ALI'S COMEBACK: THE UNTOLD STORY

In 1970, Muhammad Ali has been exiled from boxing for his firm stance against the Vietnam War. stripped of his title, convicted of draft evasion. But in Atlanta that all changed. 

A diverse group of individuals came together to make sure the greatest boxer on Earth received a fair fight. 

An ambitious white attorney turned promoter, Atlanta's first Jewish mayor, and a visionary black Senator joined forces to make the impossible possible. 

"Ali's Comeback: The Untold Story" is the epic tale about the return of the greatest athlete of the 20th Century from the shadows of the boxing ring, and onto the world stage. 

Genre: Documentary 

Original Language:English 

Director: Art Jones 

Producer: Mandy Fason, Yahya McClain, Brittany Wyatt 

Release Date (Theaters): Jan 16, 2020 Limited Release Date (Streaming): Dec 1, 2020 Runtime: 1h 19m 

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The Plot Thickens Returns On October 25 With Season 4: Here Comes Pam Grier

The Plot Thickens Returns On October 25 With Season 4: Here Comes Pam Grier

This is the story of Pam Grier as only she can tell it.

It’s a story of bravery, both onscreen and off. It’s a story about race in Hollywood and race in America. And it’s a story about how real life is a lot messier than the movies. Pam Grier joins host Ben Mankiewicz this season on The Plot Thickens.

EPISODEONE PREMIERES OCTOBER 25

Join host Ben Mankiewicz as our award-winning documentary podcast dives into the life and work of trailblazing actress Pam Grier.

Discover what it took to survive one of Hollywood's greatest decades in the words of Pam Grier herself, plus interviews with special guests including Quentin Tarantino, Gloria Steinem, Philip Bailey, Michael Schultz and more.

New episodes available each Tuesday beginning October 25. 

https://theplotthickens.tcm.com/season-four/?lid=2r32zl2mi6nt

Coolio Passes On To Paradise of the Universe

Coolio, whose real name is Artis Leon Ivey Jr., came up on the L.A. rap scene in the late 80s, but blew up nationally in 1995 when he released "Gangsta's Paradise" for the soundtrack of the Michelle Pfeiffer film, "Dangerous Minds."

The song reached #1 and stayed there for 3 weeks.

While 'Paradise' became his signature hit, Coolio had several others ... including 1994's "Fantastic Voyage" -- which hit #3 on Billboard's Hot 100 -- as well as "1,2,3,4 (Sumpin' New)" and "It's All the Way Live (Now)."

Coolio was 59.

FAREWELL ...

SOURCE

The American King now Streaming on Roku

 The American King, the first Hollywood and Nollywood comedy to have theatrical release in the United States of America is now streaming on Roku

A mysterious priestess arrives in the USA to fulfill a 400-year-old prophecy: to choose an American King who will rebuild an ancient African Kingdom. Streaming on Roku.

#hollywood #nollywood #comedy #streaming #drama #nigeria #africa #africans #theamericamking #blacklivesmatter #leadership #america #movies 

https://www.roku.com/whats-on/movies/the-american-king?id=4b8e8d4b97da5e9b8da961635b393d56

Chinonye Chukwu, One of the Most Daring NIgerian Born Filmmakers

Chinonye Chukwu is one of the most daring African American filmmakers and one of the three most accomplished NIgerian born female filmmakers with Ngozi Onwurah and Branwen Okpako. 

Chinonye will be on the cover of the third edition of the NOLLYWOOD MIRROR® Series, the first book series on Nollywood and the Nigerian film industry published since 2013. 

She directed "Igbo Kwenu!" (2009),"The Dance Lesson" (2010) about a young black girl who struggles to become a ballerina in an increasingly gentrified community and "Bottom" in 2012.

Her first feature film "Alaska-Land"
(2012), told the story of two estranged Nigerian-American brother and sister who eventually reunite in their hometown of Fairbanks, Alaska. In 2013 she directed "A Long Walk" (2013), a short film about a child who is publicly ridiculed by his father.
Her critically acclaimed "Clemency"
 (2019), a death row drama stars Alfre Woodard as a prison warden coming to terms with the demands of her profession and Aldis Hodge as one of her inmates bound for execution. Her inspiration for the film came from the case of Troy Davis, a prisoner executed in 2011. She moved to Los Angeles in 2017 to shoot the film. She received the U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury Prize at 2019 Sundance, the first black woman to do so.

