| A Perfectly Cromulent Blog |
| Pop culture related smart-assery | |
| Ultimele Titluri | |
| A Perfectly Cromulent Blog |
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| "I'm not normally a praying man, but if you're up there, please save me Superman." Wed, 30 Nov 2011 21:02:00 +0200 A friend of mine and I were just (like, earlier today) discussing Cage's recent fire sales of his previous belongings in an attempt to stave off bankruptcy, when looky here: A near-pristine copy of Action Comics #1 -- better known as the first appearance of Superman -- sold at an online auction Wednesday night for a staggering $2.16 million. The seller? None other than cash-strapped actor Nicolas Cage, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Cage turned a super-sized profit, the Reporter noted. He bought the 1938 Man of Steel original 14 years ago for roughly $150,000. The buyer has remained anonymous. But "he's an extremely passionate collector, and he treasures owning the best of the best," said Vincent Zurzolo, chief operating officer of New York-based ComicConnect.com, which conducted the auction. "In particular, he loves Superman." Who doesn't love Superman? Wait...I don't, but that isn't really important. What's more impressive than a funnybook pulling in two million smackeroos is the fact that, apparently, Nicolas Cage made a sound business investment. The dude's weird Bell curve career trajectory has been documented before (by me, even). And in the long list of questionable decisions are his ill-advised spending habits. Cage's purchases (made before he was forced to appear in G-Force, I assume) include a 40-acre Bahamanian island, a "flotilla" of yachts, and not one but two honest-to-Arthur castles. So while it isn't particularly surprising the avowed Superman man nabbed a copy of Action Comics #1, it's nothing short of astounding he actually made any money off the deal. Hopefully a couple million bucks will keep him from selling son "Kal-El" to white slavers anytime soon.... |
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| Outrage! Tue, 13 Sep 2011 22:01:00 +0300 I used to care about this: Previously, it was reported that the version of "Star Wars - Episode I: The Phantom Menace" included in this release would replace the puppet version of the Yoda character with a computer-generated creation. Then on Tuesday, an online report by Devin Faraci suggested a revelation almost as troubling as the news that Luke and Leia had been brother and sister all along: in a climactic scene from "Return of the Jedi," when Darth Vader hurls the evil Emperor to his demise on the Death Star, he would now shout "No!" (In all previous versions of "Jedi," Vader has committed this crucial deed in silence.) [...] Though it may sound like a minor detail among the millions in the "Star Wars" movies, this alteration has not sat well with many admirers of the film franchise. Among the angered fans is Simon Pegg, the "Shaun of the Dead" star and geek-culture icon, who wrote on his Twitter account that he always "loved Vader's wordless self sacrifice" and called the change a "clueless revision." Why do we care about this anymore? I mean, I've written more on the subject of the Star Wars universe than I should be comfortable admitting in public, but even I've given up on howling into the void after decades of Greedo shooting first, Jar Jar, and Hayden Christensen. Does it make sense that Lucas continues to tinker -- okay, inexplicably fuck around with -- his original creations? Not really, but this is the same guy who produced Howard the Duck and once considered the Star Wars Holiday Special a good idea. But the fact remains; they're his films. If he wants to replace Alec Guinness with a computer-generated Snagglepuss, it's totally within his rights to do so. And you have no recourse whatsoever. Unless, you know, you don't want to pay money for the Blu-rays. But that would be just nutty. But here's the problem: you can't reproduce nostalgia. Even if you were somehow miraculously able to track down the theater where you first saw A New Hope, and even if they were playing an unadulterated original cut of the first movie, and even if you somehow managed to get together everybody you were with when you saw that first movie, and even if you by some crazy happenstance were able to find that t-shirt you were wearing that fateful afternoon...it still wouldn't matter. You will never replicate that (for me) eight-year old feeling you had when you first saw the twin suns setting on Tattooine. So stop trying. Pass the movies along to your kids if you're so inclined, and then stick with the DVD editions that are currently out there. Failing that, just ignore them. Just like Lucas ignores the plaintive whining of his supposed fans.... |
