ModestGeniusXL

Love....Peace....

Who DOESN'T know the rest of that saying?  We all grew up with it.  That's a pretty safe statement to make knowing my reader base because everyone from my generation to my parents' were familiar with the greatness that was "Soul Train".  Even the young bucks remember watching when they would have been near babies.  So the news yesterday was very disturbing for many of us.  What a jacked up way to kick off Black History Month.

"Soul Train"s iconic creator and long-time host Don Cornelius was found dead in his home in Los Angeles early Wednesday morning from an apparent suicide.  He was 75-years-old.

I can't even express how impactful "Soul Train" was for me coming up as a child of the 80s.  I was in a small basically rural town in Norwalk where there was literally a handful of Black families.  We had to wait until the mid-80s on Thursday nights to see our folks on television "The Cosby Show".  But before that, we could always count on "Soul Train".

Saturday.  11am.  WGN.  The time was permanently etched in my brain.  It was perfect timing for it too.  All the Saturday morning programming geared to us shorties was coming to an end by that time.  When 11am rolled around, Soul Train really was the hippest trip in the nation.

The Don was responsible for having the longest running music related syndicated television program in history.  He left shows like "American Bandstand" and "The Ed Sullivan Show" in his wake.  Not only because of its longevity but because "Soul Train" featured the music from which all of the popular music of the day owed its roots.  Yep...I said it.  Many of these folks making music today wouldn't be where they are if it wasn't for R&B.

The Don understood that the it wasn't just the music that was the key to the show.  It was the people.  The dancers.  The entire vibe they created with their looks, their styles and their moves.  We tuned in each week to see all of that just as much as we did to listen to the sounds and to see who the latest lip-synching performers would be.  But make no mistake, we would have been alright tuning in late just as long as we made sure to catch that world famous Soul Train line.  The show had the entire package from beginning to end.  The Don's baritone velvet baritone voice to match his smooth persona was just the icing on the cake.

I will continue to stress that I will never understand how people can choose suicide as an option.  It is a permanent answer to a temporary problem.  However, none of us know what type of demons some of these suicide victims may have been facing.  Regardless of their age and regardless of their celebrity.  I just hope that whatever it was that he finally found the peace he was looking for.

Rest in peace, Don.

 

 

I'll Make Me a World in Iowa 2012

I can't believe I almost went and forget to tell y'all about this year's event.  I'm pretty sure this has been a staple on my blog since I first started it. I may have let my previous weekly features fall by the wayside, but not this annual event.  Even if it was one that I almost didn't go to.  Almost that is.  And it wasn't even a very strong "almost".  I knew I would be missing it.

Are there any of the folks who follow this that aren't familiar with I'll Make Me a World in Iowa?  If so, let me give you the Cliff Notes version of what it is:  an annual event celebrating Black culture in Iowa.  Another way to look at it is one big function to help kick off Black History Month in the central Iowa.  Either way, it's a great opportunity to showcase all the great things that our people are doing here in Central Iowa.

It didn't dawn on me until very late in the game that I needed to have t-shirts for the event.  Not to sell but just to wear.  If there was ever an opportunity to get the XL-Images name out there on a broad scale then that was it.  Of course, I didn't think of it until the week of.  Who was I going to find to get quality shirts done in less than a week's time?  That's where The Book came in handy yet again.  I got more than a few good suggestions and one great one.  I'm pretty sure I have now found my permanent supplies for my XL-Images gear going forward.  At least that gear that requires screen printing.

The funny thing about wearing that shirt to I'll Make Me a World is I never expected to get so much adulation from wearing them.  Sure, I was expecting folks to inquire about what I was doing and that would be a chance to get them my card so we could connect.  What I was getting was folks would see the name and commence to tell me how much they loved my work.  Then they would ask for a card so they could call me to set up an appointment.  Only time will tell how many of them come through, but it was still a pretty good feeling.

The vendors were all pretty much all the same usual suspects.  The heavy hitters that consistently want to put a good front in the community (The Principal, Nationwide, Wells Fargo, etc.) were all there.  What I was checking for was the local folks making noise.  Like my dude Josh with Jaytees Apparel doing his thing.  Only his first year with a table and he was selling t-shirts like hotcakes.  Gave me even more inspiration to get my own table next year.  Be on the lookout for it.

