The 6th of June
79 years ago today allied forces stormed the beaches at Normandy, sounding the death knell for Nazi evil. The world will never repay the debt owed those brave men. Many were thousands of miles from home, never to see their loved ones again. Photo from Google Images:
RIP actor Barry Newman, 92. Born in Boston, he studied with Lee Strasberg once he was discharged from the Army. There are 56 titles under his name in a career that spanned 1960–2015. That figure is misleading, as he starred in 44 episodes alone of Petrocelli, for which he received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, and 13 of Nightingales. He was comfortable on the big or small screen and the stage. He did several Broadway shows, including Agatha Christie’s The Mouse Trap, the world’s longest running play. Here are films in which he appeared: Vanishing Point (1971), The Limey (1999), Bowfinger (1999). A fine run. Well done, Sir. Photo from GI:
RIP Astrud Gilberto, 83. Born in Brazil as Astrud Evangelina Weinert, father German, she vaulted to international stardom in the early ‘60’s singing The Girl from Ipanema, still a great listen all these years later. The original version begins with her then husband João Gilberto singing in Portuguese. I prefer the edited version, on which only Astrud sings. Written in 1962, music by Antônio Carlos Jobim and Portuguese lyrics by Vinícius de Moraes, English lyrics by Norman Gimbel, sax by Jazz legend Stan Getz, it hit #5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and won a Grammy for Record of the Year in 1965. Gilberto was nominated for Best Vocal Performance. The tune has been covered by many artists since, believed to be the second most recorded pop song in history after Yesterday by The Beatles. I butcher it on guitar myself. In 1963 Gilberto emigrated to the USA. She toured with Getz, singing jazz standards. There are 18 albums listed on her Wiki page. She recorded in Portuguese, English, Spanish, Italian, French, German and Japanese. IMDb lists 58 titles under her name in the category of Soundtrack, her work used in movies and TV. She was a mom of two. Thank you, Madam. That song will exist as long as mankind does. Photo from GI:
Okay, find a more amusing headline in today’s news than this one from nypost.com: “This is the vend: NYC machine giving out free crack pipes — with lip balm!.”
It’s not a myth, NYP headline: “Over 5,000 mailmen were bit by dogs last year — here’s the most dangerous states for USPS workers.” Woof, woof!
From an NYP article by Marc Lallanilla, in my own words: As of 2020 the USA was 53rd in terms of life expectancy, just under 77. The figure has been declining since 1980.
Headline from newsmax.com: “NYC Mayor Floats Paying Residents to House Migrants.” I can see all those rich liberal Manhattanites hurrying to sign up.
My thanks to Mother Nature, who shooed the rain away just before I left the apartment, and to the young man who after a long look bought a book of puzzles; and to the other who purchased Hannibal by Thomas Harris and the enduring How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie; and to The Quiet Man, who took home The Gangs of New York by Herbert Asbury and Survivors: Inspiring True Stories of Survival by Ben Hubbard; and to Gordon, who chose 7th Heaven by James Patterson & Maxine Paetro. No incoming today-yay!
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