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papermoonloveslucy · 4 years

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TOO MANY GIRLS

October 8, 1940

Too Many Girls was an RKO film musical based on the stage musical of the same title. It was produced and directed by George Abbott, who had also directed the Broadway production. The music was composed by Richard Rodgers, the lyrics by Lorenz Hart, and the book was by George Marion, Jr. although the screenplay was adapted by John Twist.

Too Many Girls opened on Broadway on October 18, 1939, at the Imperial Theatre, running to April 21, 1940, and transferred to the Broadway Theatre on April 22, 1940, closing on May 18, 1940. The cast featured Desi Arnaz, Diosa Costello, Marcy Westcott, Eddie Bracken, Richard Kollmar, Van Johnson, and Hal Le Roy. Musical Staging was by Robert Alton, scenery by Jo Mielziner, and costumes by Raoul Pène Du Bois.

The musical takes place in Skowhegan, Maine and Pottawatomie College in Stop Gap, New Mexico.

Synopsis ~ Connie Casey, an energetic celebrity heiress, wants to go to Pottawatomie College in Stop Gap, New Mexico, her father's alma mater, to be near her latest beau, British playwright Beverly Waverly. To protect her, and without her knowledge, her tycoon father sends four Ivy League football players as her bodyguards, Clint Kelly, Jojo Jordan, Manuelito and Al Terwilliger, who sign a contract with an ‘anti-romance’ clause. They also join the college's terrible football team, which immediately becomes one of the best in the country. Clint falls in love with Connie, but when she discovers he is her bodyguard, she decides to go back East. The bodyguards follow her, leaving the team in the lurch. The people of Stop Gap go after them, and they are brought back just in time for the big game. Connie declares her love for Clint, and he leads the team to victory.

PRINCIPAL CAST

Lucille Ball (Consuela ‘Connie’ Casey) was born on August 6, 1911 in Jamestown, New York. She began her screen career in 1933 and was known in Hollywood as ‘Queen of the B’s’ due to her many appearances in ‘B’ movies. “My Favorite Husband” eventually led to the creation of “I Love Lucy,” a television situation comedy in which she co-starred with her real-life husband, Latin bandleader Desi Arnaz. The program was phenomenally successful, allowing the couple to purchase what was once RKO Studios, re-naming it Desilu. When the show ended in 1960 (in an hour-long format known as “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour”) so did Lucy and Desi’s marriage. In 1962, hoping to keep Desilu financially solvent, Lucy returned to the sitcom format with “The Lucy Show,” which lasted six seasons. She followed that with a similar sitcom “Here’s Lucy” co-starring with her real-life children, Lucie and Desi Jr., as well as Gale Gordon, who had joined the cast of “The Lucy Show” during season two. Before her death in 1989, Lucy made one more attempt at a sitcom with “Life With Lucy,” also with Gordon.

Desi Arnaz (Manuelito Lynch) was born in Santiago, Cuba on March 2, 1917. After leaving Cuba, he formed his own Latin band, and literally launched the conga craze in America. It was on the set of Too Many Girls (1940) that he and Lucille Ball met. They soon married and approximately 10 years later formed Desilu Productions and began the “I Love Lucy” shows in 1951. Desi and Lucille had two children, Lucie Arnaz and Desi Arnaz Jr. At the end of “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour” in 1960, the two divorced. He was diagnosed with lung cancer and died on December 2, 1986 at age 69.

Manuelito: “I'm not conceited. I am the greatest player in fifty years, but I'm not conceited.”

Richard Carlson (Clint Kelly) makes his first and last appearance with Lucy and Desi, although his wife, Mona, was featured as one of Don Loper’s models on “The Fashion Show” (ILL S4;E20) in 1955.

Ann Miller (Pepe) had appeared with Lucille Ball in three films: Stage Door (1937), Having Wonderful Time (1938), and Room Service (1938). In 1954, she appeared with the Arnazes on “MGM’s 30th Anniversary Tribute”.

Eddie Bracken (Jojo Jordan) makes his only screen appearance with Lucy and Desi, although he was part of the Broadway cast of Too Many Girls and was friends with the Arnazes off screen as seen in the above photo with Ann Miller and Lucy.

JOJO: “Well, I'm not exactly wonderful, but I'm awfully attractive in a dynamic sort of way.”

Frances Langford (Eileen Eilers) makes her only appearance with Lucy and Desi. She worked extensively with Bob Hope on his USO tours.

Hal LeRoy (Al Terwilliger) makes his only screen appearance with Lucy and Desi, although he was part of the Broadway cast of Too Many Girls.

Libby Bennett (Tallulah Lou) makes her only screen appearance in Too Many Girls. She had also been seen in the Broadway stage production.

Harry Shannon (Mr. Harvey Casey) appeared with Lucille Ball in 1942′s The Big Street. On “I Love Lucy” he played Jim White the photographer in “Men Are Messy” (ILL S1;E8) in 1951 (above center). Musical fans will remember Shannon as Rosalind Russell’s father in the 1962 musical film Gypsy.

Mrs. Teweksbury says Mr. Casey is one of the richest individuals in the country. He reportedly has $7.50 more than Henry Ford. He is Connie’s father and Chairman of Casey Conglomerated Industries.

Douglas Walton (Beverly Waverly) was a Canadian-born actor making his only appearance with Lucy and Desi. He played poet Percy Shelley in the film The Bride of Frankenstein (1935). He left film acting in 1950, before the advent of television.

Beverley Waverly is a British playwright.

Chester Clute (Lister) did four films with Lucille Ball before Too Many Girls and four after it.

Lister is an alumni of Pottawatomie College, like his boss Mr. Casey.

Ivy Scott (Mrs. Tewksbury) was also in the stage production of Too Many Girls and only did one more film in Hollywood, Higher and Higher in 1943.

Mrs. Tewksbury is the proprietor of The Hunted Stag (or, as Mr. Lister calls it, The Stunted Hag), an Inn where the boys are waiters.

Byron Shores (Sheriff Andaluz) makes his only screen appearance with Lucy and Desi. He was also seen in the stage production of Too Many Girls. His last film was in 1944.

UNCREDITED FILM CAST

Iron Eyes Cody (Indian) made a career of playing Native American characters despite the fact that he was of Italian ancestry. He next worked with Lucy and in 1942’s Valley of the Sun, again as an American Indian character. He played an Eskimo in a 1959 episode of “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour,” but is probably best remembered as the Indian that sheds a single tear in the ‘Keep America Beautiful’ ads that ran from 1971 to the 1980s.

Jay Silverheels (Indian) also played a Native American character in Valley of the Sun (1942) with Lucille Ball. He was best known for playing Tonto on “The Lone Ranger”.

Chief John Big Tree (Chief)

Harry James (Orchestra Leader) also played himself in Lucille Ball’s Best Foot Forward in 1943. With his wife, Betty Grable, he was seen in “Lucy Wins a Racehorse” (LDCH S1;E4) in 1958.

Van Johnson (Chorus Boy) was also seen with Lucy in the films Easy to Wed (1946) and Yours, Mine and Ours in 1968. He played himself on one of the most popular episodes of “I Love Lucy,” “The Dancing Star” (ILL S4;E27) and played both himself and a look-alike on “Here’s Lucy” in 1968. He was also a member of the Broadway cast of Too Many Girls.

Johnson has only two lines of dialogue in the film but is often visible in group scenes.

Shep Houghton (Chorus Boy) made two other films with Lucille Ball and was seen in the background of two episodes of “The Lucy Show” and one episode of “Here’s Lucy.” Houghton was one of the Winkie Guards in 1939’s The Wizard of Oz and a Southern Dandy in Gone With the Wind (1939).

John Benton (Chorus Boy)

Mildred Law (Coed) appeared on “I Love Lucy” in “Return Home From Europe” (ILL S5;E26) playing a TWA flight attendant who attends to Lucy’s cheesy baby, Chester. This was her penultimate screen credit.

Pamela Blake (Coed) also appeared uncredited with Lucille Ball in Stage Door (1937).

Amarilla Morris (Coed) was seen with Desi Arnaz in the 1942 film Four Jacks and a Jill as the girl in the revolving door.

Other Coeds: Janet Lavis, Ellen Johnson, Vera Fern, Peggy Drake, Zita Baca, Anna Mae Tessle

Homer Dickenson (Mr. Casey's Butler) immediately followed this film with A Girl, A Guy, And A Gob (1941) also starring Lucille Ball.

Grady Sutton (Football Coach) from 1935 to 1945, Sutton did five films with Lucille Ball.

Dorothy Vernon (Faculty Extra) also did The Bowery (1933) and Valley of the Sun (1942) with Lucille Ball.

Dan White (Faculty Extra) had a small role in the 1970 TV special “Swing Out Sweet Land” in which Lucille Ball voiced the Statue of Liberty.

Others: Sethma Williams (Marie), Tommy Graham (Hawker), Averell Harris (Detective), Michael Alvarez (Joe)

WHEN LUCY MET DIZZY

Lucille Ball met Desi Arnaz for the first time at the RKO studio commissary, while Too Many Girls was in rehearsals. She was in full costume and make-up after performing a fight scene for another film, Dance, Girl, Dance (1940, above): she wore a slinky gold dress slit halfway up the thigh and sported a black eye. Arnaz was seated at the same table as director George Abbott, who introduced the two. Arnaz was not impressed by Ball, thinking she “looked like a two-dollar whore who had been badly beaten by her pimp." After the encounter, he asked Abbott to fire Ball from Too Many Girls, claiming she was “too tough and common for the role." He also advised that her reputation as Queen of the B movies might negatively impact his much-anticipated film debut, advice Abbott thankfully ignored.

