What Could Have Been: Louie Giglio & Obama’s Inauguration

Posted on January 11, 2013 by Parker Hancock in Faith, Featured, Guest Spots, Misc. Posts | Leave a comment

As 2013 gets started, we’re honored at The Wise Guise to not only add new contributors and guest writers, but also expand the topics we cover, questions we raise, and issues discussed. Today’s post is written by one of Joseph’s best friends in law school, Parker Hancock. We hope Parker will continue to contribute to The Wise Guise. Today’s post stems from some current events that Parker and Joseph discussed in detail recently as they caught up during the first week of the new semester.

Today, silently simmering below the lead stories on firearm accessories and commemorative coins was a story about an evangelical pastor asked to give the benediction at Obama’s inauguration, who had to step down because of a fifteen-year old sermon on homosexuality. It was a tremendously hopeful story that has turned tragic. The story really starts in 1997.

New Member of The Wise Guise Introduction – Alex Beene

Posted on January 11, 2013 by Alex Beene in Featured, Misc. Posts | Leave a comment

We are proud to announce our second new addition to the staff in Alex Beene. Alex has contributed for us multiple times, most recently with his Top 12 Pop Culture Item’s of 2012. We are excited to see what he has in store and encourage you to check out his bio that follows…

I always picture a bio of myself that is much more witty and eloquent than the one I deserve. In that dream portrait of self-description, I’m described as a world traveler, beloved educator and well-respected former journalist. In reality, I’m just a red-headed white kid from the rural South who grew up on a farm and has just been incredibly lucky in life to do most of the things I’ve desired.

Born and raised in Henderson (pronounced “Land-MASS-between-Memphis-AND-Nashville”), Tennessee, I was blessed to have a family and friends that were very supportive of my aspirations. I attended the University of Mississippi, where I expanded on my intense love for cinema by becoming the Founder of the Ole Miss Film Association and the Arts & Life Editor for “The Daily Mississippian.” It was during my time with the paper I met fellow Wise Guise writer, Warner Russell, a unbelievable gifted columnist who I’ve had the fortune to keep in contact with in the years after I departed Oxford.

Since then, I’ve worked in politics (don’t mention it, please), as a communications specialist for General Electric and finally in the job I have now, which is a real treat: working for the state of Tennessee to prepare high school seniors for college in nine county schools. The job allows me to work with some great young people, while maintaining a flexible schedule that allows me to travel and – most importantly – catch as many movies as possible.

You’re dealing with a huge cinephile here. I’m a member of both the American and British Film Institutes and have served on committees within the Walt Disney Company as a longtime shareholder. That’s not my only infatuation, though. I’m an avid fan of the New Orleans Saints and, of course, the Ole Miss Rebels. I also love the opportunity to travel (over 30 states and 10 countries seen so far!) and always enjoy the chance to go experience diverse cultures and meet new people.

There’s a great team of writers at the Wise Guise that consistently blow me away with some of the best columns online. I’m honored to be a regular contributor here.

Cultural Milestone Day: Destiny’s Child & Singing Justin Timberlake Return!

Posted on January 11, 2013 by Joseph Williams in Featured, Misc. Posts, Music | Leave a comment

There are some days where you come home from school, enter the world of pop culture, and have an overwhelming sense of magical, mystical, heartwarming deja vu.

Today was one of those days, people.

With everything you could possibly want from the late 1990s outside of TRL being on TV when you got home, the stars aligned today to give so many of us what we’ve wanted for so long. Or at least sophomore year of college.

‘Mama’ Looks Terrifying

Posted on January 10, 2013 by Clayton Martin in Featured, Movie Previews, Movies | Leave a comment

First off, I’m not a big horror film guy. I like the classics and can always go for a good psychological thriller-type horror movie but overall I’m more of a comedy/drama/anything-but-horror guy.

