Free Republic

Against the backdrop of major events in American history like the Civil War and the Great Depression, “The Toys that Built America” shares a different story—one that brings new products and nostalgic toys to the forefront as driving forces behind untold cultural and economic shifts

Aug 11 (Reuters) - Metro system riders in California's San Francisco Bay Area may have noticed a new station guard in recent months. A 5-year-old Harris's hawk named Pac-Man has taken up the perch at El Cerrito del Norte station, where he's on the look out - not for fare evaders, but pigeons. Ricky Ortiz, a falconer with Falcon Force and Pac-Man's handler, began patrolling with the bird at the station this summer, contracting with the Bay Area Rapid Transit system, or BART, to keep the pigeons at bay and protect commuters from pigeon poop.

On July 9, 1981, Nintendo released Donkey Kong, the arcade game that saved the company. By this time Nintendo had been around nearly 100 years, though the company’s work had evolved greatly over time. It started as a playing-card company, later getting into such varied productions as instant rice and taxi services. In 1969, it ventured into an industry that would prove fruitful: electronic video games. For the next decade, Nintendo would achieve success in Japan with various home-gaming systems and arcade games. In 1979, the company decided it wanted to branch into the profitable U.S. market. Everyone agreed on...

The Pac-Man collab is just the start of Pizza Hut’s new nostalgia-driven ad campaign, which will bring back Book It! pins, red cups, and old menu items. Not that Domino's didn't have the Noid (cough), but as far as America's big pizza chains go, Pizza Hut is most likely to trigger a sense of nostalgia. For one, unlike other places, Pizza Hut has historically had a larger focus on dining in: the distinctive red roofs, the stained-glass lamps, the pans and buffet—much of what lured us into Pizza Hut as kids can't be replicated at home. However, as part of...

Bishop Consecrated in the Pachamama Rite (Pictures) The consecration of San Marcos de Arica Bishop Moisés Atisha, 51, Chile, in January 2015 included worshipping Inca idols like Pachamama (earth), Tata Inti (sun) and Malkus (mountain spirits). A carpet with coca leaves, seeds and bottles served as “altar”. Many bishops participated in the pagan ritual in chasubles and miter. Among them was the Apostolic Nuncio to Chile, Archbishop Ivo Scapolo, who is now Nuncio to Portugal. Also present was modernist Santiago Cardinal Ezzati, 78, whom Francis first left in place but then abandoned in March 2019 due to the abuse hoax....

Did Pope Francis defend Pachamama idolatry at Vatican in new Amazon synod exhortation? The pope wrote that it is 'possible to take up an indigenous symbol in some way, without necessarily considering it as idolatry February 12, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – In his new exhortation released today on the Amazon Synod, Pope Francis made statements about “indigenous” symbols and “certain religious practices” that could be interpreted as a defense of the use of the controversial “Pachamama” statues during the synod in Rome last year. In section 78 of Querida Amazonia, Pope Francis states that people should “not be quick to describe...

The Japanese games company Bandai Namco says Masaya Nakamura, the "Father of Pac-Man" who founded the Japanese video game company behind the hit creature-gobbling game, has died at age 91. Nakamura, who died on Jan. 22, held an honorary position at Bandai Namco, formed in 2005 from a merger of two game companies. He founded Namco in 1955. Its beginnings were humble--just two mechanical horses on the rooftop of a department store. Pac-Man, designed by video game maker Toru Iwatani, went on sale in 1980. Guinness World Record has named it the world's most successful coin-operated arcade game. Bandai Namco...

With racial issues in the United States coming to the forefront in the sports world, Major League Baseball players generally have been absent from the growing chorus of athletes who have publicly spoken out about problems they may see in the United States, and Baltimore Orioles outfielder Adam Jones thinks he knows why. "Baseball is a white man's sport," the Orioles star told USA Today. "We already have two strikes against us already,'' Jones told the newspaper, "so you might as well not kick yourself out of the game. In football, you can't kick them out. You need those players....