“A Cuban skyrocket burst over my horizon!” ~ Lucy about Desi

“Those damned big beautiful blue eyes!” ~ Desi about Lucy

That night, Arnaz was rehearsing “She Could Shake the Maracas" when Ball walked in, now wearing a yellow sweater and tight-fitting beige slacks. Not recognizing her, Arnaz turned to the piano player and whispered “Man, that is a honk of woman!" The pianist reminded Arnaz of his earlier meeting with Ball. Lucille approached them to say hello. "Miss Ball?" Arnaz said, just to make sure that there was no mistake. "Why don't you call me Lucille? And I'll call you Dizzy."

Lucy and Desi have very little interaction in the film, but when he sees Connie for the first time, he gets weak in the knees and falls to the ground, in awe of her beauty. Despite this, Manuelito’s romance is with Pepe, not Connie. History re-wrote that chapter!

TOO MANY SONGS!

Heroes in the Fall - Male Chorus

You're Nearer - Connie, Pepe, Eileen, and Tallulah Lou

Pottawatomie - Mr. Casey and Chorus

'Cause We Got Cake - Eileen and Chorus

Spic 'n' Spanish - Manuelito and Pepe

Love Never Went to College - Eileen

Look Out! - Eileen and Pepe

I Didn't Know What Time It Was - Connie, Clint, and Jojo

You're Nearer - Connie, Manuelito, Eileen, Pepe, and Tallulah Lou

Conga

Songs cut from the Broadway show:

Tempt Me Not - Manuelito, Clint, and Chorus

My Prince - Connie

I Like To Recognize the Tune - Jojo, Connie, Eileen, Clint, and Al

The Sweethearts of the Team - Eileen

She Could Shake The Maracas - Pepe and Manuelito

Too Many Girls - Manuelito

Give It Back To The Indians - Eileen

TOO MANY TRIVIA!

RKO paid $100,000 for the rights to the Broadway musical.

Filming on Too Many Girls began on June 22, 1940.

Camerman Russell Metty briefly took over shooting for Frank Redman when Redman had to attend a funeral.

Uncredited performers Van Johnson and Harry James would go on to be two of the film’s biggest stars, except for Lucy and Desi, eclipsing many of the film’s principal cast like Hal LeRoy, Douglas Walton, and Libby Bennett.

Lucille Ball’s vocals were dubbed by Trudy Erwin, one of Kay Kyser’s singers.

Everyone imported from Broadway (except Hal LeRoy) was making their screen debut with Too Many Girls.

After making the film, Van Johnson and Mildred Law returned to the Broadway production. Instead of chorus roles, Johnson assumed the role of Jojo (originated by Bracken) and Law now played Tallulah Lou, originated by Leila Ernest.

On Broadway the character of Connie was originated by Marcy Wescott in her final Broadway stage role.

TOO MANY REFERENCES!

Each of Connie’s bodyguards plays football for an Ivy League college: Yale, Harvard, and Princeton. Manuelito is still deciding on a college, but is considering Princeton, where Clint goes. There is talk about a contentious game that includes Princeton. In Lucille Ball’s radio show “My Favorite Husband” (1948), George Cugat (later Cooper) hopes his future son will play for Princeton, his alum. Coincidentally, Lucille Ball did two plays at Princeton University’s resident theatre company, McCarter: Hey Diddle Diddle (1937) and Dream Girl (1947).

One of the characters mentions movie star Ginger Rogers, one of the top female box office stars of the time. She was also a good friend of Lucille Ball having done five films together. Rogers’ mother Lela tajght acting classes at RKO, later inspiring Ball to create the Desilu Playhouse at Desilu Studios. Rogers played herself on a 1971 episode of “Here’s Lucy.”

Mr. Casey compares his daughter Connie with Lucretia Borgia (1480-1519) was the illegitimate daughter of a pope and his mistress, a famous beauty, notorious for the suspicious deaths and political intrigue that swirled around her. Today her name has become synonymous with a beautiful, but scheming woman who would stop at nothing - including murder - to get what she wants. In 1949, Lucille Ball’s friend played Lucretia Borgia for Paramount in Bride of Vengeance.

Although Pottawatomie College and the town of Stop Gap are fictional, Pottawatomie is the name of a Native American tribe, although they were mostly found in the Great Lakes region, not in New Mexico. The Pottawatomie Massacre occurred from May 23 to May 26, 1856, resulting in the death of five pro-slavery settlers north of Pottawatomie Creek in Franklin County, Kansas. This was one of the many violent episodes in Kansas preceding the American Civil War.

TOO MANY CRITICS!

Too Many Girls premiered on October 8, 1940 at Loew's Criterion Theatre in New York. Critical reviews were generally positive, although Bosley Crowther of The New York Times wrote that Too Many Girls was “a pleasant, light-hearted and wholly ingenuous campus film" but that director George Abbott "has permitted it to sag in the middle, at which point the thin spots baldly show. If the intention was to be impressive, it has failed. For 'Too Many Girls' is a simple, conventional rah-rah picture, without any place for pretense. And there is not enough to it, on the whole, for Mr. Abbott to squander dancers recklessly."

TOO FAST FORWARD

This film's earliest documented television presentations began in Los Angeles Tuesday May 8, 1956 on KHJ (Channel 9), much to the chagrin of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz who were embarrassed by it, and objected to its frequent showings to no avail.

In 1977, the music of Too Many Girls was rereleased on vinyl with performers Nancy Andrews, Johnny Desmond, Estelle Parsons, and Anthony Perkins!

The film is referenced in “Lucy & Desi: Before the Laughter” a 1991 TV movie about starring Frances Fisher (above) and Maurice Bernard, as well as “Lucy” (2003), another TV film in which Lucy (Rachel York) and Desi (Danny Pino) meet on the set; Desi in his football uniform and Lucy bruised from the filming of Dance, Girl, Dance.

Clips from the film are featured in Lucy and Desi: A Home Movie (1993).

#Too Many Girls #Lucille Ball #Desi Arnaz #1940 #George Abbott #Broadway #musical #Van Johnson #Ann Miller #Eddie Bracken #Richard Carlson #Frances Langford #Hal LeRoy #Harry James #Conga #Rodgers and Hart #Dance Girl Dance #Frances Fisher #Iron Eyes Cody

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duketheman · 4 years

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Generation 4 Part 6

We go to the Dining room & are seated. Menu consists of: Stuffed lamb breast with lemon, ricotta, & oregano variety of cheese, Selection of Bread & Cracker, Jams, chutneys, spicy mustards, caramelized onions, candied nuts & pistachios, Rich flourless chocolate cake with a glass of sweet port wine, Small pieces of chocolate & Brandy. Father says Prayers: My God in Heaven. Please Bless this meal & Bless our Family with Your Grace. We thank You my God for all that you've provided & for the Miracle of those two tiny new lives that You so Graciously Blessed us with. Thank You my God, in the Name of our Lord & Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen! 8:30pm we finish dinner & retire to the Drawing room for Coffee & Brandy! Sodas for the kids & Juice for Mary & Lucy. The Doctor recommended that Lucy attempt to Breastfeed again, so she too has decided to refrain from alcohol! The room is filled with Christmas Music! Mother says: ~Family, it's time to realize "The Reason for the Season"! We have a lot to be grateful for! It's time we start acting like it~ She begins to sing along with the music! We too begin to sing & the mood in the room becomes festive! We've hired a nurse to help with the babies, as to give a little bit of a break to our wives. Mary has pumped extra Breast Milk into bottles. Lucy has Formula for Anabel until she takes hold! It's now 12:45am & we've been enjoying ourselves so much, that we didn't realize how late it is! We decide to call it a night & go to our rooms. Mother was right! Tis the Season for Joy! God Bless us everyone!

I pick up my son & hold him, & pray a prayer of thanks to God! I turn to Mary, who's ready to feed him before we sleep & say: ~Darling, thank you for being the best wife a man could ever be Blessed with! I love you Mary Grace Newport!

She replies: ~'O my sweet Harry, no woman could ever hope to be Blessed with a husband as loving, generous, thoughtful & sweet a man as you! My love, you have never disappointed me in anything you've ever done. Now we're Blessed with another child. I feel my life is only getting better. You Harry, are my life!~ She has always made my every day & night! I thank God for allowing her into my life! She feeds little Harry, burps & changes him. Places him in his Bassinet, careful to lay him on his back. He falls asleep immediately. Such a good baby! We climb into bed & she falls asleep in my arms. I'm tired, Goodnight!

Skipping forward:

Sunday December 22 Little Harry's & Anabel's Christening

8:00am & the whole Family is enroute to Church. Today we'll be dedicating little Harry & Anabel to Christianity. It's 8:45am & we arrive. We enter the Church & the Family are seated. Mary, Myself, Lucy, George & both Babies are escorted to the front of the Church where when called, we'll bring the Babies forward! 9:00am service begins. After the Choir sings the opening hymns, Pastor Reverend Johnson calls the names of "Harold Joseph Newport Jr." & Annabel Josephine Richards" to the Altar. Mary holds little Harry in her arms & I stand by her side. The Pastor Asks: ~Who will be the Godparents?~ George & Lucy Step forward! Pastor Johnson recites: ~Harold Joseph Newport Jr., In the Name of the Father & of the Son & of the Holy Spirit! He then pours water over his forehead three times. He wipes dry little Harry's forehead.

