The Chosen One

"Tell your sister you were right." The last words of Anakin "Darth Vader" Skywalker.

Anakin Skywalker was born on Tatooine. He grows up as a slave, along with his mother Shmi. Anakin is of use as a slave because he can fix, or build basically anything. In fact Anakin is the creator of C-3PO. He is also an amazing pilot, with almost perfect reflexes. Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn finds Anakin on his home planet and is convinced that he is the "chosen one." He is convinced of this beacuse the prophecy told Qui-Gon that Anakin was the one who was going to bring balance back to the force. The Jedi Master finds out that Anakin has the highest measure of force-aptitude. He is even more convinced that the young Skywalker is the "chosen one." Master Jinn takes Anakin back to the council to ask if he can train Anakin to beocme a Jedi Master. Upon first request the council does not permit the young boy to be trained, they believe that his fright clouds his future. But Anakin helps fight in the battle against the villianous Trade Foundation. Qui-Gon is killed by the sith Darth Maul, but before he dies he tells Obi-Wan to trade Anakin. Eventually, the council (master Yoda) agrees. The Republic's new Supreme Chancellor, Palpatine, is very intrested in Anakin, and wants to watch his progress.

At the age of twenty he is Obi-Wan's padawan. Becuase of his great talent he has become quite arogant. When he was younger he accompanied Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon as they make sure that senator Padme is safe. His first solo mission given to him by the council is to return to Naboo, Padme's home planet, and protect her from anything that may harm her. This mission is not hard because it is his first alone, it is difficult becuase he has had romantic feelings for Padme since they met ten years ago. While he is guarding Padme, he senses that his mother, Shmi, is in danger. They both go back to Anakin's home planet of Tatooine to find his mother. He finds that his mother is on the verge of death, and that she has been tortured. He kills all of the Tuscan Raiders, including all of the women and children. Soon after Obi-Wan and Anakin engage in a battle against Count Dooku. Obi-Wan is injured, so Anakin fights on his own. But Anakin is defeated by the older, wiser Count Dooku. Dooku severs Skywalker's right arm in the battle. His arm is replaced with a mechanical arm. After He and Padme secetly get married. The only people in attendance to the wedding are Padme, Anakin, and the droids C-3PO and R2-D2 (who act as the witnesses).

Obi-Wan and Anakin go to rescue Palpatine. Tracking the captive Chancellor to the observation deck, they encounter Count Dooku. Obi-Wan is injured and Anakin is forced to defeat Dooku by himself, and he comes through. He has Palpatine at his mercy, and Palpatine tells Anakin to decapitate Dooku. Anakin does not want to kill him, but he eventually does decapitate Dooku, regreting it immediatly (Killing a defensless prisoner is not the Jedi way). When Anakin returns home to be greeting by his wife, Padme. She tells him that she is pregnant, and he could not be happier...until he begins having dreams of Padme dying while giving birth. He fears that the dream will come true, because he had the same type of dreams right before his mother died. Palpatine is now basically a dictator in the Senate. He makes Anakin part of the Jedi Council. The Council accept Anakin, but with suspicion and do not let him have the rank of Jedi Master. What The Council asks him to do is spy on Palpatine, because they have a feeling something is not right. Anakin is upset that The Council does not see him as an equal, and he begins to lose all faith in The Republic. Anakin does as The Council asks, and spies on Paplatine. He soon finds out that Palpatine is actually the Sith Lord Darth Sidious. Palpatine (Darth Sidious) offers to teach Anakin the ways of the dark side, telling him that if he goes to the dark side he will be able to save his wife's life. But Anakin reports his findings to Mace Windu. Mace Windu goes into The Chancellor's office and when Anakin comes in he finds that Windu is about to kill Palpatine (who has no weapon). Palpatine tries to use Force Lightning to get Windu away, but Windu (being the Jedi Master that he is) deflects the lightning and it goes back and hits Palpatine in the face, scarring him permanantly. Palpatine becomes very weak and Anakin now begs Windu not to kill him, but Windu tells Anakin that he is too dangerous to keep alive. Anakin rememberes what the Sith Lord told him, and realizes (or thinks) that in order to save his wife he needs Palpatine. Anakin takes Windu's arm off, making it easier for Paplatine to jump up and use the lightning to push him out of the window, killing him. It is after this incident that Anakin Skywalker converts to the Dark Side and becomes Darth Vader. Padme dies after giving birth to Luke , and Leia Skywalker. Since Padme dies, they are both given to different homes and seperated.

