Child Celebrities Opposed to Kirk Cameron

This hilarious video (which you probably shouldn't play too loudly if at work) also has a message. And lets us see what some former child stars look like these days. I'm not a CCOKC myself, but I'm a huge fan. Ahem.

CCOKC - Child Celebrities Opposing Kirk Cameron - watch more funny videos

Found at: BoyCulture.com

Greenlee Gazette's Guide to Friday the 13th

Happy Friday the 13th everybody! If you've read this blog even a little bit, you know that I'm a cheesy horror movie fan. And there is no cheesier series of horror films than the Friday the 13th series. From the beginning, it was a rip-off (but the first one!) of Halloween. But you could safely say that Halloween as a franchise was born due to the success of Friday the 13th. The following blog post was written for my annual Halloween scary movie retrospectives. But every time there is a Friday the 13th on the calendar, these movies come back into vogue. But don't worry if you didn't plan ahead, there is another one in July!

Original post from October 2011.

Photo from Wikipedia.org

Sprinkled throughout this blog is ample evidence that I am a horror movie nut. That's in addition to being a comic book/superhero nut, a 70s ABC-TV nut, and a far-left loony moonbat political nut!

With Halloween coming up, there will undoubtedly be a heavier focus on the horror movie nut side of me. Previously, I commented on how much I did not want to see Rob Zombie's re-imagined Halloween. I still don't, but I'm sure someday I'll get the DVD. Anyway, unlike the original Halloween, I'm not sure anyone would put Friday the 13th in the "classic" category. At least not good classics. The series is loved with a heavy dose of nostalgia, and not a lot else.

Sure, it's iconic, was amazingly influential, and made a whole lot of money for both Paramount and New Line studios. But the Friday the 13th string of movies was easily the hollowest, least plotted, acted and impactful storywise of the horror movie franchises (Nightmare on Elm Street, Halloween, Hellraiser). Each Friday film pretty much follows a mindless killer, stalking stupid people.

There were variations along the way. And if you try to assign a real-world continuity to the films, you'll give yourself a headache that feels like a machete in your skull. Here are some short recaps (star ratings do not relate to the real movie world, only within the horror movie genre!):

Friday the 13th - The first film is by far the best. Jason does not appear (outside of a possible hallucination), but his storyline is set up. Notable for Betsy Palmer's iconic performance as Jason's mother. Sets the tone and atmosphere for the first four to seven movies. Genuinely scary for the uninitiated. Plus, Kevin Bacon. ***

Friday the 13th, Part 2 -Almost as good as the first, though very short (especially considering the recap at the beginning). Notable for Amy Steel's strong performance, the VW bug scene, and the guy in the wheelchair. Struggles to find a reason why Jason didn't drown, and why he was motivated to start his killing spree. Though the explanation is weak, it is used as the basis for the rest of the series. **

Friday the 13th, Part 3 - This (originally) 3D installment is one of the weakest, with very little story, and shots that were intended for the 3D audience. Most notable for hand-walking guy's death, and Jason's acquisition of his iconic hockey mask.  I initially thought this installment was terrible, but it's better in retrospect. *

Friday the 13th - The Final Chapter - Yeah, right! It's the best of sequels, and could have served as the finale, but there was more money to be made. Jason ventures out of Camp Crystal Lake, and seems to meet his end. Considering that this was 1984, I'm sure you know that it wasn't to be. Plus, Corey Feldman and Crispin Glover? ***

Friday the 13th (Part V): A New Beginning - Close to as good as part 4, reviled by fans for its plot twist, but very much in line with the tone of the first four movies. And Corey Feldman only wishes he grew up to look like John Shepherd!  Woof. **

Friday the 13th, Part VI: Jason Lives - Yeah, I guess he lives. Often considered one of the best sequels, it left me cold. It felt like a different studio picked up the reigns. This edition has a vastly different tone from the first five films, and the gory kills just aren't there.  But I guess the MPAA is to blame for that. *

Friday the 13th, Part VII: The New Blood - They throw a psychic girl into the mix, and tack on a ridiculous ending, which puts Jason into the same scenario as the end of the last movie--making this one irrelevant. On the plus side the tone of the first five movies is back. And for you gay fans out there, this one is known as FriGAY the 13th for the high number of gay actors in the movie. *

Friday the 13th, Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan - The tone is still there, as Jason stows away on a cruise ship bound for New York. Most of the action is on the boat, and there are some great scenes. But it feels like the series is running on fumes. And that ending. What the hell? *1/2

Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday - Speaking of Hell, New Line Cinema took over the franchise from Paramount here, and it is very, very obvious this was made by others. Some of the feel is still there, and the film is undeniably fun. Adds a bunch of new story elements that wreck any (already strained) continuity from the first 8 films. Also ignores the end of Part VIII. Fun anyway. And it sets up the movie after the next one.**1/2

Jason X - Tenth installment puts Jason in space, with no context to the rest of the storyline. Continuity-wise has no home, and is akin to a comic book "elseworlds" or "imaginary story." Has its fun parts, but utterly skippable. But the cryogenic scene? Priceless. *1/2

Freddy Vs. Jason - I loved it. They took the monster from the best horror franchise (though it had run out of steam) and the worst (but still loved), and pitted them against each other. Truly, one of the best outings for this type of movie in a long, long time. That said, not the least bit scary. Plays like gory comedy. ***

Friday the 13th (Remake) - I was right that they couldn't really mess up the remake. It's a hoot. The twist--apparently--is that most of the characters you kinda want to see dead. And Jason is given a much heftier back-story. Unfortunately, they still don't explain what happened that made Mrs. Voorhees think he died when he didn't. Still, I'd put this in the top three with the first two installments. I don't know if there will be a part 2 (actually XIII), but I'm game. ***

Marcus Bachmann Still Trying to Pray Away the Gay

Oh, Marcus! You can't get rid of your outsized gayness with any regular-strength prayer. You're going to need Industrial Strength God in a Drum for that kind of job! Sweetheart, dump Crazy Eyes, change the clinic's purpose to a support-centered place, and come out! You might get a game show on Bravo, or a fabulous reality series on Logo!

[Excerpt]

Bachmann clinic continues ‘pray the gay away’ treatment

Kristina Lapinski, a documentary film-maker who is contributing to “Gay U.S.A. the Movie,” a documentary project, went undercover, and attended a session with Bachmann & Associates, the counselling clinic in Minnesota owned by Michele and Marcus Bachmann. Mrs Bachmann was a contender for the Republican Presidential Nomination, though she pulled out of the race at the beginning of the year. . .

Read more at (yes): Pink News

Jan Brewer Signs Crazy Anti-Abortion Law

Gahhh. Don't click to embiggen. Image from Jezebel.

Republican Governors and legislatures seem to be in a competition for which one of them can overreach the most. At least two of those Governors are up for recall, less than two years into their tenures. And Jan Brewer, the dragon lady catcher's mitt Governor of Arizona has topped them all. Many states have been enacting draconian anti-abortion laws since the GOP cleaned up in the 2010 elections. But as far as I know, none dared claim that life begins two weeks before conception.

The real reason for that audacious claim is so that the counting starts earlier, and that the 20-week limit becomes 18. So one more time, they're passing laws that chip away at what seemed to be settled law. And they seem to be turned back the clock to the time of back-alley abortions.

[Excerpt]

Uteruses Everywhere Weep As Arizona Governor Signs Insanely Restrictive Abortion Bill Into Law

Arizona made big strides today in its quest to be one of the absolute worst places to be a woman—or to even have a woman in your family. Governor Jan Brewer signed into law the hideous bill that redefines a pregnancy as beginning at two weeks before conception. That's the earliest of any state, so if you want to get a jump start on living, try to be conceived in Arizona. The law effectively bans abortions after 20 weeks gestational age—err, 18 weeks if you're using the old counting system—except in cases of medical emergency. As draconian as it sounds, it shouldn't change much since very few of those abortions are even performed in the state at the moment. . .

Read more at: Jezebel

Ryan Plan Cuts Taxes for Rich, Raises Them for the Poor

Actually, that would be the rich tax.
Image from ThinkProgress.

Why oh why do they keep doing this? Over and over again, Republicans propose or enact policies that sting the poor, sick, elderly and infirm, while giving massive breaks to the richest. Why? The very rich in this country are actually very, very, very rich (and I'm probably missing a few verys). They don't need more money. They don't need more breaks.

I was thinking about this the other day. You've got your Foster Friess, your Sheldon Adelson, your Koch Brothers, all obscenely rich. I will not begrudge them their money, they earned it (one way or the other). But these guys have millions just to piss away on quixotic candidates like Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum. They fund think tanks and lobbyists, and cabals like ALEC, which ghost-writes legislation enacted later by Republicans. All of this money is spent with the prospect of making even more money. Much more money then they have to spend buying politicians. All of the guys above are in their seventies. What the frack are these guys saving up for? Are they buying a country (besides the one they're currently buying) to while away their eighties? Why do billionaires need to work so hard to make even more billions? For what?

