Elke Sommer and the art of living unapologetically

Gerd Kreutschmann, c. 1959

“You don’t have to explain yourself to anyone. It’s your life, live it in whatever way is best for you.” —the German screen goddess, model, and chanteuse Elke Sommer, offering sound advice that the American people—officious, self-righteous, and addicted to moral surveillance whilst in self-inflicted bondage to an orange-stained god-king with the morals of a sewer rat—would be wise to heed. Dignity begins in privacy, and self-determination is the one luxury no civilisation can afford to lose.

Elke Sommer was born on 5 November 1940 in war-darkened Berlin, emerging from the ruins of post-war Europe to embody a new ideal of continental allure that holds up perfectly to this day: blonde, self-possessed, and definitively cosmopolitan. Though she has not been particularly active in public life for decades, she remains an indisputable icon. Of the films in which I have seen her, I must say she was particularly on point as Paul Newman’s cool yet warm, mysterious yet luminous love interest—the spy Inger Lisa Andersson—in 1963’s masterful espionage thriller The Prize. Sensuality and intellect entwined. Alles Gute zum Geburtstag to this esteemed daughter of Deutschland. —Arthur Newhook, 5 November 2025.

Copyright 2025, Arthur Newhook.

ANCESTRY, AI, AND THE THREADS THAT BIND

On a Monday afternoon, apropos of nothing, and on a self-imposed news hiatus, making no effort to engage with the current tribulations of this declining world. I am instead experimenting with the latest iteration of ChatGPT, version 5, to which I submitted my current Facebook profile photograph, asking it to deduce my ethnicity. It correctly surmised that I am of predominantly Germanic and Celtic heritage, and, once I had confirmed its conclusion and enumerated the nations from which my ancestry derives, it produced for me the accompanying map.

In truth, I have little justification for including the blue-shaded regions—France, Belgium, and the Netherlands—since my known lineage from those lands is extremely minimal and dates back to just a scant few select ancestors from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries who assimilated into German families. But I included them anyway. Could have also included Canada and the United States itself, as I have ancestors who were among the original Puritan founders of Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York, and whose descendents were Loyalists who fled to the Maritimes after the American Revolution. ‘Canadian’ and ‘American’, however, are not really ethnicities unless one is of native blood (I am not). There is also the possibility that, through my maternal line, I may possess some measure of Eastern European ancestry. My mother was adopted as a young girl and never knew the identity of her father, though her birth mother claimed he was of Polish origin. My mother, however, has ever doubted the truth of this assertion, regarding herself as of purely English and Irish descent. A DNA test I once undertook disclosed no trace of Eastern European heritage (putting aside that Saxons, Celts, et al. all originated in areas in and around the Kievan Rus’ thousands of years ago); yet I harbour some doubt as to the accuracy of those things, despite the results aligning precisely with the findings of my own research and what I feel in my being.

The yellow-marked nations denote the principal sources of my bloodline, England above all and Germany not too far behind; yet Denmark—and, indeed, Ireland—*perhaps* ought likewise to be shaded yellow. One of my grandmothers, the aforementioned neglectful mother of my own, was born in Galway, Ireland in 1910 (raised in County Mayo), while a great-grandmother—my paternal grandmother’s mother—was born near Copenhagen in the 1890s. The Irish-born grandmother was at least half English and may have possessed Scottish ancestry as well. My paternal great-grandmother was indisputably Danish (her brother, my great-uncle Julius, visited us for a spell when I was but a very young boy, circa 1982; he was, of course, quite advanced in years and by then entirely blind.); yet, as the Danes are a Germanic people, I tend to regard my Danish heritage as an extension of my considerable German lineage, much as I see my Irish and Scottish heritage as twin branches of the same Celtic tree. Rightly or wrongly, I suppose. To be honest, I really do not feel very Irish in my soul, though maybe a tad Scottish; another story for another day.

Anyhow, whether I ought to be impressed by ChatGPT’s aptitude in this regard or faintly disquieted, I cannot say. AI shall prove both a blessing and a curse, ushering in remarkable progress yet also certain horrors—much like the Industrial Revolution itself, I suppose. Still, with such tools now at our disposal, few can claim legitimate cause for boredom, and ignorance has ever fewer excuses in an age where so much knowledge lies at our very fingertips. —Arthur Newhook, 11 August 2025.

