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Song lyrics to Over There by George M. Cohan, written when the USA entered World War I, to encourage men to enlist

Over There

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Song lyrics to Over There by George M. Cohan, written when the USA entered World War I, to encourage men to enlist Johnnie, get your… Read More »Over There

John Wayne in "Swing Out Sweet Land"

Swing Out Sweet Land

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Swing Out Sweet Land (1970) starring John Wayne and a host of celebrities

Swing Out Sweet Land is John Wayne’s tribute to the United States of America. It’s a star-studded tribute to America starring John Wayne, Lorne Greene, William Shatner, Dan Blocker, Michael Landon, Ann-Margret, Lucille Ball, Jack Benny, Hugh O’Brian, Roscoe Lee Browne, Glen Campbell, Greg Morris, Ross Martin, Johnny Cash, Roy Clark, Bing Crosby, Phyllis Diller, Bob Hope, Celeste Holm, Dean Martin, Ricky Nelson, Dan Rowan, Dick Martin, Tom Smothers, Red Skelton, Leslie Uggams, Dennis Weaver, Ed McMahon and more.

It was the highest rated show of the week it aired.

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Captain America the First Avenger DVD cover

Captain America: The First Avenger

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 Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) starring Chris Evans, Hugo Weaving, Haley Atwell, Tommy Lee Jones, Sebastian Stan

Review of Captain America: The First Avenger

Captain America (Chris Evans) rescuing the Allied soldiers from Hydra
Captain America (Chris Evans) rescuing the Allied soldiers from Hydra

First and foremost, I’d like to point out the obvious: Captain America: The First Avenger works because of Steve Rogers. Long before his transformation, he’s a likeable character that the entire audience is rooting for. He’s also multi-dimensional.

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Pack up your troubles in your old kit-bag and smile, smile, smile (1915) lyrics - music by Felix Powell, lyrics by George Asaf

Pack up your troubles lyrics

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Pack up your troubles in your old kit-bag and smile, smile, smile (1915) lyrics – music by Felix Powell, lyrics by George Asaf

Pack Up Your Troubles in Your Old Kit-Bag, and Smile, Smile, Smile is the full name of a World War I marching song, published in 1915 in London. It was written by Welsh songwriter George Henry Powell under the pseudonym of “George Asaf”, and set to music by his brother Felix Powell.

It was featured in the 1916 American show Her Soldier Boy.  The song appears in several movies, including Pack Up Your Troubles with Laurel & Hardy, High Pressure, On Moonlight Bay, and The Shopworn Angel. It is also featured in For Me and My Gal starring Judy Garland and Gene Kelly.Read More »Pack up your troubles lyrics

For Me and My Gal (1942), starring Gene Kelly, Judy Garland, George Murphy

For Me and My Gal

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For Me and My Gal (1942), starring Gene Kelly, Judy Garland, George Murphy

Buy from Amazon For Me and My Gal is a good many things — an ode to vaudeville, with some excellent song and dance routines, a “boy meets girl” movie, the film debut of Gene Kelly, a patriotic movie — and a very good movie overall. Frankly, what’s most refreshing about  For Me and My Gal is that the protagonist is a flawed person.  His flaws lead to his problems, and whose overcoming them leads to character growth.

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Flight Command, starring Robert Taylor, Ruth Hussey, Walter Pidgeon

Flight Command

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Flight Command (1940) starring Robert Taylor, Walter Pidgeon, Ruth Hussey, Red Skelton

I originally watched  Flight Command because it was one of Red Skelton‘s earliest movie roles — which is technically true; Red’s in the film as part of the Hellcats squadron, acting as the class clown, but he’s definitely a secondary character.  Flight Command is primarily about a brash young pilot, Alan Drake (played by Robert Taylor) who’s recruited straight out of college to join the premier squad of Navy Hellcats.  He has trouble fitting in at first, although the flight commander (played by a young and dashing Walter Pidgeon) tries to help — as does the commander’s wife (played by Ruth Hussey). There’s a suspected romantic triangle between Drake and the commander’s wife (which was only him trying to console her on the death of her brother) — but all turns out well in the end.

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Lupino, Sydney Greenstreet, William Prince, Willie Best

Pillow to Post

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Pillow to Post (1945), starring Ida Lupino, Sydney Greenstreet, William Prince, Willie Best  In short, Pillow to Post is a delightful comedy.  The basic story has… Read More »Pillow to Post

Sahara (1943) starring Humphrey Bogart, Bruce Bennett, J. Carrol Naish, Lloyd Bridges

Sahara

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Sahara (1943) starring Humphrey Bogart, Bruce Bennett,  J. Carrol Naish,  Lloyd Bridges

Sahara is, in short, an excellent movie — €” set in World War II, in the desert conflict, it involves a ragtag multi-national group of Allied soldiers (Humphrey Bogart, Bruce Bennett, Lloyd Bridges) as well as their Italian prisoner of war (played memorably by J. Carrol Naish) who come upon an oasis in the desert — €” a crumbling ruin.

The ruin has a cistern — €” not a well, but a storage place for water, that’s nearly dry. The GI’s no sooner find it than they’re surrounded by Nazi soldiers, who are dying of thirst — €” but are armed to the teeth.

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