But I digress.

[Excerpt]

CHART: House GOP Budget Cuts Taxes For The Rich, Raises Taxes On The Poor


As ThinkProgress has detailed, the House Republican budget, authored by Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI), pays for massive tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans by cutting spending from programs that primarily benefit lower-income Americans. While giving an average of $187,000 to each millionaire, the budget finds 62 percent of its cuts from programs that benefit the lower- and middle-classes, kicking millions off of food stamps, gutting Pell Grants, and slashing Medicare and Medicaid. . .

Read more at: Think Progress

FOX "News" Mole Found Out, Fired

Image from Washington Post

I really like the idea of being a mole at FOX "News." I was once a safety auditor for amusement rides, and would pose as a rider while evaluating the operators. But I had no secret desire to take down Knott's Berry Farm, y'know? FOX "News" though? Yeah, baby, that would be fun! Too bad he got busted.

[Excerpt]


Gawker’s Fox News mole is outed and ousted

America knows Fox News as the country’s highest-rated cable news network. It regularly trounces not-really-rivals CNN and MSNBC in the ratings.  But Fox News employees know Fox News as a clampdown operation. Defined as a “severe or concerted attempt to suppress something,” “clampdown” describes just how Fox treats the sharing of information about its operations with the outside world. . .

Read more at: Washington Post

I Know You Are But What Am I? Romney Attempts "Obama's War on Women"

Capt. Disingenuous. Image from TPM.

Republicans from bloggers to TV pundits to Mitt Romney himself, are trying to pull a Karl Rove trick. Take their weakness, and pretend it is the weakness of the other side. Led by Rick (don't Google me) Santorum, and a host of state governments' invasive anti-women laws, Republicans have developed a women problem. Rather than addressing that, they're trying to flip it, and say it's Obama's problem. But they're coming off like Pee Wee Herman (I know you are, but what am I?) or Martin Short's nervous lawyer, Nathan Thurm (I don't have a problem. Maybe it's you that has a problem! Ever think of that?). It isn't very convincing, nor is it honest or mature. Republican voters must be used to being treated with such contempt by now, I guess.

[Excerpt]


Debunking Romney’s Claim That It’s Obama’s War On Women

Mitt Romney’s having a terrible time turning the tables on Democrats. But his camp’s claim that President Obama is the one waging the “real war on women” is best debunked visually. . .

Read more at: Talking Points Memo

100th Anniversary of Titanic Disaster on Sunday

Image from Boston Globe

Yes, kids, the Titanic was a real ship that really sank, not just that old movie that they brought back in fake 3D. And when you see the old black and white photos, it really does seem like a very long time ago indeed. But I'm prone to doing the math on things like this. And I realized that when I was born, it was just a week after Titanic's 54th anniversary. And so now I'm feeling very old. Particularly when I find out that kids today don't know it was a real ship.

[Excerpt]

Disaster recalled

One hundred years ago, Boston Globe readers opened their newspapers and were shocked to learn that the unthinkable had happened: The mighty Titanic, the supposedly unsinkable, state-of-the-art luxury liner, had hit an iceberg and sunk to the bottom of the ocean, taking about 1,500 lives. . .

Read more at: Boston Globe

Sean Hannity Lies About President Obama and "New Black Panthers"

Ooh. Scary black people. Image from Mediaite

I'm sorry, let me give you a second to catch your breath from that stunning headline. Sean Hannity lies? Actually, maybe that is slightly unfair. Sources say that Hannity isn't very bright, and is actually just a puppet of others, namely Mark Levin. So, Levin may be lying through Hannity, I suppose. In any event, it's rather despicable that FOX "News" is so desperate to paint Obama as dangerously black. And that they expect that their audience would lap that sort of thing up.

[Excerpt]

Sean Hannity Resurrects Lie That Barack Obama ‘Spoke With’ New Black Panthers

As part of a despicable years-long attempt by conservatives to associate President Obama with the fringe New Black Panther Party, Fox News’ Sean Hannity resurrected a smear that President Obama “spoke with” the designated hate group at a 2007 event, and chirped, “There’s a picture of that!”. . .

