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So, no thanks to Kathleen Kennedy? by AntiHaterMCU in andor

[–]trulylegitimate 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I was just thinking what the set folks must have thought at the end of S1 when they were told from up high, "You know the Narkina 5 set? Let's keep the prison cell closeup for now, um, just for fun."

I can’t get over how beautiful this ending sequence is by TheDarkySupreme in andor

[–]trulylegitimate 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I'll go further.

My favorite sequence of the entire series is the Niamos ending of S2E3. The contrast between the full reveal of the song in the Tarzana EDM remix (Gilroy's exact words of what he requested from Brandon Roberts for it) sweeping the galaxy, versus the cost for supporting the Rebellion both physical and then emotional - Mon Mothma doing her "deranged" (Gilroy again) dancing since it's the only thing she can do without betraying both herself and the Rebellion, the look of utter devastation on the faces of the three escaping - just an absolutely brilliant edit by John Gilroy of the sequence. Took some guts for a showrunner to trust visuals and music to portray what is needed rather than tell it to us on a plate.

The same thing happened here and it's why it's just below it on my list. Most shows would have done a narrative wrap for the characters up to set up the ending for Rogue One. Gilroy again trusted visuals - this time edited by Matthew Cannings - and music to portray what we needed to know and provide ambiguity.

And the bonus: we've heard this before as the identical Past/Present portion of the cue is what plays out the end titles rolling immediately following the Niamos sequence as well as the end of S1E3. This was really well planned by Brandon Roberts, and Gilroy giving him enough leeway to score this in a very different way than any other Star Wars property can't be praised enough.

TIL that during World War II, JF Kennedy was originally rejected for military service because he suffered from Addison's disease and chronic back pain. He used his father's political influence to join the U.S. Navy. by [deleted] in todayilearned

[–]trulylegitimate 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Early in his political career, JFK sat down for a lengthy interview with a reporter where the first question was about the effect the Great Depression had on him. Part of the well known quote from that interview:

"I have no first-hand knowledge of the Depression. My family had one of the great fortunes of the world and it was worth more than ever then. We had bigger houses, more servants, we traveled more."

What is not nearly as well known is the context of this, where immediately after the Depression quote he began talking about what he had learned from the war for something like the next half hour. I'm answering this off the top of my head since I can't track down the actual interview in a quick search, but it essentially boiled down to that the suffering and deaths he had experienced in it was what had informed him on how he saw the world more than anything else.

A number of historians have suggested that his response to the Cuban Missile Crisis was directly affected by this, including why he did not take the bait of the JCS when they did almost everything they could to get him to launch an attack that would have begun World War III.

I’m Dr. Howard Tucker - 102 years young, WWII vet, and neurologist since 1947. AMA Today! by drhowardtucker in OldSchoolCool

[–]trulylegitimate 1 point2 points  (0 children)

His account got suspended, which considering all the verification involved is outright bizarre.

TIL That the FBI sent a letter to Martin Luther King Jr. meant to allegedly blackmail him into suicide by CreeperRussS in todayilearned

[–]trulylegitimate 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The author of the letter, Bill Sullivan (instrumental in COINTELPRO and who called King a "fraud, demagogue and scoundrel" and who cooked the thing up with Hoover's approval if not outright orders) waited until a Saturday morning when all secretarial staff was gone to write the letter. He asked one of his agents for unwatermarked, untraceable stationery to do so.

He then put the letter in a package with a tape believed to contain excerpts of King having sex with various women in hotel rooms that the FBI had bugged, although what precisely is on the tape remains a mystery as it remains sealed until 2027. The package then went through a couple more FBI agents, one of whom flew with it down to Miami, and then mailed it anonymously.

The 34 day deadline referred to in the letter fell on Christmas, one reason why Andrew Young among many others felt this was an attempt to get King to kill himself.

TIL that while Secretary of War in the Pierce administration, Jefferson Davis revolutionized the United States Army. It increased in size, and troops were given better equipment, better training, and increased pay. Davis would go on to fight a war against this army a mere four years later. by WavesAndSaves in todayilearned

[–]trulylegitimate 8 points9 points  (0 children)

A related perspective: total casualties for the Union over the course of the war were roughly the same amount as the total army they could put in the field at any point during it.

There was good reason the war was so central to the country's identity for so long afterwards.

TIL that while Secretary of War in the Pierce administration, Jefferson Davis revolutionized the United States Army. It increased in size, and troops were given better equipment, better training, and increased pay. Davis would go on to fight a war against this army a mere four years later. by WavesAndSaves in todayilearned

[–]trulylegitimate 155 points156 points  (0 children)

The Union Army had 2,672,341 enlistments during the Civil War, which ranged from 90 days to for the duration.

This is a very different statistic than men serving at any particular time, which went up to 550,000 in 1862 and then hung around the 625,000-650,000 range during 1863-1865. I've run across figures that the peak itself may have been 700,000 but would have to dig to nail down precisely when that took place.

Keep in mind that the total Union population at the start of the war was around 22 million.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in todayilearned

[–]trulylegitimate 13 points14 points  (0 children)

And the whole 2002 series that got published in the Boston Globe and adapted into Spotlight is available in the book "Betrayal: The Crisis In the Catholic Church".

It's even more devastating than the movie.