Tim Pim Blog

Lake Natron is situated in the north of the Ngorongoro Highlands; to the south is the active volcano, Ol Doinyo Lengai and to the west, is the edge of the Serengeti National Park.

The journey is a long but beautiful passage through dramatic, harsh territory. Making this an outstanding destination for walking safaris. Walking in the African Bush with Maasai Warriors as you guides is a unique opportunity for spectacular game viewing combined with the prospect to experience cultural encounters amongst the Maasai, Datoga, and nomadic Bushmen.

Lake Natron is a soda lake at the base of the active Ol Donyo Lengai volcano, the area around the lake is often described as having a desolate and almost lunar beauty. Walks around the lake and up along the side of the streams to the waterfalls along the nearby escarpment make for a fantastic adventure that is well and truly “off the beaten track”.

Day 1: Arrival in Aruhsa.

Day 2: Early morning head to Tarangire National Park, arriving in time for lunch, set up camp in a remote area of the park. After lunch take your first experience of Africa with a walk following the park border.

Day 3 & 4 : Full day Walking Safari guided by an armed ranger, or if you prefer take a morning walk and an afternoon game drive in the park. The park is famed for a rich bird life. Depending on the season it is possible see elephants, zebras, wildebeest and even lions; with year round water this park has a prolific game especially in the dry season.

Day 5: A short drive to the Ngorongoro Crater to set up camp on the crater rim. Take an early lunch and spend the afternoon on a game drive on the crater floor.

Day 6: Early morning departure to Olmoti Crater and waterfalls for a half day walk. There is a good chance of meeting Maasai herders-men with there cattle en-route. In the afternoon proceed to the base camp at Empakaai Crater.

Day 7: The views along the trail downwards to the crater lake of Empakaai are spectacular at every point. You might see herds of buffalo, bushbucks, blue monkeys in the flat toped acacia and always a good variety of birds. It is a joy to walk around the lake shore, experiencing the serenity and quite beauty of this wild spot. Overnight at the base camp.

Day 8 : The hike to Lake Natron starts proper from Empakaai Crater. Descending the outer hills of the Great Rift Valley, walk through the open plains of the Embulbul depression, to the campsite at the village of Naiobi. This village offers the great privilege to meet the local Maasai. Ol Doinyo Lengai and Mount Meru are seen along the way. No porters here but the Maasai donkeys carry the luggage.

Day 9: Trekking to Oldonyo Lengai the only active volcano of Tanzania, named by the Maasai as the “holy mountain”. It is a four hour walk to the foot of this impressive mountain, pitch tents and set up camp (an alternative camp is at Ngare Sero/ Kamakia at the nearby Lake Natron)

Day 10: At midnight the steep accent of the mountain begins; this is in order to avoid the heat of the sun, there is no shelter on the mountain. This is a steep climb on loose scree is for the physically fit only. The summit, at 2,450 meters above sea level, is achieved by sunrise. From here there are fantastic views of the surrounding landscape, Lake Natron, Mount Meru and even Mount Kilimanjaro on a clear day. The crater itself offers a unique spectacle. You can descend onto the crater floor, everywhere it is bubbling and steaming, small fissures inside the crater produce streams of molten lava. Return to the base camp for overnight.

Day 11: Trek to the Ngare Sero River. In contrast to the surrounding arid landscape, the water here has crated an oasis. The trek is a strenuous walk up the stream to the source; a cascading waterfall that gushes out of the mountain. Overnight at the Ngare Sero / Kamakia Camp.

Day 12: At 05h30 drive to Lake Natron to experience the Sunrise over the Lake and a multitude of pink flamingoes. After breakfast depart by car to the village of Mto wa Mbu. The day is spent exploring the Great Rift Valley escarpment. Overnight at the campsite Fig Resort Campsite

Day 13: Return to Arusha.

For further information on Lake Natron & Ngorongoro Highlands Walking Adventure see http://www.parksadventure.com - Using tourism to improve lives. Specializing in Cultural and Eco tourism.