Pastor Johnson says: ~Who will be the Godparents?~ Mary & myself step forward! Pastor Johnson recites: ~Annabel Josephine Richards, In the Name of the Father & of the Son & of the Holy Spirit! He pours water over her forehead three times. He wipes dry Annabel's forehead & Congratulates us! He invites the Congregation to take photographs! We're seated & service It's 10:30am & service is over. We're enroute back to Newport Mansion. 10:45am, we're arrive at the Mansion. We take the babies upstairs. The Family retire to their rooms to get ready for lunch. It's 12:00pm & Huntington rings: ~Lunch is being served in the Dining room!~ We go into the Dining room & are seated. Linguini, White Winter Truffles, Aged Parmesan is on the menu! The meal is delicious. 1:15pm we finish lunch & retire to the Drawing room for drinks & conversation! 2:15pm My wife & I are having a Date night. We're going to dinner & a movie! She wants to see "Jumanji, The Next Level". Showtime is 8:15pm at the Woodard. We go upstairs where she will feed little Harry. We'll nap a little before leaving!

It's 5:00pm & we're enroute to Grumpy's Diner on Main! There are no Fancy restaurants in Madison, but we do enjoy a good Burger & Grumpy's has great Burgers! We've arrived at the Diner at 5:45pm. We're seated & read the menu. I order the Steak & Tarter Special Combo with Lemonade. Mary orders the Burger Bowl Combo with Sprite. We finish eating & leave a tip. It's 7:40pm & we're enroute to the Woodard so we can get a good seat. It's 8:00pm & we park, buy the tickets & enter the Cinema. We're seated in the fourth row from the front. The previews are already showing, so I take time to by Popcorn, BomBoms & Soda! 8:15pm the move starts running. 10:20pm, the movie has ended. It was a great movie, starring Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, & Karen Guillan. It was funny, exciting, mind boggling, test of skills & scary all in one game! We both enjoyed it! 10:30pm we're walking out the doors & getting in the car. Enroute to The Waffle House on Bandit st for Coffee. 10:45pm we pull into the Parking lot & enter the restaurant. We wait to be seated just a few minutes. We order coffee, decaf for Mary! We tip the Waitress & leave the restaurant, its Midnight. Were enroute to Newport Mansion. It's 12:30am & we've arrived at the Mansion. We go upstairs & get ready for bed. Mary has that look in her eyes. She winks & smiles, holding the covers up for me. I know what that means & I'm eager. It's been a while & long enough. Goodnight!

Tuesday, December 24

It's 8:00am & Huntington rings: ~Breakfast is being served in the Dining room!~ We go into the Dining room & are seated! Menu for the Morning consists of: Waffles with flax & almond butter, scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, toast, a fruit salad & protein shake, juice, coffee! 9:30am, we finish eating & retire to the Drawing room to discuss tonight's festivities! Mother has planned a Christmas party for friends & family! The party will be in the Grand Ballroom! She's been known to have the most entertaining parties in two hundred miles of Madison.

Christmas Eve

It's 5:00pm, I'm putting on my Tux, while Mary nurses little Harry! I can't help but to think about those we've lost! But I know God has a plan for all of us. JR has another week before we've got to get him back to the Academy. We're lucky to be able to have him for the Holidays & his Birthday! He'll be sixteen on New Year's eve. My God, where's the time gone! It seems like yesterday I was holding him in my arms. Tomorrow morning is Christmas & the anniversary of the first day I met Mary, the day I began to live again!

It's 6:00pm & we're in the Drawing room discussing the music for tonight, Mother of course has the last say!

We're expecting Governor Ron DeSantis to attend, as well as other Dignitaries she's friendly with! Busy day ahead...........

7:00pm

Governor DeSantis arrives & my parents greet him immediately! Other guests are arriving, to include; Mayor Jim Catron & his wife, Chief of Police Reggie Alexander & his wife, & friends of the family totaling over 150 guests!

Huntington escorts each of the Guests to the Grand Ballroom where food & drinks are being served.

The tables each are marked with the guest's name on a card. Christmas music is playing. The wait staff are offering hors d’oeuvres & Champagne.

The menu consists of: Goose, apple sauce, ham, bread stuffing, crawfish cornbread stuffing, sweet potato casserole, mashed potatoes, green beans, broccoli, ambrosia, a cranberry mold, goose gravy, a relish tray with green onions, watermelon pickles & olives, Russian caviar, pumpkin, pecan, apple & cherry pies. A crisp white wine, eggnog, syllabub, & sweet potato punch! More Champagne! We have Non-Alcoholic Champagne for Mary, Lucy & the kids!

My wife looks stunning in her new Red Christmas Gown.

George, I've never seen him decked out before. He looks like he belongs in that Tux. Lucy's wearing a Bluish colored Evening Dress, slitted in the arms & down the left leg; also looking quite Beautiful. The kids look like a Prince & his Princess! The whole family, I must say are showing their Best. Mother looks quite pleased with herself!

This will be a party to remember, I only wish Rachael could have been here! The babies are upstairs with the nurse. They're bringing more hors d’oeuvres & Champagne around.

My Father's dancing with Mother, to Tony Bennett's Christmas Waltz. It's my Mother's favorite. I better get my wife out on the Dance floor, before someone else does, I'm somewhat stingy!

The Governor & his wife Casey seem to be enjoying themselves! They've been on the Dance floor over two hours already! The Ballroom is alive tonight & Happiness is it's heart! My Brothers don't seem to have a problem finding someone to dance with, I wish they'd settle down & have a Family. Sis & Bill are dancing the night away! Santa is expected to arrive at 12:01am!

12:01 2019 Christmas

The music starts playing: "The Santa Claus Rock" by INFANTIL! Everyone's rocking with the music as Santa enters the room! The music stops, Santa grabs his Bag & begins to pass gifts out to the Family & friends! He calls out each name, without hesitation or looking at a note. He just hands the gifts out as if he knew what was in them! Everyone seemed surprised but pleased with the gift they received.

I ask JR: What did you get Son?~ He replies: ~The Nutcracker Soldier, I've been wanting it ever since I can remember! Only my Mother knew, she promised to get it for me for Christmas, the year she died!~ I ask: ~What's the card say?~ He replies: ~ From Mommy with Love! Dad, I never told anyone!~ We both left it like that! I received the Gold ring I lost some years ago off my Boat. I had dropped it in the water, never to be seen again; so I thought! It's inscribed with the words: Dolphins Bring You Luck" dated 2004. These were words Julia said on my Boat when I took her to see the Dolphins, the year we first started dating! She had given it to me for Valentine's day! The card read: Love never dies Harry, be Happy! anta leaves as fast as he arrived, with a HO HO HO, Merry Christmas to all, & to all a Goodnight! I followed him out, but strangely, he just disappeared, poof he was gone! I really wanted to congratulate him on how good he was & ask him how he knew! Mother says: ~Son, that wasn't our Santa, your Father was suppose to play the part! We have no idea who he was, where he came from or disappeared too!~ Kind of got everyone thinking....... The last song is playing: "I'm dreaming of a White Christmas" by Bing Crosby! I take Mary out to the floor & dance the last dance with her, cheek to cheek! It's 2:00am & everyone's left. I & Mary say Goodnight & we go upstairs & get ready for bed! I didn't tell Mary about JR's gift, nor mine; but it was weighing on my mind! Even in Death she was able to keep her promise to our son & assure he got his Christmas present as well as; to send me a message! God is good! Merry Christmas to you all from the Newport Family & Goodnight!

Skipping forward:

Tuesday, December 31, 2019

Happy Birthday John Ross/New Years Eve

It's 6:00am & my wife is feeding little Harry. We're drinking coffee in the room, Decaf for Mary. When finished, we'll go downstairs for Breakfast. Eggs Benedict, Toast, English Butter, Jelly, fruit, & juice is on the menu this morning.

We got to get things together for today. Its JR's Birthday & we want it to be a special! Mother has planned a big party for him, lots of guest!

The cake will be delivered some time today!Kellyanne has asked if I would take her & her Dad to the Mall, so she can buy him something special for JR! Tonight Mother will be putting on her Annual New Year Fireworks display!

7:00am, Huntington rings: ~Breakfast is being served in the Dining room ~ We go downstairs, to the Dining room & are seated! It's 8:30pm & we're finished eating. Myself, George & Kellyanne get in Father's car & proceed to the Valdosta Mall just over the State line. She wants to go to Jared's. It's 9:45pm & we're pulling into the Mall's parking lot. It opens in fifteen minutes. That's good, no rush. 10:00am sharp & they open the entrance, we head for Jared's.....

Kellyanne finds a ring she says is perfect! It's a Black Diamond ring 1/2ct tw 10k Gold running about $1300.00! I have to say she has impeccable taste. Not feminine looking, yet beautiful. JR will love it. She has them inscribe the words: Love is forever! I can't help to notice how much Kellyanne is like Julia the way she thinks! No wonder JR loves her so much!

It's 12:30pm & we are enroute to Madison. We stop at Dairy Queen for lunch. Its 1:00pm. 1:45pm & were on the way back to the Mansion. 2:10pm we arrive. Mother is outside supervising the setup for the party & Fireworks tonight. I go upstairs & my wife is talking a nap. I kiss her on the forehead, careful not to wake her, check on the baby & go back downstairs to have a beer & help wherever I can!

It's 3:30pm & the cake is delivered. The stage for the Band has just been finished.

Mother has hired The Frequency Band for tonight. Mother is a perfectionist, everything must be right. She's hire fifty extra staff for the Party, she loves JR. He was her first Grandchild!

Dinner will be finger sandwiches & hors d’oeuvres, as well as cake & ice cream; served during the party! Dress is casual.......

t's 5:30pm, the band has arrived & setting up! Though not like when he was a child, this party will still be big.......

6:00pm, the guests are arriving & the band is already playing music. They're quite good actually, from LA is what I hear!

