A weekly newsletter for all your intellectual, spiritual, and physical needs
Hola friends! Welcome to Volume 135 of Dovi’s Digest.
It’s easy to break someone’s heart. All you need to do is show them the first ten minutes of the Pixar movie Up. If you have seen it, you know exactly what I’m talking about and if you haven’t, well it came out in 2009, I’m not sure what you’re waiting for. Up is the epitome of a Pixar film. It’s aimed mainly at kids, but there is more than enough to dine out on as a grown up if you happen to be taking some little people to see it or if like me, you’re just an adult who enjoys animation. The story itself is deep, and this is compounded by the wonderful scoring. It combines humour with touching poignancy, all done with a beautiful pastel palette that adds to both of these. But the movie is made in the opening sequence.
This week’s headline article is about just that. It follows the story of how it was made, why it was nearly cut out, and everything in between. It’s not a long read, but one that will give you new insight into a scene that still brings a tear to my eye just by hearing the opening chords. If you never plan to watch the movie in its entirety, please just watch the opening scenes, you won’t regret it.
Your added extra this week is difficult to explain but mesmerising to see. Just hit the play button below to watch it. I never thought I could get invested in a rock or a pair of scissors. I thought wrong.
Do you enjoy the Digest? Would you like it to get better? Then please consider sharing it, as the more articles I’m sent, the better it is. It only takes a few seconds, and all you need to do is click here 👇. Thank you!
There were NO correct answers to last week’s brainteaser. Well done to ME. I’ll leave it up for another week for you guys.
The defining love story of our generation (my, and many millennials’ words) may not float your boat. So you can also read about the oldest pair of jeans ever which recently went on auction, learn why women make better spies than men, why big buildings take so long to build these days, the inside scoop on Dipsy Tinky-Winky, Laa-Laa, and Po, the joy and shortcomings of the Scrabble dictionary, and what it’s like to be run over.
Keep those articles (and everything else) coming,
Have a great week,
Dovi
And now, the articles:
A Marriage Story
Inside the making of the brilliant, moving first 10 minutes of Pixar’s ‘Up’
Pair Of 165-Year-Old Jeans Found in Famous Shipwreck Sell For $114,000
I want to wear the forbidden Levi's.
The Secret Lives of MI6’s Top Female Spies
For the first time ever, SIS officers reveal why women often make the best spies for our times.
Building Fast and Slow: The Empire State Building and the World Trade Center
Teletubbies: The Bizarre Kids' TV Show That Swept the World
Teletubbies turns 25 this year, and now has a new Netflix reboot on the way. What made this colourful and strange world so appealing to children – and so controversial?
The Last Real American Dictionary
Scrabble’s new edition is full of delightful new words. But are there enough of them?
“He Was Fast…He Ran You Right Over”: What It’s Like to Be Hit by A SUV
One Thursday afternoon, I stepped out to cross a city street – and woke up in hospital with broken bones and a brain injury. After I recovered, I started looking into why so many drivers just don’t stop.
Quote of the Week:
“A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson
Facts of the Week:
An AI programmed to come up with messages for Love Heart sweets suggested “BEAR WIG”, “MEAT MATE”, and “YOU ARE BAG”.
Messages in the first Stick of Rock included “Do you love me?”, “Do you love sprats?”, and “Sir Robert Peel”.
Names of bell-ringing peals include the “Reverse Canterbury Pleasure”, the “Yorkshire Surprise”, and the “I Can't Believe It's Not Yorkshire Surprise.”
There's a bell that's been ringing in Oxford non-stop for 178 years.
The first ice hockey referees used cowbells, not whistles.
The first ice hockey pucks were made from frozen cow dung.
The first American footballs were meant to be spherical; They just weren't blown up properly.
The first rubber bands were made from the inner tubes of car tyres.
Cartoon of the Week:
Tweet of the Week:
(Courtesy of Steven Kaplan)
Headline of the Week:
Brainteaser of the Week:
The words “won” and “sun” rhyme despite having different vowels. Can you name four common, uncapitalized, four-letter words that a) rhyme with each other b) have only one vowel each but c) all have different vowels?
One answer is “bird,” “curd,” “nerd,” and “word.” Can you think of any other set of four-letter words? Let me know.
Last Week’s Brainteaser and Answer:
Just see above
Answer: