It’s 150 years to the day since Abraham Lincoln gave his famous Gettysburg Address. Now that Google has put five versions of the speech online in extremely close detail, we can see that, yes, even the great President Lincoln had to edit his work.
Today, the speech is set in the history books, but back in 1863, Lincoln, like any politician today, was constantly fiddling with his message. His early versions of the speech, as Google explains, didn’t include the words “under God,” while the phrase “a new birth of freedom,” one of its most famous lines, wasn’t added until after the New York Times war correspondent Samuel Wilkeson used something similar to describe a battle in which his son died. And three versions in Google’s exhibit were written down after Lincoln delivered the historic address.
View original post 1 more word
I was expecting so much more from this film. After hearing all the hoopla and seeing the trailer, I really thought I was in for a real thrill ride. Between all the plots and the flash backs, it became a little difficult to focus. I’m not saying that it wasn’t good because it was a decent flick but it dragged in some parts. The great acting really saved this movie. Several spurts of energy from Amy Adams and Jennifer Lawrence reeled me back into focus. Bradley and Christian were superb, lending a lot of character to the scenes. Bale looked fat and cheap as a con man in the 70s while Cooper looked more like a fashion plate, odd for an FBI agent. I got a few laughs out of American Hustle as well as an opportunity to see a little bit of history. They say some of this really…
As expected, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug was excellent. I liked this second version of the movie better than the first. The story was more connected and adventurous. As with Lord of the Rings, there’s a lot going on as the dwarves and crew continue their quest to reclaim Erebor from Smaug. I would venture to say children under 12 might have a hard time connecting all the dots. The Hobbit is an adventure that goes on and on for 2 hours and 40 minutes. That’s a lot, even for an adult. Be prepared to get a little heavy eyed at times — not that it’s boring, it’s just long. I enjoyed the plot and expected the ending to leave me wanting to see the last of this trilogy yesterday. Special effects are fantastic. The make up is amazing. Under the direction of Peter Jackson, it all comes together as very…
