Top 10 Quotes: "A Goofy Movie"

On this day in 1995, Disney released one of its most underrated animated movies. Catchy tunes like "Stand Out" and "After Today" make this a road trip you'll want to take again and again. It's tough to be cool when your dad is Goofy.

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1. Goofy: Hey, Maxie, let's play a game. You think of a name and I'll try and guess who it is. Man or woman?
Max: (groaning) Aw man.
Goofy: Man, huh? That's a toughie. Let's see...Walt Disney!
Max: (dully) Right.

2. Max: (increasingly nervous when Roxanne's hulking dad answers the door) Hi. Is Roxanne home? Oh, my name is Max. Does Roxanne live here? Does she even live on this block?

3. Goofy: There'll be plenty of time for parties when you're older, Maxie. Why, when I was your age, I'd never even been invited to a party. And look at me now!

4. Bobby: Look! It's the Leaning Tower of Cheese-a!

5. Pete: Taking a break from the MTV generation, huh? Can't say as I blame you. (jumps in the hot tub and half the water sloshes out) People are always puttin' too much water in these things.

6. Max: This is the stupidest vacation! You drag me from home and jam me in this dumb car and drive me a million miles away to see some stupid rat show!

7. Goofy: (trying to guilt Max after his initial refusal to go on the trip) All right then. Guess I'll just have to go all alone, that's all. Just sit in the boat...all alone. And talk to myself. All alone.
Max: (brightly) I guess so!

8. Pete: If you keep 'em under your thumb, they'll never end up in the gutter.

9. Max: (singing) Can someone call a taxi
And get me outta here
To Beverly Hills, 90210?

10. Goofy: (singing) Who deserves a hero's trophy
As we face each cat-a-strophe
Nobody else but you

Top 10 Quotes: "Anastasia"

Today would've been my grandma Diane's 79th birthday. She was one of the kindest, most unselfish people I ever knew. I was lucky enough that I grew up 5 minutes from her house; she practically raised me while my parents were working. We loved to watch movies together and even when I got older, Anastasia was still one of our favorites. I suppose it was because we related so well to the bond Anastasia had with her grandmother Marie. It seems only fitting to post this in her honor.

1. Dowager Empress Marie: "You were the boy, weren't you? The servant boy who got us out. You saved her life and mine and you restored her to me. And yet you want no reward."

2. Anastasia: "Do you really think I'm royalty?"
Dmitri: "You know I do."
Anastasia: "Then stop bossing me around!"

3. Bartok: "You should really watch your blood pressure. My nephew Izzy, he just keeled over one day, mid-mango. And he's a fruit bat, sir. No meat, no bloody."

4. Vlad: "It's what I hate about this government. Everything's in red."

5. [Anastasia is looking inside an ugly dress Dmitri bought her]
Dmitri: "What are you looking for?"
Anastasia: "The Russian Circus. I think it's still in here!"

6. Vlad: "I see an engaging and fiery young woman, who on on a number of occasions has show a regal command equal to any royal in the world. And I have known my share of royalty. You see, I was a member of the Imperial Court."

7. Anastasia: "'Go left,' she says. I know what's to the left. I'll be Anya the Orphan forever."

8. Bartok: "Is this the face of a bat who would lie to you?"

9. Anastasia: "It's kind of hard to think of yourself as a duchess when you're sleeping on a damp floor. But, sure, yeah, I guess every lonely girl would hope she's a princess."

10. Dowager Empress Marie: "Knowing that you are alive, seeing the woman you've become brings me joy I never thought I could feel again."

I love you forever, Grandmama.

"Bringing Out the Dead" by Joe Connelly

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"Saving someone's life is like falling in love: the best drug in the world." Frank Pierce, a paramedic working in New York City's Hell's Kitchen, knows that high also comes with crushing lows. The best he can hope for is his patients surviving the journey to Our Lady of Mercy Hospital, the place he and even its own staff refer to as Misery. He's (literally) haunted by a young girl whose life he couldn't save. Frank, on the verge of losing his job, agrees to work a 72-hour marathon shift.

