Who would have thought fat jolly old Santa kept plump small arian children prisoner up there at the North Pole forcing them to make toys all year round. Naughty, naughty Santa.
Norway became a free nation again in 1905 after about 400 years and the flag became an important part of the Christmas cards in the period after that. That and the “nisse” of course. And this nisse has got nothing to do with Santa, the Norwegian "Nisse" is a relative of the Brownie, the Pixie and the Leprechaun. He lives in rural districts and in the woods. In Norway we call Santa Clause "nisse" as well, but that fat, jolly, "Ho Ho" chanting lunatic that Coca Cola and other companies that think they have a claim on Christmas love so much must never ever be mistaken for the original. The original "Nisse" has been around for as long as there has been people here in Norway, and he is here all year round.
I’ll be spending time with family and friends for a few days now and regular posting will start again when I’m back home. So all that is left now is to say:
Thousands of people are flocking to cinemas in the UK to watch the long-awaited blockbuster, Star Wars – a movie which is already setting US box offices alight.Bracing the cold weather, young and old queued from 0700 GMT in London at the Dominion, and Leicester Square cinemas, to snatch up non-reserved tickets which are otherwise booked until March.
Star Wars, which was first released in America seven months ago, has taken audiences by storm and outstripped last year’s blockbuster Jaws to gross $156m (£108m) at the box office.
Carrie Fisher, Sir Alec Guiness and little known Harrison Ford star in this fairytale set in space. Produced by Gary Kurtz, written and directed by George Lucas who directed American Graffitti, the U-classified sci-fi film is a classic epic of good versus evil.It has enthralled audiences under a dazzle of special effects with wizards, heroes, monsters in "a galaxy far, far away".
The 900 people involved in the film included giants, dwarfs, artists and the man who built machines for James Bond. Many of the optical special effects were developed in California by Industrial Light and Magic, a George Lucas company. The on-stage special effects were put together at Elstree studios in Britain.
Filming took the cast to Tunisia, Death Valley California, Guatemala and the EMI soundstage at Elstree.
The build-up and hype has led to store wars over Star Wars with products including T-shirts, sweets, jig-saw puzzle, watches and food to name but a few. Mr Lucas has published a paperback version and Marvel comics have produced a special edition to meet the thirst for Star Wars’ merchandise. But for those queuing today nothing will satisfy them but a chance to see the film itself – easy targets for touts trying to sell £2.20 tickets for £30.
In Context
The low-budget film, which George Lucas feared would be a flop, originally took £294.29m worldwide. In an inflation-adjusted tally the film comes second only to Gone With The Wind, with an international gross of £975,743,340.
It became a worldwide phenomenon and was followed by The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi both released in quick succession, securing the film in movie history.
The original three films were based on parts 4, 5, and 6 of screen plays Lucas had written on the same theme. The original Star Wars movie was turned into a novel by Alan Dean Foster.
Fans waited almost 20 years to see one of the "prequels" to these – parts 1, 2 and 3 – which were withheld because Lucas wanted to wait until special effects were more sophisticated.
In 1999 the first of these prequels, The Phantom Menace, was released and three years later the Attack of the Clones hit the screens. In 2005 the third episode, Revenge of the Sith, was released.
Text from BBCs OnThisDay
Let’s see how well you have studied classic celebrity backsides visitors.
The question is simple; Who’s famous ass is this?
Tip: Hugh Hefner used to call her “the bossom”
And last week’s ass belonged to Lana Wood as many of you guessed
Filed under: People, Photography Tagged: Guess That Ass, Saturday Quiz 
This is the last picture of aunt Mabel’s eighth husband Benjamin (usually called just Bennie). Alive that is. When the criminal investigators arrived they took a whole bunch of pictures after aunt Mable let go both barrels and blew his head clean away trying to get some dog shit off her shoe.
The investigators had a hard time as the cigarette Bennie had just lit landed on the dry lawn and set the grass on fire ruining what little evidence there might have been. They also had difficulties getting a reasonable answer out of aunt Mabel as the shock had made her temporarily take totally leave of her senses and was only able to communicate through her ventriloquist dolls and incoherently at that.
Poor Bennie was as you might have guessed buried in a closed coffin at a funeral aunt Mabel was unable to attend as she insisted on bringing her dolls and hold a memorial speech through one of them. The priest who performed the funeral service told her family he found the idea preposterous.
Benjamin’s sisters, Gilda and Agnes who were only slightly more in control of their senses than aunt Mabel held the speech in her absence. They did so in unison, rhyming in their high pitched rather unpleasant voices. Young Johnny’s mother later confessed it was the strangest funeral she’d ever been to.
