Creating, collecting, and sharing thoughts and ideas. And learning along the way.
Updated December 25, 2011, 1:28 pm
On Dec. 26, 1941, Winston Churchill became the first British prime minister to address a joint meeting of the United States Congress.
On Dec. 26, 1893, Mao Tse-tung, the Chinese statesman who led the communist revolution in China and became its first communist leader, was born. Following his death on Sept. 9, 1976, his obituary appeared in The Times.
Go to obituary » | Other birthdays »
On This Date
By The Associated Press
1799 George Washington was eulogized by Col. Henry Lee as “first in war, first in peace and first in the hearts of his countrymen.” 1865 James H. Nason of Franklin, Mass., received a patent for a coffee percolator. 1893 Chinese communist leader Mao Zedong was born in Hunan province. 1908 Jack Johhnson became the first black heavyweight boxing champion when he knocked out Tommy Burns in Sydney, Australia. 1917 The U.S. government took over operation of the nation’s railroads. 1944 Tennessee Williams’ play “The Glass Menagerie” premiered at the Civic Theatre in Chicago. 1947 Heavy snow blanketed the Northeast, burying New York City under 25.8 inches of snow in 16 hours; the severe weather was blamed for some 80 deaths. 1972 Harry S. Truman, the 33rd president of the United States, died in Kansas City, Mo., at age 88. 1996 Six-year-old beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey was found beaten and strangled in the basement of her family’s home in Boulder, Colo. The slaying remains unsolved. 2004 Peyton Manning of the Indianapolis Colts broke Dan Marino’s single-season touchdown pass record when he threw his 48th and 49th of the season in a victory over San Diego. 2006 Gerald R. Ford, the 38th president of the United States, died in Rancho Mirage, Calif., at age 93. Current Birthdays
By The Associated Press
Actor-rock singer Jared Leto turns 40 years old today.
AP Photo/Joel Ryan
Rock singer Chris Daughtry (“American Idol”) turns 32 years old today.
AP Photo/Jason DeCrow
1933 Caroll Spinney, Actor (Big Bird on “Sesame Street”), turns 78 1935 Abdul “Duke” Fakir, R&B singer (The Four Tops), turns 76 1936 Phil Spector, Record producer, turns 75 1945 John Walsh, TV host (“America’s Most Wanted”), turns 66 1947 Carlton Fisk, Baseball Hall of Famer, turns 64 1954 Ozzie Smith, Baseball Hall of Famer, turns 57 1955 Evan Bayh, Former U.S. senator, D-Ind., turns 56 1956 David Sedaris, Humorist, turns 55 1963 Lars Ulrich, Rock musician (Metallica), turns 48 Historic Birthdays
Mao Tse-tung 12/26/1893 – 9/9/1976 Chinese statesman and leader of his nation’s communist revolution. Go to obituary »
64 Leopold Mannes 12/26/1899 – 8/11/1964
American co-developer of Kodachrome film88 Henry Miller 12/26/1891 – 6/7/1980
American novelist93 Sir Norman Angell 12/26/1872 – 10/7/1967
English economist and Nobel Peace Prize winner79 George Dewey 12/26/1837 – 1/16/1917
American naval commander69 Dion Boucicault 12/26/1820 – 9/18/1890
Irish-born American playwright and actor79 Charles Babbage 12/26/1791 – 10/18/1871
English mathematician and inventor54 Thomas Gray 12/26/1716 – 7/30/1771
English poet
Earth and sky, and our journey in its midst! First in a series of a few pictures of our view of the earth and sky as we headed home from Montreal. Merry Christmas, everyone!
There are times when a deviation from the book is forgiven when the essence of the story is captured so skillfully and handsomely that you almost forget the errors of omission and commission from the original work. Such is the case with the movie adaptation of Les Misérables.
Starring Liam Neeson in arguably one of his best Hollywood roles ever; Geoffrey Rush, for whom the same might be said; Uma Thurman, who looks like she hasn’t changed an iota in the last thirteen years; and Claire Danes, a most becoming young woman, this is a most remarkable adaptation of one of the most powerful books ever written by Victor Hugo in 1862.
Having had the pleasure of having read the unabridged version of the book, I can verify that there are significant portions of the latter part of the book that have been glossed over or even completely eliminated, but again, this has not altered the spirit of the story and the significant theme of the story which is repeated time and time again in various ways. That theme is one of forgiveness– the kind that defies reason any which way you look at it.
For more on my views on the book you can find my review here.
If you have the chance to read the book before you watch the movie, I would highly recommend it, but even if you don’t get to read the book, take in the movie. I can say with conviction that it will leave a most indelible impression on you, and even possibly transform you for the better. I daresay there are few movies for which one can make a claim like that!
