Weekly Wilson - Blog of Author Connie C. Wilson - Welcome to WeeklyWilson.com, where author/film critic Connie (Corcoran) Wilson avoids totally losing her marbles in semi-retirement by writing about film (see the Chicago Film Festival reviews and SXSW), politics and books----her own books and those of other people. You'll also find her diverging frequently to share humorous (or not-so-humorous) anecdotes and concerns. Try it! You'll like it!

“Chili Finger” Screens at SXSW on March 15, 2026

On March 16, 2026

In Humor and Weird Wilson-isms, Movies, Reviews, Texas

“Chili Finger” at SXSW with Sean Astin and Judy Greer. (Photo by Cristina Dunlap).

Directors Edd Benda and Stephen Helstad brought the indie film “Chili Finger” to SXSW, which premiered on March 14 at the Zach Theater. I broke a tradition of decades of watching the Oscars “live” to journey to the Alamo Drafthouse on South Lamar on March 15th to see it. It was not the World Premiere, which took place May 14th, but it was only the second screening of this thought-provoking movie. It was worth stepping away from our annual Traveling Trophy for Oscar Predicting, which I am nominally in charge of (and, yes, there IS a real Oscar trophy—of sorts.)

This 100 minute character study starred Judy Greer, Sean Astin, Bryan Cranston and John Goodman, along with new-comers Madeline Wise, Paul Stanko, Sarah Herrman and Sara Sevigny. Writer/Directors Benda and Helstad are partners heading up Beyond the Porch productions, blending their Michigan roots and their shared USC educations to create independent films. “Chili Finger” was shot in Champaign, Illinois, in the heat of summer. It involves a fictional Wisconsin fast food chain, Blake Junior’s (they filmed in an old Hardee’s restaurant), to bring us a story based on reality.

“Chili Finger” cast members Madeline Wise and Paul Stanko during the Q&A for “Chili Finger” on March 15, 2026 at SXSW.

TRUTH TO FICTION

In March 2005, Anna Ayala falsely claimed to find a severed human finger in her Wendy’s chili in San Jose, California, creating an international scandal that cost the chain over $21 million in lost sales. Investigations revealed the finger was a hoax, traced to a colleague of Ayala’s husband who lost it in a workplace accident. Ayala was sentenced to nine years in prison for the scam. At the beginning of the film we are told: “Some of the events depicted in this film actually happened. Some did not.”

DOES THE FILM FLIP THE FACTS?

I had not read this synopsis: “When Jessica Lipki discovers a severed human finger in her bowl of chili, she recognizes an opportunity to seize control of her stagnating life. Jess blackmails the regionally-beloved fast food chain for $100,000 in return for Jessica and her blissfully ignorant husband Ron (Sean Astin) remaining quiet about the incident.”

When I entered the theater—abandoning the 98^th Oscar ceremony “live” for the first time since 1955–I had been too busy working as press at SXSW to read extensively about the film beyond its theme-revealing title. I realized it had its original inspiration based on the Wendy’s true incident, but I honestly did not remember what the outcome of the original chili finger discovery had been. Did the original diner who perpetrated fraud do prison time? Did not know. Am glad I did not know, going in, who was guilty of what—or if Judy Greer’s character was an innocent accused of something she would never do.

CAST

Writer/Director Steven Helstad of “Chili Finger” at SXSW. (Photo by Megan bailey).

I recognized going in, however, that this cast would be dynamite, and they were. (Questions about how they came to be hired abound.) Madeline Wise as Blake Junior and Paul Stanko as Trevor Stempor, two of the newbies, were also spot-on in their roles. The two Sarahs (Sarah Herrman as the pregnant girlfriend of Trevor and Sara Sevigny as Jackie, the server) were also good. Having a good script and good actors: a good start. Add to that the storyboarding, especially of the character Dave Pendleton (Bryan Cranston), and Cinematography by Cristina Dunlap, editing by Todd Zelin, sound design by Peter Bawiec and original music from Dan Deacon: Voila! Chili Finger: Fantastic Film.

Q&A

Paul/Trevor during the “Chili Finger” Q&A.

Paul Stanko told us, in the Q&A following the screening what it was like acting with John Goodman and Bryan Cranston. He said he was “so intimidated.” Paul added, “They were all wonderful people. They were all there to support. They elevated my performance. All I had to do was be there and say my lines.” He described the experience as “surreal” and “amazing.”

The shooting site, Champaign, Illinois, in June can be very hot and muggy. (No shock there. I live in Illinois half the year and grew up in Iowa.) Sara Herrman, who had to wear a pregnant belly on the first day of shooting, inside a trailer that was stiflingly hot and swampy, on a day when rain was pouring down, repeated her words from that first day of shooting [in a very small voice]: “It’s just so hot.”

Writer Stephen Helstad said he wrote the script during the pandemic; there were numerous drafts. What set the script above other scripts were the twists that come, one after another, as we invest in Judy Greer’s character of Jessica Lipki.

By the end of the film I began to wonder if Jessica would be able to live with herself—and with her husband Ron—after everything that has happened. Like Amy Madigan’s Oscar-winning character in “Weapons,” I almost feel as though there should be a follow-up film that focuses on how Jessica’s life plays out from the final frame forward.

JESSICA

Edd Benda and Stephen Helstad of “Chili Finger” on March 15, 2026, at SXSW.

Jessica is a small-town divorce attorney who seems too good-hearted a person to be a con artist responsible for trying to scam anyone. At various plot points Jessica demonstrates that she is not a “bad” person. She literally saves Dave Pendleton’s (Bryan Cranston in a scenery-chewing turn) life. Is this woman a con artist or not? That question lingered, for me, for quite some time. (*Remember: I’ve been attending late-night films and, also, fairly early films. I passed out in the lobby of the Paramount last year on Opening Night,after covering 3 Red Carpets from 4 p,m, until 2 a.m. Bear with me. I also had great empathy for the poor beer bottling employee who lost the finger in opening scenes after ripping my right thumbnail off at the Austin airport—an “avulsion”— in a bizzare luggage rack incident. These things only happen to me and made me the perfect audience for “Chili Finger.”)

Jessica demonstrates angst over the departure of her daughter for college (the dreaded “empty nest” that I avoided by having two children born 19 years apart. Family motto: “Every 20 years, whether you need to or not.”) It becomes clear that husband Ron is much more enamored of fast food at the local café than Jessica is. There may well be more cracks in the relationship as other truths surface. Ron is “in” to WWII and dancing the polka. Jessica seems less thrilled about these mid-life couple activities. There are musings about the supposed “joy(s)” of having children. Since the U.S. birth rate is at an all-time low (and most births occurring are to women over 30) that statistic percolated in the back of my brain (and also in the sub-text of the dialogue.)

AFFORDABILITY

Director Edd Benda of “Chili Finger” at SXSW 2026. (Photo by Ben Winchell).

The constant refrain of finances being tight comes to the surface over and over for all concerned. I couldn’t help but wonder if $400 to fly to visit their daughter in Philadelphia was enough. (Not right now, certainly). I wanted to ask what Ron was doing at “the mill.” Whatever it was, the smell lingers on the workers’ hands long after they leave work. Did he also work at the beer bottling plant? I noticed that Jessica is carrying an old-fashioned paper boarding pass at one point and thought, “Well, THOSE are on the way out!” (Because they are.)

GUILTY OR INNOCENT

Once again, I was grateful, going in, l that I didn’t know whether Jessica was guilty of being a con artist or not for a long time. Do yourselves a favor and don’t read the IMDB snippet before watching the film. How much more interesting the film becomes when you, as an audience member, are trying to judge whether a woman who seems as basically decent as Jessica could have tried to perpetrate fraud. Did she or didn’t she?

Edd Benda, Director of “Chili Finger”.

