(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Odds & Ends: News/Humor (with a "Who Lost the Week?" poll) [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2023-04-30 For once: 45 may have been right I post a weekly diary of historical notes, arts & science items, foreign news (often receiving little notice in the US) and whimsical pieces from the outside world that I often feature in "Cheers & Jeers". OK, you've been warned - here is this week's tomfoolery material that I posted. CHEERS to Bill and Michael in PWM, our Laramie, Wyoming-based friend Irish Patti and ...... well, each of you at Cheers and Jeers. Have a fabulous weekend .... and week ahead. ART NOTES — an exhibition entitled Many Wests: Artists Shape an American Idea — including artists who identify as Black, Indigenous, Asian American, Latinx, and LGBTQ+ who stake a claim in the American West — is at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts in Salt Lake City through June 11th. Wendy Red Star “4 Seasons” (2006) YOUR WEEKEND READ #1 is this account in The Bulwark by Sarah Longwell (a Never Trumper who runs numerous focus groups to track GOP voters). And while it’s always important to remember what preceded FormerGuy … she believes that those hoping for a return to the prior GOP afterwards … will be severely let down. THEN and (the second photo) in the year of 2017 — x Happy Birthday American actor Lee Majors, now 84 years old. Below, Lee as Steve Austin/the Bionic Man and Lindsay Wagner as Jaime Sommers/the Bionic Woman in The Six Million Dollar Man 1973-1978 and a great reunion photo. Lindsay is now 73 years old. pic.twitter.com/wqMOtPYJXl — Masquerade (@Masquerade2376) April 23, 2023 YOUR WEEKEND READ #2 is this lengthy account in The American Prospect by David (DDay) Dayen, about the forces on each side of the debate about whether to raise (or maintain) the current $250k limit on FDIC guarantees — and what they bring to the table. THURSDAY's CHILD is named Beef the Cat — who found a home at the Chicago White Sox stadium (receiving treats from fans) … now adopted by the team photographer, with hopes that he can fill the role of part-time … “rally cat”. Beef the Chicago White Sox Cat MUSIC NOTES — each year, the Library of Congress adds 25 recordings to its National Registry … and this year, they added works by everyone from W.C. Handy to Fletcher Henderson to Dorothy Thompson (commentary) to Jackie DeShannon to Jimmy Buffet to Led Zeppelin ... and on from there. YOUR WEEKEND READ #3 is this short essay by Robert Kuttner from The American Prospect on what brought down Bed, Bath & Beyond — some over-expansion, Covid and other factors led to a tough stretch … which they misplayed by a series of stock buybacks. FRIDAY's CHILD is named Scoot the Cat — a North Carolina feral cat brought to a shelter as a stray (and was unfriendly) … yet someway, somehow went blind (and thus, was not able to be neutered and re-released into the wild) … yet improbably has become a friendly house cat. Scoot the Cat BRAIN TEASER — try this Quiz of the Week's News from the BBC ...… and the usually easier, less UK-centered New York Times quiz. WITH THE DEATH of Carolyn Bryant Donham — who instigated the death of Emmett Till — while I’m sure that she didn’t see it: when I entered a theater last year to view the film “Till” … I was glad it was released during her lifetime. Reader-suggested SON-FATHER? from Tonga 23 — Jeff Bezos and Sir Patrick Stewart. Whaddya think? Jeff B. (b. 1964) - Patrick S. (b. 1940) ...... and finally, for a song of the week ...........................… there is a songwriter with hit songs others have recorded (including a #1 in the US) — plus several recordings of his own, making him the best-selling artist of his generation in his native country — but Phil Coulter is largely unknown in the US (outside of the Irish pub circuit). A career retrospective is well-deserved. Born in Derry, Northern Ireland in 1942, he studied music at Queens University in Belfast and then moved to London where he found work as a songwriter in the Tin Pan Alley music publishing industry around Denmark Street. An early song of his popular in Britain included 1963’s “Foolin’ Time” (Capitol Showband). He went on to write (with songwriting partner Bill Martin) three songs chosen by Britain’s entry into the Eurovision Song Contest that decade. 1965 was Walking the Streets in the Rain (Capitol Showband), 1967’s Puppet on a String (Sandie Shaw) and in 1968, Congratulations (Cliff Richard). That one came in 2nd place (by one vote) to a Spanish performer: and there are rumors that our pal Generalissimo Francisco Franco offered bribes to ensure his dictatorship’s entry would win. He also had a 1966 hit I Can Only Give You Everything for the Northern Ireland band Them — whose lead singer was Van Morrison. Yet he also focused on writing contemporary Irish music, penning songs for Planxty, the Dubliners and Luke Kelly. His most enduring (and precious) song on the Irish pub circuit is 1973’s The Town I Loved So Well — about The Troubles coming to his native town of Derry (after moving away), seeing the armored cars, barbed wire and hoping for a “bright, brand-new day” — which I hope he felt the Good Friday agreement brought twenty-five years later (and which is now also twenty-five years ago). When Dan White (the murderer of Harvey Milk and George Moscone) committed suicide by running his car in a closed garage ... sadly, he had the song “The Town I Loved So Well” playing on a loop on the car’s tape player. In the 70’s, Phil Coulter continued to write popular music: including two country hits for Elvis Presley (My Boy in 1974) and Bill Anderson (Thanks in 1975). Rock bands covering his songs include The Troggs, Richard Hell & the Voidoids and Dexy’s Midnight Runners. He also wrote a string of songs for the Scottish band Bay City Rollers — and that #1 song in the US was none other than ... S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y Night in 1975. Phil Coulter relocated back to Ireland in the 1980’s and focused on recording his own music, with orchestral renditions of old and new (mostly) instrumental songs. He has kept more of a lower profile, recorded two duet albums with James Galway and helped produce the band Celtic Thunder. His most recent album is 2019’s Return to Tranquility, with an instrumental rendition of an old Southern folk song that is quite popular with Irish musicians, The Lakes of Pontchartrain. At age eighty-one, he released his memoirs in 2019 and has won numerous honors: five Ivor Novello awards (the UK equivalent of the Grammys), three ASCAP awards and has a Grammy nomination in 2001 for Highland Cathedral — which is, interestingly, in the New Age category. Phil Coulter in 1976 ……….. …. and just last year in 2022 His son Paul was born with Down’s Syndrome (and later died at only age four). My having a nephew who is autistic (and with my job as the controller of a social service agency for those with developmental disabilities), Phil’s song Scorn Not His Simplicity from 1970 touches a personal note … more than any of his other work. See the child with the golden hair Yet eyes that show the emptiness inside Do we know; can we understand just how he feels Or have we really tried? See him now as he stands alone And watches children play a children's game Simple child; he looks almost like the others Yet they know he's not the same See him stare, not recognizing the kind face That only yesterday he loved The loving face of a mother Who can't understand what she's been guilty of How she cried tears of happiness The day the doctor told her “It's a boy” Now she cries tears of helplessness And thinks of all the things he can't enjoy Scorn not his simplicity But rather ... try to love him all the more Only he knows how to face the future hopefully Surrounded by despair He won't ask for your pity or your sympathy But surely you should care [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/4/30/2165919/-Odds-amp-Ends-News-Humor-with-a-Who-Lost-the-Week-poll Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/