I do however have a lot of respect for Guillermo del Toro as a filmmaker. And when it comes to the new film he’s producing, Mama, I don’t know what to do. Since I’m a big list guy, let’s break this down. Read more

New Member of The Wise Guise Introduction – Jeremy Wilson

Posted on January 10, 2013 by Jeremy Wilson in Featured | Leave a comment

We are excited to announce the first of several new additions to The Wise Guise crew in Jeremy Wilson! Jeremy has joined us several times before covering various topics and we’re glad to have his commitment to join us now on a weekly basis in 2013! The following is his bio-

I was born and raised in Lakeland, Fl– the 21st largest city in Florida, but its the largest city in the state if you exclude the 20 ahead of it. Lakeland, located in between Tampa and Orlando, is a hotbed of high school football talent. I spent my high school playing days chasing those guys all over the field.

I fled Gator country after high school and was the fifth and final member of my family to graduate from the University of Tennessee. I met fellow Wise Guise staffer Clayton Martin in Gibbs Hall, where we started our friendship and also where I started my video game domination over him. I graduated in December of 2012, studying Sport Management and Business Administration. I am now working as an Assistant Golf Professional at a golf course in Chicago, IL, as of April 2013.

My life has predominantly revolved around sports. In college, I was a basketball manager at Tennessee for 2.5 years, where I learned how to pick up Coach Pearl’s kids from school and a few basketball related items. I love television and movies, and I don’t understand how some people choose to live without either/both. My sports alliances are the Tennessee Vols, Indianapolis Colts (because of Peyton, and now I’m a fan for the long haul), Orlando Magic (my only hometown area allegiance), and the New York Yankees (semi regional allegiance due to Spring Training in Tampa).

I will write mainly about sports, and occasionally about quirky day to day observations. Always feel free to comment on my writing, but just know that I will take it personally and most likely send an insult your way that will cross the line. Just kidding, sort of.

Feel free to follow me on twitter, @JeremyWilson412, and add me on MySpace by searching “Don’t Read my Stuff if you’re on MySpace.”

A Haunted House: Really America?

Posted on January 10, 2013 by Warner Russell in Featured, Movie Previews, Movies | 2 Comments

Spoof movies are very, very bad. They might be the lowest form of humor. Parody is funny. Spoofing is for stupid people. Read more

Book Review: Home

Posted on January 9, 2013 by Joseph Amagliani in Featured, Guest Spots, Misc. Posts | 1 Comment

Home. Good and bad. Comfort and turbulence. Stability and volatility. Clarity and confusion.

The wide range of adjectives people use to describe their particular home life merely scratches the surface of just how massive and dynamic a topic this is. For many, home is a place of rest, a place where comfort and clarity reign. However, for countless others, home is a blend of strife and unrest. Read more

Should the Memphis Grizzlies Trade Rudy Gay?

Posted on January 8, 2013 by Clayton Martin in Basketball, Featured, Sports | 2 Comments

Fans of the Memphis Grizzlies have gotten spoiled quickly. We went from PLEASE MAKE THE PLAYOFFS to PLEASE WIN A PLAYOFF GAME to WIN A DAMN TITLE! I can’t say this process happened overnight, but it’s amazing how the darkness of the bad memories fades when the present potential seems so overwhelmingly bright.

At the moment, the Grizzlies are sitting 4th in the Western Conference at 22-10 despite playing the 7th toughest schedule so far. Overall the Grizz have won 35 of their last 48 games dating back to the end of March. So why change anything??? I’m glad you asked. Read more

The Bachelor Returns

Posted on January 8, 2013 by Liz Riggs in Featured, Reality Check, Television | 2 Comments

While most of you idiots were watching the boring National Championship yesterday, I was guh-lued to my seat for this season’s premiere of The Bachelor. For everyone who is reading this simply so that I don’t disown you as a friend or future spouse, I’ll quickly fill you in (really, don’t watch the show, it’s terrible).

New Year of TV, New Downton Abbey Goodness

Posted on January 7, 2013 by The Wise Guise in Featured, Misc. TV, Television, TV Reviews | Leave a comment

Happy 2013 Wise Guise Family! We hope the holidays treated you well and you, too, are excited for everything the new year always brings!

Like many years before this one, we’re immediately thrown into the dog days of the NBA season, postseason football, the Oscar movie season, and the return of many of our favorite TV shows. With the return of ABC’s dating reality show extravaganza this week, Liz Riggs will be returning with her hilarious weekly coverage for everyone, enjoyable for both fans of the show and those of us who don’t have a clue what’s going on.