The shift begins with Frank and his partner Larry responding to a cardiac arrest call. Frank unexpectedly finds himself taken by the victim's ex-junkie daughter Mary. But don't be fooled into thinking this is a love story, at least a traditional one. Larry's primary interests are food and "the true love of his life," which isn't his wife or even his job with the city; it's his membership in the Bayville Volunteer Fire Department.

Next, Frank works with Marcus, an African-American from the city's first paramedic class. Marcus is best known for his so-called "Narcan revivals," a spectacle worthy of Broadway. He's aware that Frank is burnt-out and maybe more than a little crazy, but isn't perturbed by it, at least not to the degree that Larry is.

Frank's third and final partner is Tom, who broke Frank in as a trainee. Tom, like many in the first generation of paramedics, earned his stripes as a medic on the battlefields of Vietnam. He practices a special kind of "psychological first aid" and nobody in their right mind wants to ride with him. Fortunately, Frank's not in his right mind.

A troublesome homeless man named Noel, chronic caller Mr. Oh, ER physician Dr. Hazmat, and less-than-warm-and-fuzzy Triage Nurse Constance round out the cast of characters.

I've read a lot of books in my life and this ranks high on my list of all-time favorites. My familiarity with the world of medicine has a lot to do with it, I'm sure. The details of the calls and patients' conditions are spot-on, which is no surprise when you find out the author himself is a former New York City medic. It's pitch-dark, packed with gallows humor, and yet has a true heart and soul. Ride along on this breakneck, life-and-death journey through the underbelly of the city that never sleeps.

Guest Review: "Sleepy Hollow"

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Washington Irving's "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" was turned into an even stranger tale at the hands of Tim Burton! Brom Bones ends up getting whacked in both the book and the movie for making fun of the Headless Horseman.

In the book, Ichabod Crane was a schoolteacher, an ugly, unappealing schoolteacher at that. In this movie, Johnny Depp was neither ugly nor unappealing nor a schoolteacher. Instead, Ichabod was a Goth-looking Sherlock Holmes type detective. He was intelligent and much more appealing than the original character.

Katrina Van Tassel wasn't a witch in the original book or movie. She was cast as a sort of good witch, the counterpoint to her stepmother's evil witch character. The evil stepmother was a bit too Cinderella for me with a bit of Snow White thrown in because the Evil Queen was also a witch. There wasn't a stepmother in the book nor any living Mrs. Van Tassel. As far as I recall, Mr. Van Tassel was a widower who stayed that way.

The book and movie both give the same reason for the Headless Horseman's behavior: the misplacement of his own head. After the Horseman was beheaded during the American Revolutionary War, someone buried him with his head away from his body. He became a sort of pathetic but frightening restless spirit traveling around in search of his head and avenging himself on people who still have theirs.

Very creepy take on an old tale, especially the finding of the head collection under the roots of a very old tree.

"Rebel Without a Cause"

The movie opens with Jim Stark (James Dean) being hauled into the police station for public drunkenness. A girl his age named Judy (Natalie Wood) is also there because she was wandering the streets by herself late at night. She tells a detective that she ran out of her house after her father called her a dirty tramp and rubbed all the lipstick off her face; "I thought he was gonna rub off my lips," she sobs. Judy reluctantly agrees to let the police call her parents and have her dad pick her up.

Out in the lobby, Jim offers his jacket to a shivering younger boy named John (Sal Mineo), better known as Plato. Plato declines. Judy becomes angry and upset when she learns her mother will be coming to pick her up. It doesn't make a lot sense because it's apparent that she hates her father. When Jim's parents and grandmother arrive, they aren't pleased about being called away from celebrating Easter at the country club.

