Monday, October 03, 2005

The Greatest...








There is so much that can be said about this man - his total respect for others - his complete love of family - his kindness and gentility in all situations... and his grand sense of humor. But all I need to say is... he was the greatest person I have ever met in this life!

Yo

21 comments:

Buttercup said...

He does look like an amazing person. What is better to look back at someone's life and say that they are truely exceptional. Be proud of your family and your hertiage. We now know where you and Josh get your admirable qualities from.
We love you and your family so let us know if there is anything that you can do.

Damfino said...

Did - Done.

Thanks for the flowers and all of the comments here!

I hope you are feeling better Miss Buttercup... I plan on causin some trouble over there this weekend.

Sheriff Officer Greg the Bunny said...

Well said Buttercup. We expect to be regailed with wonderful tales this weekend about the life and times of your grandfather while we sip Gin and Tonics on the deck or by the fir pit...your call!


sheriff out

Damfino said...

You kats rule!

My cousin and I destroyed ourselves this weekend - found a nice little british pub by my house... $40 worth of black and tans and a jeger shot. Then we attacked my bottle of gin fun at home.

Poor Jeremy did not even know what hit him.

Kern said...

Jed-Great pictures, mate. For some reason the last one strikes me as being very Paul Newman-esque which is a high compliment in my book. I think it's awesome that you were able to know someone that touched your life in such a profound way.

I only wish I had that kind of relationship with my grandparents.

PS-Good to see you back, old friend.

Damfino said...

Grandpa always made me think of Jimmy Stewart - but as I look at the images of his youth - Newman does come to mind.

Got out to see "a History of Violence."

Kern said...

Nice. Did you see my review?

Sheriff Officer Greg the Bunny said...

Being a bit of a sports geek I am amazed that the basketball photo shows not only black american player but it also appears that the coach was black. Progressive goings on in the early 1940's.

Bravo Iowa.

Kern said...

Good call, Sheriff, I noticed that as well.

Is it my imagination, or did Drake also have one of the first integrated football teams in the country as well? I watched a documentary that talked about it. Supposedly the opposing team went after the black player with the full intention of injuring him so badly he'd never be able to play again.

Damfino said...

What docu was that? My grandfather QB'd for Drake in... 43?

Damfino said...

Just read your review Kern. I was not as thrilled with Cronenberg this time around.

He has always handled actors with a certain degree of distanciation. This has always bothered me... and since he has tackled a film that needs strong characters to "sell" the emotions and absurdity of the plot - his cold acting direction really hinders things.

In fact, his shooting style also tends to flatten the film - drawing attention to movement or lack... or framing.. never fully allowing the viewer to be drawn in.

Specifically, Marie Bello (sp) in the scene at the hospital where she breaks down. His framing of Edie (small in large frame) distances the viewer - making the scene feel like a play read. Also, the first shot of the film (which I enjoyed in a filmic sense... but it did not help the film) really shows you exactly how Cronenberg directs... the acting... the camera movement... the pauses... In its own way, it shows the flaws and potential of the film.

William Hurt's portrayal was also questionable - Mortensen did well - if not a little lacking in some areas that could have been mined for interesting resluts (and his final scenes did not relay any new information or reaction to events).

The reviews are on... *** out of ***** is usually about right... worth viewing but not essential Cronenberg.

Sheriff Officer Greg the Bunny said...

But does any chick get NAKED!



ahhhh Venice!


bunny out

Damfino said...

Full frontal on Bello. So theres that.

Kern said...

Sheriff-Some good skin shots.

Jed-I can see your points. I have to say that what I wrote was me taking the more positive things I saw into account. There were other things about the film that did bother me to some degree, and I could have been a little more even handed. Chuckled at William Hurt, but I felt that the whole thing was a little odd. As much as I liked the aspects I talked about, I had the nagging sense that much of the narrative had been cobbled together in a fashion, and it did slightly bug me.

Kern said...

Also, the doc I saw had to do with sports journalism and the thing with Drake was captured on film by these two guys who were filming the game. I think it was something they caught on film, and they made a big story about it using the individual frames to show in the paper what had actually occurred.

Damfino said...

Tell me the name of the doc!! My grandpa did mention they had a black guy on the team!

Kern said...

Jed, it wasn't so much of a documentary but a show on the history channel or something. I'll see if I can figure it out. I don't remember the year, but I could have sworn that the black man from the team went on to be a track coach for Drake. I think.

Kern said...

Jed!!! I found something!

Johnny Bright Incident

Hope this is a good jumping off point.

Kern said...

Jed, found the name of the doc. It was a ninety minute special on TNT called Moment of Impact.

It was good stuff. The two guys who caught the footage worked for the DM Register, and they won a Pulitzer in photojournalism for the expose. It also changed safety rules from there on out.

Damfino said...

Kern - you rule.

Looks like Johnny Bright played two years after my grandfather... but this could be a good way to see if any footage exists from his games.

Thanks man.

Kern said...

My pleasure. If it helps I think you can get the tape of that doc in Drake's library, though you may be able to get that at ISU's as well, I am not quite sure.

It would be extremely cool to see if there's any footage of your grandfather though.