It’s been a windy week in New Orleans. It’s raising hell with my allergies as it’s blowing the pollen about. I took a walk the other day and it felt like I’d swallowed pollen, and it was coating my teeth and eyes. In a word: Gross.

I’m trying something different this month. Each April Saturday post will have a one-word theme song and a featured image from an old movie that is, hopefully, relevant. I’ve been doing this for so damn long that tweaks are necessary to keep me sharp and snarky.

This week’s featured image is Rosalind Russell and Cary Grant in His Girl Friday, one of the funniest films ever made. Stop the presses. I’ve always wanted to say that, so I just did.

This week’s theme song was written by Dave Edmunds and Mark Radice in 1983 for the album of the same title. Information was produced by ELO’s Jeff Lynne. His fingerprints are all over the souped-up production. It resulted in one of Edmunds’ most commercially successful albums.

Ready for some Information?

More informative songs:

Feeling better informed now?

We begin our second act with a segment about women and Major League Baseball.

Play Ball: If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times: I’m a lapsed baseball fan, but I retain a lively interest in the game’s history. There’s a piece in Slate that’s right up my alley, cats.

Mary Shane was the first woman to broadcast an MLB game. It was 1977 and she yakked alongside Harry Caray in the Chicago White Sox booth. It was a huge story at the time, but Shane has largely been forgotten. It’s time to remedy that with a terrific piece by Slate’s Josh Levin.

As far as I know, Mary Shane isn’t related to this guy:

I know, Shane is the character’s first name but it’s Alan Fucking Ladd.

Let’s leave the Old West in the dust and move on to a segment about the creator of the hit HBO show, The White Lotus.

The Mischievous Mr. White: Befitting the first week of the baseball season, we have a Mike White doubleheader with links to articles from The New Yorker and The Atlantic.

You know you’ve made it when there’s a New Yorker profile about you. Mike White’s background is interesting. His father Mel is a lapsed member of Jerry Falwell’s inner circle. He horrified them by coming out of the closet and writing a book about it. That ended Mel White’s time as a doyenne of the religious right.

Shorter Adrastos: Iconoclasm is in Mike White’s genes.

The White Lotus sounds like something a liberal blogger like me should hate since it’s about rich people being privileged. Instead, I really dig it because of the writing. Mike White has a gift for sharp and incisive dialogue. He also has a penchant for casting offbeat Indie actors. In the current season, Parker Posey, Jason Isaacs, Walton Goggins, Carrie Coons, and Sam Rockwell are in the cast. They’re one reason I stuck with the show after a slow first episode. I’m glad I did.

Grading Time: I give the current season of The White Lotus 3 1/2 stars and an Adrastos Grade of B+.

The second game in our White Lotus doubleheader is an Atlantic article by Helen Lewis: The White Lotus Is the First Great Post-‘Woke’ Piece of Art.

I hate the word woke, have never used it, and knew it would be turned into a weapon by the MAGA Maggots. Having said that, Lewis’ take on The White Lotus is acute. I wonder if she’s ever ridden in a death cab with a cutie. Apologies for that groaner worthy of Food Network host Jesse Palmer.

What’s the opposite of a white orchid? The last word of our second act goes to Cal Tjader:

Have I told you lately that Cal Tjader and I share a high school alma mater? Go, Bearcats, but where will they go? Discuss amongst yourselves.

We begin our third act with our favorite stolen feature.

Separated At Birth Casting Edition: The eccentric and never dull actor Val Kilmer died this week at age 65. One of his best performances was as Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone’s bombastic rock biopic, The Doors.

What’s a Val Kilmer-Jim Morrison side-by-side without a Doors tune?

Your Weekly Oscar: I wrote about good trouble the other day, you can’t have it without misbehaving, the title of this Fats Waller classic notwithstanding.

Let’s play two. The second half of our doubleheader features OP’s pal King Zulu 1949:

Have I told you lately how much I love Oscar Peterson?

The Best Of Monty Python: We had a big ass storm this week. It was so dark in the morning that Claire and Perry started begging for food within two hours of being fed. It was nature playing Confuse-A-Cat:

Classic Movie Trailer: This one is a no-brainer; I give you a Howard Hawks joint.

While I’m at it, I might as well grade this classic comedy. I give it 4 stars and an Adrastos Grade of A.

Saturday GIF Horse: One of the delights of season three of The White Lotus are Parker Posey’s OTT line readings. She’s followed by the guy who played Shane on The Shield. There’s that name again.

He’s smoking like a disheveled Bogie in that GIF.

Meme Mania: I know this one is all over the internets but it’s so good that I cannot resist sharing given First Draft’s Wisconsin roots.

Let’s close down this virtual honky tonk with some more music.

Saturday Closer: We opened with Dave Edmunds, let’s close with this 1982 set. Rock on, Dave.

That’s all for this week. The last word goes to Mike White and the season 3 cast of The White Lotus: