Carpenters - 9-11

The American Treasure Tour blog continues its tour of our record collection.  Yes, the 33-1/3 records that adorn the walls of both the Music Room and the Toy Box are finally getting their just due. Today, we will concentrate on the 1970 album by The Carpenters, Close to You.

Ranked the 175th (out of 500) best album of all time by Rolling Stone magazine, it includes two of the duo's most popular songs, "(They Long to Be) Close to You" and "We've Only Just Begun."  The brother and sister team recorded a handful of songs together the year prior, but in 1970, they skyrocketed to fame with this album, including twelve tracks.  One of them, "We've Only Just Begun," was originally written as a jingle for a bank commercial.  Ten albums were recorded by the band prior to Karen Carpenter's untimely death at the age of 32 due to complications associated with anorexia nervosa.  Her death helped create a national awareness for this disorder.

Question:

In 1987, film director Todd Haynes made a controversial biopic about Karen Carpenter entitled Superstar:  The Karen Carpenter Story.  Haynes did not gain legal license to use  the music Karen and her brother Richard performed and, coupled with Richard's offense at his portrayal in the film, this served as justification to ban its public distribution.  What did Haynes use to portray the characters in the film?

a)  Squirrels

b)  Cartoon animation

c)  Barbie dolls

d)  Stuffed animals

e)  Human actors

Answer below

Today in History

This date in 1978, the pinnacle of United States President Jimmy Carter's foreign affairs policy materialized with the Camp David Accords, which were intended to create a long-term peace in the Middle East, specifically between Egypt and Israel.  

Few dates in American history inspire an emotional reaction.  December 7th is one, when acknowledging the Japanese attack on the American Naval Base in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, and September 11th is another, for the horrible events of 2001, when terrorists took over three planes and found their targets at the World Trade Center in New York City, as well as the Pentagon in Arlington, VA.  The fourth plane take over crashed outside of Shanksville, Pennsyvania, for which its passengers are justly regarded as heroes.  

Births

Brian De Palma was born today in 1940 in Newark, New Jersey.  Raised in Philadelphia, De Palma became a famous film director, known mostly for the horror film Carrie (1976), the gangster films Scarface (1983) and the superior The Untouchables (1987).  

His 1996 film Mission: Impossible was loosely inspired by the cult television show and began a movie franchise that continues, starring Tom Cruise.  De Palma has accredited Hitchcock and Godard as major influences on his own career, and indeed, some of his films borrow directly from his inspirations.

Kristy McNichols celebrates her 51st birthday today.  Best known for her work as a young actor in the 1970s in the tv series Family and a number of ABC Afterschool Specials, McNichols retired from acting in the 1990s and has maintained a somewhat low profile since then.

Quote:  

It's kinda nice to be remembered by your peers and your fans because you can achieve a lot of success and be a creep too!  But we try to be nice, just normal people.  -- Karen Carpenter

Answer:  c)