INSPIRATIONAL FILES

The statement “This is it” could be a statement of affirmation or that of declaration. As a statement of affirmation it could be a statement made in recognition of the unfolding of God’s plan in the life of a man or a woman. As a statement of declaration, it could mean a statement made in taking a stand against a particularly oppressive situation or circumstance in the life of a person. And for Michael Jackson, “ This is It ” would forever remain the millennium concert that never happened. The theme of the musical event that was once billed as the grandest comeback ever for any performing artist was in itself predictive of the permanent exit of the King of Pop from the musical scene. But this time, it was without all the applause, the ovations, the pomp and pageantries or the signature grand entries and exits that once marked Mr. Jackson’s entire performing career. The irony of Michael Jackson’s “ This is It ” is really in the exit of the King of Pop, not only from the perform

In a fictional WW II story set in 1944 on the eve of the Allied D – Day invasion of Normandy, twelve American convicts set out as a special military unit on a pre – invasion kill and destroy mission in Rennes, north – western France. They had virtually no military experience and nothing in common except convictions for criminal offenses. For the twelve men, it was a mission to prove their worth as soldiers as well as a journey to find redemption. And for some of them it was a chance to escape justice. Director Robert Aldrich found his big score in assembling twelve of the greatest names (Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, George Kennedy, Lee Marvin, Telly Savalas, Donald Sutherland, and football Hall of Famer Jim Brown, to mention just a few) in Hollywood’s history to star in The Dirty Dozen (1967). The mission of “The Dirty Dozen” was a suicide mission from the onset. Landing in France, they discovered themselves short one man; Jimenez broke his neck in the parachute jump and most