7:00pm & the party is in full swing. Kids & adults alike are dancing. They're playing all the latest favorites. Drinks are being served but Alcohol is in one tent under the control of Huntington. Soda & Fruit Punch in another, self serve! There's Sweet Tea for the asking.....

8:00pm, the band starts playing Happy Birthday to John Ross, & a table is rolled out with a cake!

Two candles in the shape of the number sixteen, on top of a Beautiful Black Cake. JR makes a wish, blows out the candles, takes a knife & cuts the first piece.

Kellyanne hands her gift first. The ring & a kiss! She says: ~John Ross, take this ring as a symbol of my everlasting love for you. Happy Birthday John Ross, may you have many more!~ He slipped the ring on his finger & kissed her. He says: ~Kellyanne, I'll never take it off for as long as I live!~

He begins to open the many gifts from everyone here.

Mary bought him a Beautiful Compass inscribed: "To my son: Wherever your journey in life may take you, I pray you'll always be safe.

ENJOY THE RIDE & NEVER FORGET YOUR WAY HOME. I'm Always Here For You; Mom"! The compass is made of Gold in a Sailor's pocket watch casing. Quite elegant, I could see him trying to hold back tears!

I got him a Man's music box with my recorded words to him: "To my son: SOMETIMES IT'S HARD TO FIND WORDS TO TELL YOU HOW MUCH YOU MEAN TO ME. IF I HAD TO CHOOSE BETWEEN Loving you & breathing I WOULD USE MY LAST BREATH TO SAY ~I LOVE YOU~ I WILL ALWAYS BE THERE TO LOVE YOU, I WILL ALWAYS BE THERE TO SUPPORT YOU. You will always be my baby boy. ~Love Dad~"

My Parents got him a Pocket watch with the inscription: "To my Grandson: Never forget that I Love you. I hope you believe in yourself as much as I do.

George & Lucy gave him a Gold wristwatch.My Brothers gave him a check for a thousand dollars. My Sister & Bill gave him an authentic Navy 1860 Officers Cutlass with His name on it, inscribed: "With His Swift & Terrible Sword "

It's 11:00pm. JR received well over two hundred gifts. He will have to leave some of them behind when he returns to the Academy on Thursday!

11:59pm & were getting ready to countdown to the New Year. Were counting down from 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 & the Fireworks display goes off as the band plays "Auld Lang Syne" The new Year's Anthem! I take my wife in my arms , kiss her, really kiss her & tell her : ~I love you Mary!~ She replies back: ~I love you my Harry!~ Everyone is kissing, singing & wishing all well! It's now 1:00am & the Fireworks Display is over. The band has played it's last set & everyone's leaving! Everything went well & we all had a great time. It's New Year's day & JR goes back to school tomorrow. We will be going home too! It's been a great vacation except for losing Rachael!

We say Goodnight & go upstairs. We're tired, The baby senses we're here. Mary nurses him before we lay down. She lays little Harry down, we lay down & fall asleep in each other's arms!Wednesday, January 1, 20206:00am, I've decided to let Mary get some rest after a long night. I change little Harry, feed him with stored Breast milk in a bottle, burp & play with him a little while! This brings memories back of when JR was a newborn! He fell asleep in my arms, I lay him on his back in the Bassinet! It 8:00am, I wake Mary up to see if she's hungry. She wants to sleep another hour,I go downstairs & Brunch is being served. I ask Huntington to assure that Mary has something to eat when she wakes up. I sit down & eat, it's only myself, my parents & Mary's parents! Seems like everyone else decided to sleep in..... I say Good morning & they reply almost simultaneously: ~Good morning Harry!~ Mother asks: ~Sleep well son?~ I reply: Yes Mother, I did; Thank you! She says: ~How's Mary & the Baby, is Harry Jr sleeping through the night?~ I reply: ~Yes Mother, he is & Mary's sleeping in another hour!~ She replies: ~Good, a new Mother need as much rest as she can get!~ Mary's Mother adds: ~Yes they do! Harry, you're a good man, our daughter loves you very much & so do we! We feel Blessed having you part of the Family & you to John Ross!~ I reply: ~She is my Blessing Laura, she & my children are my life. I'm more than proud to be part of the Family & I love you two as well!~

8:30am, JR sits down at the table, followed by Kellyanne! They both say Good morning & sit down at the table. JR remarks: ~I'm starving!~9:15am Breakfast is over. Huntington has told Cook to hold Breakfast for an hour in case the rest of the Family is hungry! I go back upstairs & check on Mary. I find she's up & the baby seems to be hungry again. She's nursing him! I call downstairs to the kitchen & have them send Mary's Breakfast up to the room!...... We've got to pack & get ready for our trip home. JR's flight takes off for Valley International at 5:30am & the rest of us are scheduled to take off for Miami International at 7:15am! My wife finishes nursing little Harry, I take & burp him so she can eat! She says: ~Lord, I can really use a strong cup of regular coffee! But our son is more important! But just as soon as he stops nursing, I'm going to nurse on a whole pot of Community!~ She laughs, but she's more serious than she let's on..... I'm having fun with little Harry! He sure does smile allot, but Mary says it's gas! I think he smiles because he's a Happy baby! I put our son in his Bassinet because he's fallen asleep! I sit next to my wife & say: ~Mary Grace Newport, I love you! You married me & gave me life. You took my son as your own & raised him! Now you've given me another son! You have been & are my life. I'm truly Blessed! Thank you Mary, I only hope I tell you enough!~ She replies: ~Harry, you tell & show me every day! It fills my heart with joy & happiness everytime I hear your words. I love you Harry, with every essence of my being! I live for you Harry, you're my heart & soul!~ We embrace & kiss for more than a few minutes! We go ahead & pack up everything we can for now. We have laundry that has to be brought up to the room later!

Were just going to hangout with the Family today, we're going to miss them all very much! JR & I will visit the Cemetery this afternoon, so he can see Julia's & his Grandparents graves one more time before he goes back to Texas! He wants to plant flowers on the graves........ I think he wants to tell Julia thank you for his gift. I know that sounds strange but so do I, there's no other explanation!We go downstairs & everyone is congregating in the Game room. Mother has declared this day, "Family Day"! She says: ~We see far too little of each other, & I think it nice if we spend the day enjoying each other's company!~...... She has Finger sandwiches, Olives, Dill pickles, Cheeses, Sweets & Drinks set up on a table. We'll not have to stop for lunch, yet we can eat as we wish! I & George immediately challenge my Brothers to a game of Eight ball! I'm quite good at this, though it's been a while..... Father is acting as Barkeep! My Sister & our wives are Bowling on the indoor alley! Mary's parents & Mother are playing cards! JR & Kellyanne are playing Table Soccer!......... it's 4:30pm & as promised, I borrow Father's car: I & JR are enroute to Newport Cemetery to place flowers on Julia's & her Parent's graves. We'll place them on my Grandparents grave as well! It's 5:30pm & already getting dark. We leave the Cemetery enroute back to the Mansion. It's 5:55pm & as we're walking in the doors, Huntington rings: ~Dinner is being served in the Dining room!~ We all have our last Dinner as a Family! It's 7:30pm & Dinner is over. We retire to the Drawing room & share a little more time together. We plan next Christmas vacation together. It's 9:00 & we say our Goodbyes to my siblings. Mine & Mary's Parents will be up to say Goodbye in the morning. The Chauffeur will drive us to the Airport, theirs eight of us with the Babies & Father's Car won't have enough room. We say Goodnight & go upstairs so we can be fresh in the morning. Mary nurses little Harry while I take my shower! After; I take, burp & play with him while Mary takes a shower! I see him smiling more & more, warming my heart with everyone! He falls asleep in my arms & I lay him down on his back! I didn't know that SIDS was a growing threat in the USA & laying a baby on their stomach or side was the leading cause! Mary taught me that! She's a very cautious Mom & I thank the Good Lord for it! We lay down & I say: ~Mary Grace Newport, I love you!~ She replies: ~Harry Joseph Newport, you are my whole life &I Love you!~ We fall asleep in love!

Thursday January 2, 2020

It's 2:30am & we get up. Mary nurses the Baby while I wash up, brush my teeth & shave. I call for Huntington: ~Please take our bags down to the Limousine. Mary finishes feeding the little Harry, I take & burp him while my wife washes up & gets dressed. We go downstairs & meet up in the Dining room. Mother has arranged for an early Breakfast so we don't leave hungry! It's 3:30am & we say our Goodbyes. Mary & her Mother are crying & Mother is doing her best to hold tears back. They kiss, hug & kiss us all again as we walk out the doors! Father walks us out while the others stand on the stairs! He says: ~Harry, I love you kids, please have a safe trip. John Ross, you too, make sure you make next year son! Bye you all & take care of our Grandkids, I'm talking to you too. You're family too now! George replies: ~aye Mr Newport Sir!~

I tell my Father,: ~I love you Father, we'll call you as soon as we land! Bye now!~ It's 4:00am & were enroute to the Airport. Its 4:35am, we arrive at Valdosta Regional & the Baggage Valet loads our baggage onto a cart. JR checks in & the kids say their final Goodbye. Kellyanne is crying & makes JR promise to write every day! He hugs me & tells me that he loves me. He hugs & kisses Mary Goodbye & tells her he loves her. She's crying again! He kisses his little Brother & Anabel, he's only got so long until Boarding, so he has to get through Security! Its 5:30am & his flight takes off on time!

JR has one more year until he Graduates in June 2021. He's already been accepted & will enter Annapolis Naval Academy in January of 2021 He'll attend four years thereafter; he'll be Commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant & serve a minimum of five years in the Marine corps! That boy has made us proud!

