Shortwave radio and Hollywood just don’t mix

Except for a brief mention here and there, shortwave themes seldom pop up on the silver screen. Last year’s acclaimed “Good Night, Good Luck” –- about an episode in the glorious life of journalist Edward R. Murrow, the CBS newsman who later became VOA director –- failed to mention his career as an international shortwave pioneer. “Pump Up the Volume” did have Christian Slater in 1990 as a teenage pirate broadcaster giving his schoolmates some sobering thoughts on life. But still, films about shortwave are rare if non-existent. So with a little help from IMDB, here is my list of movies I have compiled throughout the years in which shortwave –- or something alluding to it –- shows up on screen.

The Diary of Anne Frank (1959) – How can we forget the poignant scene of the Franks and the Van Dammes huddled around a shortwave receiver in their hiding place listening to the BBC announce the landing at Normandy? Or their faces of despair when they tune to Berlin radio and hear Hitler’s ranting and raging. But my favorite scene is when the viewer is treated to hearing the carillon in the nearby Westerkerk tower playing Merck toch hoe sterck, the same tune used today by Radio Netherlands. If you visit Amsterdam, you can still hear the 47 bells of the carillon, which was restored in 1959, playing Merck toch hoe sterck.

Johnny Shortwave (1996) -- Pirate broadcaster Johnny Shortwave (Emmanuel Mark) transmits his ideals for freedom and offers encouragement in a totalitarian fascist state depicted in this low budget sci-fi movie from Canada, which was sporadically shown in some US cities.

Overboard (1978) – This made for television movie starring Angie Dickinson (in her post-“Pepper” days) has an interesting opening scene. Most of the film takes place in the south Pacific on board a yacht where Dickinson and Cliff Robertson air out issues concerning their treacherous marriage. The first spoken words in this film come from a radio receiver on deck with an announcer in English identifying the station as Radio Tahiti!

Munich (2005) – Daniel Craig disagrees with a Palestinian terrorist staying inside a safe house in Cyprus over which station on a large multi-band portable they should tune. The terrorist wants to hear Arabic music from a distant station in his land while Craig wants more contemporary Israeli music. Although they cannot communicate in their respective languages, they settle on a rock and roll station.

The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone (1961) – Although no reference to shortwave is mentioned here, there is an interesting shot of a contemporary Grundig receiver sitting on a mantelpiece during a torrid scene between Warren Beatty and Vivian Leigh.

Intervista (1987) – Federico Fellini’s autobiographical movie has Marcello Mastroianni walking into the film studios of Cine Citta in Rome. For a brief moment, as if it were meant to be a subliminal message, you can hear RAI’s chirping bird interval signal played as he enters the gates.

Stamp investing scandal in Spain

Top executives of the collectibles trading dealers Afinsa and Forum Filatelico are in custody after a Spanish investigating judge determined that there is probable cause to charge them for defrauding an estimated 343,000 people in an alleged scheme involving postage stamps. Clients of the two companies were promised high interest returns in exchange for purchasing the stamps. Spanish authorities believe the conspiracy bilked these small-time investors of more than 5 billion euros.

The investigation got underway about a year ago after a complaint was filed with Spanish prosecutors. Authorities believe that the heads of Afinsa and Forum Filatelico laundered hundreds of thousands of their clients’ money. Last week, investigators said that both collectible trading dealers are on the verge of bankruptcy. Nevertheless, the directors lived in fabulous estates, bought purebred horses, traveled extensively, and owned homes in different countries. Even when police carried out their raids during a nationwide sweep, authorities reportedly uncovered 10 million euros in cash stashed in a concrete vault in one of the directors’ homes.

When the arrests were announced, clients stormed the offices of both trading dealers through Spain demanding their money but the police had closed the doors. Philately experts had warned that the stamps sold by Afinsa and Forum Filatelico were highly overpriced.

After Christie’s and Sotheby’s, Afinsa was the third largest trading collectibles dealers in the world. Spain’s guaranteed deposit insurance laws don’t cover investments made by these non-financial entities so clients of Afinsa and Forum Filatelico may have lost millions. Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zaptero promised changes to the existing laws, and said that the government was studying ways how to help the investors get back their money.

Puerto Rico's mentally ill leaders

There is a sickness in Puerto Rico. Governor Anibal Acevedo Vila ordered a near shutdown of all government and public services because the executive and the legislature cannot get together to come up with a solution to cure an estimated $740 million budget shortfall.

More than 95,000 public workers are without jobs and probably won’t be able to receive a paycheck until the beginning of July, when the 2007 fiscal year begins. Students, with just two weeks to go from finishing their academic year, cannot go to school because teachers have been told to stay home. More precarious is the lack of public health services in this island of 3.9 million. Because many islanders do not have health insurance, they have to rely on the fledging public health system. And the crisis is affecting those with chronic diseases, such as AIDS/HIV patients who may not be able to get their much needed prescriptions filled on time.

This amazing, unprecedented chapter in Puerto Rico’s history occurred when Gov. Acevedo Vila challenged the opposition controlled legislature to introduce a 7 percent sales tax to alleviate the financial woes in the public coffers. The governor maintains that the sales tax would enable the government to seek loans from private banks to keep the public services rolling for the next two months. However, opposition lawmakers, controlled by the embittered former governor-turned-senator, Pedro Rossello, won’t budge. They claim that Acevedo Vila has done nothing to stop run away public spending that goes to paying government salaries and maintaining the enormous bureaucracy. Meanwhile, Rossello, who supports statehood, has been in Washington trying to knock out a deal about the island’s future political status. With his actions far off in left field, he appears to be telling his constituents that the fiscal problem isn’t his problem. If that is the case, then he should resign as senator.

This indeed is a sick situation because of the mentally diseased politicians on this island who insist on putting their egos before the needs of their people. There are too many good citizens living in this U.S. commonwealth who should not have to go through this. Puerto Ricans took to the streets of San Juan last Friday demanding an end to the impasse but their voices went unheard. If the enfeebled elected leaders – such as Acevedo Vila, Rossello and House Speaker Jose Aponte – cannot come to terms and set aside their insolences, then it is time for the federal court to step in and demand that peace and tranquility return to paradise.