Texas Flag in the Dallas Buyers Club - 2013

The American Cowboy may seem like something from fairytale land, but the story of Ron Woodroof shows that the righteous Han Solo smuggler-outlaw is still something of a very real force in America.  Woodroof's story was retold last year by Jean-Marc Vallee with the Focus Feature film of the Dallas Buyers Club.

In the early days of the AIDS crisis fear and homophobia was the prevailing mood of the media and public mind.  In this ugly fear hyped climate the story of Dallas Buyers Club played out in the life of a straight shooting Texan Cowboy who contracted the disease through heterosexual means, Ron Woodroof in 1985.

Woodroof smuggled medicine through unconventional and illegal means from Mexico and brazenly stretched the truth, fearless of the unjust laws of his time.  Of vexillological value are the flags that appear in this work of art that has a highest of high levels of truthiness. Texans love their flags and it appears many times in the film.

 Often the Texas flag can be found a flying next to the Confederate Flag in any kind of Texan Saloon in the South.  Here Matthew McConaughey stars as Ron Woodroof back in 1985.


Even on a mundane medical announcement board you can see the flag of Texas.  The state flag of Texas is one of the most charming and beautiful flags in the Union. 


 Here, Ron fights against the Establishment that wants his Buyers Club out of business.  But Ron's alternative methods surely extended and positively impacted the lives of thousands of HIV patients in Texas during the 1980s.   

US Flag in High Noon - 1952

Gary Cooper stars as Marshall Will Cane the Lone Lawman facing down his Vengeful Evil Foe - High Noon 1952

 In 1952 the US flag made an appearance in one of the classic game changer gems of Hollywood Cinema.  Breaking with tradition can be a risky move, but sometimes it pays off.  More than just a change up on Western Action, High Noon 1952  presents hard moral choices.  Besides adding a layer of depth to a popcorn action genre, it showed a romantic relationship between a strong willed and fiercely independently minded Mexican woman with two white Southern Men.

37 Stars indicates the time period between 1867-1876

Besides a man facing a moral dilemma, so to would a young woman, Amy Flower Kane, played by Grace Kelly.   Amy is a pacifist Quaker, but she has a chance to save her man's life by breaking with her religious standards.  Amy chooses to stand her personal ground and draw lead.  A woman with a gun was taken as offensive to many  men of that era, in an era when it was not socially acceptable for women to wear pants, which was tantamount to cross dressing, until after the 1960s.

Hard it is now to appreciate this type of movie if you are younger than the Baby Boomer Generation, but it was still a smash hit for its hard hitting edgy themes and style.  It was considered one of Ronald Regan's favorite films. 

The debate between war and peace is not a new subject, ever so ancient.  But note this movie was created and released in the middle of the Korean War.

Notice Bonnet Ribbons on Grace Kelly

Subsequently, making such a movie caused a political backlash. So controversial was this film that persons involved in its production were BLACK LISTED by cowardly fearful Hollywood Bosses.  Coincidentally this movie showed the social dilemma between men of honor and men who make excuses.

High Noon puts into sharp focus the two-footer stand on your own two feet philosophy, in contrast to the weak minded cowardly element that often rules men and women in the face of evil. 

Flags in Marley and Me - 2008

 Marley and Me 2008 is a film based upon the book written by John Grogan in 2005.  This film is more than just a story about dogs, it is a thematic picture of life that sometimes you get more than what you want, when you let life have its way with you.  Originally Marley is considered a 'bad dog,' but this dog later becomes a celebrity in South Florida and later a household name, thanks to John Grogan who notices that his dog is absolutely a 'Good Dog' and by serendipity, helps launch his career into stratosphere.  

Grogan is originally a young hipster who wanted to become hard nosed news reporter, but in the pursuit of this dream he ends up becoming a famous columnist, and later the dream weaver to a major blockbuster Hollywood film - Marley and Me 2008.

Several flags make appearances in the movie.  The US and Florida State flag appear when Gorgan is about to interview with his proving ground columnist paper, the Sun Sentinel. 

Additionally several more flags appear in front of the airport just before Gorgan is about to pick up his dog of national destiny - Marley.

Surrey Flags in Marely and Me - 2008

In 2005 a new All American Dog followed the paw prints of Rin Tin Tin, Lassie, and Benji.  However this not so mutty mutt was a grade A pedigreed wonder-puff whose likability was not his talent to do tricks, but his uncanny ability to get into hot water.

Earthy and warm, Marley was a dog that any dog lover could relate to.  

Marley was a virtual Menace the Dennis of Dogs.  But this movie was more than just a canine companion film, it touched on the meaning of life and love without being too sappy or serious.  This movie was seasoned with giggles and comedic situations that were exquisitely prepared by David Frankel.




