Tuesday, December 25, 2007

Puzzler

Do you like Sudoku puzzles? Every so often, I get on a Sudoku kick for a week or so, feeling an urgent need to solve one each morning before embarking on my real work for the day. Eventually, I encounter one that is so maddening that once I do solve it, all others seem anti-climactic and I break the habit for a while. That was the case with this one, which took way too long. You might have better luck with it than I did. Then again, it might take you as long as it did me. So you'd better not go there.

• Posted at 10:27 AM · LINK

Trio

I always thought the "they go in threes" belief was silly. People in show business die every day and every time someone really notable goes, folks pick two others who died at about the same time and they say, "See? They always die in threes." But depending on how long a time span you choose or how famous you expect the people to be, you could make the case for them dying in twos, fours, fives or almost any small number.

That said, it's sad to make note of these three: The great jazz musician Oscar Peterson has passed away. Ruth Wallis, a comedienne and singer of bawdy songs, is gone. And the great choreographer-director Michael Kidd has left us.

I have nothing to say about Mr. Peterson and Ms. Wallis other than that I enjoyed their records. Michael Kidd, I actually spoke with on the phone for about ten minutes when I was researching the Broadway show and movie of Li'l Abner. For some reason, he asked me not to quote him directly in the article and then made doubly certain I wouldn't by telling me nothing whatsoever of interest. Still, I got to tell him how much I'd always loved the shows and movies he directed and/or choreographed. That was nice.

• Posted at 9:39 AM · LINK

Today's Video Link

A bit of holiday animation by illustrator R.O. Blechman. This was done as a promo for CBS in 1966 and captured the holiday spirit better than a lot of the Christmas specials that aired before and after it.

• Posted at 9:17 AM · LINK