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The BL RAG is dedicated to the idea of free expression, thus we welcome and encourage reader commentary on current events, issues, music, sports, or other topics of interest, no matter what one's political leanings or worldview.

  

Editors: Bozio, ChicagoNeoCon, Fornax, GrayRider, Kimboskerov, kwAwk, Machiavelli, Redbeard, Skinnydipinacid, Tijuana, Wes Morgan, Xanadu, and Zoy Clem

Contributors:

Lenny and Trackerdog

Maintenance Man:

Master Admin Dude

Alumni:

Winston
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Sunday
05Jul

Film Babe Farewell

She was born as Irene Marie Dunne in 1898 in Louisville Kentucky. She was a world famous star, but her fondest memories were of those times she spent with her father, who died when Irene was a girl of 11.

Dunne starred in over forty movies, sang on Broadway, and appeared on television. She left show business in 1952, and was later chosen by President Dwight D. Eisenhower to serve as a delegate to the United Nations in 1957.

To wrap up our weekend with unforgettable actress, let's look at one last tribute, provided by Basil Nelson:

Irene Dunne passed away in 1990.

 

Sunday
05Jul

Important Date in History

Automobile engineer Louis Réard introduces the modern bikini today in 1946...

His invention, he said, was inspired by this event at Bikini Atoll:

The band in the first video is Bombalurina, and the song is titled Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini.

Sunday
05Jul

Dance Hall Girl

Irene Dunne does a turn as a music hall dancer and singer in this clip from the 1933 movie, The Secret of Madame Blanche

 

Sunday
05Jul

Targeted for Early Extinction

To conclude this week's  dinosaur programming, let's end the morning with a dose of science and a have look at the world's dumbest dinosaur:

 

Sunday
05Jul

Peculiar Survival Mechanisms - Part II

Life forms on Earth have assumed various mechanisms to allow for their survival and continued existence, but a little known trait possessed by the ancestor of the common domestic pig allowed the species to survive perilous eons of predation into the modern age.   

 

Saturday
04Jul

Wild About Irene

She was frequently called the best actress who never won an Oscar--Irene Dunne was nominated five times for the Film Academy's Best Actress award but on each occasion it eluded her. It had little effect on her career, however, and little impact on Dunne. Acting had always been secondary, and though she enjoyed the money and fame, she chose to live by her late father's words: "Happiness is never an accident. It is the prize we get when we choose wisely from life's great stores."

The clip below is from Dunne's first appearance in a comedy film. It comes from the 1936 picture, Theodora Goes Wild, which co-starred Melyvn Douglas:

 

Saturday
04Jul

Saturday Dance Fever

This week's guests include Godzilla and King Kong. Let's watch as the two face off on the dance floor:

 

Saturday
04Jul

Prehistoric Documentaries for Kids

Despite the mild violence, this documentary film animation provided a comforting message as well as a sense of adventure, and helped billions of young dinosaurs throughout Pangaea cope with their upcoming extinction in the late Triassic period.

 

Saturday
04Jul

Happy Fourth of July

A different batch of fireworks is used in this celebration presented by PES:

 

Saturday
04Jul

Saturday Cartoons

Felix the Cat returns again this week to parody Shakespeare and woo his Juliet in this 1920's Pat Sullivan classic, Romeeow:

 

Friday
03Jul

Film Babe Preview

This weekend we'll be taking a look at the chorus girl, opera singer, and actress, Irene Dunne, a stunning multi-talented star who reigned at the box office throughout the 1930's and 40's. For this evening's preview, let's watch Dunne perform the song Lovely To Look At from the 1935 movie, Roberta:

 

Friday
03Jul

Peculiar Survival Mechanisms

Various members of the animal community are known to possess odd or peculiar survival traits, but this one, utilized by a rare species of amphibian, is one of the strangest: