"The Road Not Taken"

Hugh Hewitt on the Republicans' missed opportunities.

It all started with the Gang of 14...

New on DVD: Rodgers & Hammerstein Musicals

Yesterday saw the release of some spectacular Rodgers and Hammerstein musical DVDs: 50th Anniversary Editions of CAROUSEL (subject link) and THE KING AND I, as well as special Collector's Editions of SOUTH PACIFIC and
FLOWER DRUM SONG.

CAROUSEL, THE KING AND I, and SOUTH PACIFIC are all two-disc editions. CAROUSEL also contains the film version of the play LILIOM, which was the inspiration for the musical. THE KING AND I has a fun extra, the 1972 TV pilot for the short-lived series starring Yul Brynner and Samantha Eggar; Eggar provides a commentary. And SOUTH PACIFIC contains both a longer "road show" release as well as the regular theatrical release. All four films contain commentary tracks and other extras.

If you missed last year's anniversary releases of OKLAHOMA!, STATE FAIR, and THE SOUND OF MUSIC, you can buy all the titles except FLOWER DRUM SONG in a single boxed set.

For more DVD goodness, I recommend visiting The Shelf, which has posted an extensive rundown of other recent exciting DVD releases.

Onward

Last night was a discouraging night for conservatives, to put it mildly.

The possible loss of the Senate is a particular blow, as it will greatly impede President Bush's ability to confirm another Supreme Court justice who will uphold the Constitution rather than legislate from the bench.

We've lived under a Democrat President or Democrat Congress before, of course, but not since 9/11. That makes the stakes much more sobering.

However, as I posted the other day, "que sera, sera." What's done is done, and now conservatives must buck up and move onward. As John Hinderaker points out (subject link), part of the problem may have been Republicans not acting as conservatives. The Senate's lackadaisical attitude toward confirming judges in recent years is a real lost opportunity. And liberals have won, in part, by attempting to conceal their liberalism.

The role of the mainstream media and false advertising (i.e., Michael J. Fox) is also something that bears further evaluation and future strategizing.


Republicans lost in 1976, yet went on to unprecedented success under Ronald Reagan. It's time for evaluation, regrouping, and marching forward to win another day.

Update: Rush Limbaugh this morning: "Republicans lost last night, conservatism did not."

It's Time to VOTE!!

Final Election Analysis from Jim Geraghty, including input from his advisor Obi-Wan, who says:

"...we can't completely rule out the possibility of the Democrats still winning the House and having a good night. But there is a big, clear wave breaking the Republicans' way in just about every competitive race coast to coast, and it could mean results very, very different from what the Washington crowd expected."

John McIntyre's final projections at Real Clear Politics also give reason to hope.

For now we wait...

Visit The Truth Laid Bear later in the day for updated race-by-race results.

Update: Rumors and rumblings throughout the day can be found at The Corner.

TV Tonight: Directed by John Ford (1971/2006)

If you're looking for a respite from election news this evening, TCM is showing a newly updated version of Peter Bogdanovich's famed 1971 documentary, DIRECTED BY JOHN FORD. The documentary features interviews with John Wayne, James Stewart, and Henry Fonda, as well as Ford himself.

I taped this on Beta when it aired on PBS a quarter-century ago. According to the L.A. Times (subject link), the new material includes audio of a conversation between Katharine Hepburn and Ford in his final days.

More here and here.

Looking forward to seeing this new version.

Cheaper By the Dozen Author Dies at 98

Ernestine Gilbreth Carey, who cowrote CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN and BELLES ON THEIR TOES with her brother, Frank Gilbreth Jr., has passed away at age 98.

The books were memorably filmed, with Clifton Webb and Myrna Loy as the parents of the Gilbreth dozen, in 1950 and 1952. (CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN was also, of course, not so memorably filmed with Steve Martin, who has starred in remakes of two films released in 1950. Can you name the other?)

More from the AP via the San Jose Mercury News.

If you haven't yet met the Gilbreth family in print, I highly recommend these wonderful, very funny books.

Remember '04 Exit Polls -- and Vote!

The networks plan to begin disseminating exit polling data in their newsrooms at 5:00 p.m. Eastern time Tuesday, which is just 2:00 p.m. in the West. Shortly after that we can count on early poll results leaking to Drudge and the rest of the media.

It's important for voters to remember how very wrong the exit polling was in '04. Some reporting of exit polls may also be intended to demoralize conservative voters; similarly, conservatives should not be fooled into skipping voting by optimistic numbers.

I remember well turning on Brit Hume and Co. the afternoon of Election Day of '04, and conservative pundits like Barnes and Kristol were sober and filled with doom and gloom. And of course, even on a "fair and balanced" network like Fox, they were wrong. Current polling is simply not a reliable tool, and they are used by some to attempt to manipulate the news.