Of vexillological importance  are the unique surrey pennants that appear on the 'four wheeled family and friends bicycle.'  On the upper awning are two orange pennants whom the surrey belongs to. 
The pennants on the surreys have a red background with a cursive letter B in yellow.

If we ever run out of energy or go 100% green, here is what your future family sedan may look like, the surrey.







 

Doozer Vexilloids from Fraggle Rock

 The Doozers are a secondary race in the world of Fraggle Rock.  They live mostly oblivious to the Fraggles as humans live oblivious to the bumble bee kingdoms, or the people involved in agriculture. However unlike the bumbee the Doozers actively allow the Fraggles to consume their honey, or rather Doozer sticks. 

Of vexillological importance is the Doozer Hat.  When Doozers reach the age of becoming a worker, they graduate with a revered full of pomp Doozer Hat Ceremony.

Unlike the graduation cap of the square strange silly creatures, which is mostly decorative and symbolic, Doozers receive a scared and fully functional hat that they will use their entire life.

This special yellow hat is worn by all mature worker Doozers.  Not only does it protect them, but assures other Doozers that they are qualified to work on a coveted Doozer construction project.


Perched on top of two floral sacred Doozer Towers are yellow helmets.  This illustrates that the Doozer Hat is more than just a hat, but rather has sacramental quasi-military social rank significance.   

Doozers live symbiotically with Fraggles.  Doozers make elaborate buildings that get consumed by Fraggles.  Apparently the structures are made from radishes mixed with a specially reprocessed potpourri of mysterious materials.

When the crew from Animal Planet's The Jeff Corwin Experience was filming an episode on the fauna of Fraggle Rock, Crowin reported to have seen the Doozers mix a "primordial Doozer gel" with a, "sweet smelling aromatic, glowing Fraggle Poo."  When Corwin was lucky enough to bear witness to this 'magical' event the camera batteries were, unfortunately, all being charged.  Doozer stick formation is still an unknown mystery to scientists across the world.  Coincidentally, this relationship is similar to humans and plants, whereby fertilizers made from excrement of various animals are reconstituted into the plant to make fruits, veggies, and various kinds of lettuce that the humans later eat.


Biologist have classified Doozers as a keystone species in the Fraggle Rock ecosystem.  It is theorized that Doozers are responsible for creating light from various chemical compounds in the rock through an unknown chemo-synthetic process, which results in bio-luminescent Doozer Sticks and other bio-luminescent biological proteins.  Since the Fraggles live in caves devoid of sunlight the source point of energy must be chemosynthesis, instead of photosynthesis, as it is in normal 'Outer Space.'  

The highest of holy architects is standing in between the two holy Doozer towers.  Notice that Art Deco style for the front emblems.

Scepter of the Oldest Fraggle in Fraggle Rock

 Fraggle Rock is a heartwarming series created by Jim Henson.  The series is the zeineth of 1980s puppetry, and stories ran the spectrum of adult to kid's interest.  Sometimes it was like Star-Trek, other times soapy, many times a drama, and often like old MTV.  It was an educational series but so subdued with music and fun, that the stories were more than just stories but ranged into the wholesome fable range. 

In one episode, the oldest Fraggle in the caves holds a scepter.  The finial is made of metal with three prongs that look something like a straight pitchfork.  On the middle prong is a metal sphere. 

Fraggles like humans can sense the mystical and wise sense of sphere.  But Fraggles value dance, play, more than work. 

To the left you can see Red talking to the oldest Fraggle who has the Scepter of the Wisest in his left hand. 

Fraggle Rock was the last of great puppet shows before the advent of CGI.

Flags in Fraggle Rock

 The Canadian flag makes an appearance in Fraggle Rock when Uncle Traveling Matt attempts to make contact with a statue.  Also visible is the North West Territories Flag.  It makes good sense since the original entrance to Fraggle Rock was apprently in Ontario, Canada.

Fraggles are apparently a non-local species from a distant dimension.  It seems when a local Ontario Inventor was conducting some experiments with nuclear materials and lasers, it opened up dimensional rift between Fraggle Land and Earth, known to Fraggles as 'Outerspace.'

Oddly the absent minded professor, simply known as Doc, is completely oblivious to his accidental Earth shattering discovery.  But his loyal dog Sprocket makes every effort to snag a Fraggle when they visit his workshop.

The celebratory Fraggle flag consists of a long wooden pole with several multicoloured free flowing fabric like ribbons.  Although seemingly random, there is regular pattern and blend of colours that make it Fraggle-like.  The colours include white, maroon, pink, purple, and orange.  Designs include square billets and holes.