Our Oscar Forecasts: Which Beard Will Win?

Oscars seem to be more about trends and how a film is promoted to members of the Academy more so than what films or actors are genuinely the best in their respective categories.

We came up with the 'which beard will win' line because many are forecasting that either "Argo" or "Lincoln" will win Best Picture.

With that said, we are making the following projections in the eight major categories for Oscar Sunday, and unlike most years, we are projecting several major upsets:

Best Original Screeenplay: Mark Boal "Zero Dark Thirty"

Best Adapted Screenplay: Chris Terrio "Argo"

Best Supporting Actor: Tommy Lee Jones "Lincoln"

Best Supporting Actress: Anne Hathaway "Les Misreables" (pictured)

Best Actor: Bradley Cooper "Silver Linings Playbook"

Best Actress: Jessica Chastain "Zero Dark Thirty"

Best Director: Steven Spielberg "Lincoln"

Best Film: "Argo"

Virtual Postcard from Illinois_ Abraham Lincoln's Springfield

Wow! We had the hardest time getting this image of the Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum in Springfield, Illinois, which is also the state capital, posted!

Let's just say that it is one of many Springfields in America (others include Virginia, Vermont and Kentucky), as for the setting of the animated sitcom "The Simpsons," that is said to take place in Springfield, Oregon.

"The Washington Post" recently profiled Lincoln sites in Springfield, Ill., for the Sunday travel section. Lincoln is hip again thanks to the new Steven Spielberg film of the same name, which was filmed in the Richmond, Va., area.

http://www.alpm.org

http://www.presidentlincoln.org

The Rabbit Ear Test_ (8 out of 12)_ "The Time Tunnel"

Last time around, we featured "The Love Boat," which was produced by the late Aaron Spelling, who also gave the tv world such shows as "Charlie's Angels," "Fantasy Island" and "Dynasty." Today, we go with a producer known not for glossy tv shows, but rather science-fiction show which still have loyal cult followings to this day.

Irwin Allen (1916-1991), who also produced adventure and disaster movies, produced four tv shows in the 1960s. While the other three shows "Lost in Space" (1966-68), "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea" (1964-68) and "Land of the Giants" (1968-70) were relative hits, "The Time Tunnel" was not even though it received widespread critical acclaim.

I show "The Time Tunnel," which aired in 1966 in the United States, a full decade after it was on American television when it aired on the TRT (Turkish Radio and Television) during the two years that we lived in Turkey from 1977-79. In Turkey, the show was called "Zaman Tuneli," which literally means time tunnel.

"The Time Tunnel" starred James Darren, now 74, who would also team with another '60s science-fiction tv series star William Shatner of "Star Trek" in the cop show "T.J. Hooker," which debuted in 1982.

The show also used props, such as guns and computers, that had also been used on other Allen-produced shows as well as "Batman" (which Allen did not produce).

"The Time Tunnel," like all Allen vehicles, was considered expensive for its time. And, the show was known for unique plots, including ones where Darren's character Dr. Anthony Newman (Tony) finds himself on board the Titanic during its fatal voyage (he escapes, of course) and on Pearl Harbor right before its attack.

In the 1960s, continuity was not a major concern as it is today, so according to Wikipedia, in one episode Tony says he was born in 1938, and then a few episodes later he states that he was seven years old when Pearl Harbor was attacked (that took place on Dec. 7, 1941).

John Williams, who would later collaborate with Steven Spielberg as music composer for virtually all of his films, including "Jaws," "Raiders of the Lost Ark" and "E.T." composed the theme for "The Time Tunnel."

So, today, for our quiz, and we hope to remember to provide the answer in the coming entries, we ask just how many episodes were made of this show, which alas didn't last as long as it should have.

Is the answer?:

A) 24 shows

B) 28 shows

C) 30 shows

D) 32 shows

Best Films of 2001- A Very Good Year

We are continuing our look at the best films which are celebrating milestone anniversaries this year, with a look at the films we consider to be the ten best of 2001.

This was an amazing year for film as there were many acclaimed films from either established directors, such as "Mullholland Drive" (dir. David Lynch) or up and coming filmmaking stars of international cinema, such as "The Piano Teacher" (France. dir-Michael Haneke) and "Fat Girl" (France dir-Catherine Brelliat).

Along with these three titles the following titles were considered, but did not make our list, including "Amelie," "Black Hawk Down," "A Beatiful Mind," "Y Tu Mama Tambien?," "Frality" and "Waking Life," from one of my favorite directors Richard Linklater.

So, here is our list:

1. A.I. (Steven Spielberg)

2. In the Bedroom (Todd Field)

3. Ghost World (Terry Zwigoff)

4. The Royal Tenenbaums (Wes Anderson)

5. Storytelling (Todd Solodnz)

6. Spirited Away (Japan. Hayao Miyazaki)

7. Ali (Michael Mann)

8. Monster's Ball (Marc Foster)

9. No Man's Land (Bosnia. Danis Tanovic)

10. The Believer (Henry Bean)