Happy Birthday, William Shakespeare

Today is both William Shakespeare's 449th birthday, and it is National Talk Like Shakespeare Day here in America. Apparently, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel formally recognized the occasion at city hall today.

There are plenty of Shakespeare productions going on domestically (and, assuredly in England and other parts of the world as well).

The American Shakespeare Center (we still like to call them Shenandoah Shakespeare, their old name) in Staunton, Va.,  is performing both "Twelfth Night" and "Love's Labour Lost," right now.

Just down the road in High Point, NC, the North Carolina Shakespeare Festival is holding auditions for "MacBeth" or the Scottish Play from April 29-30th.

And, the Reduced Shakespeare Company will be performing throughout the United Kingdom as well as well as performances in Urbana, Ill., on April 27th and in Columbia, Md., on June 22nd.

We are told that they can do "Romeo and Juliet" in 14 and a half minutes!

http://www.talklikeshakespeare.org

http://www.amerianshakesperacecenter.com

http://www.ncshakes.org

http://www.reducedshakespeare.com

Quote of the Day/Week- Bart Starr

Today, we go 'old school' as we conclude our month-long quotes from Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks with a quip from Green Bay Packers great Bart Starr, 78, who guided his team to victories in Super Bowl I in 1967 (35-10 over Kansas City Chiefs) and Super Bowl II in 1968 (33-14 over Oakland Raiders).

Starr was also a star quarterback at the University of Alabama, and we are quoting his fellow Crimson Tide great Joe Namath on our other blog, "Politics, Culture and Other Wastes of Time" today.

Here is Starr's quote:

"Athletic competition clearly defines the unique power of our attitude."

SIDEBAR: Yesterday, we mentioned how several Big South Conference schools fared in the annual college basketball bracket busters.

And, jut last night, High Point University Panthers guard Nick Barbour (senior, Danville, Va.) set the school's men's basketball scoring record by recording 44 points against the visitors from Campbell University, in eastern North Carolina.

The school which is conversely located in High Point, NC, won the game by a 98-60 margin. The Panthers finish the regular season (12-14, 8-10 Big South) and await their first-round opponent in the Big South Tournament.

Things We Learned on Twitter Today_ Rosa Parks Never Paid 'The Fine'

Of course, we know Rosa Parks was not fined for sitting on a school bus in High Point, NC, (we are rushed for time, so this is the only image we could find!), but according to a tweet from the ultra-hip magazine "Mental Floss," which I should ask my mom to get me a subscription for over the holidays, the Civil Rights activist never 'paid up' for her 'transgression' in Montgomery, Ala., 55 years ago today:

Here is the exact tweet:

"Rosa Parks was fine $14 for refusing to give up her seat on that bus ride of Dec.
1, 1955. She never paid it."

SIDEBAR: We have also learned that thankfully actor Morgan Freeman, 73, did not die today. Many were wondering why he was a hot trending topic today. It turns out he made a gaffe while on a tele-prompter in Zurich, Switzerland, while lobbying for the 2022 World Cup alongside former president Bill Clinton, who was in Greensboro last night. The jet lag must be tourturing our beloved former prez!