Material

Over 70 million metric tons of asphalt paving material is recycled each year. Today, asphalt pavement is America’s most recycled material. You’ll learn why asphalt has been the most popular roofing material for the past 100 years. An asphalt emulsion or a recycling agent is added, then the material is placed and compacted. How asphalt shingles are made: Asphalt shingles are made of asphalt flux, a material which is refined from petroleum in the distillation process. It occurs also in asphalt rock, a natural mixture of asphalt with sand and limestone, which when crushed is used as road-building material. Summary Reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) is added to virgin paving material at a 15% rate, reducing paving materials costs and avoiding landfill disposal costs. The material will now be at least 300 degrees F and the asphalt is added at that temperature. The sector has achieved 100% recycle of used asphalt, which makes it the most recycled material in Wisconsin. Air Emissions The mixing and drying of asphalt material produces dust and all plants are required to have emission controls to remove particulate. Then drive over the patch with your car to press the material into the asphalt. In this measurement method, the hot mix asphalt plant is considered as including the loading, unloading and discharge areas of aggregate material. Because asphalt bears the weight of cars extremely well, it has become a very popular material for parking lot construction. Patching asphalt is usually a matter of bringing new material to the affected area and pressing it into the cracks or potholes. A mixture of asphalt and rocks makes good roadway material after it hardens.

Pavement

After everything of value is removed, the leftovers are made into asphalt cement for pavement. When properly designed for traffic conditions, asphalt pavement provides a permanent pavement structure. The initial cost of asphalt pavement construction is usually less than that of concrete. A major concern of Governmental and Industry representatives throughout the country involves extending training efforts to a wider universe of asphalt pavement technologists. Prior to application contractors must repair pavement cracks, chips and joints and prepare the concrete surface for the rubberized asphalt overlay. A recycling agent is used to soften and rejuvenate the existing asphalt pavement. The award honored the turnpike%u20AC%u2122s asphalt pavement because after 50 years of use, motorists are still traveling on the original pavement structure. The mixing of recycled asphalt pavement into new bituminous concrete is also standard practice in this industry. The project will study the relationship between good pavement construction practices and the long-term durability of asphalt pavements. Engineers select and calculate the correct quantities of each rock size needed to produce a strong asphalt pavement. The roller is very heavy and smashes all of the air out of the pavement which helps to make the asphalt very strong.

Concrete

Recycled asphalt concrete (RAC) is the product of mixing RAP with new aggregates, asphalt and/or recycling agent. Finally a one and one-half inch layer of hot asphaltic concrete is applied, raked and rolled. Aggregate Industries is your one-stop source for asphalt, aggregates, and ready mixed concrete. However, while porous concrete is available on the island, so far porous asphalt is not. After a short mixing period to coat all the particles with asphalt the bituminous concrete mixture is conveyed to the load out storage tank. The ATD-G is primarily characterized by bi-block concrete sleepers directly supported by an asphalt layer. Cut-back Asphalt Concrete is produced by dissolving the binder in kerosene or another lighter fraction of petroleum prior to mixing with the aggregate. Natural asphalt concrete can be found in some parts of the world where rock near the surface has been impregnated with upwelling asphalt.

There is nothing quite like the thrill of pulling a trophy northern pike through the ice. Big northerns are not only an open water phenomena. They are one of my favorite ice fishing targets. As an ice fisherman I love the thrill of seeing that huge ‘gator’ head fill the hole. I’ve learned a few lessons over the years. However the tough part is, we typically learn the most from our failures, not our successes, and that also holds true for ice fishing for big northern pike. With a proper game plan and the right equipment you can set yourself up to put some beautiful fish up on the ice. There is not a lot to it, but you do need to create a game plan that will give you the highest opportunity possible to catch these monsters.

I target these larger fish later in the season when the weather is warming and with that the fish are bulking up for the spawn. I like to fish lakes with a history of big fish, but more importantly, lakes that have good weed structure. I drill a series of holes when I first hit the ice and then let the auger lay. I would recommend using a hole no less than 10 inches. When it comes to getting that massive head in the hole you need all the advantage you can get. I like to drill the holes along a weed bed that is alongside deeper water. Ideally you want to be situated near a spawning area.

