The good, bad and the dead
QUESTION Did Clint Eastwood put the names of friends and enemies on gravestones in his westerns?
in 1973’s High Plains Drifter, the first western directed by Clint Eastwood, the mentors’ graveyard is in the mining town of Lago, where The Man With no name metes out his particular brand of justice.
in publicity shots, he stands at a tombstone marked Donald Siegel, the name of the director of Clint’s box-office hits Coogan’s Bluff (1968), Two Mules For Sister Sara (1970), The Beguiled (1971), Dirty Harry (1971) and Escape From Alcatraz (1979).
Another tombstone is marked S. Leone, after Sergio Leone, legendary director of the trilogy A Fistful Of Dollars (1964), For A Few Dollars More (1965) and The Good, The Bad And The Ugly (1966).
There are tombstones dedicated to Universal producer David Brown and B. (Brian) G. Hutton, who directed Clint in Where Eagles Dare (1968) and Kelly’s Heroes (1970). As Eastwood concisely stated: ‘i buried my directors.’
Mark Smith, Leicester.
QUESTION What is the difference between a pickle and a chutney?
in BRiTAin, a chutney is a mixture of chopped fruit and vegetables simmered until reduced and thickened.
A pickle contains firmer, crispier, larger pieces or whole onions, shallots, beetroot, cauliflowers, red cabbage, pears or apples — not forgetting walnuts and eggs. it can be cooked or raw. Chutney and pickles are preserved in vinegar.
Then there’s relish, which is made from finely chopped or grated fresh produce. it is best eaten on the day of making.
British-style chutney has diverged from its indian origins. The word chutney derives from the Hindi word chatna meaning to lick or eat with appetite, and refers to fresh rather than pickled preparations. British pickles and chutneys are cooked for a long shelf-life so that autumn fruit can be preserved for use throughout the year.
Mrs Katie Walsh, Sudbury, Suffolk.
QUESTION How did Moscow in Ayrshire come by its name?
MOSCOW is a hamlet four miles from Kilmarnock. According to local history guides, it was originally called Moss-hall or Moss-haw, a Pictish name meaning field of hazel.
Moscow first appeared on Johnson’s Map of Ayrshire in 1828. The timing suggests the name change was made in celebration of napoleon’s retreat from Moscow, Russia, in 1812.
A stream running through the village was facetiously renamed the Volga Burn — the Volga is Europe’s longest river, running 2,325 miles through western Russia. There is a farmhouse called the Kremlin and land called Little Russia.
Both Moscows are on the same line of latitude, 55 degrees north.
Molle Stephens, Saltcoats, Ayrshire.
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