Daily Dirt: From the original ‘Planet of the Apes’ to crushed ice, not cubed

Daily Dirt for Nov. 5, 2021

The weekend is near, and so is Vol. 118 of the Daily Dirt. Welcome to today’s three thoughts. Enjoy.

1. The weekend equates to a time when we ideally relax and enjoy the things that we often don’t have time for in a normal Monday-through-Friday grind.

Movies are an excellent way to unwind, especially on a Friday or Saturday evening (if those college football games don’t get in the way). If you have some free time over the next couple of days, may I suggest one movie from each of the following decades that would be worth the time spent viewing:

1960s: “Planet of the Apes” (1968): There are two ways to watch this movie, one being for no more than a good time, enjoying it campiness and chuckling at some of the low-grade scenery and special effects. The other is seriously considering some of the thought-provoking questions it raises. Either way, it’s still great entertainment 53 years after it originally hit the theaters.

1970s: “Jaws” (1975): If you’ve already seen it, it’s time to watch again, if for no other reason than to hear Roy Scheider say, “We’re going to need a bigger boat.”

1980s: “Beverly Hills Cop” (1984): Back when Eddie Murphy was really Eddie Murphy.

1990s: “Ghost” (1990): The soundtrack alone is tremendous. Add the late Patrick Swayze and a captivating, short-haired Demi Moore to the mix and you have the perfect way to spend a November weekend evening.

2000s: “The Notebook” (2004): A great love story, and a real tear jerker. The movie is taklen from the Nicholas Sparks novel, which I bought for my wife long before we saw the movie.

2010s: “Mad Max: Fury Road” (2015): Many critics felt it was worth of an Oscar nomination. It stays true to the violence and overall mayhem that preceded it during the Mel Gibson era of Mad Maxdom. 

2020s: OK, we’re only a little more than a year and a half into this decade, but the best flick by far has been the October release of “No Time to Die,” the newest James Bond film that is Daniel Craig’s swan song. It’s nearly three hours long, but you will not regret one second, and it provides one of the best endings in cinematic history.

2. The best-looking helmets in the NFL:

A. Cleveland Browns: The only helmet in the league without a logo, because the club was named after an owner — Paul Brown. Its clean look is legendary and greatly accents the Browns’ color base(s).

B. Philadelphia Eagles: The bird is terrifying, in a good way, plus the color scheme is next to perfect.

C. Denver Broncos: The futuristic horse head is eye-popping, even though its neck makes it appear steroids are in use.

D. Dallas Cowboys: The blue star is, was and always will be tremendous on that silver backdrop.

E. Carolina Panthers: Fierce. Best overall cat logo in either pro or college ball.

3. Overrated or underrated? You decide:

A. Crushed ice is better than cubed ice for your cola: Very underrated. You can chew on and/or allow the crushed to satisfactorily melt in your mouth after the soda has worked its way down your throat. I purposely frequent gas stations that I know offer crushed ice for its soda machines. What goes better with an unleaded fill-up than a glass of Mountain Dew or Coke — with crushed ice?

B. Little Debbie cakes are the best in that particular snack genre: Highly overrated. Too often, Little Debbie’s taste like cardboard with frosting. While Hostess is not the product it once was, it remains far superior than anything Little Debbie offers the consumer.

C. The MLB organizations with the biggest checkbooks can always buy their way to a world championship. Overrated. The Dodgers and Yankees each have more money than most third-world countries, but Los Angeles has won one title since 1988 and the Yankees have not won a World Series since 2009.

D. The career of actress Debra Winger: I say underrated. I think many of us automatically point to her performance in “Urban Cowboy,” but forget that she was also outstanding in “An Officer and a Gentleman,” “Terms of Endearment,” “Legal Eagles” and “Black Widow.”

E. Frankenstein is the scariest movie monster ever: Overrated. Old school, maybe … although I would argue that Wolfman was pretty terrifying, too. And Dracula wasn’t bad either. In the modern era, however, I would go with Predator, and possibly the werewolves in “American Werewolf in London.”

Steve Fact O’ The Day
Steve has always thought Sigourney Weaver was a great name.

Steve Eighinger writes daily for Muddy River News. His popcorn bucket is his prized possession.