Plato is brought into a room with another detective, accompanied by his family's black housekeeper. We learn that he's in trouble for shooting a litter of puppies with a gun he stole from his mother. Plato doesn't seem to have an explanation as to what made him kill the dogs. Throw in fire starting and bed-wetting and he'll hit the sociopathy trifecta. The housekeeper tells the police that Plato's parents are divorced and his mother is off visiting relatives in Chicago by herself. Not only is she skipping Easter with her only child, she's also blowing off his birthday.

Back with the Starks, we find out that they've just moved to town. Mr. Stark sees nothing wrong with his son getting drunk, "boys will be boys" and all that. Mrs. Stark disagrees. The ensuing bickering causes James Dean to scream what is arguably his most famous line: "You're tearing me apart!" The cop tries to befriend Jim and says he can come to the station and talk to him anytime he wants to get something off his chest.

On his way to school the next day, Jim bumps into Judy, who turns out to be one of his new neighbors. She gets into her boyfriend's overfilled car. When Jim pulls up to ask how to get to school, the kids in the car purposely shout wrong, confusing directions. Jim makes friends with Plato during a field trip to the planetarium. The same afternoon, he catches Judy's boyfriend Buzz slashing his tires. Buzz challenges Jim to a game of chicken. It goes wrong, leading to Buzz's death. Jim is horrified and wracked with guilt. He  tells his parents about the accident and that he wants to go turn himself in to the police; they object. Jim runs away. He, Plato, and Judy decide to hide out in an abandoned mansion on the outskirts of town.

The movie is obviously a product of another time; at one point, Jim wishes his father would knock his mother out "just once, so she'd stop picking on him." Judy gets slapped by her father for kissing him on the cheek; he deems her too old for that because she's 16. Jim's mother doesn't cook unless she's wearing a frilly apron. And then of course there's the drag racing.

Rebel Without a Cause has undoubtedly influenced pop culture during the 60 years since its release. Given the many plot similarities, I feel safe in saying that it may well have inspired S.E. Hinton to write her teen masterpiece The Outsiders in the early 1960's. Rebellious characters/antiheroes have remained big draws for audiences: Jax Teller, Travis Bickle, Ferris Bueller, Jack Sparrow, Dean Winchester, and Luke Jackson to name just a few. The performances are solid. James Dean in this role is handsome, brooding, and charismatic; it truly is a pity he had his own tragic car accident before he had the chance to grow more as an actor. Sal Mineo played to perfection the shy kid who hero-worships his best friend Jim. Natalie Wood was strong as the female lead and had good chemistry with James. It really is an American classic.

"Harum Scarum"

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I've been a huge Elvis fan since I was a little girl, but had never seen any of his movies until this weekend, when I received this one for Valentine's Day. Elvis is pretty much playing himself as singer/actor/martial artist Johnny Tyronne. Johnny's latest project Sands of the Desert is predicted to be a huge success. Johnny is in an unnamed part of the Middle East doing a goodwill press tour to promote the movie.

Things are going well for him until he's kidnapped. Some revolutionaries who've seen his on-screen fights want him to assassinate the ruler of a small kingdom that's been cut off from modern culture for about 2,000 years. Johnny manages to escape his kidnappers and goes on the run, hoping to find an airport where he can catch a flight to the next stop on his press tour. The rest of the plot is thin and involves assassins, a bulgy-eyed thief, a little person, two cute orphans, and plenty of belly dancers.

At its best, the movie is campy fun. None of the locals look even vaguely Middle Eastern. Elvis is so charming that you forgive him for not being a great actor. During the film-within-a-film Sands of the Desert, Elvis kills a leopard by karate-chopping it. There are duels with very obviously plastic swords. I suspect the setting was chosen to cash in on the popularity of both Elvis and Lawrence of Arabia. Like all Elvis movies, this is a musical. The best song involves Elvis strutting around a marketplace imploring the belly dancing native girls to "shake that tambourine."

However, the fun grinds to a screeching halt during a scene where Elvis is sheltered by the caretakers of the orphans. The girl, who's probably 10 at the oldest, begs to be taken to America and promises to "be a good slave girl." She then shows Elvis some seductive dance moves while he sings to her. Yes, you read that right. It's pretty creepy to watch and it seems to go on forever.