It's 6:15am & we're allowed to check in. We walk through Security & to the Boarding gate where we'll wait until allowed to board.. 6:30am & we're boarding the plane. It's 7:00am & our flight takes off on time! Its 11:20am & were on approach to Miami. Suddenly; we start climbing & are ordered to stay seated & buckled. We have a landing gear stuck & are circling the Airport! There's some panic, but all in all; most stay calm! We circle for twenty minutes & it begins to look like we're going to have to land without the the front Landing gear! Now I begin to worry a little! But I look at Mary & she says: ~It'll be fine Harry, God has us covered~ Suddenly; the front Landing gear comes down. Relief is felt all over the plane, people begin to cheer & clap! Mary turns to me, smiles & says: ~See Harry God is watching over us!~ I remember calling my wife an Angel sent by God, now I'm sure of it! She didn't worry at all, she knew we'd be ok! We're on approach again. We land & it's 11:50am. Late but safe! God is Great!!!! We get through Security, get our Bags from the Carousel & have our wives & Babies sit down & rest. George & I walk across to the Parking Garage & pick up my car. We drive around to the loading zone & help Mary, Lucy & Kellyanne into the back seat with the Babies. George & I load our bags & we're enroute home! I'm going to miss everyone but I'm so happy to be home! It's 1:00pm & we drop George & his Family off, they're looking tired & happy to be too! Kellyanne is still sad but she'll get over it! We're enroute to our house. It's 1:20pm & Home sweet Home! I help Mary into the house & come back for the bags. Mary takes our son into the Nursery & says: ~My sweet little child, welcome home Baby Harry!~ She lays him down in his crib & sings a Lullaby: The song is called "Sweet Dreams ". I've never heard it but it's quite beautiful! Mary is a wonderful Mother. I go in the kitchen & prepare lunch, as they don't serve food on flights anymore! Simple Ham & Cheese, Dill pickles, Lays lightly salted chips, Sweet tea! We sit, eat lunch & talk about all that's happened. We finish & she says: ~Harry my Love, I'm going to lay down & take a nap; I'm just feeling so tired!~ I reply: ~Darling, sleep well, you need to rest!~ I go into the Library & check my messages. I need to start the "Willow" back up after Vacation! Looks like I have a scheduled trip on Monday, January 6! I give George a heads up, grab a cold one & relax! It's 4:00pm & I think I'm going to cook dinner for Mary. She'll be awake soon & hungry, she has enough to do just taking care of the baby! I prepare Baked Chicken, Macaroni & cheese, Garlic Bread & I'll wait to see what she wants to drink!It's 5:00pm & Mary comes down. She's pleasantly surprised. We sit down to dinner & enjoy each other's company. We finish up & retire to the Living room. We sit on the Loveseat, listen to music & just cuddle. She has Baby monitors set up everywhere in case he wakes up..... He sleeps until 8:00pm, Mary says to me: ~I'll be back my love, let me nurse him, he's hungry! She goes up, feeds him & is back in my arms within twenty minutes! I love my wife & enjoy spending time with her. I am a CUDDLER! I love cuddling & showing her how much I love her! It's 11:00pm & she asks: ~How about a snack?~ I reply: ~Sounds great Darling~ She goes in the kitchen, goes in the pulls out two thinly cut steak out of the freezer & chops them up with onions & Bell peppers. She grabs four eggs & shredded cheese out of the refrigerator. She's making steak & cheese omelets! That's my favorite omelet, she knows me so well! We sit down & eat. We finish, I handle the little cleanup there is. She goes up & nurses the Baby. I'm done & I follow her to find her waiting for me, under the covers. She says: ~Come on Big boy, I need you!~ She smiles, winks & exposes her naked body! Goodnight all!

Duke Sherman

To Be Continued

#newports

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tabloidtoc · 5 years

Text

In Touch, April 8

Cover: Meghan Markle and Prince Harry will name their baby girl after Princess Diana

Page 1: Contents

Page 2: Who Wore It Better? Elsa Hosk vs. Danielle Campbell, Adriana Lima vs. Dree Hemingway, Morgan Stewart vs. Jasmine Tookes

Page 4: Down-and-out Tori Spelling rents $13K-a-month house

Page 5: Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio in movie poster for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood don’t look like themselves, Lucy Hale goes brunette, Ben Affleck admits the reaction to his back too hasn’t been positive, Chrissy Teigen tells an onliner that after kids you don’t want to see her in a bikini, there are 432 minutes left of Games of Thrones

Page 6: Crib of the Week -- Bruce Willis’ Brentwood mansion, find love with Vinny Guadagnino and “Pauly D” DelVecchio, Jenny McCarthy slams Barbara Walters

Page 8: Stars who give out spoilers -- Sylvester Stallone, Mark Ruffalo, Sophie Turner, Rachel McAdams, Will Smith, Tom Holland, Kate Middleton stealing Lisa Vanderpump’s style

Page 9: Man Candy of the Week -- Anthony Joshua, Winner of the Week -- Call Me By Your Name fans will be getting a sequel written by Andre Aciman, Loser of the Week -- Ramona Singer forced to aologize after claiming Bethenny Frankel’s late boyfriend Dennis Shields was on drugs before he died

Page 10: Oh Baby -- Kylie Jenner and daughter Stormi, Kourtney and Kim Kardashian with kids Reign and Saint and Chicago and Penelope and great-grandmother Mary Jo Campbell

Page 11: Hilary Duff and daughter Banks, Jamie Lynn Spears and Jamie Watson’s daughter Ivey, Jessie James Decker and Eric Decker’s son Forrest turns 1, Katherine Heigl and Josh Kelley’s daughter Adalaide turns 7, Ronnie Ortiz-Magro and Jen Harley’s daughter Ariana turns 1, Paula Patton and Robin Thicke’s son Julian turns 9

Page 12: Up Close -- Ben Affleck and kids Samuel and Seraphina

Page 13: Jennifer Lopez, Prince Charles shirtless with wife Camilla, Amy Poehler

Page 14: Hairy Situations -- Ellen DeGeneres and Olivia Wilde cut Jason Sudeikis’ hair, Channing Tatum goes blond, Nicole Richie, Gilles Marini gets a trim

Page 16: Tom Hanks as Mr. Rogers, Busy Philipps and Lisa Rinna, Queer Eye’s Tan France and Jonathan Van Ness and Antoni Porowski and Karamo Brown

Page 18: Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer Lopez, Rami Malek filming Mr. Robot, Clueless reunion with Alicia Silverstone and Donald Faison and Breckin Meyer and Paul Rudd

Page 20: Pregnant Amy Schumer on Seth Meyers, Heidi Pratt and Kristin Cavallari, Lupita Nyong’o

Page 22: The Bachelorette alum Becca Kufrin and fiance Garrett Yrigoyen at Chippendales, Lucy Hale and Zane Holtz filming Katy Keene, Reese Witherspoon and son Tennessee

Page 24: Willow Smith, Miley Cyrus, Donnie Wahlberg filming Blue Bloods

Page 25: Ariana Grande

Page 26: Colton Underwood and Cassie Randolph

Page 28: Kids’ Choice Awards -- Will Smith gets slimed, Chris Pratt gets slimed, Adam Sandler gets slimed, DJ Khaled gets slimed, Frankie Grande

Page 29: Candace Cameron Bure and Andrea Barber and Jodie Sweetin, David Dobrik and Josh Peck and Kiernan Shipka, Taylen Biggs, Jojo Siwa, Jennifer Hudson, Lana Condor and Noah Centineo

Page 30: Cover Story -- Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s moving tribute to Princess Diana

Page 34: College Admissions Scandal -- Lori Loughlin’s daughter who lost sponsorships is blaming her parents and others of making her life hell and thinks everyone is just jealous

Page 35: Felicity Huffman’s daughter Sophia is mortified by the scandal and loves school and feels she didn’t do anything wrong

Page 36: Jessica Simpson’s baby joy over daughter Birdie Mae Johnson

Page 38: Gwen Stefani tells Blake Shelton she can’t marry him until she gets her marriage to Gavin Rossdale annulled by the Catholic Church

Page 40: Lady Gaga’s hot new romance with Jeremy Renner

Page 41: The truth behind Wendy Williams’ relapse, Selena Gomez dating a mystery man, Star Sightings -- Annalynne McCord, Cuba Gooding Jr.,Agnez Mo, Katherine Schwarzenegger, Casey Madden and Theresa Travis, Blind Item

Page 42: Jennifer Lopez wants a cheating clause in her prenup with Alex Rodriguez, Hailey Baldwin and Justin Bieber fighting because he won’t wear his wedding ring

Page 46: Julianne Hough on her marriage and big career news

Page 48: Their Best Summer Bodies -- Jennifer Lopez, Elizabeth Hurley, Julianne Hough, Halle Berry

Page 50: Fashion Radar -- Ashley Graham is a bold beauty

Page 54: Beauty -- Add flair to hair -- Dakota Fanning, Lupita Nyong’o, Kendall Jenner

Page 55: Jenna Ortega, Camila Mendes, Alexa Chung

Page 56: Did I Really Do That? Eva Green, Drake Bell, Lauren Ash

Page 58: Sneak Preview -- Keeping Up With the Kardashians

Page 60: What Team Are You On? Chad Johnson

Page 61: Blast from the Past -- The cast of 10 Things I Hate About You on its 20th anniversary -- Heath Ledger, Julia Stiles, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Larisa Oleynik, Gabrielle Union, Andrew Keegan, David Krumholtz, Susan May Pratt

Page 62: Animal Overload

Page 63: My cat looks like Kirsten Dunst

Page 64: My Night at Home -- Heather McDonald, Guess Whose Podcast -- Alec Baldwin, Anna Faris, Macaulay Culkin, Amy Schumer, Dax Shepard, Topher Grace

Page 66: Double Take -- Dwayne Wade and Gabrielle Union

Page 68: Horoscope -- Aries Sterling K. Brown

Page 70: Top 10 Hottest Williams -- Billy Eichner, Will Yun Lee, Billy Campbell, Billy Magnussen, Bill Skarsgard, Prince William, Will Chalker, Will Smith, William Levy, Liam Hemsworth

Page 72: Last Laughs

#tabloid #meghan markle #duchess meghan #prince harry #princess diana #jessica simpson #rami malek #mr. robot #miley cyrus

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thoughsofasun · 7 years

Text

Fall movie recommendations Part 2

This is part two of my fall movie suggestions...