TRUTHS

Two truths that were underscored by this film, for me: 1) Some people are much better liars than others. (2) The “affordability” crisis that the majority of Americans are feeling right now is real. Since American voters were conned by a master con-man we now find ourselves facing an affordability crisis not unlike the one we faced during President Carter’s years in office.

To quote A.I.: “During Jimmy Carter’s presidency (1977–1981), gas prices in the U.S. more than doubled, surging from roughly 61 cents to over $1.25 per gallon by 1980. Triggered by the 1979 Iranian Revolution and subsequent oil supply shocks, consumers faced severe shortages, gas lines, and high inflation, resulting in a “crisis of confidence.”

Does any of that sound familiar? Probably not, if you are young. Trust me. It was brutal. A teacher of junior high schoolers at the time, the administration screwed our thermostats down to 60 degrees to save money. In Illinois. In winter. I was sick with strep throat for months. Having lived that gas shortage of 46 years ago, I sent the spouse to fill up my Prius tank here in Austin immediately. I remember what came next. (*Side note: one of my friends, Mary Beth Koob, was an Iranian embassy hostage freed by Carter after being held prisoner for 444 days. Ronald Reagan took all credit for Carter’s diplomacy in getting the hostages out alive.)

CONCLUSION

Believe me when I say that “Chili Finger” is a wonderful indie film that shows great promise. I’m looking forward to future films from these two filmmakers. As a former business owner in Bettendorf, Iowa (home to Scott Beck and Bryan Woods of “A Quiet Place” fame) let me heartily recommend that fans check out this film.

To the young filmmakers, if you’re still in town after “Chili Finger” finishes screening, I’d love to ask you some additional questions before you depart [or send them to you via e-mail.] Drop me a line. I’m here through May 15 (when Bruno Mars beckons at Soldier Field, Chicago.) I did not want to distract you tonight from fully enjoying a night of Triumph among True fans who turned out on Oscar night (3/15/2026).

Side-note: I did get a chance to (a) meet Edd’s Uncle (b) congratulate Director Edd Benda on “Chili Finger” (c) Tell Edd he resembled Seann William Scott of 1999’s “American Pie” vintage, which will date me even further(d)Talk to Hannah Shealy about her TV pilot “Birth Is for P*ssies.” (Excuse the rambling; repeated 3 a.m. write-ups are taking their toll.)

I hope that the filmmakers find this semi-review on my blog and drop me a line so I am able to send some additional questions their way and find out about their upcoming projects. Stay tuned for further developments (if any). Keep checking www.TheMovieBlog.com for a more “professional” approach to reviewing whenever I/we get around to it.

I also hope they fix the elevator in the parking garage, but that’s a very faint hope.

“Perfect” Screens in Visions Section at SXSW Film Festival, 2026.

By Connie Wilson

On March 15, 2026

In Movies, News, Pop Culture, Reviews, Texas

“Perfect” is a 94-minute film directed by British director Millicent Hailes which had its World Premiere on March 14th in the Visions section of the SXSW film festival. “Perfect” attempts to break new cinematic ground by using sound in a most unconventional way, Someone decided that repetitive dialogue—super-imposing the same line over the dialogue being spoken at that moment in a sort of echo chamber effect— was a good idea.

It was not.

It came across as auditory assault. The dialogue (scripted by Kendra Miller and Hailes), when finally deciphered, was banal. “You’re going to be all right” was the oft repeated sentiment. That line, based on the plot events, seems inaccurate.

By film’s end the lead character (Ashley Moore as Kai) is far from “okay.”

She has lost at love more than once and is burning her car—the car in which she had been living. Her romance with a mysterious pregnant woman ( Julia Fox of“Uncut Gems” who also executive produced) has crashed and burned. Kai is stranded in the middle of nowhere

SYNOPSIS

Julie Fox as Mallory in “Perfect” at SXSW film festival Visions section on March 14, 2026.

The plot: “In a world devastated by a contaminated water supply, Kai, a lost soul, finds herself living out of her car after a bad breakup. Each day is a struggle until fate leads her to a hidden utopian lake where the water is pure and life flourishes.” A ragtag group of outsiders — Sonny (Lio Mehiel), Pinksy (Ryder McLaughlin), Nik (Micaela Wittman), Cal (Creed Bratton), and Emil (Sergio Lane) — have carved out a fragile community there. At the lake, Kai meets Mallory, a wealthy and mysterious pregnant woman running from her past. They fall into a passionate romance, but as Kai becomes more attached, she begins to see the cracks in Mallory’s story.

THE GOOD

Director Millicent Hailes of “Perfect” at SXSW Visions screening on March 14, 2026.

Moore and Fox are striking onscreen, and their fragmented love scenes are filmed with an eye for beauty. Director of Photography Ksusha Genenfeld makes the most of their chemistry — there’s plenty of skin, and film editor Amber Bansak has composed a romantic pastiche of sensual erotic images. Viewers here for the sex scenes will be pleased. Beyond that, the plot doesn’t offer much. It’s surprising to hear lines like “fucking faggot” and “Is this giving gay?” used casually, tossed off nonchalantly by a queer director who founded a magazine (yves 2c) for under-represented genders.

BACKGROUND

Director Hailes studied fashion in London and has a degree in photography. The film has been picked up by Visit. Hailes said, “We’re absolutely thrilled to be partnering with Visit Films… we’re honored to join their slate and look forward to bringing the film to audiences worldwide.” Visit’s president, Ryan Kampe, added: “Perfect is the perfect film for our times… a smart and provocative film that weaves together a potential apocalyptic future with the needs and desires of the human body.”

THE “MORAL”

Ashley Moore as Kai in “Perfect” at SXSW on March 14, 2026.

If there’s a message, it’s obscured beneath the sound effects — including, near the end, a sped‑up voice that sounds like a cartoon character. The score by Wynne Bennett, however, is genuinely good and elevates the romantic scenes with lyrics like, “I was on the edge of something greater than before.”

CONCLUSION

Sexy, stylish, but saddled with an almost unlistenable sound design, the apocalyptic water‑crisis backdrop is oddly minimized, and the protagonist’s journey rarely makes much sense. Viewers who want more than the beautifully photographed sex scenes, including coherent storytelling or a satisfying ending, will need to look elsewhere.

Vince Gilligan & Crew Interviewed at SXSW on March 14th, 2026

By Connie Wilson

On March 15, 2026

In Interviews, Pop Culture, Television, Texas

Vince Gilligan and crew at SXSW panel onAlbuquerque Aftermath: From Breaking Bad to Pluribus with Rhea Seehorn, Vince Gilligan, and Key Creatives.(Photo by Paul Thanasack).

Gilligan, creator of “Breaking Bad,””Better Call Saul” and, now, “Pluribus” came to SXSW on Saturday, March 14^th,with Rhea Seehorn (Pluribus’ Carol and Better Call Saul’s Kim) as well as composer Dave Porter, costume designer Jennifer Bryan, and producer Trina Siopy. The conversation explored the collaborative process, Albequerque’s role as the anchor city, and the close creative partnerships nurtured over more than a decade.

MEANING OF PLURIBUS

A lot of the questions seemed to revolve around, “What is Pluribus about?” It seems to be about an alien virus that threatens to take over the world as we knew it. Everyone is happy, but the inhabitants seem to almost have become as alike as drones in a bee hive…worker bees all. Happy little fellows. Everything is wonderful. Or is it? Carol seems to want to “save” the human race with all of its imperfections. Gilligan mentioned he had helped write that story when he writing for “The X-Files” (“The second best jjob I ever had.”)

GILLIGAN’S EXPLANATION of “PLURIBUS”

Vince Gilligan and Rhea Seehorn at SXSW 2026.