Years later, after Luke and Leia are grown Darth Vader is charged with recovering the stolen plans of the Death Star (His headquarters). He has taken Princess Leia and tortured her and then made her watch the Death Star commander blow up her home planet of Alderaan. Soon after Darth Vader duels Obi-Wan, who is at the Death Star to rescue Leia, Darth Vader defeats him turning him into a spirit of the force. Vader then encounters Luke in a battle for the Death Star. Vader senses that the force is incredibly strong with Luke. He is about to kill Luke when the Millenium Falcon, piloted by Han Solo, sends Vader spinning into space.

Vader, (as usual) is not defeated completely. He captures Han, Chewbacca, Leia, and C3PO. He captures them in order to lure Luke to the Death Star. He makes a deal with Cloud City, more specifficaly Lando, to give Han Solo to Boba Fett. He freezes Han Solo in carbonite. Luke, who is now partially trained by Master Yoda gets into a battle with Vader but loses the battle, and also loses his arm to Vader's lightsaber. This is when Vader admits to being his father, and offers Luke the chance to overthrow the Empire with him as father and son. Luke refuses, and he is then fitted for a robotic arm (just as his father had).

Luke has now mostly completed his Jedi training. In the last episode Luke becomes dangerously close to turning over to the Dark Side as his father did. But in a battle with him, after cutting off his hand and looking at him he realizes that he will always be a Jedi, and will not have the same fate of his father.

Barry-no-more

"Die? I should say not, dear fellow. No Barrymore would allow such a conventional thing to happen to him." The last words of actor John Barrymore. He was born February 15th, 1882 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He died on may 29th, 1942 in L.A. He was an actor and gained his fame through his roles in Hamlet and Richard lll. He is also the grandfather of actress Drew Barrymore. Some of his movies include: Sherlock Holmes, Moby Dick, and Grand Hotel.

He was married four different times. His first marriage was to a woman named Katherine Corri Harris. They were married from 1910 until 1917. He married his next wife only three years later, in 1920. Her name was Blanche Oelrichs, and they divorced in 1928. In the same year, he married Dolores Costello. They were married until 1934. Two years later, he married Eliane Barrie, and they were married until 1940. Which was two years before his death. He had one child with Blanche, her name was Diana. Unfortinatly Diana died at the very young age of only 38 in the 1960, which was 18 years after he father's death. He had two other chlidren, both with Dolores. Daughter Dolores Barrymore, and son John Drew Barrymore. John Drew was the father of famous actress Drew Barrymore, but sadly past away in 2004.

It is incredible how many people in the Barrymore family went into the entertainment industry. It literally, runs in the family. Five Barrymore's have stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Those five are John Barrymore, John Drew Barrymore, Ethel Barrymore, Lionel Barrymore, and Drew Barrymore. The Barrymore's are the family with the most members on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The most recent addition to the Barrymore collection in the Walk of Fame was John's granddaughter, Drew. Drew was put on the Walk in 2004.

Not only are the Barrymore's known for their exceptional acting and entertainment abilities, but also konwn for their extravagent lifestyles. As I mentioned before, John was married four times, and slept around with many women. He was a partier. Which led to his children, and grandchildren to be partiers too. The Barrymore's are the perfect example of a Hollywood family gone bad. Drew Barrymore was famous by the age of nine, and not just because of her family. She was in ET as a young child and quickly gained fame from the hit. But at only nine years old she was a regular at Studio 54. She was smoking cigarettes and drinking alchohol by the age of nine. Smoking marijuanna by the age of ten, and shorting cocaine by the age of 13. It was at 13 that she first entered rehab, but went again when she was 14. But Drew made an incredicle turn around. She made her comeback in the 1996 movie Scream. Barrymore is succesful, beautiful, and completely in control of her life.

