The movie Ben Hur occupies a special place in my sister’s cabinet and her heart. Each time I try to watch it with her, I get excited and start screeching Judah! Judah!; alternately I push our couch around the house (like a chariot) with my sister still on it …
But even in my (vicarious) state of being Judah Ben Hur, it’s difficult to stomach the subtle but crappy propaganda that becomes blatant when the viewer is historically inclined, not yet retarded by the pervasive ever-present chemicals, or quite simply, someone with a weak digestive system (that would be me).
Ben Hur was written in 1880 by Lew Wallace, US Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, and released in 1959 as a must-see blockbuster; it is listed as one of the top 100 greatest movies by the American Film Institute and won a total of eleven Oscars matched only, I think, by Titanic; though I cried like a melting iceberg for James Cameron’s masterpiece — a labour of love which lost him his beautiful wife Linda Hamilton, for its period Ben Hur was a cinematographic spectacularity.
But like Troy, Alexander, Gladiator and other ‘Our Kind of Good will Triumph Movies’, Ben Hur was the product of US propaganda that contained a very political message pertaining to the geo-strategic status quo in the Middle East during Eisenhower’s reign as the 34th President of the US; as usual the thread connecting the movie to real life was rooted in foreign policy, the aim of which was to mould interpretation, discussions and perceptions of world events and to control and filter the various ways such events (read: wars) played out tangibly and in the collective psyche of the public.
Ben Hur is very indicative of the age: The old Anglo-French colonialists are in the process of being removed via Independence; New America — only recently freed from “distant shore” colonialism — rapidly developing into an economic mercenary, steps in to fill the vacuum by acting as a counterweight.

thoughtleader.co.za

ELITEXC’S THIRD CARDIN THREE WEEKS, FIFTH IN 29 DAYS, THIS SATURDAY,APRIL 5, AT TABLE MOUNTAIN CASINO IN FRIANT,CALIF.
Telecast Will IncludeHamman, Suganuma, Camoes & A Women’sMatch Featuring Baszler
On A Special Edition of ShoXC on SHOWTIME(11:30 p.m. ET/PT, Delayed on the West Coast)
LOS ANGELES (April 1, 2008)– In an excellent matchup of promisinglight heavyweights, undefeated Jared Hamman(9-0) of San Bernardino, Calif., faces once-beatenPoai Suganuma (8-1) of Hilo, Hawaii, in themain event on ShoXC: Elite Challenger Seriesthis Saturday, April 5, live on SHOWTIME (11:30p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the west coast) at TableMountain Casino at Friant, Calif.
ShoXC is patterned afterthe popular SHOWTIME boxing series ShoBox: TheNew Generation, which pits developing fightersin tough match ups. ShoXC, like ShoBox, is aspringboard for the future stars and championsof EliteXC.
Tickets, priced at $50 (GeneralAdmission), $60 (Gold), $70 (Reserved) and $80(VIP), are available at the Main Casino Cageat Table Mountain Casino online at www.tmcasino.com/tickets.html.Doors open at 4:30 p.m. First live fight isat 5:30 p.m. PT.
The mixed martial arts fightcard is the third in three weeks for Los Angeles-basedProElite, Inc.’s live fight division,Elite XC – all on SHOWTIME — and fifthin 29 days.
EliteXC, led by Gary Shaw,was involved with cage events on March 8 (London,Cage Rage), March 15 (Honolulu, Icon Sport)and March 29 (San Jose, Calif., Strikeforce).It also is EliteXC’s second ShoXC fightcard in three weeks. The other came on March21 (Santa Ynez., Calif.).
If the run of MMA eventsisn’t enough, Shaw, who’s one ofthe world’s top boxing promoters, willalso present an outstanding fistic doubleheaderSaturday, April 12, on SHOWTIME.
“I’ve been rackingup the frequent flyer miles, but it’sworth the effort,’’ Shaw said. “Alot of work goes into putting on quality, firstclass shows and the fight team at EliteXC deservesa ton of credit.
“There are a lot ofwilling fighters out there, but it takes excellentmatchmaking to make the best fights happen,and we have an outstanding, hard-working fightteam that continually puts together the kindsof fights that always offer a bit of everythingto those in attendance and watching on SHOWTIME.