Read more at: Mediaite

George Zimmerman Finally Arrested in Trayvon Martin Shooting

I've tried to step back as more and more happened in the Trayvon Martin case. And rather than trying the case on my blog, I tried to confine myself to commenting on the insanity of the "stand your ground" laws (brought to you by ALEC, naturally), the potential ineptitude of the Sanford Police Department, and the likelihood that were the roles reversed, that Martin wouldn't be allowed to just walk away, with his gun.

But it has been difficult not saying much. Seemingly every day, something strange occurred in the case, from off-the-wall testimonials by people who seemingly hadn't seen George Zimmerman in years, to his lawyers publicly trouncing him and abandoning him on television. Zimmerman's side of the story has been gobbled down, hook, line and sinker by right-wing world. And when Zimmerman is actually conferring with Sean Hannity, it just gets to be too much! So thankfully, an arrest was finally made. As unseemly as some of the media circus has been, the fact remains that were it not for the public outcry, Zimmerman would just be on his merry way.

[Excerpt]


George Zimmerman in custody, will plead not guilty to second-degree murder in Trayvon Martin case

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

George Zimmerman is in custody in Florida and will be charged with second-degree murder in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, authorities announced Wednesday. His attorney said he would plead not guilty. . .

Read more at: MSNBC

Will the Far Right Wing Vote for Mitt Romney?

Conventional Wisdom is hard to peg for this November's Presidential election. On one side, you've got President Barack Obama, not as popular as he used to be. And you've got Mitt Romney, never particularly popular.

Found at the Conservative Daily News

Democrats, by-and-large, are either going to vote for President Obama, toss a throw-away protest vote, or they will stay home. Republicans. . .well, who knows? The moderate-to-rightish ones will probably vote for Romney. But what about the hard right? You know, the tea party, the evangelicals, the hard-line anti-abortionists? To some of them, Romney is too moderate, a RINO (Republican In Name Only), and to some of them he's a cultist (Mormon). Nobody on the far right is going to vote for Obama. But will they throw their vote away or stay home?

FreeRepublic.com is a far-right, tea-baggin', Sarah Palin-lovin', god-guns-and-(no)gays outpost on the web, a mainstay since the Monica Lewinsky days. They are a ridiculously extreme group, but as with Rush Limbaugh, mainstream conservatism has lurched so far to the right, they're oddly mainstream as well. And the FReepers are an excellent barometer of what self-declared "true conservatives" are thinking on any given subject. I don't recommend it for people with weak stomachs.

Anyway, some time back I noticed a post by the leader of the FReepers, Jim Robinson (Rim Job Jim Rob), who loudly declared that he wouldn't tolerate Romney lovers on his site! No way, no how would his site or his members promote or vote for that stinkin' RINO! When I read this, I believed it to be mostly bluster. Surely, when the time came to settle for Mittens, the FReepers would fall in line. I even saved the page, just in case:

Click either image to embiggen.

As you can see, Jim Rob is no Romney fan. But you know what? After Rick (don't Google me) Santorum dropped out of the race, I thought I should check to see what the FReepers were saying. I saw a headline, "This Level Headed FReeper is voting for Romney". But when I tried to read it, it had been removed, with a link to this one, "Notice: FR is and will remain a pro-life, small government conservative site. " So, I guess I have gained a small measure of respect for Rim Jobinson Jim Robinson, if not for the FReepers themselves.

Lawsuit Challenges Nevada's Anti-Gay Marriage Amendment

Image from Gay & Lesbian Nevada Resources

I find the National Organization for Marriage (NOM), their spinoffs, affiliated groups, and predecessors in the same effort, frankly, ridiculous. Their entire premise--that heterosexual marriage suffers some sort of damage if gay people get married--is flawed, and has zero evidence. But nowhere was the idea more silly, more disingenuous than it was in Nevada.

Nevada, home of the drive-thru wedding chapel. A place where you can meet someone, rock their world, and get married all in a day or two! You can get married by an Elvis impersonator, and if you change your mind--like Britney Spears did--you can get a quick annulment (or if you waited too long, a quickie divorce). An early state in the anti-gay marriage stakes, Nevada first proposed a state constitutional amendment in 2000. This was coincidentally the same year that Rick Rockwell "won" Darva Conger as his bride in the Las Vegas-based game show, Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire? On friggin' FOX.

According to Las Vegas
City Life, Richard
Ziser has dreams
about men like this.
Who am I to argue?

