One of my favorite books is Ken Follett’s The Pillars of the Earth, a mammoth tome set in medieval England that deals with the construction of a cathedral and all of the treachery and betrayal faced by a multitude of sharply drawn characters. It’s rich, detailed, tightly-plotted and impossible to put down once you start, all reason it should translate well into a mini-series. Not just any mini-series, but an 8-part behemoth that will be airing on Starz beginning on July 23, 2010. It stars Ian McShane (Deadwood) as Waleran Bigod and Rufus Sewell as Tom Builder, with a nice appearance by Donald Sutherland as Bartholomew.

You can see the newly released trailer here.

Beer. Such a manly, macho drink. One would rightfully suspect that beer and the art of brewing has always been a man’s realm, but new research by historian Jane Peyton reveals a much different tale, one dominated by women since the get-go. In fact, women played such an integral role in brewing beer that it was only women who were allowed to run a tavern during the Sumerian age and even the Norse respected female brewers so much that all equipment remained theirs by law.

In England ale was traditionally made in the home by women. They were known as brewsters or ale-wives and the sale of the drink provided a valuable income for many households.

It quickly became an essential staple of the diet and even royalty indulged in the tasty beverage.

Queen Elizabeth I, like most people of the era, consumed it for breakfast and at other times of the day.

But by the start of the late 18th century and the Industrial Revolution, new methods of making beer meant women’s contribution slowly started to decline and be forgotten, until now.

Miss Peyton said: “I know men will be absolutely stunned to find this out, but they’ve got women to thank for beer.”

Source

It’s been a long time since Al Pacino has impressed as an actor, seemingly content to take on generic roles that don’t stretch his muscles. Fortunately, Mr. Pacino seems to be in fine form once again as he assumes the role of Dr. Kevorkian, also known as Dr. Death, who was a media sensation in the mid-90s for his “suicide machine”. The issue of assisted suicide hasn’t dimmed since Dr. Kevorkian’s imprisonment in 1998 and some countries have even legalized physician-assisted suicide since Kervorkian brought the topic to the forefront of the American consciousness.

I’ll step into the argument with the following observation: I find it the height of irony and hypocrisy that people have no problem with the Death Penalty and lethal injections for psycho killers, but if you’re suffering from a punishing disease that will remove you from this planet in a vile and torturous way, well, sorry. Suffer. You should have murdered people, then you are entitled to an easy, painless death.  If someone can defend the above logic, I’m all ears.

HBO is offering two trailers, neither of which can be embedded because that would make life easy.

Trailer I

Trailer II

L’Ogre has created a wonderful music video for the song 70 Million, by the band Hold Your Horses! In the video, various art masterpieces are recreated with stunning accuracy, creating a beautiful montage of creativity.

70 Million by Hold Your Horses ! from L’Ogre on Vimeo.