Chinonye is slated to direct "A Taste Of Power", a film based on the memoir of Elaine Brown.
Chinonye's new feature, Orion Pictures' 
"Till" is about Emmett Louis Till.
"Till" tells the story of Mamie Till-Mobley whose pursuit of justice for her 14-year-old son Emmett Louis Till  became a galvanizing moment that helped lead to the creation of the civil rights movement. As Time Magazine reported, “…thanks to a mother’s determination to expose the barbarousness of the crime, the public could no longer pretend to ignore what they couldn’t see.” Mamie’s decision to have an open casket at Emmett’s funeral, and to have Jet magazine publish David Jackson’s funeral photos, was driven by her motivation to ensure people everywhere knew what had happened to her son. The famous multiple award winning iconic actress, Whoopi Goldberg is playing Emmett’s grandmother.

The Introduction To "Barack Obama, The American Dream and the American Nightmare"

The following is the introduction of my yet to be published book,
"Barack Obama, The American Dream and the American Nightmare"

For all my fellow bloggers in the blogosphere
From those croaking like frogs on the logs
To those barking and howling like dogs on their blogs
Who are not afraid to break the news
Like backbenchers screaming from the pews.

Introduction

"Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities." ~ François Marie Arouet de Voltaire

"Human kindness has never weakened the stamina or softened the fiber of a free people. A nation does not have to be cruel to be tough."~ Franklin D. Roosevelt

"Once you hear the details of victory, it is hard to distinguish it from a defeat." ~Jean-Paul Sartre
–posted 02/10/2008 at 10:46:07 

Barack Obama has caused me to write a book I would not have written. His political audacity provoked me to write it. Barack Obama is like seeing the American Dream unfolding like the petals of a rose before our very eyes. I am not a true artist if I cannot depict what I see. Even a mirage forms an image we cannot deny. I will separate the fantasy from the reality of this American Dream.

Yet Barack Obama would not have become so dramatic without the ironic passion of his fanatics. Barack Obama may end up as a cosmic irony in the political history of America. May God save Barack Obama from the fates of these interesting times. 

–posted 02/10/2008 at 10:23:56 

I have seen the parade of ignorance
In the masquerade of arrogance.

I prefer to call this book political graffiti on the current affairs in American politics, some aspects of global politics, and other do-or-die affairs. Please read at your own risk. Most of the political notes are (1) comments I posted in my replies to various news reports and articles on the Huffington Post and (2) informed commentaries on my political blogs. The comments are regarding the principal presidential candidates of the Democratic Party in the course of their political campaigns for the presidential caucuses and primaries before the presidential election in 2008. The headings of the comments and commentaries are the titles of the specific news reports and articles on the Huffington Post and other sources; therefore, you can use the titles to trace the sources online. Reading the original reports, articles, and blogs will give you more details and make it clear why I made the comments or wrote the informed commentaries. 

It is also an important documentary on how Barack Obama emerged as the first black President of America in the most turbulent period since World War Two and will be of immense benefit to everyone who is interested in the intellectual and political consciousness of Obama in the study of his life and the history of American politics in the 21st century.

The notes and commentaries are testimonies of my cosmopolitan political inclinations. I enjoyed the excitement of participating in the discussions on the dialectics, ethics, and polemics of American democracy and the glaring contrasts with the contortions and distortions of democracy in Nigerian politics and of course on the madness of terrorism.

Mentally Disabled Women Used in Bombings

All suicide bombers are mentally retarded morons. We should ban any religion promoting terrorism. Lest we forget, rape is also terrorism. Honor killing is equally terrorism.

All terrorists should be arrested and deported to the moon where they actually belong since they are worshippers of the moon. No wonder madness is associated with the moon’s cycle.

We, the civilized ones, cannot be safe in a world where terrorists are on the rampage. We must get rid of them before they get rid of us. No need for Guantanamo Bay—just deport them to the moon. 