Or is Pluribus about something else? One questioner threw out the idea that the entire series is a metaphor for grief and depression. The answer we got on Saturday, March 14^thfrom Gilligan, himself, referenced a conversation he had many years prior with Director Michael Mann.

Michael Mann asked Gilligan (who was then writing for “The X-Files”): ‘What are we really trying to say here? What’s the message? What’s the theme? What’s the this? What’s that? And he looked at me and I will never forget, he said, ‘We have to tell that story. We have to tell a story about characters and the things they do. They face interesting obstacles, unique obstacles, and the way they surmount them or don’t. That’s what we’re doing here. There’s nothing much more to it than that…It is for other people to tell us sometimes what our shows and movies are about.’”

RHEA’S RESPONSE

The Question: “How long did it take for you to understand what Pluribus was all about, Rhea?” brought this answer, “I’m still trying to figure it out. Here’s the thing. It’s really wonderful that I’m playing a character that doesn’t understand what’s going on. Therefore, I don’t have to. I don’t know.” Seehorn went on to say, “It’s about human nature, but it’s also about what it means to be human and redefining what the pursuit of happiness is. That’s the end-all and be-all. How do you define success and how do you define love and relationships?” After some praise of co-star Carolina Weaver’s acting as character (Zosia) Rhea added, “I don’t know. The answer is, I don’t know. I don’t know what the show is about, and I love it.”

She reminisced about all the press she did for “Breaking Bad’ and added, laughing, “What if it means, for God’s sake, just be more Sphinx-like and that I have to shut up! There’s a lot of other people figuring out what it means.”

TRUST

Vince Gilligan at SXSW. (Photo by Paul Thanasack.)

Seehorn added, “But there’s this thing that Vince does where he trusts the audience. I have to say, it also involves the key trust of the performers. And it isn’t that I don’t take direction. We try it a million different ways and I very much enjoy that process, but I trust his ideas. And one of the great gifts he’s given me is that he trusts mine. But when we trust the audience, he alleviates or rids me of the onus to make sure the audience knows exactly what I’m thinking. I just have to think the thoughts and make sure that I’m being true to the character. But I don’t have to telegraph these things, and it really frees me up to do a much more complex and nuanced performance, which a performer is not always allowed to do.”

RHEA ON “PLURIBUS’” POPULARITY:

“Of course we were all trying to make the best show we could, and it was a show that I would be a fan of and it was so awesomely weird. I have not been able to guess where I was going to go…It’s like, hopefully, obviously, we find an audience that gets it, but is it this very niche thing? Is this going to be a very unique sort of cultish thing? The broad conversation and broad audience reception blew me away. It isn’t that I didn’t expect this, but I am blown away by it really touching some kind of nerve in people to want to really talk about it… the popularity of it and its critical reception. For critics and fans to like the same show. You don’t always win that lottery and that’s been amazing.”’

ONE WOMAN SHOW?

Interviewer, Vince Gilligan, Rhea Seehorn at SXSW. (Photo by Paul Thanasack.)

Much of the show centers on Seehorn, sometimes solely on her, by herself. Rhea answered, “I only got just one at a time, which is always the way we do it, so it wasn’t like I saw the breadth of the whole thing and understood, ‘Oh, I’ll be doing an episode with almost no dialogue. Oh, I’ll be doing episodes almost by myself.” She added, “I’m not as excited about that, because, for me, it’s the same work as if there was dialogue. I’m still feeling out what is happening in the story. What’s the character thinking?..And there are days where I would read something that’s tomorrow’s and think, ‘Oh, today’s the day they find out that I am not very good or that I was not very good.”

SOUND & MUSIC

(From composer Dave Porter)

“All those years that we’ve been together, this was a mandate to be different and to make this show distinct from the others that we’ve done. So, to break all those rules, to take our creative process and really re-analyze al the lessons we learned, the ways that we use music. Coming out the other side gave us a freedom to do exactly that and to take all of our favorite lessons and really explore new territory…I think the most important role for the score is to be an assistant in storytelling. Whatever I can do, I’ll do, which includes making things more powerful and more emotional, but, at the same time, open to interpretation as much as possible to lead. To open those doors for everyone to have their own viewpoints is a gift that you don’t get to work on for so many shows.”

Dave Porter on the music: “You can feel the human touch. You can feel that. There’s no comparison between something that a computer can do or something sound-wise or performance wise…The orchestra is another thing we had never done before. So it was a learning experience for us to work on that. And part of that is mentioned is that before you go and spend large sums of money on recording, you do demo versions, which is a new experience for Vince…Everybody took a leap of faith with me to know that the power of orchestra, especially on a show like this, is going to be value added many times over and be progress. And for anyone who hasn’t had the experience going to the symphony or standing in front of an orchestra as composer and people playing the music you wrote. It is inspiring and a blessing that we get to do that.”

Downtown Austin during SXSW 2026.

Costume designer Jennifer Bryan went on at great lengths about how she came up with the clothes for the show (brown was the color) and talked at great length about the yellow jacket and ordering the yellow leather pelts from France and having the jacket made. I watch the show. I never noticed the yellow jacket, so make what you will of her remarks. For me, the rather lengthy analysis of “the Albuquerque jacket look” versus whatever look the show currently has was much like a novelist who inserts massive amounts of description when what you really want is dialogue and action. Essentially, the message seemed to be that the clothing is essentially for protection from the elements and the costume designer also had to give some thought to the specific action in a scene, such as when Carol has to lift Helen’s corpse into the car.

WHY ALBUQUERQUE AGAIN?

The answer to this question essentially came down to the clouds, the collaborative crew, and the expense.

CAROL’S LIKABILITY

The question was asked, “What’s the secret to have an audience root for an unlikable character?” Seehorn answered this with a feminist slant: “The term likable I think has gotten misused or overused concerning female characters, because how people have been defining what’s likable in a woman is very, very restrictive. I think it’s more important that a character be accessible in some way, especially if I am the conduit to take the audience’s hand and take them down this rabbit hole. And for me, behaving truthfully and honestly in a moment when people would say, ‘Wow! She’s really not polite when they (the aliens) bring her things.’ They killed my wife. My career is gone. I might die alone watching Golden Girls. I’m sorry I wasn’t chirpy…Also, I’m going to suppress my anger until eczema comes out all over my body? I very much enjoyed exploring that Carol’s anger over her wife was her entire way of even behaving halfway normal out in the world…She’s allowed to display the full spectrum of human behavior and now she’s being asked to suppress that? It was really fun trying to figure out what are her other tools. She’s just grasping at straws. I find her complex and difficult and challenging, but I find her honest and truthful and real..”

CAROL AND GRIEF

Downtown Austin during SXSW 2026.

Seehorn further commented on Carol’s loss of her wife and the grief and depression she felt. “No, I’ve never had an alien virus take over the planet. But as you do, as actors, what is something I can draw from? What kind of tool do you lose in those moments.? And, for any of us and most of us this happens through grief. Terrible grief. Getting up off the floor the next morning is heroic by itself. And so I just felt like, really, all bets are off. She’s allowed to be as upset and angry as anybody would be. I hope that ultimately that makes her accessible and watchable instead of likable….She’s holding nothing back.”

“Summer of ’94” Screens at SXSW Film Festival on March 14, 2026

By Connie Wilson

On March 15, 2026

In Reviews, Sports

“Summer of ’94” charts the rise of soccer in the United States prior to the World Cup of 1994.

This outstanding 99-minute documentary about the origins of U.S. soccer had its World Premiere on March 14^th at the Rollins Center as part of SXSW 2026. The documentary “reveals the wild rise of the U.S. Men’s National Team on the road to the 1994 World Cup.” One of the team members put it this way, “It was like a soccer version of Survivor.”