That part aside, Harum Scarum was intriguing enough overall that I may well investigate some of The King's other movies.

Top 10 Quotes: "Dirty Dancing"

1. Baby: Me? I'm scared of everything. I'm scared of what I saw, I'm scared of what I did, of who I am. But most of all, I'm scared of walking out of this room and never feeling for the rest of my whole life the way I feel when I'm with you.

2. Johnny: The steps aren't enough; feel the music.

3. Baby: We're supposed to do the show in two days. You still won't show me the lifts. I'm not sure of the turns. I'm doing all this to save your ass! What I really wanna do is drop you on it.

4. (Lisa is complaining about not bringing enough shoes on the trip)
Jake Houseman: This is not a tragedy. A tragedy is three men trapped in a mine or police dogs used in Birmingham.

5. Penny: Come on, ladies! God wouldn't have given you maracas if he didn't want ya to shake 'em!

6. Billy: (at the staff party) Can you imagine dancing like this on the main floor, home of the family foxtrot?

7. Baby: (opening voiceover) That was the summer of 1963, when everybody called me Baby and it didn't occur to me to mind. That was before President Kennedy was shot, before The Beatles came, when I couldn't wait to join the Peace Corps, and I thought I'd never find a guy as great as my dad. That was the summer we went to Kellerman's.

8. Robbie: I didn't blow a summer hauling toasted bagels to bail out some little chick who probably balled every guy in the place...Some people count, some people don't. (takes a copy of The Fountainhead out of his jacket) Read it. I think it's a book you'll enjoy. But make sure you return it; I have notes in the margin.
Baby: You make me sick. Stay away from me, stay away from my sister, or I'll have you fired.

9. Penny: Remember, he's the boss on the dance floor, if nowhere else.

10. Johnny: Nobody puts Baby in a corner.

Fire SUV

Now for some classic fire service humor

1 Week 'Til Christmas: Rudolph Re-Dubs

Like most children in America, I grew up watching the stop-motion Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer special from the '60s. It still holds a special place in my heart even though I'm now an adult. When I was a sophomore in college, my best friend, a Marine, sent me the following video and I couldn't stop laughing.

Watching Hermie and the gang spew profanity from Full Metal Jacket amuses me more than it probably should. I recently discovered a Rudolph video that pays tribute to one of my all-time favorite movies: Goodfellas.

Top 10 Quotes: "Jaws"

Posting this in honor of Discovery Channel's 25th annual Shark Week


1. Hooper: I think that I am familiar with the fact that you are going to ignore this particular problem until it swims up and bites you in the ass!

2. Mayor Vaughn: It's all psychological. You yell "barracuda," everybody says, "Huh? What?" You yell "shark" and we've got a panic on our hands on the Fourth of July.

3. Quint: Front, bow. Back, stern. Don't get it right, squirt, and I throw your ass out the little round window on the side!

4. Brody: You're gonna need a bigger boat.

5. Polly: We've got a bunch of calls about that karate school. It seems that the 9-year-olds from the school have been "karate-ing" the picket fences.

6. Hooper: It doesn't make much sense for a guy who hates water to live on an island.
Brody: It's only an island if you look at it from the water.

7. Hooper: This was not a boating accident! It wasn't any propeller. It wasn't any coral reef. And it wasn't Jack the Ripper.

8. Quint: I don't want no volunteers. I don't want no mates. There's too many captains on this island. $10,000 for me by myself. For that, you get the head, the tail...the whole damn thing.

9. Hendricks: Mrs. Kintner must've put her ad in Field & Stream.
Brody: Looks more like The National Enquirer.

10. Quint: You know, the thing about a shark, he's got...lifeless eyes. Black eyes. Like a doll's eyes. When he comes at ya, doesn't seem to be livin'...until he bites ya and those black eyes roll over white.