Nightcrawler. 2014. Directed by Dan Gilroy. Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Rene Russo, Riz Ahmed.

Probably my favorite thriller of all time – it took me 30 minutes of siting alone and starring at a wall to process what had happened because I couldn’t believe it. It’s like seeing the world through the eyes of a crazy, obsessed person and you can’t get out of his head. The script and the direction blew me away and Jake’s Gyllenhaal’s performance is unreal…He’s so so good here, it’s worth seeing just for him.

Gone baby gone. 2007. Directed by Ben Affleck. Starring Casey Affleck, Michelle Monaghan, Morgan Freeman.

Another underrated movie that went under many people’s radar. But it’s filled with great performances by Casey Affleck (my love for him is growing everyday), Morgan Freeman and Michelle Monaghan as well as touching, beautiful yet haunting script with tons of quotable moments and a dilemma about family and morality.

Prisoners. 2013. Directed by Denis Villeneuve. Starring Hugh Jackman, Paul Dano, Jake Gyllenhaal.

This movie hasn’t left me since I watched it a few years back, it’s one of the most powerful films I’ve ever seen. That said this is a nearly 3 hour film about child abduction and it has a way to put you through the same emotions the parents go through. Meaning, it feels like you’re getting constantly punched (metaphorically). It’s superbly directed by Danis Villenueve and Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal portray the pain and desperation in a such realistic way. Exceptional turn out too…

Hard candy. 2005. Directed by David Slade. Starring Ellen Page, Patrick Wilson.

Hard Candy is shot in a way that immersed me instantly and didn’t let me look away when I wanted to. Definitely not something I’d re-watch because it’s very intense…

Zodiac. 2007. Directed by David Fincher. Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Robert Downey Jr., Mark Ruffalo.

Everyone loves Se7en, but fewer people have seen Zodiac, Fincher’s 2007 film. And this is a true story, based on events and people that exist. More specifically, on a real killer who actually lived and hasn’t been caught, the case is still open in California… This had me looking up the letters Zodiac send and trying to figure out who he was.

Brimstone. 2016. Directed by Martin Koolhoven. Starring Guy Pearce, Dakota Fanning.

This is one of those films you’ll have to talk with someone about. The experience was like having shock therapy, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing … Of course that’s not a bad thing but consider yourselves warned. There definitely were flaws yet if you’re looking for a western (kinda messed up western) it’s pretty good.

#movie recommendation #fall movies #cinema #film #halloween movies #thriller #zodiac #nightcrawler #brimstone #hard candy #prisoners #gone baby gone

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martyslittleusedblog · 7 years

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A Record of Wasteland’s Should-Be Residents, Locations, etc.

Credit to @wasteland-unused for doing the research! I’m hoping that if these ideas are all compiled into one place, it’ll be easier to think of a story involving them. There’s a lot of stuff, so look below the cut. They’re supposed to link to their respective pages, but something’s gone screwy with my blog’s theme...

Residents

The MixUps

Phoebe the SeaBee

Fear, Shame, and Ignorance

The Lost Boys

Zeke Holloway

Lucky, Madame Mim’s cousin

Atticus Thorn

Pink Elephants

Mousercise / Ossercise

Vermithrax Pejorative

Wienie

Toby Bear

Max Hare

Supai

The Hunter (from The Black Cauldron)

Major Domo and Minor Domo

The kid from A Cowboy Needs a Horse

Terrible Tom

Waldo C. Graphic

The robots from Modern Inventions

Blackbeard, the original central pirate captain in the Pirates of the Caribbean ride

Looking-Glass Land Chess Pieces

Double-O Duck (a prototype of Darkwing Duck)

The White Rabbit’s Monkey gardener

Moana’s nine brothers (and maybe prototype!Moana)

The Cape Dogs

Casey and his daughters, the Caseyettes

Scrapped Dumbo crow designs

Captain Hook? (the version from the Peter Pan peanut butter commercials)

Concept art Dash

The characters of Fun with Mr. Future (possibly including Mr. Future himself)

Snug the Pilot

Winnie the Pooh characters (jerkass comic versions)

The Broken Toys

Redfeather the Turkey

Creepy Thanksgiving parade floats (from the ‘70s!)

Eilonwy

The Argumentative Grasshopper

Neverland Mermaids

Scrapped worm-like monster from Hercules

Scrapped versions of Elsa and the Queen of Arendelle

The Music Box

Spink

Windwagon Smith and his love, Molly

The original Hatbox Ghost

Old King Cole (Would he still be a king? Because Oswald is king...)

Early version of Lady

Bucky Bug, June Bug, and Bo Bug

Early Captain Hook

The Magic Mirror

The Skeleton Crew from James and the Giant Peach

Nasira

Stromboli

The Fair Folk

The Horned King

Orddu, Orwen, and Orgoch

Patricia and Percy Pig

Mheetu

Clarice

Slimy the Weasel (as a Blotling)

Giant dinosaur mouse

Herbie the Love Bug

George Geef (and maybe Goofy Jr, too)

Push the Talking Trash Can

Expedition Everest’s animatronic yeti

Kat Nipp

Trudy van Tubb

Experiment 000 (Cyber)

Zeus / Jupiter and Vulcan (Fantasia versions)

Yeti animatronic

Fifi the Pekingese Dog

The mice in Great Guns and All Wet

Babkak, Omar, and Kassim

The Crows from Dumbo

Scrapped!Gaston(s?)

Brer Rabbit, Brer Fox, and Brer Bear from Song of the South (and Splash Mountain)

Keelhaul Pete

American folk tale characters (protagonists, primarily)

Fifinellas (female Gremlins) and Widgets (baby Gremlins)

Lyth

The Dreamfinder and Figment the Dragon

Drossel von Flügel and Gedächtnis

Master Control Program (MCP)

Rejected Sleeping Beauty fairies

Various obscure Disney robots

9-Eyes

Kopa

Sheriff Crabb

Rocky the Rhino

The Lion and the Unicorn

Woody Pride (scrapped version)

Inspector Javert (from That Missing Candelabra)

Yzma (scrapped version)

Francine “Fanny” Cottontail

Maleficent (scrapped versions, plus disguise!)

Julius the Cat

Belle’s extended family

Previously-scrapped Beetleworx

The pirates from the King Neptune short

The Mechanical Cow

Eega Beeva

Willie the Whale

J.P. Whiskers

Sora (scrapped version)

Miklos Mouse

Sylvester Shyster

Burrito

Señorita Cactus

The Mariachi Butterflies

Donna Duck

The Aracuan Bird

Miguelito Maracas

Scrapped Peter Pan pirates

Maximilian (already has a Beetleworx, but perhaps put the real one in?)

Elvira (and scrapped version of Edgar?)

The Fujitas

Banagi

Captain Gore and Priscilla

Scrapped “Drink Me” bottle

The White Knight

The Gryphon and the Mock Turtle

The Duchess and company

The Golden Harp?

Scrapped Dwarfs (with, um...certain exceptions...)

Bootleg Pete

Dentist Pete

Robin Williams lost boy from Back to Never Land

Lucky the Dinosaur

Sunflower and/or Otika

The Jabberwock

Characters from Mistress Masham’s Repose

Humphrey the Bear (He made a cameo in 2, apparently, but how about a proper appearance?)

Clara Cluck

The Nutcracker Sentries

Don Quixote

Arawn

Captain Cleaver

Gendarme

Locations

Wintertime Park

The Tick Tock Croc Aquarium

Oswald’s Barrel House

Mickey’s Kitchen (possibly re-opened in Wasteland as Oswald’s Kitchen)

Cannibal Cove/Pirates’ Cove

Mission to Mars

Videopolis

The factory on top of the beanstalk

The Walt Disney Story

“Disney’s America” (or, as I like to call it, Americaland)

World of Motion

El Rio Del Tiempo

Discovery Island (see here if you’re wondering about the Adventurer’s Club)

Pooh’s Playful Spot

River Country

Disney’s Dark Kingdom

Disneyland New York?

Time Keeper

Silent Film Stunt Show

Previously-scrapped Wonderland area

Back to Never Land

Demon Jungle

Beastly Kingdom

Music

Feed the Birds

Arabian Nights Reprise #1

Wherever You Are

Mickey Mouse Disco

We’re Gonna Get Outta this Dump

Chimpanzoo

Babkak, Omar, Aladdin, Kassim

Laughing Place

Proud of Your Boy

The Cinderella Work Song

Dancing on a Cloud

If You’ll Believe in Me

I’m Odd

Snuff Out the Light

Beyond the Laughing Sky (which may sound kind of familiar...)

Warrior Face

You’re Never Too Old to Be Young

Music in Your Soup

Beta Epic Mickey tracks (known so far)

Blue Oak Tree

Beware the Jabberwock

Dream Caravan

Misc.

World War II Insignias

Pack Mules?

