Happy birthday, Captain James T. Kirk!

 

William Shatner, born March 22, 1931 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, will always be best known as his role as Captain James T. Kirk on the cult classic television show Star Trek. He appeared in the first original series from 1966 to 1969. He appeared in the six movie adaptions of the TV series and the final Star Trek: Generations.  He starred in the TV movies TekWar, based on the novel he co-wrote. 

In October 2021, he became the oldest person, at that time, to fly in space.  At the age of 90, he flew on Blue Origin's NS-18 suborbital flight on October 13, 2021.

William Shatner SNL skit: Get a Life!

Soyuz MS-21 launched 2022

 Soyuz MS-21 crew (L-R): Denis Mateev, Oleg Artemyev, Sergey Korsakov

Soyuz MS-21, launched March 18, 2022, carried three cosmonauts to the International Space Station.  Its crew consisted of Commander Oleg Artemyev, Denis Mateev, and Sergey Korsakov. They participated in Expeditions 66 and 67 while aboard the ISS.

The cosmonauts returned to Earth in September 2022, after almost 195 days in space. 

Soyuz MS-21 launch

Happy birthday, actor Kurt Russell!

 

Kurt Russell, born March 17, 1951 in Springfield, Massachusetts, has had a stellar acting career and is still going strong.  He first appeared in an episode of Dennis the Menace in 1961. He starred in a number of television series such as Gilligan's Island and Daniel Boone.  In 1969, he landed one of his first starring roles in Disney's The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes and went on to star in more Disney movies, such as The Barefoot Executive, Now You See Him, Now You Don't, and The Strongest Man in the World. 

He broke out of his squeaky-clean image by appearing as Snake Plissken in Escape from New York and edgier works such as The Thing, Big Trouble in Little China, and Tequila Sunrise. He appeared in Sky High and Guardian of the Galaxy 2.

He is currently working as Lee Shaw in Monarch: Legacy of Monsters.

in 2003, he was awarded the Life Career Award at the Oscars,  He passed away

Trailer for Monarch: Legacy of Monsters Season 2

Agatha Christie's "Evil Under the Sun" released 1982

 

The movie adaption of Agatha Christie's novel Evil Under the Sun, published in 1941, premiered March 5, 1982 with a stellar cast.  Peter Ustinvo appears as Hercule Poirot for the second time.  He previously played the detective in Death On The Nile. Evil Under the Sun also starred Dame Maggie Smith, Roddy McDowall, and Diana Rigg. 

This movie did not do as well at the box office as previous Agatha Christie adaptions had, but it did receive critical acclaim with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 86%.

Evil Under the Sun trailer

Ray Conniff, Herb Alpert, Ray Charles win Grammys 1967

 

Ray Conniff and Herb Alpert won Grammys at the 9th annual ceremony held March 2, 1967.  

The Ray Connniff Singers won Best Performance by a Chorus for their performance of Somewhere My Love (Lara's Theme from Dr. Zhivago). 

Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass won Best Instrumental Performance (Other than Jazz) and Best Instrumental Arrangement for What Now My Love.  The song was nominated for Record of the Year and Album of the Year.

Ray Charles's performance of Crying Time won Best R&B Solo vocal Performance, Male or Female and Best Rhythm & Blues Recording.

Neal Hefti won Best Instrumental Theme for Composing and Arranging for the Batman Theme.

Somewhere My Love by Ray Conniff

Celebrating Black History Month: Hazel Johnson-Brown, first African American female brigadier general in the US Army

Hazel Johnson-Brown, born October 10, 1927 in West Chester, Pennsylvania, is the first African American female general in the US Army.  She moved to New York City to attend the Harlem School of Nursing, and in 1947, she started at the Harmlem Hosptial emergency ward. 

Johnson-Brown enlisted in the US Army in 1955 and rose in the ranks as she impressed her superior with her skill in the operating room.  She took assignments all over the world, including Japan where she trained nurses on their way to Vietnam. 

Johnson-Brown was promoted to brigadier general in 1979(?), becoming the first black woman to attain that rank.  She retired from the army n 1983. 

During Operation Desert Storm in 1990, she volunteered to work at For Belvoir, Virginia's Army Hosptial.

She passed away in Wilmington, Delaware in  August 2011.

Gen. Hazel Johnson-Brown 

"Mad Max: Fury Road" wins 6 Oscars 2016

 

George Miller's post-apocalyptic movie, Mad Max: Fury Road won six Oscars at the annual ceremony held February 28, 2016. It was nominated for ten, including Best Picture.  It took home most of the technical awards though. It won Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Production Design, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Costume Design, and Best Film Editing. It's other nominations were for Best Direction for George Miller, Best Cinematography, and Best Visual Effects.

The Revenant garnered a whopping twelve nominations but only won three: Best Directing for Alejandro G. Inarritu, Best Actor in a Leading Role for Leonardo DiCaprio, and Best Cinematography.  Tom Hardy, who also starred in Mad Max: Fury Road, was nominated for Best Supporting Actor. 

Star Wars: The Force Awakens was nominated for five Academy Awards. John Williams was nominated for Best Music (Original Score), Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Film Editing, and Best Visual Effects. 

Leonardo DiCaprio's acceptance speech