Copyright 2025, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 on X-TWITTER, and at the same handle on FACEBOOK. BLUESKY - @arthurnewhook.bsky.social. REDDIT - https://www.reddit.com/r/StopTheIdiocracy/new/. DONATIONS GRATEFULLY ACCEPTED at https://tinyurl.com/ArthurNewhook.

Born #OTD 1914: Lída Baarová, the Czech actress who became the mistress of Joseph Goebbels

Photo: Sueddeutsche Zeitung Photo/INTERFOTO/Alamy Stock Photo

Lída Baarová’s dalliance with the Nazi minister of propaganda, Joseph Goebbels, which endured from 1936 to 1938, caused such grievous torment to Goebbels’ wife, Magda, that she appealed directly to Adolf Hitler for intervention. As Hitler was preparing for the invasion of the Sudetenland, he decreed that Herr Goebbels and Fräulein Baarová cease their affair, and forbade Baarová from performing on stage or screen. Exiled to Prague, now under the heel of Nazi rule, Baarová was eventually allowed to appear in a few productions. She also resided and performed in Fascist Italy during the Second World War. Upon the Allied victory in Europe, Baarová returned to Germany, whereupon she was seized by American military officers and sent back to Prague to face trial. 

Released in 1947 due to a lack of evidence to convict her, she then took a brief sojourn in Argentina with her then-husband. Thenceforth, after living in poverty and apparently unhappy in her marriage, she returned to Europe and revived her career to a small degree, appearing in several Italian films during the 1950s. In 1958, she moved to Salzburg, Austria, where she wedded a wealthy physician, and there spent the rest of her days, until she departed this mortal coil on 27 October 2000.

Photo: Lída Baarová, circa 1937, doth strike a poised and elegant stance, adorned in a most glamorous, embellished two-piece array with intricate design. Her raiment consists of a sparkling, sequined bodice and a matching skirt, bedecked with ornate and ruffled adornments. With both hands, she holds the sides of her skirt, spreading it wide to display its elaborate craftsmanship. Her tresses flow in soft waves, and she doth gaze off to the side with a composed and confident countenance.

Copyright 2024, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, BLUESKY - @arthurnewhook.bsky.social. DONATIONS GRATEFULLY ACCEPTED at https://tinyurl.com/ArthurNewhook.

Born #OTD 1970: Claudia Schiffer

Photo: Wayne Maser

Claudia Schiffer, the German supermodel who emulated the French goddess Brigitte Bardot like no other, is 54 years old today and still as beautiful as ever.

Photo: Model Claudia Schiffer graces the scene in a black swimsuit embellished with white polka dots. Kneeling upon a beach blanket, her hand rests gently upon her chest. Her hair, slightly disheveled by the breeze, complements her serene expression. The vast expanse of the ocean and distant umbrellas create a tranquil, summery backdrop.

Copyright 2024, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, BLUESKY - @arthurnewhook.bsky.social. DONATIONS GRATEFULLY ACCEPTED at https://tinyurl.com/ArthurNewhook.

Born #OTD 1904: Lili Damita

Warner Bros.

Upon this day, one hundred and twenty years ago, model, dancer, and actress Lili Damita graced the world with her presence, born in the fair town of Blaye, France. After a degree of success in the German cinema, she ventured to Hollywood in 1928, working for various studios over the next decade.

In 1935, she would take Errol Flynn, a young actor yet to achieve renown, as her husband. Alas, their union was fated to be short-lived, and Flynn later claimed her demeanor to be erratic and even violent throughout their seven years of marriage. Many years hence, their son, Sean Flynn, a photojournalist, vanished without a trace in Cambodia, during the brutal reign of the Khmer Rouge. He was never to be found, and was presumed dead in 1984. 

Lili Damita succumbed to the cruel clutches of Alzheimer's disease in the year 1994, at the age of 89.

Photo: A promotional still from the 1932 film 'The Match King' features a cheerful Lili Damita emerging from a small, old-fashioned bathtub, a towel chastely wrapped about her form. Behind her stands an older woman, played by Greta Meyer, holding up another towel to provide additional cover.

