing yet? You’re gonna love the coolest small college bookstore in the world (don’t tell my wife’s bosses at Denison i said that). Amish bread for sale in the median strip, Ganesh statues for sale on handcarts, and every Penguin Classics or Norton Critical Edition in print shelved within….plus good coffee, and a tree my Little Guy just got too old/big to climb inside “growing” out of the kid’s section.
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Dorothy said on August 9, 2007 at 9:49 am
Jeff when we stopped in there on July 24 (scouting mission the night before my interview) the bookstore had signs up about “excuse our mess while we remodel.” And I think I found some references on line to them re-doing the bookstore. So maybe the quant things you are referring to are no longer going to be around! I saw no Amish bread for sale – and they had lots of clothing. (What I read on line was people complaining about what they were doing to the bookstore.)
Do you have any idea what the school mascot is? My goofy husband keeps saying “Go Kenyon Kangaroos!”
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Jeff said on August 9, 2007 at 9:51 am
Um, due to the naming of the college for Lord Kenyon and the town for Lord Gambier, they are “The Lords.”
Really.
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LA mary said on August 9, 2007 at 10:19 am
Jeff, thanks for the link. Great story. The photos are terrific too.
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Dorothy said on August 9, 2007 at 10:26 am
Ahh yes, I seem to remember seeing “Lords” and “Ladies” (since they became co-ed in the 70’s) somewhere.
We are kidding around about the Kangaroos!! But it has a certain ring to it, don’t you think!?
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Connie said on August 9, 2007 at 11:13 am
Oh Nancy, Billy Jack, ick. The horrible song One Tin Soldier haunts my high school memories. And I can still picture Jayne M. standing on stage singing it for her Junior Miss talent.
Perhaps it’s just my bad day. A few minutes ago my assistant went to the white board by the employee entrance and wrote “CoJo” is in the house. That is code for Connie is having crabby fits, watch out. My assistant’s code name for similar purposes is Gertrude.
And Dorothy congrats on the new job. What will you be doing?
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Dorothy said on August 9, 2007 at 11:39 am
I’ll be Executive Assistant to the V. P. of College Relations.
That’s a mouthful, isn’t it?
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Kirk said on August 9, 2007 at 11:54 am
Dorothy, does college relations have anything to do with public relations? A friend and former colleague of mine recently started at Kenyon as news editor in whatever they call the P.R. wing up there.
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deb said on August 9, 2007 at 12:01 pm
well, nance, i’m with you. i saw “billy jack” at the drive-in, several times in high school, and i always cried. those memories almost drove me to work as a flack for tom laughlin when he was a presidential candidate back in the early 90s. i was just thinking about this last night, how i decided to bail on the interview at o’hare because his people had been way too blase about little details like how/when/how much i would be paid. and i actually felt guilty for doubting him. how could i not trust billy jack?! his motives, his heart, were so pure!
still, i kept the address book with tom laughlin’s home address and phone number for a long, long time.
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Dorothy said on August 9, 2007 at 12:46 pm
I am not sure about that, Kirk. They might be “cousin departments” of course. Let me know the name of your friend and I’ll be sure to look out for him/her. Ask Nancy for my email address if you don’t want to say the friend’s name here out loud.
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nancy said on August 9, 2007 at 12:52 pm
Oh, this is so good it almost deserves its own post. From the Tom Laughlin entry in Wikipedia:
He is currently seeking funding for a fifth Billy Jack film in two parts. When originally announced in 2004, it was entitled “Billy Jack’s Crusade to End the War in Iraq and Restore America to Its Moral Purpose;” this was shortened to “Billy Jack’s Moral Revolution” in 2006. The film’s new title is “Billy Jack for President.” Laughlin promises it will be a “new genre of film”: a great deal of social commentary on politics, religion, psychology, etc. will be discussed, and a debate will take place between Billy Jack and President Bush via computer manipulation of archived speeches.
I think I’d just about give my 401K to be able to sit in on the pitch meetings for this one.
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MichaelG said on August 9, 2007 at 1:18 pm
I remember college relations. I had lots of fun.
Then there’s UC Santa Cruz. They’re the Banana Slugs.
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Julie Robinson said on August 9, 2007 at 2:24 pm
The local college here in the Fort has the Mastodons. Which sounds dumb but actually has a local connection; they’ve been found in the peat moss fields around here. But the new pro basketball team is the “Mad Ants”. I ask you. And wouldn’t you know, that is what FW voted for. Sometimes I just despair.
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brian stouder said on August 9, 2007 at 3:22 pm
‘Mad Ants’ is OK…it’s memorable, and it does hook into the Mad Anthony chord of memory; plus the logo is pretty cool!
Plus, think of the promotional possibilities –
Picnic with the Ants day
Ants and uncles night
The Mad Ants Queen contest
Ants in your pants dance contest
Ant Farm night
and so on!
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Julie Robinson said on August 9, 2007 at 6:37 pm
Brian, I’ve gotta hand it to you, you are definitely a glass half-full person. Squash the Ants. Exterminate the Ants.
Ants are tiny and unsanitary. Not how I want to think of my team.
Although I like the Queen contest. That could be some fun. What would Timmy Goeglein think?
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Jeff said on August 9, 2007 at 6:44 pm
Kenyon Public Affairs is under College Relations; that’s their development/alumni/PR wing. I’d guess the name will change someday soon in your tenure, Dorothy; they’ve gotta be tired of the jokes by now! Kirk, PA is in a house across the street from the bookstore (and needs better heat, i’m told by a former employee), but i’ll bet Dorothy is in da big house wid da grownups — College Relations has a snazzy lobby to keep the donors calm and generous.
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brian stouder said on August 9, 2007 at 9:22 pm
What would Timmy Goeglein think?
Who are the mad ants? Why are they underfoot? What separates them from other team mascots? Is a mad ant a slave to his desires, or to his queen, or to his work? What is the sole? Should a sole smash a mad ant into a greasy spot? What is the function of mad ant reason and the ability to think? Do mad ants have a higher nature that can rise above greed and lust for their queen? Does might make right? (note: what? who ever said ‘might makes right’? The insight was that ‘Right makes might’…but I digress) Do mad ants have a higher purpose than queen-gratification and endless work? Should mad ants ever return stomps with stomps?
etc etc etc
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basset said on August 9, 2007 at 9:25 pm
Mad Ants ain’t too bad, at least there’s some kind of local reference rather than the generic Wolves or Eagles or whatever.
have to wonder, though, how the Harlem entry in the new ABA, the league with about sixty teams, got to be called the “Strong Dogs.” must be some cultural reference I’m blind to. or something.
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Julie Robinson said on August 10, 2007 at 9:13 am
Brian, I must bow to your creativity. I actually meant the type of Queen contest that might be held at Up the Street. Wouldn’t that be fun to observe along with Timmy? But, alas, too much remains on my plate this week, and look, I see that it is Friday already.
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brian stouder said on August 10, 2007 at 11:58 am
Fridaaaaayy BABY!
And what a week it was
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