For big pike I believe in presenting a large, still bait. I love using a tip-up for this type of presentation. I build my rigs using a 12 to 18 inch leader, 2 size 1/0 treble hooks and a slip ring. I attach one treble hook on the end of the leader and have the second leader slide freely on the leader with the slip ring. I attach the leader to a 40 to 50 pound black braided line. I like a black braided line so I can see the line on the ice and also so I can control the line with my hands as I fight the fish.

Large pike hit large bait. I complete the rig with about 8-10 inch bait. I buy my bait from the local super market. I like using sardines. They are very soft and I think that they become an attractant as they sit in the water. Tulibee are also a good choice especially if they are natural to the body of water you are fishing. I simply apply one treble hook in the head and one treble hook in the tail of the bait. I let the bait sink to the bottom and raise it about 6-12 inches off the bottom. Then I let it sit. I like to set the rig on the deeper side of the weed bed. I use a tip up for this rig as now I just let it sit. If I’m fishing with a group we will run a number of these rigs along the edge of the weed bed, some closer and some further off. The pike I catch on a rig just described is 30 inches and up, with the majority of my fish in the 40 inch range.

Now it can be a waiting game, or you can be active in the process. Living in Manitoba I am only permitted 2 lines in the water. Depending on the body of water I am fishing, I set up 2 rigs like this, or other times I set up one rig and then use an ice fishing rod to target pan fish and bait fish. This does 2 things. Firstly it helps occupy me as I usually need to be moving and have something to do. Secondly, it attracts baitfish to the area, and therefore helps draw in the larger pike. I enjoy jigging for perch and as I keep perch in the area I am fishing I’m convinced it acts as another attractant to big pike.

When the tip up flag goes, the real fun begins. Approach the flag slowly as you do not want to spook the fish. It is important not to set the hook right away. This is where experience comes into play. I am convinced these fish spin the bait in their mouths after the initial hit. You need to get to the rig and quietly determine what the fish is doing. After they hit the bit the fish will move a short distance and then stop. This is where your will power and discipline come into play. Wait! Wait until the fish starts to move again before you set the hook. I gently pull in the slack after the initial hit and pull it until is tight. Then I let it off just a touch and wait until the fish starts to move again. This process will take at least a minute and possibly more. I have set the hook at this point if I have waited for a considerable amount of time and it has not moved. Again, slowly tighten the line and then when it is tight give a hard set and get ready for that line to sing. If you set the hook and there is nothing there, you may have set the hook too soon. It may also be a smaller fish and they tried to bite off more than they could chew. Once the hooks are set, the fish will take off and you need to keep tension on the line, but let it go where it wants to go. If you have other rigs down in the area, get them up because these things can run a long way and a tangle only makes the tension higher.

>From here you just pull when it lets up and let it run when it wants to go. This is where the heavy braided line is nice at it won’t cut your hands if you are careful and you can see it as you pull it up on the ice. Your blood will boil as you see the beast swim past the hole and keep your head about you as you need to gently work that massive head into the hole. As the fish comes out on the ice be careful as this is where many break offs can occur. A gaff can be used, but it could definitely damage the fish. I usually prepare to go down after it with my arm if needed, but the trouble is you are taking your life in your hand when you put your arm down a hole with a big pike and 2 trebles! But hey, your wounds will heal. And I find those wounds heal a lot sooner than the wounds of losing one of these trophy fish.

I trust you will have the opportunity to pick up some of that spring sun as you sit out on the ice this spring and wait with anticipation for the flag to dance indicating you have a fish on the line that is worth getting up out your seat for.

B&B Eduardo is situated in a sunny, safe and welcoming street in the Centre of Naples, only 200 metres from the Duomo (Chatedral) and the wonders of the Historical Centre and only a short distance from the famous shopping centres.