Copyright 2024, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, BLUESKY - @arthurnewhook.bsky.social. DONATIONS GRATEFULLY ACCEPTED at https://tinyurl.com/ArthurNewhook.

Quotables 8 May 2024: Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831) reflecting on the true value - or lack thereof - of public opinion, and the persistent collective failure to glean lessons from history

Portrait of Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, circa 1831. Public domain.

Food for thought for the day from the esteemed German philosopher, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, born in Stuttgart:

‘To be independent of public opinion is the first formal condition of achieving anything great or rational whether in life or in science’. - from ‘Grundlinien der Philosophie des Rechts’ (1820/1821).

‘What experience and history teach is this - that nations and governments have never learned anything from history, or acted upon any lessons they might have drawn from it’. - from ‘Lectures on the Philosophy of History’, published 1832.

Copyright 2024, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, BLUESKY - @arthurnewhook.bsky.social, and @arthurnewhook on POST. DONATIONS GRATEFULLY ACCEPTED at https://tinyurl.com/ArthurNewhook.

Fly high, Songbird: Remembering Christine McVie, and the major impact Fleetwood Mac had on the singles charts on both sides of the pond

Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

Reading many posts about the passing of the all-time great keyboardist and singer-songwriter Christine McVie, and it got me to thinking: ‘Just how many hits did Fleetwood Mac have?’ Well, I went to Wikipedia and looked up the numbers for the three biggest global markets: the United States, the UK, and (West) Germany. While most (not all) of these chart hits are well-remembered today all over the world, this served as a good exercise as to why chart positions do not tell the whole tale. A good number of the most popular songs from their two most popular albums - 1975’s Fleetwood Mac and 1977’s Rumours - were never released as commercial singles, and therefore were not eligible to chart. So for those wondering where are ‘The Chain,’ ‘Gold Dust Woman,’ ‘Songbird,’ the studio version of ‘Landslide,’ ‘Never Going Back Again,’ 'Oh Daddy,' 'World Turning,' or ‘I’m So Afraid,’ they are not here. This was actually very smart business, largely pioneered by The Beatles with Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, and then taken to another level by Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and most of the major rock bands of the time: Make people buy the album if they want the hits. And we all know the self-titled Fleetwood Mac and Rumours sold more copies than the Bible, and continue to sell in large numbers to this day …

More interesting caveats and factoids: Peter Green’s ‘Black Magic Woman’ was a middling chart hit in the UK in 1967, but became a major hit for Santana in 1970. The haunting ‘Hypnotized’ was a popular album rock radio hit in 1973, and one may still hear it on some classic rock stations today. ‘Sentimental Lady’ was originally done by the band in 1972 and was released as a single, but failed to chart anywhere. Bob Welch - with Christine McVie, Mick Fleetwood, and Lindsey Buckingham backing him - re-recorded it in 1978, and it did become a major hit in the United States at that time, peaking at number 8. And the Stevie Nicks classic ‘Silver Springs,’ from 1997’s huge-selling comeback album, The Dance, was not released as a commercial single, but the song was everywhere and undeniably a hit by any other standard. As for solo work, Christine McVie had one fairly big hit in 1984 with ‘Got a Hold of Me’ (number 10 in the U.S.), while Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham, and the aforementioned Bob Welch all had multiple hit singles on their own. Much of the reason for this disparity is that Christine simply did not record very much in the way of solo material, and she did retire from the music business for a lengthy spell beginning in 1998 before eventually returning. In fact, just in the last year she was out on the road with Fleetwood Mac …

Interesting to note that Fleetwood Mac’s most commercially successful period as a singles act in the UK was actually during the Peter Green era in the late ‘60s, whereas the period between 1975 and 1977 was easily their biggest period in the U.S. The singles from those two big records performed much more modestly in the UK and Germany, perhaps a testament to how dramatically American and European musical tastes diverged around that time. However, 45 years later, I’m fairly certain those albums and songs are just as well-known and beloved in the UK as they are in America or anywhere else. Their biggest-ever hit in the UK, and only number one, is an instrumental, the immortal ‘Albatross.’ Their only number one in America is, not surprisingly, ‘Dreams’ (but only 24 in the UK, and 33 in Germany.) Notice how barren the period between 1971 and 1974 is; the sad thing about that is the group actually made some really great records during that period. Future Games, the first album with Christine as a full member from 1971, is a particular favorite of mine. Sadly, ‘Dragonfly’ is the only Danny Kirwan song to chart anywhere (No. 52 in 1970 in the UK), but so many of his songs are absolute gems that deserved to be heard. My favorite Fleetwood Mac album will always be Then Play On, from 1969: Christine McVie was not an official member of the band at the time, but she was very much in their orbit as Mrs. John McVie, and does contribute some keyboards on it. (I will take this opportunity to point out that Mr. McVie is one of the most underrated bassists ever, bar none) ...