Da Bears, Da Bears, Da....Farley

"Please don't leave me. Please don't leave me." The last words of Chris Farley. Chris Farley's death had to do with his obesity, alcoholism, and drug addictions. Chris Farley was a comedian, best known for his skits on Saturday Night Live. He was also in many successful movies. These include Beverly Hills Ninja, Tommy Boy, Wayne's World, Coneheads, and Wayne's World 2. He was on the show from 1990-1995. He was born on February 15th 1964 and he died on December 18th 1997.

Farley was announced as a new member of Saturday Night Live in 1990. The other comedian who was announced that night was Chris Rock. Chris Farley often worked with Rock, and many others including: David Spade, Adam Sandler, and Rob Schneinder. Chris Farley is one of my favorite comedians. His skits on SNL were so funny, and so original. My personal favorites are the ones with the "superfans" (DA BEARS) and Matt Foley: Motivational Speaker. But there were also a lot of skits that made fun of Farley's size. In fact, most of the skits had something to do with the fact that he was very overweight. But despite his obesity he was able to dance around on stage and be incredibly energetic.

Farley actually began recording vocals for an animated movie. That movie was Sherk. After his death, he was forced to be replaced. He was replaced with his fellow SNL cast member Mike Myers. He was supposed to appear in The Cable Guy. But due to scheduling conflicts he was unable to play the main role. The role again went to another famous comedian, Jim Carrey. On August 26th, 2005 he was awarded 2,289th star to get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He obviously died before he got the award.

Chris Farley's declining health was a hot topic among the press. At the young age of 33, on December 18th 1997 Chris Farley died in his apartment. His younger brother John found him. The autopsy revealed that he took a very dangerous amount of heroin and cocaine together. There were over 500 people who attended his funeral, many of which included actors he had worked with. But his good friend David Spade was not in attendance. Spade was later quoted as saying that he did not attend Farley's funeral because he "could not be in a room where Farley was in a box." However he did appear on the 25th anniversary special of SNL to call for a moment of remembrance for his buddy, Chris.

He's All That

"I must end it. There's no hope left. I'll be at peace. No one had anything to do with this. My decision totally." The last words of comedian Freddie Prinze. Prinze was born on June 22nd 1954 and he killed himself on January 29th 1977.

He was born in St. Claire's Hospital and was raised in Washington Heights, which is in New York City. His mother was Puerto Rican and his father was a German immigrant from post-Nazi Germany. Before he became famous he took martial arts lessons from a man named Robert Wall, who was a student of the most famous martial arts artist of all time, Bruce Lee. Wall appeared in the movies Enter the Dragon and Return of the Dragon. Chico and the Man was on the air from 1974 to 1977. Prinze played the character of Francisco "Chico" Rodriguez. The show appeared on NBC and was an instant hit. Freddie Prinze is defiantly remembered for his role on Chico and the Man, but he is best remembered for his son, Freddie Prinze Jr. Robert Wall is actually the godfather of Freddie Prinze Jr.

Prinze killed himself by shooting himself in the head. The reason for his suicide is officially unknown. But he is on record for having told friends that he was very unhappy with his life. Prinze had a long time drug problem, and after his arrest for driving under the influence in 1976, his wife filed for divorce. She believed that Prinze was a threat to her, and to their son. In the early hours of January 28th 1977 he received a restraining order from his wife. He spent the last hours of his life calling his loved ones and saying goodbye. One of the people he called was his business manager, Mr. Marvin "Dusty" Snyder. Snyder was alarmed by the phone call that he received so he went over to Prinze's room in the Beverly Comstock Hotel. When Snyder arrived Prinze continued the phone calls and Snyder was very worried so he went in the next room to call Prinze's psychiatrist. The psychiatrist assured Snyder that Prinze was in no danger. Supposedly when Snyder walked back into the room where Prinze was, he was on the phone with his ex-wife saying goodbye. After he hung up the phone, he pulled a gun out of the couch and shot himself in the head. Snyder tried to stop him, but it was too late. He was transported to UCLA Medical Center where he was put on life support. His family made the decision of taking him off of life support at 1:00 pm on January 29th at the very young age of 22.