Using the underground at P. Cavour (250 mt from us) you can easily reach, in less than 5 minutes: the Port (1 km), the Railway Station (1,5 km) and the Circumvesuviana Station (1,5 km) by which you can visit the Vesuvio, Pompei, Ercolano, Sorrento and Positano.

The airport is approx 3 km from us, there are 4 different busses you can take to get to us. At the bus stop (30 mt from us), you will also find all the busses you need to get around the city.

Each bright and extremely peaceful room has an en-suite private bathroom, tv, air conditioning (with remote control), refrigerator, heating, hairdryer and very comfortable beds.
At the disposal of the rooms there is also a fully equipped shared kitchen where you can prepare your breakfast, lunch or dinner.
Each room has got max privacy. Our Guests can rent the entire apartment or only one room.

INCLUDED IN THE PRICE:
Italian Breakfast
Tv in bedroom
Private Bathroom
Fully equipped Kitchen
Fridge
Heating
Hair-Dryer
Every second Day Cleaning of Rooms
Reception Service
Your own set of keys
Cab Booking for sightseeing tours in
Naples, Sorrento and Pompei
Towels
Bedlinen
Tourist Literature
Luggage Deposit (free for 1 day)

SERVICES UPON REQUEST:
Garage Facility 10 m away
Car Rental
Guided Tours
Air Conditioning
Internet Service
Customer Pick up/Drop off to and from airport/station /port of Naples
Washing Machine

If you think that B&B Eduardo is not exactly what you are looking for, click here to visit our catalogue for Hotels in Italy, and make a search for another hotel in Naples: we are pretty sure that you can easy find the Naples accommodation that can best fit your need for a perfect stay in Italy.

A popular Italian comedy, “Troupes of the commedia dell’arte was very popular throughout Europe in the early 1600s. They would work on makeshift stages and without scripts. These companies, which included women actor’s spread a new wave between the actor’s and audiences. Actor’s improvised their own words and comic actions using a basic plot and character types, which created theatrical creativity and would capture the interest of the audience as a whole group. This was so unlike the opera or literary theater, where the emphasis from the audience concentrated on a playwright’s speeches or individual. Scenic displays and literary concepts were not common, thus inspiring the art of acting.

Theatergoers in England by the beginning of the 17th century learned how to distinguish Hamlet by actor-manager, Thomas Betterton. This was accomplished by other productions of Shakespeare’s plays. Using different staging of familiar and classical plays sharpened spectator’s senses. Good acoustics were designed into theater halls to help performers to be heard differently and to have more subtle and natural reflections. Visual details of a performance were easily perceived and critiqued with the introduction of indoor stage lighting. Individual actor’s faces and hands were then displayed by the indoor stage lighting.

Charles Macklin and his student David Garrick became one of the first modern actors on the British stage in the 18th century. Commedia-like farces and pantomime was Charles Macklin’s background and why he was hired, based his character Shylock (a Jewish businessman in Shakespeare’s “The Merchant of Venice”) on Jews in London. Lifelike details of movement and speech were added to written text. These details might not have been noticed 50 years earlier if not for the stage lighting, acoustic changes and other technologies.

Under better lighting conditions and more plausibility, David Garrick continued natural acting. Mimicry was brought to the stage through Garrick’s practices of imitating facial expressions of actual people. In his performance of Shakespeare’s King Lear, Garrick used a crazed neighbor to reenact the accidental killing of his infant daughter. Garrick never dropped his character during a performance and he would listen and react in character to all the dialogue around him. Because of this, he was very popular with theatergoers.

Denis Diderot, an 18th century French encyclopedist, became fascinated with Garrick who was on tour in Paris. The actor feeling less emotion is what Diderot believed could achieve a more consistent and stronger performance.

Diderot’s essay “Le paradoxe sur le comedien” (1773; translated as “The Paradox of the Actor, “1883), compared to famous rivals who performed at the Comedie Francaise, Marie-Francoise Dumesnil and Hippolyte Clairon.

