Tyson Houseman b. 1990 (Twilight Saga)
Michael B. Jordan b. 1987 (The Fantastic Four [2015], Chronicle)
Rose Leslie b. 1987 (Game of Thrones)
David Gallager b. 1985 (The Vampire Diaries, Super 8, Smallville, Phenomenon)
Tom Hiddleston b. 1981 (Thor, Marvel’s the Avengers)
Charlie Day b. 1976 (Pacific Rim)
Shaun Parkes b. 1973 (Doctor Who, The Mummy Returns)
Julie Warner b. 1965 (Star Trek: The Next Generation)
Ciarán Hinds b. 1953 (Game of Thrones, John Carter, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, Lara Croft: The Cradle of Life, Jason and the Argonauts [2000], Excalibur)
Mia Farrow b. 1945 (Rosemary’s Baby, Supergirl)
Clive Swift b. 1936 (Doctor Who [2007 and 1985], Excalibur, 1990)
Frank Frazetta b. 1928 died 10 May 2010 (illustrator)
Brian Donlevy b. 1901 died 5 April 1972 (The Quatermass Xperiment, Quatermass II: Enemy from Space, Gammera the Invincible, Curse of the Fly)
Tough choice for the Picture Slot today. Last year it was Tom Hiddleston, so I decided to give someone else a shot this year. I am waiting impatiently for the return of Game of Thrones - and also more than a little impatient to read book six of the series - so I was strongly considering both Rose Leslie (Ygritte) and Ciarán Hinds (Mance Rayder). Hinds is still a "Oh, That Guy" in the United States, but he's a bigger star in Great Britain and was excellent as Julius Caesar in HBOs Rome.
But instead you are looking at a self-portrait of Frank Frazetta, the most influential artist in American illustration since Norman Rockwell. The paperback market for science fiction and fantasy in the late 1960s was very much driven by the cover art, and Frazetta's paintings on the covers of the reprints of Robert E. Howard's stories about an adventurer named Conan brought the character more fame than he had ever known when Howard was alive. His artwork also help spark renewed interest in the Edgar Rice Burroughs character John Carter, Warlord of Mars. Apart from his legions of fans and his many imitators in the illustration field, Frazetta's influence can also be felt in events as far afield as the development of Dungeons and Dragons to the film career of Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Many happy returns of the day to all the living on the list and to Brian Donlevy and Frank Frazetta, thanks for all the memories.
Predictor: A Wall Street Journal article published 6 February 2014, byline by Tom Gara
Reality: Reading the article, the prediction is actually being made by the credit card companies. They have about twenty months to get every company that now takes credit cards to switch over to the new system, which sounds like a daunting task. This might present an opportunity for Bitcoin to swoop in and take away some business from the credit card industry. It is my current plan to keep this blog going for at least three years, so I should have a chance to check on this prediction at the end of October 2015.
Looking one day ahead... INTO THE FUTURE!
Another dive into the deep well of bold prediction goodness that is the OMNI Future Almanac.
Join us then... IN THE FUTURE!
I have often wondered about that signature thing on the card readers. My signature has a relatively distinguishable first letter, an arcing line, then a nearly indistinguishable second capital letter, and a straight line. Yet the reader always says "Signature accepted". I wonder how bad it would have to get before it wouldn't accept my signature. Considering the angle of those little machines, I have had some pretty random scrawls accepted.
ReplyDeleteI have also read that US credit card companies have resisted the chip-in-card technology that significantly reduces credit card fraud abroad. Perhaps a more cynical sort would say the financial monsters are comfortable with the fees and penalties that are accrued by people that do not zealously pursue refunds of fraudulent charges, or miss them entirely. Makes me wonder if businesses that make the sales in cases of fraud still bet charged for the transaction fees....
Re: signatures. You and me both. My scrawl is bad and often worse when done stylus on screen.
DeleteRe credit cards: I do a lot of cash transactions, but still I probably put about a hundred on the credit card a month, paying it all off. I'm not sure I trust the Bitcoin people, but for them to be sleazier than the credit card industry would take a supreme effort.