Quote. Ran into this one again today… “A tyrant must put on the appearance of uncommon devotion to religion. Subjects are less apprehensive of illegal treatment from a ruler whom they consider god-fearing and pious. On the other hand, they do less easily move against him, believing that he has the gods on his side.” […]
Stuff of dreams. Because I’d been dreaming about googling this: Gene Wilder is the “Young Frankenstein” actor, b. 1933. (Here’s the version of “Alice in Wonderland” where he sings “Beautiful Soup.”) Billy Wilder is the writer of “Some Like it Hot,” b. 1906. (Also “Double Indemnity,” “The Seven Year Itch,” and “Stalag 17.”) Thornton Wilder
Awesome geekiness of geeky awesomeness. Some folks playing a live-action role-playing game put together a stone golem suit out of foam mattresses, glue sticks, and paint. Click here for a short video. It’s the kind of thing that makes me proud to be a nerd, and proud to know others of such kind. (via BoingBoing.)
Book Review. The Historian, by Elizabeth Kostova. Here’s a thought: we have moved out of the era where historians and horror movie fans are two entirely different sets of people — there’s enough overlap to justify this book, after all. The plot (which successfully pulls off almost as many stories-within-stories as The Arabian Nights) involves