ORIGINS

The national soccer team in 1990 functioned like a club team without a league in which to play. Soundly beaten by Czechoslovakia in 1990 by a score of five to zero, something had to be done to prevent a national embarrassment. The United States was to host the 1994 World Cup. Putting it diplomatically, the U.S. performance on the field was underwhelming. As one of the players said, “What if we fuck up soccer forever?”

HISTORY

No host nation had ever failed to advance through the first round, but the U.S. seemed to be a token competitor at best. Something had to be done. These pioneers of soccer—all now in the soccer Hall of Fame in the U.S and all interviewed in the film.— were the pioneers who turned soccer into the popular sport it is today.

Director Chad Walker of “Summer of ’94” documentary at SXSW 2026.

When the film opens, with footage of Ronald Reagan and Dan Rather putting soccer, as a sport, in perspective, it was about as popular as badminton or bowling. Coach Bora Milutinovic, a native of Yugoslavia who had coached the Mexican National team to sixth place in 1986 and in ninety days took Costa Rica into the second round in 1990 was hired to form a cohesive team from scratch. Mission Viejo, California. was selected as the training camp, with full-time residency for the players. The word went out. If you build it, they will come applies to this attempt to forge a national team out of raw talent, one that could be a worthy competitor at the World Cup in 1994.

MISSION VIEJO

When Bora came in, the soccer fields in Mission Viejo weren’t ready. The changing room was located across a busy highway next to a Wienerschnitzel. No one seemed to know what was going on, least of all the visionary coach.

His goal was to cut 40 players down to 22 players at the camp located one hour south of Los Angeles. Since the facility was far from ready, at first the players were told to run on the beach. This became a repetitive activity which one team member described as “Groundhog day every single day.” Later, he would come to realize that the constant running was “more about the mentality” than it was about fitness.

United States World Cup Team Coach Bora Milutinovic today.

Although Bora spoke five languages, he chose to use only Spanish, predominantly, during training, which led to his assigning one of the bilingual players to translate for him to the others. Although also Bora spoke German, he refused to use it, because Nazis had swept into his home town and murdered his parents during WWII. He vowed never to speak German again and refused to discuss those war years on camera.

But Bora Milutinovic knew about team building and bonding and went on, later, to coach Nigeria and China, ending a career of having coached five different World Cup teams. One player summed up the team’s initial reaction to the coach by saying, “Who is this Mad Scientist who is coaching us?” But, later, the verdict is “I’ve learned never to question Bora.”

TRAINING

Coach Bora Milutinovic in 1990.

Milutinovic—who resembled a 70s era Jon Peters clone in the 1990s—seemed to want the team members to “find comfort in being uncomfortable.” With three players on the national roster from Kearny, New Jersey, (a town of 35,000 that was an early hotbed of soccer enthusiasm) players on the team tell their stories. The audience gets to appreciate how soccer in the United States grew exponentially over the past 36 years.

Coach Bora believed in playing against the best players in the world in order to improve, so the U.S. team played matches all across the world, including the Kremlin, the Cayman Islands, Jamaica, El Salvador, Japan, China, South Korea and Saudi Arabia. As one player remembers of the Saudi, Arabia experience, “Thousands of people who not only want you to fail, but want you to fail miserably.”

PROGRESS

Director of “Summer of ’94” Dave LaMattina.

In one memorable interview Coach Bora says, “We’re not doing well, but we’re going to be good.” He deals empathetically with the ACL/meniscus tear of Marcella Balboa, whose rehabilitation inspires the team. Coach refuses to cut him, despite his serious injury, but he also must send four players home to trim the team to the 22 players allowed. The players hand England a loss in 1993—the first time since 1950. That gives them confidence after the losing years and the team now draws its three competitors to advance to the second round: the pairings for the World Cup.

For the U.S., the pairings for the World Cup are Switzerland, Romania and Colombia. Pele had picked Colombia to win the World Cup that year. The unexpected U.S. win on June 22, 1994 over Columbia, is said to be “One of the biggest sports upset in World Cup history. Period.”

OPENING OF 1994 WORLD CUP

The opening of the World Cup in 1994 took place in Chicago at Soldier Field. Wikipedia tells us that, “It was hosted by the United States and took place from June 17 to July 17, 1994, at nine venues across the country. The United States was chosen as the host by FIFA on July 4, 1988.

Despite soccer’s relative lack of popularity in the host nation, the tournament was the most financially successful in World Cup history. It broke tournament records with overall attendance of 3,587,538 and an average of 68,991 per game,^[^4] figures that stand unsurpassed as of 2022,^[^5] despite the expansion of the competition from 24 to 32 teams starting with the 1998 World Cup.

ON THE EVE OF THE WORLD CUP

1994 World Cup members who are featured in this documentary include Alexi Lalas, Cobi Jones, Tony Meola, Jeff Agoos, Marcelo Bilbao, Paul Caliguiri, Thomas Dooley, and Cocah Bora Milutinovic.

Also happening on June 17^,th,1994 was the O.J. car chase. O.J. Simpson led police on a dramatic, low-speed pursuit in a white Ford Bronco across Southern California freeways for 90 full minutes.

The juxtaposition of O.J.’s chase with the opening of the World Cup meant that many of the players were also glued to their TV sets and did not get a good night’s sleep.

FINALE

The team went on to hand Colombia a loss (June 22, 1994) which “definitely sent a message about soccer in North America.” Although the ultimate winner of the World Cup that year was Brazil, notice had been served that soccer was a fast-growing sport in the United States of America. The United States could be a contender.

CONCLUSION

Alexi Lalas and teammates in “Summer of ’94.”

When I saw that Brian Grazer and Ron Howard executive produced this fast-paced upbeat documentary, directed by Dave LaMattina and Chad Walker, I knew it would be worth the watch; it definitely was. Just learning that the red-headed curly-haired star Alexi Lalas from Detroit went on to make six albums and tour with Hootie and the Blowfish was enough of a reason to enjoy this uplifting hour and a half.

Original music is by Ryan “Bullet” Shields, but let’s not under-estimate the effect of Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band. Cinematography by John Rutland, Ronan Killeen, Dan Kerrigan and Jonathon Narducci was great and kudos to editor Billy McMillin.

If you are at SXSW and missed it on March 14^th, it shows again on March 15 at the Alamo Lamar 6 at 2:30 and again at 9 p.m. at the AFS Cinema on March 18^th. Soccer fans, in particular, but anyone who enjoys a riveting story, should check this one out. You won’t be disappointed!

“Drag” Mixes Black Humor with Horror in World Premiere at SXSW, 2026

By Connie Wilson

On March 14, 2026

In Movies, Pop Culture, Reviews, Texas

The cast of “Drag” at its World Premiere on March 13, 2026 at SXSW.

‘Drag,” scripted and directed by Raviv Ullman and Greg Yagolnitz, made its World Premiere as a Midnight entry at SXSW on March 13, 2026, with stars Lizzy Caplan (“Masters of Sex,” 2013-2016), John Stamos and Lucy DeVito onstage after the screening. Lucy DeVito, asked why the film succeeded, correctly analyzed the appeal: “It’s in the writing. It’s on the page.”

Danny DeVito at SXSW on March 13, 2026.

The DeVito family was there in force, with father Danny joining son Jake and daughter Lucy, its co-star, onstage. The plot involves “two sisters with a contentious relationship who decide to rob a rural home in upstate New York. The simple robbery turns into a nightmare when one of them throws out her back and becomes immobilized on the second floor. The night spirals out of control as they embark on a painful journey to make it out before the homeowner returns.”

Danny DeVito spoke to his desire to support new talent, saying, “We’ve always tried to support new filmmakers with passion. These guys are the best.” His first reaction to reading the script was “Holy shitballs.” He added, “The nail got me.”

GENESIS

Writer/Directors Raviv Ullman and Greg Yagolnitz of “Drag” at SXSW.