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| "More skin on HBO! L.H. Puttgrass signing off and heading for the tub!" Sun, 10 Apr 2011 23:14:00 +0300 I recently re-subscribed to HBO after a protracted absence. The network and I parted ways back in 2008 when The Wire ended, and it's been a pretty amicable separation. But now there's a new series starting up. I've read George R.R. Martin's Game of Thrones...a few times between first picking it up and the time the last book in the series was released...six years ago. The next volume comes out in July, an announcement that I'm sure in no way coincides with the debut of the series based on the first book. I'll be writing recaps of the series for the Houston Press, and because I'm a Professional Freelance Entertainment Journalist the subscription will be totally tax deductible, which is pretty sweet. But in any event, I'm enjoying HBO again. Few networks would be so awesome as to air G-String Divas followed by Ninja Assassin followed by Johnny Dangerously. I may never sleep again. ... |
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| Where to find my crap Sat, 29 Jan 2011 13:53:00 +0200 Howdy, disco citizens. I thought I'd at least get in one entry during calendar year 2011, so...here it is. Most of my *cough* talents are being utilized over on the Houston Press blogs( though they even let me write in the print edition on occasion). So I have a twice-a-week column on Hair Balls about pop culture related smart assery (sound familiar?) called "Pop Rocks." I still do reviews, in a slightly different format, on HP's Art Attack blog. "Reviews For The Easily Distracted" go up every Friday. Finally, I do the odd concert review and stupid ass list on Rocks Off, the music blog. I also dabble in shitty horror-comedy novel writing. Look for my first book some time after the Mayan apocalypse. So there you go. I know some of you, inexplicably, miss APCB. I kind of do as well, but being your own boss means deadlines often get missed, and it pays for shit.... |
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| Annual Rocky Dennis Post Fri, 12 Nov 2010 15:56:00 +0200 These things are cool: Ze Twins running out to meet me when I get home from work Taking the family to the zoo on a crisp autumn morning Cherry Coke Zero The Daft Punk Tron: Legacy score: These things are a drag: Watching Ze Twins like a hawk to make sure they aren't developing the same disorder as She Who Shall Not Be Named Blinking and realizing it's been your oldest is about to turn seven and the twins are already almost 16 months old Pibb Zero *sigh*...Cars 2: ... |
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| "There is no Wed, 13 Oct 2010 00:25:00 +0300 Mighty Casey Albarn has struck out...at the prodcers of Fox's second highest rated karaoke show: Damon Albarn has joined the ranks of musicians lining up to criticise Glee. The Gorillaz and Blur frontman claimed the US TV series would be "forgotten in a few years" and that he would not allow his music to be used on the show. "We wouldn't let that happen," said Albarn. "And not that they haven't asked us because they haven't, and now they definitely won't." Now, I'm only peripherally aware of the doings and transpirings in Britpop, but I think it's great that Albarn is so concerned about the legacy of his music. Not many musicians have the artistic vision -- much less the marketing acumen -- to ensure their songs are only used in movies and TV shows that will endure through the generations. Let's take a look at some of those that have passed Albarn's rigorous litmus test. The Love Guru -- "Song 2" Dead Man On Campus -- "Cowboy Song" Dude, Where's My Car? -- "It Could Be You" The Eight (TV) -- "Song 2" Nancy Drew -- "Dare" The Karate Kid -- "Dirty Harry" Charlie's Angels -- "Song 2" Talk about your classics. Hell, you could program a medium-sized film festival with the movies and TV shows that use "Song 2" alone. Why, it was even used in that crappy Super Bowl episode of The Simpsons (ob APCB self reference). In the interest of embarrassing full disclosure, I write a weekly Glee recap over on the Houston Press' Art Attack blog. I do this for two reasons: they asked, and it pays. I won't be defending a show that often sends me into uncontrollable muscle spasms of rage, but I find it interesting that Albarn appears to have no problem letting his music get play on some of the most horrendous crap released in the last 15 years. And the best part is, they haven't even asked him yet. Apparently this is some kind of pre-emptive strike against Ryan Murphy, who will undoubtedly run out of Streisand and show tunes some time around 2025. And not to make any predictions about the future of Gorillaz or any of Albarn's side projects, but he might just want to consider it at that point. I just wish I could find the actual TV spot for Starship Troopers that used "Song 2"... ... |