So when a toady named Richard Ziser (with the help of local right-wing radio "talent" like Alan Stock) started to sell Nevada on his anti-gay amendment, the sell was the sanctity of marriage. In Nevada. Unfortunately, the gay community in Nevada and Las Vegas is a rather loose affiliation, unprepared for the steamroller that was coming. Even though it had to pass in consecutive votes to become an official amendment, it passed both times and it wasn't even close. For no other reason than to put a boot on gay couples' necks, discrimination was enshrined in the battle-born Nevada state constitution. Ziser later ran for office with the slogan, "Faith. Family. Freedom," which shows you a clue to his theocratic aims. He lost. Good.

Anyway, I'm hoping that the lawsuit filed this week undoes the nasty work Ziser wrought. I hope his entry in Wikipedia goes down as a black mark in our history, and that at least one of his grandkids gets gay married.

[Excerpt]


Lambda Legal Files Federal Lawsuit Seeking Marriage Equality in Nevada

Today, Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund took what one of its lawyers calls "a strategic step" in the national effort to advance marriage equality by filing a federal lawsuit in Nevada seeking equal marriage rights for eight same-sex couples in the state. . .

Read more at: MetroWeekly

We Won't Have Rick Santorum to Kick Around Anymore!

Hasn't that little girl grown up yet?

That frothy mix was hard to get rid of. It seemed no matter how many times Mitt Romney scraped his shoe, Rick (don't Google me) Santorum just wouldn't stop clinging to him. But alas, Rick has quit, finally. He was entertaining, thought the brief period where it looked like he could actually win the GOP primary was terrifying. I mean, I was confident that President could mop that frothy mix right up, but the prospect of a loon like Santorum getting that close was almost too much to take.

And now, it is up to the Romneybot 2.0.

[Excerpt]


Rick Santorum lasted longer in the GOP race than anyone predicted

Rick Santorum ended his campaign at least three months later than any pundit could have predicted at any point last year. He also ended it with having accomplished more than anyone would have imagined and he did so at a time putting family first. In other words, Rick Santorum went out on top. . .

Read more at: CBS News

Mike in Raleigh: Rick Santorum's Frothy Swan Song!

Thanks to Mike in Raleigh (of The Stephanie Miller Show) for this beautiful remembrance of Rick (don't Google me) Santorum. Thanks for the frothy memories!

Idiot Proves Voter Fraud is Possible, Doesn't Prove it's Common

When Andrew Breitbart died, I thought maybe we'd be spared from ever hearing of his minion, the twerpy James O'Keefe, ever again. He's the one who stages sometimes elaborate, often dishonest "exposés" from an extreme right-wing perspective. But he's such a douche, that even if he had all his ducks in a row, he'd still just come off as a jerk. Here, he's proving that you can vote as somebody else if you know their address. Yeah. I've always known I could do that. . .provided I knew that person hadn't already voted, and provided that I wanted to commit a federal crime. I've never felt that inclination. And neither have very many other people.  [Story continues below]



The right has a very convincing argument for strict voter rules, with picture IDs, etc. "Who doesn't have an ID? You need an ID to get a movie at Blockbuster!" Yeah, nobody goes to Blockbuster anymore, but that isn't the point. The point is, there are large groups of people who do not often have photo IDs, whether you think that's stupid or not. And those people disproportionately vote Democrat. The fact of the matter is, Republicans didn't dream up voter ID laws because of some rampant voter fraud. More people win the big prize in MegaMillions and PowerBall in a given year than are busted for voter fraud. If it is a problem at all, it is amazingly small one. No, the laws are to disenfranchise particular voters.

I've been a voter for 28 years, first in Ohio, then in Nevada. I've never needed anything more than my name and my address to vote. When I registered, I filled out a card. I don't think I even needed ID then, just a bill with my address on it. I do have a photo ID, and can't conceive of not having one for myself. But since when do conservatives mandate official government papers for anything? And if you have to pay for them, isn't that an individual mandate? Not to mention a poll tax? And if they're given away for free, isn't that a giveaway?

[Excerpt]

James O’Keefe Proves That Pointless Form of Voter Fraud Is Possible


In a new video, a member of James O'Keefe's "Project Veritas" manages to enter a D.C. polling station and receive a ballot for none other than Attorney General Eric Holder, simply by providing Holder's address. . .

Read more at: New York Magazine

80s Sitcom Star Park Overall Running for Senate in Tennessee!