The writer/directors, Raviv Ullman and Greg Yagolnitz shared, during the Q&A following the screening that the idea of a would-be robber being immobilized by back pain sprang from their own back ailments. They also admitted that having television pilots that were stalled in development hell gave them time to think about writing, preparing and shooting a low-budget indie film. So, they did. The film succeeded where many others have failed.

LIZZY CAPLAN

Lizzy Caplan was asked about how she prepared to believably portray a woman with severe back pain, who is dragged around inside a serial killer’s mansion for hours. Her answer? “Show up and pretend your back hurts.” She answered the question straightforwardly, but even the answer was funny.

Caplan is a veteran actress (73 roles) with comedic and horror chops. I enjoyed Caplan in “Masters of Sex” for 46 episodes from 2013-2016. She also appeared in 2018’s “Cloverfield.”

“Drag” was shot in Albany in the winter in 21 days but, as co-star Lucy Devito said, “The whole thing should have been a pain in the ass, but every moment was a delight. Playing Lizzie’s sister was the best Everyone believed in the film.”

SOUND

Lucy DeVito, co-star of “Drag.”

The sound design (Patrick Stump) was great at helping build tension. Make-up, special effects and stunts—all story-boarded—worked well. This low budget indie film more than held its own in the laughs department. The acting by Lizzy Caplan and Lucy DeVito was top-notch. Ben Goodman, the Director of Photography, did a creative job. The physical side of staging all the mayhem was choreographed, storyboarded and successful.

“Drag” entertained and amused while also introducing a whole new side of John Stamos to the world, figuratively and literally. He plays a psychotic serial killer who fancies himself a pathological Picasso. I could see him moving in that direction with snake-like smarminess, giving audiences another “American Psycho.”

CONCLUSION

As the only working critic who, somehow, managed to rip her right thumbnail off at the Austin airport while merely getting a luggage cart ( an “avulsion”) and a one-time active voting member of HWA, the movie amused me mightily. I think it will amuse you, as well. Plus, the ending is not predictable, which audiences appreciate.

“Margo’s Got Money Troubles” Opens SXSW 2026 on March 12th, 2026

By Connie Wilson

On March 13, 2026

In Pop Culture, Reviews, Television, Texas

“Margo’s Got Money Troubles” opened the SXSW Film Festival at the Paramount Theater on Thursday, March 12th. We were treated to three episodes of the new series and the remarks of most of the principal cast members after they screened. Showrunner David E. Kelley, husband of Michelle Pfeiffer and originator of so many hit television series, came onstage and insisted that the woman who wrote the book on which the characters were based, Rufi Thorpe, stand up in the audience and take a bow. Writers are often treated as prophets without honor in their own land, so that was refreshing. Of course, Kelley is a writer, so he knows the often seen lack-of-attribution-for-the-creator issue firsthand.

SYNOPSIS

The synopsis for the series, which starts on Apple on April 15^th says: “Margo’s Got Money Troubles” is a bold, heart-warming and comedic family drama following recent college dropout and aspiring writer, Margo (Elle Fanning), the daughter of an ex-Hooter’s waitress Shayanne (Michelle Pfeiffer) and an ex-pro wrestler, Jinx, with drug abuse issues, played by Nick Offerman. Margo is forced to make her way forward with a new baby, a mounting pile of bills, and a dwindling amount of ways to pay them.”

The opening set-up features Margo being groomed by her Literature instructor at Fullerton College. According to Professor Gable, who impregnates the young Margo and then retreats to his wife and two children, Margo is practically the next Shakespeare. That works. Margo is soon with child.

First, Professor Gable seems to suggest that Margo get rid of the child and that she could well be the next Rufi Thorpe (the author who wrote the 2024 best selling novel on which the characters are based.) He mentions Harvard for Margo rather than Fullerton. The young, impressionable Margo falls victim to one of the oldest plays in the book.

PREGNANCY

Showrunner David E. Kelly after the Opening Night showing of “Margo’s Got Money Troubles” at SXSW 2026 on March 12, 2026.

There is no mention of why Margo isn’t on the pill or why condoms don’t enter the picture. That would definitely have stopped this plot at inception. Or conception.

Margo, for reasons that she can’t fully articulate, decides that she wants to keep this child, repeating the pattern of single motherhood that her own mother lived. Mom is not happy about it. At one point, following a neat film segue from Margo screaming in a parking lot (while Mom Michelle Pfeiffer screams inside the car) we move directly to screaming in labor and Bodhi Millet is born. [Cinematographers Carl Herse and Tari Segal get props for the neat juxtaposition.]

As the mother of two, I appreciated the reality of motherhood being depicted with all of the less-than-glamorous spit-up, feces, breast milk and paraphernalia. This version of motherhood reminded me of Marielle Heller’s film “Nightbitch” starring Amy Adams, which also told it like it is—(except for the part about turning into a dog.)

CAST & DIRECTOR

Elle Fanning and Michelle Pfeiffer (Margo & Shayanne) after the showing of “Margo’s Got Money Troubles” at SXSW on Opening Night (March 12, 2026.)

Present this night was Director Dearbhla Walsh, who has won an IFTA award for ‘Fargo” and directed episodes of “The Handmaid’s Tale.” Kate Herron also directs and was onstage. The writing and directing take an excellent script by Kelley and, from there, the cast is an All Star ensemble, with Elle Fanning (a producer along with her sister Dakota) giving a terrific performance in the first three episodes we were shown. The others in the cast include Greg Kinnear as Kenny, Marcia Gay Harden, Nicole Kidman (who did not appear in episodes one through three) and those already mentioned.

CONCLUSION

This one is going on my ‘must see” list. It appears that Dad (Nick Offerman–who we were told did his own wrestling stunts) is going to stay on as Margo’s roommate. Margo is going to start making some quick money on OnlyFans, since she is unemployed. Mom Shayanne (Michelle Pfeiffer)–who is really not cut out to be the Grandmother who babysits— is engaged to uber Christian Kenny (Greg Kinnear) and the cosplaying roommate has not jumped ship, but is going to continue to be a shoulder for Margo to cry on.

Irish director Dearbhla Walsh addresses the crowd from the stage of the Paramount Theater after the showing of “Margo’s Got Money Troubles” on Opening Night of SXSW 2026 March12, 2026.

I look forward to the mother/daughter dynamic, which promises to be a big part of the story.As Director Dearbhla Walsh (in the brightly colored coat) said in her Irish accent, “If it’s not one thing, it’s your mother.”

The series is billed as being about bravery, courage, optimism, the lengths we will go to for our loved ones and controlling your own destiny in life. As someone with two children (born 19 years apart) who has lived parts of this story, I heartily recommend checking this one out when it premieres April 15th.

San Antonio, Texas, on February 28th, 2026

By Connie Wilson

On March 2, 2026

In Editorial, Essays on Politics: Best Political Essays & Ideology, Movies, Of Local (Quad Cities') Interest, Politics, Pop Culture, Texas

Elise Wilson on Feb. 28, 2026.

On Saturday, February 28th, 2026, we journeyed to San Antonio to watch granddaughter Elise play in a volleyball tournament. The tournament featured the CTX (Central Texas) team, not the school team, but the short snip of Elise playing with her Valor School team at the bottom of the page will give you an idea of what the past three years have meant for her as volleyball player/Captain of her school team (and for us as spectators and fans). We really enjoy seeing her play. I’m so lucky that volleyball was the game of choice, as my enthusiasm for soccer, hockey, et. al., is not nearly as high.

As senior year approaches, we will miss watching Elise do so well as a team member of two volleyball teams. She played very well again on Feb. 28, 2026. I’m sure she will benefit from everything she has learned about teamwork during these last three years. Another tournament in Reno beckons in May.

