Love, Peace And Harmony

As Clark said at the beginning of the week:

"Ringo Starr is a man who has dedicated his life to promoting the concepts of Peace and Love, just like us."

And, with all the peace and love and goodwill going around, it's an interesting side note to clue you in on yet another heretofore unknown item about The Unbelievables:

Now, it's common knowledge we've invented quite a few things. Unbelieva-Fu, Unbelieva-Tips, Unbelieva-Zen, the oh-so-useful Unbelievinars ... the list goes on and on and on.

But ... did you know we invented the peace sign?

Yup. Back in the very late 50s we began using it, the three of us, as an indicator everything was "a-okay" as we staked out suspects or when we wanted to let one another know from a distance, without yelling or otherwise making noise, things were proceeding as planned.

(Additionally, it was one of our go-to gestures letting us know we'd be imbibing at least TWO beers when we got off the clock ... but that's another story entirely.)

So ... we may have "borrowed" the gesture from Churchill.

But we were the ones who made it really popular ...

Well, sir ... shooting the index and middle finger in the air and giving the slight wave of the hand caught on with just about everyone ... and especially with the kids. Of course, the Flower Children movements came along, burning bras, government sit-ins, peaceful war protests and all that stuff where the sign just flourished from the west coast right on through to the Atlantic shore. Everybody and his brother flashed the sign. It even caught on in Jeff's neck of the woods in the UK. Kind of cool that something so simple could cross a big, wide ocean and become universally recognized.

And recognized it was, by the small and the tall, by John Q. Public up the block right on through to well-to-do Hollywood types. One would think that guy up top popularized it himself. But he didn't - it's been a common gesture since the dawn of rock and roll, popular with bands, solo artists and all musicality in between, simply for the coolness of it.

See for yourself ...

 Hendrix was into it at Woodstock ...

 So was Ringo's buddy John ...

 

... and Neil Young ...

Bono ...

The Great Ray Charles ...

The King Of Pop ...

That Johnny Cash. He always was a rebel, doing his own thing.

Plus, many others not necessarily related to music
but rock stars in their own right easily flashed the sign like:
Steve McQueen ... though doing so in a mug shot.

The great activist and humanitarian Martin Luther King, Jr.

Remember this little guy? He was an ultra-popular as a curio back in the day.

 

And then there was Dubya ... who never could quite get it right.

You can't win'em all ...

I think you get the picture.

The point of all this: Go out today, tomorrow, sometime later in the week and flash that peace sign at someone as a gesture of harmony and good will. And do it knowing full well The Unbelievables have, yet again, contributed general well being to the populace at large ... through your benevolence to your fellow man and woman. 

World? You're welcome.

 

We are all part of the All-Starr Band

You can't spell "Beatles" without "Beat". Take the Beat away and you're left with Les. I have no idea who Les is. Nice guy? Maybe. But he's not four cheeky lads from Liverpool who forever changed the way we do everything, from holding hands to coming together. And who kept the Beat for the Beatles? Ringo Starr, that's who.
For the longest time, people have sought to diminish Ringo's contributions to what is arguably the greatest rock band of all time, which is unfortunate, misguided and unfair.
If you're one of these people, simply take this short quiz and find out how wrong you are:

HOW MUCH DO YOU REALLY KNOW ABOUT THE BEATLES?

Were/Are you John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison or Ringo Starr?

a) Yes

b) No

• If you answered "a", you get 100 points. Unless you're lying, in which case you get zero points because we do not reward liars.
• If you answered "b", you get zero points

SCORING:

• 100+ points = You know a lot about the Beatles!
• 0 - 99 points = You don't really know anything about the Beatles.

"B" respondents: None of these guys is you

So as you can see, you either know how important Ringo was to the Beatles or you know nothing at all. Either way, there's no point in us telling you about it.

Ringo Starr is a man who has dedicated his life to promoting the concepts of Peace and Love, just like us. He does it though music and being a benevolent spirit. We do it through butt-kicking, style and driving the ladies wild.

We love you too. Relax.

He celebrated his 75th birthday the other day and we wish him the best.

More Peace and Love from Jeff and Michael later this week...

Be Careful Out There

Clark was right on several fronts:

• Valentine's Day is fast approaching and will be here in mere days ...
• ... thus, all of us - collectively - agreed it would be a good thing to share the wisdom we've gathered over the years. (Don't worry ... we have plenty to go around. We won't exhaust our supply here and now. There'll be plenty for next year.)
• And ... Clark's right again: The three of us have different ideas about the day and its events ... or lack thereof.

Me? I'm not here to tell you how to make your Valentine's the sweetest ever. Clark did that last post. My job is to keep you out of harm's way as the Day of Love approaches. Just a few simple, easily manageable tips to keep you safe, sane ... and alive. 

Many believe Valentine's is all about the ladies (Hello, Ladies!) and, often, that's true. But for those who may be experiencing an achy, breaky heart during the middle of February, you may want to count your blessings.

Here's the deal (because there's always a deal): The fact of the matter is if you gather a group of women - any group of women, no matter their size, shape, ethnicity, hair color, etc. - 9 times out of 10 you'll find they weave webs. Webs woven to attract and capture the unsuspecting male causing him to say and do all sorts of things he wouldn't normally say or do.

These webs? They're not always easily seen, not always so blatant and neon-colored and recognizable. Often they're subtle, difficult to detect, invisible even to the point of undetectability, regardless of the fact the male of the species may be on the lookout for them.

Males, as a general rule, are easily drawn in and seduced by the fairer sex.

Sentiments as the above are typical offerings
from men hopelessly trapped in women's intrigue.

How? How do females do this? Well ... snappy clothing, for one ... 

We might think we're being sly by wooing someone's heart, but don't be fooled:

The female in your sights has already snared you in her ruse ...

 

... and that means you've already been caught
in a Black Widow sort of way ... 

Of course, I've fast-forwarded through all the details: The wooing ... the gifts ... the happy smiles ... the gay times ... the goo-goo eye making ... those joyful feelings filled with stomach butterflies and a general sense of euphoria, ad nauseum.

I'm not trying to "doom say" here. The good news is many of you will avoid any passionate ambush of the heart. Others of you? Just face facts: You might as well cash in your chips while you still have chips to cash in.

Look: The Unbelievables are good at many things, crime fighting being at the top of the list. But, in the ways of love, there's only so much we can do, only so many warnings we can offer.

Because the heart? It's going to do what it's going to do.  And sometimes?

... sometimes that means YOUR END ... 

Happy Valentine's Day! And let's be careful out there.

(Here's hoping Jeff has a little more positivity going into the end of the week!)