Back in the 80s, there was original programming on network television on Saturday nights, if you can believe it. And people didn't just watch it, they loved it enough to create hit shows like The Golden Girls and Empty Nest on Saturdays. A standout character on the latter was Laverne, the feisty nurse to Richard Mulligan's kindly doctor. She was played by Park Overall, and she was a key reason for the show's popularity and longevity. And now, she's running for Senate, which is cool. And she's a Democrat, which is cooler, except that she's from Tennessee, which makes it more difficult. Good luck, Park! Hey, if Sonny Bono and Fred Grandy--two weekend TV stars, Gandy also on Saturdays--can make it in Congress, maybe Park Overall can too!

[Excerpt]

The Sassy Southern Nurse From ‘Empty Nest’ May Be Tennessee’s Next Senator



. . .Park Overall, best known for southern drawling her way through brilliant roles on “Empty Nest” and Kindergarten Cop, will take on Corker this fall.

The 55-year-old sass machine formally filed the necessary papers on Wednesday in Nashville at the state Board of Elections. “Somebody had to do it and if nobody else will do it, I will do it,” she told The Greeneville Sun on Thursday. . .

Read more at: HyperVocal

Barack Obama Echoes Ronald Reagan

How about that? The Kenyan, socialist, radical black Christian/secret Muslim is being criticized for having essentially the same policy as The Great and Exalted Gipper, St. Ronaldus Maximus?  Reality does have a liberal bias!

"Stand Your Ground" Laws Coincide with Increase in Justifiable Homicide

Sometimes political cartoonists nail it. Found at Moderate Voice.

I know that gun nuts enthusiasts read that headline like I read most headlines at Newsbusters: "Um, yeah, so?" But come on you guys, while anyone can agree with so-called "castle" laws that apply to protecting yourself inside your home, these "stand your ground" laws seem to give people who own guns the right to shoot just about anyone they think has it coming. And a flimsy simple story seems to be about all you need to be on your way, with your gun. And if you manage to kill the other guy, and he can't speak for himself, so much the better! The moral: the guy with the gun is right.

[Excerpt]


Stand Your Ground laws coincide with jump in justifiable-homicide cases

When Billy Kuch knocked on the wrong door, he had a cigarette in one hand and a shirt in the other. The homeowner, Gregory Stewart, stepped outside, stood his ground, fired a round from his semiautomatic into Kuch’s chest, and in the eyes of the state of Florida, committed no crime. . .

Read more at: Washington Post

Blast from the Past: ABBA Gold, Part 1

As is common when doing Blast from the Past (especially then), the Blogger program ate my homework. Enormously frustrating as you can imagine. So, I'm starting over. I was listening to ABBA on my way home from Easter dinner, and I thought I was overdue for a post about them. They're a perennial favorite of mine, and I'm surprised they don't get more attention. Remakes if nothing else. And since ABBA's first chart hits are approaching forty years old, why wait?

ABBA had a unique sound that is set apart from its 1970s-80s time frame. Because it sounded so different from everything else, many of their songs would lend themselves to remakes or re-release, at least in my opinion. But then, I also believed they were more popular here than they actually were. I was surprised to find out that they'd only had four top 10 hits in the states. They did manage about 14 top 40 hits, but several just barely. Still, they remain one of the most successful bands in the world, so maybe America has bad taste. Listen to some of these, see what you think.



1. People Need Love - This song was their first chart hit as a group, but only in Europe. But it was on their Greatest Hits album, and has remained a favorite of mine since I was a kid.

2. He is Your Brother - Another non-charter that was for some reason on the Greatest Hits album.



3. Ring Ring - A song about waiting for a phone call? What could be more natural as a remake? And the original is pretty good on its own. The lyrics would need updating for the smart phone age, however.
4. Nina, Pretty Ballerina - My brother used to tease me for liking this one, but damned if it would get stuck in his head too.




5. Waterloo - By far the biggest splash they'd yet had in America, this video also set the ABBA style in people's consciousness.
6. Honey Honey - This one sounds all innocent, but if you listen to the lyrics it sounds pretty sexy.



7. I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do - Certainly a wedding favorite in certain quarters, this one cements ABBA's penchant for repeated words in their titles. And it was a decent-sized hit here.
8. SOS - For me, this one is right up there with Waterloo in my ABBA top five, and certainly made its mark on the charts.

And we've barely scratched the surface! ABBA Gold was a two-CD set, but I think this is going to be three or four posts. To be continued. . . In the mean time, happy Monday!

Newt Gingrich Gets the Bad Lip Reading Treatment

Funniest one yet--particularly from about the mid-point on--and about time, since Newty ain't long for this contest.