Brake time!

Yesterday while driving to the gym, I found that I had a very very long brake pedal. I managed eventually to stop the car, but needed to get it too the dealership. I was told that the AA would pick it up Although as the dealer is too far away they wouldn't do that. They would take me to another Ford dealer, which isn't as good. So basically I had to drive the car there with no brakes. Which isn't as big a deal as you might think. For a start I did have some brakes. Although not as much as I would like. I had topped up the brake fluid before leaving. Although I suspect that by the time I got there it had all leaked out again. Anyway, I did get there. Which is no bad thing. Hopefully the car will be fixed sooner rather than later. Although I am not sure quite how bad it is. I thought that I merely had a bleed nipple failure on the right rear. Although it could as well be a complete failure of the rim. Of course all this messing about driving with little or no brakes could have been avoided. The warning light which tells you that you have the hand brake on had been staying on all the time. I thought "Oh it's just a problem with the switch". It wasn't it was on to tell me that I was low on brake fluid. So if I'd looked then and realized what was happening...

Richard Whiteley R.I.P

The sad news of the passing of 'Countdown' presenter Richard Whiteley. Whiteley had been the presenter of the Ch4 quiz show since the station first went on the air. Indeed his was the first face to been seen in 1982 when Ch4 launched. Initially the show was set to run for a mere 5 weeks. In the end it has had an unbroken run of 23 years.
Although he is best known as the bumbling quiz host of everyone's tea time, Richard Whiteley was an accomplished journalist. For many years he presented the Yorkshire television news round up show 'Calendar'. It was while filming for this show in 1984 that he became the first reporter on the scene of the IRA attack at Brighton. He was in the lobby of the hotel when the bomb exploded and was able to get under a table. Although shaken he was unhurt and broadcast not only to Yorkshire, but to the whole nation. It was also during a more light hearted episode of 'Calendar' that the infamous incident with the Ferret occurred. He was talking with a breeder who had brought on a few of the animals. One of them bit into his finger and just wouldn't let it go.
But it is for 'Countdown' that Richard Whiteley will be forever remembered. The daily word and math game which with it's simple to understand rules became a part of everyday life.
As well as his Television appearances, Richard Whiteley had a run at the Edinburgh festival in 1998. He presented a live chat show, with the twist that he didn't know who the guests were going to be, and had to work it out. In some cases he probably never know who they were by the end of the show. There was a TV pilot version of this show, which featured the percussionist from M People, a guy named Shovel (as when he worked as a builder that was his job), and Jane McDonald.
As well as his career in broadcasting Whiteley was also the Mayor of Wetwang. Wetwang being a town in East Yorkshire. Although he himself lived in Wensleydale. When asked where Wensleydale was he would reply, "It's between Tuseledale and Thursledale." Like Johnny Cash in the USA Richard Whiteley was the most recognized face on British TV. Although he himself wasn't too aware of this. When being interviewe for the 'Independent' newspaper he apparently phoned the interviewer, Deborah Ross, to tell her what he was wearing. So she would recognize him when she arrived at the restaurant. Ross replied "I think I know what you look like Richard."

John Richard Whiteley 1943-2005

Paxman Calling

We all know that Jeremy Paxman has an over inflated view of himself. But I wonder if it is stipulated in his contract that his name should be bigger than everyone else's on the Radio Four website? It isn't uncommon for some people to demand such treatment. For the 1994 film 'Star Trek:Generations' Patrick Stewart and William Shatners agents both insisted that there man got the top billing. Strangely that one was solved by both Shatner and Stewart saying they personally didn't care.
But perhaps the worst case of sour grapes over a billing goes to Jerry Lee Lewis. Back in the late `50's Jerry Lee found himself second on the bill to Chuck Berry. This infuriated the pianist, and he demanded a rethink from the organizer. It didn't happen and Jerry Lee went on first. At the end of his set someone in the audience handed him a can of gasoline and he preceded to pour it over the piano then set light to it. He walked off the stage which was rapidly becoming an inferno and on passing Berry said. "Follow that ni**er".