It's critical that Republicans ignore any exit polls, good or bad, and simply VOTE.

The Wind is Shifting

The polls are swinging in the direction of Republicans as we approach Tuesday's election. Whether it's a genuine shift or the polls finally having hit The Donaldson Line and having to come back to reality to avoid, in Hugh Hewitt's words, "being Zogbied," or a combination of the above, who knows, but it's happening.

Jim Geraghty, as always, has all the latest analysis (subject link). Captain's Quarters has more.

Earlier today John McIntyre at Real Clear Politics said: "Keep an eye on the Gallup generic ballot number coming out tonight, if it shows movement similar to the ABC/WP poll there could be a big surprise brewing for many people cocooned in Washington." Well, there was movement, to the tune of 6 points. More from McIntyre here.

TV pundits are still full of doom and gloom for Republicans, especially the House, while the blogosphere is quite chipper, which brings us back to John Podhoretz's concept of Main Stream Media Time vs. Blog Time.

Podhoretz says tonight that we may possibly be seeing the end of polling as we've known it: "If Republicans hang on to the House and Senate, it won't mean that these new polls measured any real change. It will mean, instead, that all the polling in this midterm election was garbage — that, indeed, polling is in a crisis because it can no longer measure anything specific owing to the increasing sophistication and annoyance of Americans dealing with telephone solicitors." More of his thoughts at the link.

Dean Barnett, posting at Hugh Hewitt's site, predicts the Republicans will retain control of both the House and the Senate. Barnett, recalling the wildly incorrect exit polling of 2004, believes the polls have been off all along and that elections can no longer be predicted based on past methodology: "I’m officially out on the limb. But I’m comfortable here. The paradigm has shifted. People like Stu Rothenberg are like old generals re-fighting the last war; they’re re-analyzing the last election without realizing that certain key facts on the ground have changed. This will all be much more obvious on Wednesday in retrospect than it is today."

I like his thinking.

And if Rahm Emanuel is nervous, I'm happy.

Que sera, sera...

Monday Update: More enthusiasm today from Dean Barnett.

Rush Limbaugh made a point today along the lines that even if the past polls were accurate -- which he doesn't believe -- what was their point over the last months if it was all going to change going into Election Day? They were meaningless. The point, of course, was to demoralize Republicans and attempt to drive the news rather than report the news.

Tonight's Movie: Call Northside 777 (1948)

This weekend I caught James Stewart's CALL NORTHSIDE 777 for the first time. Stewart plays a journalist looking into whether a man was wrongly convicted of murder 11 years previously. The film was based on a true story and filmed in semi-documentary style at many of the actual locations in Illinois.

The movie reminded me of another film I recently enjoyed, Richard Widmark's PANIC IN THE STREETS. In each film someone outside the police force is unexpectedly thrust into the role of detective and finds himself hunting for critical witnesses in an unsavory part of town. Each was filmed on location in realistic settings, and each featured non-actors in small roles. The polygraph examiner in CALL NORTHSIDE 777, for instance, plays himself.

The movie provides an interesting peek into the time it was made, particularly in its focus on technology such as polygraph testing, miniature cameras, and wire transmittal of photographs. Stewart's wife, played by Helen Walker, smoking in her (twin) bed in the middle of the night was another brief moment particularly reflective of the film's era.

James Stewart is always a pleasure to watch, and this film was no exception. He was supported by Lee J. Cobb as his editor and Richard Conte as the convicted murderer. The movie was directed by Henry Hathaway. It was filmed in black and white and has a running time of 111 minutes.

CALL NORTHSIDE 777 is available on DVD as No. 2 in the Fox Film Noir series. Extras on the DVD include a commentary track along with a trailer and newsreel about the film's premiere.

This film is also available on video; the trailer and premiere newsreel are included on the video.

Mark Steyn on John Kerry

Mark Steyn is such a clever, witty writer, I don't know how he manages to be as prolific as he is.

One of his best points: "Whatever he may or may not have intended...what Kerry said fits what too many upscale Dems believe: that America's soldiers are only there because they're too poor and too ill-educated to know any better. That's what they mean when they say 'we support our troops' – they support them as victims, as children, as potential welfare recipients, but they don't support them as warriors, and they don't support the mission."

Ouch.

And the conclusion: "The Left still doesn't understand that it's the soldier who guarantees every other profession – the defeatist New York Times journalist, the anti-American college professor, the insurgent-video-of-the-day host at CNN, the hollow, preening blowhard senator. Kerry's gaffe isn't about one maladroit Marie Antoinette of the Senate but a glimpse into the mindset of too many Americans."

