Barack Obama Jr.'s stepfather, who married Stanley Ann Dunham Obama after her divorce from Barack Sr., was Lolo Soetoro, an Indonesian national who moved the new family to Djakarta, where young Barry attended Santo Fransiskus Asisi (St. Francis of Assisi) Catholic School.
Saint Clare of Assisi was a follower of St. Francis. She founded the Order of Poor Ladies, commonly known today as the Poor Clares.
The Ostrogoths of king Totila destroyed most of Assissi in 545 AD.
King Vidor’s first sound film, ** Hallelujah!** was the first major Hollywood film to feature an all-Black cast. It was considered so risky that MGM required Vidor to put his own salary into the production, but it was a major hit when released.
The New Zealand rugby team, the All-Blacks, traditionally perform a Maori haka before each match.
The haka, a Maori demonstration of martial confidence and restrained aggression, is depicted in the movie Invictus, starring Morgan Freeman as President Nelson Mandela and Matt Damon as a top South African soccer star.
Elvin and Sondra Huxtable-Tibideaux’s twins on The Cosby Show were named Nelson and Winnie, after the Mandelas.
In 1930, Wiley Post set a world record for circumnavigation of the globe by flying his Winnie Mae from Roosevelt Field on Long Island in an easterly direction. Post’s time of 8 days, 15 hours, 51 minutes shattered the mark set the year before when the Graf Zeppelin completed the feat in 21 days.
As of 2005, the most expensive residence in the US was Three Ponds in Bridgehampton, Long Island. The country’s second-largest home, Oheka Castle or the Otto Kahn Estate, is also on Long Island.
Carl Yastzemski is the only member of the Baseball Hall of Fame born in Bridgehamton, NY (technically in Southampton, but that was where the nearest hospital was; Carl lived in Bridgehampton until he went to college).
Damon Allen was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame this weekend. At the time of his retirement in 2008, he was pro-football’s All-Time Passing Leader with 72,381 yards, surpassing Bret Favre, Warren Moon and Dan Marino.
The Most Serene Republic of San Marino, which was founded 3 September 301, by stonecutter Marin of Rab, is the smallest sovereign country in the Council of Europe.
San Marino is the fifth-smallest country in the world. Vatican City is the smallest.
The Matrix used many of the same plot elements, themes, and even sets as the movie Dark City, filmed on year before in the same studios.
Both favorite movies of mine!
The original theatrical release of Dark City includes a voiceover by Dr. Schreiber (Keifer Sutherland) just after the opening credits; the director’s cut omits it.
Walther Schreiber was the mayor of West Berlin from 1953 to '55.
Berlin, New York was named after Berlin, Germany, although natives pronounce it differently, with the accent on the first syllable.
Berlin, NY is in Rensselaer County whose county seat is Troy, NY. Troy is the home of meat packer Samuel Wilson, the Uncle Sam whose personification is the Uncle Sam of the United States.
Troy is also home of the old baseball team, the Troy Trojans. The Trojans later moved to NYC and became the NY Gothams, and later the NY Giants, who moved to San Francisco. After the SF Giants won the 2010 World Series, they toured the World Series trophy to both NYC and to Troy in appreciation of their history and NY State heritage.
(GO GIANTS!!!)
In play: San Francisco outlawed burials in 1901, and the Presidio and Mission have the city’s only remaining cemeteries. The dead are in neighboring Colma, making it the world’s only incorporated city where the dead outnumber the living. Permanent residents of its 16 cemeteries include Wyatt Earp and Joe DiMaggio.
Hmm, thanks. I grew up there (actually the next town over, in Latham), and I guess I grew up with that legend.