Monday, January 17, 2005

There are more annoying show hosts on FoodTV But Jim O'Connor, who does their "Secret History of..." and "All American Festivals" is certainly enthusiastic but I think he needs to turn it down a bit... 10:33:23 PM    Notes [] Officially cool... Watching a show on the History-International channel on the creation of real Japanese swords. The Master Swordsmith starts the fire in his forge by quickly beating a small piece of steel until it it glows red and is hot enough to light paper. Factoids They are allowed to only make two swords a month. $25KUS for a sword by a modern Japanese Master Swordsmith...? Kenjitsu (samurai sword training) is much older and not the same thing as kendo (a post-WW II invention) - or so they say. Master Swordsmiths don't polish their own swords (!). There are specialists (Master Polishers?) who spend 10 days to turn the blade of a newly made sword into a work of art. [Note: This was from an episode of History International's show "Almanac": The Master: Masamune--Samurai Sword Master. - doesn't seem to be listed with any future airdates. 9:21:35 PM    Notes []

© Copyright 2009 Andy Stoffel. Last update: 7/19/09; 10:15:21 PM. This theme is based on the SoundWaves (blue) Manila theme.