Trump’s Newest Attack Ad Depicts Clinton as Ms. Pac-Man Gobbling Emails

Donald Trump is taking aim at Republican presidential rival Sen. Ted Cruz, a tactical shift that could be risky on two fronts: It may have come too late, and the Texas senator might actually be benefiting from the attacks...... For Mr. Cruz, being under attack by other Republicans is a badge of honor, another backer said. "It's a quasi-endorsement of Cruz to the grass roots," said Saul Anuzis, former Michigan GOP chairman. Polls show a growing number of Trump backers see Mr. Cruz as their second choice. Cruz spokesman Rick Tyler said that when the campaign began, polls showed that...

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) was confronted by a Fox News Channel host Wednesday over previous comments he had previously made in favor of legalizing individuals who are in the U.S. illegally. The line of questioning was prompted by an exchange over immigration Cruz had with Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) at Tuesday night's GOP debate. 'Special Report' host Bret Baier played a 2013 clip of Cruz introducing an amendment that would have stripped out a proposal for a pathway to citizenship from the gang of eight’s so-called 'amnesty' bill. Cruz boasted at the time his amendment would have allowed illegal immigrants...

LAS VEGAS – After years of frustration and disappointment, following many starts and stops, perhaps the most talked about boxing match in history is finally a reality. Floyd Mayweather Jr. announced Friday that he's agreed to fight Manny Pacquiao in a welterweight bout May 2 at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas. It's a bout the public has been calling for since late 2009 and pits the two finest boxers of their generation in a historic event.

32 years later, Marshfield lets Pac-Man return to town Residents at town meeting voted to overturn a 1982 bylaw banning coin-operated video and arcade games from Marshfield businesses. email print Get your quarters ready, kids, because Pac-Man, Donkey Kong and Tron could soon be coming back to town. Residents at town meeting voted to overturn a 1982 bylaw banning coin-operated video and arcade games from Marshfield businesses. The vote was 203-175. The measure required a majority vote. The proposal was brought as a petition by resident Craig Rondeau, who said the ban on arcade games never made sense to him,...

LAS VEGAS -- Timothy Bradley promised to shock, though the biggest shock in his fight with Manny Pacquiao came from the judges' scorecards. In a fight Pacquiao seemed to have in hand, two judges decided otherwise, giving Bradley a split decision Saturday night and ending the Filipino fighter's remarkable seven-year unbeaten run. Promoter Bob Arum fumed, the crowd at the MGM Grand arena booed, and Pacquiao seemed stunned when the decision was announced. Arum said there would be a November rematch, though he blasted the way the decision went down. "I'm going to make a lot of money on the...

LAS VEGAS -- Timothy Bradley promised to shock, though the biggest shock in his fight with Manny Pacquiao came from the judges' scorecards. In a fight Pacquiao seemed to have in hand, two judges decided otherwise, giving Bradley a split decision Saturday night and ending the Filipino fighter's remarkable seven-year unbeaten run. Promoter Bob Arum fumed, the crowd at the MGM Grand arena booed, and Pacquiao seemed stunned when the decision was announced. Arum said there would be a November rematch, though he blasted the way the decision went down. "I'm going to make a lot of money on the...

The Bottsand class oil recovery ships cruise just like any other vessel, until they reach an oil spill. Then, they open like Pac-Man, transforming into a machine that can clean the oil from 140 cubic meters of water per hour. Created by the Deutsche Marine—the German Navy—the Bottsand-class opens in half, creating an area to trap water to process in its 790 cubic meter tank. Obviously, one is not enough to clean BP's oilpocalypse in the Gulf of Mexico, but at this point in this huge disaster, anything can help.

Got the heads up from Instapudit. Go to Google, Click Insert Coin button and enjoy. :)

A principal in the infamous Las Vegas shooting involving NFL star Adam "Pacman" Jones has died under mysterious circumstances in the Bronx - and now authorities are trying to determine if she was murdered. Sadia Morrison, a 26-year-old celebrity stylist, was found dead last Friday behind 1065 University Ave., a building in High Bridge where she may have gone to visit a friend or boyfriend, police said. At first, investigators thought she had jumped to her death, police sources said, but it now appears that is not the case. An autopsy was inconclusive, and the medical examiner is conducting further...

Dale Hansen of Dallas's Channel 8 News is "unhinged" about the Pacman Jones trade and believes signing Osama Bin Laden as Wide Receiver would be the moral equivalent. Video here: http://www.wfaa.com/video/index.html?nvid=239208