HNYIC

LeonardPierce.com will be taking the next few days off to celebrate the coming of the new year.  Have a happy holiday, wherever and whoever you are, and I hope to see you here the first week of 2014 for some dad-blasted new content and other surprises.  Cheers!

Go Gamecocks

“Coach Ryan, if you want to fight me on this, I’m absolutely prepared to go over your head.” “Jennifer, I can assure you, it’s…” “Remember, you’re just the athletic director. If you think I’m not willing to talk to the president of the university, you’re sadly mistaken.” “I just don’t …

Christmas Telephone Call from a Worker North of Reykjavik

“Hello?” “Merry Christmas, mom!” “Robert! Oh, thank you, son! I didn’t think you’d have time to call me today.” “No, it’s cool. I’m on my break. Even up here, we get OSHA.” “So you’re still working for that man.” “Yes, mom.” “You haven’t thought about going back to school.” “To …

Everyone’s a Critic, II

In 2013, the ‘death of the critic’ bell that has been sounding since the birth of the internet finally reached a fevered, Chuck-Berry-style ding-a-ling.  Film critics were especially hard-hit by algorithms, aggregators, and amateurism, the so-called “Five As” referred to by badly educated but enthusiastic bloggers.  Stripped of the need …

Last Post About Satan

ED “SCUPPER” HELMOND, VICE-PRESIDENT, BAKERSFIELD CHAPTER, SATAN’S SERVANTS M.C.: “Well, I’ll be honest with you, man.  We didn’t used to be called Satan’s Servants. Before this, we were the Rough Riders, and before that, back in ’49 when the club was first founded, we were actually called the Rosedale Rollin’ …

100 Guns from Now

1.  The Maltese Falcon (Warner Bros., October 3, 1941; John Huston, dir.) 2.  This Gun for Hire (Paramount, May 13, 1942; Frank Tuttle, dir.) 3.  Double Indemnity (Paramount, September 6, 1944; Billy Wilder, dir.) 4.  Laura (20th Century FOX, October 11, 1944; Otto Preminger, dir.) 5.  Murder, My Sweet (RKO Radio …