–posted 02/01/2008 at 14:24:47 

Mrs. Stassinopoulos Huffington is my humorous address for the irresistibly bold and beautiful Arianna Huffington, the celebrated publisher of the Huffington Post and author of many books. This book is meant for entertainment and enlightenment, so enjoy.

~ Ekeyerengozi Michael Chima
Orikinla Osinachi
January 14, 2008
Bonny Island, Nigeria

Brown Sugar: The Highest Grossing Film by a Nigerian Filmmaker

 

The Highest Grossing Film by a Nigerian filmmaker is "Brown Sugar" of 2002, an American romantic comedy  written by Michael Elliott and Rick Famuyiwa, directed by Famuyiwa, and starring Taye Diggs and Sanaa Lathan.
It grossed US$28, 316, 451.

Famuyiwa is a Nigerian-American director, producer and screenwriter of outstanding films,  including The Wood (1999), Brown Sugar(2002), Talk to Me (2007), Dope (2015), and Confirmation (2016).

 

Barack Obama: Our African Dream and their American Dream

President Barack Obama


Barack Obama: Our African Dream and their American Dream

Africans see President Barack Obama first as the son of an African immigrant who married a white American in America. Africans are proud of this fact and are proud of him as the epitome of the African genius, an icon of the Black race and a worthy role model for the youths of Africa to celebrate and emulate in the pursuit of the dreams of a New Africa in the 21st century.


Barack Obama, Sr holding the younger Barack Obama in 1971.

There is a spirit of the audacity of Barack Obama in the heart and soul of every African youth in the continent and the Diaspora, propelling them to excel in the hope of the attainment of their ultimate conquest.

How great we would be when we have a Barack Obama as the President of every nation in Africa.

If Barack Obama can make it, then yes we can!

President Barack Obama has shattered the highest glass ceiling of the proverbial American Dream; the dream of the great Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He was elected at the most challenging period in America since World War Two, when Americans were facing the premonition of another Great Depression and the heart rending sacrifice of thousands of innocent American souls in a nightmarish unconventional war against legions of lunatic fringe elements of Islamic fundamentalism. Yet, undauntedly Barack Obama has taken up the herculean challenges of the leadership of the greatest nation on earth, from confronting the goliaths on Wall Street over health care insurance and Machiavellian capitalism in his dogged defence of the common folks on Main Street to marshalling the reformation of America for the nation building of a New America in the leadership of the world.

Will Barack Obama succeed?
President Barack Obama is already galloping ahead on the highway of history and his cheerleaders are cheering him all the way and he is not looking back.


~ By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima
This article is from a new book on President Barack Obama by the author.

Barack Obama Becomes the 44th President of the United States of America!

Barack Obama Becomes the 44th President of the United States of America!

He is the first African American to be elected as the President of America following his election to the presidency in the 56th consecutive quadrennial United States presidential election on Tuesday, November 4, 2008.

Text of President Barack Obama's inaugural address on Tuesday, as prepared for delivery and released by the Presidential Inaugural Committee.

OBAMA: My fellow citizens:

I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because we the people have remained faithful to the ideals of our forebears, and true to our founding documents.
So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.
These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land — a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.

Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America — they will be met.
On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.
In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of shortcuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted — for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things — some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.

For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.
For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.

Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.

This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions — that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act — not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. All this we will do.

Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions — who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.
What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them — that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works — whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. Those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account — to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day — because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.

Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control — and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our gross domestic product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart — not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.

As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our founding fathers ... our found fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all the other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.

We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort — even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus — and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West — know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.
To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to the suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment — a moment that will define a generation — it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.

For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends — hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

This is the price and the promise of citizenship.
This is the source of our confidence — the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.

This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed — why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent Mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.
So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America's birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:
"Let it be told to the future world ... that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive...that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet (it)."

America, in the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

Thank you.
God bless you. And God bless the United States of America

.



For a comprehensive report on the historic election of Barack Obama, read the new book Barack Obama and the American Dream by Orikinla Osinachi to be released soon in America.