Dumesnil believed it was an actor’s responsibility to become the character and represented the so-called emotional school. She was very uneven as an actor and normally coasted through a performance until a tragic point was reached. She had emotional depth and tremendous power. She made claims she new the secrets of great acting. To find out who she was as a character, where she was and what she had done, Dumesnil would use prayer. Alcohol stimulation was unfortunately a big part of her inspiration.

Clarion claimed she created her characters through movement and speech and not from becoming them or playing them. By rehearsing endlessly and perfecting the “look of emotions, she was able to develop a natural and reliable character. She believed audiences applauded the actor, not the characters.

By these two actors’ comparison’s, Diderot uncovered polarities of inspiration and technique.

Problems of inspiration and expressiveness were not solved for other actors, however. For example, any schools or treatises that were left behind seemed to be more philosophical than technical. Actually with Garrick’s natural school of acting disappeared after his death. It was more of a fad with British audiences that was associated with the actor. Basically, Garrick and the rest couldn’t teach their techniques.

In the 19th century emotional and anti-emotional acting styles of the great actors ran in cycles. Actor’s of one generation championed the first technique and then was replaced by a younger actor who championed a different technique, which happened in every country. The romantic and emotive Edmund Kean followed Sarah Siddons, who followed Garrick and so on.

The limelight gave way to the rise of gas lighting and then on to electricity. More and more physical detail appeared on stage and costumes and scenic displays grew in complexity and size, which dwarfed the actor.

Michael Russell Your Independent guide to Acting

When thinking about phone networks, there are consistently the similar few that come into our brains and are the most popular; the above are 3G, 02, Orange, T-mobile and the most popular Vodafone.

Set up in the 1980s as Rascal Telecom, Vodafone then turned independent in the early 90s. Based in Berkshire United Kingdom; the retailer are the biggest cell phone network company in the world by sales and has a market value of nearly 80 billion pounds. The mobile company has equity interests in 29 nations across five continents, 186 million proportionate mobile phone clients and thirty-three partner networks.

In over twenty years the corporation have been on the forefront of the cell phone revolution. The mobile business is used by a lot of users because the mobile organisation is somewhat renowned for their outstanding service. The mobile organisation channels massive investments into expanding a mobile phone network that lets every one of their customers dial additional telephone calls from more spots than each and every other network, cheaply and while continuing to continue supplying super quality and reliability to all there customers. In the past three years the company has cut there rates five times, as if they had cut their costs and services by half per client. The mobile business has enlarged its range of cheap mobile phones and introduced further flexible payment schemes. Compare Mobile Phones and offers with MobileShop.

Handset technology is upgrading at a fast speed regularly. The firm knows that their customers are their main focus hence the mobile retailer think it is important to make sure that the mobile phone users can use all the products safely and confidently. What makes the mobile company the top company to choose is that the company in fact care about what their clients think. Even if you do have an issue there’s no need to dread calling as most of their call centres are in the country and are able to assist you find a solution to your problems and queries extraordinarily quickly. The mobile organisation often ask their users about specific experiences of using the mobile retailer as their specific mobile network and how they can make it better for them.

THE BIG HEAT (1953) is a film-noir classic featuring Glenn Ford and Gloria Grahame in the lead roles, with a very young Lee Marvin playing a mobster.

Glenn Ford plays Det. Sgt. Dave Bannion, the straight arrow who refuses to back down when his investigation into the suicide of a fellow police sergeant upsets the mob boss Mike Lagana who has the police commissioner Higgins as well as the Bannion’s boss Lieutenant Wilks in his pocket.

The movie opens with a bang, literally - the police sergeant Duncan commits suicide at his home, leaving behind an envelope addressed for the DA.

However, his suspiciously cool headed widow Bertha Duncan who walks into his study right after the incident, picks up the envelope while his husband’s corpse is still bleeding on his desk, and calls Lagana.

An arrangement is made and Mrs. Duncan is put on the payroll in return for suppressing her husband’s letter revealing the mob links. We later on understand that Sgt. Duncan was on the take himself but regretted what he had done and tried to flush out the mob through his suicide.

