Simanaitis Says

On cars, old, new and future; science & technology; vintage airplanes, computer flight simulation of them; Sherlockiana; our English language; travel; and other stuff

BELLICOSE—ITS ETYMOLOGY

FOR ONE REASON or another, the word “bellicose” sprang to mind as deserving addition into my Etymology for our Times series. Why do you suppose? It might have been something … Continue reading

October 3, 2018 · 3 Comments

A SCREENPLAY PITCH PART 2

WE LEFT transplanted Kiki Lowell Yerex barnstorming in the U.S. after his World War I combat experiences. A primary source here in Part 2 is “Touring with Pyle,” by famed … Continue reading

October 2, 2018 · Leave a comment

A SCREENPLAY PITCH PART 1

“I GOT this great screenplay! It has everything. Action. Glamor. International rivalry. Airplanes for the guys. Romance for their girlfriends.” “Old hat….” “Wait! There’s this World War I pilot who’s … Continue reading

October 1, 2018 · 2 Comments

SUBSCRIBE TO AN AUTOMAKER?

YEARS AGO, September 2001 specifically, in the R&T piece “Whither the Automobile?,” futurists at American Honda told me that automaker subscriptions were a coming trend. That is, rather than buying … Continue reading

September 30, 2018 · 3 Comments

THEO’S WONDERFUL FLYING MACHINE

“THEO JUST INHERITED his Grandfather’s flying machine. It had become a little rusty and broken, but Theo set to work to repair it.” And thus begins this charming little book … Continue reading

September 29, 2018 · Leave a comment

AS HARD-BOILED AS A SHAMUS’S SIMILE PART 2

YESTERDAY AT SimanaitisSays, we talked about the difference between similes and metaphors, defined the word “shamus,” and extolled mystery author Raymond Chandler as a master of all three. Today, I … Continue reading

September 28, 2018 · Leave a comment

AS HARD-BOILED AS A SHAMUS’S SIMILE PART 1

RAYMOND CHANDLER said hard-boiled literature of the 1920s and 1930s “made most of the fiction of the time taste like a cup of luke-warm consommé at a spinsterish tea room.” … Continue reading

September 27, 2018 · 2 Comments

TAMING THE MACHINE

IT CLUNKED. IT clicked. It rattled. It whooshed. Once it left the Gods stranded from ascending their rainbow bridge to Valhalla. Rest easy, though: An improved Machine is coming to … Continue reading

September 26, 2018 · Leave a comment

BRAZILIAN CULTURE—SENHOR TUCANO, SCULPTURE, AND MORE PART 2

THE FOLLOWING IMAGES and commentary on Brazilian sculpture come from Artista da escultura Brasileira. The Art of Brazilian Sculptors. Die Brasilianische Bildhauerkunst introduced yesterday here at SimanaitisSays. Bruno Giorgi is … Continue reading

September 25, 2018 · Leave a comment

BRAZILIAN CULTURE—SENHOR TUCANO, OTHER SCULPTURE, AND MORE PART 1

TODAY’S PRINCIPAL THEME is Brazilian culture. Indeed, it’s tomorrow’s theme as well in Part 2. There’s timeliness, in reporting on a terrible fire that recently destroyed Brazil’s Museu Nacional. There’s … Continue reading

September 24, 2018 · Leave a comment