As always with Mr. Steyn, it's worthwhile to read every paragraph of his column.

Your Sunday Feel Good Read

An anonymous donor has paid 5 million dollars to name the basketball court at USC's new Galen Center after Jim Sterkel, a long-forgotten Trojan player of the '50s.

I won't spoil the hows and whys by sharing the details here, but whether you're a sports fan, a USC fan, or none of the above, you'll appreciate this celebration of a "regular guy" who was a good husband, father, and friend.

Jim's wife said, "He was such a good husband, such a good man, but do people really notice those things anymore?"

They do indeed. The article and Jim Sterkel serve as a reminder for all of us of the theme of IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE: that while we're here each of us has the power to impact others for good.

Tonight's Movie: The Racket (1951)

THE RACKET begins with a classic film noir shot of a car traveling through dark city streets as the opening credits roll. Thus the viewer is plunged into an absorbing crime drama.

The film stars Robert Mitchum and Robert Ryan, two actors for whom I have steadily increasing appreciation. Mitchum plays an incorruptible police captain, while Ryan plays Mitchum's nemesis, a slightly deranged gangster. Both men have charisma to spare.

Turner Classic Movies' apt review: "Mitchum forever looks like he needs a big cup of black coffee. But he casually burns a hole in the screen... Ryan and Mitchum bounce moments off of each other like old pros; some viewers might even feel that Ryan walks away with the picture."

The cast also includes Lizabeth Scott and three actors who would later appear on a couple of TV's most famous crime shows: Ray Collins and William Talman of PERRY MASON and a young William Conrad, the future CANNON.

It's a solid, well-crafted film. My only complaint was that one character's doomed end could be anticipated from an early point in the film; less predictability would have been nice.

The movie was filmed in black and white and runs 88 minutes.

THE RACKET was produced by Howard Hughes and directed by John Cromwell, whose best films included classic weepers such as MADE FOR EACH OTHER and IN NAME ONLY. According to IMDb, Nicholas Ray and Mel Ferrer also had a hand in the film's direction. Hughes was notorious for tinkering with his films, so I'll be curious to learn more about their apparent participation when I listen to the commentary track.

THE RACKET is available on DVD as part of the Film Noir Classic Collection, Vol. 3. The commentary is by film noir expert Eddie Muller. (Muller's previous track for FALLEN ANGEL was excellent.) Unusually for a Warner DVD, the film's trailer is not included with the extras, but it can be viewed at TCM's website here.

Update: THE RACKET has been reissued on DVD by the Warner Archive.

2025 Update: THE RACKET is now available on Blu-ray from the Warner Archive. My review of the Blu-ray may be read here.

More Memories of Luke and Laura

The L.A. Times ran a fascinating article today on the detective work involved putting together this month's SoapNet tribute to GENERAL HOSPITAL'S long-running couple, Luke and Laura. The producers of the upcoming clip show and Thanksgiving marathon had to venture to underground vaults in Pennsylvania to hunt down the original copies of the show's classic episodes.

I have more Luke and Laura (and Robert, Anna, Frisco and Felicia) episodes on Beta videotape than I would probably care to admit (grin), but I don't have the earliest episodes, which predate my first VCR, acquired in the summer of 1980. I've about convinced myself to order the digital cable package which includes SoapNet, at least for this month, so I can record their Thanksgiving Day L&L nostalgia festival.

My favorite Luke and Laura episodes: Laura's first "return from the dead" in the fall of 1983. That storyline remains among my fondest TV viewing memories.

Anyone else recall the Christopher Cross song "Think of Laura" which was used as background music in those 1983 shows? I came across a wonderful (if slightly blurry) montage on YouTube which has clips of L&L set to that music. It will move anyone who was a GH fan over the last quarter century. Check it out. :)

For more memories of Luke and Laura, see my previous post.

Noonan on Santorum

A good read on one of our best conservative senators.

For Classic Film DVD Fans

The names Drew Casper and Richard Jewell may not be well known to the general public, but any fan of classic movies on DVD probably knows these gentlemen due to their steady participation in documentaries and commentaries. Just last night I saw Casper in the featurette on my newly arrived copy of CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF.

Casper and Jewell are both cinema professors at USC, where my daughter is fortunate to be taking Casper's highly regarded "Introduction to Cinema" class this semester.

USC has posted on its website a very interesting article on Casper, Jewell, and another professor, Todd Boyd, whose commentary work I haven't yet heard. If you love watching DVD extras, you will enjoy reading this piece.

These gentlemen, along with other favorites like Rudy Behlmer and Jeanine Basinger, add so much to the DVD experience, providing viewers with "film school in a box." As Jewell says, their DVD work has historic value. I certainly hope that their concerns about the commentary format and extras not surviving in a future age of downloading come to naught.