15rounds.com

From a critic’s and a geek’s standpoint, the big event tonight is the return of Battlestar Galactica, which the Sci-Fi Channel is bringing back in style. But CBS also has returning dramas, and ABC is bringing back a ratings-generating game show.
Stuff to watch or record
Ghost Whisperer: New episode, new ghost as Melinda (Jennifer Love Hewitt) helps a woman who believes she’s being haunted by her dead father. But on this show, there’s probably more to the story than that. 7 p.m., KTVT/Channel 11
Alvarez Kelly: Turner Classic Movies honors Richard Widmark, who died March 24 at age 93, with a three-movie marathon featuring the actor. It begins with this 1966 Civil War drama co-starring William Holden, then continues with the 1953 infantry drama Take the High Ground! (partly filmed at West Texas’ Fort Bliss) and concludes with the 1960 adoption comedy The Tunnel of Love, co-starring Doris Day and directed by Gene Kelly. Odd coincidence: among the originally scheduled movies this pre-empts is Never on Sunday, directed by Jules Dassin — who died this week and deserves a tribute of his own. Begins 7 p.m., TCM
Think: Art critic Dave Hickey, a Fort Worth native who was a Star-Telegram staffer so long ago that I’ve never crossed paths with him (and I’ve been here longer than most people think), appears on Krys Boyd’s local talk show to discuss how Fort Worth’s art scene influenced the city’s 20th-century rise to prominence. 7:30 p.m., KERA/Channel 13
Degrassi Spring Break Movie: In this one-hour movie, the Degrassi kids go on an eventful road trip that includes the big breakup of a faux relationship that wasn’t as fake for one person as it was for the other. 7 p.m., the N (Charter Channel 230, Time Warner 123, DirecTV 303, Dish 169, FIOS 225, U-Verse 322)

star-telegram.com

“So I said, ‘Yeah, hey, look, it’s got my initials!’”‰”
Beatty is 70 now, and any animus he had toward the late mogul is long gone (”Really, he was kind of an enjoyable guy, and he said some funny things”), but that image of Beatty as the young-buck star and producer of “Bonnie and Clyde” playfully laying claim to the power structures of Old Hollywood is an irresistible metaphor.
Old-man Warner and the other executives who released “Bonnie and Clyde” had absolutely no idea that the quirky gangster picture would become a commercial sensation, cultural flash point and generational battleground. The only thing that surprised them even more is that “Bonnie and Clyde” also became a pivot point in the business of Hollywood; within months, it seemed like the town belonged to a new maverick generation of filmmakers with “personal vision” and a glee for toppling every Hollywood convention. In hindsight, it’s amazing they didn’t pull down Col. Warner’s beloved water tower.
“Bonnie and Clyde” was released in 1967, but it was the following year, with America in turmoil, that the film surged into the public consciousness. The story was a mix of Robin Hood and Romeo and Juliet and more loose legend than real crime; it starred Beatty and Faye Dunaway as Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker, the doomed Texas lovers who became a media sensation in the Great Depression. Beatty remembers that Warner grumbled that “these gangster movies went out with Cagney,” but this film would have little in common with dated tommy-gun cinema.
This film was jarring, and not just in its bloody realism.
“I remember a creative impatience by almost everyone involved,” Beatty said, “and there was so much energy on the screen.”
The really interesting thing, though, was how audiences latched onto “Bonnie and Clyde” as a flexible symbol. Young America embraced it as nihilistic thrill ride and anti-establishment poetry. Many film critics and older viewers, however, seized on it as entertainment-as-evidence, a sign of an amoral society in slide.

southcoasttoday.com

THE YEAR OF THE RAT
For being such an unassuming and short little month, February sure has a lot going on. It starts off with that arbiter of weather, Groundhog’s Day, followed by other special days, Valentine’s and President’s days. It is Pet Dental Health Month, Black History Month, Heart Healthy Month and Laugh-Friendly Month. It is the annual presentation of the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. And this year, of course, it is a very special month with 29 days, the extra one for leap year.
Another major celebration occurring early in the month is the beginning of the Chinese lunar New Year, this year once again acknowledging the first of the 12 animal signs of the Chinese zodiac, the Year of the Rat.
With the Year of the Rat falling in the afterglow of the extremely popular animated film, “Ratatouille,” there has been a heightened interest in rats as pets, and, according to those in the know, it’s high time the poor rat has an image reversal. For children and adults alike, it’s hard to resist the appeal of Remy, the star of the movie, a Parisian sewer rat with a flair for fine cooking and dreams of becoming a chef. Fans of pet rats insist, contrary to popular opinion, rats are one of the cleanest and least smelly pets you can own. They are also very smart, highly sociable, curious and easily trained. It’s certainly a plus if they can cook.
According to Chinese lore, the rat’s exceptional problem solving skills are responsible for placing him in the first position of the 12 astrological animals of the Chinese calendar. The god of heaven wanted to choose 12 animals for the calendar, so he announced a race to determine the order. The cat forgot the time of the race, and asked the rat. Wily creature that he is, the rat not only gave the cat the wrong time on purpose, but he also wheedled a ride on the horns of the ox, so when they crossed the river, the rat jumped off ahead of all the other animals to win the

nantucketindependent.com