Clean up with Silvio

If you have ever seen the film 'Fight Club' or just read the novel, you will know that you can make soap out of fat rendered from human beings. In the film the main protagonists break into a lipo suction clinic, and steal a few bags of fat. Then make it into soap. To quote Tyler Durden "It's perfect, they pay us to buy there own fat asses back". Chuck Palahniuk who wrote 'Fight Club' was not just making things up when he write that method of soap production. Back in the early part of the 20thC a notorious prison in NY state would make soap from inmates who were killed.
Now artist Gianni Motti has taken this one step further. He claims to have made a bar of soap with fat removed from Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. Berlusconi was reported to have had lipo suction last year and this is where the fat was gleaned. But now for £10 000 you can now wash yourself with a piece of perhaps the dirtiest politician around today.
Of course this is not new, although putting bits of leaders in museums usually happens after they are dead. In the USA you can see Washington's false teeth, part of one of Lincon's ribs. A Lock of JFK's hair (cut post mortam by Jackie and kept by her till her death), a lump of Ragen's flesh (this is not verified as it could have come from his body guard who was also injured during the assassination attempt) and finally George Bush Sr. keeps his old hip bone on his desk.

A tale of two races

Over this weekend at two of the classic motoracing venues there should have been two classic races. One would be contested over 24 hours at le Circuit de la Sarthe Le Mans. The other was over 73 laps of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Circuit.
At 16:00 French time yesterday 50 cars rolled round at the end of the parade lap to take the rolling start of the famous endurance race. Of those 50 cars 27 finished. These cars were split into four classes. Two for LMP cars, racing prototypes, and two for GT cars. Which are the racing versions of road cars. Overall the race was won for the seventh time by Tom Kristensen. Again driving an Audi. He is now the driver with the most wins at Le Mans out right. In the GTs there was a ding doing battle between the Corvettes and the Aston Martins. Which was sadly ended by failures with the Astons.
It was a great edition of Le Mans, one of the classics.

Then at 13:00 Indianapolis time on Sunday the twenty F1 cars set off for there parade lap. But as they came around the final bend all the cars running Michelin tyres. 14 of them peeled into the pits and retired. Leaving just six cars. Four of which are not competitive but which run on Bridgestone Tyres. Basically you had a two horse race between the two Ferrari's of Michael Schumacher and Rubins Barrachello. With Schumacher coming out the winner. Even he admitted it was a hollow victory. The reason for this. Well there are two reasons. The first was a mistake by Michelin. They supplied a tyre which could not cope with the track surface on the banked section of the Indianapolis track. The tyres failing at one of the fastest points of the laps could cause horrific accidents. Indeed the mistake was discoverd when Ralf Schumacher (brother of Michael) crashed his Toyota in free practice. Given that in last years race Ralf broke his back in a similar accident it wasn't pleasant for him.
But the real reason for the farce at Indianapolis was that the political power mongers in F1 couldn't agree on a solution. Basically the cartel of Michelin runners want's one thing while the other teams just want to get on with racing. Sadly today the race was ruined.

Elizabeth Montgomery

If you mention the name Salem Mass. to anyone the first thing that they will mention would be the Salem Witch trials. Where about 20 people were killed in cruel ways for alleged witchcraft. The most horrific was pressing where the 'witches' were slowly crushed by mill stones. This took a long time as the stones were on rope and each day the rope would be slackened. Not unlike Edgar Allen Poes 'The pit and the pendulum'.
More recently the town has had a love hate relationship with witches. Some people see the witch logo on the police cars as a bit of fun, and the various witch tours as being good for business. Others see the witch as un christian. And so on and so forth. In the mid 1990's the town voted on weather the police could keep there witch logo.

Today there is a new statue in the town. This celebrates not only another witch. But something that is a part of the culture for many Americans. The statue isn't of one of the women killed in the trials. It is of an actress. Elizabeth Montgomery. Best known for the part in the 1960's TV sit com 'Bewitched'. The show never really caught on in the UK, in America it has a cult status. I even once worked on a musical which had a song all about Elizabeth Montgomery. Of course there is the new remake about to be made starring Nicole Kidman. Which is part of the trouble for this new statue.

You see there have been protests. Firstly real witches have protested at the way they are portrayed. They don't ride broomsticks. The Christian lobby don't like the ungodly imagery of a witch. Then die hard fans of Elizabeth Montgomery were protesting at the travesty of casting Kidman in the film. Believe you me 'Bewitched' fans take the show very seriously. Never make the mistake of saying "Is that the show JR was in?" Larry Hagman was in 'I dream of Genie' which is basically the same thing as 'Bewitched' just on a different channel.