Hugh Hewitt on the MSM and Kerry

A superb piece by Hugh Hewitt on the MSM coverage of the Kerry debacle. Many in the media have attempted to defend Kerry, insisting he didn't say what he said and had not insulted the military. And you've got to love Mark Halperin of ABC News telling Hugh Hewitt the other day that members of the military weren't "necessarily the best arbiters" of Kerry's sense of humor.

In Halperin's eyes, the Washington elites and media members can figure out what Kerry meant, but not those he criticized. Guess Halperin thinks members of the military are dumb, too.

Like Hugh, my traffic was way up yesterday. Everything's relative (Hugh's traffic was over 125,000 Wednesday!) but it was obvious to me as well, at this small blog, that the blogosphere was buzzing Wednesday. Yet while the story was humming on the Internet and talk radio, the old media treated it quite differently.

While the New York Post ran the now-famous photo rebuttal from the Minnesota National Guard on their front cover, I wonder how many papers ignored the photo? It certainly wasn't on the front page of the L.A. Times today -- nor was it on Page A15, where the Times buried the details of the Kerry story which led to record Internet traffic. One more example of an "industry willing its own destruction," to slightly paraphrase Hewitt. Page A15?!

On Page A1 the Times featured a more generic article on "foot in mouth itis" which gave the paper a chance to slam George Allen in Paragraphs 2 and 3. The paper had their page priorities completely reversed; the Page 1 story was the "sidebar" which should have run on the inside of the paper, while the story from A15 was the real "news."

Power Line has more on that great photo, including a letter from the father of a young lady who is in the photo. As Hewitt wrote, "Ridicule is the best revenge."

Thursday Afternoon Update: Don't miss this piece by Patterico, in which he points out that the New York Times not only buried the story, they flat out lied about what Kerry said.

Beauty and the Beast TV Series Coming to DVD

The relatively short-lived but highly regarded, fondly remembered TV series BEAUTY AND THE BEAST is coming to DVD next February. The show, which aired from 1987 to 1990, starred Linda Hamilton, Ron Perlman, Roy Dotrice, and the late Edward Albert.

If BEAUTY AND THE BEAST is coming to DVD, perhaps there is hope for HOMEFRONT, which has many fans eagerly waiting for its release on DVD. If HOMEFRONT leading man Kyle Chandler's new show FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS catches on, perhaps that will increase the chances of a HOMEFRONT release.

If you're one of those longing to see HOMEFRONT again, you can go to Homefront on DVD and sign the petition.

Kerry Keeps Digging the Hole Deeper

Senator Kerry's press release today, in part: "I sincerely regret that my words were misinterpreted to wrongly imply anything negative about those in uniform, and I personally apologize to any service member, family member, or American who was offended."

Once again, it's the fault of those who "misinterpreted" the actual words he said and are "wrongly implying" the meaning of his words.

There's no "implying" about it. As Michael Barone said on TV last night: "The words say what they said."

Incidentally, how could the "joke" be about President Bush being poorly educated, anyway? The man has a Harvard MBA on top of his Yale degree. And what's funny is Kerry's own college grades were pretty poor, even taking into account modern-day college grade inflation. Kerry's attempted excuse makes no sense even if taken at face value.

Kerry needs to quit blaming others and apologize for his actual statement.

"Pelosi's Unintelligent Choice"

Recently I posted about the scary prospect of Nancy Pelosi choosing Alcee Hastings to head the House Intelligence Committee in the event of a Democrat takeover of the House. Hastings was convicted of bribery and removed from serving as a federal judge.

Ruth Marcus has written a column along similar lines, questioning what such a choice will say about Pelosi and the Democratic Party: "This was no ordinary crime, and Intelligence is no ordinary committee."

It's bad enough Hastings is actually on the intelligence committee. Choosing Hastings, who has participated in bribery, as its chair will prove one more time that most Democrats don't take national security seriously in this post 9/11 world.

(Hat tip: Barone Blog.)

The Military Responds to Kerry

You've got to see the photo now making the rounds. It's at Michelle Malkin's site (linked above) and is also up at Drudge and Free Republic.

A real sense of humor...priceless.

Update: Here it is:


Further Update: Power Line has more on the photo. Some of those soldiers in the picture are from the Minnesota National Guard.

Power Line quotes Victor Davis Hanson: "One of the things I love about America is the spontaneous brilliance and humor that undermine all pretension. No better example was that wonderful banner from our brave and ingenious soldiers in Iraq... 20 million Americans must have seen it all over the Internet, and nothing sums up the nothingness of Kerryism better than those smiling soldiers."