It’s Talkies Day 

Warner Brothers’ The Jazz Singer premiered on the night of Thursday, October 6, 1927, a historic film and cinematic landmark.  

The Jazz Singer was the first feature-length Hollywood talkie film in which spoken dialogue was used as part of the dramatic action.  It is, however, only part talkie with sound-synchronised, vocal musical numbers and accompaniment. 

Audiences in film shows in October 1927 were wildly enthusiastic after almost 25 years of silent movies. America’s favourite jazz singer, Al Jolson, broke into song, adlibbed with his mother at the piano, and proclaimed the famous line: “You ain’t heard nothing yet!”

The commercialisation of sound-on-film and the transformation of the industry from silent films to talkies became a reality with the success of The Jazz Singer.

To celebrate the 96th anniversary of the making of the first talking picture, the Malta branch of The International Al Jolson Society is holding an exhibition at the Galleria Cinema complex, in Fgura until October 12.

Vince Williams – Paola  

This is from Wikileaks

“To get a firearm licence one must join a shooting or collectors’ club for training, which will issue a recommendation letter for the police, after which applicants must pass knowledge on firearm safety and the Arms Act. After successfully completing every step, one will get a licence. Carrying loaded firearms outside of hunting grounds or a shooting range is illegal. Fully automatic firearms are allowed only if they were produced before 1946.”

Really? And why do they have to be fully automatic? As if automatic is not already very deadly. And are some of those below not fully automatic? 

Keep reading.

“Firearm ownership

“There are 129,423 registered firearms (or 25 per 100 people) in Malta, including 66,000 shotguns, 18,992 pistols, 17,241 rifles, 7,552 revolvers, 1,023 tactical shotguns, 705 submachine guns, 565 general purpose machine guns, 43 assault rifles, 28 cannons, 11 firearms concealed in walking sticks, four mortars and two rocket launchers. They are owned by 39,143 registered firearm owners.”

Wow! More than enough to start an uprising! Food for thought!

Francis Sammut – Luqa

Amoral society

Ray Azzopardi wrote that “we are living in an amoral society. Barely a week passes that one does not come across news related to corrupt practices” (September 13).

Which goes to show that Roman Catholicism and its “holy” sacraments, as well as all the theology and sermons in the world, do not make Maltese Catholics holy and virtuous. Threats of hell and belief in God do not persuade believers to lead a moral life.

John Guillaumier – St Julian’s