Photo Cutouts

Booze

Duck Pimples

Cranium Command

Stitch’s Great Escape

Beacon of Souls

Mickey Mouse Club Circus

Flubber AKA Flying Rubber

Wind-Up Mickey Toy

The Star of Astoroth

Plaza Swan Boats and Mike Fink Keel Boats

Guns and other military equipment

Cigars

Scrapped Content from Epic Mickey

The characters, concepts, etc, from 10 scrapped Disney and Pixar films

The collar of the Cat from Outer Space

1930′s Horace X Clarabelle Valentine’s Day card

Mickey’s Army Uniform

Animatronic Hook’s Flying Ship

A very hurtful (to Oswald) quote from Walt (WARNING: angst)

Disney Animator Memorials

Tom Oreb “stylish” 50′s redesigns of classic Disney characters

Spectrobes

What’s this about ICP!?

Unproduced Disney TV shows

The magic sword from The Black Cauldron

The Golden Pelydryn

The Crypt

The Black Cauldron concept art by Tim Burton (potential Bog Easy Blotling ideas?)

The Great Movie Ride

Indicators of the fallen of Wasteland

Peter Pan’s Shadow (either a Pete Pan’s shadow or Blotlings resembling Peter Pan’s shadow)

The ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter

The Jug Pump

Disney Princess Academy

Blotlings inspired by The Army of the Dead from The Black Cauldron

Chernabog’s Minions (as Bog Easy Blotling designs)

Splashtacular

Maelstrom

America Sings

Polyps

More about Gremlins (Read the PDF of the book here!)

Pig Head / “Toonarooned”

Scrapped Blot ideas

Tapestry of Nations Parade

Creepy vintage Oswald merch

20′s slang

The Shadow King

Blot!Mickey (could be used for a Blot!Miklos or something)

More creepy vintage Mickey merch

Gas flares

#epic mickey #wastelandunused #creativity fuel #imagination fuel

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placetobenation · 4 years

Link

Dumbo

Release Date: October 23rd, 1941 (released October 31st nationally)

Inspiration: “Dumbo the Flying Elephant” by Helen Aberson and Harold Pearl

Budget: $950,000

Domestic Gross: $1.3 million

Worldwide Gross: $1.3 million

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 98%

IMDB Score: 7.2/10

Storyline (per IMDB): The stork delivers a baby elephant to Mrs. Jumbo, veteran of the circus, but the newborn is ridiculed because of his truly enormous ears and dubbed “Dumbo”. After being separated from his mother, Dumbo is relegated to the circus’ clown acts; it is up to his only friend, a mouse, to assist Dumbo to achieve his full potential.

Pre-Watching Thoughts: We move on now to the fourth film in the Disney canon which is another film that I might have seen only once or twice, and have not seen in quite a long time aside from the live action remake from earlier in the year. I always remember liking the film when I watched it, but again like I said it has been a long time since I last saw it so I will be looking at this with a pair of fresh eyes. This is another one that has been beloved for so long and after Fantasia being a bit of a disappointment, I’m hoping that Dumbo can turn things around after a strong start from Snow White and Pinocchio.

Voice Cast: So for the third film in a row not counting Fantasia obviously, we have a silent character in the film though unlike Snow White and Pinocchio where the silent character was a minor character, here the main character is silent. It seems like an interesting choice to have the main character not speak at all, but it does make some sense since he is supposed to be a baby. As for the main voice cast, we have Edward Brophy playing Timothy Q. Mouse which was interesting since he was known for playing gangsters in film, and while he wouldn’t appear in any other animated films he makes the most of this opportunity. We see a return here as Cliff Edwards comes back to voice Dandy Crow (formerly known as Jim Crow before being changed for obvious reasons), and it was interesting hearing the voice of Jiminy Cricket play this crow. We also see two future Disney stalwarts debut here as Verna Felton plays the elephant matriarch while also providing the voice for Mrs. Jumbo, and Sterling Holloway plays the stork that delivers Dumbo. Finally, we have Herman Bing who plays the Ringmaster and we have other minor actors that provide little dialogue, and while many of the characters don’t have many lines they do provide memorable moments.

Hero/Prince: This is an interesting category for this film as we definitely don’t have a prince here, but in some circles you can see Dumbo as the hero of the film. He is ostracized for having large ears and is shunned by his fellow elephants, and after a mishap he is demoted to being a clown and is the laughingstock of the circus while his mother is locked up when she tries to protect him from bullies who go after him. With the help of Timothy, he is able to discover that he can use his ears to fly and he becomes a national sensation which leads to his mother being freed and he becomes the star. It is a very basic story of the underdog overcoming the odds and Dumbo is easy to root for because you want him to succeed which he does in the end.

Princess: N/A

Villain: This is another interesting case in that we don’t have a real defined villain for this film and while there are those like the elephants that are mean to Dumbo, they never do anything to actually hurt him aside from disowning him as an elephant. The main person that is considered a villain at least in Disney’s eyes is the Ringmaster, who is portrayed as a greedy, arrogant man though he does appear to be genuine in wanting his circus to succeed. He is seemingly unsympathetic to Dumbo when he locks up his mother and then turns him into a clown, but after Dumbo shows he can fly he quickly changes his ways and makes Dumbo the star of his circus. So because he is not completely evil and ends up having a change of heart by the end of the film, he will rank very low on the list of Disney villains.

Other Characters: Dumbo is an interesting film in that we have a whole circus of animals, but we don’t interact with most of them aside from seeing them in a few random appearances. One example of that are the flock of storks that deliver all the babies aside from the final stork that delivers Dumbo, and he may seem like a slacker but he does take his job seriously. We then have the group of elephants who shun Dumbo because of his ears and eventually disown him as an elephant, but they change their ways when they see Dumbo fly and they finally accept him. Of course, we have Timothy Q. Mouse who takes a liking to Dumbo despite him being an elephant and he becomes Dumbo’s guiding light, and it is interesting seeing a mouse help an elephant given the common trope that elephants are scared of mice as Timothy and Dumbo become best friends. Finally, we have the crows at the end of at first laugh at the idea of an elephant flying until they learn of Dumbo’s plights and they quickly become his friends, but these crows have been subject to controversy as many thought they were a stereotype of African Americans. Considering that these characters would have to carry the dialogue given that the main character doesn’t speak at all, they do a good job and help carry the film and its plot.

Songs: After Fantasia which had various orchestral songs, we come back to normal here as Dumbo features a number of songs with a few of them that are still pretty memorable to this day. We start off with “Look Out for Mr. Stork” and “Casey Junior” which were pretty short and sweet, and then we had the “Song of the Roustabouts” that is performed as everyone is building the circus which is fitting since it feels like a song to play while you work. We then had the trifecta of memorable songs the film is remembered for starting off with Mrs. Jumbo’s ballad “Baby Mine”, which is a nice song to hear as she talks about her love for Dumbo. We then have the iconic “Pink Elephants on Parade” which is not so much about the song, but rather the animated sequence that accompanies it which is very memorable. Finally, we have the crows singing “When I See An Elephant Fly” which starts as a mocking song, but then turns around when they help Dumbo learn how to fly. While the last three songs are the main songs remembered from this film, all of the songs are fitting for the film and the theming of the circus atmosphere.

Plot: So the plot of Dumbo is in of itself pretty basic as Dumbo is shunned by everyone for his ears, and with the help of Timothy he is able to overcome the odds and becomes a star because of his ears and his ability to fly. He has a lot of negativity thrown his way from the elephants who disown him and turn their backs on him, to the Ringmaster who feels Dumbo is only good for being a clown while also throwing his mother into a cage when she tried to protect him. Dumbo is a very easy character to sympathize with because of his plights and you are rooting for him to overcome the odds, and he is the perfect example of the lovable underdog who comes out on top in the end. Again while the plot might seem pretty basic on the surface, sometimes those are the best ones as you want to see Dumbo succeed in the end and when he does it is a great moment to see and that is why the film is pretty memorable.

