Remember the joke that went around when The Rolling Stones announced their Steel Wheels Tour way back in 1989?

People were calling it the Steel Wheelchairs tour because, at the time, the ageing rockers were approaching their 50s. Well, another thirty years on and these guys are still going, and seemingly, indestructible.

Since that tour so long ago, Mick Jagger has survived open-heart surgery, Keith Richards has survived about everything he’s ever done to himself.

And Charlie Watts? Well, he’s survived working with Mick and Keith.

Now, Ron Wood has revealed that he has beaten cancer…

Twice!

Years ago, Ronny…

ILLUMINATION / FICTION STORIES

The play on words aside, a better fiction writer is what I aspire to be, and reading better writers like Liam Ireland and Britni Pepper inspire me to pick up my game. Finding these terrific writers on ILLUMINATION-Curated and ILLUMINATION has somehow lit a fire in my brain.

Their inspiration and my own love for ‘the story’ has become the spark that propels me. Money is a lovely and useful thing to have with the right perspective, but writing stories that resonate are for me, the ultimate prize.

As a filmmaker, I have always been drawn to visual narratives and…

Cinema — Myths and Meaning🎥

Movies of the past still hold magical powers of imagery and symbolism that resonate today.

If you appreciate the artistry and detail that goes into filmmaking and you would like to explore cinema’s rich and diverse history with a discerning eye, please join me on a journey of rediscovery. You may even find a few new surprises along the way.

Each month, I will offer up two or three titles for viewing at your leisure. My goal is to explore these selections in detail and how they connect with today’s world. Exploring genres and film conventions in ways you may…

Historical Fiction

It was as if time slowed to a snail’s pace, and Colin Swayze was left to watch in silent horror. Like every other man in the battalion struck dumb as the great man fell, each ghastly moment was forever etched in his memory. No, more like a brand from a hot iron, seared into his thoughts for eternity. Red uniformed officers froze in place as the frantic scene played itself out.

At first, the General only seemed slightly wounded. Glancing off his sword hand, a single line of blood trickled down his arm as he raised his weapon once more…

Hasty Exit

Between 80,000 and 100,000 United Empire Loyalists of New York were being Black Listed in the days following the Revolutionary War. Many were attacked and had property vandalized by angry mobs of patriots. Their land was also taken for refusing to side with the revolution against Britain. Though original settlers of the ‘new world’, the Loyalists were forced to leave the United States for other territories.

In 1783, the first United Empire Loyalists arrived at St John in New Brunswick just North of Maine, where they first settled in a section called Parrtown. …

Freed from winter’s icy grip with the sun’s rising arc, I’m always reminded of the prospect for new growth. For me, that is the beauty of living in a climate where all four seasons play out each year.

When spring finds its full bloom as it has here in most of North America, there is one song that illuminates the way to the brilliance of the summer sun. For as long as I can remember, this has always been my favourite Beatles song, but only recently did I realize precisely why.

A few years ago, my wife and I visited…

Heads Roll

Anne Boleyn was the second wife of King Henry VIII and a former lady-in-waiting to his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. Her effect on King Henry would change the religious landscape forever, but her marriage could not survive her inability to bear him a son. On this day in 1536, the King’s court convicted and executed four of Anne’s so-called lovers, and Henry VIII had his marriage to her annulled, which was convenient because she was beheaded two days later.

Fate would eventually play a cruel trick on King Henry VIII when none of his subsequent wives could…