His last words were spoken to his ex-wife on the telephone (the ex-wife that got the restraining order against him). She was the last goodbye phone call he made. Freddie Prinze Jr. was only 10 months old when his father committed suicide. His father has no idea that his son followed in his footsteps to become an actor. Prinze Jr. is very famous for his roles in teen movies, such as She's All That.

'Here's looking at you, kid"

"I should never have switched from Scotch to Martinis " The last words of famous actor, Humphrey Bogart. He died January 14th 1957. He died of esophageal cancer, he had always been a heavy drinker and smoker. And by 1956, when he finally decided he would go see a doctor, it was too late. Bogart is remembered for his role of Rick in the hit movie Casablanca as well as many others.

Humphrey Bogart was born in in New York City in December of 1899. He attended the Trinity School, and then attended Phillips Academy which is in Andover, Massachusetts. His parents wanted him to go to Yale, but he was kicked out of Phillips Academy in 1918.

He began his acting career in 1921 on the Brooklyn stage. He played a Japanese butler. He appeared in at least 17 Broadway productions between the years of 1922 and 1935. When the play The Petrified Forest came out, that's when Bogart's fame rose. Warner Bros. bought the screen rights to the play and made it into a movie. The movie got great reviews, and Bogart was quickly becoming a household name.

Casablanca, which is one of the most well known movies in America, starred Humphrey Bogart. He played a night club owner named Rick. This was Bogart's first romantic role ever, and he did it practically flawlessly. His female counterpart in the movie was Ingrid Bergman. Casablanca, in 1943, won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Bogart was nominated for his portrayal of Rick, but ended up losing to Paul Lukas, who starred in Watch on the Rhine. Although, in 1952 he won Best Actor for his role in The African Queen. He was also nominated for the British Academy Awards, in 1953, for the same role, but did not end up winning the award. In 1955 he was nominated for an Oscar for his role in the movie The Caine Mutiny. And in 1999 he was named by the American Film Institute as the Greatest Male Star of All Time. He also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

"The whole world is three drinks behind." A quote from Bogart, who was a frequent drinker. His drinking and smoking led to his ultimate death. being the funny, charismatic man that he was he had a sense of humor, even though he was on his death bed. His last words are the perfect example of the kind of man he truly was.

Project Mayhem

"What's that smell?" The last words of Tyler Durden. Tyler Durden was "killed" by a "self inflicted" gunshot wound to the head.

If you are unaware Tyler Durden is one of the main characters in the movie Fight Club. Durden is portrayed by a young, talented Brad Pitt. Alongside Pitt are Edward Norton as the Narrator, and Helena Bonham Carter as Marla Singer. The movie is based on the novel, also titled Fight Club, by Chuck Palahnuik. I chose to write about a fictional character, not only for a change of pace, but because it is something that I am passionate about. Fight Club is my favorite movie, and everything about it intrigues me...especially the characters.

The first time I saw the movie I was so lost, I had no idea what the movie was about. It is not until the last half hour of the movie that it all starts to come together, you realize what is going on, the twist that changes the entire movie. Tyler isn't real. The entire movie shifts, everything that you thought you know is wiped away. Everything is different. It turns out that Tyler is only a figment of the Narrator's imagination, the Narrator is schizophrenic. He created a cool alter-ego, known as Tyler Durden, to make himself feel better. The way Tyler describes himself to the Narrator is "All the ways you wish you could be, that's me. I look like you wanna look, I fuck like you wanna fuck, I am smart, capable, and most importantly, I am free in all the ways that you are not."

The Narrator worked for a car company, worked in a cubicle, had the generic, boring job that no one wanted. He was living a boring life, and needed to escape it. So he created Tyler Durden, someone he could hide his true self. He could transform himself into Tyler and be everything he couldn't be, do everything he couldn't do as his true self. Tyler's life was care-free. He had his own soap company. He sold "rich women their own fat asses back to them." In the movie he explains that the best fat used to make soaps, is fat from humans. So when they go to render fat for the soap, they steal the excess fat from a liposuction clinic. Tyler is cool, always having fun, and a total bad ass.