The food was incredible as always.  There were half a dozen food vendors there with the best soul food you could imagine.  I could have easily gotten a sampler platter from each of them and called it a day.  Not that they all had sampler platters available.  Or that I even needed that much food if they did.  One thing I do know is now more than ever I am convinced that I HAVE to get to Patton's the next time I'm in Des Moines and looking to eat out.  If you don't know about them then you too have been sleeping.

The headliner this year was Shemar Moore.  It's obvious what demographic they were appealing too, huh?  It's been obvious for the past two years.  Last year was Boris Kodjoe.  If I didn't know any better I'd say that the folks in charge of getting the headliners for I'll Make Me a World were women.  Further evidenced by the fact that the featured performer was Kenny Lattimore.  It's as if they book folks that they want to see the most.  Let's switch it up a little, ladies!

I will admit that I was impressed with how Shemar carried himself.  He could have easily gotten up there and been very full of himself.  Much like Vivica Fox was when she came.  Instead he was down to earth.  Even when he went to flash his abs after SEVERAL requests from women in the crowd he was humble about it.  Afterwards, he was more than willing to take photos and sign autographs (for those folks that waited in line).  He didn't go into a private room making himself available to only IMMAWII staff like Kodjoe did.  Most importantly, Shemar did it all with the attitude as though he genuinely enjoyed being there.  Or maybe he's just a better actor than the folks that came before him.

Naturally, I got some some great photos of different moments from the day.  I contemplated creating a photo gallery out here but then decided you can better appreciate them in high definition as they're meant to be seen.  So you can click on this link to view them in all their awesomness:

I'll Make Me a World in Iowa 2012 : XL-Images Style

All in all, I would venture to say it this year's version was one of the best ones I've seen.  Probably because I left early before it was time for the youngsters to start acting up as usual.  Or maybe because they had more big names than usual with Shemar, Kenny Lattimore and even comedian Jonathan Slocum.  But again, they really could use more input from us guys when getting their entertainment.  So next year if they could reunite En Vogue as the featured headliner(s) along with my table just off to the right of the stage then they can count on 2013's version on being an even bigger success.

 

One Sweathog Down

I really didn't intent for my first post back after a week hiatus (whether intentional or not) to be an obit of sorts.  Maybe I should have led off with the latest Random Pic of the Day instead.  But it is what it is.  I still have to make sure to pay a little respect to some of my favorite pop culture folks when I hear the news of their passing. 

Robert Hegyes, the actor best known for playing Jewish Puerto Rican student Juan Epstein on the 1970s TV show "Welcome Back Kotter" passed away after suffering a cardiac arrest last Thursday. He was 60-years-old.

I may have been too young to remember "Welcome Back Kotter" when it ran in primetime.  Even if I did watch it then  I'm sure I wouldn't have understood a lot of the humor.  It wasn't until its run in later years in syndication that I would fully appreciate it.  It was only a matter of time before that theme song became permanently ingrained in my mind.

But for anyone that watched even a single episode of the show, who doesn't remember Epstein?  Even though John Travolta would go on to undoubtedly be the most famous Sweathog every single one of them was unforgettable.  So much so that when I heard the news that Juan Epstein had died, I knew exactly who they were talking about.  In fact, it was better that it was relayed that way because if I had just heard Robet Hegyes I would have had no idea who that was. 

Robert was one of those actors where it didn't matter what else they did they would be forever be typecast.  I couldn't even tell you if he had any other work except for "Kotter".  If he didn't it wouldn't matter because the impression he left from that was lasting enough. 

Rest in peace, Epstein.

Random (XL-Images) Pic of the Day

You'll have to excuse the back-to-back posts of pics from the same shoot, but I'm rather geeked about how much I nailed this one.  It was my first maternity shoot and I just flat out knocked it out the park.  Don't think I'm being modest?  Check it out for yourself and see. 

Plus, I wanted to put this pic on Pinterest and you can't pin FB pics out there for some reason so I had to put it here also.  Now Pinterest would be a good topic for me to post about.  Coming soon...but fow now, the maternity epicness...

Random (XL-Images) Pic of the Day

Later Pa

Well folks tried their best to kill him off yesterday on The Book and Twitter.  So much so that one news source even had to retract their story and apologize for jumping the gun.  But I think we all knew that the end was just around the corner.

Legendary former Penn State coach Joe Paterno died earlier today after losing his fight with cancer.  He was 85-years-old.