Duncan’s death is swept under the rug as the suicide of an unhappy man who was sick. But Duncan’s girlfriend contacts Bannion and insists that Duncan was not ill, he was happy and actually he carried on a lively affair with her at his summer house - suggesting too much wealth for a cop who is supposed to survive on limited income.

Bannion can smell something very rotten in the suicide ruling but he is told to step back and “let it be” which, of course, makes him even more suspicious and adamant.

Soon Duncan’s girlfriend, seen speaking to him at a bar which is staffed by Lagana spies, is found dead, thrown from a car at a ditch outside the city. Bannion realizes he is definitely on to something.

During his investigation, Bannion makes friends with Debby (played by a very gifted Gloria Grahame), the gangster Vince Stone’s (Lee Marvin) girlfriend who is regularly abused and slighted in the Stone household. This semi-romantic link becomes crucial later on in the story.

The big “plot point” arrives when Stone’s hired killer Larry Gordon blows up Bannion’s car one night in his drive way with his pretty wife in it. The vendetta is on.

Bannion, even after he is ordered to turn in his badge and resign from his post, swears to find Larry Gordon and seek vengeance.

Debby, whose face is burned when Stone splashes a pot of hot coffee on her face during one of his outbursts, takes refuge with Bannion who has evacuated his house after his wife’s death and moved into a hotel.

Deeply angry and despondent that half of her face has been burned with an ugly scar, Debby is a woman with nothing to lose. And since she knows the inside score, she takes matters into her own hands by first killing the smug Mrs. Duncan who was certain that she would live on easy street for the rest of her life. Did she get that one wrong.

Then Debby leads Bannion both to Larry Gordon and Vince Stone.

The final confrontation between Bannion and Stone takes place at Stone’s penthouse with a breath taking night view of skyscrapers lit up like Christmas trees.

Debby achieves the closure she seeks by burning Vince’s faces also with a pot of hot coffee before Vince shoots her lethally. After the mandatory gunfight at the terrace, Bannion captures Stone alive.

Since Sgt. Duncan’s hidden letter was the collateral for Mrs. Duncan’s life, once she is dead the letter is revealed per her instructions and Lagana and all his men are rounded up in a hurry.

In the last scene Bannion is reinstated to his job as a police detective with integrity and welcomed back in his office with the warm admiration of his colleagues and subordinates.

But what happens to the sold-out police commissioner Higgins and his boss Lt. Wilks is not too clear by the end of the film. Seems like the former, a political appointee, is also sacked but Lt. Wilks survives his checkered past and the ordeal. Such is life.

The production values in this film is inferior as would be expected from a movie shot in 1953. Debby’s burn scar for example is a funny sheet of glue pasted to her left cheek and it makes one wonder how primitive the state of make-up artistry was back in those days. But Glen Ford and Gloria Grahame display a nuanced sensitivity and credible approach to their characters.

The story line is not too bad either, especially for film-noir fans like myself.

This classic rates a 7 out of 10.

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4.4 percent rate may come out so acceptable but will it stay unremitting after you have to repay your money loan. A moneylender in Newton Massachusetts or so can have a total totally different actual loan rate for a 27500 dollar credit loan then a merchant bank in Inglewood California and that makes a large clear gap in your yearly pay offs. A lot of the banks wil show you a interest rate that is looking upright but feels disadvantageously or so after a while. Be bright today to check out if you have a super bargain or if you don’t with the bank that offers you a money loan.

The Dutch translation says: Woon je in De Bilt of Uitgeest en heb je BKR verleden. Lenen met zonder BKR is nog nooit zo gemakkelijk geweest. Koop een ander huis met geldleningen met bkr notering, 362598 euro is geen obstakel om te lenen. Van Woerden tot Nijefurd, geld lenen met een BKR notering is altijd mogelijk.

This is the reason why now you need to inquire and jut out if you can have a credit loan at a effective percent rate of interest. Check up to see if the merchant bank who is tending to give you a loan is upright. It makes no difference if you live in Great Falls Montana or in Akron Ohio a right online examination will unbosom you often a lot of discommode. At this present you can check up on rates quickly on the internet and forecast if there are possible sneaky traps you should know about.