There are to be more of these statues. A character from 'The Honeymooners' was placed in Brooklyn, and soon The Fonz will be in Milwaukee. Unrelated is the statue of Del Trotter that is planned for Peckham. Personally I think that they should erect a statue to Sir Humphrey Appleby in Whitehall.

Jacko is innocent

Michael Jackson has been fount not guilty on all counts. The singer was told to make his way to the court house at about 1pm PT, and just after 2pm PT (10pm BST) we heard the verdict. The BBC broadcasting live from out side the court house were there to hear as a judge flicked a switch and loudspeakers broadcast the verdicts to the outside world. There were ten counts, two of which were divided into two parts. Each had to be read out one at a time. By the time we got to number seven the foreman of the jury sounded as though she was bored with reading the same thing out over and over again. The BBC picked out one woman in the crowed with ten doves in a create. As each not guilty was read out she released a dove into the air.
I guess that there will be some mixed reaction to the whole event. But unlike the OJ Simpson case this one seemed a little more blurry. I don't that that there can be any thought as to the jury having been influenced by the defence. Or that Michael is now anything more than a rather odd chap, who perhaps needs some serious psychiatric attention.
The future for Jackson still looks bleak. He is in debt and may well be forced to sell Neverland. Debbie Rowe is suing for custody of there two children. The imaginatively named Prince Michael 1 and Prince Michael 2. It's not as bad as Boxer turned Preacher turned Griller George Forman who has seven children called George.
It dose look likely that before the end of the year Michael will be back on stage. The family have a venue in Las Vegas, and he and his brothers might reform once more.
Other people involved in the case might not be so lucky. Martin Bashier might yet face charges, as might the mother of the accuser.
And then there are the fans who have been camping outside the court house for all these weeks. The trial is over, and they get to go back to there own lives. I wouldn't be surprised if we don't hear in a few weeks that some of them are undergoing counselling. Almost certainly the members of the jury will be appearing in newspapers and on TV show's. As for who'll get the first long form interview with Jackson himself. It probably won't be Jay Leno. Oprah would be the front runner, although Sir David Frost is a name that has been mentioned. An outside bet would be Louie Therioux. Although who knows.

Here is the 'Wednesday Word' article from Feb 4th 2003 Link

The Vinyl Killer

A discussion about the `80's on the Resonance FM forum brought back memories of the vinyl killer. Basically a small model of a VW Camper that went round and round your record playing the songs for you. All the time buggering up the grooves. I wasn't sure if this thing actually had existed. Or if they had been an April fool joke on 'Saturday Super Store' using a scaletrix VW. As it happens you can still get the Vinyl Killer. It come in the original plastic:

And new silver!


Of course this also brought back fond memories of 'Saturday Super Store'. I remember watching the crows who were annoying, and the first instance of pop stars being interviewed by fans on the phone. This sometimes back fired, as when the National Front phoned in to shout abuse at Five Star, or when no less that 15 kids phoned up to ask weather Boy George was actually a girl. Then of course a bloke called Simon Roberts called Matt Bianco a bunch of wankers.
The other thing about Saturday Super Store which made it superior to it's replacement 'Going Live' was that it didn't talk down to people. It was much more a programme that as kids you could feel a part of. Where as 'Tizwas' on ITV was for morons 'Super Store' was the thinking kids Saturday morning show.
It was also responsible for not one but two celebrity couples. First Maggie Phillbin and Keith Chegwin. Then in 1983 Mike Smith and Sarah Green met for the first time when Smith filled in for Mike Reade.

The Army Game

The U.S. Military has open up the files of some of it's more well known enlisted me. Including the actors Steve McQueen and Clark Gable along with 'The King' Elvis Presley. Of the three Elvis career in the Army seems to have been the most eventful and the most written about. Perhaps because he was at the height of his fame when he was drafted.
At first the Army thought of Elvis as being a bit of a liability, although when they saw the way he applied himself to his duty's they realized he could be good publicity for the hundreds of young men whom were drifted, telling them to follow his example and not rebel.

