Search Results for: blog the king and i 1956

101 Dalmatians Book and Movie: Always Charming

The 1956 book “The Hundred and One Dalmatians” by Dodie Smith is a very English, very droll story of married Dalmatians Pongo and Missis, and their also-married pets, Mr. & Mrs. Dearly.  You read that right: Missis.  Perhaps the biggest surprise (to me) reading the novel on which the Disney film was based, was to discover that Pongo’s wife was not called Perdita, but Missis.  Even stranger is when a dog named Perdita appears.  She’s a liver (brown)-spotted Dalmatian that serves as a wet nurse for Missis, who cannot handle the milk load required by 15 puppies. Perdita’s own pups … Continue reading →

Coupons on C&H Sugar, Annie’s Pizza, Breyer’s and more!

There are plenty of coupons lurking within the many pages of Facebook. One way to find them is to click “like” on the pages of the companies and brands that are your favorite (and hope they notify you when a coupon becomes available). Another way is to check out this blog. It has links to several coupons that are available on Facebook right now! C&H Sugar has a coupon for $1.00 off C&H Light. To get this coupon, you must click “like” on their Facebook page. Annie’s has a coupon for $1.50 off on Annie’s Pizza. Farmhouse Foods has a … Continue reading →

Free Christmas Apps for iPhone and iPad

Every year, a lot of money is spent on Christmas gifts for family, friends, and co-workers. By now, you are probably tired of standing in line and spending your hard earned money. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to get something for free this Christmas? You can! There are plenty of free Christmas apps that are designed to be used on the iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad. Christmas Wallpapers & Backgrounds with Xmas Glow Effects is a long name for a FREE app that can be used with iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad. This app gives you over 1,500 Christmas wallpapers and … Continue reading →

The King and I (1999)

You all know how much I love the story of “The King and I.” The multitude of times I’ve mentioned it here on Families.com is a testament to that. When I saw that an animated version of the film had been done, I was curious, but skeptical. After watching it this last week, I’m no longer curious, and the skepticism was proven to be well-founded. Of course we have the basic elements of the story. Anna Leonowens, a young widow woman, is hired to travel from England to Siam to teach the king’s children. She takes with her Louie, her … Continue reading →

Anna and the King (1999)

As I mentioned when I reviewed the Yul Brynner version of “The King and I,” much of the story of Anna Leonowens and her relationship with the King of Siam was embellished. However, that doesn’t keep this movie from being stunning. Anna (Jodie Foster) was hired to teach the Crown Prince of Siam about the ways of the English, including the language. Part of the agreement was that she would have a house of her own off the palace grounds where she could raise her son, Louie, anyway she liked. After a long journey, Anna and Louie arrive in Siam, … Continue reading →

A Kiss before Dying (1956)

“A Kiss before Dying” is a murder mystery/suspense movie starring Robert Wagner and Joanne Woodward as college lovers Bud and Dorie. When Dorie tells Bud she’s pregnant, he sees his dreams for his future go up in smoke. Dorie comes from a rich family, and his plan had been to worm his way into her father’s heart, become the darling of the family, and take over the financial interests of the family mine. But now, with Dorie pregnant, he knows he’ll never get on the father’s good side. (Too bad he didn’t think about that before . . . ) … Continue reading →

Handling Advice from the Older Generation

I got an interesting e-mail from a relative the other day. Basically the e-mail talked about all the things that parents used to do with children and how “we all turned out fine”. This got me thinking about how many times I heard similar things during my pregnancy. * Fathers stayed in the waiting room in my day. * You are eating for two. You need to eat more. * Don’t lift your arms above your head or the baby will get wrapped in the umbilical cord. * You’re going to feed the baby what?? Oh use formula, it’s easier! … Continue reading →

Miracle in the Rain (1956)

“Miracle in the Rain” is a romantic melodrama starring Jane Wyman as Ruth Wood, a shy secretary whose life is devoted to the care of her ailing mother. Years before, Ruth’s father left them, and her mother tried to kill herself. Now she’s in a deep depression and Ruth only leaves her to go to work and to do the shopping. The rest of Ruth’s time is spent in the care of her mother, who uses her depression as a tool to keep Ruth close. She spends her time poisoning Ruth’s mind against men, telling her that men will bring … Continue reading →

Breaking Research on Rock Stars

Okay, hold onto your seats for this one…a new study has come out saying that *gasp* rock stars are more likely than others to die a premature death. Yes, yes, I know many of you are shocked by this discovery. The study was conducted by researchers at the Centre for Public Health at John Moores University in Liverpool. The researchers studied more than 1,000 artists, mostly from the North America and the United Kingdom. They discovered that there were 100 deaths among the 1,064 musicians they studied between the years of 1956 and 2005. People such as Elvis, Jim Morrison, … Continue reading →

Lloyd’s of London and Some of The Risks Insured, or Not.

In the History of Lloyd’s of London Blog I wrote about how the underwriting syndicate started in the coffee house of Edward Lloyd during the late 1600’s. Today Lloyd’s is well known as the insurance market where anything can be covered for the right premiums. It’s not completely fact that Lloyd’s will insure anything, but they will consider unusual assets and greater risks. Lloyd’s underwriters have agreed to insure everything from the 1st airplane to Betty Grables legs. Even John Glenn America’s 1st astronaut, was insured with Lloyd’s. From shipwrecks and piracy to Kidnap and Ransom Lloyd’s can often find … Continue reading →