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Harsh, arrogant, and woefully incorrect by today's standards (the Germans were "huns," Filipinos he called "googs") Joseph "Vinegar Joe" Stilwell was the kind of general who fought almost as hard with friend as with foe. Some British troops wanted to shoot him. Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek, whom he called "Peanut," eventually helped force him out of his command in the China-Burma-India theater during World War II. Yet Stilwell, as polarizing as George S. Patton in real…...

Hollywood embellished history for this account of Us troops retaking Burma – realistic if you forget that their allies did most of the legwork

Director: Raoul Walsh

Entertainment grade: B+

History grade: D–

During the second world war, Japanese forces occupied Burma. Allied forces began their campaign to retake it in 1944.

People

Objective, Burma! begins with Us general Joseph Stilwell planning the invasion of Burma. "Here's where we start paying back the Japs," he growls, chewing on a cigarette in a dainty holder. General Stilwell did indeed smoke a cigarette in a holder, though you wouldn't have dared take the mickey out of it. He had one of the sharpest tongues in the army, earning him the nickname "Vinegar Joe", and didn't soften it for anyone – not even his good lady wife. "We have had a hard scrap in this bitched-up jungle," reads one typical billet-doux he sent her from Burma...

James Dean-esque musician Jeff Buckley has the "died too young" mystique, and that's been a big part of the devotion he's inspired in his fans, but there's another component as well: The guy was an actual, honest-to-God great singer.

When it was announced that "Gossip Girl" star Penn Badgley would portray Jeff Buckley in the indie biopic "Greetings From Tim Buckley" it was met with a hearty amount of skepticism, but it seems like the pretty boy actor might just be able to deliver in the singing department if a new YouTube video (via My Discman Broke) is any indication.

Badgley, who shot "Greetings" last year, decided to perform live in a club for the first time in his life this past weekend at Cameo Gallery, and played the cover of "Lilac Wine" from Buckley's 1994 album "Grace." You can compare it to the original here, and see that he's...

LONDON -- Legendary jazz nightspot Ronnie Scott's reopens its doors Monday following a £2.5 million ($4.6 million) renovation aiming to rekindle its nearly 50-year tradition of headlining top U.S. stars and spotlighting bright young British artists. Impresario Sally Greene, who owns the Old Vic and Criterion theaters, bought Ronnie Scott's in 2005 from alto sax player Pete King, who had founded the club in 1959 with tenor sax player Scott, who died in 1996. Over nearly five decades, the club played host to such American jazz greats as Zoot Sims, Stan Getz, Benny Golson, Bill Evans and Wes Montgomery as well as artists including Tom Waites, Elkie Brooks, Jack Bruce and Mark Knopfler.