McQueen on the other hand was a bit of a rebel while in the Marines. At one point he was confined for 30 days and fined $90 (probably a months wages) for going AWOL. It isn't recorded weather or not he had a mit and a ball while in confinement that time. It also seems that during his Marine service he developed his love of Cars and Motorbikes. He worked in the engine pool (just like Bilko's men). Fixing Tanks, Jeeps and Bikes. Plus it seems racing them when the officers were not looking. McQueen was awarded a commendation when he saved five Marines from a training accident, he also used his educational benefits to attend the Actors' Studio in New York, the same school where Marlon Brando, Peter Falk and Kevin Spacy trained.

Gable was enlisted to be a flyer, and he took along a Hollywood camera man to Andrew McIntyre to document his Army life. Others who's records have been opened include the Boxer Joe Lewis, Jack Kerouac and JFK. The last is quite significant, as with the current incumbent Kennedy's opponent in the 1960 election, Richard Milhous Nixon, tried to rubbish JFK's war record, while the Kennedy camp attempted to do the same to him.
Maybe soon we'll follow suit and release Prince Edward's Marine file. Should be one interesting post it note!

Anne Bancroft

The actress best known for her role opposite Dustin Hoffman in 'Mrs Robinson' has passed away. Although she will be best remembered for that film, she also won an Oscar for her role in 'The Miracle Worker'.
She was married to Mel Brooks.

What the #$*! Do We (K)now?

Or 'What the Bleep do we Know' to give it it's more common title.
I got to see this film yesterday, and it's defiantly something worth seeing. It's mix of documentary and story didn't always work as well as it might. Plus some of the views with in the film are a little hack kneed. Most notably Ramtha a 1000 year old spirit leader who communicated through a American woman who seems to share a surgeon with Jackie Stallone.
But there are some genuine scientists in there. Explaining different theories of Quantum Mechanics, sub atomic theory and multiple universes.
Most of the Scientists will be familiar to anyone who watches the BBC's Horizon on a regular basis. Including Dr Fred Alen Wolf Ph.D. This is the guy who last year expressed his theory universes in super computers. Not as wacky as it might sound. The other great thing about Fred Alen Wolf is that he looks like a scientist should look.
The film it's self is a mix of fact, which is presented by snippets from interviews with over a dozen scientists, who tie in with a fictional story. The story part of the film is about a deaf photographer Amanda (Played by Marlee Matlin the youngest ever winner of the best actress oscar for her role in 'Children of a Lesser god.') who isn't really getting over her divorce. She has to face up to her demons at discovers the theories of controlling her life through Quantum Theories. The story is quite good and it helps explain in some ways how the theories which are being talked about can be used in everyday life. Not all the facts presented in the film should be taken as gospel. One gem is the oft repeated 'fact' that the native Caribbean islanders couldn't see Columbus' ships because they couldn't conceive them. This isn't true. They could see the ships they didn't believe that they were there until the shaman told them to.
What the bleep, is a good film, it is a good beginning into quantum theories, and different thoughts on physics and philosophy. But it is just a beginning.

To burn or not to burn?

Archbishop Stanislaw Dziwisz, has today announced that he has for the first time ever disobeyed an order from Pope John Paul II. In his last testament the Polish Pontiff asked the Archbishop to burn his manuscripts. But the man who was said to have an almost father and son relationship with the late Pope has not carried out this order. He has decided that the manuscripts are too valuable to humanity to merely be burned. Although some people seem to think that the reason for Dziwisz keeping the papers is more sinister. That he would, like Stearpike, Stalin or Nixon fake a document for his own gain. I guess that not even other Archbishops can trust an Archbishop.

This story brings to my mind another similar act. Max Brod who was Franz Kafkas editor, was requested by Kafka to burn all his writings after his death. Like Dziwisz Brod thought the writings to important. He didn't burn them. Since then the original manuscripts that were written by Kafka have been referred to for new, more true versions of Kafkas work. Brod was not unknown to add things to the writings. The first of the novels which was supposed to have been burnt was of course 'The Castle' although the version that Brod published and the version that is written in Kafkas own hand is markedly different. Perhaps the truest version of 'The Castle' is the German Literary Edition. Which presents each page twice. On the left you have a image of the page from Kafkas note book and on the right the page printed. The English translation of this edition is with out the reproduction of Kafkas notes.
There were many more notebooks and manuscripts which were left by Kafka with Brod. But alas most of them were burned. Although this was in accordance with Kafkas wishes, the agent who carried out the burning was not one which he would have chosen. Max Brod was like Kafka a Jew living in Berlin. Eventually his apartment was raided by the NAZI's and most of his books and possessions were burned, while he was sent to the Ghetto. Some of the Kafka manuscripts were kept out side of Germany and survived. The majority did not.

