Todd Jacobucci

I have a friend in the Google+  Classic Rock Lovers community named JC Bulldog.   JC mentioned that she loved going to rock concerts.  She inspired me to think of all the concerts I've been to and which ones really stood out.   Although I haven't attended a concert in about twenty years, they were a big part of my 20s and 30s.   Actually my late teens as well.  I've seen probably 60-70 concerts in  my life.  I've come up with 5  that really blew me away.  I'm going to mention the year of each concert but please don't quote me as I'm doing this completely from memory.  If it's not the exact year it will at least be close.  I will also share some memories of the performance.   These will be in order in terms of #1 will be the best, #2 the next best, etc etc.  Ok, and here we go: 1. Page/Plant   1995:    This was outstanding.   To be able to go to a concert and have two of the four members of my favorite band (Led Zeppelin) perform songs from that band is

I was just in the middle of taking my second look at "Wonder Woman" with Gal Gadot.    I basically think the same of it.  Pretty good flick.  Started off well - then it got ridiculous.  Some props to the actress that played the crazy gas Doctor,  Elena Anaya.   I thought she was really good.  Anyway, I checked who directed "Wonder Woman" and it's Patty Jenkins.   She hasn't really had much of a career. "Monster" , the story of Aileen Wournos that starred Charlize Theron, is her only other big directing job.   She did inspire me to think though.  I started thinking about movie directors.  Who has really stood out?  Who made films that have aged well?  Who is technically the best?  Who tells a story the best?   As I was considering these variables, some names popped into my head.  There is no particular order - I just believe these are the 5 Greatest Movie Directors of all Time.  Beneath each name I'm including my favorite movie by said Director.

I was sitting around today thinking how limited  I am in my scope of music.  My likes are dominated by Classic Rock Music.   There is some Soul Music (love Chaka Khan) in there.  A bit of Hip-Hop (TLC has done some nice stuff).   Some 80s and 90s music in there as well ("Synchronicity 2" and "Man in the Box" immediately come to mind).   But by far the music I like most is Classic Rock and Roll from the 1970s.  Trying to branch out a bit I thought,  "Well, there must be some music of today that is real good.   And if not, there must be some good young musicians".  Well, after a thorough contemplation and study,  I've concluded that there really isn't too much music of today that I'm fond of.  However, I have found some young musicians I think are fantastic.  I've pulled some videos from You Tube.  These are young musicians from Europe that love American Rock and Roll.    If you can, take a look at these videos.  I'd love to see who agree

If you are someone that was born in the 1960s then you have seen (via film or television) or read various interpretations of these 3 characters.   I was born in the 60s.  My first memory of Batman was the 60s TV program "Batman" starring Adam West and Burt Ward.  My first Wonder Woman memory was the 1974 TV movie "Wonder Woman" starring Cathy Lee Crosby.  As far as Spiderman, I can remember a 60s cartoon and I believe there was a 70s TV show although I don't remember who was in it.  In the 2000s and 2010s, there have been various interpretations (via film) of Batman and Spiderman.   And of course we had the late 80s to mid 90s Batman movies.  In this decade, we finally have a new interpretation of Wonder Woman.   It just so happens I watched the 2017 Wonder Woman film with Gal Gadot last night.  The night before I watched the latest Spiderman movie that starred Tom Holland.    My most recent Batman viewing was "Justice League".  So, I thought this morn

Sometimes, not very often, but on occasion a performance by an Actor or Actress will stand out. Meaning it goes beyond just a starring or costarring role in the film. The performance will stand alone above all others in the film. It will stick in your mind for a good while. The last couple of days I’ve given this topic some thought. Which acting performances stood out to me? Which ones stuck in my mind? Or better yet, which performances were exceptional? These are the performances I came up with:  1. Daniel Day-Lewis in “My Left Foot”  This film came out in 1989. Although Day-Lewis had been around for a few years at that point, this was the first time I’d ever seen him. I was completely taken aback. I thought it was one of the greatest acting performances I had ever seen. I called my Father the next day and told him Day-Lewis would win the Academy Award for Best Actor. Turns out I was right.  2. Denzel Washington in “Training Day”  Although I made no predi

I'm just about always thinking of music.  I have songs running through my head at all times.  This morning though, I woke up with a song playing in my head and I thought - hhmm, I don't really like that song.  However, as I listened to it in my brain I thought - well, this song isn't too great, but the lyrics are fantastic!   It inspired me to start thinking of songs that have outstanding lyrics.    I thought, let me write an article that celebrates songs that are lyrically fantastic.   Well, I'm a bit pressed for time this morning so I only spent an hour on it.   I've come up with 6 songs that I think have terrific lyrics.  There is no special order,  just 6 songs that came to me this morning.    And they are: 1. "Across The Universe" - The Beatles 2. "Cats in the Cradle" - Harry Chapin 3. "Bohemian Rhapsody" - Queen 4. "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" - Gordon Lightfoot 5. "Fire and Rain" - James Tayl

In my last article I discussed the five greatest actresses of all time.  I decided it only fair I should write a similar article about actors.  I should say I'm finding the same problem with actors that I did with actresses - that being that I am not familiar with the work of pre-1960s actors.  I would think guys like Humphrey Bogart,  Charles Laughton,  and James Cagney could easily make a top 5 list.   But not for me because aside from "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" - I have never watched an entire film starring any of them.    As I did with my actress list, I am going with actors who I have seen in multiple films, performing multiple roles.  Based on that way of thinking - here is my top 5: 1. Anthony Hopkins 2. Robert DeNiro 3. Daniel Day Lewis 4. Dustin Hoffman 5. Robert Duvall Honorable mention to Al Pacino.  I'm sure a lot of people out there will be thinking of Marlon Brando.  It makes sense, he was one of the greats.  However, I can't give hi

This is a topic that has been rolling around in my head all day today.  I probably should have called this article - The Greatest Actresses of My Time, lol.    Some great actresses, for example Katherine Hepburn, Greta Garbo, Bette Davis, are great to me more so because of their reputations and the multiple Academy Award victories than their actual work.  The problem is I am not a fan of older movies.   Aside from "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane", I don't think I've ever watched an entire movie that starred any of those three.  Actually, let me take that back.  I did see "On Golden Pond" which starred Hepburn.   She was really old at that point.   So, I'm not as aware of her work as I should be.   I had to focus on actresses whose work I was very aware of.  I've come up with 5 that I think are the best.  I've seen all of these actresses in multiple films, doing multiple roles.  And here they are: 1. Meryl Streep 2. Helen Mirren 3. Julianne