Commercial hits do not tell the whole tale of any artist or band, nor do they necessarily speak to musical quality. There are at least a few Fleetwood Mac ‘deep tracks’ - particularly from that commercially-barren period in the early ‘70s - that I would rank ahead of some of these songs that charted. ‘Sisters of the Moon’ may have only reached no. 86, but on every level it is far superior to ‘Big Love,’ a worldwide top ten in 1987. But the impressive tallies of Fleetwood Mac certainly speaks to how beloved and influential they will forever be. So, without further ado, here are the lists of all the top 100 Fleetwood Mac singles from the United States, the United Kingdom, and Germany. Thank you for your life, Christine McVie, and condolences to (first and foremost) John, Mick, Lindsey, Stevie, and all the others still living that came and went through this amazing band over the years. It is hard to imagine that with Christine gone, Lindsey Buckingham out of the picture, and everyone else being up in years that Fleetwood Mac is going to continue. I am immensely grateful this legendary band existed, and their music will live forever. - 

UK [28 total]: 1967 - 'Black Magic Woman' (37); 1968 - 'Need Your Love So Bad' (31), 'Albatross' (1); 1969 - 'Man of the World' (2), 'Oh Well' (2); 1970 - 'Green Manalishi' (10), 'Dragonfly' (52); 1976 - 'Rhiannon' (46), 'Say You Love Me' (40), 'Go Your Own Way' (38); 1977 - 'Dreams' (24), 'Don’t Stop' (32), 'You Make Loving Fun' (45); 1979 - 'Tusk' (6), 'Sara' (37); 1982 - 'Hold Me' (94), 'Gypsy' (46), 'Oh Diane' (9); 1983 - 'Can’t Go Back' (83); 1987 - 'Big Love' (9), 'Seven Wonders' (56), 'Little Lies' (5); 1988 - 'Everywhere' (4), 'Family Man' (54), 'Isn’t It Midnight' (60), 'As Long As You Follow' (66); 1990 - 'Save Me' (53), 'In the Back of My Mind' (58).

America [25 total]: 1969 - 'Oh Well' (55); 1975 - 'Over My Head' (20); 1976 - 'Rhiannon' (11), 'Say You Love Me' (11), 'Go Your Own Way' (10); 1977 - 'Dreams' (1), 'Don’t Stop' (3), 'You Make Loving Fun' (9); 1979 - 'Tusk' (8), 'Sara' (7); 1980 - 'Think About Me' (20), 'Sisters of the Moon' (86); 1981 - 'Fireflies' (60); 1982 - 'Hold Me' (4), 'Gypsy' (12), 'Love In Store' (22); 1987 - 'Big Love' (5), 'Seven Wonders' (19), 'Little Lies' (4); 1988 - 'Everywhere' (14), 'Family Man' (90), 'As Long As You Follow' (43); 1990 - 'Save Me' (33); 1998 - 'Landslide,' live version (51); 2003 - 'Peacekeeper' (80).

Germany [18 total]: 1968 - 'Albatross' (19); 1969 - 'Man of the World' (23), 'Oh Well' (5); 1970 - 'Green Manalishi' (16); 1976 - 'Go Your Own Way' (11); 1977 - 'Dreams' (33), 'Don’t Stop' (41); 1979 - 'Tusk' (7), 'Sara' (44); 1982 - 'Hold Me' (64), 'Gypsy' (35), 'Oh Diane' (46); 1987 - 'Big Love' (17), 'Seven Wonders' (47), 'Little Lies' (3); 1988 - 'Family Man' (29); 1990 - 'Save Me' (36); 1997 - 'Temporary One,' live version (99).

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