It may be many years before the public will get to know what is contained in the documents that Dziwisz is protecting. Perhaps in his last years Karol Wojtyla again took up his pen to write for the stage?

Good ol` Charlie Brown a mystic?

Not many people know this, but Charlie Brown once predicted the future. The thing is he did it with out fuss and in his normal quiet way. He also never got to know that he had accurately predicted the future and have smug look on his face. Sadly for Chuck his successful stab at prediction was lost for many years.
Charles M Schulz 'Peanuts' comic strip took a couple of years to fully evolve. Because of this many of the strips from the early years were not republished. They didn't really fit in with the later strips. 'Peanuts' books usually have strips from the Golden Age. Which is about 1955 on. Pre 1955 strips rarely get a reprint. Although recently Fantagraphics Books started to publish the complete Peanuts, Link. It is in the second volume of this that Chuck has a go at drawing a comic strip of his own. It's on page 250. We don't see Chucks strip, he shows it to Schroeder. But it can't be that good as he has to explain it. "It's really sort of an adventure series, see" he explains "It's all about this fellow who rides clear across the United States on a power mower" he continues. Schroeder is unimpressed leaving Brown to bemoan "I thought the public was interested in Science Fiction?"

The thing is that in 1994 Alvin Straight travelled 300 miles across the United States riding a 1966 John Deere mower to visit his sick brother. Perhaps it isn't so much Science Fiction any more (Ride on mowers were not common till the `60's) but David Lynch made a film of the adventure, The Straight Story in 1999.
In a later strip Woodstock gets a Zamboni, although he doesn't attempt what Jimmy the Iceman Macnill did. In 2001, Jimmy drove his Zamboni machine from the East Coast of Canada (St. John’s) across to the West Coast (Victoria, B.C.). At about nine miles per hour, the journey took approximately four months.

What is left?

What mysteries remain?

This is an interesting article, although it misses some out. One of them begin what happened to the original World Cup. When Brazil won for the third time in 1970 they were given the cup for keeps. Only it was stolen, and never seen again. The theory is that it was melted down into gold coins. Although given the price paid for an out of date FA cup recently, the black market would be rife for the World Cup intact.

Of course the biggest mystery is what happened to the 7th earl of Lucan? He vanished after his children's nanny was found beaten to death in 1974. Although no one really knows if he committed the crime (mistaking her for his wife) or weather he just thought he would be suspected. The most probably theory is that Lucan paid someone to kill his wife. Only that someone got the wrong woman. He then went to hide out.
There are unconfirmed reports that he went to stay with a friend in Kent before being flown out of the country. Is he living in the jungle?
Probably not.
He probably jumped in the Themes, then his body was sweped out to sea.
Although this guy thinks differently.
Lucan Website

Then there is Ritchie Edwoods of the Manic Street Preachers who vanished. Although again it is more probable that he jumped into a river. This time the seven. He has been spotted more than a few times. In fact a major British tabloid accosted a man in Goa who many thought was Ritche. It wasn't, it was actually a guy from Sunderland called Kevin who I used to go to University with. Kevin later turned up in a crowed scene alongside Leonardo Di Caprio in the film 'The Beach'. Although according to his entry on Friends Reunited he now works in the British Legion bar it Gateshead.

Then of course there is the racehorse Shergar, although in some ways that one has been solved. When the IRA admitted taking the horse, and shooting it. Although when people dug where the remains were supposed to have been buried, there was nothing there at all. Still rumours persist that with in the IRA someone did a switch and Shergar ended up being sold to an Arab breeder.

Deep Throat Reveled.

Yahoo news link

Well it wasn't George HW Bush, Gerald Ford, Henry Kissinger, Tyler Durden or, as one person wrote a book about, Richard Nixons other personality. Deep Throat was the then second in command of the FBI W. Mark Felt.
The thing is he was the obvious candidate, it's just that people didn't want it to be the American equivalent of Sir Humphrey. They wanted it to be Kissinger, Bush or Ford. One of the people who gained politically out the resignation (Bush gained the most, sadly for us now) not someone doing the right thing out of a sense of justice.
But I think that it shows that somewhere there are people who do the right thing.