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| "You know how much a patent clerk makes?" Tue, 28 Sep 2010 22:04:00 +0300 If, as Einstein once said, "The The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results," then the corollary to that has to be repeating the same fucking Einstein quote over and over again expecting it to have the same impact as the first dozen times you said it. Though if anybody could speak to insanity, it's somebody with hair like Frederich Frankenstein's: I'm looking at every goddamn Tea Party candidate that's repeated that tired axiom in interviews over the last couple months. Here's a tip: if y'all want to avoid accusations of being controlled by the same cabal of uber-rich puppetmasters, try turning to a different page in Bartlett's every once in a while. Apparently that Churchill guy had some good zingers, as well. ... |
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| Punt, Pass, and Bitch Mon, 13 Sep 2010 20:13:00 +0300 So Brandon, a fellow writer on the Houston Press blogs, reviewed the Adam Lambert show last week. He didn't like it, and said so in his review on Rocks Off. Say what you will about Lambert, his fans are enthusiastic, and they're up on their Google Alerts. The review now (as of the evening of Monday, Sept. 13) has over 660 comments, all overwhelmingly of the opinion that Brandon is a homophobic prick who should be fired, with many questioning whether or not he was even at the show in question. Chris, editor of Rocks Off, posted an entry earlier today clarifying the review and attempting to calm people down. No dice. That entry has over 200 comments, and it's been up less than 12 hours. Now I know what my next Pop Rocks column will be about. Anyway, I point out all of this to explain why I was searching Lambert sites to see if I could find some kind of call to arms on a Lambert message board somewhere. My search took me to this site, and the attendant banner ad, which struck me funny. I'm not trying to stereotype anybody, but it's been my experience that there's very little cross-pollination between the Glam and Raider nations.... |
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| We Can Do It Sun, 05 Sep 2010 11:51:00 +0300 Watching This Week With Christiane Amanpour (boy, that just rolls off the tongue, doesn't it?) this morning, and something Paul Krugman said stuck with me: "This actually kind of resembles 1938, when FDR cut back to soon and the economy went back into recession. People were deeply pessimistic; they said it's never going to recover, it's going to last for a decade or more, just more demand won't do it, we need to cut that budget deficit. Then we were, in a way, very fortunate that the war came along and took off all the restraints and we had a recovery that was not structural." And then it hit me: 1938. What was the most powerful nation in the world in 1938? And what nation has one of the best in the world right now? Germany's unemployment rate held steady at 7.6 percent in August as an improving economy bolstered the labor market, official figures showed Tuesday. [...] Export growth helped the German economy to grow by 2.2 percent in the second quarter over the previous three-month period. Germany's central bank, the Bundesbank, recently forecast that it will grow by about 3 percent in 2010 -- up sharply from a previous prediction of 1.9 percent. Surveys have shown business and consumer confidence continuing to rise. German unemployment was kept in check at the height of the economic crisis by a government-subsidized short-time work plan that allowed employers to reduce workers to reduce production without cutting their work force. The job market has remained strong even as the program loses significance. The labor agency estimated that, in June -- the latest month for which it has figures -- 406,000 people were in the short-work program, 82,000 fewer than in May and down 960,000 on a year earlier. It's so obvious I'm surprised it hadn't occurred to me already. When dealing with a seemingly systemic economic slump, the best way to goose manufacturing and job creation is...to go to war with Germany. I'll just leave this here. ... |
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| "Looks like we got ourselves a reader..." Tue, 03 Aug 2010 23:36:00 +0300 ... |
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