Saturday Morning on the Obituary Page

 The first one to note is the death of actor/comic Ronnie Schell, 94, known for his many television appearances and roles, including Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. and a completely forgotten sitcom of the 1960s but one of the best, Good Morning World.  It was an absolute classic and featured Billy De Wolfe, who stole every scene he was in.

He died of natural causes.

Snip:

Schell got his start in entertainment as a stand-up comedian while a senior at San Francisco State University and later performed at supper clubs around the country. He made his television debut in 1959 on "You Bet Your Life," the quiz show hosted by Groucho Marx.

In 1964, he landed the role of Marine Pvt. Duke Slater, the best friend of the title character on "Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C." Three years later, he starred opposite Goldie Hawn in the CBS sitcom "Good Morning World." His other television credits included "That Girl," "General Hospital," "Yes, Dear" and Disney's "Phil of the Future." He also appeared in more than two dozen films, including "The Revenge of the Red Baron" and "Fatal Instinct."

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Film critic, author, television personality, and author Gene Shalit, 100, also passed away.  He was best known for his regular appearances on the Today show.  He had a trademark fuzzy mustache and what can only be termed as frizzy hairstyle, which distinguished him from just about everybody else on the planet.  Unlike the caustic late critic Rex Reed, who died a few weeks ago, Shalit was quite likeable.

He had turned 100 in March.

Snip:

Shalit started his career as a print journalist. He was the senior film critic for Look Magazine and wrote the “What’s Happening?” page for Ladies Home Journal for a dozen years. He published articles in The New York Times, Cosmopolitan, TV Guide, Seventeen, Glamour and McCall’s.

He composed and broadcast a daily “Man About Anything” essay on NBC’s coast-to-coast radio network from 1969 to 1982, according to his profile on the “TODAY” show website. He was also a regular panelist on the game shows “What’s My Line?” and “To Tell The Truth.”

In other words, Shalit packed a lot of living in the brief time he had on this earth.

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Friday Reads

 At TPUSA, a woman's "leadership conference" is designed to tell women they have no business being leaders in a "man's world."

Don't you just love the hypocrisy?

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Good for the judge to recognize the national park system is for everybody, not just for white males.

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Upper Table Rock Hike

 For the first time in two years, I embarked on a hike to the top of Upper Table Rock, a noted landmark in southern Oregon's Rogue Valley.  Lots of turkey vultures were around today.  Mount McLoughlin is in the background.

Thursday Reads

 Just in case you are wondering what Eloon has been up to.

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Obit:  Jane Yolen, author of an incredible 450 books, both for children and adults, has died at the age of 87.

Snip:

The author, known for her work in children's literature, began her career in 1963 with Pirates in Petticoats. From that point on, she would go on to write and publish 450 books. Her final book, Terror Birds, is set to be released posthumously on July 14.

Yolen penned 40 novels, multiple book series, and hundreds of poems. She is known for her 1988 Holocaust novella, The Devil's Arithmetic, which earned her a World Fantasy Award. Before The Devil's Arithmetic, she was president of the Science Fiction Writers Association, according to her website.

Wednesday Whatnot

 It might be time for PFAW to stop featuring Joel Webbon (and Nick Fuentes, among others), especially on its YouTube channel.  This man thrives on publicity and gets more and more outrageous the longer he is allowed to spew the horseshit that he does.

He is pure KKK without the robe.  When Democrats finally get into power, this guy and others like  him should be the subject of investigation by the FBI.

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Tuesday Stuff

 Pete Hegseth so embarrassed the U.S. at the D-Day remembrance in Normandy, he got roundly condemned all over the world.

About 2,500 American soldiers died there on that single day, with around 9,400 of them having been killed altogether in that campaign.  It isn't known how many who survived there out of the estimated 73,000.  Only about 45,000 WW II vets survive today out of the 16 million who served.

Hegseth shit on these soldiers' memory and on those who survived the invasion.

Par for the course for this administration.

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One of Ken Paxton's lawyers during his impeachment trial has endorsed his US Senate race opponent.

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These whack jobs may want women to shut up, but it is clear they are ultimately shit out of luck.

These misogynists have always been out there, but the internet has amplified them and made it much easier for them to connect.

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Monday Whatever

 Trump found out just how popular he remains in NYC:

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More about this disaster.

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Saturday Reads

 Obituary:  One-time Oregon senator Bob Packwood, 93, who was a good senator for the state but then ruined his career through sexual harassment scandals, has died.  He was in his fifth term when he was forced out.

Snip:

Packwood died in a residential care facility in southern California, where he and his wife rented a vacation home, according to one family friend. His family released an obituary to media outlets Saturday afternoon.

“It is with great sadness that I share the news that Senator Packwood passed away earlier today,” Packwood’s wife, Elaine Franklin, said in a statement from a private Facebook post that was also provided to OPB. “He touched many lives and leaves behind a lasting legacy of public service. He will be deeply missed.”

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As the obituary notes, he was first elected to the US Senate in 1968 when he defeated the legendary Wayne Morse.  Then Packwood, like his advisor at Willamette University, Mark Hatfield, spent decades in the Senate until all the scandals broke loose.

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Belmont Stakes 2026 at Saratoga Results

Another victory for Golden Tempo as he has won this year's Belmont Stakes at Saratoga.   Cherie Devaux has won a second leg of the Triple Crown this year.  She trains for the Phipps family, whose last Triple Crown victory was in 1989 with Easy Goer.  Jose Ortiz was the jockey.  The time was 2:03.49 for the mile and a quarter.

Commandment ran a big race to finish second, Renegade came in third, Chief Wallabee was fourth. 

I am sure there will be lots of second guessing of her and her connections' decision to skip this year's Preakness.

There is an inquiry having to do with the top of the stretch when the horses were bunched.  Apparently, nothing changed. 

The race from NYRA via Fox:

 

Earlier:

Fox is covering the card as it has done all week.

Renegade is the favorite for this race.

Metropolitan Mile:  Nysos easily won the race by four lengths.  He won the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile last year.  His sire is Nyquist, winner of the 2016 Kentucky Derby.  He has never finished worse than second in ten starts.