__________________ I am in love with Montana. For other states I have admiration, respect, recognition, even some affection, but with Montana it is love." - John Steinbeck
Last edited by Displaced Flames fan; 09-09-2010 at 08:01 PM.
In the MOVIE DIRECTOR category we elect STANLEY KUBRICK, director of our favorite movie of all time, 2001: A Space Odyssey (among others):
Stanley Kubrick (July 26, 1928 – March 7, 1999) was an Americanfilm director, writer, producer, and photographer who lived in England during most of the last four decades of his career. Kubrick was noted for the scrupulous care with which he chose his subjects, his slow method of working, the variety of genres he worked in, his technical perfectionism, and his reclusiveness about his films and personal life. He worked far beyond the confines of the Hollywood system, maintaining almost complete artistic control and making movies according to his own whims and time constraints, but with the rare advantage of big-studiofinancial support for all his endeavors. Although he was nominated for an Academy Award as a screenwriter and director on several occasions, his only personal win was for the special effects in 2001: A Space Odyssey.
Kubrick is widely acknowledged as one of the most accomplished, innovative, and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema.[1] He directed a number of highly acclaimed and often controversial films that have often been perceived as a reflection of his obsessive and perfectionist nature.[2] His films are characterized by a formal visual style and meticulous attention to detail—his later films often have elements of surrealism and expressionism that eschews structured linear narrative. While often viewed as expressing an ironicpessimism,[3] a few critics feel his films contain a cautious optimism when viewed more carefully.[4] Even though all of his films, apart from the first two, were adapted from novels or short stories, his works are noted as some of the "most original, provocative, and visionary motion pictures ever made".[5]
The genius is not in how much Stanley Kubrick does in “2001: A Space Odyssey,'' but in how little. This is the work of an artist so sublimely confident that he doesn't include a single shot simply to keep our attention. He reduces each scene to its essence, and leaves it on screen long enough for us to contemplate it, to inhabit it in our imaginations. Alone among science-fiction movies, “2001'' is not concerned with thrilling us, but with inspiring our awe.
This is perhaps the only SF movie that really demonstrates what space travel would be really like - dangerous, cold, lonely. This scene is thrilling, without any explosions or car chases. The psychological tension is amazing - what is intelligence?
No little part of his effect comes from the music. Although Kubrick originally commissioned an original score from Alex North, he used classical recordings as a temporary track while editing the film, and they worked so well that he kept them. This was a crucial decision.
Team U.S.Eh! selects Voltaire in the Philosopher Category
Quote:
François-Marie Arouet (French pronunciation: [fʁɑ̃swa maʁi aʁuˈwe]; 21 November 1694 – 30 May 1778), better known by the pen nameVoltaire (pronounced: [volˈtɛʁ]), was a FrenchEnlightenment writer and philosopher famous for his wit and for his advocacy of civil liberties, including freedom of religion and free trade. Voltaire was a prolific writer and produced works in almost every literary form including plays, poetry, novels, essays, historical and scientific works, more than 20,000 letters and more than 2,000 books and pamphlets. He was an outspoken supporter of social reform, despite strict censorship laws and harsh penalties for those who broke them. As a satirical polemicist, he frequently made use of his works to criticize intolerance, religious dogma and the French institutions of his day.
Voltaire was one of several Enlightenment figures whose works and ideas influenced important thinkers of both the American and French Revolutions.
Team U.S.Eh! selects John D. Rockefeller in the Businessman/Entrepreneur Category
Quote:
John D. Rockefeller tamed the early wildcat oil economy and replaced it with a smoothly-functioning--if vaguely sinister--international machine. "The day of combination is here to stay," he once said, "individualism has gone, never to return."
Rockefeller built Standard Oil by borrowing heavily to fund acquisitions and ruthlessly cutting costs. As historian Gerald Gunderson writes, refineries were consolidated at larger, more efficient locations and tied into new pipelines. Rockefeller also colluded with the major railroad owners to have his product shipped more cheaply than his competitors. Standard Oil eventually became the No. 1 target of the anti-monopolists in government. It was broken into 34 pieces in a landmark 1911 Supreme Court case. The decision set a precedent that would make antitrust policy a major force in America and throughout the world.
