Old time religion

What I'm thinking about today: The moment in the film Junebug when the Embeth Davidtz character realizes that her big city husband not only grew up a churchgoer, but can also, at a moment's notice, sing "Softly and tenderly, Jesus is calling" -- in a sweetly harmonized rendition that made me weep to hear it and makes me weep to recall it.

I wish Amy Adams had won the Oscar for her shattering performance in Junebug. It surely was a fine one.

Nice to meetcha

Look, Yours Truly is profiled on the local Web site dane101.com.

Attack of the preppy

I am having an exchange about the novel Prep with my friend the Chicago critic Laura Demanski, who blogs at About Last Night. She posted the inaugural piece yesterday, and my response is up on the Daily Page.

Ringers

Whenever someone makes fun of me because I share a name with a prominent documentarian -- and this happens a lot; like, a lot -- I say a silent prayer of gratitude that I don't share a name with Michael Jackson.

Good word

"Both blogs and old media have their rightful place on the Net."

-- John Dvorak

Unsecret honor

I'm pleased Robert Altman got a special Oscar on Sunday. He is one of the first film directors whose work I cared deeply about, thanks to an Altman series I saw in college that was put on by the University of Chicago's superb Doc Films. Altman's Nashville is simply my favorite movie, ever, and Sterling Hayden is one of my favorite actors, ever, largely because of his performance in The Long Goodbye.

I liked that the orchestra played "Suicide is Painless," the theme song from M*A*S*H, when Altman walked on stage to accept his award.

Good word

"No, it just means I kissed Britney Spears. I am the mommy pop star and she is the baby pop star. And I am kissing her to pass my energy on to her."

-- Madonna

Good word

"Water under the bridge / I guess that's all life really is"

-- Lee Ann Womack, Dean Dillon, Dale Dodson, "Twenty Years and Two Husbands Ago"