Scribbler's 2-for-1 Tuesday Special: A Tribute to Muhammad Ali

As evidenced from several posts, 2016 has been a rough time of losing heroes.  Unfortunately, we must now add the greatest boxer of all time and one of the most awesome human beings that ever lived and breathed, Muhammad Ali, to that list.  When I got the ESPN notification on my phone on Saturday at 12:29 a.m., my immediate reaction was, "NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"  I'm still in disbelief over the loss of Prince less than two months ago, so this just felt like emotional overkill.  Granted, I grew up in the Mike Tyson era of heavyweight boxing when many in our naive generation swore up and down that nobody could touch Iron Mike...that is, until our parents and elders hipped us to Mr. "Float Like a Butterfly, Sting Like a Bee".  Suddenly, Iron Mike didn't seem as cool as a three-time heavyweight champion of the world who was one of the most skillful, tough, charismatic and confident brothers to ever perform in any sport, the blueprint for the activist and man of faith simply moonlighting as an athlete and could even push rhymes like weight.  So while the typical move for someone who is as into sports as I am would be to post my favorite five fights of his, y'all should know that I'm not that predictable.  Hence, this special edition of the "Rave & Favorite Five" as well as an "11th Hour Post of the Week" will capture my five favorite Muhammad Ali moments that manifest how his level of strength, courage and wisdom included but was certainly not limited to the sport of boxing...

Dirk Scribbler's Step-By-Step Guide to Making Movies About YOU

In the midst of watching the recent reworking of the legendary Roots miniseries, I was disappointed but not surprised by the large number of Black folk who complained, "I don't wanna see any more slave movies."  Thrown into the fire of disdain are also films about Black people being butlers and maids or marching under the "we shall overcome" banner.  At first, I was gonna write a post about why I don't have a problem with slavery movies and the like for two primary reasons: 1) they're a part of our narrative and, unfortunately, the remnants of the worst period in American history still rear their ugly heads in numerous ways in communities across the United States; and 2) I don't believe in letting the descendants and proponents of our oppressors off the hook, especially when they're still oppressing our people.  I also thought about taking a few gratuitous shots at many of those same folks don't wanna see any more movies about slavery, but have no problem listening to or watching us as drug dealers, substance abusers, promiscuous and/or misogynist lovers, money-hungry hustlers and heartless killers.  However, instead of launching a divisive diatribe and since this blog is New Problem Tuesdays, I decided to do some problem solving to help the disgruntled.  So for all of you rebels against 12 Years a Slave, The Help, The Butler or the new-age Roots or those of you who feel like Denzel Washington should've received an Oscar for X long before Training Day, I have carefully carved out a five-step guide regarding how you can be a part of the process of seeing more movies about you and people who look like you made.  Get your notepads ready...

Scribbler's "Get Out of My Brain!" Countdown of the Month (June 2016)

The beauty of the "Get Out of My Brain! Countdown of the Month" is threefold. On one hand, there are songs that you have absolutely no problem with occupying your brain space.  On the other hand, there are others that have no business being there at all and make you question your self-proclaimed impeccable taste in music--particularly whether or not you ever had any in the first place.  On a third hand loaned from some stranger on the street for the purpose of making my point, you could start off a month thinking that you're gonna have a few repeats from last month, but the vast treasury of music combined with the randomness that has always been your mind takes over.  To the last point, The Manhattans had a really strong chance to be the first repeat spot holders with "Wish That You Were Mine", but that whole first time for everything thing will have to wait at least another month.  So enough of the introductory fluff...let's discuss this month's space invaders...

Same Teams, Different Stakes: Why Picking a Side in the NBA Finals Is Harder Than Last Year

After achieving another historical feat by becoming the first team in NBA history to be the No. 1 seed with the league MVP but be down 3-1 in a playoff series to come back and win the series, the Golden State Warriors might just change some analysts and odds makers' minds about their rematch with LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2016 NBA Finals.  A lot of people including myself wrote off the defending champions' chances of accomplishing such a tall order, and we just assumed that the Oklahoma City Thunder would win the series and the Cavs would have a little easier path to the crown because most people didn't give OKC a chance against LeBron & Co.  However, living up to their namesake, the Warriors manifested an unprecedented amount of resolve, persistence and tenacity.  Although Steph Curry is my favorite player in the NBA right now and has been for the past three years, it's still hard to pick against King James as I have been a fan of his overall game, instant impact on any team for which he plays and being one of the most unselfish superstars that the game of basketball has ever seen since his high school days.  So as we prepare for what should be another thrilling matchup between the Warriors and the Cavs, allow me to explain how this year's NBA Finals is a little harder to pick than last year...

Scribbler's Rave & Favorite Five: Tuesday Night at the Movies, #4 Friday

The story of Friday making this list begins with the hiatus between posts in this part of the "Rave & Favorite Five" series, which also begins with the movie that it replaced.  Ever since my mother took me and my brother to see it in the spring of 1990, I have been a huge fan of House Party.  Between the fashion, the music, the dances, the rhymes, the slang and even the comedy, I thought it was one of the best movies at capturing the height of the New Jack Swing era of R&B and hip-hop culture.  However, as I attempted to write my post about it as the original No. 4 spot holder, I wasn't feeling what I was writing because I kept battling myself over whether House Party should be on my list or Friday--another movie that I went with my mother and brother to see as well as another one of my "brothers".  In figuring out my dilemma, one of my dear, dear friends posed a simple question: "Which movie do you think is more complete between the two?"  Once I sat and thought about it, the choice became simple and my trepidation was resolved: I couldn't have a "Rave & Favorite Five" about movies without Friday.  I actually thought about bumping out Blade Runner for House Party, but Blade Runner is just way too epic to get axed.  Now that the backstory is complete, it's time for the main event: five things that make Friday the sureshot...