iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

I love this detail from IMDb: His trick for keeping his hat on in fight scenes (so the audience couldn't tell it wasn't the star) was to put rubber surgical tubing in the sweatband to make it fit tight.

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Hmm, IMDb doesn't have him connected with Bullitt. (They're not perfect, of course, and stunts can be harder to ID.) Steele was not driving the Charger; that was the legendary Bill Hickman. Maybe he drove the Mustang for McQueen, or other vehicles? IDK. But I didn't know all the other stuff. 👏

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I was going to mention that, but Kane wasn't even nominated. 🤦‍♂️

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I have a soft spot for 80 Days, and would argue this one. SOTL is not a favorite, but it was probably the best choice of the noms that year. 🤷‍♂️ No argument on the others ... either because I saw them (Africa, Water) or they haven't appealed to me enough to see them.

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GWTW is sort of debatable to me ('39 was one of Hollywood's best years ever), but also inevitable, I realize. Never seen HGWMV, but I think that one's also debatable. '40 was another strong year. No argument on any of the others.

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Jeremy Strong Is Not Quite Over It

I just learned something, and here's my reaction to it. I genuinely mean this as neutrally as possible, not as disguised criticism or praise: I suspect that the fact that Jeremy Strong worked as an assistant to Daniel Day Lewis helps explain a lot of things. www.newyorker.com/culture/the-...

newyorker.com

Jeremy Strong on finding sympathy for Mark Zuckerberg, Kendall Roy, and Roy Cohn—and why the New Yorker Profile of him still stings.

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Interesting data point. Coincidence? With Trump, I highly doubt it.

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Actually, I think he wears expensive suits ... but he has them tailored to try and conceal his bulk, and they don't end up fitting well or looking good. Same with the silly way he wears ties.

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Let me guess: He asked his good buddy Vlad, who said no, so case closed.

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Sue Ellen Mischke could not be reached for comment.

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If this wasn't "cruel and unusual punishment," I'm not sure what would qualify.

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They also like to claim that he had a great record running a hedge fund, but that's ... well, "overstated" would be the polite term. Let's put it this way: It had lost 90% of its assets when he started winding it down to become Treasury secretary. So his clients were clearly underwhelmed.

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Like it or not, the current system is the best solution. All-DST or all standard time are worse.

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I would guess that yes, it was probably something that simple. And they look enough alike (they're playing sisters, after all) that Hitch got away with it for this brief shot. But you'd think they'd just pull a shot from the movie itself. Wish I could find the book I have about its making.

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What, no mention of Mickey Rooney's valuable contribution? 🙄

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The theme song that purportedly required three people to write it: Lee Aronsohn composer: theme music Grant Geissman composer: theme music Chuck Lorre composer: theme music

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What's My Line? - Phil Silvers (Nov 13, 1955)

During his 1955 appearance as the mystery guest on What's My Line?, Silvers munched on an apple while answering questions in an attempt to disguise his voice. youtu.be/10vg_pamhBQ?...

youtu.be

YouTube video by What's My Line?

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I finally saw this movie decades after it came out ... and to this day I'm impressed what a superb job it does of telling a very complex story.

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TL;DR: The less you know going in, the better it is, I suspect.

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Paul Murray @pmurray63.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

An entertaining movie that I imagine would be even better if hadn’t known the plot going in. Most of the movie is spent with Olivier’s character — and the audience , presumably — trying to figure out what the Nazis are up to. Except you’ve probably already heard beforehand. 😐

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It looks like this was NY’s local CBS station doing this (which is owned by the network, hence the call letters WCBS), not the entire CBS network. Your broader point is still valid, of course.

Paul Murray @pmurray63.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Non-history buffs may know him as the inspiration for the novel (and movies) All the King’s Men.

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Paul Murray @pmurray63.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Not sure if it’s my favorite, but “Specialty of the House,” where Robert Morley is introduced to a secret restaurant known for occasionally serving a very special dish, was extremely memorable. 👀 I cannot believe this aired in 1959!

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Paul Murray @pmurray63.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

This is a *dark* movie, but well worth watching.

Paul Murray @pmurray63.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

"production notes given to critics include a politely worded request not to ostensibly spoil “Digger” by revealing some of the twists — which I assume means that they don’t want me to write that ..." Sounds like an awful movie, but omitting a clear warning is bad form. NYT editor ok with this?

Paul Murray @pmurray63.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

To amuse himself, Matthau would sometimes claim to interviewers that he had changed his name from “Matuschankayasky” or something like that.

Paul Murray @pmurray63.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

It's that headline at the top that intrigues me. What, exactly, about it requires scientific explanation? 🤨

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This would be even better if you could actually read it when you zoom in.

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And (virtually) no one cared. It ranked 74th (out of 96 shows) in the ratings that first season. Fortunately, it found an audience during the summer reruns, and NBC entertainment chief Brandon Tartikoff’s renewal of it paid off.

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Technically correct … although even the 1937 version owed an awful lot to 1932’s What Price Hollywood?

He’s not “in office.” They’re running for the open seat left by Gary Peters.

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(Yes, I'm trying not to give away a plot point from a 44-year-old movie. Even though it in no way spoils the movie. Everyone who saw it in theaters when it was brand-new had heard.)

Yep. And they suspected he was the one who leaked word that "[REDACTED HAPPENS]," since fewer than 10 people knew of the plan at that point. Meyer leaned into the naval atmosphere that Roddenberry had always adamantly opposed. He saw it as basically "Horatio Hornblower in space."

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I’ve always found it interesting that the best Star Trek films were created by a guy with zero knowledge of the franchise before he got involved (Nicholas Meyer).

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“But as we do 99% of the time, we’re endorsing the Republican.”

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I’m aware of that, and I believe it. But that simply doesn’t prove third from the bottom.

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