Showing posts with label Bill of Rights. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bill of Rights. Show all posts

Sunday, September 10, 2023

Friday, February 17, 2023

Firearms Friday with Raquel Welch


Born in 1940, Raquel Welch was an international cinematic sex symbol and genre-film superstar for a decade from the mid-1960s through the waning years of the 1970s. Whether it was spy thrillers or spy comedies, science-fiction adventures, or historical actioners of questionable accuracy--from the American Wild West to the French pre-revolutionary period through the days when dinosaurs roamed the Earth alongside girls in fur bikinis, Welch could be counted on to bring sexiness and lots of personality to her roles.

As the 1980s dawned, Welch's career shifted focus from the Big Screen to the television where she often produced and starred in movies tailored to her talents. She also turned herself into something of a cottage industry, serving as the spokesperson for numerous beauty products and appearing in comedies as "herself".

With the turn of the century from the 1900s to the 2000s, and Welch entering her 60s, she remained a gorgeous as ever and standing as the very definition of "aging gracefully". In 2017, at the age of 77, she played her last major role as a supporting character in the 10-episode Canadian television series "Date My Dad".


Raquel Welch passed away on February 15, 2023, following a short illness.

Friday, January 6, 2023

Firearms Friday with Anna May Wong

Born on Jan. 3, 1904, Anna May Wong was a third-generation Chinese-American who began her film acting career at the age of 15. Within a year, her raw talent and charisma was being noticed by directors and fellow actors alike, and she swiftly moved from bit parts, to major supporting roles, and to her first starring role at the age of 17 in "The Toll of the Sea" (1922). 

 
Wong is perhaps best remembered for her major supporting role in "The Thief of Bagdad" (1924) (where she was as captivating and scene-stealing on screen as leading man Douglas Fairbanks). As sound replaced silent movies, Wong made a successful transition into talkies and cemented her legacy as the first Asian-American movie star. Unfortunately, the racism baked into the U.S. film industry--with its regulations that stated actors of different races could not share the screen in romantic scenes, and the habit of casting white actors in "yellow face" in leading parts--stopped her from maintaining her star status, and she went to Europe where such policies and habits did not stand in her way.

As World War II was looming on the horizon, Wong returned tothe U.S. where, after acclaimed leading roles in thrillers "Daughter of Shanghai" (1937) (where she received top billing) and "Dangerous to Know" (1939), she found the old racist blocks were still in her career path and she quickly found herself relegated to choosing to star in Poverty Row films, or take minor parts in major pictures. By 1942, after appearing in 48 American, British, or German pictures, Wong left film behind for the stage.

In 1949, Wong returned briefly to the Big Screen with a supporting role in the fabulous thriller "Impact", and in 1951 she starred as the title character in the short-lived detective TV series
"The Gallery of Madame Liu-Tsong". 

During the 1950s, Wong battled several health issues, but still managed to return to television during the second half of that decade, with small supporting and guest-starring roles in detective shows, drama anthology series, and westerns.

Wong suffered a massive heart attack and passed away in 1961, one month after her 56th birthday.

Anna May Wong with a sword


Friday, June 24, 2022

Firearms Friday and the 2,222nd Post

This is the 2,222 post here at Shades of Gray. It also happens to be a Friday, so we're making it a Very Special Firearms Friday with two pictures of two different women using two pistols at the same time.

Two-Gun Cowgirl
Charlene Holt as a two-gun toting Saloon Girl

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Friday, March 18, 2022

Firearms Friday with Joan Blondell

 
Joan Blondell

"We can either afford to refit the costume or give you that additional money," the producer told Joan Blondell as "The Blonde and the Bullet" (1933) went into an extra week of filming.

"Fair enough," said Blondell.

Joan Blondell in a hat, boots, and gunbelt



Joan Blondell in a hat, boots, and gunbelt

Friday, February 18, 2022

Firearms Friday with Sophie Ryleigh

It's the return of Firearms Friday!

In this installment, we show you that even assassins can be inconvenienced on laundry day. Sometimes, you just have to get ready for work, even if the dryer cycle isn't done.


Sophie Ryleigh is an English model from Essex. You can see more from (of?) her on Instagram and Twitter. She also has a Facebook page.

Friday, September 17, 2021

Firearms Friday with Nicki Minaj

Firearms Friday is returning, because the online mobs and even the Biden Administration and their lackeys in the media are on the warpath against Nicki Minaj.


Rapper/songwriter Nicki Minaj recently incurred the wrath of the Mask Cultists and the Covid-19 fear-mongers because she had the AUDACITY to say that she has chosen to not get a Covid-19 vaccination. She laid out the reasons why (Some of which were pretty stupid but others which were perfectly sensible), but she but also said she was not opposed in any way to others get vaccinated, and that she even encouraged it. 

But that didn't matter. She failed to properly mouth the mantra of the Mask Cult and of the totalitarians who are using the pandemic to stoke fear, sow division, and do everything they can to break what little spirit us peasants have left. Unlike many other celebrities who have drawn the ire of the Outrage Brigades and Covid Cultists, she has stood her ground and fired back.


I can't claim to be a fan of Minaj; I can't even claim that I like her music. But I appreciate and respect her spirit and her willingness to be herself and say "screw you" to all of those in the media, in business, and in the streets who are bending over backwards to satisfy the demands of naked tyrants as they march us all toward totalitarianism.

And she didn't even set out to do that. She just wanted to be herself. And there are all sorts of media figures and Twitter-led outrage mobs who have gone out of their way to lie about what she said and did. The lies have even come from the Biden White House; disagreement with the Dear Leader and the Cult of Covid cannot be tolerated. I'm if they could get away with treating public figures the government doesn't like, they would do so. In fact, based on the behavior of the online mobs, they would probably love to be able to to do someone like Minaj like the Chinese government did to actress Shuang Zheng and LITERALLY cancel her.

But that's probably coming here soon enough. For now, they must satisfy themselves with trying to destroy Minaj's image with her fans and otherwise ruin her.

The video featured below is very fitting for this revival of the Firearms Friday, as is the whole current "controversy" involving Minaj since it let's this post be about several items covered by the Bill of Rights. 

The video for "Lookin Ass" is full of interesting (and sexy) visuals, and it's well worth checking out. While it didn't make me a fan of Minaj, maybe you'll discover her music is to your liking. At the very least, Minaj may get a few fractions of pennies via royalties and/or license fees. (Just DON'T watch it at work or around anyone who is easily offended; it could turn out badly.)

Nicki Minaj with guns


Lookin Ass (2014)
Starring: Nicki Minaj
Director: Nabil Elderkin
Rating: Seven of Ten Stars




Wednesday, September 8, 2021

Princesses of Mars, Part 38

The Princesses of Mars want everyone to know that they support the right of citizens to own and bear arms. They also want everyone to know that they're not afraid to use them in self defense or against tyrants.

Dejah Thoris by Joseph Linser



Dejah Thoris by Mike Hoffman

Dejah Thoris by Andy Kuhn

Dejah Thoris by Rodrigo Katrakas

Dejah Thoris and John Carter by Norm Breyfogle