Recipient of ten Academy Award nominations and winner of seven, including Best Picture, The Sting is widely lauded as one of the best films ever produced. Written by David S. Ward, whose unorthodox genius has produced such Hollywood hits as Major League (1989), King Ralph (1991), and Sleepless In Seattle (1993), The Sting boasts a superbly well-written screenplay, ripe with perfectly constructed dialogue and a plotline riddled with suspense. Directed by George Roy Hill, who previously teamed with Paul Newman and Robert Redford to produce Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid (1969), it paints a colorful picture of 1930s Chicago. Complete with gangsters, card games, illegal gambling, sex, and murder, what else could a movie lover wish for?

The Sting follows the life of a two-bit grifter named Johnny Hooker (Robert Redford). Hooker runs small-time jobs with Luther Coleman (Robert Earl Jones) and Joe Erie (Jack Kehoe). Business is decent until they pull the con of a lifetime on a greedy numbers runner. Hoping for a few dollars, they end making off with several thousand. But Doyle Lonnegan (Robert Shaw), the organized crime boss whose money they stole, places a hit on all three men that results in Luther’s death. Caught in the crosshairs of dirty cop Lt. William Snyder (Charles Durning) and a mysterious hit man (Dimitra Arliss), Johnny follows the advice of his dead mentor and contacts the best conman in the world, Henry Gondorff (Paul Newman), in hopes of becoming his understudy.

Gondorff promises to pull “the big con” (the ultimate score for con artists), and to sweeten the pot, he promises to make the mark Doyle Lonnegan himself. Gathering a star-studded team of con artists, pick-pockets, and grifters, Gondorff and Hooker set out to take Lonnegan for millions. Together, they set up a rival gambling operation in Chicago under the names of Shaw and Kelley. Hooker (a.k.a. Kelley) endears himself to Lonnegan so as to win over the gangster’s trust. Convincing Lonnegan he has friend at the Western Union who can telegraph winning horses moments before a race is reported, Hooker gets Lonnegan to place a series of winning bets at Gondorff’s gambling parlor. Under the impression Kelley’s goal is to break Shaw (a.k.a. Gondorff) and take over his establishment, the two agree to one last bet, with Lonnegan set to place a million dollars of his own money on the line. It’s a bet Gondorff and Hooker intend for Lonnegan to lose… But one problem remains. The FBI is hot on the trail of Gondorff, and they’re determined to break his operation at any cost…

Far ahead of its time, The Sting redefined the Hollywood plot twist with its ingenious organization of multiple subplots. Newman is masterful as the veteran cheat Henry Gondorff, and it’s well worth watching the entire film just to see the scene where he out-cheats the ultimate cheat at cards. With a parade of eccentric characters, well-developed sinister figures, and clever exchanges of dialogue, The Sting isn’t your typical sensationalistic Hollywood potboiler. Like a great novel, the film takes some time to establish its characters and develop its plotline. Patient viewers will be well-rewarded…

Britt Gillette is author of The DVD Report, a blog where you can find more reviews like this one of The Sting (DVD).

In the 1960s, rebellion was rife throughout the United States and was particularly apparent on college and high school campuses. Many schools dispensed with wearing graduation attire and others became even stricter about what was to be worn under the graduation gowns. Tradition dictates that dressy attire be worn under a graduation gown, not casual clothing. In the 1960s and part of the 1970s, rebellion took the form of wearing bathing suits and other inappropriate apparel under the graduation gown.

The graduation ceremony today is not much different from that of 100 years ago. While there is less emphasis today in the United States on the grammar school graduation, it is still commemorated, the students are still given a diploma and there is usually a celebration. High school graduations are celebrated throughout the country every May and June in the United States, as they were many years ago, despite the fact that many more high school graduates go on to college than ever before.

College and postgraduate graduations are generally a bit more low-key than their high school and grammar school counterparts are. As people get older, there tends to be more sobrieties in the ceremony. Although graduation has always been a happy occasion, throughout the ages it has been marked with a very serious ceremony that continues to this day.