Joe Van Langenberg

SHOULD SUGAR BABES BE CONDEMNED:? BY Joe Van Langenberg While some may call them glorified hookers, opportunistic parasites, or worse, the fact remains that sugar babes, or women who forge bonds with older men for monetary considerations, are human beings with feelings; just like the rest of us. Those with puritanical values, or the morality police, who at times are intent in extracting the mote from others’ eyes, without firstly removing the beam from theirs; derive satisfaction in drawing attention to the fact, that the term sugar babes, is just an euphemism for high-society escort girls, who have no qualms in not liquidating their investments (or to be more precise, sugar daddies or older men, who satisfy their sugar babes’ every need, in return for sexual favours). ...

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DORIS MADE EVERY ONES’ DAY: By Joe Van Langenberg   DORIS MADE EVERY ONES’ DAY: A dazzling star of the distant past, has been sadly beckoned to a land which knows no parting & sorrow. Glamour Girl of the mid-fiftees, sixtees & beyond, who answered the inevitable call from beyond; has crossed the Great Divide. Doris Mary Ann Kappelhoff, who later came to be known as Doris Day, was born on April 03rd 1922. She succumbed to the ravages of pneumonia on May 13th 2019 in Carmel Valley, California, in the United States. ...

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KATE SPARKLES: By Joe Van Langenberg   KATE SPARKLES: Congratulations to Australia’s accomplished nightingale Kate Miller-Heidke, for her electrifying performance at the preliminary semi-finals of Euro Vision 2019 Song Contest, held on May 14th 2019 in Tel Aviv. Notwithstanding a politically-charged atmosphere, on account of ongoing animosity between age-old rivals Israel & Palestine; the proceedings went off as planned, with neither fuss, froth, nor any blips on the radar. ...

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Little Richard – MUSICAL GENIUS WITH PENCHANT FOR RAZZMATAZZ: By Joe Van Langenberg   Following the passing of Little Richard, the music industry has been, as many times before, plunged into an abyss of sadness & shock. Richard Wayne Penniman, affectionately known as Little Richard, was born on December 05th, 1932 in Macon, Georgia USA. He is said to have lost his grip on life, as a result of what some have indicated to have been due to liver cancer; while other reports have stipulated bone cancer to have been the most likely cause of death. Regardless of the conflicting reports pertaining to his demise, the fact remains that the voice of a musical genius who lived & breathed music, has been stilled for all eternity. Little Richard was an American singer, songwriter & musician; who was a Gulliver among Lilliputians. He was an influential figure, who strode the popular ...

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RAKING UP PAINFUL MEMORIES: Joe Van Langenberg Photo source:eOnline The savage murder of child beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey on December 26th 1996, scarred the nation’s soul; shaking the rest of the civilized world to its very foundations. According to coronial reports, death had been as a result of strangulation, combined with extensive craniocerebral trauma. The ”little beauty” as she was aptly called, accomplished much in her short life, winning America’s Royale Miss, Little Miss Charlevoix, Little Miss Colorado, Colorado State All-Star Kids Cover Girl & the National Tiny Miss Beauty. ...

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ASSANGE’S DEHUMANIZATION CONTINUES – BY Joe Van Langenberg   Photo Source:BBC News Hot on the heels of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange been dragged out of the Ecuadorean embassy like a common criminal, the dehumanization & witch-hunt continues, with no signs of abating any time soon. At this point in time, Assange has been sentenced for a period of fifty days in a British prison; for having allegedly breached his bail conditions. His trauma will be unlikely to end, given that the United States is bent on having him extradited to face so-called justice ,for having leaked highly-classified military information, which it claims has been inimical to its national security. Whether this claim like many others, can be given any credence, remains a moot point; considering that Uncle Sam has the uncontrollable propensity to engage in exaggerated rhetoric. ...

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PERCY SLEDGE CROSSES OVER: By Joe Van Langenberg   With the passing of one of the greatest American Gospel, Rhythm & Blues (R&B) & soul performers of all time, Percy Tyrone Sledge, the final curtain has been brought down on a voice, which was tinged with sadness, raw emotion & one, which packed a punch like no other. Shooting to stardom with his best known hit & signature song, “When a man loves a woman”, which incidentally Michael Bolton covered, Percy released many others; conspicuous among them been “My special prayer, What am I living for? (which was Millie’s original), Just out of reach, It tears me up, A whiter shade of pale, Misty moment & First you cry” among a host of others. “When a man loves a woman” secured a Number One slot for Percy, on both Billboard Hot 100 & R&B Charts in1966; while been awarded a ...

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KIM’S “DEATH” REPORTS DENIED: BY Joe Van Langenberg Reports emanating from the grapevine, that Chairman & Supreme Leader of North Korea, 36-year-old Kim Jong-Un has passed away, have been denied by the state’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) & categorised as hyperbole, or mass exaggeration for instant effect. Hot on the heels of widespread speculation that Kim had succumbed to cardiac surgery, as a consequence of morbid obesity, excessive smoking & high stress levels; due to being constantly under the pump; Kim was supposedly seen by US sources, walking in the port city of Wondan, days after the chilling rumours surfaced. Why the US sources were in close proximity to Kim to begin with, when he had been chilling out, could be anyone’s guess. And whether the youthful leader happened to be doing, what he was doing, hasn’t been determined thus far, on account of the country’s news mouthpiece, which ...

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REMEMBERING “A TITAN OF AN ACTOR”: – By Joe Van Langenberg Once again as many times before, the flickering candle of life has been extinguished; leaving behind the darkness of finality. A glittering star which twinkled for decades on end, has lost its lustre for all eternity. One of the most versatile & sought-after acting identities, who left his indelible footprint on Hollywood’s Hallowed Turf, has been beckoned by the sounds of distant drums. Brian Dennehy has answered the inevitable call from beyond. He succumbed to a heart attack, the effects of which were reportedly irreversible in nature. Brian was just 81 years of age at the time of his unexpected passing. Appropriately described by his close friend & colleague Clare Huggins, as “a titan of an actor”, Brian Dennehy was a perfectionist, who never shied away from a challenge; regardless of its magnitude. He possessed a strong work ethic, ...

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THE GLORY OF EASTER: BY Joe Van Langenberg   Now that Easter is almost at our collective doorstep, we should turn the searchlight into the deep recesses of our inner being, thus enabling us to examine our conscience; in a bid to find out, whether we could have had, given the benefit of hindsight, steered our lives on a trajectory, which could have benefited us, as well as our brothers and sisters, whom at times we could have hurt; either intentionally or otherwise. Easter is a time for reflection. It serves as a catalyst, to rise above differences, petty or otherwise, be more respectful, tolerant, but more importantly, to be empathetic to the feelings of those going through a bad patch, not gloating at others’ misfortune and extending the hand of friendship to those fallen by the wayside and whose lives have been torn asunder by heartache and disillusionment. It ...

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