Random Watching Thoughts: Always very nostalgic seeing the RKO Radio Pictures logo in these early films; Only with Disney can the stork get his own theme song; That’s a pretty detailed map of Florida; Thinking ahead of the short where the clouds create babies out of clouds, I wonder if these storks came from those clouds and these baby animals were made from those clouds; How do the storks know what animals are expecting and how did they forget about Mrs. Jumbo?; I honestly don’t remember if I ever went to the circus though part of me thinks I did when I was a kid; Even the train has his own theme song; Of course Mrs. Jumbo’s baby is delivered by the stork that always looks like he’s running late, though in his defense having to carry Dumbo must be a burden; This stork really takes his job seriously with how long he takes to deliver this baby; Honestly, how could you not fall in love with Dumbo?; That quartet of elephants are the 1940s equivalent of the Plastics for you Mean Girls fans; Casey Jr. must’ve been inspired by the “Little Engine that Could” because he goes “I think I can” when he climbs up the hill and “I thought I could” when he goes down; Is it considered cruelty towards animals by having them help assemble the circus, especially in a thunderstorm?; Since when did a circus have their own parade because I don’t remember that; Ironic that a kid with big ears himself is making fun of the elephant with big ears; It’s hard to tell if Dumbo was actually having fun or if he doesn’t know better since Mrs. Jumbo tried to take him away; Can you blame Mrs. Jumbo for going after the kid when he was pulling at her baby’s ears, and yet the Ringmaster calls her mad and has her chained down which was way too excessive; Poor Dumbo just had his mother caged up and the other elephants basically say it’s his fault; Props to Timothy for seeing Dumbo as just a normal elephant and you can’t say the elephants didn’t have it coming when he scared them; Those are either the lightest elephants in the world or the strongest poles and ropes ever to hold them up; I love how Timothy tries to use the peanut to draw Dumbo out of the haystack not realizing that he can just use his trunk to suck the peanut away; Timothy could’ve easily been a great personal motivator; What was the Ringmaster drinking or smoking when he came up with the idea of having a pyramid of elephants?; I love Timothy sneaking around towards the Ringmaster’s tent trying to make sure no one see him when he’s so small he could barely been seen in daylight; It would be funny if this scene of Timothy whispering to the Ringmaster was the inspiration for those subminimal motivation tapes; So he originally wanted a pyramid of 17 elephants, but realizes that because he only has 7 he has to make do; That is the strongest ball in the world to be able to hold all those elephants; You have to wonder if they thought this could actually work given how high the pyramid was which means Dumbo would’ve had to have gotten a giant jump off the springboard to reach the top; I can’t believe they lasted on the ball as long as they did after Dumbo accidentally hit it; I wonder if there have been any real life cases of a big top collapsing from some sort of freak accident; I never noticed this before, but the one elephant is using a steak as an eyepatch; I love how the clowns just willingly put Dumbo on top of a burning building even though they know he’s still a baby; It’s a good thing those clowns aren’t real firefighters because they would absolutely suck at their job; I love the clowns celebrating their act going over really well this time because it obviously means they sucked the previous times; It is pretty sad hearing Mrs. Jumbo sing “Baby Mine” while being confined and not able to see Dumbo; I wonder if the one clown actually thinks elephants are made of rubber or he just said it because he’s drunk; I never knew that crying would lead to getting the hiccups; That must be some strong champagne or Dumbo is a real lightweight since he doesn’t seem to drink that much and yet gets drunk; Considering the controversy we will see in just a little bit, I’m surprised there wasn’t any backlash with showing Dumbo and Timothy getting drunk; The “Pink Elephants on Parade” scene looks like something that would’ve been made in the 1970s and not the 1940s, and if it was the 70s Dumbo and Timothy would be on an acid trip and not drunk on champagne; That’s a pretty tall tree for Dumbo to have flown up into especially if he was drunk; I am glad that they kept the crows in the film considering how many think them to be racist, but honestly it’s not that bad considering other things that have been depicted in films that are far worse than this; It’s hard not to get into when the crows sing “When I See An Elephant Fly”; It is funny how the crows tease Dumbo until they find out about what happened to him and his mother which leads them to change their ways rather quickly; Of all the things to use to help Dumbo fly, they pick one little feather from one of the crows; How freaking high did they make that building because the tent didn’t look that big from the outside; I love how Timothy tells him that the feather was just a gag when Dumbo only used it once; Of all the things Dumbo could’ve done to the elephants, he just shoots peanuts at them; $1 million is a lot of money to be insured to Dumbo’s ears; I forgot how short this movie is as I was getting into it, but then it ends rather abruptly.

Overall Thoughts: Overall, Dumbo ended up being a pretty good film that was significantly better than Fantasia, but to me it didn’t quite make it to the same level as Snow White and Pinocchio. This was an interesting time for Disney as they were coming off the financial disappointment of Fantasia and there was also an animator’s strike that took place during the making of the film, but Disney was able to survive it and Dumbo was a pretty successful film though its small budget was a major help as well. The world was in a state of shambles as well with World War II having broken out and we were two months away from what would be the attack on Pearl Harbor, so the next few years were going to be a tumultuous time for Disney and the USA as a whole. We will see how the next few films can do and if they can keep Disney alive during the war, and as for Dumbo it is a good film that still stands up to this day as a feel good film and a fun time for families.

Final Grade: 7.5/10

#IFTTT #Place to Be Nation

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junker-town · 6 years

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5 NBA teams that should beat Vegas’ over/under lines

We feel pretty good that Vegas is underrating these five teams.

One of the best ways to see what the consensus view of a team going into the NBA season to consider where oddsmakers set the win total over-under line. This can be a little misleading for some teams with huge fan bases, whose outsized propensity to aim high may push those lines to a bigger number than warranted. But for normal teams — not the Lakers, not the Knicks — it’s a solid indicator of where the majority thinks a team will end up.

Of course, no one really knows. The NBA is ruled by injuries and trades: huge in-season shakeups that tilt the expectations game until it (often) topples over. As such, it’s risky to think you know what’s going to happen in an unpredictable setting. But since injuries happen nearly at random and in-season trades typically have minimal immediate on-court effects, baking in assumptions about those events is impossible. So you just roll with it.

After looking at the current win total over-under lines, here are five teams that look poised to exceed their numbers — barring one of those critical injuries or a surprising trade.

Pistons (37.5 wins)

Why they’ll beat the line: Detroit won 39 games last season despite having Blake Griffin for only 25 games. He’s the best player on the roster, and if healthy, one of the best players in the weakened Eastern Conference.

The Pistons went 8-4 down the stretch once Reggie Jackson returned from injury, with Griffin missing most of those games. Of course, this is not the first time the Pistons finished strong with Jackson after the season was sunk in part due to a Jackson injury. It’s kind of a thing the Pistons do.

The Pistons also have a new coach in Dwane Casey who just might be able to break the spell of mediocrity that has set in. He did it in Toronto years ago. Detroit would beg for that type of playoff disappointment, because it would mean they were back in the playoffs regularly.

What could go wrong: Griffin has missed at least 15 games every season since 2013-14, and he’ll turn 30 last this season. Jackson has suffered costly injuries in each of the past two seasons. Andre Drummond is reliable in terms of health, but it remains to be seen whether a frontcourt starring him and Griffin can be effective in 2018. There is like no shooting on this team. There’s not much depth after the Griffin trade, either.

Rockets (55.5 wins)

Why they’ll beat the line: Houston won 65 games last year! They didn’t need to — they ran away with the No. 1 seed — but they did. And that was with James Harden missing 10 games and Chris Paul missing 24.

If those guys miss more games, then the under on this 55.5-game line is in play. But that’s a big assumption. Otherwise, they won 65 games last year! Trevor Ariza wasn’t that important.

What could go wrong: The other risk to worry over here is complacency. That 41-41 season that preceded Mike D’Antoni’s arrival in Houston — that began with an offseason Harden injury and never got on track — is the stuff of nightmares. Something tells me CP3 won’t let the Rockets wallow in their own regrets if things get difficult, but we’ve seen it happen to Harden-led teams before. It’s something to keep an eye on.

The other risk here is that by the time March rolls around, the Warriors are so far ahead in the race for No. 1 and no one is in sight of No. 2 (like last season), that Houston coasts down the home stretch and finishes with 53, 54, or 55 wins. That’d be tough to swallow.

Spurs (44.5 wins)

Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

Why they’ll beat the line: This is the craziest line of all. The Spurs haven’t failed to win more than 44 games since 1998-99. That’s 20 years of winning well more than 44.5 games, including 47 last season. Yes, the team traded away Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green, lost Tony Parker in free agency, and lost Manu Ginobili to retirement. But Leonard played just nine games last season, the Spurs picked up an All-NBA guard in DeMar DeRozan in the trade, and San Antonio still has a core of effective veterans in LaMarcus Aldridge, Pau Gasol, Rudy Gay, and Patty Mills.

Plus, there’s the Gregg Popovich factor. He could get a G-League team 45 wins in the NBA.

What could go wrong: If DeRozan struggles to find his flow in San Antonio, without a veteran point guard and trusted co-star to help him along, that could be rough. Aldridge could regress; Gasol could finally look old. (He’s 38.) The point guard situation is a little troubling, though Mills is really quite effective. The Spurs’ margin for error has clearly decreased. The West is even stronger.

But come on. It’s the Spurs!

Grizzlies (33.5 wins)

Why they’ll beat the line: This is a pretty low projected win total for the Grizzlies, but it’s still 11.5 games higher than Memphis’ actual win total from last season. A persistent Mike Conley injury and a locker room implosion turned into a legit tank job for the Grizzlies last season, resulting in a 22-win campaign. Conley is back, though, and everyone seems to like promoted coach J.B. Bickerstaff.

Memphis had 22 wins last season, but had exceeded 40 victories in each of the previous eight. Given the relative roster stability — at least when it comes to the team’s two stars — which do you think is the aberration? The beautiful part about taking the over on Memphis is that they don’t even have to get to 40: only teams that flat-out tanked and the Brooklyn Nets finished with fewer than 34 wins last season. A lot would have to go sideways for the Grizzlies to tank again.

What could go wrong: Marc Gasol is 33, Conley is soon to be 31, and unless Chandler Parsons is back (unlikely), there’s like almost no other offensive firepower on this roster. (They even lost Tyreke Evans!) An injury to one of the stars is devastating on a level bigger than for most other teams in Memphis’ range. So that’s a concern.

Bulls (28.5 wins)

Why they’ll beat the line: The Baby Bulls won 27 games last year while trying to tank. They added Jabari Parker and perhaps the most NBA-ready rookie in Wendell Carter Jr.. Chicago will have a full season (we think) of Zach LaVine. They have Lauri Markkanen! The Parker signing in free agency was a tell that the Bulls aren’t interested in competing with the Hawks for the worst record in the league. The East playoff race is pretty open, and historically the Bulls would rather make the playoffs as a low seed than get a lottery pick. And 29 wins is a really low hurdle to clear.

What could go wrong: What if getting LaVine back for the full season isn’t a net plus? What if Parker continues to struggle to stay on the court? What if the LaVine-Parker combo with Kris Dunn at the point is just a little too anachronistic to work in today’s NBA? What if the Fred Hoiberg era blows up and we get 65 games with an interim coach? What if the start is so rough that this ends up being another tank year? What if Carter plays like a rookie, and Markkanen has a sophomore slump with LaVine and Parker sucking oxygen away?

What if the Bull don’t actually know what they’re doing?

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