John Brown's body lies a-mouldering in the grave

We've all heard of the Battle Hymn of the Republic, right? "Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the lord / He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored" and so forth.

I knew the song originated in the American Civil War, but what I did not know was that it was based on a previous song - also a Civil War anthem - written a couple of years earlier, about one of my heroes, the terrorist/freedom fighter John Brown.

The "original" lyrics were written by William W. Patton and, according to this site, are:

( Hey! Song Lyrics! )

I am Spartacus!

The actor who played Spartacus in the show is being treated for cancer. Because of the initial treatment, they delayed production on the second season, and when it turned out it was going to be a long delay, they decided to make a special prequel from before he joined the ludus called Spartacus: Gods of the Arena, which airs tomorrow night.

Then it turned out he won't be coming back for the second season at all, telling them to go on without him. So, they recast the role, and are bringing in a new actor to play Spartacus.

Which is not what I would have done.

Not that my opinion means anything here of course, and really this is idle speculation not criticism as everyone involved has already proven they know what they're doing, and do it damn well.

However, considering that historically nobody knew who Spartacus really was, and there may have been more than one person claiming to be him (especially in the Kirk Douglas version), I'd have taken a cue from that, and done things a little differently.

( Warning: Spoilers Ahead. Watch season 1 before reading )