He dies in the end, the Narrator shoots himself in the head, to kill Tyler. Tyler had taken over the Narrator's body and had a plan to demolish every credit card building in the city, to make it so everyone had a clean slate. Everyone had the same amount of money, and everyone was equal. In the end, the buildings end up blowing up, but the Narrator rids himself of the burden of Tyler Durden.

Guernica's Painter

"Drink to me" the last words of Pablo Picasso (1881-1973). Pablo Picasso died on April 8th 1973 while hosting a dinner party with his wife, Jaqueline.

Pablo Picasso is one of the most famous artists of all time. The Spanish artist painted, and sculpted beautiful works of art. He is one of the artists that brought the style of cubism into the world. My personal favorite is one named “Guernica.” It is a painting depicting the Spanish Civil War, through the eyes of Picasso. The all black and white piece of artwork has been something I have studied since I was a young child. In my house we have a very large copy of “Guernica” and I would look at it all the time. Every time I looked at it I saw something new, something tucked away, hidden into the picture.

Picasso was born in Spain, and his first word was actually "piz" which is short for the Spanish word "lapiz" (lapiz in Spanish means "pencil") While Picasso was young he spent most of his time in either Barcelona or Paris.

You're Fired! I'm Representing Myself!

"Somebody needs to kill my trial attorney." The last words of George Harris (1959-2000). Harris was on death row and was executed on September 13th, 2000 in Missouri.

I know Harris is not famous, but I read the quote and I could not resist writing something about it. I've grown up around attorneys and judges, because of my father who happens to be a judge.

Harris was on death row for shooting a man in the face. He was then arrested for armed robbery in Columbia 2 weeks later. In 1982 Harris was convicted with first degree murder and armed robbery. In court he said that he murdered the man in self defense, but the supreme court did not believe him and sentenced him to death.

I'm not sure if he was making a joke, or if he was actually serious. Personally I think it is one of the funniest things said before execution. Usually people give their love to their families, or say they are innocent, or even apologize for what they did. But this man, he wanted someone to kill the lawyer who represented him. The man was obviously not in the right state of mind, but blaming your attorney for being convicted is completely crazy. He did the crime, he's lucky he had the right to an attorney and a chance to go to trial. Or at least that is how I see the situation. His attorney was helping a guilty man, Harris should have been able to see that the attorney was doing him a favor. A guilty client is not the most desired client.

X'd Out

"Cool it brothers..." The last words of Malcolm X, born Malcolm Little (1925-1965). On February 21st 1965 Malcolm X was shot 16 times in Manhattan, New York.

Every one's heard of Martin Luther King Jr. but not everyone has heard about Malcolm X. Martin Luther King Jr. is an American hero, and he should be. But I believe there is someone else that we as a country have been overlooking, Malcolm X.

Growing up Malcolm did not have the easiest life. In 1931 Malcolm's father was found dead, his death was ruled as a suicide. After his father's death his mother had a nervous breakdown and was declared legally insane. She was then committed to the state mental hospital. Malcolm and his 7 brothers and sisters were split up and sent to foster homes. His mother remained committed until Malcolm and his siblings released her 26 years later. Malcolm's education stops at junior high school. He had aspirations of being a lawyer, but one of his teachers told him that being a lawyer was not a realistic goal for a black man like himself. Malcolm moved to Boston to live with his half sister. After living in Boston he moved to New York City in 1943. After some time in Harlem, he began to involve himself in things such as robbery and drugs. In early 1946 he returned to Boston and was arrested for burglary. Two days later her was indicted, once again, for carrying firearms. On January 16th he was sentenced to eight to ten years in prison. He began serving his time on February 27th. It was in prison when Malcolm converted to Islam. On August 7th 1952 he was released from prison.