View from our Mariott AC hotel in downtown San Antonio.

San Antonio is about an hour’s drive away. The location of the tournament was quite a long way from the downtown Alamo tourist spots. After the last two games ended, (which Elise’s team won), we checked into a Mariott downtown with the name AC (which instantly made me think of Air Conditioning).

As my husband went to check us in, he left me in the car with the window open. I was sitting there minding my own business on this balmy night when a woman with a group of passers-by began telling me “Jesus loves you.” I responded, “Good.”

A few more of the group began “chatting” (if that is the right term) with me through the open window ( I am IN the car, waiting for the spouse to check in; the group of 10 is on the sidewalk). I was not in any way indicating that I wanted or needed a sermon right from the streets of San Antonio, but that is what I got.

After the religious talk ceased slightly, I suggested that the members of this random group vote in the March 3rd primary election (They seemed harmless, but later that night, in Austin, a gunman shot and killed 2 people on 6th Street and wounded 14 others, so...). James Talarico is squaring off against Jasmine Crockett to see who runs against a GOP opponent in November. The MAGA crowd is much more concerned about a male opponent than a Black female friend of Kamala Harris’s. Likely MAGA candidate will be incumbent John Cornyn, so we may be witnessing another Beto O’Rourke moment. Or not. Who knows?

Dining along the Riverwalk.

If Texas continues to attract voters from other states because of its beautiful winter weather and its reasonable cost of living, could it represent ALL Texans, including new ones from other states? [Assuming we have fair elections that aren’t rigged and that aren’t called off because of a power grab from the top.]

Maybe some day we could have a few Democrats in office other than just GOP Trump-friendly folk? Is it time to loosen the GOP stranglehold on this very red state? Maybe we could have a different governor than Abbott, who has been in a wheelchair for years from a long-ago accident when a tree fell on him while he was jogging.

Abbott brags about how he went to work every day with the sole purpose of lodging lawsuits against Barack Obama during Obama’s two terms. There seems to be a lot of anger that we elected a Black President who did a good job, tried to help the average citizen with a Healthcare program, and whom most people liked. A God-fearing happily married husband and father who represented us articulately abroad, but was castigated for not wearing a flag pin on a tan suit, as though that were grounds for impeachment. And please get rid of Texas’s Kenneth Paxton. His own party seems to have disowned him. His whistleblower staff outed him. His wife divorced him. (Etc., etc., etc.)

Riverwalk.

Maybe don’t vote for the guy who brags that he has voted with DJT “99% of the time.” (Cornyn) Maybe don’t vote for the guy who puts MAGA in the middle of his campaign slogan (Middleton) and is totally down with things going on in places like Minneapolis or Venezuela. (I did not say “Or Iran” because we can debate Iran’s nuclear ambitions and their stated national goals, but now we’ve martyred their 37-year leader at a time when the experts say there was no “imminent” danger of nuclear weapons being feasible. How popular will we be with Iran’s devoutly religious average citizen whose cities we are busy blowing up?)

It seems that the goal for the incumbent 47th President is to leave a huge mark on the U.S.—and an equally huge mark on the world scene— by throwing U.S. military weight around as bullies and barbarians at the gate, an image that we spent over 60 years trying to undo. ($20 million a day just to float around off the coast of Iran; the need for an excuse to cancel elections and distract from the Epstein files really loomed large.) Plus, there’s the tacky gold redecorating and the proposed Arch de Triomphe that would dwarf the Lincoln Monument (not to mention the embarrassing pleas for trophies and the Nobel Peace Prize and that FIFA monstrosity.)

DJT seems to be arbitrarily instigating decades of war to re-emerge, despite such world wars in Europe involving the U.S. being dormant (because of NATO and negotiating and diplomacy) since 1945 (Remember: Now it’s not the Secretary of DEFENSE; it’s the Secretary of WAR. And it’s not the Gulf of Mexico, either, if you want to rewrite history. Which seems like the goal here.) Putin is pleased that, as a nation, we are repeatedly shooting ourselves in the feet.

Tearing everything down was always the goal of the corrupt Steve Bannon (guilty of fraud) and his interview with Errol Morris should be required viewing if you love our democratic norms and the Constitution that DJT tramples on daily. [2018 Steve Bannon interview “American Dharma”] It’s the blueprint of Project 2025, which DJT always claimed he knew nothing about—until he began following it to the letter.

A good Christian candidate in the Democratic primary March 3rd for Senator is Democrat James Talarico, who is studying to be a Presbyterian minister. His grandfather was a Baptist minister. If Jesus/God loves us (me, anyway, according to the woman on the sidewalk) why did She let the current occupant of the White House wrest power back in 2024? [THAT was a bad move!] Why select a convicted malignant narcissist racist misogynistic felon with pedophile tendencies who has appointed only incompetents and enriches his friends and family while doing little for the rest of us? As another huckster (P.T. Barnum) once said, “There’s a sucker born every minute.”

DJT has appointed Cabinet members like Howard Lutnick, Secretary of Commerce. Lutnick was also linked to Jeffrey Epstein and admitted to having lunch with Epstein on his island (and he took his wife and kids!). And THAT guy is still around and showing up in international negotiations, sadly. Or RFK, Jr., who is bringing back measles and whooping cough and shutting down research on mrNA vaccines and childhood cancer. Or the woman who shot her dog (Ice Barbie, Krsti Noem, former Governor of South Dakota) who is now supervising the group (ICE) that is shooting citizens in places like Minneapolis. Or Crazy Eyes Kash Patel, widely considered an incompetent buffoon within the FBI/CIA ranks–with good reason. The list goes on and on.

Trump’s kakistocracy (look it up) doesn’t inspire confidence. Makes me less positive about the Deity’s judgment, but nevermind. Talarico believes in the separation of church and state and so do I. I also believe in the Constitution, which is being completely trampled on at the moment on so many levels.

I’m not cool with alienating all of our allies and bombing boats and countries, even if the countries, themselves, as Lindsey Graham has long believed, needed a good old-fashioned bombing. Cutting off the oil to Cuba and China sounds good until you realize that China, if it seizes Taiwan, will be controlling all of the high-end computer chips that our technology must have to function. (We have ignored this warning for years about Taiwan making 90% of the high end computer chips.) And what if the Chinese were to start in on our currency situation, as Michael Moore warned about in his 2009 documentary “Capitalism: A Love Story.” I suggest you watch it, too. (Too many documentaries; too little time.)

Downtown San Antonio from our hotel.

The bombing of Iran will not only keep MAGA from continuing to ask those pesky questions about DJT’s best friend, Jeffrey Epstein (or so he hopes) but will probably cause Trump to try to suspend mid-terms for a “national emergency” that he totally created, since there is data to support the position that Iran was already tottering on its damaged feet and incapable of using nukes against us (too far away). I’m okay with bombing the nuclear sites, but didn’t DJT tell us they were “completely obliterated” quite a while ago? Apparently not, if you need a distraction from the Epstein files.

And let’s not forget: anything to seize power and install friends and family in positions of leadership if you’re Donald John Trump. You want a pardon? Hit him up—for a fee. How about the money Melania pocketed for her quasi-fashion-documentary? (No corruption here—right? And I haven’t even mentioned the Qatar jet plane.) And now the GOP faithful, falling into line behind DJT and spending pots of money, has set their sights on buying up media (CBS, etc.) and distorting our ability to receive real news, just like in Russia, where Putin set about putting the media under his thumb to seize and keep power. (*Note to Fox fans: when lawsuits were underway recently, Fox News claimed to be an entertainment channel, not a news channel, as a defense.) We have already seen Stephen Colbert bite the dust and the Washington Post is dying in broad daylight, rather than in darkness. Can Jimmy Kimmel and Seth Meyer be far behind?