Aunt Mable on the other hand, who had miraculously returned to the world of the sane (without letting anyone know) the moment poor Benjamin’s sad demise was ruled a shooting accident. So as her family attended Bennie’s strange farewell to the living she took a soothing bath rereading Lady Chatterley’s Lover.
Donald Campbell has broken the world water speed record, becoming the first man to break the world land and water speed records in the same year.
He reached an average speed of 276.33mph (444.71km/h) in his speedboat, Bluebird, this afternoon on Lake Dumbleyung in Perth, Western Australia. The feat shatters his previous world record of 260.35mph (418.99km/h) at Lake Coniston, Cumbria, in 1959.
I never thought we had the chance of a snowball on the desert of cracking it today
– Donald Campbell, record breaker
Mr Campbell has been trying to realise his record-breaking attempt for months at various locations in Australia. Each time he has been frustrated. The weather at his first choice of location, Lake Bonney in South Australia, proved too unpredictable.
Then, he moved to Lake Dumbleyung, near Perth, on 16 December, only to be delayed by wild ducks which could not fly away because they were moulting. The weather was the next setback, as persistent easterly winds raised waves up to 2ft (61cm) high, making any attempt impossible.
With time running out for him to achieve his goal of breaking both speed records in the same year, he began considering a move to a third lake just south of Perth.
Then suddenly, on the last possible day, the winds eased and the lake became flat calm. Conditions were rated 95% suitable, and the chief mechanic, Leo Villa, radioed to Mr Campbell, "I think it’s worth a try – let’s go, skipper!"
Several hundred people gathered on the shores of the lake to watch, among them Mr Campbell’s wife, Tonia Bern. When she heard that he had done it, she dived into the lake and swam out to embrace him as he brought Bluebird in.
As he stepped ashore, Mr Campbell told his supporters, "It’s amazing that we clinched it. I never thought we had the chance of a snowball on the desert of cracking it today."
Mr Campbell broke the land speed record in July on Lake Eyre salt flat in central Australia, with a speed of 403.1mph (648.72km/h). However, the record was short-lived: on 27 October an American, Art Arfon, drove his jet car across Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah at an average speed of 536.71mph (863.75km/h).
In Context
Donald Campbell attempted to break his own speed record a little over two years later, on 4 January 1967. A split second before his jet-powered boat, the Bluebird K7, broke the record, travelling at more than 300mph (483km/h) on Coniston Water, the boat’s nose lifted and it was catapulted 50ft (15m) into the air.
Mr Campbell was killed instantly as the boat hit the water and disintegrated. He was 46 years old. His body was not recovered for another 34 years, until 2001. His remains were buried near Coniston Water.
Donald Campbell is still the only person to break both land and water speed records in the same year. He remains the last British man to break the world water speed record. In 1978, it passed to Australia, when Ken Warby reached a speed of 317.6mph (511.1km/h).
Text from BBCs OnThisDay
The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2014 annual report for this blog.
Here’s an excerpt:
The Louvre Museum has 8.5 million visitors per year. This blog was viewed about 540,000 times in 2014. If it were an exhibit at the Louvre Museum, it would take about 23 days for that many people to see it.
Click here to see the complete report.
Akershus fortress’ fireworks over Oslo inner harbour
By the way, the large building in the picture is not the fortress,
it is the Oslo harbour storehouse.
The picture is taken from the fortress ;-)
Let’s see how well you have studied classic celebrity backsides visitors.
The question is simple; Who’s famous ass is this?
Tip: She was Playmate of the Month in Playboy magazine in May 1955
and in February 1956, but not under her real name.
Images found on oldfetishmags.com
Fireman Bainbridge in the Argocat at Reigate fire station, Surrey, 1971. The new vehicle has been designed by a company in Canada where it is used for forestry work, duck shooting and as a beach runabout. Completely amphibious, and equipped with balloon tyres and a two-stroke 436cc engine, the vehicle can carry up to six men and a portable pump and hose. It is intended for commando style fire-fighting in inaccessible places. (Photo by Wesley/Keystone)
Text and image found on vintageeveryday
Image found at beatnickdaddio
A digital painting of Bettie Mae Page
Greyscale + light sepia tinting + digital hand colouring + reduced watercolour filtering.
Original to the left.
By the way, R L Wood is just an anglofication of my real name – Ted
A digital painting of Geri Tamburello
Greyscale + light sepia tinting + digital hand colouring + reduced watercolour filtering.
Original to the left.
A softer and lighter photo, so a harder image to work with and I’m not as satisfied with this one as with the first one
As mentioned, R L Wood is just an anglofication of my real name – Ted
YES! I was 17 in 1970. I wore leisure suits. So WHAT!! Everyone did, and we thought we looked swell. I sincerely apologise for that temporary lack of cool – Ted
Images from Flashbak
