The Human Costs of World War II

World War II Deaths

On June 6, 1944, more than 160,000 Allied troops landed along the coast of Normandy, France to fight Nazi Germany. Many died or were wounded that day, including 9,000 Allied soldiers. One cannot think about D-Day without thinking of the great loss of life, and a new video explores the human costs in military and civilian lives during the Second World War.

This new 17-minute documentary, The Fallen of World War II, does an excellent job of conveying the sheer numbers of the human loss during World War II. The video by Neil Halloran is an enlightening look at the cost of war.

The Fallen of World War II first examines the number of deaths of people in the military, then it calculates the deaths of civilians, including those killed as part of the Holocaust. Finally, the video compares WWII with other world conflicts, comparing recent years to the historical record. Check it out.

You may also explore this information through an interactive video. Halloran also accepts donations to help support his work on this film.

Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Where is Tank Man?

    Protest Tanks China

    On June 5, 1989, on the morning after the Chinese military had used force to crack down on the Tiananmen Square protests, a lone man who would become known as “Tank Man” created one of the most iconic images of the twentieth century. The man stood in front of a row of military tanks, one person defying a mighty army in Beijing, China.

    In today’s Internet world, we seem to think everything can be caught on camera, telling us everything about everybody. But surprisingly, the world still knows little about the man who stood in front of the tanks, even decades later. Although some reports had named him as 19-year-old student Wang Weilin, others reports disputed that claim. As for what happened to him, there are various theories ranging from him being executed to living a quiet life somewhere.

    In the extended video, at the end, a couple of men take Tank Man away from the tanks. But even that remains in dispute, as some see it as him being arrested while others believe the men were protecting him. Whatever happened to Tank Man, we thank him for the reminder of what one person can do.

    What do you think happened to Tank Man? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Shawshank Redemption, The 8-Bit Video Game

    CineFix remembers the days when we had 8-bit video games and were happy to have them. Below, they imagine what the 1994 movie The Shawshank Redemption would be like were it one of those games. Check out this piece of 8-bit cinema.

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    The Regurgitator and the Firecracker-Mouth-Guy on “America’s Got Talent”

    AGT Hoffman

    [Updated September 16, 2015.] Two of the more interesting acts on this season’s America’s Got Talent involved guys putting things in their mouths: the “professional regurgitator” Stevie Starr and the guy with the firecracker in his mouth, Wayne Hoffman. Both performers showed some magic talent that kept the audience gasping for different reasons.

    During his audition, Stevie Starr showed how he could swallow things and then . . . regurgitate them. Starr started with some numbered coins, showing his ability to regurgitate on command. He ended with something pretty amazing involving sugar. Howie Mandel, Mel B, Heidi Klum, and Howard Stern all voted for him to go on to the next round. Is he really swallowing those things or is it a trick?

    Seeing Starr’s talent, you might wonder why you have never seen him before this appearance. Well, if you lived outside the United States, you might have seen him earlier. He appeared on the 2010 season of Britain’s Got Talent, making it to the semi-finals. And, before coming to the American version of the show, he also had appeared on the Czech and Slovak version, the German version, the Italian version, and the French version of the Got Talent series.

    Even if nobody told the judges about Starr’s previous performances, at least one of the judges should not have been too surprised. Howard Stern had Starr on his radio show back in the late 1980s, as show in this video. Anyway, we will have to see if Americans embrace regurgitating as much as those other countries.

    As we have noted before, unlike some shows like American Idol, there are no rules preventing someone with a previous career from appearing on America’s Got Talent. So, contestants like Starr can get second (or third. . .) chances like this one. It is pretty cool that America’s Got Talent gives people a new chance, but I think it would be more interesting if the show were more open about telling us the full backstory of contestants.

    Another highlight in the first round of auditions was Wayne Hoffman, a magician/mentalist who did a pretty amazing stunt with firecrackers in his mouth. I have no idea how Hoffman was able to avoid exploding his mouth, but his act was fun to watch.

    Like Starr, Hoffman has been around awhile. For example, he has a career using his skills in giving motivational speeches. He was featured on NBC’s TV show Phenomenon, and like Starr, appeared on Howard Stern’s show. In 2012, Hoffman published a book motivational book entitled Mind Candy, and has his own website.

    With Hoffman also advancing on America’s Got Talent, it appeared we would be seeing much more of both these guys. [See updates below.]

    Wayne Hoffman August 2015 Update: Wayne Hoffman, for unknown reasons, mysteriously disappeared from America’s Got Talent and did not appear in the Judge Cuts round. His Twitter account and Facebook page does not tell us whether he had to leave for some reason or quit the competition on his own. The America’s Got Talent Wiki provides no insight either. On June 30, 2015, though, he opened his own show “Mind Candy” at the Trump Taj Mahal in Las Vegas, so it seems likely he decided to leave America’s Got Talent after some other options opened up.

    The Regurgitator August 2015 Update: After advancing through the Judges Cuts round, Stevie “The Professional Regurgitator” Starr gained enough votes on August 26, 2015 after his performance at Radio City Music Hall to move to the Semi-Finals. In a video from August 25, 2015, he does something amazing with Heidi Klum’s ring and a lock. The trick was similar to one he had done on Britain’s Got Talent, which also confounded experts on how he does it. Some folks make a case for explaining the secret of how the Regurgitator does his act, but he is still a great performer.

    The Regurgitator September 9, 2015 Update: This week, Stevie “The Professional Regurgitator” Starr advanced to the finals of America’s Got Talent.  His performance that earned him a spot in the finals is where he impressed viewers with his ability to regurgitate smoke into soap bubbles.

    The Regurgitator September 16, 2015 Update: In the finals, Stevie Starr showed that he can keep coming up with new ways to entertain us with his regurgitating. This time, he ramped things up by incorporating fire into his act. We will find out tonight whether he wins, and it is most likely going to come down to being between him and the inspiring and funny comedian with a stutter, Drew Lynch, who also has been great throughout the season.

    Who is your favorite act on this season’s “AGT”? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Disney Recycled . . . Animation

    disney recycling
    Apparently even before most of us began recycling our garbage, Disney was recycling its animation. Of course, it makes sense when back in the old days animation took a long time. So, we see scenes from older Disney movies like Snow White (1937), The Jungle Book (1967), or Sleeping Beauty (1959) being reused in later movies like Robin Hood (1973) and Beauty and the Beast (1991).

    This new video from Movie Munchies highlights some of the way that Walt Disney recycles animation. [2024 Update: Unfortunately, the video is not currently avaialable].

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