Soon we may have WWF wrestling on the lawn of the White House to celebrate the years since 1976 to 2026, our Semiquincentennial (250th birthday). Trump’s already ruined the Kennedy Center, so there goes any U.S. claim to culture [with more downgrades to come.] Remember when Pablo Casals played at the White House, November 13, 1961? No? Well, I do. Casals played in the East wing (now torn down by Trump without any permission and with LOTS of money pouring into Trump’s hands from “donors” to build—the wall?). I was 16 years old and JFK’s time in office was the epitome of class and culture for the Presidents I have known, which go back to Truman. And Donald James Trump represents the tackiest and least competent President—even eclipsing “W” of all time. (Which is going some!)

External audio
You may hear Pau Casals performing Antonín Dvorak‘s “Cello Concerto” with George Szell conducting the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra in 1937 Here

Under Trump, for culture, you have to content yourself with a third-rate country singer or Kid Rock or KISS–except that one of them recently died and KISS retired but got the Medal of Honor along with hate-monger Rush Limbaugh— so, yes, DJT is old, as well, and hardly “cutting edge” regarding culture in the U.S.

We may well have Vince McMahon of the WWE putting on a wrestling tournament on the White House lawn, instead. After all, Trump has already appointed McMahon’s wife, Linda, to be in charge of the SBA (Small Business Administration.) Linda McMahon: another member of the kakistocracy. (How very presidential of DJT.)

Netanyahu and Trump are a lot alike in continued clinging to power and favoritism (and pardons) for their cronies. Yes, the avowed Iranian post-Shah mantras were (1) Death to America (2) Death to Israel (3) Women must wear head garb and never have a say in government. So, not waiting until the already 86-year old died of natural causes probably looked like a good idea (especially since there were many more like him to come), but will the Iranian people agree? It isn’t as though this administration, which unleashed DOGE on us, surgically figured out a way, Maduro-like, to off the Ayatollah. Not at all–thanks to the influence of the Lindsey Grahams and the Benjamin Netanyahus, we are still bombing Iran.

Reza Pahlavi, the Shah of Iran’s oldest son, in 2025.

It appears that the Shah’s son—long gone from Iran after Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi’s overthrow in 1979—may be being groomed to return to Iran and rule. In a “60 Minutes” interview tonight the Shah’s son denied any desire to be a King or a President. He just wants to be a “transitional leader,”since 48 Iranian leaders were killed in the very recent bombing. Of course, the Shah’s now-grown son also admits to consulting with the White House and being in touch with Congress. Hmmmmm…

Meanwhile, San Antonio beckoned. Good idea to get away.

We had a lovely meal at an outdoor venue, enjoying the eighty-degree weather. It’s hard to believe that we are going to have weather this warm for the next two weeks with nothing lower than seventy degrees. And yet when I turn on my television, I see blizzards in the Northeast, temperatures in the single digits in places like Minneapolis (the “nice” neighbors in Minnesota who are standing up for their Constitutional rights while they still have them), and not-very-warm readings in cities and towns like Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, and Independence (Iowa). But the worst of the weather has been the massive amount of snow in places like Central Park (NYC) and Massachusetts and even the cold temperatures in Florida. (“But there’s no global warming,and all of the brakes on carbon emissions have been kicked to the curb.”)

So, enjoy volleyball while we all wait for the other shoe (or bomb) to drop. Here are my two lovely 17-year-old twin granddaughters, Elise (blonde, left) and Ava (brunette, right) eating ice cream on the Riverwalk.

Elise & Ava in San Antonio.

San Antonio Riverwalk.

Surrealist Paintings at the Dallas Art Museum on February 5, 2026

By Connie Wilson

On February 7, 2026

In Education, Of Local (Quad Cities') Interest, Pop Culture, Texas, travel

I just spent 3 days getting to and from Dallas (from Austin, Texas) in order to take in an exhibit of the Surrealist painters.

What I know (knew) about the Surrealists would literally rattle within a pea, but I do vaguely remember that Freud’s dream psycho-analysis methods. when they became popular and emerged upon the scene helped instigate it.

My friend Jackie (pictured on a cool scooter device) knew MUCH more than I do about the Surrealists and did fill me in on some famous names that I actually recognized, including Picasso, Lichtenstein, Magritte, Miro, Salvador Dali and many others. Jackie actually has a lovely Miro painting in her home that she pointed out I had complimented her on; I do remember this painting, but, no, I did not remember it was by Miro.

So color me ignorant, but willing to learn.

One of us read every word beneath every painting.

One of us read the words connected to the better-known artists and took some pictures of their work(s), which I am now going to share without much commentary, because, after all, what do I know about the Surrealists? (A: Very little.) Plus, I had no scooter and took every opportunity to seat myself on one of many benches and rest.

This failure to know enough about art is why I had to drop out of Davenport (Iowa’s) Art Museum docent program early. Did not know enough and got stuck taking a bus-ful of students from Dewitt High School on a tour through “the big room,” (when I had been told I was leading a tour through the Isabelle Bloom display, about which I had a great deal of knowledge, none of which the students on the bus nor their art teacher cared to hear.) It was one of the most embarrassing half hours of my life and seemed to go on forever, so, without further ado, here are some paintings from the display in Dallas. I feel confident that you will be able to pick out the Picasso, the Lichtenstein’s (sp?), the Magritte, etc., better than moi.

Enjoy!

Dr. William H. Foege, Eradicator of Smallpox, Dies at 89.

By Connie Wilson

On February 3, 2026

In Health/Medicine, News, Of Local (Quad Cities') Interest

William H. Foege, eradicator of smallpox, dead at 89.

William Herbert Foege^[1] (/ˈfeɪɡi/ FAY-ghee;^[2] March 12, 1936 – January 24, 2026) was an American physician and epidemiologist who is credited with “devising the global strategy that led to the eradication of smallpox in the late 1970s”.^[3] From May 1977 to 1983, Foege served as the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Foege also “played a central role” in efforts that greatly increased immunization rates in developing countries in the 1980s.

This 6’7″ son of a Lutheran minister in Decorah, Iowa, is credited with banishing one of the most feared diseases in modern history: smallpox. He became interested in working in New Guinea when he spent months in a body cast at the age of fifteen, and his technique of finding the infected patient and isolating him and inoculating those with whom the patient had interacted is credited with the successful campaign to eradicate the disease, as of the 1980s.

One of the methods Foege used to convince natives to come learn about the smallpox vaccination was to tell them that they could “come see the tallest man in the world.” Foege died at age 89 of congestive heart failure in Atlanta and expressed his opinion of Robert F.Kennedy Jr.’s stewardship of the Department of Health and Human Services saying, “Kennedy would be less hazardous if he decided to do cardiac surgery. Then he would kill people only one at a time rather than his current ability to kill by the thousands.”

“Seized”(But Not Silenced): First Amendment Rights in Marion, Kansas

By Connie Wilson

On February 1, 2026

In Movies, Reviews

A still from Seized by Sharon Liese, an official selection of the 2026 Sundance Film Festival. (Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Jackson Montemayor.)

The 94-minute documentary “Seized,” directed by Sharon Liese, which screened at Sundance, is a timely story out of Marion, Kansas (population 1,890). On August 11, 2023, local police chief Gideon Cody raided the offices of the Marion County Record, demanding all electronic devices be handed over. The police chief and several other officers also went to the home of the publishers of the paper, Eric Meyer and his 98-year-old mother Joan.

Eric Meyer is an exceptionally well-spoken former journalism professor and the publisher of the Marion County Record. Eric said, “I knew it was going to make news.” When his 98-year-old mother died the next day, Eric knew that “a really good story just became a great story.” Eric’s Mom says of the men in her house, “Do you understand how big a shit-storm you guys are in? Newspapers have got power, too.”

