Ouida was the pseudonym of the English novelist Maria Louise Ramé. During her career, Ouida wrote more than 40 novels, as well as short stories, children's books and essays. Moderately successful, she lived a life of luxury, entertaining many of the literary figures of the day. Under Two Flags, one of her most famous novels, described the British in Algeria. It expressed sympathy for the French colonists—with whom Ouida deeply identified—and, to some extent, the Arabs. The novel was adapted for the stage, and was filmed six times. Her novel A Dog of Flanders is considered a children's classic in much of Asia. The American author Jack London cited her novel Signa as one of the reasons for his literary success. Her lavish lifestyle eventually led her to penury, and her works were put up for auction to pay her debts. She died in Italy from pneumonia. Soon after her death, her friends organized a public subscription in Bury St Edmunds, where they had a fountain for horses and dogs installed in her name.
Herbert Ernest Bates, better known as H. E. Bates, was an English writer. His best-known works include Love for Lydia, The Darling Buds of May, and My Uncle Silas.
Philip Marlowe is a fictional character created by Raymond Chandler, and exemplifying the hardboiled crime fiction genre. Marlowe first appeared under that name in The Big Sleep, published in 1939. Chandler's early short stories, published in pulp magazines such as Black Mask and Dime Detective, featured similar characters with names like "Carmady" and "John Dalmas" starting in 1933.
Tom Thumb is a character of English folklore. The History of Tom Thumb was published in 1621 and was the first fairy tale printed in English. Tom is no bigger than his father's thumb, and his adventures include being swallowed by a cow, tangling with giants, and becoming a favourite of King Arthur. The earliest allusions to Tom occur in various 16th-century works such as Reginald Scot's Discovery of Witchcraft (1584), where Tom is cited as one of the supernatural folk employed by servant maids to frighten children. Tattershall in Lincolnshire, England, reputedly has the home and grave of Tom Thumb.
Frank Gelett Burgess was an American artist, art critic, poet, author and humorist. An important figure in the San Francisco Bay Area literary renaissance of the 1890s, particularly through his iconoclastic little magazine, The Lark, he is best known as a writer of nonsense verse, such as "The Purple Cow", and for introducing French modern art to the United States in an essay titled "The Wild Men of Paris". He was the author of the popular Goops books, and he coined the term "blurb".
The Miniature Schnauzer is a breed of medium dog of the Schnauzer type that originated in Germany in the mid-to-late 19th century. Miniature Schnauzers may have been developed from the smallest specimens of the Standard Schnauzer, or crosses between the standard and one or more smaller breeds such as the Affenpinscher, Miniature Pinscher, and Poodles, as farmers bred a small dog that was an efficient ratting dog. They are described as "spunky" but aloof dogs, with good guarding tendencies without some guard dogs' predisposition to bite. Miniature Schnauzers are recognized in four colors internationally: solid black, black and silver, salt and pepper, and white.
A Labradoodle is a crossbreed dog created by crossing the Labrador Retriever and the Standard, Miniature, or Toy poodle. The term first appeared in 1955, but was not initially popular. Labradoodles are considered a good choice for people with canine dander allergies, since some have the same hypoallergenic coat as their poodle ancestors.
Poodle Hat is the eleventh studio album by "Weird Al" Yankovic, released on May 20, 2003. It was the fifth studio album self-produced by Yankovic. The musical styles on the album are built around parodies and pastiches of pop of the early-2000s. The album's lead single, "Couch Potato", is a parody of "Lose Yourself" by Eminem. The single failed to chart, although the album's song "eBay" eventually peaked at 15 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles in 2007.
The Japanese Chin, also known as the Japanese Spaniel, is a dog known for its strabismus of the eyes. Being both a lap dog and a companion dog, this toy breed has a distinctive heritage.
The Coton de Tuléar is a breed of small dog named for the city of Tuléar in Madagascar. This breed is thought to have originated from a group of small white dogs that swam across the Malagasy channel following a shipwreck. Known for its cotton-like coat, the Coton de Tuléar typically grows to no more than 18 pounds (8.2 kg), and are white, sometimes with grey, tan, black, or tri-colored markings. The Coton de Tuléar Day is celebrated on November 26th.
"Seven Drunken Nights" is a humorous Irish folk song most famously performed by The Dubliners. It is a variation of the Scottish folk song "Our Goodman". It tells the story of a gullible drunkard returning night after night to see new evidence of his wife's lover, only to be taken in by increasingly implausible explanations.
Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas is a 1999 direct-to-video animated Christmas anthology comedy fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Television Animation.
David Bowditch Morse is an American actor, singer, television director, and writer. He first came to national attention as Dr. Jack "Boomer" Morrison in the medical drama series St. Elsewhere (1982–88). His film career has included roles in The Negotiator, Contact, The Green Mile, Dancer in the Dark, Disturbia, The Long Kiss Goodnight, The Rock and 12 Monkeys.
Gerald McBoing-Boing is a 2D animated children's television series based on the 1950 animated short film Gerald McBoing-Boing. It premiered on Cartoon Network in the United States on August 22, 2005, as part of their then-Tickle-U programming block, and on Teletoon in English and French in Canada on August 29, 2005. The show would later be reran on Boomerang around 2007. It uses the same basic art style as the original, but with more detail. Each 11-minute episode features a series of vignettes with Gerald, of which the "fantasy tales" are done in Seussian rhyme. There are also sound checks, gags, and "real-life" portions of the show, It was also International Broadcast on ABC Kids in Australia
"The Juniper Tree" is a German fairy tale published in Low German by the Brothers Grimm in Grimm's Fairy Tales in 1812. The story contains themes of child abuse, murder, cannibalism and biblical symbolism and is one of the Brothers Grimm's darker and more mature fairy tales.
Charles J. Winninger was an American stage and film actor, most often cast in comedies or musicals.
Me to You Bears is the brand name of a collection of teddy bears made by the Carte Blanche Greetings Ltd. They are often found in Clinton Cards. They were first created in 1987 and appeared in their current guise in 1995. A number of products are available related to Tatty Teddy including plush toys, figurines, cards, mugs, and wedding accessories.
Kongjwi and Patjwi is a traditional Korean romance story from the Joseon Dynasty. It is the story of humble Kongji's triumph over adversity. The moral of the story is that virtuous people who think positively and work diligently will be happy, encapsulating the Western proverb "heaven helps those who help themselves."
Harry Smith's Anthology of American Folk Music, Volume 4 is a two-disc compilation of twenty-eight American folk recordings originally released on 78 rpm records between 1927 and 1940, issued in May 2000 on Revenant Records, catalogue #211. Compiled by experimental filmmaker and notable eccentric Harry Smith as the fourth album of his Anthology of American Folk Music set from 1952, it was never completed by Smith himself. While the CD is out of print, an LP version has been issued, along with the other three volumes, on the Portland-based Mississippi Records label.
Martha Speaks is a children's animated television series based on the 1992 children's book of the same name by Susan Meddaugh.
