Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
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Andy Griffith’s Costly Christmas: Calculating the Price of Love in ‘The Twelve Days of Christmas’ Gifts
“The Twelve Days of Christmas” is, at its heart, a song about someone showing their love through gifts. After all, what’s more romantic than… waterfowl? We’ll take the five golden rings happily, but the lords a-leaping… well, people have given worse gifts. In a 1969 Christmas episode of The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour, that was…
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John Wayne’s Unscripted Moment on ‘The Tonight Show’ Leaves Johnny Carson Stunned
John Wayne once surprised Johnny Carson with a walk-on appearance on The Tonight Show, something not every Hollywood star could have gotten away with. Why did Wayne tell Carson he stopped by the show unannounced? And on what other stage did the two icons appear not long before Wayne’s death a few years later? John…
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Beneath the Cowboy Hat: John Wayne’s Unseen Genius Unveiled in ‘The King, The Pawns, and The Duke’
Between the early months of 2020 and continuing through the summer of 2022, chess has been exploding in popularity, according to The New York Times. There were two main reasons for this: the Covid-19 pandemic, which left millions of people bored and with little to do, and the Netflix series “The Queen’s Gambit,” about an…
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Behind the Glamour: The Dark Side of Films, Musicians, and Icons – Exposing John Wayne’s Disturbing Reality
A leading light of a Hollywood past, John Wayne‘s career spanned from the silent era of the 1920s to the Golden Age of Hollywood, through to the American New Wave. Born Marion Martin, in Winterset, Iowa, the actor who became known as John Wayne would define an era of American cinema and, for three decades,…
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John Wayne Unleashes Hollywood Fury: Shocking Verdict on Double-Oscar Winner Gene Hackman
John Wayne, the legendary western actor who has several films on BBC iPlayer including She Wore a Yellow Ribbon and Fort Apache, was notorious for his forthright views about a whole raft of topics and people. While he was often hailed by his contemporaries, Wayne, nicknamed Duke, was not afraid to pick a fight with…
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John Wayne’s Fiery Defense: The Duke’s Outrage at Hollywood Rival’s ‘Degrading’ Film
John Wayne was as fierce and formidable off-screen as he was on, virulently and vocally leading the Hollywood charge against suspected communists and anyone he felt tarnished the sacred spirit of ‘All-American’ values. He famously turned down films from Steven Spielberg to Clint Eastwood because he did not agree with their tone or message. He…
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Feathers Ruffled: Spike Lee Takes Aim at Clint Eastwood’s War Film Castings
When it comes to the most respected names in Hollywood, particularly in the war and western genres, it’s hard to look beyond Clint Eastwood. From his role as ‘The Man With No Name’ in Sergio Leone’s Dollars Trilogy to taking the directorial reigns with movies such as Bridges over Madison County and Gran Torino, Eastwood…
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Frank Sinatra’s Near-Miss: The Almost Casting Twist in Clint Eastwood’s Second Most Badass Movie After Gran Torino
Clint Eastwood’s decades-long acting career is bejeweled with some of the most memorable endeavors movie-goers have seen. He rose to top stardom with his spaghetti Westerns and kept offering audiences something exciting to look forward to with each release. One project in particular, which spanned multiple installments, birthed a genre-defining thriller and a performance by…
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Tom Hanks’ ‘A Man Called Otto’: A Worthy Successor or a Faint Reflection of Clint Eastwood’s ‘Gran Torino’?
There’s an inherent risk in remakes, especially when treading the well-worn tracks of a heartwarming original. A Man Called Otto, spearheaded by Tom Hanks, bravely marches into these risky waters. And while some may applaud the effort, others can’t help but draw parallels to another beloved character – Clint Eastwood’s rugged role in Gran Torino.…
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Unforgettable Memories: Chris Messina’s Journey Working with Clint Eastwood on Juror No. 2
Chris Messina stars in Juror No. 2 alongside an ensemble cast that also features Nicholas Hoult, Toni Collette, Gabriel Basso, Zoey Deutch, Chris Messina, Leslie Bibb and Kiefer Sutherland, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The movie follows a juror in a murder trial (Hoult) who “finds himself struggling with a serious moral dilemma … one…
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