Do they, any more?

CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS

This story of the abuse of the 1^st amendment freedom of speech, the 4^th amendment and a possible conspiracy was cited recently in a similar case, where Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson’s home was raided and her laptops and mobile phones were seized. The Washington Post commented that Trump’s FBI had “stomped on a once-inviolable right,” making this documentary about a successful defense of Constitutional rights both a legal precedent and, hopefully, cause for hope in the ongoing fight against encroaching totalitarianism.

As the 98-year-old Joan Meyer said (on videotape) to the men in her home, “Nazi stuff. The worst I’ve ever seen. You’re nothing but a bunch of bullies.” As we all wait out the assault on Minneapolis, those observations ring truer than ever.

PUBLISHER ERIC MEYER

Seventy-two year old publisher Eric Meyer of the Marion,, Kansas, Marion County Record.

Eric Meyer already was on bad terms with Marion’s Mayor Mike Powers. That hostility comes through loud and clear, from the moment that the mayor showed no interest in meeting new reporter Finn Hartnett right through to the final sit-down interview.

Eric said, “I’m a stubborn son-of-a-bitch. If you back me into a corner, I’m not going to back down.” Finn Hartnett, the new kid on the block agrees, saying, “Eric is a stoic, proud man and he is very committed. He is committed to leading this kind of life as a pariah.” Finn jokingly tells Eric that “the highest award in journalism is getting shot by the CIA.” The joke falls flat in 2026 Minneapolis, where two citizens were recently shot by federal ICE troops while exercising their right(s) to protest peacefully.

RAMIFICATIONS

In Trump’s America, it has been made clear that the owners of large media firms should expect much friendlier regulatory treatment if they bring their journalists to heel. Paramount’s CBS News has already stifled a story on “Sixty Minutes” about the inhumane El Salvador prison where Trump is fond of sending illegals. CBS has canceled Stephen Colbert’s Late Night Show. ABC removed Jimmy Kimmel from the air briefly. (CBS: Channel Bull Shit was heard used during one late night program.)

Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos replaced that newspaper’s opinion columnists with right-leaning columnists and editors. Bezos’ Amazon (and Blue Origin) takes in billions of dollars in federal space and defense contracts. Bezos is concerned that Trump could cut off access if displeased. Amazon rolled out the movie “Melania” recently, a glossy $40 million dollar documentary focusing on our Russian-born First Lady. The film had ten times the budget of most documentaries and lists Melania Trump as Producer. It also is directed by Brett Ratner, recently charged with sexual harassment and pictured in a just-released Epstein document, seated next to Epstein and two unidentified women.

Bezos has not made any comment about the illegal raid on his own Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson‘s home, which may indicate who’s winning the war on journalism. Keep in mind that Eric Meyer’s raid on his newspaper took place in 2023; the court case and eventual victory dragged on for two years into 2025. Would Eric Meyer prevail, as he ultimately does, in today’s climate?

Much depends on the courts doing their job and not being bullied into doing the bidding of those in power. Recently, the FBI raided a Georgia election headquarters and seized voter records from 2020. Where are they now? Why aren’t the courts demanding their return? What is being done with those confidential voter records? Why was Tulsi Gabbard spotted loitering in the area when and where the records were seized? Is history going to be rewritten, as it has been in Russia? All valid questions when the Supreme Court under Chief Justice John Roberts skews conservative and seems to believe in the concept of giving the executive branch much more power than it previously possessed in our democracy.

Shark investor Mark Cuban just put out a warning to legacy media, noting that today’s youth are more likely to get their “news” from websites like YouTube or podcasts, many of which are often slanted. The traditional journalism of my day ( I was a Ferner/Hearst Journalism Scholarship recipient), which is the journalism of Eric Meyer, has given way to slanted news from a variety of sources. Add to that the streaming of movies undercutting theater audience attendance and those who report news or make movies may be in trouble (especially if they attempt to really investigate the truth of a situation involving powerful people.)

THE CAUSE OF THE MARION, KANSAS NEWSPAPER SEIZURE

You have to pay close attention to find out what, exactly, was the cause of the raid on Eric Meyer’s newspaper. There’s no doubt that Eric Meyer’s frosty relationship with the mayor played into the situation. There was, also, the expressed opinion from the mayor that newspaper journalists who are simply trying to do their job are “the enemy.” The Fourth Estate, as journalists have long been known, can ruffle feathers when they disclose truths that others would like kept private. Certainly the Epstein files are a good example.

In the case of Marion, Kansas, there was a feeling that Eric Meyer might write an editorial.
“There are forces at play that are diametrically opposed here. People are afraid to speak out because they are afraid that he will write an editorial and come after them if they speak out.”

Eric Meyer’s response was, “You don’t get into this business to be loved. It’s just part of the game. You feel a little isolated.” Nate, Eric’s son, noted, “They (the town fathers) picked the wrong people to go against. My grandmother was absolutely not going to back down.” Said Eric : “It’s a taboo in American democracy to raid a newsroom. We’re going to sue the living daylights out of this.”

ERIC’S STATEMENT

Sharon Liese, director of Seized, an official selection of the 2026 Sundance Film Festival. (Photo courtesy of Sundance Institute.)

“What Marion’s got to hope for, at this point, is that we were the place where someone attempted to abuse its power, and we were the place where it stopped.” He added, “It’s about a system that didn’t function right because someone felt it was time to be the bully.”

LAWSUITS

The raid on Eric’s newspaper apparently arose from a romance between Police Chief Gideon Cody and a local restaurant owner, Kari Newell. Kari Newell wanted to secure a liquor license for one of her establishments, but her former best friend Pam Maag (a Linda Tripp if there ever was one) sent a record of Newell’s drunk driving arrests to the newspaper and the police and alleged that local law enforcement was turning a blind eye. Kari Newell’s ex-husband also claimed to have told the police that Kari was driving without a valid driver’s license, but claimed the authorities said they were not going to do anything about it. Upon verification of the information, the Marion County Record did run the story, which caused Sheriff Cody to get a warrant signed by the Honorable Laura Viar, a judge who did not live in Marion and did not read the document before signing it. Text messages (“What’s up, Buttercup?”) between the two indicate that Chief Cody may have decided to extract retribution, which we’ve seen at the highest level of government lately.

OUTCOME

At the end of this interesting and timely documentary both Eric Meyer, Director Sharon Liese and Finn Hartnett (who now writes for New York’s The New Republic) were asked about the outcome.

With Bernie Rhodes as attorney for the Marion County Record, a state judicial panel heard the case twice and advised the judge that she should read what she signs before she signs it. The Honorable Laura Viar was removed from Marion County. The newspaper sued for $10 million in damages, knowing that the town only had about $2 million in insurance. Meyer said, “We went to some pains to make sure that the amount would be there and also to secure the little statement that admitted wrongdoing on the part of the Sheriff’s department…The maximum of this charge is going to be probation for Gideon Cody. It will just take longer to get it done. He’s not going to get a job as a police officer, anyway, The biggest disappointment was the number of places where this could have been stopped.”

Added Eric Meyer, “It’s convenient to say that it was all Gideon’s fault. He was rightfully run out of town. But so many groups that were there to protect our rights were so blasé about the whole thing. It’s a story about the abuse of power against Americans.”

The insurance company paid $3,050,000 to the newspaper, $50,000 more than the town’s insurance covered. The $600,000 that Phyllis Zorn received from the settlement allowed her to retire. Nicholas Semrad’s charming music adds to the already excellent storytelling, and the final outcome might give all of us in America a small measure of hope, when it comes to standing up for what is right against allowing what is wrong to continue to dominate.

CONCLUSION

Said Eric Meyer at Sundance, “I would hope that people would think that I believed in something and I didn’t give up on it.”

A timely sentiment from a terrific documentary.