John Davison Rockefeller (July 8, 1839 – May 23, 1937) was an American oil magnate. Rockefeller revolutionized the petroleum industry and defined the structure of modern philanthropy. In 1870, he founded the Standard Oil Company and aggressively ran it until he officially retired in 1897.[1] Standard Oil began as an Ohio partnership formed by John D. Rockefeller, his brother William Rockefeller, Henry Flagler, Jabez Bostwick, chemist Samuel Andrews, and a silent partner, Stephen V. Harkness. As kerosene and gasoline grew in importance, Rockefeller's wealth soared, and he became the world's richest man and first American worth more than a billion dollars.[2] Adjusting for inflation, he is often regarded as the richest person in history.[3][4][5][6]
Rockefeller spent the last 40 years of his life in retirement. His fortune was mainly used to create the modern systematic approach of targeted philanthropy with foundations that had a major effect on medicine, education, and scientific research.[citation needed]
His foundations pioneered the development of medical research, and were instrumental in the eradication of hookworm and yellow fever. He is also the founder of both the University of Chicago and Rockefeller University. He was a devoted Northern Baptist and supported many church-based institutions throughout his life. Rockefeller adhered to total abstinence from alcohol and tobacco throughout his life.
A well-fed citizenry is a happy citizenry. We appoint as Minister of Food & Wine, super-cook ALICE WATERS, who will provide us delicious meals prepared with fresh, local, organic ingredients.
Alice Louise Waters (born April 28, 1944) is an American chef, restaurateur, activist, and humanitarian. She is the owner of Chez Panisse, the world-renowned restaurant in Berkeley, California famous for its organic, locally-grown ingredients and for pioneering California cuisine.[1]
Waters opened the restaurant in 1971 at age 27. Since then, it has become one of the most awarded and renowned restaurants in the world, and has consistently ranked among the World’s 50 Best Restaurants.
Waters has been cited as the most influential person in food in the past 50 years, and has been called the mother of American food.[2] She is currently one of the most visible supporters of the organic food movement, and has been a proponent of organics for over 40 years.[3] She believes that eating organic foods, free from herbicides and pesticides, is essential for both taste and the health of the environment and local communities.
California cuisine is a style of cuisine marked by an interest in "fusion" – integrating disparate cooking styles and ingredients – and in the use of freshly prepared local ingredients.[1] The food is typically prepared with strong attention to presentation.
Friday, September 10 $95 An apéritif Chilled cucumber gazpacho Pan-seared sea scallops with romesco sauce and roasted peppers Sonoma Liberty duck breast with roasted figs, wine grapes, and wild mushrooms Almond cake with OHenry peaches and crème Chantilly
Saturday, September 11 $95 An apéritif Heirloom tomato bruschetta with cured salmon and herb salad Chanterelle mushroom lasagne Grilled Paine Farm squab with rosemary and pancetta; ragoût of Chino Ranch shell beans, romano beans, and sweet corn Frog Hollow Farm plum crostata with wild fennel ice cream
Say hello to the newest Displaysian! In the category of Philosopher, I will fill in the Plato and Alexander the Great gap, I select Aristotle.
Aristotle's views on the physical sciences profoundly shaped medieval scholarship, and their influence extended well into the Renaissance, although they were ultimately replaced by Newtonian physics. In the zoological sciences, some of his observations were confirmed to be accurate only in the 19th century. His works contain the earliest known formal study of logic, which was incorporated in the late 19th century into modern formal logic. In metaphysics, Aristotelianism had a profound influence on philosophical and theological thinking in the Islamic and Jewish traditions in the Middle Ages, and it continues to influence Christian theology, especially Eastern Orthodox theology, and the scholastic tradition of the Catholic Church. His ethics, though always influential, gained renewed interest with the modern advent of virtue ethics. All aspects of Aristotle's philosophy continue to be the object of active academic study today. Though Aristotle wrote many elegant treatises and dialogues (Cicero described his literary style as "a river of gold"),[2] it is thought that the majority of his writings are now lost and only about one-third of the original works have survived.[3]
__________________ I am in love with Montana. For other states I have admiration, respect, recognition, even some affection, but with Montana it is love." - John Steinbeck
SebCountry is proud to welcome its newest citizen: in the scientist category, I select Michael Faraday.
Faraday discovered benzene, diamagnetism, and electromagnetic induction, which is the principle behind electric generators. As such, SebCountry can now use it's Watt Steam Engines to generate electricity.
The UTSR is very very...very happy to select in the Hottie category:
Saori Yano
As well as being a complete bombshell, she is the best saxophonist since Charlie Parker. She will compose and perform the UTSR in partnership with Mozart. Having a public relation's hottie who is also a once in a generation talent was a goal for us from the outset.
__________________
So far, this is the oldest I've been.
Last edited by Traditional_Ale; 09-11-2010 at 10:59 AM.