It was directly after he was released from prison that he changed his name to "X". The "X" symbolized the rejection of slave names, and the absence of an African inherited name. This led many members of the Nation of Islam to change their surnames to "X." In 1953 the FBI opened a file on Malcolm, calling him a communist. A few years later he became the minister of the Nation of Islam Temple Number Eleven. Soon Malcolm was seen as one of the most influential figures in the movement. (After his friend Elijah Muhhamah) He even got the famous boxer, named Cassius Clay, to convert to the Nation of Islam, and change his name...to Muhammad Ali. (Later in life Ali would go on to become the most famous boxer in the world, and he would leave Nation of Islam, and would join mainstream Islam) Malcolm publicly announced his break from the Nation of Islam on March 8th, 1964.

There were numerous assassination attempts on Malcolm X. Only one was successful. In 1965 in Audubon Ballroom which is in Harlem, New York, Malcolm X would give his last public speech. About three minutes into his speech three men stood up and shot him 16 times. Before being shot Malcolm said, "Cool it brothers..." but they didn't cool it. By the times the paramedics had arrived, he was already dead. The shooters were arrested at the scene of the crime.

Malcolm X stood for black power, he had a huge impact on African American Rights. He gave numerous speeches, all very passionate. And they all told the brutal truth...or what he thought to be the truth.

Dear Suicide,

"I Love You, I Love You!" The final words of Kurt Donald Cobain (1967-1994). On April 5th, 1994 in his home in Seattle, Washington, Kurt Cobain committed suicide by a self inflicted gunshot wound to the head.

Kurt Cobain is best known for being the lead singer, and lead guitarist for the band Nirvana. Cobain wrote all music and lyrics for Nirvana. Looking at his lyrics for the first time, they look like nothing more than random words put together. But many of his songs had a brutally controversial, deep meaning. Of course, teenagers at the time were not listening to the words in the song (not that they could understand them...) but listening to the music. The guitar, the bass, the drums, and to top it off Cobain's haunting howl. Most didn't know, or even care to find out, what Cobain was saying in his songs. One of the best things I have done in my life try and take the time to really understand his music. I say try, because there is no way to truly get inside of the twisted mind and the tortured soul of a man like Kurt Cobain.
One of my favorite Nirvana songs is "Polly" off of their album, Nevermind. Charles R. Cross, author of Heavier Than Heaven (a biography of Kurt Cobain) writes, "...A song like "Polly" found Kurt taking a newspaper clipping and crafting an emotional back story to go with the headline. The song, originally titled "Hitchhiker," had its roots in a real-life incident from 1987, when a young girl was kidnapped, brutally raped, and tortured with a blow torch. The song is written, surprisingly, from the perspective and in the voice of the perpetrator. Kurt managed to capture the horror of the rape ("let me clip dirty wings"), yet at the same time subtly pointed out the humanness of the attacker ("she's just as bored as me"). Its literary strength was that it concerned itself with internal dialogue...Kurt ends the song with a line that could stand as an epitaph for the rapist, the victim, or for himself: "It amazes me, the will of instinct." Bob Dylan picked "Polly" out of the entire Nirvana catalog as the most courageous song. Speaking of Cobain, Dylan says, "That kid has heart."

By breaking down Cobain's suicide note, like Cross did "Polly" one can see the simplicity of Cobain's last words. It is his grand gesture, his final goodbye to his daughter, Frances Bean. In the note Cobain states that he believes that him leaving the world will be a good thing for his daughter. He may have left this world with his family in mind, but I believe that subconsciously he was thinking of himself. He was depressed and on drugs, he was obviously not in a clear state of mind. I believe that he took his life to rid himself of all of the inner pain he had. I also believe that he convinced himself that he was taking his life to help his daughter, so he would not feel as guilty. I know that he loved his daughter, you could see it in his eyes, you could see it in his smile, and you could see it in the way he lit up when she was around him. I believe that Kurt Cobain's last words, "I Love You, I Love You!" were meant for Frances. Subconsciously I believe that he knew he was doing this for himself, not her. The "I Love You, I Love You!" was his way of subtly telling his daughter that it was not about her, it was about him and what he thought he had to do. Like Bob Dylan said, the kid had heart, and it's too bad that he was the only one who couldn't see it.