It's unfortunate that everything had to come down on Joe Pa the way it all did in his final days.  It could not have been a better example of it raining when it pours.  He had to deal with the whole child rape scandal going on in his program at the same time he's diagnosed with cancer.  Although, to be fair, he really could have made part of that easier on himself by doing a better job of dealing with that monster he had on his staff.

It's amazing when you think about how long he had that gig at Penn State.  He was the head football coach for longer than I've been alive.  And I know I'm old.  There are college coaches that are lucky to last a full season.  Penn State let him stick around for almost forever.  He'd still be there today if that whole mess hadn't popped off.  Cancer or not.

I'm a firm believer that the older a person gets, the more their ability to continue living relies just as much on their desire to live as it does their health.  Especially in a case like Joe Pa where he had a treatable form of cancer.  The continued passion he had to coach football gave him a reason to keep going strong year after year.  The moment that was taken from him so was a lot of that fire he had for life itself. 

Regardless of how his tenure ended, there was no denying the contribution that Joe Pa made to not only Penn State but also college football in general.  Just when you thought he didn't have what it takes anymore after a couple of losing seasons he was able to get Penn State back near the top of the elite programs again.  You would have thought that more programs would have learned from Penn State's example that commitment can often breed success.  At least from a coaching standpoint, Joe Pa was class act literally in a class all his own.

Rest in peace, Coach Pa.

At Last

That was probably a very predictable title to give this particular entry.  I'm sure I'm not the only one who thought it up as the world learned of this latest celebrity passing.  But sometimes something is just so appropriate that it's just too good to pass up.  That was certainly the case here.

Blues legend Etta James passed away yesterday due to complications from leukemia.  She was 73-years-old.

I know there are going to be some folks out there who weren't aware of who Ms. James was until the movie "Cadillac Records".  Many of the kids today don't have the same exposure to music that we had.  They don't have the parents that played oldies for them so they could appreciate the greats from back in the day  So it did help that a modern star like Beyonce helped introduce them to the greatness of Ms. James.

Admittedly, I had no idea she was such a brash woman until that flick came out.  But I admired her even more for it.  Even more so when there was that very brief controversy about how she was offended by the fact that some folks were saying Bey sang "At Last" better than Ms. James.  She wasn't about to put up with that.  And rightfully so.  You don't do a legend like that.

As soon as I heard the news that she had been hospitalized for leukemia I knew she was on borrowed time.  I have heard of folks recovering from that, but not at her age.  Although it's good that she had the opportunity to live a full life it's still sad to see someone have to end their final days in such a manner.  At least she doesn't have to suffer any longer. 

Rest in peace, Ms. James.  At last.

Red Tails

It's being called the most controversial movie of our time!  Okay..it really is not THAT serious.  However, I was a bit surprised over the fuss that was being made over this before it even hit theaters.  Especially for a George Lucas project.  He, of all people, was having trouble getting funding for a film?  Oh..because it didn't have a major white star in it.  Now I see why.  Then add to that the fact that it was getting negative reviews and I was already on edge going in.

If you don't already know what the story is about "Red Tails" it's the story of African-American pilots known as the Tuskegee Airmen.  I'm still surprised that there are some folks who don't know about their contribution to WWII.  This film depicts the young pilots slowly transitioning from doing non-essential missions to getting real aerial combat that would eventually prove how dominant their dogfighting skills were.

Let me first say that I went into this film with a bit of a bias.  I'm a huge George Lucas fan.  There's little wrong he could do in my book.  But even with the good faith he has eternally built up with the original "Star Wars" trilogy AND the "Indiana Jones" flicks (we won't even count the last one), I will be the first to admit when he screws up.  Like he did with much of second "Star Wars" trilogy and even with the last "Indiana Jones" film.  So as much as I wanted to LOVE this flick because of the subject matter and Lucas, I still pull no punches.

It was obvious from the very beginning that money was an issue with getting "Red Tails" made.  I never knew until this movie how much I could appreciate little things like the opening credits.  I've been spoiled with movies going over the top with top-notch graphics on them that it really bothered me to see some that looked like they were made with Windows Live Movie Maker.  I'm going to chalk that up to the fact that Lucas wasn't accustomed to doing those.  Any true "Star Wars" geek will recall that those films never had opening credits.  Of course they did have the epic scrolls that really would have been much better here than the shoddy graphics they went with.

