Posts by Gino Sassani

In 1887, readers of the popular periodical Beeton's Christmas Annual were to receive quite a special treat. There wasn't much fanfare or hype to the event. Inside the pages of the magazine was a story called A Study In Scarlet. It was a detective story, perhaps like many published before, except for the detective himself, a certain Mr. Sherlock Holmes. Together with his faithful companion and chronicler Dr. Watson, Holmes would win the hearts of those holiday readers.

“Things never happen the same way twice.”

C.S. Lewis created an incredibly imaginative world when he wrote his Chronicles Of Narnia. The stories were an escape, of sorts, from a war-torn Europe. They integrated elements of Christianity in an effort to provide a semblance of hope in the form of a children’s fairy tale. And like all such tales, the world of Narnia was first and foremost a place of magic and bewilderment. It was a place where fantastic creatures of both good and evil thrived,

I can't help it. Whenever I see David Boreanaz I can't stop seeing the brooding vampire Angel. It's not really his fault. This character couldn't be farther from the Angel character, but that's what I see. It's also true that Bones, now entering its sixth season has been around longer than Angel. It's also very likely that he now has fans that aren't even aware of that previous character. It has been quite a few years. I'm usually better at letting go of a character once the show has ended and the actor has moved on.

They’ve been called The Greatest Generation, and who are we to argue the point? Sitting here writing reviews from my comfortable seat in a state-of-the-art home theater, I’m in no position to lay claim to the title. They fought in the bloodiest conflict in modern human history. Over 20 million were killed. That’s a staggering number. If you’re like me, it’s not even real. I can honestly say that those facts have never really reached home as much as they did while watching this footage.

"My name is Bob Baer. I used to be a CIA agent stationed in Lebanon during the Civil War. It was chaos. Bu, the real threat was always the car bomb."

For most of us who are old enough to remember the 1980's, there are a few moments and events that likely still stick in your mind. Lebanon was the scene for two of the biggest events of that era. Both involved car bombs that shook the world. A marine barracks was bombed on October 23rd, 1983, killing 241 American servicemen. Before that, on April 18th of that same year, another truck bomb destroyed the American Embassy in Lebanon

Mention the name John Cazale and most people will shake their heads and answer, "Who?" But mention Fredo from The Godfather and recognition is sudden and complete. Bring up Sal from Dog Day Afternoon and you're liable to get an "I remember that guy" response. He was known by Stan in both The Conversation and The Deer Hunter. Meryl Streep was impressed enough with him to get involved with the unknown actor. She lived with him up until the day he died.

It was in 1843 that celebrated writer Charles Dickens created one of the most iconic symbols of Christmas with his publication of A Christmas Carol. It was a cautionary tale for an industrial revolution that was getting caught up in its material worship. Dickens intended the story both to entertain and to put the spotlight on what he considered already then was an over-commercialization of the Christmas season. Little did he know that his very story would become a huge part of that commercialization.

"My name is Sam Tyler. I had an accident and I woke up in 1973. Am I mad, in a coma, or back in time? Whatever happened, it's like I've landed on a different planet. Now, maybe, if I can work out the reason, I can get back home."

I kind of did things a little backwards. I saw the single-season American version of Life On Mars quite some time before I managed to get my hands on the two seasons of the original British version of the show.

Our very good friends over at Image Entertainment have given us a copy of The Twilight Zone Season 2 on high definition Blu-ray to give away. Rod Serling's classic television series helped to define a genre for audiences for half a century. This release is loaded with incredible extras. To win a copy of this exciting vintage television show, follow these instructions.

Contest is now closed Winner is Scott Smith.

"They rob, kill, and terrorize, and they've left their mark on our nation's history."

It's hard for me to believe that Gangland has been on History for six years now and I've only recently heard about it. Certainly, there are a ton of shows on every year, what with so many new networks trying to come up with original material. History has found a way to consistently bring out relatively solid programming without having to spend a lot of cash on the production budget. Everybody wants their 15 minutes,