Archive for media
5 Random Classic Films in the Public Domain
Posted by: | CommentsIn copyright law, the public domain is the designation given to intellectual property that is not owned or controlled by anyone. Anything can enter the public domain, including books, images, movies. As a result, a large number of classic books and movies can be had online for free. I’ve shared the classic books with you before, now it’s time for the classic movies. For your convenience, I’ve embedded the full video right here, so you don’t even have to leave EiH to watch them. Aren’t I a sweetheart?
Malice in the Palace (1949): A classic Three Stooges short. There are actually a bunch of Three Stooges films in the public domain, but this is one of my favorites.
The Birth of a Nation (1915): This D.W. Griffith classic was the highest-grossing movie of its day. However, it encountered much controversy due to the portrayal of the KKK as heroes. A must see for any movie lover, doubly so for history buffs.
Nosferatu (1922): A ripoff of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, this vampire horror story is hilariously cheesy, but I can see how it would be scary in the 1920s.
Battleship Potemkin (1925): The quintessential Soviet propaganda film, Battleship Potemkin is considered one of the best Soviet films of all time.
Night of the Living Dead (1968): A genre-defining film, Night of the Living Dead was George A. Romero’s first movie. How did this film end up on this list? In 1968, films had to have a notice within the film in order to maintain the copyright. The original film, Night of the Flesh Eaters, had the copyright notice in the title frame. However, the production company chose to rename the film just before it was released, and when they replaced the title frames, they forgot to replace the copyright notice. Thus, Night of the Living Dead is in the public domain.
If you would like to find more classic films in the public domain, check out the Internet Archive at http://www.archive.org/.
A Brief History of Call of Duty
Posted by: | CommentsOne of my favorite video game franchises ever is the Call of Duty series. This past November, Activision and Infinity Ward released Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, a sequel to their award-winning game from 2007. This game will surely be on every gamer’s wishlist this holiday season, so here’s a brief history of Call of Duty, courtesy of G4TV.
If you enjoyed this video, you should pick up Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 this holiday season.
On This Day: The Exploding Whale
Posted by: | CommentsIn November 1970 a dead gray whale washed ashore in Oregon. In an effort to dispose of the rotting carcass, the Oregon Highway Division decided to blow it up, and let nature do the rest. This is a prime example of what happens when humans automatically defer to dynamite for solving life’s little problems.
For more information on the exploding whale, check out Exploding Whale: And Other Remarkable Stories from
Even History’s Greatest Figures Have Failed
Posted by: | CommentsHere is an excellent video from RodMacbeth.com that I just had to share with you. It’s a short collection of historical figures who were told at some point in their life that they wouldn’t amount to anything. This video just proves that nobody can predict the future. So, the next time you fail, remember that a teacher once told Thomas Edison that he was too stupid to learn anything. Enjoy!
Thanks, Rod!
On This Day: “Senator, You’re No Jack Kennedy”
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This famous quote comes from the 1988 Vice Presidential debate between Dan Quayle and Lloyd Bentsen. Quayle, responding to critics about his experience, drew a comparison between John F. Kennedy’s age and his own. Bentsen’s response is classic:
“Senator, I served with Jack Kennedy, I knew Jack Kennedy, Jack Kennedy was a friend of mine. Senator, you’re no Jack Kennedy.”
The video of the Quayle-Bentsen exchange is embedded below:
The Only Existing Film Images of Anne Frank
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The only existing video of Anne Frank has made its way to Youtube, thanks to the Anne Frank House. The video is actually of Anne’s neighbors’ wedding video. You can see her at 10 seconds, when she leans out her window to sneak a peek at the new couple. The couple were kind enough to donate the video to the Anne Frank House, who subsequently posted it on Youtube. I embedded the video below:
Via Mashable
Dulce et Decorum Est
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Wilfred Owen - Image via Wikipedia
This is one of my favorite poems of all time. It was written by Wilfred Owen, a British soldier, during World War I, and was in stark contrast to public perception of the war at the time. Also, it contradicted traditional war poetry, which romanticized a soldier’s life, and warfare in general. Sadly, Owen would die just one week before the war ended. I just thought I’d share given the general attitude of nonchalance towards war.
Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,
Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge,
Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs
And towards our distant rest began to trudge.
Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots
But limped on, blood-shod. All went lame; all blind;
Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots
Of tired, outstripped Five-Nines that dropped behind.Gas! Gas! Quick, boys!–An ecstasy of fumbling,
Fitting the clumsy helmets just in time;
But someone still was yelling out and stumbling
And flound’ring like a man in fire or lime…
Dim, through the misty panes and thick green light,
As under a green sea, I saw him drowning.In all my dreams, before my helpless sight,
He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.If in some smothering dreams you too could pace
Behind the wagon that we flung him in,
And watch the white eyes writhing in his face,
His hanging face, like a devil’s sick of sin;
If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood
Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs,
Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud
Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues,–
My friend, you would not tell with such high zest
To children ardent for some desperate glory,
The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est
Pro patria mori.
via Wikisource
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