What I did like in particular was how much more action-oriented this one was as opposed to the HBO-movie that was released in 1995.  That one focused more on the drama aspect.  "Red Tails" really delved into the Airmen's aerial battles.  That is by far one of Lucas's fortes.  Every single dogfight scene keeps you on the edge of your seat.  Those sequences drive the film so much that it helped to overlook some of the other minor flaws like cliche dialog at times.  But let's face it...any action junkie knows that cliche dialog is a must. 

By keeping it more action-oriented Lucas was able to have a more family-friendly film to appeal to all ages.  It's the perfect opportunity to expose our children to the significant impact the Tuskegee Airmen had on American history.  I could personally get more out of the more superior film like "The Tuskegee Airmen"; however, my 11-year-old son would easily appreciate this version more because it was more visually stimulating.  

The acting was a little bit suspect in some parts.  It had nothing to do with the fact that it was a predominantly Black cast.  It had more to do with the fact that several of the actors (non-Black included) just didn't have much major motion picture experience.  I didn't think it was possible that Ne-Yo could do a better job in "Stomp the Yard" then he would in this film but that was clearly the case.  I'm chalking that up to the fault of director Anthony Hemingway (who I've never heard of until this one).  He should have done a better job in getting more out of the cast.

The person who really impressed me was Denzel Jr. as Easy.  His real name is Nate Parker, but I defy you to look at him and tell me he doesn't look and even act like a yong Denzel.  You may remember him from "The Great Debaters".  I know I did.  I knew then that he was destined for greatness.  It's a shame it took this long for him to get another shot in a big role.  However, he ran with it and his performance helped greatly in covering up the shortcomings of his less-experienced co-stars.

All in all, "Red Tails" was an excellent experience.  I would be lying if I didn't admit that it could have been better.  It's obvious from watching it that if Lucas had the big-budget funding he was looking for then this could have been a classic.  He did the most with what had to work with and came out with a very admirable product. 


My rating:  B

Random (XL-Images) Pic of the Day

Lost Ones

I knew it was just a matter of time before I would take some photo that would be impactful in one way or another.  To be fair (and actually a little modest) I would like to think that I have done that already.  Probably in more ways than one but I just haven't been aware of it.  Well this most recent example was one that was so blatantly obvious that I had to speak on it.  And I almost missed it myself until someone else brought it to my attention.

This past First Fridays was just another First Fridays for me.  Nothing out of the ordinary.  I went and did my thing knocking out dozens and dozens of shots as usual.  I made sure that I got a lot of the same looks I always get from familiar angles.  The views are the same but the scenery (as in the people) is always different so it works out.  Then I left thinking nothing else about it.  Until I happened to see folks talking on The Book early the next morning about a tragedy that occurred in our city.  The first homicide of 2012.  A young brotha was shot and killed in a drive-by around 3am Saturday morning.

It wasn't long before folks started flooding Facebook with their favorite pictures of the young man.  His face didn't look familiar to me at all.  Neither did his name.  I knew a lot of younger folks from my interactions with First Fridays and the like but he wasn't one of them.  Even though it turns out he knew several of the same people that I knew.

So I edited my First Fridays pics and posted them like I always do.  Folks were going out there as normal, finding themselves and/or their friends and commenting accordingly.  The photos had been up for few days when I noticed that someone had pointed out that the slain young man was in one of them.  I went to the picture to see if I could recognize him.  What I found was very eerie.

The photo you see here is the group shot that he is in.  For those of you that know nothing about the brotha that passed or what he looks like, what's the very first thing about this picture that jumps out at you?  Did you see the brotha near the front who's looking directly at the camera?  And the reason that stands out is because out of that crowd of over 100 people, he is the ONLY one looking directly at the camera.  He's the one who would end up being murdered only a couple of hours after this picture was taken.

I just found it very odd how completely random and yet purely coincidental this picture turned out to be.  It was a shot where I was just trying to capture as much as the First Fridays crowd as possible.  A random shot of everyone doing their own thing.  Just as I wanted, no one was paying attention as they were all in their own little world.  No one even noticing I was taking the picture.  Except for him.  I wouldn't realize that until it was brought to my attention in a comment days later.

Here am I thinking that I was just taking my standard First Friday pictures.  I had no idea that I would end up capturing the last recorded memory of this young man.  And maybe it's just me but the look on his face almost seemed rather prophetic.  Sure, it could have been happenstance that I just caught that expression at that moment.  However, it also has a look of serenity.  As if he that picture at that moment was meant to be taken to preserve his last photographed moment in time. 

Rest in peace, Teandre.